AUDIO: Onboard sucks

[SunSamurai]

Not sure where else to post this.

Anyway my mobo is the EPoX 9NDA3+. Onboard sound, seems really tin-like. Im not sure how to better explain it. Kind of hollow, like there is too much treble. tweaking the equalizer improved the sound, but not that much. Base is lacking, and get distorted at higher volumes. I messed with volume sliders and improved that as well.. but its still present sometimes.

My headphones are just some cheap radio-Shack over-the-ear ones. Maybe 20$ worth. I dont think its the headphones, but i might as well mention them becuase its a little hard to believe onboard sound could be this bad from what i remember soundstorm being like on my older mobo.

Someone tell me im not crazy? I game mostly and listen to some music. Can someone recommend a audio solution 30-50$ perhaps? All i want is some deep base and treble that doesnt make my ears bleed. Rich full sound. (who doesnt want that)

Thanks.


EDIT:

Well I guess I'll be getting a new soundcard. I cant for the life of me remember what I did with my old SounbBlaster Live!

Anyone have anything to add along with http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=290223 in soundcards? games are the main focus, though i listen to music as well. i can wait a few months on the headphone.. and I'm not going to go for X-fi for at least a year, so my goal now is a soundcard, $50 or less.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

With that budget you could either get some decent headphones or a decent soundcard, but not really both.

You should try to determine which one is the problem...

Some methods could be
1. Listen to a CD in your computer and then listen to the same CD in a portable CD player with the same headphones
2. Bring your headphones to a friend's computer with different integrated sound or a soundcard and listen to the same source
3. Borrow some different headphones and try them with your computer

... or whatever else you can come up with.

 

[SonicIce]

wow aeternitas, i feel exactly the same way with my Epox 8KDA3J. Except I have niceish headphones (Senn 497) and it still sounds like crap. CD's sound so much deeper coming from stereo or even portable with my phones. maybe we should check out the chaintech Av-710 or an audigy 2?
maybe try Sennheiser HD-497's + Chaintech AV-710

 

[grimlykindo]

Every onboard sound sucks!!

I have a Creative SoundBlaster Audigy Live that blows my Abit onboard sound out of the water. And that card is worth about $20 :shocked:

 

[MNOB07]

this will suffice:

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=290223

 

[SonicIce]

who really thinks EAX3/4 are worth audigy 2 price?

 

[RyanW2050]

Usually the problem with onboard sound is electrical noise from the mobo.

 

[Ronin]

Originally posted by: grimlykindo
Every onboard sound sucks!!

I have a Creative SoundBlaster Audigy Live that blows my Abit onboard sound out of the water. And that card is worth about $20 :shocked:

This statement is blatantly errant, aside from the Audigy being a decent sound card. There are SEVERAL onboard sound cards that do a damn good job (look at the Realtek line, or perhaps the onboard 24bit SB Live).

 

[Megatomic]

Today's onboard sound is leaps and bounds ahead of those from a few years back. The Realtek codec on my MSI K8N Neo2 Plat. is really nice, the sound quality it produces exceeds my ears ability to discern (some loss due to amplidyne generators I worked around in the Navy). I tried an Audigy2 and also the Chaintech AV-710, but I wound up going back to the onboard sound in the end.

I'd recommend putting that money towards better speakers or headphones aeternitas. Just my humble opinion.

 

[Kogan]

I recently down-graded from a sound blaster live to onboard sound on my Epox 9nda3j. Sounds exactly the same to me. But then again, I'm using quality powered speakers.

Typically you get sound quality from your speakers. You get features and efficient cpu utilization from your soundcard.

It could be your headphones, you might have them plugged into the wrong output, or some sound hardware/software is screwed (in which case another sound card will help).

I recently sold my sound blaster live value for $10 on the F/S forums. You may be able to pick up a similar deal. One of these will be all you need if you just plan on using headphones.

 

[milleron]

I'm happy with the quality of the sound from the onboard Realtek chip on my A8N-SLI Premium. However, there's another facet to this question. I think the onboard chips cause much more CPU usage than Sound Blasters. This can cause real problems for gamers in which onboard sound can skip or, worse, cause degradation in the game because of the sound hogging too many CPU cycles.

Ron

 

[Allio]

The onboard on my MSI KN72 Delta2-LSR sounds like crap compared to the onboard on my Gigabyte 7VRX. It has no bass at all

 

[orangat]

Originally posted by: Megatomic
Today's onboard sound is leaps and bounds ahead of those from a few years back. The Realtek codec on my MSI K8N Neo2 Plat. is really nice, the sound quality it produces exceeds my ears ability to discern (some loss due to amplidyne generators I worked around in the Navy). I tried an Audigy2 and also the Chaintech AV-710, but I wound up going back to the onboard sound in the end.

I'd recommend putting that money towards better speakers or headphones aeternitas. Just my humble opinion.

Onboard sound has made good progress the last couple of years but the onboard sound chip (AL850) on the m/b in question has the same resolution than a soundblaster live (and definitely much less than a audigy2 or chaintech 710). Since your hearing is permanently off, I won't hold it against you if you don't discern the difference.

I think the 655,658 chips are better but even then, onboard sound is typically implemented in a slid-shod manner with rf noise bleeding all over the place. Typically most users don't notice because even high-end PC speaker sets perform relatively poorly compared to a cheap HT speaker set.

I would try another pair of headphones and/or plug in a cheap soundcard, a live or audigy 1 or better would do and see what happens.

 

[Cerb]

Headphones: Koss KSC75.

It's probably your sound, but for cheap headphones ($20 or less shipped, but BB usually carries them for $15 or so), the KSC75 are hard to beat, and I will plug them whenever the chance arises. A AV710 should be a good.

Often, onboard sound will get noise from components.

 

[Excelsior]

Originally posted by: SonicIce
wow aeternitas, i feel exactly the same way with my Epox 8KDA3J. Except I have niceish headphones (Senn 497) and it still sounds like crap. CD's sound so much deeper coming from stereo or even portable with my phones. maybe we should check out the chaintech Av-710 or an audigy 2?
maybe try Sennheiser HD-497's + Chaintech AV-710

Agreed on that recommendation...thats what I would get on a budget. I love my 710 and my suitemate got a pair of 497s from amazon since I recommended them, and he loves them!

 

[sniperruff]

any sound card will be better than on-board sound. yes even a $7 card will probably sound better. have sb live! from years ago and i still love it.

 

[SunSamurai]

Thanks for all the posts. I didnt mention that the sound chip is the AL850 realtek. Basically no bass. Aside from the audio the headphones i want to get are these; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16826106328 if anyone can suggest something better for around the same price or less Im all ears

By the way Im listening to a CD directly though my DVD drive. It sounds better. I am unclear on why they would even include onboard audio if its going to be beaten by a DVDRW drive.

 

[Excelsior]

280s are good, I think you can get them for cheaper somewhere else though.

 

[Xyclone]

I love:
-Sennheiser 280's.

Despise:
-Onboard sound! :|

 

[SunSamurai]

Well I guess I'll be getting a new soundcard. I cant for the life of me remember what I did with my old SounbBlaster Live!

Anyone have anything to add along with http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=290223 in soundcards? games are the main focus, though i listen to music as well. i can wait a few months on the headphone.. and I'm not going to go for X-fi for at least a year, so my goal now is a soundcard, $50 or less.