So, been considering picking up a sound card for the computer. Finally fed up with buzzing on all onboard chip sets. However, I can't seem to find a suitable solution. My requirements are simple, almost basic, but from what I can gather, there have been no new card releases in years. Where are the new cards? Why have there been no updates in the past few years? I've been through four boards with onboard sound since my Audigy died and not a single one didn't have buzzing or high-pitched whining.
Before you ask, no, I don't hear the noise if I unplug the headphones or turn the PC off.
Criteria:
1. PCI-Express. I'm not upgrading this regularly. It has to last, which means after PCI finally disappears. External is more clutter, easier to lose, a lot easier to break, so USB is out of the question.
Quite frankly, I'd prefer manufacturers stop producing motherboards with PCI slots, but that's a different discussion.
2. Windows 7 x64 driver support out of the box. Like I said, I want to keep this around for a while. That means I don't want to have to pray there's a workaround to get Vista drivers working. I don't want to try wrestling with beta drivers or risking some system update that later breaks the driver and choosing to keep my system insecure or ditching the sound card because the vendor stopped support before Windows 7 even came out. I want it to work now with no OS compatibility issues and having continuing support for at least a couple years from now.
3. I don't really game, and when I do, I'm less concerned with immersion and more concerned about position. Music playback is a priority, EAX I couldn't care less. My setup is modest, mainly a pair of headphones. That means quality analog playback. Digital is unnecessary.
Very short and simple list, yet nothing fits the bill. I basically want the same functionality I get with onboard, but without the line noise. A lot of people recommend Xonar cards, but those are not only a old/discontinued, their driver support for Win 7 is shoddy or nonexistent. I don't want to drop a couple hundred bucks for a random BSOD generator and I don't want to pay a hundred bucks in restocking/return shipping fees testing cards. I just want a basic card that works well.
Before you ask, no, I don't hear the noise if I unplug the headphones or turn the PC off.
Criteria:
1. PCI-Express. I'm not upgrading this regularly. It has to last, which means after PCI finally disappears. External is more clutter, easier to lose, a lot easier to break, so USB is out of the question.
Quite frankly, I'd prefer manufacturers stop producing motherboards with PCI slots, but that's a different discussion.
2. Windows 7 x64 driver support out of the box. Like I said, I want to keep this around for a while. That means I don't want to have to pray there's a workaround to get Vista drivers working. I don't want to try wrestling with beta drivers or risking some system update that later breaks the driver and choosing to keep my system insecure or ditching the sound card because the vendor stopped support before Windows 7 even came out. I want it to work now with no OS compatibility issues and having continuing support for at least a couple years from now.
3. I don't really game, and when I do, I'm less concerned with immersion and more concerned about position. Music playback is a priority, EAX I couldn't care less. My setup is modest, mainly a pair of headphones. That means quality analog playback. Digital is unnecessary.
Very short and simple list, yet nothing fits the bill. I basically want the same functionality I get with onboard, but without the line noise. A lot of people recommend Xonar cards, but those are not only a old/discontinued, their driver support for Win 7 is shoddy or nonexistent. I don't want to drop a couple hundred bucks for a random BSOD generator and I don't want to pay a hundred bucks in restocking/return shipping fees testing cards. I just want a basic card that works well.
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