BEST 5.1 SOUND CARD

[Alex]

i have klipsch promedia 5.1 speakers and am lookin into a nice sound card upgrade ... the rig is mainly for gaming, although i use it loads for mp3s and the ocassional dvd movie...

im a sb fan and really want the audigy xgamer but i heard that its not as good as cheaper solutions out there (fortissimo, turtle beach), even for 5.1 sound. i also heard that the cpu usage is exceptionally high on the audys...

i have athlonxp 1800+ but i still dont want to experience performance setbacks cuz of the friggin sound...


any thoughts appreciated!

 

[xyyz]

save some money and get a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz. I have one... intially I didn't care too much for it, but now I love it.

most people who have one will swear by it... and it's cheaper than the SB cards.

 

[Alex]

yeah but does it have full 5.1 capabilities?

how about cpu usage?

 

[xyyz]

yes it does... it has a SIDF connector for digital output and you can configure it for an analog 5.1 setup. I have my DTT 2500 connected to it.

as for processor usage... it's less than the older SB 5.1 series.

there are alot of reviews... take a look for yourself.

 

[astriy]

I second the TB Santa Cruz. Awesome card. and yes it can do 5.1

 

[Goi]

The Turtle Beach Santa Cruz, Hercules GTXP and Philips AcousticEdge all make very good entry/mid level 5.1 soundcards. I wouldn't recommend any Creative soundcards though, the Live! is notoriously bad with its digital I/O and even the Audigy is having some problems with its front speaker output.

 

[breeze]

HI,

I just picked up a Phillips Acoustic Edge last week at Best Buy to replace the onboard sound on my asus av133a... It was $54.37 after
a $20 mail in rebate . The rebate in my recipt says its good till 12/31.
Its a nice card with a lot of features with settings for 2,4 or 5.1 speaker configurations. I am not a big gamer or high end audio user but for the price it seemed like a nice deal...Circuit city had it for $99.

Breeze!

 

[Goi]

That's a nice deal for the AE. Personally I have a Santa Cruz on its way, but if I were to choose again I think I'd go with the AE...

 

[DN]

I don't know why people are bashing the Audigy card and making claims that "the front speaker output ain't working" -- that's a load of poop..

I have the Audigy X-Gamer /w the Cambridge Soundworks DTT3500's and I have no problems whatsoever -- I can listen to MP3's in 5.1, I can play games in 5.1, I can listen to DVD's in 5.1, etc..

One word: AWESOME..

You might want to checkout 3D Sound Surge

 

[Goi]

I didn't say the front speakers weren't working. What I said was that its having some problems with its front speaker output, specifically in the audio quality department. While the rear speaker output has an excellent stereo crosstalk value of over 90 or 100dB(I can't remember the exact value, but it was pretty good), the front speaker output has a value of only 60+dB, which is very very bad in audio quality. It would WORK, you would still get sound out from it, but its bad quality, lofi sound, hardly what the Audigy was aiming for. This isn't a subjective opinion, its an objective fact and has already been measured in a particular review.

 

[boardtrick]

wow...now i'm all confused. at first all i heard was GO AUDIGY beause of the features and price, etc...but now i hear that it has a high cpu usage and front speaker problems? i thoughts those were some of the main things the audigy was focusing on...

 

[DN]

<< I didn't say the front speakers weren't working. What I said was that its having some problems with its front speaker output, specifically in the audio quality department. While the rear speaker output has an excellent stereo crosstalk value of over 90 or 100dB(I can't remember the exact value, but it was pretty good), the front speaker output has a value of only 60+dB, which is very very bad in audio quality. It would WORK, you would still get sound out from it, but its bad quality, lofi sound, hardly what the Audigy was aiming for. This isn't a subjective opinion, its an objective fact and has already been measured in a particular review. >>



Uhm, what speakers were they running these tests on..? My front speaker not only sounds great, with the Live 5.1 and even better with the Audigy, it can bust my eardrum if I so wish..

Don't believe everything you read..

 

[DN]

<< wow...now i'm all confused. at first all i heard was GO AUDIGY beause of the features and price, etc...but now i hear that it has a high cpu usage and front speaker problems? i thoughts those were some of the main things the audigy was focusing on... >>



Take it with a grain of salt -- what speakers are you planning on getting..?

 

[boardtrick]

i've got a couple different kinds...i've got some altec lansings and some logitechs...

the sets i have are only 2.1 so i dunno if they apply here. i might upgrade to 5.1 sometime but i'm taking what i can get (for free) right now

the main reason i liked the audigy was because of the firewire port...

 

[nortexoid]

from what i've read, w/ 16+ streams the audigy has the LOWEST cpu utilization out of all carfds on the carket...

but anyway, my Cruz is a good card and has a coaxial digital connector that doubles as an analogy out (mini-jack)...

i'm still a fan of the zoltrix nightingale pro 6, which is a 5.1 card w/ digital in/out for about $25 US
the cpu utilization will be a little higher granted the DSP isn't as powerful, but really, that shouldn't be a concern...

 

[DN]

<< i've got a couple different kinds...i've got some altec lansings and some logitechs...

the sets i have are only 2.1 so i dunno if they apply here. i might upgrade to 5.1 sometime but i'm taking what i can get (for free) right now

the main reason i liked the audigy was because of the firewire port... >>



Go for it, you have my blessing.. The thing (Audigy X-Gamer retail) comes with 2 full games also -- Giants and DeusX -- bonus!

 

[Goi]

DN, the measurements weren't taken with any speakers. They were taken directly from the output. Taking it from the actual output from the speakers would make the measurement results unrepeatable and hence, pretty meaningless. It was taken with a software capable of measuring several values, such as SNR, THD, frequency response, stereo crosstalk, etc, and with this piece of software, it was shown that the Audigy had subpar front speaker stereo crosstalk quality. I believe they used the conventional loopback method to get the measurements(A->D->A IIRC) but I can't recall off the top of my head. I'm sorry, but saying that your experience was "great" doesn't really revoke any measured values.

nortexoid, as far as I know, the Santa Cruz uses a 1/8" plug, rather than a standard RCA digital coax plug, for its "Versajack", which also doubles as its digital output.

 

[boardtrick]

i believe i am...onemore question though: does the SB1394 port or whatever they call it have full support for all firwire products (DV cams, HDDS), or just ones that support "SB1394"

 

[Techno]

I'd say Acoustic Edge.

I have a GTXP and even though it seems to be a great Sound Card. I am extremely displeased at the Lack of Chorus and Reverb (something that is extremely important to me!) . This has the same chip as the Santa Cruz so it's just Hercules own stupid fault. They are the morons that have yet to program there drivers to use it.

I get more displeased w/ that company by the day.

So i am going to tear it out and beat it w/a hammer and then get a Acoustic Edge.

 

[DN]

Hey, you can go by some measured values posted on some web site, I'll go with my ears and my REAL LIFE experience..

 

[DN]

<< i believe i am...onemore question though: does the SB1394 port or whatever they call it have full support for all firwire products (DV cams, HDDS), or just ones that support "SB1394" >>



Supposedly, efforts were made to make it as compatible as is possible.. I'm not sure if they list what it's compatible with (imagine trying to do that), but I'd be surprised if it weren't at least 99.5% compatible..

 

[Goi]

After posting my previous message I went and looked for the review that had the measurements. The review is over here. Look at the "Test of Line Outs" section and you'll see that the stereo crosstalk for the 2 front output, whether in 44.1KHz or 48KHz, are really bad, compared to the rear out, which are almost 90dB(not 90+/100+dB which I previously stated, but still decent). In addition, THD is also unsatisfactory, compared to the Live!

As for the IEEE1394, it supports the 100Mbps version only, not 200 or 400Mbps, but its still standard IEEE1394, not a proprietary implementation as far as I know.

 

[boardtrick]

wow this is crazy...i had no idea that there was such a big debate over the best sound cards! i'm glad i found out though because i'm rethinking some of my purchases

 

[Goi]

boardtrick, don't get sidetracked by the debate. While the Audigy would probably make a great gaming card, my gripe with it was simply with its audio quality. Its features are outstanding in its class, but I don't like what I read about its sound quality. There are certain things that aren't noticable, but a difference in over 30dB is clearly very significant. To put that in perspective, a difference in 3dB is a doubling of power, or in other words, a doubling of "loudness", so there's a 10X different in crosstalk quality between the front and rear output of the Audigy. However, the difference may not be easy to tell by inexperienced or insensitive ears, or with lesser equipment/media.

 

[DN]

Yah boardtrick, it's better to read ONE web site and base all of your life choices on just that alone.. Using your own insensitive ears or poopy speaker system to judge the quality of sound is plain stupidity and should never be considered..

I have the DTT3500's -- they are low quality speakers..

My ears are of lower quality -- what did you say..? Huh..? I can't hear you.. What..?

<Sarcasm has it's advantages>

Back to the REAL world now, don't worry about the discussion, it has nothing to do with common sense on someone else's part.. The card is awesome and paired up with some speakers like the DTT3500's -- you WILL agree with what I've said so far -- you might even start sending me Christmas cards.. lol