Need help selecting a good gamming soundcard

[MannyC]

I know about the SB Live, but that is rather old technology. Are any of the newer soundcards good for gaming. I Know the Game Theater XP is very good. But is is +100 that i just cannot afford to spend on a soundcard. Are there any other recomendations?

 

[Hobbzilla]

waiting on my Santa Cruz! Should be here by Friday!
Whoohooo.. bye bye Ensoniq!

 

[bluemax]

You don't need fancy hardware for g a M i n g *cough*. But many people seem to like A3D for 3D gaming audio... a sound card like the Turtle Beach Santa Cruz or Philips Acoustic Edge would be worth considering.

 

[Taz4158]

Santa Cruz is a stellar card.

 

[Dufusyte]

For gaming, the best technology to date is A3D on a Vortex2.

Yes Aureal is bankrupt, and yes, their bankrupt chip running a bankrupt api on bankrupt drivers is still the best sound in gaming.

There really has been very little progress in the sound scene in recent years. Actually things seem to be getting worse, not better (e.g., MX400 is worse than MX300.)

 

[potz]

Another vote for the Santa Cruz.

 

[Wingznut]

"Stellar." Good description, Taz. I second that notion!

 

[Noriaki]

From what I've heard of Sensura it's every bit as good as A3D.

And the Vortex2 has terrible Win2000 drivers.

Sensura can be found on excellent mid range cards like the Santa Cruz, mid-high cards like the GTXP, and even lower priced cards like the Aopen AW744Pro.

 

[nnnyyy]

SantaCruz, Acoustic Edge, or the Hercules card are all good.

 

[MannyC]

Thanks guys. I have a MX300, but ancient drivers and almost no A3D support is making my change. Looks like i will be getting a Santa Cruz. Thanks!