Sound Blaster Audigy - Huh?

[SteelCityFan]

I have a Sound Blaster Live Value OEM card right now. I have a couple questions...


Will I hear a noticeable difference in quality? I have a set of Altec Lansing speakers with Sub that I got from a Dell PC bought in 1997. Should I get new speakers? Will I hear a difference without new ones?


Could somemone please explain to me in English what the differences between their cards are... MP3+. Gamer, Platinum, Platinum EX, Digital Entertainment. Each one claims to do something better.. or at least one thing is emphasized that say a gamer would like etc. Are they really different, or is it just a software difference?

For Example...

NewEgg

The Plain Audigy OEM is $60, the Xgamer is $84. What do I get for the $24?

Do I gain anything important (besides warrantee and software) from the retail box?

Thanks...

 

[LostHiWay]

Most people can't tell the difference between the Audigy and Live! even with high-end speakers. Just stick with Live!. I would however get some new speakers. I got the Logitech Z560's a few months ago and these things rock. I can shake the lights downstairs from upstairs with these things turned up!

 

[dawks]

I believe you get 'extra software' with the 'higher-end' cards. Its the exact same piece of hardware, but you get a few game demos or something like that.

My advice, stay as far away from sound blasters as possible, and get a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz, or Hercules Game Theatre XP.

 

[Wingznut]

My recent audio experience history has included (but not limited to):

• SBLive
• MX300
• Santa Cruz
• Philips Seismic Edge
• SB Audigy

Personally, I thought the SBLive was a horrible card. Especially the poor positional audio in gaming and it causing system instability.

Loved the MX300 for gaming, but alas it is no more.

The Turtle Beach Santa Cruz is an exceptional card. It does everything very well, and I could never hesitate to recommend it. (Same with the Hercules Game Theatre XP.)

I am now using an Audigy. It's an excellent card, as well. No issues that I have come across, and sound quality is exceptional. EAX has come a long way, and EAX HD is a very promising feature. I can't say anything bad about the Audigy either.

I'm not a big fan of the bloatware associated with the SB products... But I just pick and choose what I install, and all is good.

 

[SteelCityFan]

Poor positional audio with the SBLive. Would this be affecting me since I only have 2 sats and a sub? Are they bad at just that much?


As far as reliability... I think I have had this SB Live Value for about 3 years and have had no problems in that regard. I have used it in a Dell 266Mhz, P3V4X/P3 600, and my current machine. Maybe I have been lucky.

If I went for the Sound Blaster, I would choose the Gamer over say the MP3+ if there is a hardware/performance difference between the standard $60 Audigy and the $85 MP3/Gamer cards.


WIngnut.. you did not really say which you liked better... the Turle Beach Santa Cruz or the Audigy..

 

[Wingznut]

When I was talking about positional audio, I was pretty much referring to having a 4.1 setup. So, I'm not sure how a 2.1 setup will faire.

Between the SC and Audigy, I really couldn't say which I like better. I like them both, pretty much equally. The Audigy might have an edge in absolute sound quality, but if you don't have top of the line speakers (Boston Acoustics, Klipsch, Logitech Z-560's, etc...), then I'm sure you'd never notice. (Not that I'm even sure if I can tell.)

I guess if someone were to hold a gun to my head and say, "YOU MUST CHOOSE!!!", I'd probably go with the Santa Cruz. But you really can't go wrong either way, imho.

There's absolutely no hardware difference between the OEM, Gamer, and MP3 Audigy's. Just the bundled software.


(DISCLAIMER: Audio is probably the single most subjective component of a PC, so your mileage may vary.)

 

[kly1222]

If you have firewire devices, the firewire port that comes on the audigy is an extra incentive.

There's absolutely no hardware difference between the OEM, Gamer, and MP3 Audigy's. Just the bundled software.

I thought the retail audigys come with gold plated connections while the oems don't.

 

[Brian48]

You're correct. I've both the retail and OEM models. The retail version does come with gold plated connectors and the traces on the PCB itself seem to be a bit more polished and not as rough as the OEM. Other than that, they're essentially the card and you'd be hard pressed to notice the difference once it's up and running in your machine.

 

[Mem]

I`ve both a SB Live and Audigy and can tell the difference ,however I do have audiophile ears ,anyway to put it simple, to me the Audigy is clearer with more detail,especially with positioning (like in CS) like trying to hear where the sound is coming from etc ,the background hiss/noise is also lower,I do use mine as a gaming card and find it excellent with no problems with drivers etc.

 

[Mingon]

Have a look at the review on the tech report here

 

[Pauli]

Well, the sound quality difference isn't really noticeable with lower end speakers. However, you do get a firewire port. That's why I upgraded (I just got a new MiniDV video camera). I am very pleased with it. I loaded up the drivers. Everything worked first time no problem. Even worked first time when I plugged the video cam in and transferred the video using Pinnacle Studio 7. I just installed the card and software, plugged everything in and it just worked. Creative Labs gets hammered by people in this forum, but I have to applaud them for the Audigy.

 

[Kingofcomputer]

1st gen - sb live, sb live value, oem cards don't have digital cd-in connector.
2nd gen - sb live mp3+, x-gamer, platinum - added spdif out jack on the card, all gold plated jacks for retail cards, plastic jacks for oem cards.
3rd gen - sb live mp3+ 5.1, x-gamer 5.1, platinum 5.1 - added 3rd analog jack on the card.

old wine in new bottle, the 1st gen sb live is already 3 years old, boring.

 

[SteelCityFan]

Thanks for the answers. I am not really in the market for a new card, but I have considered it. I'll probably wait until I do get a new set of speakers. The sound card is the oldest part of my system, and the rest of the components are starting to make "old timer" jokes. lol