Sound Card Question/Speaker

[phillyman36]

Hey i have been using the on board audio on my Asus p8z77 Deluxe mobo. I just brought a Sound blaster Zx sound card at Microcenter(on sale) After playing with it movies do sound better. However I don't really watch movies on my pc that much(watch on my Dune media player). Music sounds the same to me. My speakers aren't great old Altec Lansing 2.0. My question is will i notice a difference in music quality if i were to get say Corsair speakers? Im not sure if a sound card is worth it unless you are using 5.1 speakers or high quality headphones. Whats everyone take? Thanks for any replies

Ps the red led is really annoying on this card.

 

[weez82]

dedicated sound card is only worth it if:
-You need the gaming support
-You need better analog output
-You need better headphone support

In my experience, PC speakers suck and I could never tell the difference between onboard sound vs dedicated sound card when using PC speakers. If you want an upgrade in sound you'll need to move away from PC speakers.

My advice: Return the sound card and upgrade to something like this http://www.head-fi.org/t/627161/my-...sktop-rig-lepai-amp-and-dayton-audio-speakers. Or if you have the space, look for a used AVR on craigslists and then use the optical out or hdmi out from your PC to the receiver. That would be best but you might not have the space for an AVR

 

[cantholdanymore]

To tell the different between modern on-board audio and dedicated card you'll need either high-end headphones or high-end speakers (not necessary 5.1). If you prefer speakers go for that (I own the Creative 40T and you can't beat those for $100), if you prefer headphones with about $300 you can almost get the very top of the line. In any case unless you expend about $400 on speakers the dedicated card won't buy you anything.

 

[Puffnstuff]

Good speakers make all of the difference in the world. My first good speaker set was some klipsch pro media 2.1's followed by pro media 5.1's which I ran until the amp died. Then I moved to Logitech z-5500's for their 5.1 and toslink input as they were the best pc speaker I could find at the time. Cheap speakers & headsets sound cheap.

 

[Zap]

In my experience, PC speakers suck and I could never tell the difference between onboard sound vs dedicated sound card when using PC speakers. If you want an upgrade in sound you'll need to move away from PC speakers.

My advice: Return the sound card and upgrade to something like this http://www.head-fi.org/t/627161/my-...sktop-rig-lepai-amp-and-dayton-audio-speakers. Or if you have the space, look for a used AVR on craigslists and then use the optical out or hdmi out from your PC to the receiver. That would be best but you might not have the space for an AVR

:thumbsup: The Lepai or any other cheap amp (T-amp or not) or a used receiver is the way to go, along with some decent bookshelf speakers. Those budget Daytons are better than almost all PC/multimedia speakers, but you can sometimes get better stuff for not much more money. For instance I've picked up a pair of nice Polk bookshelf speakers for around $40 shipped. Daytons go on sale for $25/pair + shipping.

 

[phillyman36]

Thanks for the replies. I took it back to Microcenter. Ill save the money for later upgrades.

 

[weez82]

Thanks for the replies. I took it back to Microcenter. Ill save the money for later upgrades.

let us know when you're ready for some upgrades and we'll help you