sound card worth it?

[Borkil]

so i was wondering if having a sound card is really worth it? i have a creative xfi fatality and it sounds good but i don't know if its really all that better. do games or programs use them? for instance bad company 2 uses the cpu to do sound link so is there a point to sound cards? is there a way to tweak programs and games to utilize sound cards?

 

[Pia]

Depends on the quality of the speakers or headphones you are using, and if your integrated sound puts out any hum or other noise. Soundcards aren't about effects anymore but whether you get nice, clean output.

With headphones, though, many people report that effects like Dolby Headphone make a positive difference.

 

[mfenn]

Pretty much what Pia said. If you have a high-end setup, you can probably pick out the flaws in an integrated sound card's DACs. At that point you're better off getting an outboard DAC or headphone amp IMHO.