I listen to a lot of mp3s on my computer and all i am interested in is stereo music(dont play games). i have a live value right now but i would like to upgrade to a more audiophile quality soundcard.which one should i get? also right now i have a pair of microworks hooked up to my live. i want to upgrade my speaker system too. any recommendations?
stereo music soundcard recommendations?
- Thread starter basara318
- Start date
Just for listening to music? The card you have is more than adequate. Or did you want to spend $1500 for something really exotic?
Seriously, the SBLive's and Vortex2's and similar have plenty good "hi-fi" specs. Low distortion, wide, flat frequency response, very good signal/noise performance.
I use a Vortex2 card to play music from my computer through my audiophile-grade sound system (over $6000 invested), and the sound does not disapoint. Of course, much depends on the quality of the source files you listen to. A fancy sound card isn't going to make a 128kbps mp3 file sound any better.....
Seriously, the SBLive's and Vortex2's and similar have plenty good "hi-fi" specs. Low distortion, wide, flat frequency response, very good signal/noise performance.
I use a Vortex2 card to play music from my computer through my audiophile-grade sound system (over $6000 invested), and the sound does not disapoint. Of course, much depends on the quality of the source files you listen to. A fancy sound card isn't going to make a 128kbps mp3 file sound any better.....
Basara:
You have a couple of options. My personal opinion is that the SB-Live's have a somewhat HIGH signal-to-noise ratio, despite what any specs might say. I've compared my AW744 Pro card's hiss levels to that of the SB Live! cards and it's sad that my little $30 card sounds better playing music and has a LOT less hiss and noise. It's true the AW744 has an optical out which is nice for going to my home theatre, and the SB Live! uses an old analog output (I don't count their proprietary SP/DIF as digital).
If you really want to upgrade you have a couple of options.
First, to make your winamp sound better without spending any money download the MAD Winamp decoder. This is an actual upgraded mp3 decoder which works directly in winamp. Even the 16-bit decoding sounds far superior to the built-in one which comes with winamp. Their website will tell you how to install it. Also, with the MAD decoder you can set it to 24-bit and 32-bit decoding, which leads me to my next point.
There are a couple sound cards I know of immediately which offer exceptional quality playback, but are also excellent for recording music as well.
The Delta Audiophile 2496 offers 24-bit 96kHz playback and recording as long as your PC is 266mhz or faster and has at least 128mb of pc100 ram. It has a dynamic range of 104 dB, frequency response from 22 hz - 22 kHz and THD (Total Harmonic Distortion) of .002% (inaudible to the human ear). You can pick this card up for $170 from the website I've linked to.
The other card, and probably my favorite on the market available today, is the Yamaha DS2416 or DSP factory. This is possibly the best audio card on the market as far as recording goes. It also has some exceptional playback features. It is capable of playing up to a 32-bit audio stream, and is also compatible with windows to play standard games and things.
The above card is more oriented for recording but it's one of the absolute best there is. It will cost you about $400, so I ONLY recommend it if you EVER plan to do some recording/mixing as you can do it all with the Yamaha card. If you just want true audiophile sound, the Delta card should do.
dm
You have a couple of options. My personal opinion is that the SB-Live's have a somewhat HIGH signal-to-noise ratio, despite what any specs might say. I've compared my AW744 Pro card's hiss levels to that of the SB Live! cards and it's sad that my little $30 card sounds better playing music and has a LOT less hiss and noise. It's true the AW744 has an optical out which is nice for going to my home theatre, and the SB Live! uses an old analog output (I don't count their proprietary SP/DIF as digital).
If you really want to upgrade you have a couple of options.
First, to make your winamp sound better without spending any money download the MAD Winamp decoder. This is an actual upgraded mp3 decoder which works directly in winamp. Even the 16-bit decoding sounds far superior to the built-in one which comes with winamp. Their website will tell you how to install it. Also, with the MAD decoder you can set it to 24-bit and 32-bit decoding, which leads me to my next point.
There are a couple sound cards I know of immediately which offer exceptional quality playback, but are also excellent for recording music as well.
The Delta Audiophile 2496 offers 24-bit 96kHz playback and recording as long as your PC is 266mhz or faster and has at least 128mb of pc100 ram. It has a dynamic range of 104 dB, frequency response from 22 hz - 22 kHz and THD (Total Harmonic Distortion) of .002% (inaudible to the human ear). You can pick this card up for $170 from the website I've linked to.
The other card, and probably my favorite on the market available today, is the Yamaha DS2416 or DSP factory. This is possibly the best audio card on the market as far as recording goes. It also has some exceptional playback features. It is capable of playing up to a 32-bit audio stream, and is also compatible with windows to play standard games and things.
The above card is more oriented for recording but it's one of the absolute best there is. It will cost you about $400, so I ONLY recommend it if you EVER plan to do some recording/mixing as you can do it all with the Yamaha card. If you just want true audiophile sound, the Delta card should do.
dm
I'd go with a card based on a Yamaha chip, like the AOpen AW744 Pro DM mentioned.
Or one of the Philips Thunderbird 128 chip boards.
Rhythmic Edge is 2 channel, but has the same chip as the 5.1 version the accoustic edge. And the AE is a great card
Unless you wanna go for the really price stuff.
Or one of the Philips Thunderbird 128 chip boards.
Rhythmic Edge is 2 channel, but has the same chip as the 5.1 version the accoustic edge. And the AE is a great card
Unless you wanna go for the really price stuff.
divine
thanks for the reply. its exactly the answer i was looking for. i installed the mad plugin and it does seem to sound a bit better. i will definately look up the delta card. i used to hook up my live via grado headphone extensions to a NAD amp. but the sound quality wasnt as good(i seem to prefer my microworks better). long distance distortions
thanks for the reply. its exactly the answer i was looking for. i installed the mad plugin and it does seem to sound a bit better. i will definately look up the delta card. i used to hook up my live via grado headphone extensions to a NAD amp. but the sound quality wasnt as good(i seem to prefer my microworks better). long distance distortions
I'm with Workin' on this one, the quality of MP3's can vary greatly - presumably better quality kit can only emphasise this...?
I'd stick with what you have unless you need to spend?
I'd stick with what you have unless you need to spend?
Noriaki:
Just to let you know, the Philips Rythmic Edge does not have the same DSP as the Acoustic Edge. The Rythmic Edge has the ThunderBird Q3D DSP (same as the Seismic Edge 4- channel, as well as the Aztech PCI-368DSP and the Labway Thunder3D), while the Acoustic Edge has the ThunderBird Avenger DSP. This DSP offers EAX 2, 96 3d sound streams, 5.1 etc.
All offer QMSS (except the 2 Channel Rythmic Edge), which sounds very nice with 4 speakers when playing MP3's, CD's etc. Also offers QSounds Qxpander and 2d-to-3d when in 2 speaker mode.
Cheers.
Just to let you know, the Philips Rythmic Edge does not have the same DSP as the Acoustic Edge. The Rythmic Edge has the ThunderBird Q3D DSP (same as the Seismic Edge 4- channel, as well as the Aztech PCI-368DSP and the Labway Thunder3D), while the Acoustic Edge has the ThunderBird Avenger DSP. This DSP offers EAX 2, 96 3d sound streams, 5.1 etc.
All offer QMSS (except the 2 Channel Rythmic Edge), which sounds very nice with 4 speakers when playing MP3's, CD's etc. Also offers QSounds Qxpander and 2d-to-3d when in 2 speaker mode.
Cheers.
dm I hope you're feeling better! If everyone had the same opinions the world would be pretty boring.
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