I've been stuck with onboard audio for 6-7 years. Despite me having good 2.1 speakers and nice headphones, I always thought the audio was already up to it's par. That's when I got an actual sound card like the Audigy 2 ZS. What an amazing difference! I could actually HEAR SOUNDS that I couldn't hear before. Like sounds that were actually put into music or the video games that my old sound card couldn't hear... and it's so crisp and clear. Amazing! Anyone else like me when you first discover the awesome sound of a sound card? Heh.