Are soundcards worth it?

[Rustic_Chaos]

So I was wondering if they are and of so what is a good one to get for gaming. 

[givingtnt]

nope. your mobo audio is more than fine

[Comessy]

Not even close unless you got like some garbage asrock mobo

[Oshino Shinobu]

On modern motherboards, no. If anything, an external AMP and DAC is the way to go. 

[Mentalguy]

So I was wondering if they are and of so what is a good one to get for gaming. 

For most people, no, a good mobo will have good sound quality.

[techguru]

..maybe..if you have a really nice high end 5.1 speaker system...a soundcard will ...or should..sound better

[Enderman]

only if you have issues or EMI with your motherboard sound

otherwise no

[Mecami]

For high-end headphones, I would suggest something like the FiiO E10k

But for headsets no.

[Shally]

I just like a contribute.

 

 

 

 

 

 

no

[alicskysareblue]

actually I disagree with everyone here you can get MUCH better sound with a sound card since its actually a separate pcb,  I bought a creative sound blaster z and it is way better then my motherboards audio, plus it actually supports 5.1 surround sound as well as a headphone amp (I previously had to swap between line in and headphones before I got the card) and finally is emi shielded

 

that said, a sound card isn't necessary unless your had problems with your motherboards built sound set and even then, you can by a decent one for only $40, I got mine cheap because it was refurbished.

[SSL]

actually I disagree with everyone here you can get MUCH better sound with a sound card since its actually a separate pcb,  I bought a creative sound blaster z and it is way better then my motherboards audio, plus it actually supports 5.1 surround sound as well as a headphone amp (I previously had to swap between line in and headphones before I got the card) and finally is emi shielded

 

that said, a sound card isn't necessary unless your had problems with your motherboards built sound set and even then, you can by a decent one for only $40, I got mine cheap because it was refurbished.

 

Not sure how that is a disagreement with anyone, as generally your experience isn't the case.

[alicskysareblue]

Not sure how that is a disagreement with anyone, as generally your experience isn't the case.

I disagree with everyone on this topic,  he asked if sound cards are worth it I gave him my opinion and my opinion is that they certainly can be worth the money but that they arent nessary do to onboard audio, however in my case I found that it was worth it.

 

sound equipment preference like most  things are a subjective matter, everyone has differing opinions and I gave mine

[SSL]

I disagree with everyone on this topic,  he asked if sound cards are worth it I gave him my opinion and my opinion is that they certainly can be worth the money but that they arent nessary do to onboard audio, however in my case I found that it was worth it.

 

sound equipment preference like most  things are a subjective matter, everyone has differing opinions and I gave mine

 

Absolutely, most human perception is subjective. Some people like to sleep on a comfortable bed, but for my part I like a concrete slab upholsterd with barbed wire. It's about perspective and experience as well; sometimes you don't realize how good something is until you try it for yourself. It's also obvious in the kind of people who are successful as musicans today. Some are accomplished singer/songwriters like Taylor Swift or Miley Cyrus, but other major stars have been hugely successful despite being talentless hacks (subjectively of course), such as Zooey Deschanel in her incisive "She & Him" duo. At the end of the day everyone likes different things. What would it be like if we were all alike, huh?

[alicskysareblue]

Absolutely, most human perception is subjective. Some people like to sleep on a comfortable bed, but for my part I like a concrete slab upholsterd with barbed wire. It's about perspective and experience as well; sometimes you don't realize how good something is until you try it for yourself. It's also obvious in the kind of people who are successful as musicans today. Some are accomplished singer/songwriters like Taylor Swift or Miley Cyrus, but other major stars have been hugely successful despite being talentless hacks (subjectively of course), such as Zooey Deschanel in her incisive "She & Him" duo. At the end of the day everyone likes different things. What would it be like if we were all alike, huh?

it would be really boring eh ?

 

the biggest problems I see with sound cards is A. poor drivers B. lack of emi shielding, which in my opinion is something that needs to be a standerd C. "audiophile branding" with everyone thinking that you need to buy a really expensive sound card  for good sound quality, which again isn't true.

[Skrizzles]

If they're free, the answer is STILL NO.

[alicskysareblue]

If they're free, the answer is STILL NO.

whenever I see a answer like this I have to ask have you ever used one ? 

 

nothing personal but I see a lot of people jumping on to the bandwagon just because some says you shouldnt x you should do y

[creatip123]

it would be really boring eh ?

 

the biggest problems I see with sound cards is A. poor drivers B. lack of emi shielding, which in my opinion is something that needs to be a standerd C. "audiophile branding" with everyone thinking that you need to buy a really expensive sound card  for good sound quality, which again isn't true.

 

Well, the way it is nowadays, a good/decent external dac/amp can be bought for roughly the same price as a separate soundcard. 

 

Soundcards are good for their bells and whistles, like 8 channels surround, virtual surround, dolby, dts, and whatnot. 

 

External dac/amps are good with the good ol' simple stereo channels. It got a few advantages over soundcards that I can think of, such as:

- a separate device altogether, not mixed up in all the 'noisy' environment of the inside of the PC

- the ones with their own proprietary PSU mean there's a dedicated stable power supply, just for the unit. 

- better components used. Soundcard's physical dimension just doesn't allow for bigger and better components to be installed. I've read some hardcore modder that modded a typical soundcard by replacing the components, mostly the caps. The result were hideous, like a frankenstein mixed with a T2 (terminator), but I can believe that replacing components can upgrade the sound. That's because I've done it myself, with a dac/amp tho. 

 

The way I see it, soundcard manufacturers are in a pinch right now. From the front, good/decent external dac/amp is becoming more and more obtainable with good bang for bucks. From behind, onboards are getting better and better in quality, closing the gaps between a good onboard and a soundcard. They're starting to 'throw everything they got' into marketing, just to keep their soundcard's nose above the water. I think it won't be long into the future before soundcards become obsolete. People will either use existing onboard, or an external solution.

[pas008]

I found sbx studios is worth it,

 

made external zxr just for gaming

[creatip123]

I found sbx studios is worth it,

 

made external zxr just for gaming

 

Yeah, the virtual surround and DSP algorithm is kinda like BBM for blackberry. It's kinda the only thing that's keeping the physical device alive in the market. Once it's lost its exclusive ties to the device, the device itself will lose its place in the market. Just like when BBM was released to multiple platforms, and then blackberry is dying slowly but surely....

[pas008]

Yeah, the virtual surround and DSP algorithm is kinda like BBM for blackberry. It's kinda the only thing that's keeping the physical device alive in the market. Once it's lost its exclusive ties to the device, the device itself will lose its place in the market. Just like when BBM was released to multiple platforms, and then blackberry is dying slowly but surely....

yeah, I was going to try to get x-fi mb3 working on monoprice or o2 combo but lost interest cuz I already made the external

[itachipirate]

Well going from my old Dell Inspiron onboard sound from my last computer to a Asus Xonar DX was big. But usually you don't need it unless you're an audiophile. I heard a big difference in music with a sound card and I like it

[JettyLT]

i have Asus maximus VII Hero motherboard and i dont get enough sound on my hd 558 or hd 650.So i bought Fiio e10k.Its much better right now.

[BoredErica]

i have Asus maximus VII Hero motherboard and i dont get enough sound on my hd 558 or hd 650.So i bought Fiio e10k.Its much better right now.

Enough sound? You mean the sound isn't loud enough? Then either the board is defective or you are partially deaf.

[SSL]

i have Asus maximus VII Hero motherboard and i dont get enough sound on my hd 558 or hd 650.So i bought Fiio e10k.Its much better right now.

 

Seems like a lot of people have this issue. I suspect driver/settings misconfiguration. The E10 is not that powerful, in fact the 1.5Vrms is technically negative gain compared to 2Vrms redbook standard.

[BoredErica]

Seems like a lot of people have this issue. I suspect driver/settings misconfiguration. The E10 is not that powerful, in fact the 1.5Vrms is technically negative gain compared to 2Vrms redbook standard.

It would be sad if the mobo brand that touts its audio solution as being the best and makes sound cards and $600 amp/dacs can't pull off powering a HD650 to good enough volume while all other mobos can...