Sound cards

jnmbhj · March 8, 2014

I have seen one of Logan's video from tek syndicate saying that sound cards are bad and doesnt work and that onboard sound is better. But I have also heard Linus say to go with a Zonar card. I am a bit confused are sound cards a + or a -? I currently have a Zonar DG and I am wondering if I should get a USB dac or to return the DG.

EmoRarity · March 8, 2014

Don't bother with anything.
Upgrade your headphones if you want to upgrade anything.

LancerBG · March 8, 2014

Only way to really know is to test things yourself. No one can tell you what sounds good to you. The way I choose Audio type things is like this...I pick about 5 songs I really like and know well, a few audio intensive movie scenes that I really like and just play it all and listen with my eyes closed, don't matter if its speakers or headphones. process of elimination, do a few rounds if you feel it may help. Takes a while but it's very satisfying knowing you got what you think is best for you. Works with any audio set up not just PC.

This can take time to do if you are buying things and returning them one at a time or if you have the cash sitting around do it all in one shot and just refund all that you are not keeping. Unless you are in a rush I would tell anyone to test pretty much anything they buy.

ShearMe · March 8, 2014

Soundcards can be a plus over some onboard solutions, but external solutions are usually the better purchasing decision. Now, if you already have a soundcard, I'd say don't bother returning it unless you know you want to make audio a hobby and upgrade to some nice hardware.

BrightCandle · March 8, 2014

Really depends what we are talking about. If we are talking in pure sound quality then I think Tomshardware has pretty conclusively shown there isn't a lot of point spending big money on sound kit for music listening. There is still a difference in sound card surround sound, and you may prefer one over another. One of the beauties of this video is you can test it with whatever headphones you have today, and if none of them produces good surround sound then you probably need better headphones first.