Is a sound card worth the money?

[Kaspertechgeek]

Title says it all.

[Guest Kloaked]

Depends.

[thekeemo]

No unless you have fancy fancy headphones

[Rorgash]

for the sound you use, thats a no

[Oshino Shinobu]

Title doesn't really say it all. 

 

We'd need to know the board and headphones/speakers you were using. 

 

In general, soundcards are no better than modern onboard audio and are not worth the money. An external DAC is normally a better solution. 

[pwn_intended]

Title says it all.

 

95% of the time, no. But it depends on what headphones or speakers you use, and what your current sound chip is, and how "audiophile" you wanna get.

 

If you are using standard headphones that are in the 36ohm area or lower, onboard should be more than adequate and likely you wouldnt be able to tell the difference.

[STRMfrmXMN]

No unless you have fancy fancy headphones

Not even then... all they do is decrease the impedance of your headphones which gives the impression of them sounding better when, in reality, they're just louder.

 

Title says it all.

Nope. Get an external DAC if you feel up for the audio upgrade. This SMSL is great if you're up for utilizing the audio interface and this if you aren't. I'd strongly suggest that Micca though. It has both 3.5mm and 1/4" jacks and is USB and basically an Audioengine D1 in disguise.

[Kaspertechgeek]

Title doesn't really say it all. 

 

We'd need to know the board and headphones/speakers you were using. 

 

In general, soundcards are no better than modern onboard audio and are not worth the money. An external DAC is normally a better solution. 

My speakers and headphones are literally right underneath the sentence you quoted. Logitech z623 and HyperX Cloud II. So a soundcard wouldn't be a good investment at all.

[SSL]

Title doesn't really say it all. 

 

We'd need to know the board and headphones/speakers you were using. 

 

In general, soundcards are no better than modern onboard audio and are not worth the money. An external DAC is normally a better solution. 

 

Not even then... all they do is decrease the impedance of your headphones which gives the impression of them sounding better when, in reality, they're just louder.

 

Nope. Get an external DAC if you feel up for the audio upgrade. This SMSL is great if you're up for utilizing the audio interface and this if you aren't. I'd strongly suggest that Micca though. It has both 3.5mm and 1/4" jacks and is USB and basically an Audioengine D1 in disguise.

 

Gonna go one further and note that entry-level external DACs are not really upgrades either.

 

Most people will benefit the most from cleaning up any misbehaving drivers (that might be causing latency issues and thus static/pops) and getting an external amp if necessary.

 

Also, it should be noted that a soundcard does not "increase the impedance" of headphones.

[Kaspertechgeek]

No unless you have fancy fancy headphones

ok so it's a no go

[Kaspertechgeek]

Gonna go one further and note that entry-level external DACs are not really upgrades either.

 

Most people will benefit the most from cleaning up any misbehaving drivers (that might be causing latency issues and thus static/pops) and getting an external amp if necessary.

 

Also, it should be noted that a soundcard does not "increase the impedance" of headphones.

Mind blown.

[Kaspertechgeek]

for the sound you use, thats a no

Thanks!

[STRMfrmXMN]

 

 

Also, it should be noted that a soundcard does not "increase the impedance" of headphones.

I know they don't literally do this but from what I understand it's just something that functions as an amp more than anything, possible getting rid of static sound in the background and making it easier to power headphones.

 

Source(?)

[SSL]

I know they don't literally do this but from what I understand it's just something that functions as an amp more than anything, possible getting rid of static sound in the background and making it easier to power headphones.

 

The don't figuratively do it either. Going external can indeed get the audio chain away from interference, but the better soundcards will do this as well.

 

Also, that video is hardly what I would call a reliable source, at least not in it's entirety.