Recommendations for new sound card...

jandarsun8 · Jul 30, 2009, 01:03 AM

I'm looking at getting a new sound card. I had a ASUS Xonar DX PCI-e 1x sound card and I'm getting nothing but crackles out of it. I'm currently using the on board sound which isn't that bad at all for sound but the mic port keeps loosing connection and/or tons of feedback and I kind of need that working solid for Vent. It cuts out regardless if it's plugged into the back mic port or the front one on the case so I'm thinking that's it's got something to do with MB itself.

The mic is one of the free ones that came with my old Creative X gamers card however it works in my old box and my daughters box just fine so I don't believe that's the problem (even if it's been plugged into the MB sound ports in each of those).

Being that I've been reading nothing good about Creative Labs ever since Vista came out, I'm looking at staying away from them (I did have an X-gamers card 3.1 and 5.1 with XP with no issues but... ).

The ASUS was ok, but it lasted just over a year and I'm not sure why (just out of warrenty) so I don't know if I want to go with that again. Could have been just a fluke of a card but...

One thing that I want to mention is that I am currently running XP however with this being a quad core with dual vid cards, I will be moving to Win 7 once it's out in 64 bit. I've been doing testing on my other box with Win 7 and don't see a reason to continue working with XP on this one however there are a number of different apps that I will need to upgrade at that time (including some apps for work).

Current setup (if this helps some). 2 sets of speakers. Back speakers are a single pair. Front spearkers are a pair hooked up through a sub so it's basically surround sound just not a true Logitech or Creative all in one 5.1 or 7.1 set. Vent is set up with a mic with a push to talk through the speakers, no head set. I live alone and didn't want to waste all of this just to listen through a headset.

So... I'm asking what you guys are using, what OS your using (need info all all of them- XP, Vista and Win 7) and what problems you've run into if any.

Newegg's review boards are ok on some things but you can't always trust when someone puts that they are "expert" or what ever for their knowledge when in the next sentence they bitch about something stupid (example- "Expert lvl" "do you need a Win 98 boot disk to boot from the XP cd?"-- sorry but that doesn't bring a nice warm fuzzy feeling to the word "expert"

).

Appologize for the long post but I don't feel like spending a 100$ on a sound card for nothing so I'm asking for suggestions here.

Thank you,

Jand.

EZero · Jul 30, 2009, 02:52 AM

Honestly if you're not an audiophile and you're fine with the onboard sound, I would suggest just getting a USB microphone like I did. The sound quality is great and is sound card independent.

The sad reality is that many brand's sound cards are simply rebranded Creative cards with slight tweaks here and there which shares alot of the problems with Creative's sound cards. There are of course a few special ones like your Asus Xonar but they're few and far in between.

http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/we...s/221&cl=US,EN

GigaWatt · Jul 30, 2009, 12:49 PM

i don't use a headset (i don't think i ever will), but if you like hi-end audio (or at least hi-end in the PC department), i would suggest a USB connected sound card...

... it's transportable, you can take it just about anywhere, and the best thing is that most of them can sustain pretty much every kind of mistreatment there is out there...

if you like the 2.0 solution, here are a few USB connected sound cards in the price range of about $100:

M-Audio Fast Track from zZounds.com!

Lexicon Alpha Desktop Recording Studio from zZounds.com!

Yamaha Audiogram3 from zZounds.com!

MIDITECH AUDIOLINK PRO USB - U.K. International Cyberstore

MIDITECH AUDIOFACE USB - U.K. International Cyberstore

ESI U24 XL - U.K. International Cyberstore

and if you like the 5.1/7.1 audio setup, here are a few USB connected sound cards, also in that price range:

Amazon.com: M-Audio Sonica Theater USB 24-Bit Surround Sound Module: Musical Instruments

Terratec Aureon 5.1 USB MKII - Sound Card with reviews and price comparison at dooyoo.co.uk

TERRATEC PHASE 26 USB SE B-STOCK - U.K. International Cyberstore

and about the microphone, some of these sound cards do support headsets, but some of them don't... in any case, as EZero said, you can always get a USB connected microphone...

jandarsun8 · Jul 30, 2009, 01:15 PM

Well see... this is why I posted here.

I didn't even think of the USB mic which would prob work just fine. The on board sound really isn't that bad at all so I could work with that. Gig, thank you for taking the time to post all the links, appreciate it.

Thanks to you both.

Jul 30, 2009, 01:03 AM	#1
jandarsun8 HardwareHeaven Addict Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: MN, US Posts: 323 Rep Power: 46 System Specs	Recommendations for new sound card... I'm looking at getting a new sound card. I had a ASUS Xonar DX PCI-e 1x sound card and I'm getting nothing but crackles out of it. I'm currently using the on board sound which isn't that bad at all for sound but the mic port keeps loosing connection and/or tons of feedback and I kind of need that working solid for Vent. It cuts out regardless if it's plugged into the back mic port or the front one on the case so I'm thinking that's it's got something to do with MB itself. The mic is one of the free ones that came with my old Creative X gamers card however it works in my old box and my daughters box just fine so I don't believe that's the problem (even if it's been plugged into the MB sound ports in each of those). Being that I've been reading nothing good about Creative Labs ever since Vista came out, I'm looking at staying away from them (I did have an X-gamers card 3.1 and 5.1 with XP with no issues but... ). The ASUS was ok, but it lasted just over a year and I'm not sure why (just out of warrenty) so I don't know if I want to go with that again. Could have been just a fluke of a card but... One thing that I want to mention is that I am currently running XP however with this being a quad core with dual vid cards, I will be moving to Win 7 once it's out in 64 bit. I've been doing testing on my other box with Win 7 and don't see a reason to continue working with XP on this one however there are a number of different apps that I will need to upgrade at that time (including some apps for work). Current setup (if this helps some). 2 sets of speakers. Back speakers are a single pair. Front spearkers are a pair hooked up through a sub so it's basically surround sound just not a true Logitech or Creative all in one 5.1 or 7.1 set. Vent is set up with a mic with a push to talk through the speakers, no head set. I live alone and didn't want to waste all of this just to listen through a headset. So... I'm asking what you guys are using, what OS your using (need info all all of them- XP, Vista and Win 7) and what problems you've run into if any. Newegg's review boards are ok on some things but you can't always trust when someone puts that they are "expert" or what ever for their knowledge when in the next sentence they bitch about something stupid (example- "Expert lvl" "do you need a Win 98 boot disk to boot from the XP cd?"-- sorry but that doesn't bring a nice warm fuzzy feeling to the word "expert" ). Appologize for the long post but I don't feel like spending a 100$ on a sound card for nothing so I'm asking for suggestions here. Thank you, Jand. __________________

Jul 30, 2009, 02:52 AM	#2
EZero HardwareHeaven Lover Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 118 Rep Power: 52 System Specs	Re: Recommendations for new sound card... Honestly if you're not an audiophile and you're fine with the onboard sound, I would suggest just getting a USB microphone like I did. The sound quality is great and is sound card independent. The sad reality is that many brand's sound cards are simply rebranded Creative cards with slight tweaks here and there which shares alot of the problems with Creative's sound cards. There are of course a few special ones like your Asus Xonar but they're few and far in between. http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/we...s/221&cl=US,EN

Jul 30, 2009, 12:49 PM	#3
GigaWatt Now In Color :D Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Macedonia, Skopje Posts: 2,116 Rep Power: 81 System Specs	Re: Recommendations for new sound card... i don't use a headset (i don't think i ever will), but if you like hi-end audio (or at least hi-end in the PC department), i would suggest a USB connected sound card... ... it's transportable, you can take it just about anywhere, and the best thing is that most of them can sustain pretty much every kind of mistreatment there is out there... if you like the 2.0 solution, here are a few USB connected sound cards in the price range of about $100: M-Audio Fast Track from zZounds.com! Lexicon Alpha Desktop Recording Studio from zZounds.com! Yamaha Audiogram3 from zZounds.com! MIDITECH AUDIOLINK PRO USB - U.K. International Cyberstore MIDITECH AUDIOFACE USB - U.K. International Cyberstore ESI U24 XL - U.K. International Cyberstore and if you like the 5.1/7.1 audio setup, here are a few USB connected sound cards, also in that price range: Amazon.com: M-Audio Sonica Theater USB 24-Bit Surround Sound Module: Musical Instruments Terratec Aureon 5.1 USB MKII - Sound Card with reviews and price comparison at dooyoo.co.uk TERRATEC PHASE 26 USB SE B-STOCK - U.K. International Cyberstore and about the microphone, some of these sound cards do support headsets, but some of them don't... in any case, as EZero said, you can always get a USB connected microphone... __________________ It's not schisophrenia... it's just a voice in my head...

Jul 30, 2009, 01:15 PM	Thread Starter #4
jandarsun8 HardwareHeaven Addict Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: MN, US Posts: 323 Rep Power: 46 System Specs	Re: Recommendations for new sound card... Well see... this is why I posted here. I didn't even think of the USB mic which would prob work just fine. The on board sound really isn't that bad at all so I could work with that. Gig, thank you for taking the time to post all the links, appreciate it. Thanks to you both. __________________