Soundcard for a fairly basic PC running Windows Vista 32bit

jasonb

Hi there,

Just looking for some quick advice. I recently upgraded my fairly standard and old PC ( HP DX2000MT ) so it's now got a P4 3.4Ghz Processor, 4Gb RAM, and a 256Mb Video Card. So it's now a little faster, fairly standard and old PC!

However, it's still using the onboard Soundcard, and I'd like to install something a little better! Especially as the sound isn't great, sometimes it stops and starts.

So, I'm looking to get a PCI ( Not PCI-E! ) soundcard, nothing too fancy really, it doesn't have to support 7.1 or blow out the windows, I only really use sound on the PC for iTunes, You Tube etc. and occasional games ( but nothing too intensive, sure the PC itself couldn't handle it! ).

I've looked at Dabs.ie, and they've a Creative Xtreme Audio for €30ish, Audigy Se for €25ish and Xtreme Gamer for €85ish. Some quick online searches though have brought up tales of Vista driver problems ( though some people have said they've had no problems ).

Any recommendations? Thanks!

J.

sink

jasonb wrote: »

I've looked at Dabs.ie, and they've a Creative Xtreme Audio for €30ish, Audigy Se for €25ish and Xtreme Gamer for €85ish. Some quick online searches though have brought up tales of Vista driver problems ( though some people have said they've had no problems ).

Any recommendations? Thanks!

The Xtreme Audio does not have the X-Fi chip and is really the same as the Audigy SE. Creative the sly bastards basically just re branded it and said it was new. It still relies on software emulation and does not provide any acceleration. Also the sounds enhancers are crap and if you have a 5.1 system the rear speakers sound muted.

The Xtreme Gamer is a proper X-Fi card and has pretty decent sound quality for the price. I would definitely go with that to avoid disappointment. The best card to get is the discontinued X-Fi Xtreme Music which can still be picked up sans packaging from some online retailers. It's basically the same as the Xtreme Gamer but has gold pick-ups which eliminate some of the noise. Komplett has it here..

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=323589

MooseJam

I've got X-Fi Xtreme Audio, are these rubbish ? I can't say I've noticed it being bad , sound comes out all my speakers unlike before and it sounds fine, would the x-fi xtreme music be noticeably better

jasonb

Hi Sink,

Yeah, I spotted that bit of Marketing alright. Dabs have the Xtreme Gamer for something like €85 and the Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro for approx. 50 cent more, but when looking at reviews there were a lot of complaints about Vista Drivers, more so with the Fatal1ty Pro. Have you any experience of that card?

I'm only going to be using the sounds for fairly basic stuff, with only 2 speakers, so I reckon the Xtreme Gamer will do me fine. That said, if I can get the Fatal1ty Pro for only a few cent more, maybe I should just go for that?

J.

sink

MooseJam wrote: »

I've got X-Fi Xtreme Audio, are these rubbish ? I can't say I've noticed it being bad , sound comes out all my speakers unlike before and it sounds fine, would the x-fi xtreme music be noticeably better

For me yes. I have the Logitech Z-5500 THX speakers though. If you are using cheap speakers then you won't notice the difference. I should have probably mentioned that in my original post. Good speakers are only good with a decent sound card and vice-versa.

MooseJam

i've got logitech z-680, would you recommend a new sound card or new sound card and new speakers , they are quite old now

sink

jasonb wrote: »

Hi Sink,

Yeah, I spotted that bit of Marketing alright. Dabs have the Xtreme Gamer for something like €85 and the Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro for approx. 50 cent more, but when looking at reviews there were a lot of complaints about Vista Drivers, more so with the Fatal1ty Pro. Have you any experience of that card?

I'm only going to be using the sounds for fairly basic stuff, with only 2 speakers, so I reckon the Xtreme Gamer will do me fine. That said, if I can get the Fatal1ty Pro for only a few cent more, maybe I should just go for that?

J.

There were major driver issues when vista first launched but they have being pretty much sorted at this stage. I have both the X-Fi Xtreme Music in my HTPC using Vista 32-bit and the X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro in my games pc using Vista 64-bit. And I haven't had a problem since the last driver release.

jasonb

Hi again Sink,

Sounds good to me, I'll check out a few places, if nothing beats the Dabs price I'll get the Fatal1ty as it's a better card, and only a few cent more. Thanks for your help...

J.

sink

MooseJam wrote: »

i've got logitech z-680, would you recommend a new sound card or new sound card and new speakers , they are quite old now

Those are still pretty decent speakers, I think they were the precursor to the Z-5500. I wouldn't say you need to upgrade them at all. You could do with a better sound card and you should be able to hear a noticeable difference especially when listening to music.