Music doesn't sound as good anymore....

[GhostGT]

I just built my own rig a month or so ago as some of you might know already. One thing I didn't pay attention to at all was a sound card; i'm currently using on-board sound provided by my ASUS mobo, and to put it lightly, it SUCKS.

I just realized recently that it might be because of the lack of a true sound card that my music doesn't sound the same anymore. It doesn't have the clarity, the depth, and best part, it starts getting fuzzy with high-pitched sounds and when the volume is turned up high. At first I figured my speakers are gone, but it can't be; these Altec Lansings have given me lots and lots of listening time without any problems.

Do you guys think its the sound card? And if it is, what should I get? I was looking at the Creative XTremeGamer Fatal1ty card and it looks like its getting raving reviews, but I don't want to pay THAT much for a card (I think...lol.) I don't want my speakers to fly;


I just want my crisp, clear and awesome sound back.


Chris

 

[MikeReiner]

If your positive your speakers are fine, then just get a sound blaster audigy 2 or 4.
It will serve you well, without breaking the bank.

 

[aowen416]

I had a $30 sound blaster and it sounded great for the price. If you want something better, there's an $80 sound blaster that apparently sounds fantastic, especially in games....look around on newegg =]

 

[Kage]

Yeah, it'll be the onboard sound, trust me.
I turned mine on for about 10 minutes, and shut it off. I could tell straight away, the quality wasn't as good.

 

[Teny]

i like my onboard sound, sounded like the sound cards my friends have, and it provides great sound.

 

[Kage]

You can't have much of an ear then for sound quality.
I can't stand many personal MP3 players for the same reason

 

[Kage]

You can't have much of an ear then for sound quality.
I can't stand many person MP3 players for the same reason

 

[_-..zKiLLA..-_]

i love my onboard sound, and ima huge music dler and have lots of it. and have a really expensive receiver, mines ASUS too. i bet its something that fried or somethin on the mobo, onboard is supposed to sound good.

 

[worshipme]

You can't have much of an ear then for sound quality.
I can't stand many person MP3 players for the same reason

That can also depend on the bit rate and the format of the file. But I agree, a lot of cheap MP3 players have poor sound quality. I think the Creative players give the best sound quality TBH. But a good pair of headphones is also a must-have.

 

[Tommy Boy]

Don't listen to the guys who say onboard sound is good. I've had two Asus motherboards and on both the onboard sound sucked. Get yourself a sound card, any recent sound card will be better than the onboard sound. I had my Z-2300's hooked up to my laptop with the onboard realtek HD audio, and believe me, you can tell the difference! I only had a Sound Blaster Live! 24bit sound card in my old system, but it sounded so much better than the onboard on the laptop does.

You don't have to get a real expensive one to get good sound, something like an Audigy 4 will do you good. What kind of speakers are you running?