New sound card & speakers time, advice appreciated.

[digitalwanderer]

I've decided I've been a good boy this year and deserve something nice that I want for me birthday, so I've decided my 4 year old daughter is buying me a new sound card and my 6 year old son is buying me some new speakers for me BD next week. 8)

Now since they don't know so much about pc components yet, (although my son has learned a LOT about video cards lately, something about how they help him game better...), I figured it would probably be better if I pick 'em out for 'em and they can just wrap 'em up and give 'em to me. (Aren't I a thoughtful Dad? )

PROBLEM: It's been so long since I even thought about soundcards/speakers that I'm clueless about what is good and what is bad. I'm wanting a good soundcard for gaming, and from what I've been reading it looks like the Audigy2 is a pretty safe bet...is it? Or is there better? (It's replacing a Herc FortissimoII, but it has to be nicer than my wife's TBSC.)

Also, on speakers: I got a cheap CyberAccoustic 4.1 set-up that I have regretted buying for years now. They're wimpy as hell and I just don't like 'em! Also, I picked up me wife a set of Altec-Lansing IBM345 speakers about a year or so ago for $35 that just continue to blow me away with their freaking quality!

My wife's 2.1 set-up has got better sound than my 4.1 set-up by far, even on surround sound stuff!

Just since Altec-Lansing so impressed me I'm kind of partial to only getting those, and I'd rather have a GOOD 2.1 set-up than a shitty 4.1 set-up. Are there any other brands that I can trust as much as AL for sound quality? It'd broaden me search a bit.

Thanks in advance for any recomendations, it's just a wonderfully slow Saturday morning after a crap week and I'm going to indulge meself a bit whilst my Mom has the kids this morning and I can think of no better way than to hunt down a new soundsystem. 8)

 

[digitalwanderer]

This 40w AL 2.1 set-up don't seem too bad for $90 delivered. (My wife's AL's are 30w, mine has to be more. )

BTW-Sorry for the monologue, I'm just enjoying being bored for a change...it's nice!

 

[{Sniping}Waste]

I might be able to get Altec ada890 4.1
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...5853-3960067?v=glance&s=electronics&n=1091262
My supplier at times will have them.
There referb from DELL and ar some of the best speaker I have used for the price.
If my supplier has some it will be $60 for the white and $70 for the black.

Here is a white pair ADA885.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4121355166&category=41845

For a 2.1 setup, look at this set. ACS340
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4120376776&category=41845
I use this on 1 of the 4 system in the house and 1 pair for the TV. The base on this one will shake walls.
My supplier carries this for $30-$35 when in stock referb from Dell. Alot of the used, referbed, overstocked, and out dated comes to Dallas TX and this supplier BRM Digital Electronics (owner Bill Murray) can get it from the place it all goes to. His phone number is 970-446-4340 and Email is res02due@gte.net

Both subs are made of WOOD and get a great sounding base (a lot better thsn the plastic ones).

As for sound cards, theirs not much choise out there any more . Creatice lab bougth out most of the compatition. You might look in to M Audio cards.

hope this helps Digi

 

[Zaphod]

This 40w AL 2.1 set-up don't seem too bad for $90 delivered. (My wife's AL's are 30w, mine has to be more. )

I have used that set, and I like it. It does however have some drawbacks - the biggest one beeing the lack of a headphone jack. The satelites are also a little weak in the midrange so they really *need* the sub to help out there (you can't just turn down the sub and still have them sound good). Also they have no bass control on the remote.

If you can live with these problems thay are overall excellent for music and, for a 2.1, give quite a decent performace in movies and gaming. For a few dollars more have a look at the smilar sounding Creative I-Trigue L3500 that seems to fix all the minor quibbles I have with the Altec Lansing set. Looking for an excuse (and the money) to upgrade... I've also heard good things about the cheap(er) Logitech Z-3, but I haven't had a listen to those myself.

 

[digitalwanderer]

That Altec Lansing ADA 885 set looks sweet, I'm a cheap-arsed barstard so color ain't the highest priority. (White is good!)

I'm gonna go check out some of the Creative ones and the Logitech Z-3 series, I haven't seen any of 'em yet.

Thanks all, I actually told my wife about this and have taciturn approval! (Kids are GREAT!!!! )

 

[digitalwanderer]

OMMFG!!!

I just read this TweakTown review of the ADA 885 and the bloody thing had me drooling!

Please check with your fella if he has any, either color with white prefered. Those puppies are nicer than anything I was hoping I could afford, they're even THX!

 

[epicstruggle]

Lets move on to the sound card part of this discussion. I just saw the screen savers, and they mentioned to a caller that an external sound card tends to be better and the highly sensitive circuitry is outside all the interference inside the case. Any truth to this? What is a good sound card in the 75-150 range. Id rather spend as little as possible.

later,
epic

 

[digitalwanderer]

Lets move on to the sound card part of this discussion. I just saw the screen savers, and they mentioned to a caller that an external sound card tends to be better and the highly sensitive circuitry is outside all the interference inside the case. Any truth to this? What is a good sound card in the 75-150 range. Id rather spend as little as possible.

later,
epic

Everyone is just basically telling me to get an Audigy2 ZS, any other options for gaming?

 

[fallguy]

I had an Hercules Fortissimo III, and upgraded to an Audigy 2 ZS and noticed a better sound. Its also the only card currently able to do EAX 4.0 I believe. Paired with my Z-680's that Ive have for about a year and a half, I like them very much. They can hook up to anything, and sound great.

On my daughters PC I have the external Phillips souns card. Its "3D" setting actually feels like 3D sound, not some gimmick. I like it pretty well, it looks good, functions well, and is pretty capable. I got it for a steal because my brother bought it.. but when recording audio from his AIW, the sound would lag behind the video about 1/2-1 second. Ive tried all sorts of things, and just came to the conslusion that the USB 2.0 just wasnt quite fast enough to feed the audio insync with the video. Other than that, its a really nice external sound card.

 

[{Sniping}Waste]

Ill cheek on monday digi. Latey, not many have come and I have one in back order for a custermer but if he has more than one come in ill tell him to hold on to it for you.
the ada885 are the white ones and the ada890 are the black ones and can be 4.1 or 2.1 if you plug the rear speakers on top of the front ones. It comes with a remote too.I have put 3 systems for custermers with the ada885/890 and the sound is amazing. The sub is big so you need a place for it. Both analog and digital input work great and have about 4 to 5 program setting that can be changed on the right front satilite or by remote.

 

[BRiT]

All this talk of new kit is very tempting... I'd like to setup a nice 5.1 speaker system to make the best use of my SoundStorm digital out. Are there any sort of 5.1 speaker systems like the ADA885/890s or does one still need to pickup a seperate digital decoder reciever and run analog sound to the speakers?

Appologies for the slight thread-jacking...

 

[Saem]

AFAIK, soundcards manipulate sound digitally, so I don't seem noise from the PC effecting. The trick is the output/input. Unless you're using digital in and out, the DAC/ADC are going to be susceptible to noise.

 

[{Sniping}Waste]

Brit
Altec does make a 5.1 but not near the quity of the ada885/890.
For a 5.1 you might look into Logitechs.

 

[Sazar]

I've decided I've been a good boy this year and deserve something nice that I want for me birthday, so I've decided my 4 year old daughter is buying me a new sound card and my 6 year old son is buying me some new speakers for me BD next week. 8)

Now since they don't know so much about pc components yet, (although my son has learned a LOT about video cards lately, something about how they help him game better...), I figured it would probably be better if I pick 'em out for 'em and they can just wrap 'em up and give 'em to me. (Aren't I a thoughtful Dad? )

PROBLEM: It's been so long since I even thought about soundcards/speakers that I'm clueless about what is good and what is bad. I'm wanting a good soundcard for gaming, and from what I've been reading it looks like the Audigy2 is a pretty safe bet...is it? Or is there better? (It's replacing a Herc FortissimoII, but it has to be nicer than my wife's TBSC.)

Also, on speakers: I got a cheap CyberAccoustic 4.1 set-up that I have regretted buying for years now. They're wimpy as hell and I just don't like 'em! Also, I picked up me wife a set of Altec-Lansing IBM345 speakers about a year or so ago for $35 that just continue to blow me away with their freaking quality!

My wife's 2.1 set-up has got better sound than my 4.1 set-up by far, even on surround sound stuff!

Just since Altec-Lansing so impressed me I'm kind of partial to only getting those, and I'd rather have a GOOD 2.1 set-up than a shitty 4.1 set-up. Are there any other brands that I can trust as much as AL for sound quality? It'd broaden me search a bit.

Thanks in advance for any recomendations, it's just a wonderfully slow Saturday morning after a crap week and I'm going to indulge meself a bit whilst my Mom has the kids this morning and I can think of no better way than to hunt down a new soundsystem. 8)

you have any kind of budget restrictions for us to work with wrt suggestions?

just checking before I stick out $500 speakers and the like

 

[Zaphod]

Are there any sort of 5.1 speaker systems like the ADA885/890s or does one still need to pickup a seperate digital decoder reciever and run analog sound to the speakers?

The best one I can think of offhand are the Logitech Z-680. Creative also have such a set. They did also recently start to sell the separate DDTS-100 decoder for use with their regular >5.1 systems. This one is also available bundeled with the Inspire T5400 as the Inspire GD580.

Dig: The price on those ADA885/890s seems to be a bargain. Haven't seen those for years around here, and then they were like $400. Strangely enough the Altec Lansing site seems to have recently lost all mention of all their 'higher-end' 4/5.1 sets. Lots of new 2.1 sets, though. Weird. Maybe it's a market/trend thing...?

 

[digitalwanderer]

I dunno for sure, I'm kind of flexible. I was hoping to keep it under $150us for speakers & soundcard, but I'd probably go a bit higher for something better.

Say around $80-100 for speakers and $70-90 for soundcard with some flexibility all around. (And I'm agreeing about those ADA885/890s, but if Snipe says it's so I trust him that it is so. )

The ADA885/890s are looking damned hard to beat, but I'm still gonna look around just cause it's sooo much fun to look when you know you can actually get something! 8)

BTW-Big thanks to everyone for the help, it's really appreciated and a bright spot in an otherwise bit-o-dismal day.

 

[Sxotty]

DW there is little reason in my opinion to get an expensive sound card unless you are going to get a surround set of speakers, and make use of specific features it has. Otherwise a cheaper santa cruz will do you fine ($45). And they really are quite good as far as soundcards go. I had 2 in the past as well as a gametheaterXP. My favorite was the gametheater b/c of breakout box and the fact that although it was as good as creative's it was way cheaper, but they have apparently quit making it.


BTW I gave both santacruz's to my brothers and I really did like them very good cards tho I payed more than that at the time.


As far as speakers I have had extremely good luck with creatives. I bought my brother a 4.1 set when I gave him a computer awhile back and they sounded REALLY good as far as I was concerned, they were pretty cheap btw like $60.00 not super powerful but who wants to wear earplugs anyway or go deaf ... otherwise I want a pair of logitech zx680's but those are way above what you were discussing.[/url]

 

[digitalwanderer]

Well I'm pretty much set on the Audigy2 just for the gaming features, I have a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz in my wife's box teamed with some Altec-Lansing IBM345 2.1 speakers and it is just a KILLER combo....it's kind of why I'm jealously upgrading my rig to better.

Bubbles is the top rig in this house damn it, it's time to re-affirm that. 8)

I saw these Logitech Z640 5.1 set-up that looks pretty good for the bang if I want to try a real 5.1 set-up, but I'm worried these would be cheap sounding compared to the set-up Snipe was talking about. I'm going to hunt up some reviews and check. (If I get it all at NewEgg, I actually might be able to get it by me birthday...any recomended speakers there in me price range?)

BTW-What is the big difference between the Audigy2 "SB0244" and the Audigy2 "SB0350"? There's only about $14 difference between the two, should I spend the extry change on it?

Oh yeah, thanks again. My kids got up at 6am this morning and are driving me nuts staying up late watching the Nicktoon Choice Awards.

EDITED BITS: Hmmm, the Creative Inspire T5400 5.1 Speakers for $92 look a bit tempting too....someone tell me they suck quick!

 

[Zaphod]

I saw these Logitech Z640 5.1 set-up that looks pretty good for the bang if I want to try a real 5.1 set-up, but I'm worried these would be cheap sounding compared to the set-up Snipe was talking about.

A friend of mine have those. My verdict says they are good value for your money, but with more 'boom' than 'finesse'. Much more gamer- and movie oriented than the Altecs you first linked above for example.

BTW: I got curious about the ADA885/890s and took at quick trip over to Google. I might have found a caveat:

Quad mode is available when four channels of analog information are connected. In digital input mode, the system will only operate in normal stereo mode. In analog quad mode, it reproduces the front two channels to the front surrounds, and the rear channels to the rear satellites, as would follow naturally.

Unfortunately, there is a technical problem with quad mode. According to Altec, the system originally was designed as an OEM solution to accompany a Dell computer. The original configuration included a four channel sound card in which the rear channels were wired out of phase with the front channels. To correct for this in the original system, Altec wired the rear input out of phase with the front channels. This same architecture is included in the current system.

However, most current four channel sound cards are wired in phase. This causes phase cancellation in quad mode, especially in the subwoofer. The low frequencies from both the front and rear are routed to the sub for reproduction. They are 180 degrees out of phase, and cancel each other out completely, resulting in little to know bass in many situations. The result is unacceptable sound when in quad mode.

BTW-What is the big difference between the Audigy2 "SB0244" and the Audigy2 "SB0350"? There's only about $14 difference between the two, should I spend the extry change on it?

The ZS have 7.1 output. That's about it. Also the retail Creative cards have gold plated contacts while the OEMs have colour coded ones that are not. There doesn't seem to be any difference in the build quality, but I guess there might be. Don't know what - if any - bundle the ZS have that might also be worth something to you.

 

[digitalwanderer]

I saw these Logitech Z640 5.1 set-up that looks pretty good for the bang if I want to try a real 5.1 set-up, but I'm worried these would be cheap sounding compared to the set-up Snipe was talking about.

A friend of mine have those. My verdict says they are good value for your money, but with more 'boom' than 'finesse'. Much more gamer- and movie oriented than the Altecs you first linked above for example.

BTW: I got curious about the ADA885/890s and took at quick trip over to Google. I might have found a caveat:

Quad mode is available when four channels of analog information are connected. In digital input mode, the system will only operate in normal stereo mode. In analog quad mode, it reproduces the front two channels to the front surrounds, and the rear channels to the rear satellites, as would follow naturally.

Unfortunately, there is a technical problem with quad mode. According to Altec, the system originally was designed as an OEM solution to accompany a Dell computer. The original configuration included a four channel sound card in which the rear channels were wired out of phase with the front channels. To correct for this in the original system, Altec wired the rear input out of phase with the front channels. This same architecture is included in the current system.

However, most current four channel sound cards are wired in phase. This causes phase cancellation in quad mode, especially in the subwoofer. The low frequencies from both the front and rear are routed to the sub for reproduction. They are 180 degrees out of phase, and cancel each other out completely, resulting in little to know bass in many situations. The result is unacceptable sound when in quad mode.

BTW-What is the big difference between the Audigy2 "SB0244" and the Audigy2 "SB0350"? There's only about $14 difference between the two, should I spend the extry change on it?

The ZS have 7.1 output. That's about it. Also the retail Creative cards have gold plated contacts while the OEMs have colour coded ones that are not. There doesn't seem to be any difference in the build quality, but I guess there might be. Don't know what - if any - bundle the ZS have that might also be worth something to you.

Ok, I'm more confused by your caveat than anything else...could you use little words please?

I'm not looking for anything in a bundle, I'm just interested in getting the best hardware for the cheapest and if the only diff is the bundle and 7.1 support than it's no diff to me. 8)

BTW-I put the kids to sleep and am just trying to get relaxed (non-panicked/freaked-out) before my wife comes home from work in 15 minutes or so. Calm will come.