Need advice on new sound card

vtjvt · 10-29-2005, 11:57 PM

Hey all, long time no post (LOL)

My santa cruz is crapping out on me so I need a new card $130 or less, I will be using the card for music and games, my comp is also going to be used for a home theater pc in the near future I am way out of things computer related so ALL advice is welcome

FearFactory · 10-30-2005, 12:01 AM

Yeah, long time i dont see you here. Creative X-FI Xtreme Music all the way!

http://www.soundblaster.com/products...&product=14066

$129.99 http://us.creative.com/shop/shopcategory.asp?category=1

*polonyc2* · 10-30-2005, 12:03 AM

Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic...

$118 at ZipZoomFly with free 2nd day shipping
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...uctCode=290236

http://www.creative.com/products/pro...&product=14066

vtjvt · 10-30-2005, 12:05 AM

Thanks guys, that is the one I have been eyeballing But I have had crappy luck with creative in the past, are there any issues with this card???????

*polonyc2* · 10-30-2005, 12:07 AM

there was an issue with the X-Fi cards and the nForce 4 chipset....

Creative confirms X-Fi/nForce4 problem

vtjvt · 10-30-2005, 12:09 AM

Cool, I guess I will head out to compussr and grab one in the morning

JoeBar · 10-30-2005, 10:02 AM

Nice choice!

Endaar · 10-30-2005, 11:32 AM

Has Creative fixed their usual poor driver problems with this round of cards?

Endaar

PCBruiser · 10-30-2005, 11:39 AM

Yes, they seem to have. And, it is the first card where they allow pure driver downloads without frequiring the installer CD version to be installed first. Furthermore, you can select exactly what you do want installed. I did a minimal install of the drivers, mixer, EAX and audio CPs, etc., the basic required sturr for complete functionality of the card, and nothing else. One of the reasons I think this is happening is so much more processing is being done by the hardware than at the software driver level. I had no trouble with the install, and you have far more control over the way the card sounds and operates with the new controls. If is a very good sounding card, but it is very different and offers a lot of flexibility to adjust the card for sound, channeling, effects, speaker placement, etc., much more so than prior models. It takes a little more effort to figure it all out, but it is worth it in the end. Very sophisticated, truly excellent sound. The downside is if you don't take some time to adjust the card's parameters, your sound quality could really stink. So, a little work, a couple of hours, is really needed to start to understand the card's settings and get them customized for your system and environment.

Endaar · 10-30-2005, 11:43 AM

Thanks PCB.

Endaar

*polonyc2* · 10-30-2005, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PCBruiser

I did a minimal install of the drivers, mixer, EAX and audio CPs, etc., the basic required sturr for complete functionality of the card, and nothing else.

does AudioHQ still come with the new X-Fi line?...because when using Audigy I would only install the drivers, Creative Surround Mixer and AudioHQ

PCBruiser · 10-30-2005, 12:01 PM

Yes - in a new manifestation. There are actually three of them now, audio playback, audio recording and gaming - each is structured a differently and provide different levels of control over the different features. Each interface provides a very different look and feel. You will probably just choose to use one of then and not bother with the others. Or, at least I was more focused on the playback one to set up the sound the way I wanted it.

vtjvt · 10-30-2005, 03:06 PM

Well, The Xtrememusic is installed, holly hell there are alot of adjustments, but the sound quality is amazing once it is set up, I can't believe the clarity. I have been using a santa cruz for the last several years and always thought it sounded good, there is no comparison, my klipsch have never sounded so good

cmay119 · 10-30-2005, 03:55 PM

I agree, my Klipsch Ultra's have never had this much clarity. I also upgraded to 12-Guage Speaker wire (The absolute max these satellites can handle.) Although, it's not really meant to be speaker wire, but outdoor lighting wire (100ft for $20) Works great.

JS_racer · 11-08-2005, 07:24 AM

I too have a tb Santa Cruz. I am thinking about upgrading but had a few questions. I use sennheiser hd570 phones for gaming, connected through the logitech z560 control panel. I always game with phones. I have the versa jack setup as headphones out and that goes to my home theater receiver. Will there be any benefit to upgrading, and will i still have the output to my ht on some jack?
system is a p4 northwood at 3.6, ati x850xt pe, 1gig Corsair CMX512-3200XL.
Thanks for the time,
Joel

10-29-2005, 11:57 PM	#1
vtjvt Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: Smurf Village Posts: 2,220	Need advice on new sound card Hey all, long time no post (LOL) My santa cruz is crapping out on me so I need a new card $130 or less, I will be using the card for music and games, my comp is also going to be used for a home theater pc in the near future I am way out of things computer related so ALL advice is welcome
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 12:01 AM	#2
FearFactory The FC.Porto dragon! Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Portugal Posts: 3,931	Yeah, long time i dont see you here. Creative X-FI Xtreme Music all the way! http://www.soundblaster.com/products...&product=14066 $129.99 http://us.creative.com/shop/shopcategory.asp?category=1 __________________ P4 3.0E@3.4, Zalman CNPS7000B-Alcu, Asus P4C800-E Deluxe, 2x 512MB DDR500 Twinmos Twister, Gigabyte Geforce 6800 128MB (OC 16x6vp 385/900), NEC 2500a 8x DVD+RW/-RW (flashed to dual layer 2510a), Liteon DVD-ROM 16X, Samsung 500GB SATA, Seagate 200GB SATA (lLinux), SB Live 1024 Player, USRobotics ADSL2+ router, PSU LC Power Ozeanos 650W, Samsung 17' 795MB Flat
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10-30-2005, 12:03 AM	#3
polonyc2 Helter Skelter Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: New York City Posts: 7,454	Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic... $118 at ZipZoomFly with free 2nd day shipping http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...uctCode=290236 http://www.creative.com/products/pro...&product=14066 __________________ ASUS Maximus Formula (X38) *** EVGA 8800GT Superclocked 512MB Intel E8400 * Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro G.Skill 4 GB (2 X 2 GB) DDR2 800 4-4-4-12 * Western Digital RE2 500 GB WD5001ABYS Lian Li PC-A70B (black) * Corsair HX620 AuzenTech Auzen X-Fi Prelude 7.1 * Creative Inspire P5800 5.1 speakers Lite-On DVD-RW w/LightScribe LH-20A1L-06 * Sony GDM-F520 21' CRT monitor (19.8' viewable) Vista Business 64-bit w/SP1 * standard 3.5" floppy drive Microsoft Laser Mouse 6000 *** Microsoft Wired Keyboard 500 (Black)
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10-30-2005, 12:05 AM	#4
vtjvt Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: Smurf Village Posts: 2,220	Thanks guys, that is the one I have been eyeballing But I have had crappy luck with creative in the past, are there any issues with this card???????
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 12:07 AM	#5
polonyc2 Helter Skelter Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: New York City Posts: 7,454	there was an issue with the X-Fi cards and the nForce 4 chipset.... Creative confirms X-Fi/nForce4 problem __________________ ASUS Maximus Formula (X38) *** EVGA 8800GT Superclocked 512MB Intel E8400 * Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro G.Skill 4 GB (2 X 2 GB) DDR2 800 4-4-4-12 * Western Digital RE2 500 GB WD5001ABYS Lian Li PC-A70B (black) * Corsair HX620 AuzenTech Auzen X-Fi Prelude 7.1 * Creative Inspire P5800 5.1 speakers Lite-On DVD-RW w/LightScribe LH-20A1L-06 * Sony GDM-F520 21' CRT monitor (19.8' viewable) Vista Business 64-bit w/SP1 * standard 3.5" floppy drive Microsoft Laser Mouse 6000 *** Microsoft Wired Keyboard 500 (Black)
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 12:09 AM	#6
vtjvt Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: Smurf Village Posts: 2,220	Cool, I guess I will head out to compussr and grab one in the morning
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 10:02 AM	#7
JoeBar Bite me if u can... Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Athens Posts: 5,889	Nice choice! __________________ Asus P5WDG2 Premium rev. 1.02G Intel Pentium D 920 SL94S Malay @ 4.31GHz cooled by Thermaltake Big Water 745 GeCube Radeon X1900XT combined with LG 1980Q (8ms) 19' TFT monitor 2 x 1GB Transcend DDR2-533 @ 770mhz 2 x 36.7GB Western Digital Raptors Raid 0 \| 300GB Western Digital Caviar SE SATA Creative Soundblaster X-Fi Xtrememusic combined with Cambridge Soundworks Megaworks 550 THX Asus E616P3 DVD \| Asus 1608-P DVD-RW Thermaltake Kandalf black super tower with 4 x 120mm and 2 x 90mm blue led fans \| Chieftec 550W Triple 12V rails - 120mm fan
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 11:32 AM	#8
Endaar Angry American Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Long Island, NY Posts: 793	Has Creative fixed their usual poor driver problems with this round of cards? Endaar __________________
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 11:39 AM	#9
PCBruiser Registered User Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 13,497	Yes, they seem to have. And, it is the first card where they allow pure driver downloads without frequiring the installer CD version to be installed first. Furthermore, you can select exactly what you do want installed. I did a minimal install of the drivers, mixer, EAX and audio CPs, etc., the basic required sturr for complete functionality of the card, and nothing else. One of the reasons I think this is happening is so much more processing is being done by the hardware than at the software driver level. I had no trouble with the install, and you have far more control over the way the card sounds and operates with the new controls. If is a very good sounding card, but it is very different and offers a lot of flexibility to adjust the card for sound, channeling, effects, speaker placement, etc., much more so than prior models. It takes a little more effort to figure it all out, but it is worth it in the end. Very sophisticated, truly excellent sound. The downside is if you don't take some time to adjust the card's parameters, your sound quality could really stink. So, a little work, a couple of hours, is really needed to start to understand the card's settings and get them customized for your system and environment.
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 11:43 AM	#10
Endaar Angry American Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Long Island, NY Posts: 793	Thanks PCB. Endaar __________________
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 12:01 PM	#12
PCBruiser Registered User Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 13,497	Yes - in a new manifestation. There are actually three of them now, audio playback, audio recording and gaming - each is structured a differently and provide different levels of control over the different features. Each interface provides a very different look and feel. You will probably just choose to use one of then and not bother with the others. Or, at least I was more focused on the playback one to set up the sound the way I wanted it.
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 03:06 PM	#13
vtjvt Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: Smurf Village Posts: 2,220	Well, The Xtrememusic is installed, holly hell there are alot of adjustments, but the sound quality is amazing once it is set up, I can't believe the clarity. I have been using a santa cruz for the last several years and always thought it sounded good, there is no comparison, my klipsch have never sounded so good
(Offline)

10-30-2005, 03:55 PM	#14
cmay119 Can I have your title? Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Eden Prairie, MN Posts: 1,741	I agree, my Klipsch Ultra's have never had this much clarity. I also upgraded to 12-Guage Speaker wire (The absolute max these satellites can handle.) Although, it's not really meant to be speaker wire, but outdoor lighting wire (100ft for $20) Works great. __________________ DFI Lanparty UT nF4 Ultra-D \| AMD Opteron 170 CCBWE 0550 UPMW \| 2x1024 PC4000 Team Group Cronus I/A \| MSI NX7900GT \| 2x250GB Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 SATA RAID-0\| Lian Li PC65 \| PC Power & Cooling 750W Silencer \| Klipsch ProMedia Ultra 5.1 \| Creative Soundblaster X-Fi Platinum \| KDS Xtreme Flat 19" CRT
(Offline)

11-08-2005, 07:24 AM	#15
JS_racer Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: Twin Cities MN USA Posts: 35	I too have a tb Santa Cruz. I am thinking about upgrading but had a few questions. I use sennheiser hd570 phones for gaming, connected through the logitech z560 control panel. I always game with phones. I have the versa jack setup as headphones out and that goes to my home theater receiver. Will there be any benefit to upgrading, and will i still have the output to my ht on some jack? system is a p4 northwood at 3.6, ati x850xt pe, 1gig Corsair CMX512-3200XL. Thanks for the time, Joel
(Offline)

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