PCI sound card suggestion...

[mountainman]

Hey there folks.

I think I am in dire need for a new/outboard sound card. I have a 2 year old HP that is pretty good (after some upgrades), but the sound is CRAP. When I play FS2002, I get a lot of bad distortion and when I listen to MP3s, some sound pretty crappy with scratching. I have sound on the modem card for some reason. Is that onboard?

Is there a way that I can add a sound card via PCI and then have it run through there instead of onboard?

Please advise on this. And if so, what should I get if I just want something that sounds decent and is inexpensive. Thanks.

[loop2kil]

Yes, you can add a pci sound card and disable the onboard sound. a good inexpensive one is this one, and can be had for $87 at newegg.com....for the money there is no better, IMO. I wish i had seen this b4 i bought my sblive platinum

[cy]

Originally posted by loop2kil
Yes, you can add a pci sound card and disable the onboard sound. a good inexpensive one is this one, and can be had for $87 at newegg.com....for the money there is no better, IMO. I wish i had seen this b4 i bought my sblive platinum

That one is the Hercules one eh...I heard that it's not a bad one. But I think if u don't want all those hardware but just a sound card, the Creative Audigy will be ideal for u if u have some spare money. They have one for gamer, MP3 as well as the Platnium series just like the SoundBlaster Live! before. However if u don't got lots of money to spend, just spend like $20 or so, grab yourself an AOpen or cheap to decent one, that'll be good enough i would think.

For my personal opinion, spending more money on speakers is more important than spending money on sound card. But of course if u have the $$, u can always buy both

[HawaiianGhost]

SB Audigy (OEM Bulk - not retail) can be found for $60USD now days. Great card or if you want cheaper SB Audio PCI128 (Ensoniq) can be found for around $10-20USD (not sure how hard it is to find these). There are others that are really nice and decent price, do a search at some on-line shop like newegg.com or something. Most usually have a manufacturer's link to their products to look up specifics. It all depends on what you want out of it [soundwise]. Are you looking for 2, 4, or 6 channel? 3D sound? 2.1, 4.1, 5.1, 6.1 or 7.1 sound capabilities? OEM or Retail version? These are the Q's that you have to ask/answer yourself to decide where to start looking....

*If you do get an add-on card for sound in that HP, it should be as easy as plug-and-play. Just remember to disable any on-board sound devices in BIOS....

[loop2kil]

yeah and if money is tight i would even look at the hercules gamemuse xl...it sells for under 20 bucks and has 4.1 support as well.

[mountainman]

Originally posted by loop2kil
Yes, you can add a pci sound card and disable the onboard sound. a good inexpensive one is this one, and can be had for $87 at newegg.com....for the money there is no better, IMO. I wish i had seen this b4 i bought my sblive platinum

Thanks for the idea man. However, I can't figure out which one it is since you can't get to the item from that link. I dont really want to spend that much. No more than $50. Thanks.

Originally posted by cy


That one is the Hercules one eh...I heard that it's not a bad one. But I think if u don't want all those hardware but just a sound card, the Creative Audigy will be ideal for u if u have some spare money. They have one for gamer, MP3 as well as the Platnium series just like the SoundBlaster Live! before. However if u don't got lots of money to spend, just spend like $20 or so, grab yourself an AOpen or cheap to decent one, that'll be good enough i would think.

For my personal opinion, spending more money on speakers is more important than spending money on sound card. But of course if u have the $$, u can always buy both

I have some pretty good speakers since I hook my computer into my stereo (Pro Logic Aiwa system) and have big speakers on either side of the monitor (not too close). I think it is really the sound adapter.

Also, I have the one small jack from the sound card split into 2 channels of RCA for the stereo. Do you think that causes the problems? My last speakers (factory) were pretty crappy.

Any ideas?

[mountainman]

wow! two posts while I was typing.

I just need something that is PCI, has stereo sound, and does not get scratchy or anything when playing at high volume.

Thanks for the info guys.

What do you recommend for under $50 TOTAL that meets these requirements?

Thanks a mil.

[loop2kil]

What do you recommend for under $50 TOTAL that meets these requirements

ahh, with that in mind i would go with the original SBlive 5.1 at newegg for $32. i have that same card with the platninum setup and it sounds great...you wont be disappointed.

its on this page....

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ry=1137&DEPA=1

[mountainman]

Originally posted by loop2kil


ahh, with that in mind i would go with the original SBlive 5.1 at newegg for $32. i have that same card with the platninum setup and it sounds great...you wont be disappointed.

its on this page....

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ry=1137&DEPA=1

Thank you sir.

So, I just disable the onboard sound in the BIOS?

[loop2kil]

Yeah there should be the option in the bios, but with an OEM pc like an HP it might not be in there

[HawaiianGhost]

Yes, in BIOS should have an option to enable/disable on-board sound under the "intergrated peripherals" option. It all depends on what mobo you have, that you will have this option and what name/menu it falls under and usually using the Page Up or Page Down key switches this.

[HawaiianGhost]

here's a link to www.newegg.com:

http://www.newegg.com/app/manufactor...alog=57&DEPA=1

Compare these cards with each other to decide what you want and/or need...Have fun and good luck!!!

[cy]

Originally posted by loop2kil


ahh, with that in mind i would go with the original SBlive 5.1 at newegg for $32. i have that same card with the platninum setup and it sounds great...you wont be disappointed.

its on this page....

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ry=1137&DEPA=1

Yep, won't be disappointed if u got some good speakers

[mountainman]

Thanks for all the help guys.

I went to the BIOS and cannot find an onboard speaker turnoff. My BIOS is the following:

Phoenix BIOS
Core version: 4.06
BIOS revision: 1.04 03/27/00

Does anyone know about this or where I can find it? I'll go back in and snoop around some more.

Thanks.

[mountainman]

BUMP

[LukeMan]

Try here......HP site

that should answer your questions

[mountainman]

Thanks dude.

Great find.

[Sid]

Look for intergrated devices.

[mountainman]

Originally posted by Sid
Look for intergrated devices.

Do you mean on that site? or do you mean to buy?

I'm confused.

Thanks, Sid.

[Sid]

In your bios!