Asus integrated audio vs sb audigy 2?

[Brucethemoose]

I'm using this mobo in by new build.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131402

And I'm pretty sure this is my old sound card. Mine came with a Dell, and had the same internal and external labels and ports. The drivers are a pain, and don't tell me much about the card.
http://www.google.com/m/products/de...gy+2&channel=products&cid=3713539752779623599

Would I be better off using an old sound blaster audigy 2 card, or should I stick with integrated sound? I'm using a a pretty hefty surround speaker set up, and yes, I know the drivers will be a pain on windows 7 x64 ( they were already a pain on xp). I hear new integrated sound is good, but assuming I need good sound quality and that I'm willing to put up with temperamental drivers, should I put the old card in my new build, or just leave it the ancient p4 machine?

 

[Theocnoob]

The audigy 2 sounds better than any integrated audio I've heard. Even current generation integrated audio on a higher end board is garbage. I'm on a $300 board and the integrated sound is so bad I'm putting a soundcard in next week (Xonar Essence STX)

Important:
The motherboard you have selected has an obsolete chipset.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131644
You don't need to buy this high end a board but current chipset is 890. You selected a 790 board. A current chipset board gives you several advancements, such as SATA 6GB and USB 3.0 capability.

If you do not need a second double height video card, you can save a bit of money on a current generation board and still get the advantages of current features as mentioned above. This board has a PCI slot for your Audigy.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Image... 6Gb/s USB 3.0 HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

The only issue is that, as you can see, since it is mATX, not ATX (it is a smaller board, square rather than rectangular), you would not be able to fit two double height graphics cards AND a soundcard.

Choose a brand you trust and feel comfortable with, but use a current generation board. The price difference is not a whole lot. MSI makes an excellent product IMO. ASUS and Gigabyte make great boards as well.

Also--- if you are using a straight digital signal to your audio equipment, you do not need a soundcard. Just make sure you get a mobo with optical out. If you are using an analog signal (via 3.5mm plug) then you would want that signal as clean as possible, and a soundcard is the way to go. (both the mobos I linked to as well as your original choice support this via S/PDIF connector)

Current soundcards obliterate Audigy 2. And Xfi. Asus Xonar cards in the higher range are wicked good.

 

[PicodeGallo]

I'm not familiar with the VIA audio chipsets (that are on the mobo you want). However, the Realtek's aren't too shabby. If you're relying upon the mobo for the surround sound duty, then I can tell you now that it will not matter what audio chipset you use when it comes to sound quality. Drivers are one thing, but SQ is another.

Ideally, you would send the digital signal to a A/V receiver or a dedicated pre-amp, with the speakers connected to the receiver or amplifier. If not, there will not be much difference in quality. If using using amplified speakers that connect directly to the computer, then don't expect any earth-shattering improvements. Your audio equipment will be the limitation far sooner than onboard audio or sound cards will be.

If it were me, I would step up to the 8xx northbridge mobo chipset when choosing a new motherboard.

 

[Theocnoob]

I'm not familiar with the VIA audio chipsets (that are on the mobo you want). However, the Realtek's aren't too shabby.

If using using amplified speakers that connect directly to the computer, then don't expect any earth-shattering improvements. Your audio equipment will be the limitation far sooner than onboard audio or sound cards will be.

IMO Realtek audio = . The midrange sounds like it's being run over by a tractor. I totally disagree regarding using amplified speakers. Sure, it's not the best thing in the world but even with something midrange in a PC speaker like Promedia 2.1 from Klipsch, the difference from onboard to Audigy 2 to OxygenHD with a good PCB is pretty huge. Just IMO.

 

[Brucethemoose]

Ya, I know the 790x is an old chipset, but its supports 8x crossfire for a future upgrade, and I heard great things about it from hardware review sites. I had an incredible deal on newegg, and got for under $90 with a combo for my semi budget system. Other 8xx mobos in that range didn't have crossfire, or had 4x/16x crossfire with terrible reliability reviews. For a phenom ii x4 and 1600 ddr3 ram, this was the best deal I could find, and it'll work fine for what I need.

And I want the card for a friends sick HT setup (its complicated, but were sharing the pc). Trust me, the other audio equipment will NOT be the limiting factor.

 

[Theocnoob]

Get your friend a good card. Depending on his equipment, it may be better to output to it via SPDIF or HDMI even. The latter can be accomplished with a $50 range Xonar card designed for this purpose.