USB v Pci Soundcard? (also some sounds issues)

Had a few lock ups and after a lot of testing think it's my soundcard. When am using headset no issues and recently the soundcard isnt even being picked up by the pc.

Am gonna try re-installing but the constant issue are irritating. Currently havent
had any problems with it uninstalled and out of the pc so after months of testing am pretty sure it's the culprit.

Anyways 95% am gonna replace it.

So as it stands am looking at these..

Creative omni

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/creative-soundblaster-omni-surround-51-soundcard-usb-retail

creative soundblaster z

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/crea...-gaming-audio-pci-e-sound-card-51-channel-oem

creative x-fi external

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/creative-sound-blaster-x-fi-hd-external-usb-audiophile-sound-card

creative x-fi

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/creative-soundblaster-x-fi-surround-51-pro-usb-external-soundcard

I dont mind internal if it doesnt block the gpu fans..am pretty sure that internal one I linked sits above the gpu..

I am considering an external one because I thought this might be handy when travelling. I.e using a laptop abroad...

are they crap compared to an internal one?

 

I have a Xonar U7 and I've used it for gaming. http://www.asus.com/Sound_Cards/Xonar_U7/ This is a great external card.

 

I don't have any experience with external cards but I recently switched my old X-FI card to the Z and so far its a great sounding card. The X-FI was good too but the Z sounds better in my opinion

 

Ok it's a toss up between the asus u7 and the z...

One is more expensive but would be handy to have a portable soundcard. Dunno was thinking it would be usefull to use come xmas on hols (but then when drunk does it matter?).

Been ages since i put in a sound card am I right in thinking that internal z would sit above the gpu? (well am pretty sure its the smaller pci above the gpu).

Was irritating to have the zonar d1 right under the gpu...although didnt matter previously as was under h20. This time gonna be on air for the foreseeable future..(well at least a yr I reckon).

P.s I guess with a good set of headphones u can put them in easier on the asus u7...?

 

Have you checked this review?..http://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/asus-xonar-u7-review,1.html You will be surprised at how good the U7 really is.

 

ta guys...next I need some good headphones with a cable that doesnt tangle itself up 24/7..

will check the reviews and maybe have one last attempt to get my Xonar working.

i guess the u7 v the creative z they are both about equal...

 

Any PCIe slot will work. Doesn't have to be the small PCIe slots. My first one is blocked by my CPU cooler so I have my soundcard in the last long slot

 

Got to remember ALLOT of USB will only let you do 16bit. Yes its a HUGE difference.

 

The sound blaster omni suppose to sound very similar to the Z in fact I had some one tell me that they couldn't tell the difference between the z or the omni. The omni shares the same headphone amp chip as the Z, even the control panel is the same minus some slightly different settings.

The ASus Xonar U7 and the Xonar DG/DGX both share the same headphone chip, The U7 uses the same software as the phoebus and that alone ruins the U7 making it not be a good choice if you use virtual headphone dsp. I had a card which also used the same panel a diamond card that i can't think of the name of atm. Also it should have Xear3D surround max and Xear3D surround headphone which both doesn't even work if it does.

The omni or the Z would be a great buy as they have a virtual headphone option which works really well, after you config it and windows audio settings. Even a Asus Xonar DG/DGX is a good choice as it has Dolby headphone, so does the Asus Xonar U3.

The Omni can be found on amazon for 49-60 used. I have tried out the Omni analog even tho i had it for sending it functions over thru optical. The analog output sound very good. I also didn't have any issues with the omni.
The Asus Xonar DGX that i mention some times can be found for 20 dollars. The DG or DGX PCi-E can be found for 20-30 some times. I have seen a Asus Xonar STX going for 130 on ebay and maybe amazon which is another good choice.

The only reason to use external is if your internal sound card is picking up noises in it signal. Where you can't use any internal sound cards.

The only thing is the omni supports 16bit/24bit and 48khz and 96khz when the drivers are installed. Which doesn't hurt you if you are using Direct sound as a output in media player programs. When the drivers are not installed 44khz is available. The Asus U3 and the X-Fi Go usb stick is limited to 16bit/48khz

 

so lets say I need new set of headphones and a sound card what would you go for?

my speakers are fairly bog standard.

atm have some usb headphones (creative sound blaster alpha)..am I right in thinking headphones sound better if plugged into the soundcard or that doesnt matter? i.e my current ones would sound better if my xonar d1 was working..?

 

USB headphones are going to bypass your soundcard and use whatever software comes with them. If you want to utilize your soundcard you need a pair of analog headphones

I just bought a pair of the cheap Corsair 1400 analog headphones and they sound miles better than the USB ones I had when plugged in to my soundcard.

 

Ahh thought so! Still was a present from my bro..could always wrap them up and give them back haha.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SP-001-BX&groupid=702&catid=1058

so something like these?

(yeah sound noob here).

 

what's your budget?

 

Ideally £100...

 

so any suggestions? am pretty sure am either going for the creative z or the asus u7 but am still undecided on the headphones...

the bitfenix look good for the price but is it better to get some that are 5.1 or 7.1?

also currently it's very irritating that my headphones cable seems to tangle itself..anyone know of ones with a sturdy cable...

these look good

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SP-179-CL&tool=3

 

so am still undecided on the headphones!

for the price these look good (gamdias 7.1)

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/gamd...und-71-gaming-headset-with-anc-microphone-usb

plus I saw a review of these which looked nice...

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/logi...lack-blue-with-microphone-dolby-71ch-foldable

(logitech g430)

any other suggestions?

 

The best thing you can do is get a sound blaster omni usb from amazon uk for 49 pounds then a AD700x for 80 pounds, the sound blaster omni has virtual surround function which works very well when i used it after you set it up correctly. The omni also has a dual mic array built in which did work very well when I tried it.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Creative-Pe...1413488464&sr=8-1&keywords=Sound+blaster+omni

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Audio-Techn...3488612&sr=8-1&keywords=audio+technica+ad700x 90 pounds, you might find it even cheaper on ebay uk.

Another good choice is the DT990 pro-250 for 110 pounds http://www.amazon.co.uk/Beyerdynami...8&qid=1413488721&sr=8-3&keywords=Beyerdynamic

Also another good pair that not many people know about which are Takstar HI 2050 $35
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Takstar-Por...UTF8&qid=1413488692&sr=8-45&keywords=Superlux

 

I wouldn't buy either of these if you are planning on getting a decent soundcard.

 

right might just go for the takstar and the omni and keep it cheap..

so worth getting the u7 over the omni? i.e 7.1 to 5.1....

I guess those takstar arent 7.1...was thinking this was the way forward in terms of experience hence why I was looking at the gamdias/logitechs..

they not as good then?

 

I just bought these as a cheap headset to go with my soundblaster Z. They sound pretty good with the simulated surround sound.

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/corsair-vengeance-1400-analog-gaming-headset-with-microphone


Again, don't get a USB set if you get a decent soundcard.