What Soundcard And Speakers ?

[Alkan]

Im in the process of upgrading machine. Just purchased and installed Ati 9800XT .

Now im after a soundcard and speakers. I have a budget of £150 -£200 all together.

Any ideas ?

Cheers.

[BlackSheep]

Im in the process of upgrading machine. Just purchased and installed Ati 9800XT .

Now im after a soundcard and speakers. I have a budget of £150 -£200 all together.

Any ideas ?

Cheers.

I would say spend more on speakers and get a half-decent 5.1 set - preferably with a digital decoder - and then think about the sound card later ... if you already own (or plan on getting) an Nforce 2 board with soundstorm on-board that will satisfy the sound card part (£70 inc. approx.)

As for which speakers to get ... something like Creative's Inspire GD580
Inspire GD580's

... or if you are feeling a little more flush:
Logitech Z-680 (THX Certified) 5.1

[Lord Kordir]

Audigy 2 for the soundcard. Creative / Logitech speakers

[Aaron]

To be honest, I'd use your on-board soundstorm (if you've got it of course) and then get yourself down richer sounds. You should be able to pick up a proper home cinema speaker set and a cheap receiver for £200, if you're lucky, and it will sound infinitely better than any PC speaker set-up.

Having said that, my solution is a lot more hassle. Depends how much you like tinkering with wires and stuff.

[Alkan]

i was looking to buy the Audigy 2 NX or Audigy 2 ZS soundcard (is there any difference apart from external - internal ?).

Whilst the Z-680 would be great its a bit out of my range. After card I will only have about £120 to spend on speakers.

I have been looking at the Inspire T7700 and the Phillips A3.6.

(ps i will be purchasing Pioneer NSVD99. however that will be set up with main TV downstairs in living room).

[Alkan]

p.s i have MSI motherboard with Realtec AC'97 intergrated soundchip

[floppybootstomp]

If you insist on using a seperate Sound Card, consider the Philips Accoustic Edge (5.1) or Dynamic Edge (4.1).

Knocks spots off the Creative cards for sound quality.

Myself, I'd use the onboard Sound and spend more on the speakers.

[serlex]

audigy 2 for sound card

and creative 7.1 speakers. awesome combo

[Stubzz]

audigy 2 for sound card

and creative 7.1 speakers. awesome combo

I'd say get a better quality 5.1 system over a 'cheaper' 7.1. May be less speakers but you'll be able to get beter quality ones!

[NeilI]

I'd go for the Logitech z5300 at your budget.
Here's the spec and they are £159.02 from the site above, which was found using Dealtime.

I'd imagine they are the best bang you'd get for your £150-£200 range.
They are THX certified (w00t?). But have no digital connections.

Edit: And I'd stick with the soundstorm audio on your mobo.

Edit: Also IMHO, anything less than Megaworks from Creative don't have a good enough 'oomph' for my liking. These Logitechs should 'immerse' you in the sound.

[atkruz789]

I agree.... Stick with your sound card on your mobo and get good speakers. The logitechs will amaze you. I have the z-560s. They are not 5.1 like the 5300s but they do have 400 watts. I can only stand to turn them to about HALF power they are so strong. Plus they are the generation previous to the 5300s and they should be cheaper. They are absolutely amazing and both the 560s and the 5300s are THX (w/o digital connections) and award winning. Search the net for reviews and awards, they will be strongly recommended everywhere you look.

Kruz

[Stubzz]

The PC-World in Thurrock Lakeside where doing those speakers for only £60! They where reduced to clear.

My biggest problemw ith them was that they are only 4.1 speakers

[kushtibari]

I just upgraded from onboard NForce 2 sound to an Audigy 2ZS (just got an OEM one of ebay for £60). Sound quality is superb but the only thing is it shows up the weakness in the speakers which are Videologic ZXR-550's. Suppose patience is the key and pay for one really good bit of kit now instead of two average bits.

[unrealrocks]

Being quite an audiophile and listening to several soundcards (expect roundup very soon on AMD3D), as far as stereo quality goes SoundStorm is the best. I've not listened to any Philips cards but only ever heard good things. Although the EAX profiles etc. on the Audigy2 are reasonable, the rest of the card is overated, stereo is boomy, it uses an onboard EQ you can't switch off, low bitrate is terrible and as a purists card its awful.

Speakers - I'm with Aaron. I have a decent set of Cubes, and a Denon amp with Wharfedale speakers ... I know which one I prefer Even if you buy a cheap Pioneer decoder and a set of Eltax standmounts ... it'll knock the socks off even the Z680s!

[Alkan]

I have been reading a number of reviews and the Z-680 sound like a good set of speakers. I have found them on amazon for £220 with free del.

However, will my realtec AC'97 chip supply the speakers with good sound quality or will the chip be somewhat lacking?

[Alex]

Being quite an audiophile and listening to several soundcards (expect roundup very soon on AMD3D), as far as stereo quality goes SoundStorm is the best. I've not listened to any Philips cards but only ever heard good things. Although the EAX profiles etc. on the Audigy2 are reasonable, the rest of the card is overated, stereo is boomy, it uses an onboard EQ you can't switch off, low bitrate is terrible and as a purists card its awful.

Speakers - I'm with Aaron. I have a decent set of Cubes, and a Denon amp with Wharfedale speakers ... I know which one I prefer Even if you buy a cheap Pioneer decoder and a set of Eltax standmounts ... it'll knock the socks off even the Z680s!

I agree. Im hardly an audiphile, but the difference is obvious to anyone who wants to listen to it. You can see the setup Ive got below, it cost a little more than standard PC speakers, but was well worth it, the difference between this setup (which i only got this month) and what im used to is incredible. Even if you buy nearly the cheapest separate richer sounds have. You can of course upgrade bits of a separates set-up, which is another bonus. You could get a 5.1 receiver now, and only get the two front speakers, until you can afford to get the rears, and centre (and a big subwoofer if you want to have real fun with it). I reckon its worth it anyday. But tis up to you.

Hyperfi may be a good bet (www.hyperfi.co.uk) though last time i tried to order from them they had very little in stock. For a little more than the Z-680s you could get a Pioneer VSX-511 receiver, and a set of wharfedale diamond cinema speakers. It would akmost certainly whoop the Z-680s. (Though Ill get shot down for suggesting a Pioneer amp, its just the cheapest they have and my pioneer amp sounds lush, so there.)