I want a new sound card

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Guest

I have XP Home with an Avance AC 97 sound card, probably the cheapest one
made. The sound (I listen to a lot of opera) is horribly screechy and
distorted on the high end of the spectrum. So I am thinking I might buy a
better sound card. I have seen a lot on the Internet that are XP compatible
at different prices. Is anyone able to advise on a good, resonably priced
card that produces great sound? Also, am I correct in assuming that my
present card is a free-standing unit and not part of the motherboard, so that
I would be able to remove it and install a new one?
 
get top quality speakers, too.


| AC 97 usually indicates a sound chip on the
motherboard. If that's the
| case all you have to do is disable it in the Bios.
| You can't go wrong with Creative Labs Audigy. You don't
need the
| Platinum version.
| Read this review for a better understanding of
what your looking
| for.
|
http://www.pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,113750,pg,2,00.asp
|
| | >I have XP Home with an Avance AC 97 sound card, probably
the cheapest one
| > made. The sound (I listen to a lot of opera) is horribly
screechy and
| > distorted on the high end of the spectrum. So I am
thinking I might buy a
| > better sound card. I have seen a lot on the Internet
that are XP
| > compatible
| > at different prices. Is anyone able to advise on a good,
resonably priced
| > card that produces great sound? Also, am I correct in
assuming that my
| > present card is a free-standing unit and not part of the
motherboard, so
| > that
| > I would be able to remove it and install a new one?
|
|
 
If your audio is really as horrible as you say it is,
it may be horrible with a better sound card as well.

I have AC'97 devices, and a couple medium-quality
Creative soundcards, and in day-to-day use, playing
streamed audio off the 'Net, or with an audio CD played
in the computer, I am hard pressed to hear a difference, and I
know what I'm listening for.

The distortion you describe is symptomatic of audio
compressed at too low a bitrate.

What's your source material, and what are you playing it with?
How high is the volume slider set in the taskbar tray (it's easy
to overdrive things - keep this low and use the volume control
on the speakers instead).

The speaker suggestion is a good one, better speakers can
often make the biggest difference.
 
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