Info: How to buy soundcards - Overclock.net

frostbite · 04-20-06

This should help anyone who want to know/buy a soundcard for the extra boost in fps and sound quality.

Most PCs have built in surround sound on the motherboard. Some support six channel that's 5.1, others support 8 channel that's 7.1 and the sound quality is fine for most people.

If you want a dedicated soundcard for playing and making Cd's and mp3s, DVDs and games, most will fit the bill.

Entry-level soundcards support 16bit-quality sound recorded or played back at 44.1KHz, which is CD quality.

The next step is 24bit sound at sampling rates of 48KHz or 96KHz, recommended for those creating music or playing DVD movies with THX surround or Dolby Digital ex 6.1 or 7.1 sound formats.
More cards now also support 24bit 192KHz playback, required for the DVD-Audio music format.

The signal to noise (SNR) ratio, is measured in decibels dB, is the amount of sound (signal) verses that which you don't (noise). Decibel ratings range from 60dB to over 100dB and the higher the dB rating, the better.

Most cards share many similar options, such as microphone-in, line-in/line-out, line out, midi/joystick port, CD-in/AUX-in and headphone connectors.
Newer cards also have high-speed firewire ports. Audio enthusiasts should look for S/PDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface) -in and -out, to connect via a single optical or coaxial cable and get higher quality digital sound.

Nearly all new soundcards will have a soundprocessor, which will help boost the fps in games while the environment is exploding around you, with the environment making all sorts of different sounds the cpu wont need to worry about rendering the sounds when the soundcard can do it.