Speakers, sound cards.. urrghhh......please help!

if your onboard isnt HD audio (you need to open the case and check at the evry bottom of the mothboard for a connector that looks like this

http://supcontent.gateway.com/support.gateway.com/s/Cases/shared/8010826R/8010826R_1394.JPG

literally it will look like this.. possibly a different color and instead of 1394 its going to say HD audio or 1938 audio i believe is the other one.. hd audio can do basic and crude 5.1 audio, but 1938 audio (or whatever its called) cant.

now it shouldnt be confused with 1394 and thats firewire also be sure you put it back exactly as you found it... its a simple check if not you will need that sound card.. a decent one is like 40 bucks

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102003

Logitech X-540 yeah i have those if you don't got the plug for behind for 5.1 you have to buy a sound card from 20-100$ that depend of quality you desire
If you don't want to spend too much and get still a decent audio quality no on-board audio rival with that (on-board mean motherboard audio)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132020 19.99$ AFTER MIR asus Xonar DG 5.1 29.99$
If you want True Quality and as the money go for a Essence but it 170$ ish else just stick with a 20-70$ Asus sound card and one day upgrade if you feel the need

Tough almost all onboard audio feature 5.1 Since Dual Core CPU socket AM2

but also I heard the 7.1 Audigy SE Is Like Bad Quality compare to Asus Xonar 5.1 DG even tough it feature only 5.1 the other 7.1 it seem the overall is just better also it a much newer card : the audigy Se was around 2006 was it ? Xonar DG : 2010 Summer as far i remember

i'm not speciliast in audio tough but id belive more in the ASUS Xonar DX 7.1 at 69.99$ heard it Beat in any range the X-FI Extreme Audio Which is far superior to Audigy SE and perhaps even Beat X-FI titanium

some go in the PCi-E 1X but cost way more like 150-200$ if i remember like the ASUS Xonar Essence STX tough i'm a noob in audio and can't tell if there a huge difference From PCI 2.1 and PCI-E 1X in quality of the sound or anything like that i just know the highest end soundcard Seem to use it

I heard Also good of the Titanium HD while it PCI 2.1 Requirement and seem great for once from Creative they have lost the monopoly 3 year ago but Im uncertain of the difference beetween it and a Xonar Essence STX or Xonar Xense

You can pick the Asus DG 5.1 (29.99$) pretty basic 19.99$ AFTER MIR : or Asus DX 7.1 : Higher Quality But by how far I'm uncertain anyway you would be fine with the 5.1 DG

Thanks guys!!! I'll go for the Asus XONAR one then.....Can I get some good 5.1 speakers now please???aayush59059

Whats your budget?

But here's two choices

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16836121006&cm_re=5.1_speakers-_-36-121-006-_-ProductX-540

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16836121120&cm_re=5.1_speakers-_-36-121-120-_-ProductZ-5500

My budget's upto 200 bucks. Any other than the X-540. And how's Sony SA-ID7000???aayush59059

Any other 5.1 speakers???

I'll just throw this out there; it's kind of on the edge of what you're looking for, but wanted to make you aware of the option:

Get a dedicated receiver and speaker system. This is going to be outside your budget, but the improvement in quality is worthwhile.

Your dedicated audio card will have an optical digital output. Use an optical cable and run it to a 5.1 (or better) receiver with a set of speakers. A worthwhile entry-level set would be something like the Yamaha RX-V367 paired with the Infinity TSS-500 Home Theater Speaker System ($170 with code). A home-theater in a box like the entry-level Panasonic SC-PT480 would also work, albeit at reduced quality. The ONKYO HT-S3300 would give you significantly more mileage but hey, I'm working within your budget.

It will take more work - meaning research and tinkering - to get it set up and your PC outputting the correct signal for the receiver. Personally I would go with the Yamaha receiver and Infinity speaker setup; I've used prior iterations of those models, and they're excellent for the price.

Dedicated receiver pros: Better sound quality, future connectivity options Dedicated receiver cons: Price, cable management, technical knowledge

Otherwise I wouldn't bother and I'd go the computer speaker route. Even then I'd prefer a high-quality 2.1 setup like the Cambridge Soundworks Microworks II setup to a lower-quality 5.1 setup.

Good luck!

Boz

I think you should toss in a little extra and purchase something like this

$300 - Onkyo S5300, unlike other systems it comes with a powered subwoofer and a proper receiver. I do not advise HTiB systems aside from a few from Onkyo.

Otherwise a high quality 2.0 or 2.1 system will be your best bet.

Hey, alright so I am getting a 5.1 speaker system for my birthday in a few days. Fine, I was extremely happy a few hours back, and then I found out that my onboard sound card or whatever might not support the 5.1 thingy. So now will I have to buy an extra sound card or something like that?? Or will I get that 5.1 surround feel through the thing I already have??? Please I'm a newbie in this audio business. I've got absolutely no idea about sound cards or how the 5.1 system works or anything. Please tell me what sound card should I get or.....anything, please just help me with this thing. Thanks P.S. - I am getting a Logitech X-540 5.1 system. Is that any good? aayush59059

Any good? Well, it's like $100, so what do you think? It'll be adequate, especially if you never had surround before. You'll be in heaven. I can't imagine any modern mobo without 5.1. What computer/mobo do you have? You don't need any special plug or cable, just jack up the cord they supply with the speakers and go nuts.

^^^ Trust me, my mobo is s*****, its an old one I think.

I really like that Yamaha reciever. I'm going to check it out now. Thanks man!!