Sound Card, Wireless Card, and other suggestions for a 2000$ gaming build

aces19 · Nov 19, 2015

I am building a 2000$ gaming pc and have a few questions:
-do I need a sound card or does my mobo come with one?
-what is a good, cheap wireless card?
-and do you have any other suggestions on my build?

PCPartPicker: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ycydLk

Phillip Corcoran · Nov 20, 2015

You chose a motherboard and don't know whether or not it has a sound chip?

The specs page clearly says it incorporates 8-channel audio, so you don't need a sound card.

g-unit1111 · Nov 20, 2015

Sound cards are pretty pointless on modern PCs. That build looks really solid. The only things I would suggest:

1. The lighting and the case fans are wastes of money. You can always add the case fans as you need them. You don't need those things right away and you could drop that and upgrade your SSD to a Samsung 950 M2 drive.

2. I would swap the Zotac card for an MSI Lightning, otherwise that's about it really.

aces19 · Nov 20, 2015

g-unit1111 :

Yeah, I've thought of all those things...you really think I don't need those fans right away? Also, anything on a wireless card?

Victorion · Nov 20, 2015

I think your pick of hardware is pretty solid. Personally I´d skip the LED lighting.

The motherboard you picked (Asus MAXIMUS VIII HERO) features SupremeFX ROG and is a OEM-branded version of Realtek chipset. More than often, you´ll get a rebadged software, that makes it look like a premium offering, but its still a Realtek or other cheap chipset on a riser card.
The sound isn´t great and will probably sound a bit flat, poor bass and perhaps some EMI noise.

Personally I think dedicated soundcards are vastly underrated. And I believe the reason, is that alot of people don´t realize that they also need good speakers/headphones to hear the difference and a basic understand how to connect speakers correctly and the settings in the software. With a dedicated soundcard (even cheaper ones), you can experience clearer, crisper and fuller sounds. Sometimes new sounds that won´t be played with onboard audio.

To me, the sound is at least 15% of my playing experience, and that makes it important enough for me to spend a little extra on the quality too.
As a sidebonus, your gaming rig will free up some resources, as better soundcards have their own rams and audio processor.
The soundcard I am using is Xonar Essence STX from Asus, and it supports Direct3D and Creative Labs EAX realtime surround effect. It gives good surround sound experience, and you can track other players locations more precisely and hear distances more clearly. After my old soundcard was damaged, and I got used to hissy pc audio, I am really happy to have a good soundcard in play again.

Note – decent speakers/headphones are a must. Much like, if you use premium cooking gear, you may get a premium meal, provided the chef can cook and he uses quality ingredients.

aces19 · Nov 20, 2015

Victorion :

I think your pick of hardware is pretty solid. Personally I´d skip the LED lighting.

The motherboard you picked (Asus MAXIMUS VIII HERO) features SupremeFX ROG and is a OEM-branded version of Realtek chipset. More than often, you´ll get a rebadged software, that makes it look like a premium offering, but its still a Realtek or other cheap chipset on a riser card.
The sound isn´t great and will probably sound a bit flat, poor bass and perhaps some EMI noise.

Personally I think dedicated soundcards are vastly underrated. And I believe the reason, is that alot of people don´t realize that they also need good speakers/headphones to hear the difference and a basic understand how to connect speakers correctly and the settings in the software. With a dedicated soundcard (even cheaper ones), you can experience clearer, crisper and fuller sounds. Sometimes new sounds that won´t be played with onboard audio.

To me, the sound is at least 15% of my playing experience, and that makes it important enough for me to spend a little extra on the quality too.
As a sidebonus, your gaming rig will free up some resources, as better soundcards have their own rams and audio processor.
The soundcard I am using is Xonar Essence STX from Asus, and it supports Direct3D and Creative Labs EAX realtime surround effect. It gives good surround sound experience, and you can track other players locations more precisely and hear distances more clearly. After my old soundcard was damaged, and I got used to hissy pc audio, I am really happy to have a good soundcard in play again.

Note – decent speakers/headphones are a must. Much like, if you use premium cooking gear, you may get a premium meal, provided the chef can cook and he uses quality ingredients.

Thanks for the input. What you're trying to tell me is that I won't NEED a sound card, but a good one is always a plus. Although I keep asking this, what is a good wireless card for me? I don't really know EXACTLY what they do, but have a general idea. Suggestions?

Victorion · Nov 21, 2015

I am guessing that you mean wireless adapter, when you say wireless card.

Asus MAXIMUS VIII HERO has a normal lan port, which most gamers would use. Meaning you simply plug the lan-cable in the port and you´re good to go. For online gaming and in general, this type of connection is most stable, least packet losses and delays.

If you want a WiFi connection, you´d need to invest in a wireless adapter card. Any cheap one will do, you want a good antenna on it. Some cards hold more than 1 antenna.

aces19 · Nov 21, 2015

Victorion :

Yes, I am talking about a wireless adapter, and I am a bit clueless when it comes to these. If I were to just connect my lan cable directly to the mobo, wouldn't it have to come through the case, or is there a connection on the outside of my case?

Victorion · Nov 21, 2015

aces19 :

You should clearly see the LAN port on the picture. This part of the motherboard would stick out of the backside of your cabinet, along with ports for monitor, power, mouse, keyboard, speakers etc.

lodders · Nov 21, 2015

As a test I connected my computer to my expensive Hi Fi system in the living room, and was surprised how good it sounded while playing Spotify.
It is not as good as my £500 CD player, but it is close enough for me to enjoy listening to music. (Unlike my wife's laptop, which made me wince when I tried it...)
Bear in mind that my motherboard only cost £40, it just shows how far technology has advanced.

aces19 · Nov 21, 2015

Victorion :

aces19 :

You should clearly see the LAN port on the picture. This part of the motherboard would stick out of the backside of your cabinet, along with ports for monitor, power, mouse, keyboard, speakers etc.

makes perfect sense, thanks. Any further suggestions at all?

lodders · Nov 21, 2015

Aces, you have chosen a very expensive, very capable, and also cool looking motherboard.
I wondered what features this motherboard has which you need on your computer - say compared to the Gigabyte H81-HD3 I have in my computer?

Victorion · Nov 21, 2015

lodders :

Basically they have 2 different chipsets. Z97 is good for overclocking and the hero version supports SLI which h81 doesn´t.
They have different sizes as well (Micro ATX vs ATX) and means you need a bigger cabinet for ATX but will have more room and potential better airflow and less likely to block other ports with some components.

other things:
2 vs 4 ramslots
4 vs 8 sata ports

also I think the hero mobo supports PCIe 3.0 and has more pcie ports than yours, which only is PCIe 2.0

lodders · Nov 21, 2015

Victorion :

lodders :

Basically they have 2 different chipsets. Z97 is good for overclocking and the hero version supports SLI which h81 doesn´t.
They have different sizes as well (Micro ATX vs ATX) and means you need a bigger cabinet for ATX but will have more room and potential better airflow and less likely to block other ports with some components.

other things:
2 vs 4 ramslots
4 vs 8 sata ports

also I think the hero mobo supports PCIe 3.0 and has more pcie ports than yours, which only is PCIe 2.0

I know that, and you know that, but I wonder if Aces does?
Bear in mind he is only using one graphic card and 2 memory modules....

Victorion · Nov 21, 2015

lodders :

Probably not, which is why he came he seeking advice, which is a good thing.
Considering his budget, I think the best we can do for him is giving him quality and option for his money. And the hero mobo is a really great motherboard with alot of options and upgrade paths. And if nothing else, it´s a beautifully designed piece of hardware

aces19 · Nov 21, 2015

Victorion :

I mean, I do plan to use all 4 ram slots in the future plus the extra graphics card slot. As said, this is a good board for overclocking, which I will be doing a lot of, even though my 6700k is somewhat of a poor overclocker

g-unit1111 · Nov 21, 2015

Victorion :

Totally agree! It drives me insane when I see people recommend buying $30 Logitech tin can speakers. You might as well use the speakers that are built into your monitor before buying those. Either buy a good set ($100 or more) or don't buy any. If you don't have the money after buying the tower, those will make a nice upgrade later on.

lodders · Nov 21, 2015

aces19 :

I'm really glad to hear it.
I was not trying to be insulting.. I was trying to help
I sometimes meet people on this forum who are very enthusiastic about getting a very fast computer, but don't know a lot about them. These people can end up spending lots more money than they need to, and never use the full capabilities of their machine. For example many people think they want an i7 for gaming, when an i5 is actually better for some games
So I try to check if people are spending their money wisely.

aces19 · Nov 21, 2015

lodders :

aces19 :

I'm really glad to hear it.
I was not trying to be insulting.. I was trying to help
I sometimes meet people on this forum who are very enthusiastic about getting a very fast computer, but don't know a lot about them. These people can end up spending lots more money than they need to, and never use the full capabilities of their machine. For example many people think they want an i7 for gaming, when an i5 is actually better for some games
So I try to check if people are spending their money wisely.

Exactly. I chose the 6700k because of the newer model and the fact that I can get ddr4 ram, and also because I will be doing much multitasking, sometimes video editing, and of course some gaming. Thank you, though

Sound Card, Wireless Card, and other suggestions for a 2000$ gaming build

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