Audigy 4 issue?

I've posted previously about this problem in the dell section, but i believe i've narrowed the problem down to my sound card, a brand-spanking-new audigy 4

So here's the problem:

When playing newer games such as HL2, F.E.A.R., or FarCry, my system will lock up for about 10-20 seconds, then either crash completely or return to the game without sound. If i wait in the game long enough (2-5 minutes), i will begin to hear electronic clicks and scratches for about 20 seconds, then my sound will either return or wait another 2-5 minutes and start the click/scratch all over again. This doesn't happen in every game, just the newer ones that i mentioned. Also, when listening to music, my sound is absolutely amazing. Never had a single problem.
I am running the latest drivers and my onboard sound has been disabled.

Any clues?

to start with turn down hardware acceleration tab in control panel
-->sound and audio devices-->audio-->advanced-->performance.
This will effectively turn EAX off but if PCI bandwidth is an issue this is a work-around. If this does not help, tell us more about your rig