Hi, I'm a long time onboard audio user. I use windows XP SP3 and plan on getting high quality surround headphones. Hopefully this thread will become a good reference point for others thinking of making the big switch.
Onboard simply isn't cutting it anymore and I need something with a little more oomph. The card I have my eye on is the Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer. Now I've heard a lot of praise about the fatal1ty series and asus xonar cards but current availability issues mean it's either the Xtreme gamer or nothing.
Now I've heard from various sources that EAX is dead or dying and that it has no future. Is this true? I know about the creative alchemy project and the fact that it was made free a while ago. I've also heard nightmare stories about creative drivers ruining system stability, resetting on reboot etc. As an XP SP3 user with the latest drivers can I be at least confident that my experience will be headache free (I won't be able to return the card)?
I know the Xtreme isn't creative's latest and greatest (Platinum, fatal1ty and others come to mind) so my final question is that will support for it continue and will it be able to last for at least 2-3 years?
All helpful responses are greatly appreciated.
Onboard simply isn't cutting it anymore and I need something with a little more oomph. The card I have my eye on is the Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer. Now I've heard a lot of praise about the fatal1ty series and asus xonar cards but current availability issues mean it's either the Xtreme gamer or nothing.
Now I've heard from various sources that EAX is dead or dying and that it has no future. Is this true? I know about the creative alchemy project and the fact that it was made free a while ago. I've also heard nightmare stories about creative drivers ruining system stability, resetting on reboot etc. As an XP SP3 user with the latest drivers can I be at least confident that my experience will be headache free (I won't be able to return the card)?
I know the Xtreme isn't creative's latest and greatest (Platinum, fatal1ty and others come to mind) so my final question is that will support for it continue and will it be able to last for at least 2-3 years?
All helpful responses are greatly appreciated.