tobargy :
Am gathering components for a build am planning to use for gaming.
I know its not a must to get an audio card for the build.
I am getting the ASUS MAXIMUS VII Formula which has a built in sound card that is powerful as they say.
I have this sound card in mind if the on board sound card isnt enough : asus essence STX II
Am getting razer tiamat 7.1 as a headset.
I want your advice about if I should stick with the built in sound card or get the STX II instead.
your response is much appreciated!
tobargy,
Over the twenty years I've used computers I've always had a dedicated soundcard as I use these systems for recording or I try and have good sound in the office where I end up many hours per day. I have one system (HP lElite m9426f) for sound recording and that has an EMU 2404 with MIDI I/O. For years I've used M-Audio PCI Delta-series cards with MIDI, and these last forever, having had 3, 2496 "Audiophile" and currently also 2, "192" (24/192) which has a higher freq. and better signal to noise. The main system runs through a Logitech Z2300 2+1 2-channel system with 40W amps for the satellites and 135W for the subwoofer. Overall sound is very good. An especially great feature of these Logitech systems is the wired remote with on/off volume, subwoofer and headphone jack, which even some of the lower end systems have.
I've tried modern on-board sound on an HP z420 and it's much better than I expected. My suggestion is to build your system and along the way, think about your expectation for sound quality- are you having surround with a subwoofer, do you ever record live sound, use a synthesizer, and/or edit videos. I' d say try the onboard sound and if it's lacking, consider a dedicated card. If you need more inputs and outputs, controls an external interface is the thing:
Professional level PCI and PCIe cards:
http://www.sweetwater.com/c703--PCI_Audio_Interfaces/low2high
Professional level USB interfaces:
http://www.sweetwater.com/c695--USB_Audio_Interfaces/popular
There are Firewire and Thunderbolt interfaces as well.
I've not actually heard the ASUS Xonar line, but the reputation is very good.
The amplification / speaker system is very important and depending on how serious you are and your budget, as the amplification is running on analog outputs, you can make a system using a 2-channel or surround receiver and small bookshelf speakers and conventional speakers. As I say, I've had good results with the Logitech and the remote control is fantastically convenient.
So, as in so many areas of hardware ,take some time to consider the needs for inputs, control, sound quality, and budget. The more hardware you can hear the better, especially speakers. I'm not a gamer, but I can see where headphones work well.
Cheers,
BambiBoom
HP z420 (2015) > Xeon E5-1660 v2 six-core @ 3.7 / 4.0GHz > 32GB DDR3 ECC 1866 RAM > Quadro K2200 (4GB) > Intel 730 480GB (9SSDSC2BP480G4R5) > Western Digital Black WD1003FZEX 1TB> M-Audio 192 sound card > Logitech z2300 > Linksys AE3000 USB WiFi > 2X Dell Ultrasharp U2715H (2560 X 1440) > Windows 7 Professional 64 >
[ Passmark Rating = 4968 > CPU= 13950 / 2D= 830 / 3D=3481 / Mem= 2767 / Disk= 4716] 6.20.15
Dell Precision T5500 (2011) > Xeon X5680 six -core @ 3.33 / 3.6GHz, 24GB DDR3 ECC 1333 > Quadro 4000 (2GB ) > Samsung 840 250GB / WD RE4 Enterprise 1TB > M-Audio 192 sound card > Linksys WMP600N PCI WiFi > Windows 7 Professional 64> HP 2711x (1920 X 1080)
[ Passmark system rating = 3339 / CPU = 9347 / 2D= 684 / 3D= 2030 / Mem= 1871 / Disk= 2234]
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