Need a cheapish PCI-E sound card

Jon · 04-18-12, 04:07 PM

Hi, I've just put together my new comp with 2x560 Tis after my non-ti 560s failed. I've only just got round to putting my X-FI XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Pro card back in, and with the Tis bigger heatsinks, it won't fit!

So I'm gutted. I don't want to spend a load of money on a new soundcard which I don't really want. But I do have a PCI-E 1x slot clear at the top of the board which will fit most sound cards (I hear longer ones are blocked by the memory slots on some boards).

So really, I just want to move from PCI to PCI-E with minimum of loss in quality.

I think this is my current card:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16829102005

And this is the one I'm considering:
http://www.ebuyer.com/166003-creativ...edium=products

Can anyone help me?

Vincentx77 · 04-19-12, 08:41 PM

You may have a third option. You don't list what motherboard you have, but I'm going to assume it has fairly decent on-board audio, considering your CPU. You can have most of the functionality of an X-Fi with Creative's software solution. I think it's simply called Creative X-Fi MB2. You can buy it directly from them, and it works on most realtek audio solutions. It should give you ALchemy, EAX 5.0, Crystalizer, the EQ and other controls that the X-Fi cards offer, and it costs around $25. If you really want another dedicated X-Fi, the only you're looking at should be fine. The Titanium HD is the only one that is really special.

Tikimotel · 04-21-12, 05:50 AM

I would recommend the recon3D card from creative. (plain pcb version)
(better windows vista/7/8 compatibility HD-audio)

With my X-fi titanium I had issues due to Pci-express bandwidth and SLi graphics cards.
I upgraded to the recon3d card to solve it.

04-18-12, 04:07 PM	#1
Jon Registered User Join Date: Nov 2002 Posts: 560	Need a cheapish PCI-E sound card Hi, I've just put together my new comp with 2x560 Tis after my non-ti 560s failed. I've only just got round to putting my X-FI XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Pro card back in, and with the Tis bigger heatsinks, it won't fit! So I'm gutted. I don't want to spend a load of money on a new soundcard which I don't really want. But I do have a PCI-E 1x slot clear at the top of the board which will fit most sound cards (I hear longer ones are blocked by the memory slots on some boards). So really, I just want to move from PCI to PCI-E with minimum of loss in quality. I think this is my current card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16829102005 And this is the one I'm considering: http://www.ebuyer.com/166003-creativ...edium=products Can anyone help me? __________________ Intel i5-2500K (4Ghz)\|2 x Nvidia 560GTX TI (880/2100mhz)\|Crucial M4 SSD 12GB GSkill PC3-12800 (1600Mhz 9-9-9-24)\|Thermaltake Tough Power 700w\|Razer Megalodon 7.1 Headset BENQ XL2410T 24" 3D Monitor

04-19-12, 08:41 PM	#2
Vincentx77 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 21	Re: Need a cheapish PCI-E sound card You may have a third option. You don't list what motherboard you have, but I'm going to assume it has fairly decent on-board audio, considering your CPU. You can have most of the functionality of an X-Fi with Creative's software solution. I think it's simply called Creative X-Fi MB2. You can buy it directly from them, and it works on most realtek audio solutions. It should give you ALchemy, EAX 5.0, Crystalizer, the EQ and other controls that the X-Fi cards offer, and it costs around $25. If you really want another dedicated X-Fi, the only you're looking at should be fine. The Titanium HD is the only one that is really special.

04-21-12, 05:50 AM	#3
Tikimotel Registered User Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Netherlands, the Posts: 65	Re: Need a cheapish PCI-E sound card I would recommend the recon3D card from creative. (plain pcb version) (better windows vista/7/8 compatibility HD-audio) With my X-fi titanium I had issues due to Pci-express bandwidth and SLi graphics cards. I upgraded to the recon3d card to solve it. __________________ Computer Specs: CPU: intel i7 2600K @ 4700Mhz (1.3volts) \|MBD: Asus P8P67Evo\|RAM: 16GB Corsair Vengeance kit\|HDD: 2xCrucial m4 128GB RAID-0 + 2x640GB WD AAKS RAID-0\|GFX: 2xEVGA GTX460 FTW 1024 EE in SLi\|SND: Creative Recon3D PCI-Express