Sound for gaming

[walkington]

hey there, im just wondering what soundcard would be best for gaming obviously i've heard theres no difference from the standard 5.1 but what about the soundblaster audigy or the soundblast x-fi? or even the soundblaster x-fi titanium?

just want to make sure i've bought a great rig and if theres anything i can add for a few quid more that'll make a big diff ill do it

also anyone explain why 2 graphics cards are needed rather than one and what the purpose of having 2 is?

 

[Corfate]

For gaming you most likely won't require a sound card. I think i've heard that sound cards are only for Audiophiles and music producers etc.

 

[Serendipity]

Sound cards don't make much difference... most upper budget P.Cs come with 7.1 sound, you put a bunch of 7.1 sound speakers into it and that will be the perfect set up, sound wise.. I'm not sure what benefits there are into having sound cards but most of the time the sound quality is barely noticeable anyway.

Graphics card wise, you can place two graphics cards instead of one if you want to upgrade, or it might just be cheaper buying the one expensive card, it depends which brand and specs you are dealing with. Personally I have a AMD 2GB HD6970 and in a few years time I will be getting two instead of one.. but theres no point at the moment because I'm happy with what my graphics card can deal with already.

 

[walkington]

whats the point in having 2 graphics card what is the purpose?

is 7.1 standard onboard 8 channel high def (as standard) better than onboard 6 channel 5.1 high def (as standard)??

POSSIBLE OPTIONS
upgrade my ssd from 80gb to 120gb £50
or
upgrade my processor from i5 2500 to the i7 2600 for £80

 

[Serendipity]

If you have one graphics card and you want to improve your computers performance you can stick in another one and they will work together to increase the overall performance, but as I said before, for example, sometimes getting two 1.5GB graphics card may be cheaper than getting one 3GB graphics card, or vice versa, but as a whole they will both do the same performance.

7.1 sound is much better than 5.1... but if you have 7.1 sound you need to buy 7.1 speakers, which isn't cheap... you can buy 7.1 headsets which is a bit cheaper and you can experience 7.1 sound, I have only experienced 5.1 sound through my Blu-Rays, I can't imagine how amazing 7.1 sound will be.

 

[walkington]

dam i dont have the option to change from 5.1 standard to 7.1

 

[walkington]

should i upgrade my 1.5gb gtx 580 to a 3gb gtx 580? im only going to use 1 graphics card! not going to buy another is this a good move? whats the difference between the size? what will it improve?

ill be using a 24inch monitor 1920 x 1080

 

[NMEBowen]

actually 2 gfx cards in sli wouldnt double the vram it only alters the clock speed as for 3gb/1.5gb gtx 580 there isnt alot of difference only at high resolutions across multi monitor setups as for you walkington you should be fine with the 1.5gb gfx card and sound wise id say invest in a decent set of 5.1/7.1 headphones i find them far better for gaming than any speakers.

 

[walkington]

actually 2 gfx cards in sli wouldnt double the vram it only alters the clock speed as for 3gb/1.5gb gtx 580 there isnt alot of difference only at high resolutions across multi monitor setups as for you walkington you should be fine with the 1.5gb gfx card and sound wise id say invest in a decent set of 5.1/7.1 headphones i find them far better for gaming than any speakers.

thanks bud

 

[tom_gr7]

should i upgrade my 1.5gb gtx 580 to a 3gb gtx 580? im only going to use 1 graphics card! not going to buy another is this a good move? whats the difference between the size? what will it improve?

ill be using a 24inch monitor 1920 x 1080

if gaming on one monitor (as you are) you will only need one 1.5gb gtx580. I went for a 3gb 580 as it wasn't much more to pay.

 

[NMEBowen]

I have the 3gb version also as it wasnt much more but im hoping santa brings me 2 more 3d monitors and a 2nd gtx 580 and il most likely get a modular psu to run it all.

 

[tom_gr7]

I have the 3gb version also as it wasnt much more but im hoping santa brings me 2 more 3d monitors and a 2nd gtx 580 and il most likely get a modular psu to run it all.

Haha thats what I'm hoping for too! Don't think its coming though, there's a nasty man at the bank in a suit that says you have no money!