Hi I've just bought the asus gene-z mobo. i'm unsure whether to get a soundcard or not (having just returned the xonar ds after realising it doesn't have pcie) i have a good speaker set so must be about the point where dedicated sound is worthwhile and am trying to guage if i will notice. How will the onboard sound compare to say my xbox360? i seem to remember that has integrated sound as it more than good enough for me.
Onboard sound is very 'average'. It is very good compared to onboard sound of years ago, but dedicated soundcards will always be streets ahead. If you're planning to game, definitely go for a soundcard.
I'm not entirely sure to be honest - I would imagine they are relatively similar - the 360 has nothing special, although possibly slightly better as it is tailored specifically for gaming.
Usually people don't plug their computer and XBox 360 to the same sound system, so it will be a hard question to answer. I don't have an XBox 360. I have a Wii. But if you wonder, it is better than the onboard sound chip on the Wii (and GameCube). But I would say, based on my experience, that the Wii and Gamecube has a better sound coming out of it than the onboard sound card of a PC, principally because you have much less static nor interference. Then again, game music can be tweaked at recording stage to sound better on the Wii/GameCube.. and possibly other consoles.
if you have good speakers then whats between those and the PC? you could always look at a stand alone amp/processor which not only will increase the output but also improve the sound. May be an expensive way round it but its an option
thanks for the responses. in response to legoman - i connect to the 360 through optical so i guess i'd use the same. it seems like the consensus is that sound is going to be better on the consoles. as i don't want to take a retrograde step moving to pc i guess i'll have to shell out for a xonar dx.
The on board sound on the Gene-z Is above standard. It doesn't use Realtek HD like most other MB's. Has the X-Fi on board.
Nope, sorry. ASUS Gene-Z specs sheets says: "SupremeFX X-Fi 2 built-in 8-Channel High Definition Audio CODEC" http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/Maximus_IV_GENEZ/#specifications It other words it uses a onboard sound chip level sound card, and uses software to manipulate the sound to make it sound "better", and provide some Creative SoundBlaster features that can be emulated or done via software. Here is the chip on the board: Hello, Mr. Chip. Source: http://whatswithjeff.com/asus-maximus-iv-gene-z-close-up/ It's a Realtek one, in this case.
I don't have the exact same board as you do, but I do have an Asus board with an inbuilt Via-branded audio chipset (honestly no idea how it compares to a Realtek), and run it through the same audio system as my 360, with the same hookups (analog). What I will first say is that the sound output from most games consoles is rather pants to begin with, but I've definitely heard worse. Secondly, there isn't much between them, other than quite understandably a lot more line-level noise from the computer. I've since upgraded to an Asus Xonar DG and couldn't be happier with the difference - line noise has reduced to nothing (at reasonable volumes, anyway), and the sound is much more defined and altogether "warmer". Honestly though, other peoples opinions are all total bollocks. The only person who can tell you what configuration will sound better is you, so give it a try and see what you personally think, though I very much doubt you'll return a discrete audio card after living with it for a few days (which, I might add, would be the bare minimum of "getting used to" time for any piece of audio equipment).
thanks. very helpful response! that's given me what i needed to hear. standalone card it is. thanks goodbytes for the link and photo
