External sound card for the m11x?

Hi all,

I was just curious as to what everyone's opinion for a good external sound card is for our laptops? I know the Realtek one is ok, but I've always been a Creative fan (heck I still own an AWE32 ISA card in my old Dell Optiplex, complete with 32MB dedicated memory.) My main intention was to use Audigy/Alchemy as I do on my family's desktop to get EAX support in my games once again. I saw that some of the X-Fi's have USB interface, as the m11x doesn't seem to have an express card slot. Some of the reviews I read stated that the CPU will take a ~10% performance hit, as the external cards don't have a dedicated sound processor like the PCI-e desktop ones do. Due to the m11x's limited ULV processor, this filled my heart with a sense of dread and loathing! ...okay, not that melodramatic, but it was fun to say. Should I stick with the Realtek chip or go Sound Blaster?

 

in all honesty i've never used an external sound card - do they make that much of a difference when compared to a line out amplifier (i use one)?

 

I'm not sure...I guess I just wanted my sfx on random games to stop cutting out. I love Creative Alchemy, works like a dream on the desktop. But Realtek has something called "3dSoundBack" which isn't so great. Apparently it's for Vista only...

 

I find my X-fi USB the one that's like a USB pen drive (cant remember the exact name) is excellent for gaming.

 

@Simonpoulton - Do you utilize the x-fi usb on the m11x for gaming? If so can I ask a favor that will benefit everyone in the community? Can you run a benchmark say (crysis or dawn of war 2) something with a built in benchmark? The test is with the external usb x-fi and without it. I heard a while back that the USB X-fi eats up cpu bandwidth since it does not have on board processing. That is why I ask this. Thanks so much and If I can return the favor I will be happy to do so. Best Wishes, StevenX

Also any echo or sound lag in games?

 

Yes, I'd be interested as well! Having crunched excel at work all day, I finally understand (and hate) the value of numbers x_x

One problem I noted is with Alienware's built in Realtek sound and the game "The Suffering." There is a lot of sound lag such as guns firing, but no reload sound; footsteps cutting in and out, etc. On the desktop PC with an Audigy 2 ZS Platinum installed, I don't have that problem. I've never used an external usb or express card, so I have no way to compare.

One test I could do myself is try my Roland synth with a midi usb cable, but that's just midi only.

 

I've heard good things about the USB pen drive X-Fi module but it likely will eat up quite a bit extra CPU power. Still, I don't think it'll be enough to make even about a 3fps impact on even the most CPU intensive games, IMO worth it for the better sound.

Personally I'm getting an external X-Fi Surround Sound USB module (for my M17) as I plan on buying the real surround sound headphones, Roccat Kave. As it's such a big external module I'd presume it has onboard processing, so maybe there's an external sound card like this for just standard output? Still, it'd be very big for simply taking around with you.

 

@evil- even the pci bus creative labs card for notebooks does not include true hardware processing. If someone can find a verified external sound processing module I would be interested. I still think some benches need to be compared (usb sound vs internal sound). I would buy one and try but I am on the road in Rural USA for the next week so I dont have an opportunity in the near future. StevenX

 

Hi, I'm a club dj and needed a strong sound card for my m11x. For $99 or less you a get a NI "Audio 2 DJ" or a Numark "Stereo iO". Great aduio from both but the "A2DJ" is very clean.

 

I have the creative usb external sound card and it's great. Definatly notice the sound difference when you plug in head phones to it or even external speakers. It's worlds above the built in sound. I haven't benchmarked any games with it but I haven't noticed any improvements with it on or off. Aside from clearer sound.

 

MusicStreamer II is a great starter DAC.
They also make more expensive versions of it.

 

I'll try running benchmarks when I get it back, at present the card is on loan to a friend.

 

Intentional bump.

Has anyone else used the X-FI go? Thinking about it for it's superior quality over the (IMHO) poor Realtek HD performance...

 

Sod it. Bit the bullet anyway. Ordered an X-FI Go. I always use my headphones anyway so I'm not bothered about extra speakers or anything.... and when the sound is coming out from the TV using the NVIDIA HD Audio device, it sounds much better (to me) than the Realtek device.

So.... I will post my experience with the X-Fi card here and check framerate hits (if any) etc.

 

Ok got the X-Fi Go. Latest drivers installed. First game tested... Batman AA.

First impressions: Far, far, better sound quality. Crisper. Cleaner. (much) louder(!!!). Far better isolation for individual sounds.
I have tested it out on around 4 or 5 games now. Sound quality is excellent... but there is a price. Batman took around a 1-2 fps hit.
Crysis was better with less than 1 fps hit in my benchmarks.

Overall I am pleased with the quality and the purchase.

I can't help it... I love my audio

 

Congrats!

External DAC is the way to go.