ASUS Z96J vs Compal HEL80...help

Well, I'm having trouble deciding between these two. They seem very similar with a few exceptions. Looks have nothing to do with my decision. I plan to fit either one with:
T2500 (2.0GHz)
15.4" WSXGA+ (1680x1050)
100GB SATA 7200RPM
2GB CORSAIR DDR2 667
My main concern is choosing the laptop with the best sound card and speakers. I have not seen much talk about these features on either of the laptops. Also I am not much of gamer, but I do a lot of video encoding. Which of these laptops sounds the best, and is better outfitted for plugging in to a 5.1 DTS receiver?

 

Hrmmm, either are fine. Do you plan on getting extended warranty?

Btw, on almost all notebooks speakers are usually less than spectacular, better to use the headphone jack and sound cards are probably similar between the two.

The HEL80 does have some extra features e.g finger print, compared to the Z96j. In addition, looks between the two are subjective (but seeing looks are n't entirely important).

I don't own either so I can't give a personal response. But, from what I hear, putting subjective opinion and looking both in an overall picture, you can't go wrong with either one.

Both graphic cards are subjective to the owners/users. I don't know too much between the two (x1600 vs 7600) other than they are almost equal to one another.

There are mutliple post one the subject itself. Look through the post using the i.e search function, to see what you like about each to come up with a decision.

 

there's a number of threads on the same two laptops elsewhere in the forum, please use the search feature.

 

I'm not in the mood to do any research right now, but I'll give my two cents and maybe somebody with a Z96j can give you theirs to form a Picasso-clear picture of how they compare in terms of sound.

I'll comment on the sound card when I get a chance to compare it to my desktop. Maybe tomorrow... as for the speakers, if you compare them to real speakers, they suck. No getting around it. If, however, you confine yourself to laptop-speakerland, then they're quite decent. They have enough volume to listen to and don't completely lack bass. I might even be tempted to think they're above average.

As far as outputs, unless I'm missing something major, there's just the little headphone jack. Something that may be relevant in this case is that the HEL80 does have a pcmcia card slot as well as an express card slot, wheras the Z96j only has an Express card slot. So, if you've got an older mobile Audigy card or something, you could use it in the HEL80, but not the Z96j.

 

I also forgot to mention, the go7600 in the HEL80 appears to be a bit underclocked (I think) but you can overclock it, just take a look over at the Compal section.

 

Even overclocked, a 256mb 7600 cannot out perform a stock X1600.

 

The audio solutions are the same in both models...they use the Intel High Definition Audio (Azalia) with the Realtek ALC883 in the HEL80 and the Realtek ALC882 in the Z96J.

The will both drive any quality headphone or external speaker set you put to them with pure excellence.

The speakers themselves are typical of any laptop...mediocre at best.