SZ onboard audio quality

I hooked up some high end pc speakers to my SZ last night (Sirocco Crossfires) and subjectivley I thought it actually sounded better than my desktop soundcard, a Gametheater XP. While the GTXP is a few years old now, I was quite suprised at the quality of the onboard sound. This was listening to music of course.

I was just wondering if anybody had tried putting an external PCMCIA sound card such as the Audigy into the SZ, and if they noticed a difference in sound quality. I dont really care about the fact that the onboard cant do 5.1 or surround sound gaming, I'm just concerned with actual sound quality.

 

Ok, I am now able to answer my own questions.

I found a store that had the Audigy 2 NX (thats the usb2 external model) on display and would let me test it with my sz. I borrowed some studio moniter headphones from a mate and set out to compare it vs. the onboard audio.

First impressions:

Music:
There is a very slight difference in audio quality for music. It is NOT light and day but it is there. I found myself hearing things in my music that were just not apparent with the onboard sound. Keep in mind I was using some very high end headphones here, I am not sure if I would have noticed with your average pc speakers.

Games.
No comparison. The positional audio was leaps and bounds better than the onboard as expected.

DVD
Again really no comparison. The onboard Dolby Digial Decoder sounds great and blows away the onboard sound.

Conclusion:

I was really suprised at just how well the onboard sound held up in the music department. While not quite at the level of the audigy, it is still very impressive for onboard sound. I ended up buying the unit, half the reason being the neat remote control which allows me to browse my PC and play avi files without leaving the comfort of my bed.

 

I think Echo Indigo make some reasonably descent PCMCIA audio card (as oppossed to sound cards) for on the road stuff. Does anyone know what the latancy is on the Audigy PCMCIA card is, and whether its OK for gigging?

z