USB Sound blaster vs Audigy NX 2 USB

**sivart321** · 04-05-2005, 02:56 AM

I just purchased a sound blaster live USB sound card to use on my old school 800mhz Dell laptop, but am not impressed with the quality. I cannot notice much of any difference. I have adjusted the USB sound device to make it as good as it can be, but it still doesnt improve much upon the onboard sound. The one thing that IS nice is the 5.1 that I would be able to hook up directly to my amp.

So, will the Audigy NX 2 be an improvement over the SoundBlaster live! USB device?

**scott_fx** · 04-05-2005, 03:05 AM

try the kxdriver first before you go on to the other card

**sivart321** · 04-05-2005, 03:42 AM

I was under the impression that the kx drivers do not work with the USB sound cards? Both cards I am inquiring about are the USB versions (for my laptop).

**scott_fx** · 04-05-2005, 03:51 AM

oh, sorry. i didnt know about that

**zPilott** · 04-05-2005, 11:43 AM

I got a pillips aurillium, and I am pretty happy witht he sound quality, but I guess I am not a very good judge of sound quality since I am using an FM modulator and a ground loop isolator.

**sivart321** · 04-06-2005, 02:59 PM

can anyone comment on the difference? I notice alot of people have the audigy, is there any justification in the extra price?

**-zip-** · 04-06-2005, 11:07 PM

I have an Audigy NX and love it! It sounds so much better than the SB Live 5.1 card I have in my home PC. Sound is clear, crisp and rich.

I never get a delay or skip or distortion. Just make sure you are running 2.0 USB, the latest drivers and if possible 10ft or less cable.

**sivart321** · 04-07-2005, 02:59 AM

I went ahead and bought The audigy NX at Fry's, knowing that I can return it if it doesn't work out... well...

The damn thing pops like crazy whenever I skip tracks. This is in any USB port I put it in. I have a 1.1 port onboard, and a USB 2.0 pcmcia card. I do not think a problem should arise from either of these. The USB soundblaster Live! was not nearly as bad, so I am not sure wtf is wrong.

I have the new drivers, which didn't do crap. It truely sounds awful. Everytime I skip tracks, and even sometimes while playing I hear a loud pop/clicking noise. I get the same noise if I unplug the power from it too. I am using the supplied USB cable and power supply....

not happy... nothing works right

**sivart321** · 04-07-2005, 05:06 PM

I just got off the phone with technical support, and after a whole mess of things to change, they finally realized that I had Media Center Ed and did not want to help me any longer.

Now here is the problem... with the USB soundblaster Live I had no problems. All was fine, except I thought the sound quality wasn't great. BUT, now that I cannot get the Audigy to work without the poppping (and the only real improvement being DVD audio playback in 5.1) am I that much worse off with the soundblaster LIVE USB device?

I asked them the differences between the two and he noted the external power supply (which is actually a negative to me) allowing better recording capabilities (which I will never be doing in the car) and also the lack of DVD decoding. If using Frodoplayer with the AC3filter etc, do I even need the hardware decoding when playing DVD's in 5.1 through the Live card?

I am just wondering if the extra $50 and the need for the power cord is really going to benefit me that much when I will be playing cd's and mp3's 99% of the time. As long as I can get decent 5.1 out of the Live card, I think it is the better option.

Any help?

EDIT: i just installed the audigy on my desktop and it makes the same popping noise. I am wondering if I have a bad unit.