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FP User
Published on 10/31/08 at 16:00
There are a lot of inputs you can choose from depending on your mixer output, so I have no complaints with that. And if you’re using ASIO you get real-time monitoring of the dry incoming signal, so you don’t have to activate hardware monitoring (it's on all the time). The card sucks big time for games, though. I’ve got on-board Realtek, so at least that does it for me. Two things disappointed me: -No recording on 44.1 with ASIO. -With the 2496 driver you can only record from the external inputs (Line In 1-3). The media converter is a nice bonus.
Price paid: 210 Euros
UTILIZATION
Rather straightforward, and besides the self-important installation of autostart programs (easily removed with Services and MSConfig), it’s very easy to use.
GETTING STARTED
If you’re using ASIO, the driver communicates directly with the hardware, so it doesn’t use the media panel from windows. It means that you do not control the inputs from the record input slider. No big deal.
OVERALL OPINION
I was using a Live! Platinum 5.1, and I thought that the audio was already good. The Audigy 2 has better playback, but I find recording is only slightly better. This card seems to be very sensitive to IRQ sharing, so if you buy this card be careful to avoid errors while recording: -Install Windows 2k or XP as “Standard PC” (the F5 trick during installation) to disable ACPI –even if your motherboard doesn’t have a setting to turn it off. Also, let the BIOS handle resources. -Make sure the card has its own IRQ (mine is 12 right now), otherwise you might not get a good recorded sound. I can only compare the sound to the SB I was using before, so I don’t know how much worse is the sound compared to one of those M-Audio or Echo cards; the card sounds good to me. I'm using the Creative drivers; haven't tried KX yet.
I’ve been using it for a year now, and has served me well. It doesn’t get as hot as my old SB Live!, which means the parts and solder points are under less stress. A nice piece of hardware.
Most of my complaining has to do with the software implementation of this rather nice piece of equipment. Since I have to take every aspect into consideration, I’ll say that I’m happy, but not impressed.
Originally posted on FutureProducers.com
Posted by: running ( 8-, 2005)
Price paid: 210 Euros
UTILIZATION
Rather straightforward, and besides the self-important installation of autostart programs (easily removed with Services and MSConfig), it’s very easy to use.
GETTING STARTED
If you’re using ASIO, the driver communicates directly with the hardware, so it doesn’t use the media panel from windows. It means that you do not control the inputs from the record input slider. No big deal.
OVERALL OPINION
I was using a Live! Platinum 5.1, and I thought that the audio was already good. The Audigy 2 has better playback, but I find recording is only slightly better. This card seems to be very sensitive to IRQ sharing, so if you buy this card be careful to avoid errors while recording: -Install Windows 2k or XP as “Standard PC” (the F5 trick during installation) to disable ACPI –even if your motherboard doesn’t have a setting to turn it off. Also, let the BIOS handle resources. -Make sure the card has its own IRQ (mine is 12 right now), otherwise you might not get a good recorded sound. I can only compare the sound to the SB I was using before, so I don’t know how much worse is the sound compared to one of those M-Audio or Echo cards; the card sounds good to me. I'm using the Creative drivers; haven't tried KX yet.
I’ve been using it for a year now, and has served me well. It doesn’t get as hot as my old SB Live!, which means the parts and solder points are under less stress. A nice piece of hardware.
Most of my complaining has to do with the software implementation of this rather nice piece of equipment. Since I have to take every aspect into consideration, I’ll say that I’m happy, but not impressed.
Originally posted on FutureProducers.com
Posted by: running ( 8-, 2005)