Hercules Fortissimo II

[leichaolan]

Right now, I've got a cheap 20$ sound card hooked up with a cheap two speaker boom box (cash is a bit rare nowadays) via that little plug thats supposed to hook up with computer speakers (it's a green out plug) and I'm just wondering if I'd notice a good difference if I upgrade to a Hercules Fortissimo II with all the EAX stuff. Thanks.

[mjc]

You should notice some improvement going to any higher grade sound card, but with EAX you should get some nice 3d audio...and to get the best you'll need to upgrade the speakers too.


------------------
mjc
Links list:Computer Links (http://www.dreamwater.org/tech/mjc/index.htm)

Celts are the men that heaven made mad, For all their battles are merry and their songs are all sad.

[Paleo Pete]

I'm still using a 6 year old Sound Blaster 16, and it does quite well. I can't notice any difference between it and the ESS card in another machine I built recently. The main difference in sound cards is the number of voices they reproduce simultaneously, and once you get past about 32 you won't notice much difference. Not many soundtracks, audio CDs or games use that many voices at once. The speakers will make more difference than the card itself.

As a comparison, I'm using a tube style guitar amp that's over 20 years old, and a speaker cabinet made in the mid 60's by Kustom. But the speakers were reconed much more recently, and it will match most new amps. They are also the same brand speakers originally used in many off-the-shelf amps by Fender, Peavey, Kustom and Marshall...good ones...If I had the original speakers in it, I doubt if it would be usable at all...and it would certainly sound crummy...(I'm pretty rough on speakers... http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/biggrin.gif )

I'd say go for speakers first and see how your sound is, then spring for a card if you're not satisfied.

------------------
Support the right to keep and arm bears.
Note: Please post your questions on the forums, not in my email.

Computer Information Links (http://www.geocities.com/paleopete/)