7.1 really much better than 5.1?

Participant · 26 May 2006 at 08:35

I have a NF7 at the moment and the kit in my signature. I'm upgrading the main PC when Conroe is established and using my old kit to make a HTPC in the living room.

My questions at the moment are:

- Does my mobo support 7.1 or will I need a new sound card, if so what's a good one for around £50?

- Should I save my money, stick with onboard sound and just go for 6 channel (5+sub) surround

- What are the surround speaker sets to looks for (7.1 and 5.1) in the sub £100 market?

mightynimrod · 26 May 2006 at 08:40

No it's not mate.

Not worth it at all - if your room os more than 4m long then yeah i'd say go for it - otherwise the separation is pants and a waste of time.

tom_nieto · 26 May 2006 at 11:11

With your budget, there will be very little difference. In fact the 7.1 might even be worse due to squeezing 2 more speakers into the price bracket.

Conman · 26 May 2006 at 22:40

7.1 enable you 2 more back speakers which give you an extented dimension of sound. To gain the real benefit, the source must be in 6.1 (there is no true 7.1) and the position of the speakers must be at least few meters away from you. Otherwise you ear can not tell the different.

james.miller · 27 May 2006 at 12:27

Conman said:
7.1 enable you 2 more back speakers which give you an extented dimension of sound. To gain the real benefit, the source must be in 6.1 (there is no true 7.1) and the position of the speakers must be at least few meters away from you. Otherwise you ear can not tell the different.

yeah and you must spend more than £100 on the kit to get some decent sound from it.

robbyg - your motherboard is 5.1, you need to spend MUCH more on 6.1/7.1 kit to make it worth your while. Stick with 5.1 and save your money.