Are sound cards really worth the money?

[ashmanq]

Im used to using my on board sound on my motherboard and am going to build a new computer. I was just wandering how much better is sound from say a £50 sound card than on board sound? Im going to use my new computer primarily for gaming and playing music will i notice a distinc difference? Im not very experienced with sound cards so would welcome the feedback thanks in advanced!

 

[ted34]

I just got an x-fi xtreme music and it is a big difference but then my computer output goes into £200 speakers and a £200 amp so would make more difference than with standard speakers

 

[ashmanq]