yet another 'should i get an x-fi' thread

[snow patrol]

Ok, i currently have an audigy 2 which basically is fine. Sounds sound as they should and i have no complaints. I certainly don't NEED to upgrade my sound card.

I use a 2.1 ~£60 logitech speaker setup, with plenty of bass etc. I also have a pair of usb plantronics headphones. I'm guessing that because they're USB, they don't actually use the sound card at all...? (to be honest, i'm considering upgrading them to seni 150 / 160s any way).

I primarily use my PC to watch films and tv shows. I listen to a fair bit of music, and do some gaming too (3d games mainly).

Should i blow 100 odd to get an xfi and a pair of line in head phones (bearing in mind i suppose i could recoup half of that on fleabay). Will i really notice a great difference in films / FPS games?

 

[Dr.EM]

With those speakers, I doubt the difference in sound quality will be noticed. I use an Audigy 2 with £800 worth of Hi-Fi kit and don't feel especially compelled to upgrade it. However, if your considering buying some good quality non-USB headphones, a new soundcard might be worthwhile (possibly).

Since both your speakers and headphones would be stereo, I reccomend the M-Audio 2496 card (£55) instead. It is a semi-pro stereo card, so you wouldn't waste your money on surround support you won't use. The only possible drawback is that it won't have EAX, so you'd loose that feature in games (if you use it anyway). It would be better for music, but mabye not as suitable for games. Films and TV would be fine. It uses phono connections though and i'm not certain it can connect to your case headphone socket . Either way, i'd suggest upgrading to the X-Fi, or 2496, in your case wouldn't be very worthwhile. Keep your money for headphones/speakers tbh; or possibly a headphone amplifier