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ASUS
Xonar D2X Sound Card:
$199
www.asus.com |
The Sound of ASUS
Despite its history as a giant in the add-in sound card market, Creative Labs’ empire is a fraction of its former size. There’s really no reason to buy a discrete sound card for more than $100 unless you’re a dedicated game enthusiast looking for the full force of EAX 5.0. Even then, it’s hard to make an argument for hardware-accelerated sound when today’s dual- and quad-core processors have so much computer horsepower available. Onboard sound, which often takes the form of Intel’s HD Audio specification, delivers reasonable sound quality and multichannel connectivity.
So what makes ASUS think it can succeed in a field where Creative Labs has fallen out of favor? For one, ASUS’ offering, called the Xonar, makes improvements in several important areas. The card sports enhanced sound quality attributes with less noise than Creative Labs’ Elite Pro, according to ASUS. High-quality DACs and a metal housing protecting the board’s circuitry against electronic noise contribute to those better specs.
ASUS also steps beyond obscure sound quality figures most customers won’t be able to hear and enables a lot of extra features sure to attract fans of music and movies. Real-time AC-3 encoding is a standard feature, as is Dolby’s stereo-to-multichannel audio algorithms. Dolby Headphone, Dolby Virtual Speaker, and Dolby Digital Live are among the card’s positioning and encoding extras.
How is ASUS enabling so much functionality? By partnering up with C-Media, ASUS was able to help develop its own high-def sound chip called the AV200 that drives the Xonar’s processor-intensive audio functions. Already available as a PCI add-in card, ASUS plans to start selling a PCI Express version by the time we go to print.
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Sennheiser
PC166USB Multimedia Headset:
$149
www.sennheiserusa.com |
A Headset Built To Last
Sennheiser makes some of the best audiophile-class headphones you can buy. We have a set of its HD600 cans here in the office that have endured nine years of daily use and only needed one set of replacement wires. That’s why we immediately thought of Sennheiser after a six-month-old Logitech headset randomly stopped working.
Naturally, the headsets in Sennheiser’s PC gaming lineup are significantly more expensive than what you’d get from a more mainstream audio vendor. But when you use a headset on a daily basis to communicate over Ventrillo or listen to music without disturbing anyone else, paying a little extra for durability is well worth it. Sennheiser’s PC166USB kit is covered by a two-year guarantee. The math works out in favor of the pricey Sennheiser kit if you go through a $40 headset every six months.
Best of all, your customer can enjoy Sennheiser’s quality for the full two years. The set’s headband is made comfortable by integrated padding. The open-air speaker system delivers exceptional sound performance given the headset’s size. Moreover, plush cushioning ensures comfort even if the set is worn for hours each day. Keep the PC166USB at the office or take it on the road—an integrated USB audio controller and connector extend compatibility to virtually any device with a USB port.
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