Question on this Sound Card

[BallinWithNash]

M-Audio - Audiophile 2496 Audio Card
Would this play my music nice and clean? Or should I just get a usb one? I would prefer to have an internal sound card though.

[Feanor]

M-Audio - Audiophile 2496 Audio Card
Would this play my music nice and clean? Or should I just get a usb one? I would prefer to have an internal sound card though.

I haven't used the Audiophile 2496, but have used other M-Audio products, the Revolution 7.1 internal sound card, and the Audiophile USB; both products proved satisfactory.

If you prefer an internal card, the A2496 will work fine; USB external devices aren't necessarily better. If you decide you'd like an external DAC, the A2496 has S/PDIF coaxial output.

[BallinWithNash]

Thank you!

[02audionoob]

I have both a SoundBlaster Audigy PCI card and a SoundBlaster Live USB sound controller. Internal cards are supposedly noisier than USB devices, but I'm not hearing a difference on that issue. Both are pretty clean. I don't use high-end equipment on my computer, though. There could be something there I'm just not hearing.

[Monkey Mouse]

I had the Audiophile 192 on my old PC and it was a very nice card, a step up from the 2496, but still M-Audio.

[emesbee]

I have an M-Audio 2496 sound card in my computer. Its quite good, sounds good through my hi-fi system and the noise floor is very low. I think this card has been around for a while, and may have been superseded by now. I don't think there is any support for Vista though. I am running Windows Xp, and had to download the drivers and installation instructions from the M-Audio website as they weren't included with the product. Installation was a breeze once I'd done that though. One small thing I like is the fact that this card has gold plated RCA connectors. I detest those 3.5mm mini headphone type sockets that most other cards have.

[BallinWithNash]

yea i like the RCA jacks to but usually to get them the price jumps ... and i dont want to spend that much more ... and most of the USB ones only come with the headphone jack