Friend recently asked about hooking up his pc to hi-fi and asked what he should use.

Stuck from old skool marketing thinking currently has SB Live cards so topping that isn't
going to be hard I know.
I've read lots of threads here & elsewhere before about cards which are suited for the
extreme junkies. What would one recommend for just the junky? Do your typical big
box retailers sell anything worthy nowadays.

Also I know onboard anything was avoided like the plague not long ago, how do the
higher end mb's with newer Realtek codecs and the nVidia 3, 4 chipsets compare?

Well, does he play games and if so, does he want EAX?

That should be the first thing to consider when getting a souncard. If you want EAX, you're pretty much stuck with a Creative Audigy card.

Actually he does but for this box let's say not a requirement. This will be more multi-media oriented.

What's a junky? Is he rich or poor?

Gee no suggestions?

Let's say poor with rich taste ..

Is the difference between $10 soundblasters, $80 turtle beaches, $100 terratecs, $400 DALs or whatever like the difference you would hear out of a $10 set of powered pc's, $400 klipsch or $7,000 JBL Tik's?

Understanding there are differences however it's just needed for the purpose of being
able to output the best possible quality 2-multimedia channel audio from cd/dvd sources.
Not for having the ability to turn your pc into a recording studio.

I now things have changed since the first sets of onboard Realtek codec's with sound that
rivaled a AM broadcast skipped from around the globe and when the hottest thing
was the Monster vs. SoundBlaster war.

Being as we still own all of those, what's the 21st century replacement equivalent ?

For the best quality for playback see ESI Audiotrak Prodigy 7.1.
But it is possible to achieve very good sound quality with low cost Creative Live! 24-bit (it uses the same DAC CS4382-KQ as Audigy 2 ZS).

Haven't used one personally, but the Chaintech AV-710 is supposed to be a really good, cheap card.

Any card that is based on the ViA Envy 24 (HT) chipset should do fine ...

About cards with Envy24, how about the M-AUDIO Revolution 5.1 instead of Revolution 7.1? Costs 70US$ apparently with better game support.

There is also Hercules fortissimo 4 at 45€ and good gaming support, and then the cheap Chaintech AV-710 at 25$ (whats the difference with Envy24 HT-S?)

Found this review for the AV-710.

Thanks much guys for some suggestions..

How does the Turtle Beach Montego DDL rate? Reason I ask is I happened to see
one at a local retailer for $49 which seemed like a good deal before I saw your
suggestions on what to look for.

Though all the cards you mentioned are well within a reasonable range. So will look
for those.

Do most retail cards boast about the Via Envy chipset making it easy to find?

Thanks again..

Is lack of interest w/onboard for the same reasons as always in that they
still only have 1/2 the hardware and processing is still off loaded to the cpu?

Or do they still not use the better codecs as well?

The AV-710 packaging doesn't mention the Envy at all except on the barcode. The Envy isn't what makes the cards high quality though (granted, it does a good job at not mangling the sound). The DAC is what for the most part dictates sound quality. Most cards using the Envy seem to use the same WM DAC, although the AV-710 uses AC-97 DACs on all channels except the rear output so it certainly is possible to use others - make sure the card uses the WM DAC before you fork out your money.

Few (there are some exceptions) onboard sound cards have decent controllers and DACs. When you're trying to sell a motherboard you want it as cheap as possible, you don't want to be throwing in enthusiast parts. The ones that do include decent hardware are usually ones which are typically used in HTPC configurations (such as mini-ATX motherboards).

Hmmm... The Creative empire seems to have a strong hold on big box stores thats for
sure!

3 stores so far -- Entire shelve(s) dedicated to Creative and not even the size of a
end cap for other brands.
Besides a basic Siig card the only thing found on "Creative Aisle" is Turtle Beach.

Seems like ever since the demise of the original 'Diamond' products audio sure is one
sided (branded).