TB Santa Cruz 19.99 AR Nice new look AT!

[carpenter]

I found TB Santa Cruz's @ CC today for 19.99 after a 40.00 rebate. Heard they were a pretty decent card so got one to try. Nice new look to AnandTech, great job guys.

 

[JMaster]

nice deal on a nice card

 

[BornStar]

Wow, that's an incredible price on that card. Too bad I already have one in both of my computers. Can you tell I like it?

 

[Aztech]

I bought one, thanks. The deal is available online, but only for in-store pickup. The rebate is a CC rebate, which you can partially submit online, and maybe speed up the process.

Linked

 

[saxophonoia]

Is that an instant rebate?

 

[stilz]

no, you still have to submit the bar code and a receipt. 'submitting' partially online only makes the process faster.

 

[saxophonoia]

alright thanks. Just wondering before I decided if I wanted to go pick it up or not.

 

[kaesile]

Link

Also supports 5.1 channel audio.

I'm using a Santa Cruz w/o 5.1, still an awesome card. Much better than most onboard sound chips, and even compares favorably to an Audigy or Audigy 2.

 

[Snufalufagus]

How does this sound card compare to an Audigy 2 ZS in games?

 

[Brian48]

It doesn't. In fact, it can't even compete against the original Audigy when it comes to gaming, but that's not this card's primary strength. Music playback is where it's at with this card. I've had four over the years and still have one in one of my backups. A great sound card for price. Certainly better than any of Turtle Beach's newer cards in my opinion.

 

[Snufalufagus]

Thanks for the input Brian. All I do is game so I will stick with Creative.

 

[Aztech]

Originally posted by: kaesile
Link

Also supports 5.1 channel audio.

I'm using a Santa Cruz w/o 5.1, still an awesome card.  Much better than most onboard sound chips, and even compares favorably to an Audigy or Audigy 2.




</P>

I guess the links aren't blue enough or something. Anyway, I'd be interested in the 2.1 version for cheaper. Anyone still selling them?

 

[weepul]

really nice! if i needed a sound card @ the moment, i'd definitely jump over this.

//krunk (^_^x)

 

[vYktYm]

I'm thinking about it, but I'm wondering if the mic echoing issues have been worked out or if it's just a lost cause. Anyone know?...i know they put out some new drivers in 2003 after about a year of nothing but a lot of people were saying that is was a hardware problem and no driver update could fix it. I'm just worried because I use teamspeak and roger wilco on the rig it would go into.

 

[vcarpio]

Nice - thanks! I'm going to get one tomorrow.

Question: Is this better (technologically superior? better sound-quality?) than the SB Live 5.1? If it is, then the TB goes into my daughter's PC and I'll take her SB Live 5.1 and put it on the "guest PC" I'm building. (Can you believe it? PCs are so cheap nowadays that I'm building a guest PC so my guests can play Quake online.)

 

[corinthos]

I'm thinking about it, but I'm wondering if the mic echoing issues have been worked out or if it's just a lost cause. Anyone know?...i know they put out some new drivers in 2003 after about a year of nothing but a lot of people were saying that is was a hardware problem and no driver update could fix it. I'm just worried because I use teamspeak and roger wilco on the rig it would go into.

i think it's a hardware flaw, at least that's what i read in thread somewhere

 

[RVN]

I run this card on four boxes digital out to an external DD processor. (I like the card) On the box that I watch and record TV I experienced the reverb problem. The 2003 driver corrected it for me. I was able to "tweak" the settings to minimize the reverb problem to almost inaudible before the newer driver came out. I don't microphone anything on any of these boxes and can't report otherwise. I don't know.

Good deal!

 

[metalmania]

They are in the same league. But SB live 5.1 is better for gaming. Put it in your guest PC to enjoy the Quake. I miss the FAR SB live in Compussr today.

Originally posted by: vcarpio
Nice - thanks! I'm going to get one tomorrow.



Question: Is this better (technologically superior? better sound-quality?) than the SB Live 5.1? If it is, then the TB goes into my daughter's PC and I'll take her SB Live 5.1 and put it on the "guest PC" I'm building. (Can you believe it? PCs are so cheap nowadays that I'm building a guest PC so my guests can play Quake online.)

 

[carpenter]

Got it in and I like it. A friend has an Audigy 2 Plat. in one box and an Audigy 2 ZS Plat. in another box (he's very deprived) and when playing music, it's hard to tell the difference between them and this TB. In games I notice the difference, but I'm not as fussy with the game sound. Sounds a whole lot better than the onboard sound did. BTW, I still like my Logitech speakers better than his Creatives. Maybe it'll make him green with envy?

 

[dc]

how do the cheap via envy soundcards compare?

example: http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=29-120-103&amp;depa=1
tbsc better?

 

[dew042]

Originally posted by: dc
how do the cheap via envy soundcards compare?

example: http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=29-120-103&amp;depa=1
tbsc better?

I have both -- music is noticably better on the TBSC. I'm actually rather disappointed with the av710 -- it lacks depth and seems just blah.....

dew.

 

[Collije]

I have an old Aureal soundcard, this will be a nice upgrade particularly for the price. Thanks OP!

 

[blacklit]

nice price ~ bought mine for $50 ages ago. i highly recommend it. it's an underrated low-profile card that has a bit of a cult following. bear in mind, it SHINES when paired with good speakers. so have/get one, otherwise you won't realize the true benefits.

as testimonial, i upgraded from sblive 5.1 and heard a significant improvement in sound clarity in BOTH games and music... especially music. i have old 2.1 altec lansing's and thanks to the santa cruz i finally learned/heard what music "sound stage" was.

for comparison, a friend uses audigy 2 with logi-z640's. on his rig, you get that "presence" in games, as if you're in the game. but it was, for lack of audiophilinguistics, slightly tron-ish with music -- i imagine resulting from the same effects/dac's that give that "presence" in games. clearly, they don't work too well with music. that said, the santa cruz can reproduce similar effects quite nicely, but on a different degree. think of it this way (if you LIKE):

sb live: games-right on! music-right on!
audigy x: games-WOW! music-nice!
santa cruz: games-wow! music-WOW!
m-audio: games-nice! music-O MAMA! or WOW brittney really CAN'T sing!
audigy zs: games-WHOA get down we're being bombed! music-WOW?

it might help to consider.. the santa cruz's selling point during its glory days was... it matched CD audio, that is, it was capable of putting out (accurately) that high quality audio we loved in our CD's. if your CD's aren't "high quality" on your "stereo" that's another story. despite all the super hyper duper (rather dOper) audio out there, CD quality still sounds pretty darn good yes? yes!

so in lieu of the theory of relativity, it's simply a decision isn't it? the highly acclaimed audigy xx's, m-audio's, etc for about $80... OR the santa cruz for 20 of your minimum-wage-earned dollars. before you decide, put yourself in the hot deal[ers] position, reflect, and ask... what would a smart not-overly-cheap bastard do? :roll:

so... ya... hope that helps.

 

[Collije]

Thanks, just grabbed one (quickly selling out in the Philly area). Thanks OP!

 

[vcarpio]

Got mine today. Wow, everything they say about this card is true. I had it installed on my "guest PC" with a set of cheap, generic 2.1 speakers I bought for $30 2 years ago at a computer show. The TB does make the spearkers sound expensive because of the good, clean sound. Like they say, you have to hear it to believe it.