Every person needs a tool to work. It just so happened that a person began to be called intelligent precisely from the moment he used a tool for any type of activity (the wording is lame, but in general it is true). Actually, any musician, being a reasonable person, should be able to at least to some extent master a musical instrument. However, within the framework of this article we will not talk about a musical instrument in the usual sense (guitar, piano, triangle...), but about an instrument that is subsequently necessary for processing the sound signal. We will talk about the sound interface.

- Blazhko Sergey Vladimirovich , Master of Engineering and Technology in the field of Informatics and Computer Science.

Theoretical basis

Let's make a reservation right away, sound interface, audio interface, sound card– within the framework of the presentation, they are contextual synonyms. In general, a sound card is a kind of subset of a sound interface. From the point of view of system analysis, an interface is something, designed for interaction between two or more systems. In our case, the systems could be something like this:

1. sound recording device (microphone) – processing system (computer);
2. processing system (computer) – sound reproducing device (speakers, headphones);
3. hybrids 1 and 2.

Formally, all an ordinary person needs from an audio interface is to take data from the recording device and give it to the computer, or vice versa, take the data from the computer and send it to the playback device. As the signal passes through the audio interface, a special signal conversion is performed so that the receiving side can further process this signal. The playback device (final) somehow reproduces an analog or sine wave signal, which is expressed as an audio or elastic wave. A modern computer works with digital information, that is, information that is encoded as a sequence of zeros and ones (in more precise terms, in the form of signals of discrete strips of analog levels). Thus, the audio interface is subject to the obligation to convert an analog signal into a digital one and/or vice versa, which is actually the core of the audio interface: a digital-to-analog and analog-to-digital converter (DAC and ADC or DAC and ADC, respectively), as well as wiring in in the form of a hardware codec, various filters, etc.
Modern PCs, laptops, tablets, smartphones, etc., as a rule, already have a built-in sound card, which allows you to record and play back sounds if you have recording and playback devices.

This is where one of the most frequently asked questions arises:

Is it possible to use the built-in sound card for sound recording and/or sound processing?

The answer to this question is very ambiguous.

How does a sound card work?

Let's figure out what happens to the signal that passes through the sound card. First, let's try to understand how a digital signal is converted to analog. As mentioned earlier, a DAC is used for this kind of conversion. We will not go into the jungle of hardware filling, considering various technologies and elemental base, we will simply outline “on the fingers” what is happening in the hardware.

So, we have a certain digital sequence, which represents an audio signal for output to the device.

111111000011001 001100101010100 1111110011001010 00000110100001 011101100110110001

0000000100011 00010101111100101 00010010110011101 1111111101110011 11001110010010

Here the colors are marked with encoded little pieces of sound. One second of sound can be encoded with a different number of such pieces, the number of these pieces is determined by the sampling frequency, that is, if the sampling frequency is 44.1 kHz, then one second of sound will be divided into 44,100 such pieces. The number of zeros and ones in one piece is determined by the sampling depth or quantization, or, simply, the bit depth.

Now, to imagine how a DAC works, let’s remember a school geometry course. Let's imagine that time is the X axis, level is Y. On the X axis we mark the number of segments that will correspond to the sampling frequency, on the Y axis - 2 n segments which will indicate the number of sampling levels, after which we gradually mark the points that will match specific sound levels.

It is worth noting that in reality, coding according to the above principle will look like a broken line (orange graph), but during the conversion the so-called approximation to a sinusoid, or simply bringing the signal closer to the form of a sinusoid, which will lead to smoothing of the levels (blue graph).

This is what it will look like analog signal, which is obtained as a result of decoding digital. It is worth noting that analog-to-digital conversion is done exactly the opposite: every 1/sampling_frequency seconds, the signal level is taken and encoded based on their sampling depth.

So, we have figured out how the DAC and ADC work (more or less), now it’s worth considering what parameters affect the final signal.

Basic sound card parameters

In the course of considering the operation of converters, we became acquainted with two main parameters: frequency and sampling depth; let’s consider them in more detail.
Sampling frequency– this is, roughly, the number of time periods into which 1 second of sound is divided. Why is it so important for audiophiles to have a sound card that can operate at frequencies higher than 40 kHz? This is due to the so-called Kotelnikov’s theorem (yes, mathematics again). If it’s trivial, then, according to this theorem, under ideal conditions, an analog signal can be restored from a discrete (digital) signal as accurately as desired, if the sampling frequency is greater than 2 frequency ranges of this same analog signal . That is, if we work with sound that a person hears (~ 20 Hz - 20 kHz), then the sampling frequency will be (20,000 - 20)x2 ~ 40,000 Hz, hence the de facto standard 44.1 kHz, this is the sampling frequency to most accurately encode the signal plus a little more (this, of course, is exaggerated, since this standard was set by Sony and the reasons are much more prosaic). However, as stated earlier, this is under ideal conditions. Ideal conditions mean the following: the signal should be infinitely extended in time and not have singularities in the form of zero spectral power or large amplitude peak bursts. It goes without saying that a typical analog audio signal does not fit ideal conditions, due to the fact that this signal is finite in time and has bursts and dips to “zero” (roughly speaking, it has time gaps).

Sampling depth or bit depth– this is the number of powers of 2 that determines how many intervals the signal amplitude will be divided into. A person, due to the imperfection of his sound apparatus, as a rule, feels comfortable in perception when the signal depth is at least 10 bits, that is, 1024 levels; a person is unlikely to somehow feel a further increase in the bit depth, which cannot be said about technology.

As can be seen from the above, when converting a signal, the sound card makes certain “concessions”.

All this leads to the fact that the resulting signal will not exactly repeat the original one.

Problems when choosing a sound card

So, a sound engineer or musician (choose yours) bought a computer with a brand new OS, cool processor, large volume random access memory with a sound card built into the motherboard, which is promoted by the manufacturer, has outputs for 5.1 sound system, the DAC-ADC has a sampling frequency of 48 kHz (this is no longer 44.1 kHz!), 24-bit bit depth, and so on and so forth... To celebrate, the engineer installs software for sound recording and discovers that this sound card cannot simultaneously “record” sound and apply effects and then instantly play it back. The sound may be of very high quality, but between the moment when the instrument plays the note, the computer processes the signal and plays it back. certain time or, to put it simply, a lag occurs. It’s strange, because the consultant from Eldorado praised this computer so much, talked about the sound card and in general... and then... eh. Out of grief, the engineer goes back to the store, gives back the purchased computer, pays another fabulous amount in order to replace the returned one with a computer with even more powerful processor, more RAM, a 96 (!!!) kHz and 24-bit sound card and... in the end the same thing.

In fact, typical computers with standard built-in sound cards and stock drivers for them are not initially designed to process sound in near real-time mode and reproduce it, that is, they are not intended for VST-RTAS processing. The point here is not at all in the “basic” filling in the form of a processor-RAM-hard drive, each of these components is capable of this mode of operation, the problem is that this sound card, sometimes, simply does not “know how” to work in real time .
When working any computer device Due to the difference in operating speeds, so-called problems arise. delays. This is expressed by the processor waiting for a set of data that is necessary for processing. In addition, when developing as operating system, and drivers, as well as application software, programmers resort to the so-called. creation of the so-called software abstractions, this is when each higher layer program code“hides” all the complexity of the lower level, providing only the simplest interfaces at its level. Sometimes there are tens of thousands of such abstraction levels. This approach simplifies the development process, but increases the time it takes for data to travel from source to recipient and vice versa.

In fact, lags can occur not only with built-in sound cards, but also with those connected via USB, WireFire (rest in peace), PCI, etc.

To avoid this kind of lag, developers use workarounds that eliminate unnecessary abstractions and programming transformations. One of these solutions is everyone’s favorite ASIO for Windows OS, JACK (not to be confused with a connector) for Linux, CoreAudio and AudioUnit for OSX. It is worth noting that everything is fine with OSX and Linux and without the “crutches” like Windows. However, not every device is capable of operating at the required speed and required accuracy.
Let's say that our engineer/musician belongs to the Kulibin category and was able to configure JACK/CoreAudio or make his sound card work with the ASIO driver from the Folk Craft company.
At best, this way our master reduced the lag from half a second to an almost acceptable 100 ms. The problem of the last milliseconds lies, among other things, in the internal signal transmission. When a signal from a source passes through USB interface or PCI to the central processor, the signal is supervised by the south bridge, which actually works with most of the peripherals and is directly subordinate to the central processor. However, the central processor is an important and busy character, so it doesn’t always have time to process sound right now, so our master will either have to accept the fact that these 100 ms can “jump” by ± 50 ms if not more. The solution to this problem may be to purchase a sound card with its own data processing chip or DSP (Digital Signal Processor).

As a rule, most of all “external” sound cards (the so-called gaming sound cards) have this kind of coprocessor, but it is very inflexible in operation and is essentially intended to “improve” the reproduced sound. Sound cards that are originally designed for audio processing have a more adequate coprocessor, or, in the extreme case, such a coprocessor is sold separately. The advantage of using a coprocessor is the fact that if it is used, a special software will process the signal practically without using the central processor. The disadvantage of this approach may be the price, as well as the “sharpening” of the equipment to work with special software.
Separately, I would like to note the interface between the sound card and computer. The requirements here are quite acceptable: for a sufficiently high processing speed, interfaces such as USB 2.0, PCI will be sufficient. Sound signal is not actually any large amount of data, such as a video signal, so the requirements are minimal. However, I’ll add a fly in the ointment: USB protocol does not guarantee 100% delivery of information from the sender to the recipient.
We decided on the first problem - large delays when using standard drivers or a high price for using a sound card with adequate latency.
Previously, we decided that achieving ideal analog signal transmission is not such an easy task. In addition to this, it is worth mentioning the noise and errors that arise in the process of capturing/converting/transmitting a signal as data, since, if we recall physics, any measuring device has its own error, and any algorithm has its own accuracy.

This joke is very significant due to the fact that the operation of the sound card is also affected by the radiation of nearby equipment, up to the ultrasound emitted central processor while working. On top of everything else, it is worth adding distortions to the characteristics of the recorded/played signal, which depend on the final device (microphone, pickup, speakers, headphones, etc.). Often, for marketing purposes, manufacturers of various sound devices deliberately increase the possible frequency of the recorded/reproduced signal, which makes a person who studied biology and physics at school quite consciously ask the question “why, if a person cannot hear outside the range of 20-20 kHz?” As they say, in every truth there is some truth. Indeed, many manufacturers only indicate on paper the higher quality characteristics of their equipment. However, if the manufacturer actually made a device that is capable of capturing/reproducing a signal in a slightly larger frequency range, consider purchasing of this equipment It’s worth thinking about, at least for a little while.
Here's the thing. Everyone remembers perfectly well what frequency response is, beautiful graphics with irregularities and so on. When recording sound (we will consider only this option), the microphone distorts it accordingly, which is characterized by unevenness in its frequency response within the range that it “hears”.

Thus, having a microphone that is capable of picking up a signal within standard limits (20-20k), we will only get distortion in this range. As a rule, distortions obey normal distribution(remember probability theory), with small inclusions of random errors. What will happen if, all other things being equal, we expand the range of the signal being captured? If you follow the logic, then the “cap” (probability density graph) will stretch towards an increase in the range, thereby shifting the distortion beyond the audible range of interest to us.

In practice, everything depends on the hardware developer and should be checked very carefully. However, the fact remains.

If we return to our hardware, then, unfortunately, not everything is so rosy. Similar to the statements of microphone and speaker developers, sound card manufacturers also often lie about the operating modes of their devices. Sometimes for a particular sound card you can see that it operates in 96k/24bit mode, although in reality it is still the same 48k/16bit. Here the situation may be that within the driver, the sound can actually be encoded with the specified parameters, although in reality the sound card (DAC-ADC) cannot produce the necessary characteristics and simply discards the most significant bits of the sampling depth and skips some frequencies at the sampling frequency. This was a common problem with the simplest built-in sound cards at one time. And although, as we have found out, parameters such as 40k/10bit are quite sufficient for human hearing, for audio processing this will not be enough due to the distortions introduced during audio processing. That is, if an engineer or musician recorded sound using an average microphone or sound card, then in the future using even best programs and it will be very difficult for the hardware to clean out all the noise and errors that were introduced during the recording stage. Fortunately, manufacturers of semi-professional or professional audio equipment do not sin like this.

The last problem is that built-in sound cards simply do not have enough necessary connectors to connect the necessary devices. In fact, even a gentleman’s set in the form of headphones and a pair of monitors will simply have nowhere to connect, and you’ll have to forget about such delights as outputs with phantom power and separate controls for each channel.

Total: the first thing you need to determine to further select the type of sound card is what the wizard will do. It is likely that for rough processing, when there is no need to record in high quality or to simulate the “ears” of the final listener, a built-in or external, but relatively cheap sound card may be sufficient. This can also be useful for beginning musicians if they are not too lazy to deal with reducing delays in real-time processing. For professionals who deal exclusively with offline processing, they should not bother with reducing delays and focus on devices that will actually produce the hertz and bits they are supposed to. To do this, it is not necessary to buy an extremely expensive sound card; in the cheapest option, a more or less adequate “gaming” sound card may be suitable. BUT, I would like to point out that the drivers for such sound cards try to improve the sound in a certain way, which is unacceptable, since for processing it is necessary to obtain the sound as pure and balanced as possible with minimal inclusion of driver “improvement”.

However, if you, as a master, need a device that will meet the requirements for the quality of the recorded and reproduced signal, as well as the speed of processing this signal, then you will either have to pay extra to get a device of appropriate quality or choose 2 things you can sacrifice: high quality, low price, high speed.

Note Ed.: If you are a musician and don’t want to understand all the complexities of modern processing, order mixing and mastering in our studio, and we will do everything necessary to ensure that you receive high-quality material! ->

Modern world computer technology is developing at the speed of light, this has affected absolutely all areas of this progressive industry. And sound is one of these spheres, without which the picture of computer harmony looks completely incomplete. And ensuring high-quality sound is entrusted to such an important component of the computer as the sound card. Sound cards can be divided into two types: Internal and external; each type of card has its own advantages and disadvantages, which should definitely be discussed. And now first things first...

Internal sound cards

Such cards are already built into system units and laptops. And they are intended for ordinary use, without any frills. In fact, such cards are considered a budget option. They are universally suitable for watching a movie, listening to music or playing a game. Such a sound card will provide a standard range of reproduced sounds in stereo mode.

The internal card is usually inserted into the system unit through PCI slot. It is invisible, many even have little idea what it looks like, since it is hidden in the body system unit and neither her nor the wires are visible. In what case is this sound card suitable for you?

If you are not picky about sound quality, do not play games that use surround sound technology, or watch movies in surround sound format Dolby surround and you are ordinary user, which is satisfied with standard sound quality without any special sound effects.

External sound cards

But this “device” is a completely separate conversation. This is a completely separate device that does not fit under the PC lid in any way. As a rule, such sound cards are relatively small in size, which allows you to save on space. In addition, such sound cards have a very stylish and at the same time not flashy or unnerving design. A distinctive feature of external sound cards is the abundance of outputs, mostly eight. Which allows us to draw a conclusion about the possibilities in comparison with the internal map.

An external sound card is the key to the door called 5.1 surround sound. It is with its help that the sound on your laptop or computer will sound much more spacious. The functional part of the external sound card is more than diverse and each of the outputs on it plays its own, strictly assigned role. The most important connector is used to connect to a PC, output to the front speakers, output to the rear speakers, to the center speaker, as well as a microphone, headphones, line-in, as well as other connectors that may also come in handy over time.

So, what does an external sound card give us in the end, in what ways does it outperform the internal one and vice versa. An external sound card will allow you to watch movies with surround sound, thanks to DTS (Digital surround and Dolby Digital) technology with the effect of presence, that is, explosions behind you, screams of the dead on the left, then on the right, and so on. Also, almost all advanced gamers use external sound cards due to a standard called EAX advanced HD.

Which allows you to get realistic, surround sound in modern, cool toys. And the presence of a digital output will always provide excellent sound quality, without any distortion. The key factor is the price of such a card, and it is an order of magnitude higher than a regular internal one. It is ideal for gamers, music lovers or movie buffs who value impressive sound effects and high-quality surround sound.

Conclusion

The market is full of all kinds of sound cards and choosing a suitable sound card will not be difficult. Which card to choose depends specifically on the person and his expectations. If the user is not picky and is used to regular sound from speakers, then a standard internal sound card is ideal for all the purposes for which speakers are usually used. If the user is interested in the most powerful, surround sound, then an external sound card is needed. And you can choose the individually required card thanks to numerous reviews on the Internet or in a computer supermarket, after consulting with a specialist.

Gone are the days when computers hit store shelves “deaf and dumb”: today even the most budget models have a built-in sound card. Now speakers or headphones can be connected to any computer - be it office or gaming, desktop or mobile, expensive or cheap.
The problem is that the sound quality output from built-in cards often leaves much to be desired. Anyone understands that when choosing a motherboard, the last thing a buyer will pay attention to is the characteristics of the built-in sound card; The manufacturer understands this too. Therefore, the first (and often the only) criterion for a manufacturer to select a sound chip for a mother card is its price.

Classification of sound cards.

Although the operating principle of all sound cards is the same, according to their characteristics and supported formats they are usually divided into two classes: professional and multimedia.

Characteristics of sound cards.

Maximum frequency And ADC capacity determine how accurately an analog signal from a microphone or line input will be converted to digital. These parameters are important if the card is intended for recording high-quality audio. For most household needs, a single-channel ADC with a maximum frequency of 44.1 kHz and a bit resolution of 16 bits is sufficient.
To record stereo sound, you must have at least 2 recording channels.

PCI	PCI-E	USB

Signal to noise ratio determines the level of noise added to the signal by the sound card itself. The higher this indicator, the cleaner the sound remains. For listening to music, it is undesirable for this figure to be below 75 dB. Hi-Fi equipment provides a minimum of 90 dB, and high-quality Hi-End devices are capable of providing a signal-to-noise ratio of 110-120 dB and higher.

EAX, OpenAL, A3D support Determines whether the card supports gaming surround sound formats. Using these formats (via multi-channel speaker system) imaginary sound sources, sound reflections from virtual walls and other sound effects are created in space. Of course, for all this it is necessary that the game itself also supports this format.

ASIO support. ASIO is a software interface for direct (bypassing the operating system) data exchange between the sound card driver and the sound recording/playback program. The need for this format arose due to the fact that Windows (which uses this format) may delay the transmission of audio data when the system is under high load. By ear, this is defined as “jamming” and “slowing down” of the sound. And, if (for example) when watching a film, isolated such cases can be ignored, then with professional sound processing this, of course, is unacceptable.
At the same time, ASIO support does not guarantee that audio tracks will sound without delays - much depends on the quality of the sound card and its drivers. You shouldn't expect much effect from enabling this mode on a cheap, basic-level card.

Availability of digital output(S/PDIF, HDMI) allows you to transmit an audio signal in digital form to audio equipment that can receive such a signal - for example, to a home theater. With this connection, the DAC parameters of the sound card are unimportant - conversion digital signal to analog produces a home theater DAC. Such a connection is justified if the home theater DAC is of better quality than the one built into the sound card.

Availability of digital input allows you to receive a digital signal from audio equipment (for example, digital microphones and audio players). When using a digital input, the ADC characteristics of the sound card are unimportant - the sound already enters the card in digital form. In this case, the work of converting analog audio to digital (if it is performed) is taken over by the ADC of the device from which the digital audio signal comes.

Availability built-in headphone amplifier It will be useful if you often sit in front of a computer with headphones. If you have a high-quality high-impedance headphone, an amplifier is simply necessary - otherwise they will sound quiet. You can buy a separate headphone amplifier, or you can choose a sound card with a built-in amplifier.

Microphone phantom power used when connecting condenser studio microphones - it is believed that such a microphone provides best record vote. To connect conventional dynamic microphones, phantom power must be turned off, otherwise the microphone may be damaged.

High impedance instrument input (Hi-Z) created for direct connection electronic musical instruments with high pickup impedance (for example, electric guitars, electric cellos, violins, etc.) When connecting such instruments to a regular line input, the amplitude-frequency response of the signal may be distorted.

The home computer has long been transformed from a workstation into a full-fledged multimedia device. In addition to surfing the Internet and communicating on social media. networks, a modern PC allows its owner to watch videos, listen to music, process audio files, play, etc. To output an audio signal to speakers or headphones, a sound card (SC) is required. Next we will consider existing varieties, purpose and design features these devices.

How to choose a sound card

The main task of a sound card is to convert a digital signal into an analog signal and output it to headphones, speakers, etc. Today, all modern motherboards are equipped with an integrated sound card, which is capable of providing quite acceptable sound quality. Cons this decision are:

• decreased computer performance due to consumption of CPU resources;
• lack of a high-quality signal converter, which is processed using a hardware codec.

These are the main factors that force users to abandon integrated solutions and purchase discrete models for their computers. In order to choose correctly this device, you need to familiarize yourself with the types of sound cards, their purpose, technical characteristics, and scope of application.

Types of sound cards

Today, all sound cards are usually classified according to the following criteria:

1. Type of location. There are integrated, internal, external.
2. Connection method. Integrated cards are not removable, they are soldered directly into the motherboard. Internal models connect to system board via PCI or PCI-Express slots. External, connect to PC via USB port or via high speed interface

Tip: when choosing an inexpensive external model, the best option connection will be used high speed port USB 3.0. If your PC does not have one, you can purchase an expansion card that connects to the PCI slot.

1. Technical specifications. The most significant positions in technical specifications sound module – signal-to-noise ratio, harmonic distortion. For good cards the first indicator is in the range of 90 – 100 dB; the second – less than 0.00 1%.

Important! Pay attention to the bit depth of the digital-to-analog and analog-to-digital converter. The norm is 24 Bits. The higher this indicator, the better quality(ZK).

1. Purpose. Sound modules can be divided into multimedia, gaming, and professional.

External Sound Card

External audio cards are small device, which connects to a laptop or PC via a high-speed FireWire interface. This design solved two main problems: increased the noise immunity of the card, which had a positive effect on sound quality, freed up a PCI slot, the number of which is limited in a PC.

Today, there are two FireWire standards: IEEE 1394, throughput which is 400 Mbit/s; IEEE 1394b, which supports data rates up to 800 Mbps. Audio cards with IEEE 1394 interface support up to 52 channels thanks to the ability to daisy-chain devices onto one bus. External sound cards with a FireWire interface are classified as semi-professional and professional equipment.

Important! To connect an external audio card to a laptop, you will need a PCMCI - FireWire adapter.

Sound card with usb

These devices appeared on the domestic market about 6 years ago. The device is connected to a PC via a USB port. These models are equipped with output for speakers or headphones and inputs for one or more microphones.

The main advantages of this technology:

• Versatility. All modern computers equipped with this interface.
• Improved quality of playback and sound recording compared to integrated models.
• Mobility, ease of connection, map settings. As a rule, the majority budget models do not require installation of additional drivers. For more expensive models, drivers are supplied with the device.

The disadvantage of these audio converters is the relatively low speed data transmission. For the USB 2.0 interface, the data transfer speed does not exceed 480 Mbit/s.

Studio sound cards

A recording studio has its own specifics. Studio audio converters are equipped with a lot of different input and output connectors for connecting instruments, microphones and other studio equipment. Input connectors:

• XLR – connector for connecting a condenser microphone.
• Jasc3. Non-ballast jack for connecting instruments such as guitars and other acoustic instruments with pickups.
• Jasc3. Ballast connector for connecting keyboards, etc.
• S/PDIF – designed for recording a digital stereo signal.

Weekend:

• Jasc3. Ballasted. To transmit a signal to other devices.
• Jasc 5/6.3 For connecting headphones.
• S/PDIF – designed for transmitting a digital stereo signal.

To operate audio converters, manufacturers usually supply drivers. The most modern models do not even have them: studio sound cards use the ASIO protocol, which allows the device to communicate directly with the connected instrument.

Sound cards for microphones and guitars

Almost any external audio card with the required number of input connectors is suitable for recording sound from a microphone or guitar pickup. The only thing you need to know when choosing is the quality of the device, which is usually expressed in its cost. The main problem with capturing sound from a microphone or acoustic guitar pickup is sound distortion. Choose a premium audio converter that will preserve the sound of your voice and instrument in its original state.

Professional sound cards

A feature of professional sound converters is the lack of drivers included in the package. In addition, as standard, this type of device does not have tools for adjusting the sound level. All operations are performed programmatically; all information is displayed on a special control panel. Sound quality is ensured by built-in expensive converters. No interference and distortion - high-quality power filters.

Professional audio cards use ballast signal inputs and outputs. Output connectors are adapted for connecting musical instruments: RCA; Jasc 6.3; XLR connectors. A special feature of professional cards is the ability to support almost all standards, and even such rarely used ones as GSIF and ASIO2.

Features of Lexicon sound cards

Lexicon audio converters are external devices, representing a full-fledged recording studio.

• Built-in USB mixer.
• Specially developed software with reverb plugin.

Equipment: linear inputs TRS and line outputs TRS and RCA. Depending on the model, Lexicon sound cards allow you to process multiple input signals simultaneously and record two independent tracks. Connection to PC via USB interface.

As a conclusion

As noted above, an external sound card can have a USB or FireWire interface. They all have both positive and negative sides. Right choice interface depends solely on the task at hand.

FireWire should be chosen if you are a musician and need real-time audio signal processing. A card with a high-speed interface will be required for those who record audio simultaneously from 18 or more channels. For all other cases, experts recommend using USB audio cards, which are easy to use and do not require additional investments to upgrade your PC.

To enjoy all the benefits of high-definition video and the latest PC games, you need both a powerful processor and powerful graphics adapter. However, very often users forget that complete immersion in the atmosphere also requires high-quality multi-channel audio. At the same time, codecs, drivers and built-in sound card will be of little help in such a matter. You need a serious device. The article will describe how to choose a sound card. Useful tips when choosing, they will also not be ignored.

Built-in chips

Audio devices soldered directly on the board system card, are unable to compete with discrete equipment. First of all, the codec installed on motherboard, actively uses processor resources during its operation, which reduces overall performance by several percent.

It happens that the built-in sound card is located in close proximity to high-ampere power lines. The electromagnetic field created by them leads to increased interference and interference. The architecture of the built-in equipment is simplified to the maximum.

How to choose a sound card for a computer?

There is a variety of hardware for sound output, all of which can be divided into two types: music cards and multimedia.

The first group is used for recording, playback and processing audio information. This makes them narrowly targeted, and such devices are intended mainly for musicians. They can be installed either inside the system unit or connected to a USB connector. The price of this type of equipment is high.

Multimedia sound cards are suitable for a wider range of users. They are ideal for both stereo systems and acoustics with five and seven channels. Codecs are already built into the sound card and do not require additional settings; In addition, in addition to codecs, the device has its own processor, which has a beneficial effect on computer performance.

Main characteristics

In order to choose a sound card for your computer, you must be familiar with the basic characteristics of the device. First of all, the main task is installed on the board - processing the digital signal and creating its analog equivalent. This device is essentially the brain of the audio card.

DAC parameters

How to choose a sound card for a computer, what characteristics should a DAC have? A DAC with a bit depth of 16 Bits and a maximum sampling frequency of 48 KHz is almost always sufficient. The last digit indicates how often the converter reads the signal during recording or playback.

It is believed that this parameter should be twice as large as that which will be reproduced. According to this theory, we can say that 44.1 KHz is sufficient for almost any recording; this level exceeds the threshold of frequencies audible to humans by two times. However, tests show that the rule is not always followed as written on paper, which means it makes sense to choose a device with a higher sampling rate for greater audio accuracy.

Marketing Tricks

It must be said that the figures written in advertising brochures are not always true, they are often greatly exaggerated. For example, a card with a stated sampling rate of 98 KHz may sound much worse than a device with more modest numbers. "How to choose the right sound card if you can't trust the specifications?" - the user will ask. When studying technology, pay attention to the company that manufactured the DAC. Ti-Burr Brown, Wolfson, Texas Instruments are considered the best.

In addition to the manufacturer, it is worth finding out the serial number of the DAC. It indicates the “advancement” of the model. That is, the higher the number, the more modern the development. You can only check the code name of the chip on the manufacturer’s website.

If there are several installed on the audio card, it is desirable that they all be the same. Often a high-quality DAC is used for the central channels, and an inexpensive one for the surrounding channels. This reduces not only the price of the final device, but also the quality of multi-channel sound.

EAX

Before choosing a computer sound card, find out if the hardware supports EAX technology. Also, be sure to check which version you are using. Today the oldest is 5.0.

If we talk in simple words,EAX is an “audio positioning” technology. The closest analogue is DirectSound3D. It controls the coordinates of the audio source in three-dimensional space. IN computer games This system is used most often; with its help, effects are added to the game that create the illusion of distance from the sound source and its location relative to the listener (left, right, behind).

To what has already been said, it should be added that EAX emulates reflections and reverberations. This gives the user a sense of options game world. For open world, a cramped room and an empty multi-story building, the character of the same audio recording will be different.

ASIO

ASIO is a protocol used to transmit audio information with minimal delays. Sign up for special applications is almost impossible if ASIO does not support the sound card for the computer. How to choose the best option?

For musicians, having this technology is a must. If the computer is used not as a recording studio, but as a multimedia processor, ASIO can be considered an optional feature.

Midi interface

If the user is going to write arrangements, then what should a sound card for a computer have, and how to choose a suitable device? Important Feature audio cards - presence of midi inputs and outputs. They are used to connect synthesizers and musical keyboards.

With the help of such an interface, not an analog signal is supplied to the sound device, but information about which key is pressed, whether it is completely lowered, and with what force and speed the user pressed it. All data is transferred to the program, and the program already plays the sound. Moreover, the possibilities of these programs are enormous. You can use those that emulate real instruments (for example, piano, guitar, drums), or you can create your own unique and unlike anything else preset.

Phantom power

If you intend to use a condenser, you should know that not every sound card for a computer can work with such equipment. How to choose the right device? It's simple - ask about the presence of phantom power on the audio card. Remember that dynamic microphones require the absence of this element! Phantom power can damage them.

Instrument and line inputs

If you are going to install an audio card in your computer for recording electric guitar, it must have an instrument input (another name is high-impedance).

Its resistance level is quite high (about 1 megaohm), which makes it possible to transmit a signal from the instrument to the computer without loss. If you connect the guitar to a regular input, a significant part of the overtones and low frequencies, which will make the sound dull. In this case, not a clear, beautiful sound will be recorded, but a dull sound with loss of low frequencies. A large microphone jack is often used as a connector.

Line In is required for connecting various stereo devices to the audio card. Typically, each channel uses its own connector. You won't be able to connect a guitar or microphone to it; the recording volume in this case will be very quiet.

Built-in preamp

A preamplifier is another module that can be equipped with a computer sound card. How to choose the right one and which one is better - with or without it?

First you need to understand what a preamplifier is. The amplitude of the signal that goes from the microphone to the input is very low. To record, you have to amplify it and then stabilize the volume. It is this function that is assigned to the preamplifier. Not all audio cards have it. Even if the device has a microphone input, it may not have a preamplifier. Then the software does his job. However, in this case, the amplitude of not only the useful signal increases, but also noise with interference.

Choosing a sound card for a PC: is a preamp required?

For musicians or announcers, having a preamplifier will be a good bonus. But in this case there was a fly in the ointment. The quality of built-in amplifiers is almost always quite modest, but the price rises significantly due to such a built-in element. It must be said that you can always add an additional device of this type, so you shouldn’t add it to the list of required ones.

Conclusion

Since it is impossible to choose a sound card without wasting time, you will have to familiarize yourself with a large number of offers from different stores computer equipment. Of course, if you have no desire to study numbers, you can go another way - comparison. To do this, you need to listen to the same audio recording on different devices. In this case, the one that sounds most pleasant will be suitable.

Remember that the audio card is only part of the audio reproduction system. You also need a high-quality amplifier and good-quality speakers. Without them, all efforts aimed at selecting equipment will be in vain.