Low buck S/PDIF

[lazyboy]

Hey folks,

I am really only aware of the big names who are putting out prosumer soundcards for about $150, but that's not really what I'm looking for. I don't need top-notch converters; I just want S/PDIF in/out. Plus I need it for typical soundcard purposes, so the Edirol USB thingy won't do it.

Is it possible that there's something out there in the gamer market for under $100?

Please don't chide me too much, I think I established myself on this board as a cheapskate years ago. Thanks in advance.

 

[Stealthtech]

I would go with an audiophile 2496. You can get new ones on ebay now for a little over $100

 

[alfalfa]

Soundcards with the c-media cmi 8738 chipset. Eg Aopen AW850Deluxe, Zoltrix nightingale pro, Leadtek Winfast 6x sound ... quite a few other brands. Should cost less than $40 (some as low as $11 I've heard).

They have coaxial and optical spdif i/o and allow 24bit recording at 44.1 or 48khz (with no resampling for bit perfect i/o). They also have 5.1 outputs and sensaura surround support for gaming. You can also use M-Audio DIO 2448 drivers with them for ASIO support (they are virtually identical to the DIO 2448).

 

[lazyboy]

Alfalfa,

The Aopen looks like the right thing--and Newegg has it for $23.

Muchas Gracias