Reasons for buying a new soundcard?

[Miseria_Cantare]

Well, I've got 2 soundcards....
The one that came with this PC, (Soundmax digital audio )
And a soundblaster PCI 128.

Right now, the soundblaster isn't installed.

I'm guessing, if I want good studio quality recordings, I will have to buy an expensive soundcard and not just use either of these two.
But, I don't understand why...
Shouldnt the soundcard be able to record excellent quality sound anyway? when I play music on the PC, it sounds perfect, well, shouldn't the quality for recording just be exactly the same?
All it needs to do is just record the exact signal that is being given to it.....

So firstly, do I need to buy something better? and any recommendations?

And secondly, there are 2 outputs on my mixer, one for -10dbv, and one for +4dbu, does it matter which of these I use to connect to the line in on the soundcard?

 

[scrubs]

Well, I've got 2 soundcards....
The one that came with this PC, (Soundmax digital audio )
And a soundblaster PCI 128.

Right now, the soundblaster isn't installed.

I'm guessing, if I want good studio quality recordings, I will have to buy an expensive soundcard and not just use either of these two.
But, I don't understand why...
Shouldnt the soundcard be able to record excellent quality sound anyway? when I play music on the PC, it sounds perfect, well, shouldn't the quality for recording just be exactly the same?
All it needs to do is just record the exact signal that is being given to it.....

So firstly, do I need to buy something better? and any recommendations?

And secondly, there are 2 outputs on my mixer, one for -10dbv, and one for +4dbu, does it matter which of these I use to connect to the line in on the soundcard?

I am not very knowledgeable about computers, but I'll try to explain:

1) A/D & D/A conversion - part of your soundcard's job is to convert the analog signal of your music to a digital one for recording and to convert it back to analog for listening. There are differences in quality among converters and this will affect the quality of your recordings. Stock soundcards tend to have lousy A/D converters. Soundblasters and other "gaming & multimedia" type cards may reproduce sounds well (D/A conversion), but their A/D converters are also often lacking.

2) Full Duplex - Again, most stock sound cards are not "full duplex." This means they are not equipped to send and receive information at the same time. This may be important, as you will generally want to monitor some of your already recorded tracks while overdubbing others. Full duplex cards allow you to do this.

3) Inputs - If you will be doing any multitrack recording, you may want more inputs than your soundcard provides (usually just one stereo input). Soundcards designed for recording often have multiple inputs to accept sound from many sources (mics, keyboards, MIDI, etc.) at once and allow you to record each source to a different track in your recording software.

As far as what soundcard to use, there are options at many pricepoints. You don't have to break the bank to make decent recordings. If you are satisfied with your current soundcard(s), you may not need to upgrade at all. It really depends on what you want to do.

Soundcards from M-Audio, EMU, MOTU and others are well regarded around here and come in a variety of packages to meet your needs.

 

[johnnymegabyte]

re: SB PCI 128
I have one on my home PC and yes I want to replace it soon
It's low-end, and I mean low-end, but not total cr@p

it's OK for :
a) general playback of audio or connect to stereo
b) copying cassettes or vinyl to PC to make CD's
c) MIDI playback [ has on board synth ( 2/4/8 meg samples Soundfonts ) if you don't have any synths or sound modules. ]
d) MIDI interface ( hook-up to synth )


Drawbacks
a) Low specs for audio ( pre-dates Live! and Audigy series. Every new SB has better specs )
b) No SPDIF
c) I have experienced some hum ( I use a grounded RCA to min-plug cable )
d) Reverb and Chorus effects are either ON or OFF

I'm sure there are plenty of other reasons to trash the card, but for $25, it's like that old clunker car, that you try to get one more year out of it, becuase it still takes you from A to B. If you want to do things cheaply, then this card can do a lot, just don't expect miracles.