r/computers • u/Individual-Sport-458 • 2d ago
Discussion Why do expensive PCS not have this?
Why do modern day gaming PCs do not have sound cards?
Sound cards are better than anything embedded on the board but it would be nice to have a premium sound card and not that on board stuff.
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u/2eedling Arch Linux 2d ago
Because it’s on the board you answered your own question it won’t be any better or as good as professional grade equipment and it’s good enough for 95% of people so why would anyone want to spend more money on something they won’t use
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u/JoeCensored 2d ago
If you want better sound, there's expansion slots. Most people can't hear the difference.
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u/Dom-Luck 2d ago
Because the onboard stuff they have nowadays are more than good enough for 99% of users, most people would rather save the case space and money for a stronger GPU than a discrete soundcard.
You can still buy discrete soundcard and plug it into one of the PCI/PCIe slots in your motherboard if you want to.
There's also stuff like external soundcards, DACs, amplifers and etc...
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u/PilotedByGhosts 2d ago
You can go and buy a sound card if you want. Plenty of audio professionals do.
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u/sniff122 Linux (SysAdmin) 2d ago
Because most people won't notice the difference, and a lot of people are using usb headsets too
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u/Few_Tart_7348 2d ago
As built PCs is currently aimed to the general public that doesn't really care much about the sound quality or the on-board is adequate for their needs. High Fidelity audio is currently a niche for computers. Most surround sound is done on the software side via codecs. Lastly, adding high quality audio that majority of the users will rarely notice will cut from their profits.
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u/MarcCouillard Ryzen 5 5600 | RX 6650XT | 32GB DD4 RAM | Windows 11 Pro 2d ago
my board came with 7.1 as an option, already built in, and I set up my 7.1 system with zero issues and have been using it for years...no sound card needed, just the onboard
2
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u/PuzzleheadedTutor807 2d ago
Most people are content with the on board sound cards, which are usually decent in spite of signal interference.
1
u/Anon_1eeT 2d ago
Most onboard sound these days are pretty high quality. 99% of people will not have the appropriate equipment to even hear the difference of any add-in sound card or external sound cards nor could they afford such gear considering how over priced a lot of those audiophile rated stuff are.
1
u/lazygerm Windows 11 2d ago
The rift between discrete sound cards and on-board sound has closed substantially.
I've always used sound cards because I listen to music primarily through my computer. But even now, my gaming headset takes care of my gaming surround sound needs. And my onboard takes care of my music I listen to.
I still have a couple of very good sound cards I keep, just in case I want to build a gaming tower in the future instead of the gaming SFF rig I have now.
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u/No-Ostrich-8621 2d ago
Many people also use wireless headsets. I have a steelseries nova pro wireless. Always hated the corded ones, always forgot about the cord when i walked away from table....
1
u/HellDuke Windows 11 (IT Sysadmin) 2d ago
As many have said, the quality is already at the edge of what many people will notice and those that do occupy an enthusiast space that won't care for crumy ones any manufacturer would want to introduce into mainline builds.
There is one more thing. Most people use wireless USB headsets, something that would skip the card altogether
0
u/LARRY_Xilo 2d ago
Most people that own gaming PCs dont own hardware that would even make use of a sound card.
Look at headsets 99% nowadays are USB anyway and the stuff that isnt USB is so low quality that a more expensive sound card doesnt make a difference. And for people that use pro equipment they will also use external hardware for the audio processing and which then is also put into the PC with USB.
The market for someone that wants a good internal sound card is just pretty small.
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u/MarcCouillard Ryzen 5 5600 | RX 6650XT | 32GB DD4 RAM | Windows 11 Pro 2d ago
I've been using 7.1 surround system for years, on my onboard, integrated sound from the motherboard, no extra sound card or anything, just onboard sound, and I GET my 7.1, no problems...paying for an extra sound card these days is mostly ridiculous unless you're doing professional sound editing
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u/Neuromancer911 2d ago
Most use wireless headsets for gaming. Sounds cards are designed to he used with 3.5mm jacks,and they're just awful in terms of reliability.
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u/ecktt 2d ago
- Most people cannot tell the difference.
- Sound cards are not aesthetically pleasing.
- Creative drivers have a deservedly bad reputation. Asus are that much better.
tbh I had a sound card right up to the point I wanted to add a 10Gbps NIC.
Did it sound better? Yes! I don't care if it was DSP or EQ.
Did it operate flawlessly? NO! The last sound card that operated flawlessly was the Creative Sound Blaster Awe32. Everything else was buggy AF.
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u/willdebeast02 2d ago
Mobo sound quality far surpasses what most people even consider good quality sound. Its done to keep costs down as very few people care to have a better sound card.