AUREAL VORTEX AU8820B2

[tdean]

i've been following a few threads and there seems to be quite a bit of praise (you guys know who you are)for the AUREAL VORTEX AU8820B2 3D PCI SOUND CARD. they are only $8, are they worth picking up? the os support says 95/98. are there any xp or 2k drivers at all?

....the crows seemed to be calling him, thought caw....<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by tdean on 01/07/03 01:25 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[Crashman]

It's a 2 channel card. I believe it still supports A3D 2.0 though. XP has built in drivers, I wouldn't try 2k or VIA chipsets with it though. It shoulc be the nicest 2-channel card on the market (A3D 2.0 can do synthesized 3D by imitating the sound variation made when sounds from various directions reflect off your ear).

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[tdean]

excellent, thanks. i was mostly wondering about xp anyway. i've had it with via as well.

....the crows seemed to be calling him, thought caw....

 

[lwj81]

for the money,i would get the vortex2 (au8830).you can get them off ebay for $10.00 new.

 

[lwj81]

hey crash,why do the newer cards (santa cruz)only support a3d 1.0 and not 2.0?

 

[tdean]

hmmm.... are they more/less compatible (or should i say supported) than the other? im looking for something decent to put in peoples computers when their sound craps out on them...

....the crows seemed to be calling him, thought caw....

 

[Crashman]

Creative. Creative sued Aureal a couple times. Aureal went bankrupt paying their lawyers. Before Aureal could sue Creative for compensation, the creditors closed in. Creative bought Aureal to seal the technology, and now the only one with a licence to develop drivers is Microsoft. Creative is not publishing licences for A3D 2.0.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>

 

[blah]

Little update: A3D 1.0 was done mostly in the software (by drivers) and a little in hardware; anyone can write a driver for A3D 1.0 and be happy with it, cos licence to A3D was let out to any body's use.

A3D 2.0 was done completely in hardware, not licensed yet to any body until this trouble with Creative, and because Creative does not let anyone make Aureal chips anymore, no card manufacturers can incorporate A3D 2.0 into their cards, because it is hardware based, but they can write a driver for A3D 1.0 and be happy with it.


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