Do I need a sound card?

[whatdasheet]

So I'm currently in the process of ordering components for my first build, and I'm curious if i'll need a sound card now or maybe down the road? I know it helps take some of the work of the CPU, but with what I'm getting I'm not sure if I'll even benefit that much for it unless I am trying to get 7.1 surround sound when I play.

CPU: i7 4770k
GPU: MSI 780TI Twin Frozr

 

[stickg1]

Motherboards come with decent sound these days. It's not audiophile quality though. What motherboard do you have and what sort of speaker/headset setup do you have?

 

[JoakimL]

No, you dont need a separate soundcard. The built in one on your motherboard is good enough.

 

[chris987]

current cpu like yours are so powerful that even the audio is dealt with the cpu it wont result in any drawback. that would apply 10 years ago or more. buying a dedicated audio card just for playing games will be a waste of money.

 

[Scampi]

To make full use of a sound card you really need a good headset or pair of speakers, so that is a consideration.

As this is your first build, perhaps using the motherboards onboard audio, try that out & see how you like it. Then when or if you upgrade to a sound card to try it, you will have a good idea of how the sound has improved or not, from your initial audio experience. If you take this route, ensure you use a full sized ATX motherboard, so you have the space with additional PCI slots to add a sound card later on.

If your budget is healthy, which i'm assuming it is from your CPU & GPU, you could take the step into them. Here's a rough guide:

Budget: Asus Xonar DG. Good first step into sound cards & upgrade from onboard audio.

Mid range: Creative Sound Blaster Z. For those who want more over a budget card & don't want to pay more.

High range: Asus ST/STX or Creative Sound Blaster Z Series ZXR. Audiophile's that have the headphones/speakers to back them up & the wallet.