Main > Main Forum

Integrated vs Card - Sounds Cards

Pages: << < (3/6) > >>

Taborious:

I'm not worried about the sound quailty per say, we're talking about emulation so even a cheap sound card will be fine. I'm not playing DVDs and looking for THX sound or something. I'm more concerned about how much it steals from the CPU to process sound. I'm looking to get as many cycles dedicated to MAME for CHD games so they are playable. So I need to squeeze as much out of the CPU as I can. I though that moving the cycles away from the onboard sound might help...


beek:


--- Quote from: Taborious on July 29, 2005, 07:34:01 pm ---I'm not worried about the sound quailty per say, we're talking about emulation so even a cheap sound card will be fine. I'm not playing DVDs and looking for THX sound or something. I'm more concerned about how much it steals from the CPU to process sound. I'm looking to get as many cycles dedicated to MAME for CHD games so they are playable. So I need to squeeze as much out of the CPU as I can. I though that moving the cycles away from the onboard sound might help...


--- End quote ---

For the lowest cpu cycles either use an add-on pci card or a motherboard with soundstorm as it is built into the southbridge and is not a codec like other motherboards with built-in sound. 

Even a newer AC-97 codec will steal 15% from the cpu......

AlanS17:


--- Quote from: beek on July 29, 2005, 09:36:17 pm ---Even a newer AC-97 codec will steal 15% from the cpu......

--- End quote ---
Can you back that up? That's a bold statement when you do the math. If 15% of a 2.8GHz processor is being tied up, you're saying it would take the full strength of a new computer built just a few years ago just to power the sound in Windows and nothing else? That's hard to swallow.

elvis:

Changing soundcards won't do bugger all to improve your system preformance.  You might see 1-2% if you're lucky, but in the longrun it matters squat.

MAME always has and always will be CPU limited.  If you need more speed then either upgrade, or try some overclocking.  The system I'm typing this from now is an AthlonXP 2600+ (1.9GHz) overclocked to around 3200+ speeds (2.2GHz).  I'm seeing a temperature difference of about +3 degrees, and no system instability.  Not bad  - a 15% speed boost for $0 outlay.

My dedicated cabinet system runs an AthlonXP 1800+ and an old via KT266 board.  I got the CPU for free from a client's upgrade, and the board was left over from a system upgrade some time back.  I know the general concencus here is to run emulators on stupidly low-end hardware (people are forever asking if their Pentium 133 is enough) but honestly, with 1-2GHz CPUs costing spare change these days (and compare that to how much we all spend on tools, timber, monitors, ArcadeVGA cards, buttons etc) why not spend a few bucks and upgrade?


SOAPboy:


--- Quote from: beek on July 29, 2005, 09:36:17 pm ---
--- Quote from: Taborious on July 29, 2005, 07:34:01 pm ---I'm not worried about the sound quailty per say, we're talking about emulation so even a cheap sound card will be fine. I'm not playing DVDs and looking for THX sound or something. I'm more concerned about how much it steals from the CPU to process sound. I'm looking to get as many cycles dedicated to MAME for CHD games so they are playable. So I need to squeeze as much out of the CPU as I can. I though that moving the cycles away from the onboard sound might help...


--- End quote ---

For the lowest cpu cycles either use an add-on pci card or a motherboard with soundstorm as it is built into the southbridge and is not a codec like other motherboards with built-in sound.
--- End quote ---


Pages: << < (3/6) > >>

Go to full version