QUOTE (2012 @ Dec 12 2012, 16:59) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (Cromulent @ Dec 12 2012, 17:59) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
but everyone seems to rave about the difference between on board and a dedicated sound card.
In the subject of quality audio output perceptual by the human ear, I would say almost no one who knows what he/she is talking about said this. Not in the last decade anyway.
Back to your original question. Some of us believe that the resampling algorithm used by dmix (by default) produces a quality loss that is perceptual by the human ear. This information and a proposed solution is conveniently available in the ArchWiki:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Advanc...lity_resampling
Thank you everyone for the information. I just wanted to know if there were any settings that I had missed.
As for the sound card thing I'm glad to hear that it is not essential. Saves me some cash.