Snaps, crackles & pops through speakers...

[NightCrawler]

What model number is your XPS? I'll try to look it up for you. Also did that SB Audigy come stock with your PC?

[firefly2442]

Here's the one I got, I'm sure there are newer ones now though:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829118109

I'm sure I probably lost some features that aren't on the card but I don't need anything fancy really.

[Kyle_K_ski]

firefly, thanks for passing on that link to me!

Nightcrawler, I wiggled my way between the backside of my computer and the wall, and wrote the following down. I hope it's useful. And thank you for your offer to assist!

Dell Dimension XPS

Model No.: WHL

Mfg. Date: 052803

v: 115/230

A: 6.0/3.0A

Hz: 50/60

V~ 1C Class B 1CeS-003 *

FCC Class: B

Ref. No.: 03053 **

*Not sure if it's the number "1" or the capital letter "I."

**Not sure if the FIRST "3" is really a three due to part of it being scratched off.

And I'm pretty sure that the Sound Blaster Audigy 2 was a "standard" option. I'm confident that it was an middle-upgrade from what came with the system by default, and there was another, even more expensive option offered to me, which I obviously passed on.

Thanks again!

Edited December 23, 2010 by Kyle_K_ski

[NightCrawler]

Not much help WHL must refer to Intel-Pentium.

I was actually hunting or hoping for something like XPS 600 or Dell Inspiron to let me know what documentation to look for so I can find info about your motherboard and what it's capable of.

Though I did some searching around and came across this at Dell, it may have info for you.

http://support.dell....en/ug/index.htm

You need to find out if it's a standard PCI slot that the sound card is in now and I'm almost positive it is. But before you purchase anything you should always make sure. If it is a standard PCI slot you will be able to use both of the Turtle Beach sound cards.

Edited December 23, 2010 by NightCrawler

[wombat50]

Found this diagram showing differing voltage types and slots for PCI cards.

The source is this article.

[NightCrawler]

Thanks Wombat that's good info.

There you go Kyle, now just open that case and match the slot and we'll know what card to steer you toward.

[Kyle_K_ski]

Thanks again guys. The illustrations are useful, but...

I'd like to have a multiple opinions on whether or not I'm interpreting the PCI Keying graphic properly.

I'm pretty sure that the Sound Blaster Audigy 2 has a 3.3V and 5V 32-bit PCI card.

I've posted below images of my card, along with the PCI Keying graphic. Please let me know what you think.

PCI Keying Graphic

Sound Blaster Audigy 2 topside

Sound Blaster Audigy 2 bottomside

*See post #38 for an image of the PCI slots inside the tower.

Again, I'm very grateful for your help.

Edited December 25, 2010 by Kyle_K_ski

[wombat50]

Agreed, what your holding looks like a 3.3V and 5V 32-bit PCI card.

[Kyle_K_ski]

The Riviera is a 5V-only card. But my PCI design allows for 3.3V as well as 5V, so there shouldn't be any issues, right?

[wombat50]

Checked Newegg and they don't offer technical advice on their products.

You might ask Turtle Beach Support your question.

http://www.turtlebeach.com/support/index.php?View=contact

It depends mostly on what type of PCI slot is on your motherboard.

You either have a 3.3v 32bit PCI slot or

the 5v type.

At the very least the retailer should have a decent pic of the pin configuration so you can identify if it will match your slot.

Turtle Beach has some cards that are 5v only and if you have 3.3v slot that would not work.

Turtle Beach's overview of their Montego card says:

The Montego DDL is designed for PCI 2.1 slots (5 volt only, not compatible with 3.3V).

So in this case you would need a 5v slot.

Merry Christmas!

[Kyle_K_ski]

Thanks again wombat.

I've contacted Turtle Beach, directing them to this thread. Hopefully I'll have an answer soon.

And Merry Christmas to you as well!

[Buehgler_AS]

I agree, the card shown in the picture is a universal card (one that will use either 3.3v OR 5v). Unfortunately that really does not help us point you to a new card. What we need to see is a picture of the PCI slot that card came out of. It will have a plastic bridge across it, and what matters is if that bridge is near the back or front of the slot, indicating a 3.3v slot or a 5v slot respectively.

[Kyle_K_ski]

Buehgler_AS,

Thanks for the tip. After the kids went to bed, I cracked open my tower, and removed every PCI-related product that I could so that I could hopefully get a pretty good photograph of them. Here's the image of the PCI slots...

I posted a high resolution image of it so that scrutinizing it is easier.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but if I'm not mistaken, the three PCI slots that are on display are 5V ones. Yes?

If so, that's very good news indeed.

Let me know what you think.

And once again, Merry Christmas and lots of thanks for the help!

[wombat50]

Yes a 5v 32bit PCI slot.

Hope a new card does the trick.

Cheers

[Kyle_K_ski]

I can't express how relieved and grateful I am that I finally know what kind of sound card I can get.

But I'm nervous about buying a new one, as I've yet to find a manufacturer who has completely eliminated the problem. Still, Turtle Beach is getting my money.

I've read some pretty bizarre things in the past couple of weeks as a result of finally trying to address this problem.

At one point, I was contemplating just buying a set of Turtle Beach's 5.1 surround sound headphones My link but it was disturbing that nearly a third of those who've tried the product had pretty lousy experiences with them. It's pretty clear, that the headphones are an excellent product if you get a set that's well built from the factory. But what a crap shoot! Now odds are in one's favor when a set is bought, but so many of those who got crappy ones said that customer support was lousy, so that's a strong disincentive for me to try them. I tried a set of surround sound headphones years ago, My link and they worked well for two weeks, and then the sound would start cutting out on the left side due to an inexplicable internal disconnect. One had to have those headphones on just the right angle to get the sound to work again. I sent them back to the seller (not Amazon.com) who, after waiting several weeks, shipped me a new pair with the shipping cost being almost half the purchase price, and after that set failed me, I just tossed them.

I don't want to go through that loss of time and money again, that's for sure.

I'm going to order me Riviera, and once installed, I'll let you know how it went. Hopefully, VERY well.

Well, I hope you all had a Merry Christmas. We certainly had a great time with the family, which is far more important to me than presents.

Now the count down to New Year's!

Edited December 26, 2010 by Kyle_K_ski

[Buehgler_AS]

Glad we could help.

Personally, I have a Sennheiser headset (PC-151), That I have been using for something like ~6 years now, and they just work. I have had them connected to a few built in sound cards/chips and a Creative card over the years. I would not call it a studio grade experience, but it works for everything I care about.

My one last bit of advice/suggestion for you is that you be careful about the routing of power cables and sound cables in your box. I know you are stuck with what Dell built and gave you, but if you have any options to separate the two it may help mitigate noises in the future.