Linux doesn't have to be a silent workhorse. Leigh Dyer examines the state of sound support in Linux

A welcome update to the Sound Blaster that can deliver perceptibly better audio than onboard chips, but it goes beyond most people’s needs for PC audio.

A fully digital multitrack audio production suite for under $2,500

Surround sound is an important part of DVD movies and the uptake of full surround sound in computer games is increasing. Most soundcards and even integrated sound systems on a motherboard have support for 5.1 surround sound audio, and yet many systems are used with 2.1 speaker systems or with stereo headphones.

MP3 with full Environmental Audio support is only part of what this card can offer. Gamers will find this card supports most of the popular standards including DirectSound 3D, EAX 1.0 and above, A3D 1.0 (in software) and Sound Blaster.

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Think of sound cards and chances are you're probably thinking of Creative. Thanks to its phenomenally successful Sound Blaster line of cards, Creative is easily the leader of consumer PC audio. The Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Platinum Ex is the latest in this range, and is by far the most feature rich. The question is do you need most of these features?

The original Audigy brought ASIO drivers, SB1394 (IEEE 1394) and EAX Advanced HD to the masses, but it was criticised because some people felt betrayed by the 24-bit 96kHz specification, which referred to the DACs rather than the sampling rate.

In many respects, sound hardware is a luxury. However, if we are to build a general-purpose multimedia system, then a sound card and speakers are essential. On the processing front, weve chosen

Surround-sound support and mastering-quality plug-ins mean Sound Forge is better than ever.

A comprehensive set of audio-editing tools, but not enough to justify the high price.

Surround-sound support and mastering-quality plug-ins mean Sound Forge is better than ever.

Creative has enjoyed a long reign as the driving force in consumer-grade PC audio for the better part of a decade.

The Creative Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1 is the latest sound card from Creative Labs, the company that has dominated the consumer-level computer audio card market for most of the last decade.

Well, the fact that the speakers reproduced sound from the iPod at all has to count for something.

Leading the push for more surround sound, Videologic has released the ZXR-750 7.1 speaker system -- that's 8 speakers in total. The package consists of a centre, two front, two side and two back speakers, rated 8W RMS each with removable speaker stands and wall mounting brackets, and a sub rated 28W RMS.

Where's the #@$%? Device Manager in Windows Vista? Steve Polak exlains how to find all the system settings you know from Windows XP, in the sometimes confusing Vista interface.

If you are serious about getting great sound from your computer - and putting sound into your computer - you need to make sure you are packing the right hardware to do the job.You can now buy any numb

Better sound for your laptop from Creative, plus the little white lies about its heritage exposed.