🚀 go-pugleaf

Roj <rojramsey@hotmail.com> wrote:

>>Is that the cheapest Santa Cruz you could find?  A Live! OEM can be
>>had for just $43 (http://www.cheapgamers.com/products/171.asp) - a
>>saving of $36.
>
>...and you get exactly what you pay for: cheap, badly designed junk.

I take your point that there are some flaws, particularly wrt to the
software.. but it seems to me you have an axe to grind with the Live!
due to a bad experience with the thing.  Let's not make the case one
sided eh?

>No other sound card 
>
>1)  requires a patch from the leading chipset manufacturer to get it
>to run properly (yes, Via owns 65% of the chipset market)

I don't think the Live! is the first piece of hardware to have
compatibility problems with Via chipsets.  Some Echo cards had similar
problems I believe when the Via boards where initially released.  Does
the patch fix it?

>2)  eats 30% of your bus bandwidth

I have yet to see any real documentation on this..

>3)  is prone to crackling incessantly on a variety of chipsets

Again.. not the first card to suffer this problem.  Do we have any
data to show this is substantially more likely with the Live! than
other problematic cards?

>4)  causes lockups with IDE transfers

?

>To this eclectic list you then have to add:
>
>5)  buggy drivers

Certainly not well programmed IMO.

>6)  poor sound in comparison to the competition 9easily verifiable by
>reviewers **AND** users alike)

It seems to me that Creative Labs have implemented a pretty steep and
low frq roll-off IN SOFTWARE for reasons I cannot explain.  This seems
to be the main problem with the card.  I intend to demonstrate that
the hardware is actually capable of better results.

>7)  a ripoff packaging scheme

I have never been particularly inspired by Creative Labs marketing
techniques.. yet people who complain about the packaging seem to
ignore the bundled software and accessories which is unfair.

>8)  interestingly misleading claims of 5.1 capability when in fact it
>is *faked* with software instead of being performed in hardware as is
>the case with those cards with the Cirrus Logic and Philips
>Thunderbird DSPs.

Do they say 5.1 is decoded in hardware?

I mean.. the Santa Cruz uses DLS software synthesis doesn't it?
(Correct me if I'm wrong).  If so.. do they make a big deal out of
that on the box?

>For the record, the problems with the Live! are extremely well
>documented on the ViaHardware support forums (both old and new),
>various other newsgroups including the Asus and AMD overclockers
>forums and a variety of other sources scattered across the Internet
>for any enterprising user with half a brain and semi-competent search
>engine to find.
>
>Give it a rest - you've got nowhere to go.

I am not saying the Live! is all things to all men.. I am just
staggered at the bashing the card receives and over the past couple of
three days have tried to establish what the issues are.  I haven't
finished yet :-)

>Oh, and one more thing: not to defend him but deliberately defacing
>someone's name is just simply **rude**.  If you have an argument with
>Arny at least take him to task with dignity.

Dignity?  With Mr Shit?  You don't seem to be aware what a deceptive,
spamming, technically incompetent asshole he is.  IMO he deserves all
the contempt he routinely receives from a wide variety of leading
audio industry professionals and end-users alike.


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