DIAMOND XtremeSound XS71DDL 7.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface Sound Card

Pros: This product is up to par for its price. Manay people mention problems with the driver compatability. I didnt even bother with the in box cd and went straight to the iamond website to download and update drivers. I had my 7.1 surround up and running in 5 minutes.

Cons: Sound isnt the best of the best however for the price it exceeds my expectations. I use my computer for gamming and not video or music editing, so if you have simmilar interests this is a great upgrade from most onboard audio devices.

Other Thoughts: The interface of the driver software from the diamond website doesnt look the most professional and could use some tweaking but I am a picky consumer. Overall a great card for the budget

Pros: It arrived on time

Cons: It didn't work

Other Thoughts: Tried every combination of drivers I could find, uninstalling, reinstalling, restarting, safe mode, etc under Win 7 x64. I got the analog outputs working just fine but never the optical SPDIF out, which is the reason I purchased it in the first place. It's probably some conflict with something on my PC but I've lost patience trying to find it. This is the first time I've ever given up on something like this, and I've been tinkering with this stuff a long time.

Pros: works

Cons: Unclear Instructions

Other Thoughts: I am still unable to get surround sound in games? Anyone have instructions on how to use SPDIF optical out cable to plug into 5.1 home theatre? On the control panel for the sound card, there are 3 options for SPDIF includinng DDL? Which one is for the games? I tried DDL, no sound in my pro evolution soccer. Does surround sound work on all games or only some games? Also my keyboard mute doesnt work.

Pros: Works Great with my Logitech Z-2300 Speaker Set. If your interested in this card DISREGARD the Negative Reviews!!!!. This card works as stated in XP, Vista, & Win 7 all 64 Bit. DO NOT USE THE INCLUDED DRIVER DISK!!!!! Either go to Diamond Web Site and download there Ver. 4.0 Driver, or preferably go to C-MEDIA and get the (CM 18768+) Ver. 8.17.38 for XP and Vista. Windows will automatically install it into the 64 Bit Program Files. For Win 7 get the Ver. 8.17.40 Driver. Also if your confused as to this being a 16 or 24 Bit Card, IT IS 24 BIT!!!

Cons: None - It is what it's stated to be.

Other Thoughts: FYI, The Diamond Driver on their web site Ver. 4.0 is the CM Ver. 8.17.33. The Difference is only the look of the control panel and the 8.17.33 is older. It's evident the Guy's knocking this card, have NO CLUE as to the proper procedure to uninstall and reinstall Hardware Drivers. I use the exact same Driver for this card as I do for my $90.00 HT O$%&*. LOL. If it has the features you're wanting, BUY IT.

Pros: It fits inside of my computer.

It emits noise.

Cons: 1. Drivers that ship with this product are from 2005. TWO THOUSAND AND FIVE!!!! (DOUBLE YOU TEE EFF)

2. Picks up large amounts of interference from hard drives.

3. For some reason doesn't like playing the sound associated with AVI files... but my onboard sound does just fine!

Other Thoughts: Meh, I think I found new drivers... we shall see if this improves this things performance. If not, back in the box, and someone else can have it.

Pros: This product really does sound great. I've tried Cre***** products in the past and they had buzzes and noises. This one is just pure sound. Easy to set up and works flawlessly.

Cons: Wish the software had more consumer available settings to customize the sound

Pros: Excellent audio quality, perfect for gaming and hobby sound editing. Do not regret buying the card 5 years ago. Software extras are pretty good, too.

Cons: Occasional static and noise, but I think this was more a driver incompatibility between it and Windows 7 (Old drivers, though). However, every worked as expected 95% of the time. This card also died, however, after 5 years and the way I treat my computer, I'm surprised it lasted so long.

Other Thoughts: A great intro-level card. Their drivers have recently been updated (as far as I know) and the new ones do function with Windows 7. Get this over a creative soundcard that would cost you three times as much!

Pros: Output seems to be a lot more balanced than my on board sound. Install was relatively simple. Included software gets the job done. I get sound from all speakers in Flash videos now. TOSLINK input is definitely a plus. Getting some of the amenities of a more expensive card for this price

Cons: Playback in some videos has been faster and higher pitched (Chipmunks-esque). Line-in volume is lower than I would like. My PC has Blue-screened a couple times since I've installed the card. I realized after I bought it that I wanted front panel headphone and mic.

Other Thoughts: I'll fiddle with it for a bit and see if I can work out some of the issues. The blue-screen situation brought it from a 4 to a 3 for me, honestly.

Pros: Nothing.

Cons: Everything, Absolutely Everything. The CD doesn't work. The drivers for Vista on the website DO NOT work. The C-media 8768+ Drivers DO NOT work. I bought this for Surround, Not 2-channel Audio. I Will never invest in this company again. I'll stick to Creative, Never had a problem with Creative.

Other Thoughts: Just Ship It Back... Or Better Yet... Don't Buy It...

Pros: Gets the job done.

Cons: Drivers are absolutely horrid. The drivers would cause my system to fail and thus, reboot repeatedly. I tried the the disk that came with it, the drivers on the website, even C-Media as others have suggested and the thing kept crashing until I removed the drivers completely from my system.