USB Audio Follow Up

Simon (UK ass kicker) King

Well, I’ve had so much response from the USB audio article I’ve decided to write a kind of ‘follow up’, because a few people made some good points.

First of all was the point made that PII processors are so powerful now that a few clock cycles to run a softsynth and poll info out to a USB speaker is nothing too overwhelming. I agree, on a PII 400 a softsynth isn’t going to make too much impact, but what I’m saying is why should it have to make any impact at all? There is currently very little market out there for USB speakers, as people buying a PC should already have at least 16-bit sound on board – so why would they buy them? People who are ‘just-one-extra-fps’ gaming nuts aren’t going to buy them, so as far as I can see, the only market is the corporates, but…

A gentleman named Mark Szabo picked up on a point that I had missed, and to be honest, froze me to the marrow. Imagine, if you will, the latest budget PC – you know with the Intel ‘Celery’ processor – where the price is low but so are the specs. Instead of putting cheapo speakers and motherboard integrated sound, how’s about cheapo USB speakers WITH THE SYSTEM??

I really don’t like USB audio. I like things to be done in hardware. That’s why I have a 2d accelerator, a 3d accelerator, and a hardware MIDI synth. And no, I’m not an ‘fps-obsessed-bloke’ – I doubt a K6-200 with voodoo1 classes me as a hardcore gamer either. My main hope is that motherboard based sound remains cheaper to implement than USB speakers for the system builders. As soon as USB is cheaper, you’ll see the latest ‘Entry Level’ PC touting USB speakers as one of it’s ‘features’, and god help us all.

Now to the USB crowd who are pushing USB as the way forward for small peripheral expansion – let’s look at situation somewhere down the line – say 6-8 months. You’ve got a PC with a USB keyboard, joystick, speakers, and modem. 4 devices on the USB chain. And you’re playing Unreal on the Net. How’s this going to sound? TERRIBLE!! You’ll have choppy and glitchy audio as these four devices fight for bandwidth on USB. I don’t know the bandwidth of USB, but I have it on a very reliable (but naturally unrevealable) source that USB cannot handle a task such as the one stated.

Like I said in my main article – USB speakers smack of a product created because the technology exists. Don’t get me wrong – I have USB ports on my computer, and the scanner that I’m getting for christmas will be USB – but my audio devices are staying inside the case for the forseeable future.

Just in closing, I’d like to say a big thank you for all the mail I received about the original article, which has prompted me to write this little follow up. Thanks all!

Simon (UK ass Kicker) King

As always... Questions, Comments, Flames are appreciated.

Editorial 4
August 23, 98

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