The Live! 24 is only 1 fps slower overall in this game, both with 16 and 32 sound channels utilized. Not surprising, since this game doesn't rely on EAX but instead on the basic DirectSound and DirectSound3D. With 1 fps difference from around 90 fps, the difference is hardly noticeable.
Unlike F1 Career Challenge, Nascar 2003 behaves differently. The Live! 24 bit is 10 percent faster here compared to Sonata without EAX, more if you compare it to ALC 850. With EAX, the Live! 24 bit drops slightly in performance to around the levels of Sonata without EAX, but the Sonata and ALC 850 also drops some frames. In the end, the Live! 24 bit is hands down noticeably faster in this game.
This game basically sounds and plays the same on ALC850, Sonata and Live! 24 bit. The Live! 24 bit is faster, but only by 1 fps, hardly noticeable. So, out of three games using DirectSound we tested, only Nascar 2003 is noticeably faster.
Conclusion:
It's not surprising that Creative's Live! 24 bit offer better support for EAX than ALC850 and Sonata by default. It is surprising that the performance difference can vary so much between hardly any to very noticeable, even significant. This performance difference alone is good news, but combined with great audio support and extra features, the Live! 24 bit should be considered the minimal sound solution for any serious gamer.Several weeks ago, Creative announced that the Live! 24 chip will be used by more manufacturers. This is good news for gamers, since they don't have to settle for slightly slower, less featured audio solutions anymore. Gamers looking for motherboards should really consider buying a motherboard equipped with Live! 24 bit, unless they're already have a Creative Live! or Audigy sound card / peripherals.
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