StarTech.com 7.1 USB - External Sound Card for Laptop with SPDIF Digital Audio - Sound Card for PC - Silver (ICUSBAUDIO7D)

Having purchased an internal sound card recently from somewhere else, I was a little concerned that this would work properly. I wanted to connect my Desktop PC to a 7.1 HT System using the TOSLINK and the sound card only supported 2 channels via this connector.However, this USB Sound Card works a dream.I initially plugged it into a Windows 7 based Laptop and it installed everything first time. A reboot was required and I was quickly able to play some music & films using the full 7.1 surround sound.The next task was to check out this sound card with my desktop PC which has Windows XP. This initially installed the Windows drivers for a USB Sound Card which didn't support 7.1 channels on the TOSLINK. Once I realised that this was the issue I ran the installation program on the supplied CD ROM and the correct drivers are now installed and it works just fine. Page 4 of the manual identifies the chipset used (C-Media CM6206) in case you have a problem finding the driver.Again I can play music & films and all the channels are used.I have briefly tested the other output sockets (headphone & surround outputs) and these all appear to be working. I have yet to use the two microphone sockets to see how good they are at capturing stereo sound.The LED on the device is useful. It flashes slowly when sound is being received, which is a good indicator if you are having configuration problems. The volume & mute controls work too.As for the quality, I've had no problem with this on the TOSLINK output. I no longer have a surround sound that would use the 3.5mm sockets, but may use it if at a friend's home, so I can't comment on their performance at this stage.Overall I am very happy with this product. It has done just what I wanted and works well. It definitely works with both Windows XP & 7.

Good overall, but unfortunately, I couldn’t get it to work with the digital output connected to PC. Although using the USB output to PC worked with no problems

I needed this as the onboard sound chip on my motherboard stopped working. It's a little annoying to have to use an external device, but once it's sat on top of the PC case, I soon forgot that it exists. As usual with soundcards, the software for controlling it is not particularly great. You do need to install this though, as you can significantly alter how bassy/tinny etc (bass/treble) it sounds. I suspect some reviews complaining about sound quality have not chosen the right speaker profile and messed with the equalizer. I haven't noticed any lag in the audio, or any weird artifacting in the sound output, so it's doing its job fine and has been for 2 months.It works fine in Linux as well as in Windows, too.

Just okay - feels flimsy and sound is meh. My Creative USB sound card stick for £20 sound better and IS better for my Buttkicker

I have a Dell XP laptop, but the internal sound card is far from satisfactory. A recording is poor, with a background hum and a "metallic" sound, even when the noise-cancelling utility provided by Dell, is working. Dell laptops are not renowned for their audio cards and when I looked for a solution to this problem, I came across the StarTech USB adapter listed as a Dell accessory! It was an obvious purchase.I just plugged it in and it was recognised straight away. I used Free Audio Editor to record from my microphone, connected via the adapter. It works well, though sometimes I have to go to the Microsoft Sounds and Audio devices to ensure that the StarTech is selected as it invariably defaults to the laptop built-in 50p microphone.The recordings made this way are infinitely better than via the laptop sound card. If I feel really "picky", I can detect some interference-type noise at a very low level. It is possible that this comes from the Startech as I believe that low-noise amplification is a highly technical subject requiring expensive components. But it is just as likely to come from the electronics in the laptop itself.For most purposes it would not be noticed, but to obtain absolute silence between sentences, I eliminate it by using a noise-reduction utility like Audacity.I tried using it with conventional headphones at the same time. I found that it didn't work well and it got quite hot, so I assume that it is only intended for low output in-ear phones. I don't need the headphone facility, so it doesn't bother me. If I want better output sound than the in-built speakers, I use a Logitech laptop USB speaker - but that's another story.

This is a piece of junk that doesn't do what it's promised: 5.1/7.1. I got a new PC and didn't want to install an internal audio card to drive a surround set of analog speakers. This item was supposed to offer a 5.1 solution for that.- way to quiet even at max settings (sound attenuation)- only front left and right speakers working (no centre, no sub, no surround/rear)- very cheap, plastic, construction (the jacks don't have a secure fitting)- very cheap software with basic/gimmick options- the software has a different name showing in Apps and in the installed programsDon't waste your money.