Do I need to replace my sound card?

[Ahro]

Hi, I'm a serious CounterStrike player and I've been testing / looking into new sound equipment.
HELP ME.


- Have Astro A40s + Sound Blaster X-Fi Go! Pro USB sound card (the mobo sound is worthless)

The microphone cable seems to be breaking though, so I'll need a new mic or headset.


- Tested: Sennheiser G4me Zero Headset; the speaker output sounded completely horrible, likely because of too high impedance.

- Tested: AT 2020 USB condenser mic + mic stand + pop filter; wasn't worth the money in my case (sounds barely different from the Astros on TeamSpeak) and it felt like it was in my way.

- Testing: AntLion ModMic 4.0 attachable microphone; the mic quality is apparently worse than my Astros DESPITE the ModMic's price tag and flawless reviews.

Especially interesting to me is that the countless sound test videos for the ModMic on YouTube indicate a great sound which I'm not able to produce myself at all. I do not have an explanation for this.


ACTUAL QUESTIONS:

Do I need a stronger sound card? Do I not need a sound card, but a DAC? Would the sound card only affect the output, but not the mic quality? How much money do I *really* have to spend in my particular situation?

At this point I'm considering simply buying a new pair of Astros, not worrying about the sound card at all and moving on with my life. However, I'm a little bit bothered with this unsolved mystery.

TELL ME WHAT TO BUY THX.

 

[Tradesman1]

I'd start by changing the mic (cable anyway) if going bad can affect more

 

[Ahro]

I'd start by changing the mic (cable anyway) if going bad can affect more

Given the way that the Astro is built, replacing the mic cable is somewhere between impossible and not worth the effort for me. That is why I simply bought a ModMic. It would be great if you could tell me something about the effect of sound cards on audio equipment instead.

 

[Tradesman1]

When you have electric current running through it, it can affect anything attached to it

 

[Ahro]

When you have electric current running through it, it can affect anything attached to it

I'm actually amazed you made it to mod status.
Is my current sound card not sufficient to fully support the products that I've been testing to try to replace my microphone? Why? To what price level should I upgrade it in my case to not pay for overkill, aka what is a reasonable product I should be looking at? Are my concerns about buying a new sound card or amp not reasonable or should I absolutely try to spend equally much on both headset and sound card?
The forum's name is "tomsguide", not "tomsuselessrepliestoyourquestions". Maybe you should think about rebranding and start to openly advertise that even the mods on here only give vaguely condescending and moronic answers.
Thank you!

 

[Tradesman1]

Well, I already suggested changing the mic/cable - if indeed it's bad as you've indicated, then as explained, it will affect things that it is connected to, and might have damaged something. And if you don't like the ModMic (you don't appear to be happy with anything you've 'tried'), then it would be kind of useless to suggest getting a good sound card or device to match up with what we don't know. If a $40 USB sound stick is better than the onboard sound it would help to know what CPU/mobo or if a laptop what model (would guess a laptop if using a USB sound device, but you specifically mention a sound card) do you have the latest BIOS and mobo drivers?