so i want to add surround sound speakers on my movie pc and want to know what people recommend for a good 5.1 sound card/speaker setup i was looking at creative cards and logitech speakers but willing to hear what people use right now i have onboard sound so anything is an upgrade heres the setup

amd athlon 64 4000(3ghz)
3gb corsair ddr 400 mem
geforce 8500gt 256mb pci-e
windows xp pro sp2 32 bit
etc etc

BTW i dont want to spend more then $150 or so on speakers i know its not much but im sure theres a decent set out there as for the sound card im thinking around $100 or less

I gave up on Creative a little while ago. Maybe their support has improved?

Regardless, take a look at the Auzentech cards. My XPlosion paired with some Bose headphones is just fantastic.

Yup, the XPlosion Cinema is around $100 and has LM4562 op-amp on the front L/R and JRC 5532 for the remaining channels... these are upgradable, so you could switch the 3 JRCs for LM4562s which you might be able to get for free from National Semiconductor...

hardnrg, what do you recommend for a budget soundcard, just a upgrade from onboard $100 is a lil high

I am in the process of building a new computer and stumbled across this soundcard for 79.99 HT Omega Striker . I purchased one and wont really be able to provide any real feedback until Wednesday, but, the reviews on Newegg seem to be fairly good.

I'm the wrong person to ask for budget audio gear lol

For movies and such you cant go wrong with the Asus Xonar, a little pricey though but their top notch.