Sound card

Sound Card is the device that lets you hear all those MP3 songs and sound effects from your games. This card plugs either into a PCI or ISA slot and converts information sent to it into audio signals that are eventually used to drive external speakers or headphones. Soundcards also feature additional connectors that let you interface external audio equipment like microphones, musical devices, joysticks etc. Newer soundcards also have more exotic features like four-channel support for surround sound, audio processing for simulating audio effects and generating soundstages like cinema, concert hall and arena effects.