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> Sound cards and network adaptors were an integral part of custom PC builds for years, but those eventually got swept away as motherboards improved and started
by mathgeek 2y ago
> Sound cards and network adaptors were an integral part of custom PC builds for years, but those eventually got swept away as motherboards improved and started to integrate those features.
If audio and network technology needed and were able to keep up with demand equal to what GPUs are, you’d see the same results. You need both the demand and the potential to be there at scale in order to drive that kind of advancement.
If we get to a world where high fidelity graphical demand is a niche, similar to audio, then I could see this argument having merit. I don’t expect that will happen in any way we could reliably predict in 2024.
- frou_dh 2y agoTalking of HiFi, playing the oft-mentioned streaming games running in a datacentre just kinda disgusts me on principle because it's a lossy video signal. I don't want to play modern games with visual artefacts on top - that's just barbaric.
- moogly 2y agoWell, anyone serious about computer audio today will be using an external DAC. eGPUs? We'll see... Maybe if they get hot enough.
- eep_social 2y agoLikewise anyone serious about network performance uses a discreet NIC. These days the hardware on a high end NIC can be used to offload anything from basic packet processing, encryption, or NAT, on up to DMA and of course costs as much as a mid range PC.