I didn't mean to suggest that the bug is not something to consider. I was trying to point out that depending on the DSP version you have, the bug can be a very minor issue and should not prevent somebody from considering a genuine Sound Blaster. Some DSP's are so susceptible to the hanging note bug, that they should never be used with a wavetable board or external midi modules. However, the most common variant of the bug and the most common DSP with the problem is so minor its not really worth spending loads of time or money to circumvent. The most common version of the bug is just the what the description says. A single hanging note. Its not some super loud, sound that causes ears to bleed, and almost every time it happens (if you can even notice it in the heat of gameplay), it self corrects when loading a new map or going to a new level in a game. It does not stick until a reboot. The worst version of the but does indeed do that. In fact it can stay running from a soft reset. You have to power down the rig and do a cold start to recover from that version of the bug.
But that bug only happens in a handful of games with a handful of Sound Blasters. While there is no complete list of games and cards that details all the bug variants, there are many posts on Vogons alone that give most of the info you need too either avoid it or minimize its effects in your rig. With all the info here and quite a few other sites, its really not a big issue and shouldn't consume your thoughts on a build.
Sound clarity is something all together different. All Creative Labs' cards are god awful sounding until you get to the AWE64 line of cards. Line noise, static, pops, hiss, and whatever else you can think of are pretty much in all of them. Creative frequently ignored specs of the off the shelf parts used in their cards, and used very low quality parts for all the glu logic. On top of that, their layouts were designed to cut costs so the used lots of very cheap parts instead of a few parts that would cost more. This just added more crap to the boards (ie extra resistors, diodes, caps, etc) and tons of extra long circuit traces, massive voltage and ground planes, which all added up to make the noisy boards you hear on and pre AWE64 card. By the time they started using quality parts, following specs and reducing board layout for better sound, they had stopped using Yamaha OPL's and started using their own CQM chips.
In the end, you shouldn't ignore Sound Blaster cards because a few models are prone to a somewhat minor bug. That bug can be avoided by getting the right cards or ignoring the games that can cause it. You should consider other cards if you want better quaily sound. But beware the offset by do so. You will find a number of games from the late 80's through the late 90's that wont work with a "Sound Blaster" compatible sound card because it lacks Creative's DSP. Having a genuine Sound Blaster avoids this issue.
When it comes to FM sound cards, and retro rigs, you will have to build up a collection of them if you want to play a large selection of games A) without trouble, and B) with the best possible sound.
P.S. please ignore typing and grammar errors as I'm using new tablet and having issues with the touch screen. I hate it.
