if you are a competition player, you gonna need good settings, just by making it equal because almost evry match player got a soundcard like this.
If you have just onboard sound with 32 channels instead of an xfi sound card with 128 channels its hard to beat them on maps like pipeline and mout mckenna. On maps like this sound is the basic for a decent gameplay. It has nothing to do with skill, because its hard to attack if you are on attacking side and you have no clue were the enemy is, atleast the direction.
To be honest, i think lots of players are shit without sound because it just helps them alot about knowing were you enemy is.
Good post. Don't blame the players, blame the game. AA's sounds and gameplay are the only reasons these tweaks are possible to gain an advantage. If you're a competitive player you have no choice but to use sound tweaks with a sound card if you want to have a chance, that's just the way it is. It shouldn't be that way, but it is.