I thought you guys might have an answer to this one.

I purchased a sound card (Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer) refurbished, and it arrived without the full size bracket. The half size was there, but does me no good. The old sound card I was using has a different jack layout, and won't work for the new card. Unfortunately, I waited for months before opening the package, so am unable to return it (I was moving when I ordered it and misplaced it until now).

Is there some place I can purchase a bracket that will work for this card at a reasonable price? Right now, it looks like buying a broken copy of this card just for the full bracket on ebay might be the cheapest option...

Try calling their customer service? Might work.

I'd just remove the bracket entirely and not even bother, myself. The slots are usually sturdy enough to keep it in place.

I've sent another email to their customer service. The first email was responded with "try finding one at a local computer shop." Not super helpful.

CM: I read that there was some risk involved if the slots weren't sturdy enough to keep it in place, especially if it should come out while the computer is turned on. Is this correct?

You should be able to fabricate one without too much difficulty.

When I get home I'm going to test what happens if a PCI card comes out of it's bracket while operational, and in use.
Should be fun!

Well it certainly wouldn't be good, but you can tell easily if it's going to fall out before you even turn it on. Most slots are sturdy enough to hold onto even heavy video cards with a vice-like grip.

I ran a sound card without it's bracket for a few years in my old system. It wasn't sturdy enough to plug any speaker cables into it without holding on to it, but it stayed in on it's own with no problems.

I'll see if I can rig up an altered bracket myself and then try just having the slot support it.

Thanks for your input, everyone!