Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Computer Audio › Xonar Essence STX: Sneak Peek!
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Xonar Essence STX: Sneak Peek! - Page 33

post #481 of 2057
1/27/09 at 8:27pm
2 days and still can't download the driver. WTF
Reply
post #482 of 2057
1/27/09 at 8:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ADD View Post
I saw that photo about a week ago and just assumed it said 5381. Now you've looked at it and think it says 5361. Now I look at it again and I have no idea!
This pic shows the ADC to be the 5381. Firingsquad's STX looks to be the retail version and not an engineering sample like what Hardware Canucks had. I'll try to remember to confirm the ADC on my STX when I get home from work tonight.

@Taso89, FWIW I'm using an LT1361 and found it to provide a noticeable improvement to overall clarity, soundstage depth and dynamics over the LM4562. I tried an LT1364 as well. IIRC it improved the bass and mids but didn't do much else so I went back to the LT1361.

I too am curious as to what if any sound improvement might be gained by swapping out the other 2 opamps, and what opamps would be good replacements for the 2 2114's. Anybody have any suggestions? I think I'll order 2 more LT1361's for the other sockets in the next few days, and maybe another LT1364 and LME49860 (I already have one of each) to do comparisons.

And for those interested in an external power supply for the STX's molex, Coolerguys sells a 24W power brick that might work well. Can't confirm if it's a linear power supply or not tho since my knowledge of them is somewhat limited.
Reply
post #483 of 2057
1/27/09 at 9:25pm
Well, I took a close look at the card, and I'm positive that the 4562 is driving the left and right RCA outputs, and in that application it's a very good choice. The 2114's are a little more obscure: almost all it's connections are running under the chip. My guess is that they are the I to V and anti-aliasing filters for the D to A. The use of the 2114's is baffling here; if I am correct, Burr Brown 2134's would be a much better choice here.
Reply
post #484 of 2057
1/27/09 at 9:40pm
so what is driving the headphone out?
Reply
post #485 of 2057
1/27/09 at 9:40pm
Hi

I used this card with my pioneer hdj1000 and I was very impressed with the sound quality it produced. Sad thing was that my hdj1000s broke recently. so I decided to buy a new pair of cans. After I read the reviews and comments on hd650 I decided to buy them.

Will the hd650 sound ok on this card? or is it likely that I will need an external amp?
Reply
post #486 of 2057
1/27/09 at 9:46pm
Please keep us posted on your findings. I remember you saying you tried th 1364 originally but were kinda impressed / but saw that some peopple might prefer thee 4562 too. It seems now the 1361 is a clear upgrade?

If so, I'll wait and see if it's any good for the other two sockets so I can order 3 instead of 1

Quote:
Originally Posted by Alydon View Post
This pic shows the ADC to be the 5381. Firingsquad's STX looks to be the retail version and not an engineering sample like what Hardware Canucks had. I'll try to remember to confirm the ADC on my STX when I get home from work tonight.

@Taso89, FWIW I'm using an LT1361 and found it to provide a noticeable improvement to overall clarity, soundstage depth and dynamics over the LM4562. I tried an LT1364 as well. IIRC it improved the bass and mids but didn't do much else so I went back to the LT1361.

I too am curious as to what if any sound improvement might be gained by swapping out the other 2 opamps, and what opamps would be good replacements for the 2 2114's. Anybody have any suggestions? I think I'll order 2 more LT1361's for the other sockets in the next few days, and maybe another LT1364 and LME49860 (I already have one of each) to do comparisons.

And for those interested in an external power supply for the STX's molex, Coolerguys sells a 24W power brick that might work well. Can't confirm if it's a linear power supply or not tho since my knowledge of them is somewhat limited.
Reply
post #487 of 2057
1/28/09 at 7:16am
Is there an online shop selling the LT1361?
Reply
post #488 of 2057
1/28/09 at 8:50am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bojamijams View Post
Please keep us posted on your findings. I remember you saying you tried th 1364 originally but were kinda impressed / but saw that some peopple might prefer thee 4562 too. It seems now the 1361 is a clear upgrade?

If so, I'll wait and see if it's any good for the other two sockets so I can order 3 instead of 1
Yes, the 1361 is an improvement over the 1364 IMO. They both shared the same bass improvement and soundstage depth increase over the LM4562, but the 1364 doesn't really help out the highs that much. The 1361 however does.

@ADD, I double-checked my STX and it does indeed have the 5381 ADC.

@d(((--)))b, the 650's should sound fine with this card. The STX should drive them no problem.

@riderforever, you can buy the LT1361 online from Digikey here.
Reply
post #489 of 2057
1/28/09 at 8:55am
Hi everyone,

First post in the forum but have been lurking for a fair few months!

I'm extremely interested in this product but i have one question that i need answering before I take the plunge.

I'm currently using a creative X-FI Platinum on my PC, although i mainly use it for 2 channel music (this is my priority) I also dabble in music creation, most notably using guitar rig 3, pluging my guitar directly into the front panel.

I was just wondering if i will suffer any latency issues moving to this card? will asio be effected in anyway and can i continue to use my guitar in this way?

Obviously the line in at the back is a 1/4 jack, which is the same as a standard guitar lead.

I've had a good read about but i can't seem to find anything related.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

Adam
Reply
post #490 of 2057
1/28/09 at 1:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alydon View Post
Yes, the 1361 is an improvement over the 1364 IMO. They both shared the same bass improvement and soundstage depth increase over the LM4562, but the 1364 doesn't really help out the highs that much. The 1361 however does.
Excellent news! Thanks for trying it =D

Just placed my order for it. Will post results here next week when I get back home and can install it.
Reply
post #491 of 2057
1/28/09 at 1:27pm
A long shot, but is anyone here able to compare with an Echo Audiofire 2 or similar?

Kind of newish to this stuff, so I've borrowed one from my friend for now, although I don't really think there's a "massive" difference coming from onboard Realtek ALC889A. I'm using the Aego M's though, and on the off-chance that it might not be good enough to discern the difference between the two sources very well, I've got a pair of Audioengine 5's coming in.

I was considering the Essence, but I'm starting to doubt it if it's tough for me to tell much of a difference between my onboard and the Audiofire. Maybe I just don't know what to listen for.
Reply
post #492 of 2057
1/28/09 at 3:23pm
The TI 6120 drives the headphones directly (through the relay). Here's the datasheet: http://focus.ti.com/lit/ds/symlink/tpa6120a2.pdf

Going by the application note on page 1, the 2114's are indeed the current to voltage converters and filters for the D to A. (the parts count around the 2114's is correct; they use a single quad opamp, but its the same as the 2134's I suggested earlier).
As for those Linear chips you guys are using: I'd be careful using ultra wide bandwidth amps here: you run the risk of having these things oscillate at very high frequencies. You really should have a wideband scope and some square wave files to check their stability when you swap them in. My 2 cents.
.
Reply
post #493 of 2057
1/28/09 at 4:30pm
Hmm well I appreciate your input. Always nice to have people with great technical knowledge share their input

Any particular opamp you'd suggest trying instead of the LM4562?
Reply
post #494 of 2057
1/28/09 at 11:09pm
Honestly, the 4562 is a fine chip: the bottleneck is with the 2114's, why Asus chose them is a mystery; for all the money they wasted with the posters and fake individual performance reports, they could have dropped the extra 2 bucks and put in 2134's.
One other thing: replacing the 4562 will not improve the headphone output; it has nothing to do with that part of the circuit. I'm not sure anyone has actually made this claim (this a BIG thread).
So, has anyone been able to download the new driver yet?
Reply
post #495 of 2057
1/28/09 at 11:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sluggoaudio View Post
Honestly, the 4562 is a fine chip: the bottleneck is with the 2114's, why Asus chose them is a mystery; for all the money they wasted with the posters and fake individual performance reports, they could have dropped the extra 2 bucks and put in 2134's.
So, is it possible for us to take out the 2114 for the 2134?
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Computer Audio
Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Computer Audio › Xonar Essence STX: Sneak Peek!