Are amps/dac and sound card really required??????

If you want something that sounds better than speakers + FLAC, then you get an amp/DAC to improve the sound. Whether the cost is worth it to YOU or not is not for us to decide.

Keep in mind, this is an enthusiasts forum and this hobby happens to be particularly expensive. It's you and your budget that ultimately decides what you listen to.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kayk 

Whether the cost is worth it to YOU or not is not for us to decide.

Bingo.

To many of us on here a DAC feeding an amp is required to give the sound quality we want. You won't be able to get the ultimate quality from those FLAC files on your computer without some additional hardware.

There can be an element of showing off involved with some people and their gear (and I'm not totally immune from it), but generally people aren't out to throw money at shiny boxes that don't sound better than something cheap, discrete and user friendly.

DACs and amps are mostly transparent, don't bother. See vid in my sig.

Amps are only needed where more volume is needed.

Onboard can pick up audible emi, and already has a poor SNR, so a soundcard or dac may help in some instances, just don't fall into this money wasting placebo foolery.

Required? -> No, but you will most certainly benefit sound wise from having it.
Worth it? -> All up to you do decide. What is worth it to some, may not be worth it to others. Personal preference, size of wallet, ...

Quote:

Originally Posted by krmathis 

Required? -> No, but you will most certainly benefit sound wise from having it.
Worth it? -> All up to you do decide. What is worth it to some, may not be worth it to others. Personal preference, size of wallet, ...

If placebo effect is "most certainly" , indeed.

Size of wallet is what matters most. . .

Quote:

Originally Posted by xxmastaxx 

Im wondering if DAC, Amps, sound cards actually worth the investments or just having good speakers + flac audio is already good enough?

Well you have to have a source and an amplifer unless you are speaking about speakers with built in amplifer running off onboard or possibly digital monitors.

You either use internal gear, external or a combination of both.  Add in a decent amplifer to power your cans or speakers.

Is what you have good enough for you?

There are mny different ways to wire a PC audio system.  Using, internal cards for analog output or S/Pdif output. 

You also have S/Pdif sources such as the HiFACe and Teralink X2..etc...that can send signals to external DAC's...add in amplifiers for cans or speakers...etc..etc..etc

It really just depends on what you want to achieve and what you have to use.

Translation: "It really depends on if you believe in voodoo."

If this stuff seems like 'Voodoo" to you there are some great primers out there on digital audio. 

Yes, like the ones in my signature.

Soundcards and DACs definitely make a difference, though it's no where as large as it used to be when you were comparing 8bit and 16bit audio. Amps matter if you have high powered cans, there's little point in getting an amp for some IEMs unless you just really love the sound of a tube.