I'm looking for opinions, and hoping for first hand experience - here goes.
Factors;
I primarily use my PC for gaming
Win7 64-bit
When I am listening to music through my PC, it isn't through ASIO, but the regular Windows 7 sound mixer, and more than likely with other sounds as well
I recently picked up an X-fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champ1on (Card with shield + 5 1/4" drive bay interface) for ~ $70, new, after MIR. I have a Forte in my main PC, with my ATH-AD700s. I am building a second PC for my home office, which currently has no soundcard. I also have a pair of PC350s that aren't getting much use at the moment, which will probably go with said second PC.
I'm trying to decide if I should;
* Put the Titanium in the new PC with the 350s
* Put the Forte in the new PC with the 350s and put my AD700s on the Titanium on the old system
* Return the Titanium (it's not too late!) and pick up a Titanium HD ($160) or - for $10 more - a Xonar STX - and put it with one of the aforementioned.
I guess the question nets out to; I'm a mid-fi kind of guy - am I going to notice enough bang/buck out of a higher end card on the AD700s, or would more horsepower be lost on this setup? I think the Forte is enough to drive the 350s in the quiet of my office, although I'm sure I could get a little more out of them with an STX.
The main factors outside the box are, I'm not using the main (downstairs) PC for what could remotely be construed as hi-fi listening - especially with open back cans. I have 2 kids, 4 cats, 2 dogs, and my fiancés computer is right behind mine. I'm usually playing some MMO, listening to music, and talking to people on Ventrillo - all of which seem to further dilute the value of a higher end card. I think I can hear a difference on the AD700s between the Titanium and the Forte, but that's late at night in a quiet setting. I'm not sure the edge I get out of the forte over the X-fi makes it worth getting a superior card for the other system just to keep the Forte on my original.
Help me out here - I really shouldn't be agonizing about this at 1 AM on a work night, and I'm not reaching any kind of useful conclusions - so I turn to you. Thoughts?
Factors;
I primarily use my PC for gaming
Win7 64-bit
When I am listening to music through my PC, it isn't through ASIO, but the regular Windows 7 sound mixer, and more than likely with other sounds as well
I recently picked up an X-fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champ1on (Card with shield + 5 1/4" drive bay interface) for ~ $70, new, after MIR. I have a Forte in my main PC, with my ATH-AD700s. I am building a second PC for my home office, which currently has no soundcard. I also have a pair of PC350s that aren't getting much use at the moment, which will probably go with said second PC.
I'm trying to decide if I should;
* Put the Titanium in the new PC with the 350s
* Put the Forte in the new PC with the 350s and put my AD700s on the Titanium on the old system
* Return the Titanium (it's not too late!) and pick up a Titanium HD ($160) or - for $10 more - a Xonar STX - and put it with one of the aforementioned.
I guess the question nets out to; I'm a mid-fi kind of guy - am I going to notice enough bang/buck out of a higher end card on the AD700s, or would more horsepower be lost on this setup? I think the Forte is enough to drive the 350s in the quiet of my office, although I'm sure I could get a little more out of them with an STX.
The main factors outside the box are, I'm not using the main (downstairs) PC for what could remotely be construed as hi-fi listening - especially with open back cans. I have 2 kids, 4 cats, 2 dogs, and my fiancés computer is right behind mine. I'm usually playing some MMO, listening to music, and talking to people on Ventrillo - all of which seem to further dilute the value of a higher end card. I think I can hear a difference on the AD700s between the Titanium and the Forte, but that's late at night in a quiet setting. I'm not sure the edge I get out of the forte over the X-fi makes it worth getting a superior card for the other system just to keep the Forte on my original.
Help me out here - I really shouldn't be agonizing about this at 1 AM on a work night, and I'm not reaching any kind of useful conclusions - so I turn to you. Thoughts?
