First time really caring about sound, need some help (headphones/sound card) - Page 2

Quote:

Originally Posted by clicheispasse 
Alright, in that case these are my options..

Xonar DG + DT770

OR

Fiio E10 + A700.

Which would be better for gaming? 

The only DT770 that will work well with the Xonar DG is the 32-Ohm version (bass light), not worth it.

The Audio Technica will not improve a lot with a headphone amplifier.

(but I'm sure the E10 will improve the sound quality of any headphone)

I still say get the DG and SR850

Total is $70

That should keep you happy and you can wait for the higher end headphone to go on sale somewhere.

Prices drop and new products come out in Feb, March, April

Right after Christmas and until tax time, people do not buy much

Prices have to drop to sell anything.

No one will announce new products till after the Christmas season, they want to clear out current products first.

People stop buying current products if they know something new is coming out.

Audio Technica just came out the new A700X, should be better then the current A700.

Quote:

Originally Posted by clicheispasse 

Judging by the sort of reviews Creative has gotten and the sort of driver issues people seem to have with them, I think I'll stay away from them. 

 

Is the Xonar DG worth it? Granted it's only $30, but I don't want to spend something that's basically the same as my on-board audio. 

I was actually looking at the HT | Omega Striker, or the Xonar DX. Opinion on either of these?

 

I just don't want my first dive into the audiophile world to be tained by a wrong choice. 

 

When I say gaming, mainly what I mean is that it has to have good 'positional' audio - I play FPS games such as Counter Strike and Battlefield, and that feature is a really important one. 

As far as music goes, the main thing I listen to is rock, and various sub-genres within rock. 

I don't have driver issues with my X-Fi cards under Windows. (Linux is an entirely different matter...but you're not running that as a primary OS if you're gaming. For that matter, I've also heard quite a few complaints about Asus Xonar drivers.) I still doubt you can do any better than an X-Fi for gaming specifically, simply because I do play my fair share of older titles like Battlefield 2 and UT 2004 and they have hardware-accelerated OpenAL (which applies to both of those titles). They know the position of every sound source in those FPSs and use that info to great effect. Having CMSS-3D Headphone on is practically like having an aural wallhack.

But at $30, the Xonar DG is a steal, and at that price I don't expect as many extra features and so forth (even though it is pretty loaded for a $30 card)...plus there's the problem of XAudio2 and FMOD and so forth in recent titles reducing your sound positioning to a mere 7.1 at most before it even hits the sound card driver.

As for the HT Omega offerings, I'm not familiar with those. The Xonar DX is in that weird middle ground where I'd be more likely to look into an X-Fi Prelude, Forte, or Titanium HD. The only other card I'd consider is the famed Xonar Essence ST(X), but that just costs way too much. (Then there's Creative's upcoming Recon3D cards that'll likely perform worse than the X-Fi Titanium HD, but might turn out much cheaper...)

Quote:

Originally Posted by NamelessPFG 

I don't have driver issues with my X-Fi cards under Windows. (Linux is an entirely different matter...but you're not running that as a primary OS if you're gaming. For that matter, I've also heard quite a few complaints about Asus Xonar drivers.) I still doubt you can do any better than an X-Fi for gaming specifically, simply because I do play my fair share of older titles like Battlefield 2 and UT 2004 and they have hardware-accelerated OpenAL (which applies to both of those titles). They know the position of every sound source in those FPSs and use that info to great effect. Having CMSS-3D Headphone on is practically like having an aural wallhack.

 

But at $30, the Xonar DG is a steal, and at that price I don't expect as many extra features and so forth (even though it is pretty loaded for a $30 card)...plus there's the problem of XAudio2 and FMOD and so forth in recent titles reducing your sound positioning to a mere 7.1 at most before it even hits the sound card driver.

 

As for the HT Omega offerings, I'm not familiar with those. The Xonar DX is in that weird middle ground where I'd be more likely to look into an X-Fi Prelude, Forte, or Titanium HD. The only other card I'd consider is the famed Xonar Essence ST(X), but that just costs way too much. (Then there's Creative's upcoming Recon3D cards that'll likely perform worse than the X-Fi Titanium HD, but might turn out much cheaper...)

Why do you think the Recon3D will perform worse then the Titanium HD?

I've assumed the audio processor in the Recon3D is the same as the Titanium HD, just with DACs & ADCs now built in.

I'm also assuming the new audio processor is a die shrink, so manufacturing costs went down.

The audio processor would be cheaper to make and also the PCB is now made with less chips.

Did you check Creative's own specs on those integrated DACs and ADCs? Lower SNR measurements than the Titanium HD, and it doesn't seem like an aftermarket manufacturer can just bypass them with discrete parts due to that very integrated nature. Then there's the card's PCB being devoid of components or any apparent output stage, like it's all tightly woven into the Sound Core3D itself...
 

However, it could very well beat out every other X-Fi card (aside from the Auzentech ones).
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by clicheispasse 

Honestly, I'm thinking of just getting the Fiio E10 + A700s, and the Xonar DG and seeing what happens with sounds in game, as well as how my music sounds. If I don't like it, I only spent $30 for the card to begin with. 

However, if it sounds better than the USB DAC......... 

Experience is the best way to know whether you'll like given audio equipment or not, since everyone has different ears and all. Too bad you have to pay in advance to get the chance.

At the very least, you can cut your losses by reselling what you don't like.