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Need help on computer audio setup!

post #1 of 8
2/1/13 at 7:28pm
Thread Starter 

Any hints/tips/suggestions are welcome!

 

Story: I game ALOT (all kinds, basically almost every type) but not hardcore, I love music and I love movies on bluray. I'm new to computer building and not an audiophile either but I love good sounds. I've been researching about computer parts for a while now and I'm almost about finished until I got to the audio section of the build. A few friends could only suggest brands so I've been looking around many forums for about 2 weeks now and I'm still totally lost. 

 

My setup so far concerning the audio department is:

 

Motherboard: ASUS Z77 maximus V formula

           http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131854

 

Headphone: Sennheiser HD 380 pro

 

Speakers: None, but I want to have

 

Mic: None, any decent mic will do ok for me

 

- The mobo because it's a z77 and has built-in soundcard (although I don't mind buying a separate soundcard if a better build asks for it) 

- The headphone because it's closed type and I want to hear good quality explosions in games and movies.

 

 

 

 

 

The mobo has a good soundcard (newegg video said) but I got a few questions.

 

Questions:

1. If I'm going to use the HD 380 pro, do I need any amps? and If I do, what kind(s)? do I need a mixamp? Is that the same as headphone amp?

2. Will the built-in soundcard on the mobo be enough for the HD 380 pro? 

3. Will amps increase sound quality?

4. Do you have any suggestion for good speakers? Which is better, 5.1 or 7.1 for speakers?


Edited by ChubbyRain - 2/1/13 at 8:19pm
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post #2 of 8
2/2/13 at 7:44pm
All motherboards have built in audio now. Some are better than others, but none are considered exceptional compared to what you can get from adding a new sound card or an external dac/headphone amp. Motherboard audio does not typically have output designed well for headphones. So it can help to get a headphone amp.

If your budget is small, stick to 2.1 and use your headphones when you want to be immersed in the sound. Some people get excited about 7.1, but the truth is that if you don't set it up well, it won't sound any better than a well setup 5.1 system. And, if you can buy a little better speakers sticking with 5.1, that helps, too.
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post #3 of 8
2/2/13 at 9:34pm

Turns out the motherboard comes with the TI 6120A2 headphone amplifier built in

Same head amp. that's in the Essence STX & ST sound card.

The audio processor is Realtek.

 

So for on-board audio, seems fairly decent, so you might want to stick with it for now.

 

If I was going to upgrade the audio while using this motherboard.

I would say to get the Creative Labs Titanium HD sound card ($109) and the Magni headphone amplifier ($99).

Trouble is (for speakers) the Titanium HD is really designed for 2.0/2.1 speaker audio.

(but does have full headphone surround sound)

 

If you want to have the headphones and analog 5.1 speaker audio connected at the same time.

Then the Sound blaster Z series (Z -$110, Zx -$135 or ZxR -$250) would do the job.

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post #4 of 8
2/2/13 at 9:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by PurpleAngel View Post

Turns out the motherboard comes with the TI 6120A2 headphone amplifier built in

That's pretty cool. smily_headphones1.gif

I didn't know that they are doing that now. Is it becoming more common in the top end boards?
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post #5 of 8
2/2/13 at 9:53pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cel4145 View Post


That's pretty cool. smily_headphones1.gif

I didn't know that they are doing that now. Is it becoming more common in the top end boards?

First time I've ever seen it on a motherboard.

But I believe the MB uses Realtek for the DAC feature.

The MB costs $270

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post #6 of 8
2/2/13 at 10:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by PurpleAngel View Post

First time I've ever seen it on a motherboard.
But I believe the MB uses Realtek for the DAC feature.
The MB costs $270

I saw the price. Ought to come with lots of bells and whistles for that. Better be able to overclock the heck out of it like they claim smily_headphones1.gif
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post #7 of 8
2/5/13 at 5:48pm
Thread Starter 

My special thanks to cel4145 and PurpleAngel for the replies :)

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post #8 of 8
2/5/13 at 6:48pm
Did you already decide on speakers?
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