[qzyxya]

I apologize, I'm a complete noob when it comes to this stuff, but any help would be appreciated
I'm currently running this setup:
 
xonar dg > 3.5mm jack on the card > 1/8 inch to 1/4 inch adapter > grado sr225i
 
However, I have a little bit of money to spend on upgrading this setup, but i'm confused on what would get me the best quality sound for my grados. At school, /i'm actually doing a little side project in engineering class making and soldering the JDS labs o2 amp, but I'm not sure this will necessarily work well with what I currently have
Would the spdif optical output of my soundcard give me better sound and if so how would I configure that? Or should I buy another soundcard, or if all else doesnt work, a new amp?
 
In the meantime Im working to finish the o2, if not for anything just for the fun of making my first DIY amp (plus it was essentially free). Do you guys think this amp would work well? What would you recommend me to do? 
 
1.) hook up the o2 amp through the xonar dg to my 225is
2.) figure out how to get the optical spdif output to work?
3.) purchase another amp or DAC
4.) get a better soundcard than the dg
5.) something else?
 
As a side note, my headphone output on my laptop is broken, so a usb dac seems appealing, though most listening is at home on the desktop. 
 
 
------- Random info that could be helpful? -------
 
I listen to mainly rock and electronic music (strokes, pink floyd, led zeppelin, beatles, doors, foo fighters, jimi hendrix, bonobo, passion pit, miike snow, phoenix, tycho, etc.) if that helps at all. Also play competitive tf2 in esea and cevo open divisions, but I can play the game fine with any headphones. Mostly concerned about music. 
 
Current source is mostly 320 mp3s > foobar2000 > wasapi output, or a handful of lossless 96khz 24 bit albums on my external hard drive
The settings on the xonar are these: 2 channel, headphones, 32ohm - 60ohm amp, 24 bit, 96khz, all the other **** turned off.
 
Thanks for reading this and sorry again for my iignorance

 

[mcandmar]

Hooking up the o2 amp through the xonar should work ok, but if you want to spend some money buy an ODAC, it will do a better job than the xonar and the O2/ODAC combo will serve you very well as a music listening rig.

 

[Spiral Out]

 Hooking up the o2 amp through the xonar should work ok, but if you want to spend some money buy an ODAC, it will do a better job than the xonar and the O2/ODAC combo will serve you very well as a music listening rig.

 
I agree. I own a Xonar card and it does a respectable job as a DAC but my Music Streamer II out preforms it in every way. Since you own the O2 already the ODAC would be a natural addition and would be a large improvement. You could get the ODAC card for $99 and install it in your O2 or you could go for the stand alone for $150.
 
I personally don't like soundcards because of the large amounts of EMI inside of a computer case. An external DAC will eliminate this issue.

 

[qzyxya]

Alright, I think I'll try hooking up the o2 and the xonar once I'm finished soldering it and see how that sounds.
Is there any way to describe what the exact difference between the soundcard to amp vs dac to amp? Im having a hard time wrapping my head around it.

 

[Spiral Out]

The sound of the Xonar was muddier to me. Less instrument separation, less defined bass, less detail. It wasn't awful by any stretch, but the Music Streamer II was a lot better in every way.

 

[qzyxya]

Anyone else able to comment on the o2 or odac? Bumpidy bump

 

[Spiral Out]

I just got an ODAC earlier this week. It's an awesome dac. Much better than the Music Streamer II I was using before. Great clarity and a nice and wide sound stage. I would highly recommend it. 
 
BTW I like your avatar, Is This It is a great album. Although I prefer the censored album cover, va va voooom 

 

[Claritas]

The O2 increased soundstage a little and gave the treble fuller body whenever I've used it with an SR series Grado. Both are noticeable improvements as those are areas that tend to suffer.