Thanks for the insight guys. I'm returning the card today, so I guess I'll get the final verdict if and when any defect is found (I'm surprised if there isn't any). There seems to be a lot of opinions/beliefs about whether (phone) amps make any difference and how much.. I've never listened to...

Quote: So in other words, there's no point in using any headphone amp if you can get the volume loud enough without one? Which would mean that amps only increase volume? Or does this only apply to the essence card?

OK that was a little over my head.. so this is probably a stupid question, but are you saying that reducing the gain could actually reduce sound quality too?

Quote: I've seen it on other forums too though :).   And the loopback cable sounds like a great idea, but unfortunately I don't have one. Or wait.. would a cable from a guitar work for that too? I mean the cable that connects the guitar to an amp.

Yeah I've checked the cables. The card has a separate line-out jack, yes, but I've been using the headphone jack. Personally I was kind of hoping for the soundcard being faulty, since the solution to that is the cheapest and most rewarding one. Better that than having wasted ~200 euros.  ...

I've done some testing now and considering how much this card has been praised and how big of a difference most people seem to get when the gain is increased, I'm back to the idea of a faulty card.   I used audacity to compare a couple of songs (in flames - come clarity, metallica - sabbra...

That's possible I guess, but what I want is a completely neutral and uncolored sound and if the HD650s is closer to that than the 595s (which I believe), I'm sticking with this. I could get philosophical about it but suffice to say that I'm not necessarily looking for what sounds best to me, but...

Ok, I've mailed ASUS about this, still awaiting reply, but I'm not so sure my setup is the problem anymore..   I suspected there was either something wrong with the card or the cans, so I went to a local hi-fi store to try out some headphone amps. Just to make sure my cans weren't faulty...

Ok, so now I've tried changing the card's position in the mobo, I've tried reinstalling the drivers (7.12.8.1777) and disabled the onboard sound card in BIOS, just in case. I've also checked the molex connector. No change whatsoever. Now that I've listened for a while, I can tell the sound...

  Quote: To be honest, I notice a difference in sound quality, but the difference is small enough to be attributed to the placebo effect. Maybe I should do a blind test with my old card, just to make sure. I don't use any equalizers at all and the bass is exactly as before (not very...

Hi! I'm new to these forums and need some advice.   I'm using a pair of Sennheiser HD650s and just upgraded from Audigy2 to the Xonar Essence, and I'm pretty sure that something's either broken or not setup correctly. Either that, or I've wasted money on this card. From what I've heard, an...