Thanks for the response. I guess that it must be either a capacitor that has gone faulty or a ground solder joint has gone (valves were the first to be tested). I am certainly leaning towards the solder joints as the ones around the main socket aren't looking good at a glance. Locating the...

Would anyone happen to have the general fix for the hum that can appear with the Audiotailor Jade that develops? I would believe that it is related to the grounding. The hum seems to be not altered by volume and is present of both channels.

Just a word in EAX5, it is great but you only get the benefit from games that actually support EAX5 which is rather small. Also the chance of new games coming out with it are slim to none since Windows 7. Not saying it is a bad card for gaming sound, just do not get it solely based off EAX5...

Honestly getting a 250 Ohm would be far the best value for money. I have personally seen them new as low as $208 and will sound pretty good straight out of the Xonar. You will only need to have the volume up to 1/3 of the way on the Xonar. The best suggestion would be to get the 250 Ohm for...

If you plan to just power the DT880 through the Xonar Essence best go for the 250 Ohm. You will certainly be able to drive them loud enough and will sound good but will be much better through a tube amp. The main weakness from memory was lower mids and upper bass. The lower end of the bass...

For me the gel pads had a negative effect (i think a dip between my ear an jaw helped cause this). Sub-bass was good but bass and mids were recessed. Also the treble had high amounts of sibilance. Thankfully I decided to try them without as I was about to send the T70 back. Unlike others I seem...