[whitedragon551]

Looks like my favorite PC component manufacturer is coming out with something new. What do you guys think pricing will be like on this?
 
http://www.maximumpc.com/article/news/asus_xonar_u7_external_sound_card_headphone_amplifier2013

 

[ender323]

Cirrus DAC-shame, I personally prefer the Wolfsons (at least in iPods) Pricing? No idea.

 

[xeizo]

CS4398 is a very good DAC and a favorite with DIY:ers, while Wolfson may have better offerings for the Smartphone/Tablet-crowd the CS4398 is not a smartphone DAC but a high end DAC comparable to Wolfsons own high end WM8741/8742 and are not found in portable gear. However, it all depends on implementation, but CS4398 implemented right will produce flawless sound. As will WM8741/WM8742. Or Burr Brown PCM1792. Or AD1955. The potential is there 
 

 

[pietcux]

Hi I got the U7 on Friday.

1. Disclaimer: All of the statements I make are only for headphone use. Headphones used: Ultrasone Signature PRO / DJ AKG K 702. OS : Windows 7 64 bit
2. I had the Xonar STX before still have the Xonar U1.
3. for me the external USB card is better because I have two PCs to use the card for gaming. A classic PC and a good gaming laptop.
4. It is the best sounding sound card I had so far. For me even better than the STX.
5. it has no audible hiss and seems to be quite neutral to me.
6. it has a absolute dark background
7. Very good controlled bass.
8. Very good and big stage.
9. I use them without the Dolby Theater V4 for my ITunes collection. AAC 320 VBR most. Dolby sounds also well, but it alters the sound signature as expected and I do not prefer that for stereo recordings.
10. For gaming the Dolby standard  gaming setting produces a very good surround sound for me, good directional cues in Crysis 3 /COD Black Ops so far.
11. Movies: LOTR DVD version. same as for gaming, very well implemented Dolby Theater V4.

Had some hassle on driver installation. The driver on the CD that came with the U7 did not install the Dolby feature at all. Downloaded the only available beta driver from ASUS and all was fine Dolby was available.
 
In other words:
Highly Recommended.

 

[pietcux]

Here is the complete review:
http://www.head-fi.org/products/xonar-u7-7-1-usb-soundkarte/reviews/9161

 

[Laths]

Hi, I'm planning to buy Asus Xonar U7 or U1.
 
U1 and U3 has Dolby Headphones, Dolby® Pro-Logic II and etc.
 
But U7 seems to have Dolby® Home Theater v4
 
So what is the difference? Is Dolby HT v4 includes all of the above? Or those are completely different techs?
I'm planning to use Xonar with a headset for surround sound in games. Do those make any difference?

 

[pietcux]

The U1 is perfect for gaming. Movies are slso processed very good. But for critical music listening you are much better with the U7. I asked Dolby about the differences between DH and HT v4. They say it has the same algotythms so it should do the same to the sound as DH does. So you cannot go wrong.

Here is my request:

As a long time user of Dolby Headphone technology from Asus Xonar soundcards, I am concerned that the new Dolby® Home Theater v4 headphone implementation found on the Xonar U7 might be inferior to the classical Dolby Headphone. Please clarify that for me.
Thanks
Peter

Here is the answer I got fro Dolby:

Hi Peter-

I apologize for the delay in responding to your email, the team was attending E3 last week. The algorithms between Dolby Headphone and Dolby Home Theater v4 for headphone virtualization are the same, so there shouldn’t be any difference. You may be hearing a difference because DHT v4 features things like volume leveling, dialogue enhancement, etc.

I hope this helps.

Best-
The Dolby Game Team

 

[Laths]

Thanks for the answer pietcux. I haven't managed to contact ASUS in anyway about this . Can't register to their forums, site does not function well, etc...
I'll be playing games with Shure SE535 so it seems to me U7 is the way to go.