[Phoo]

I was excited to receive my Asus Xonar Essence ST last week, but that has all turned into frustration now and finally today I decided to put my old Auzentech Prelude back in the case.
 
I just can't get used to the Essence ST, before with the Prelude I could listen to music for hours without any listeners fatigue, but with the Essence ST I can only last around 30 min before I need a break.
 
I use Xonar RCA out -> Burson Audio HA-160 -> DT880 600ohm, the sound isn't bad, but it's either too loud or too quiet. It just seems very aggressive and if I try to adjust the volume down the vocals sound too quiet and if I adjust it up the other parts of the music hurts my ears. All settings are at their default except for sample rate set to 44.1KHz in the Xonar Audio Center.
 
As Xonar Essence ST is considered by many one of the best soundcards out there, maybe I need to burn it in more or maybe it's a mismatch with my equipment?
 
Is there anyone else that have had similar experience with this card?
 
Also, the Xonar is very loud, anyone else using RCA out to amp that could tell me what they have set their windows volume to?
 

 

[laxsar]

I find the ST a bit warmer than my iBasso D6. My settings:
 
Audio Channel: 2 Channels
Sample Rate: PCM 44.1khz
Analog Out: Headphone | High Gain
Hi-fi: Checked.
Volume: 15-24% on the Xonar CP, depending on tracks (most modern tracks are LOUD).
Default format (in Windows playback devices > properties > Advanced ) 24 bit 44khz.
OS: Windows 7 64 Bit.
 
JRMC > ASIO4ALL v2 > MS2i
When I use Xonar Essence ST ASIO, the volume is ear splitting, probably unrestricted (Still figuiring out why this happens). I couldn't differentiate the sound of WASAPI vs. ASIO, but I like the auto hz switcher, so I sticked with ASIO4Allv2.
 
Since my ears are used to forward and bright sounds, I don't find the ST fatiguing. Have you tried using headphone out with the built in amp for testing purposes? How does that sound?
 
IMO, the ST is considered to be one of the best because of the high quality DAC, has a decent built in amp, and the option to roll OPamps to further customize the sound signature.