[rubinstein]

http://www.asus.com/Sound_Cards_and_DigitaltoAnalog_Converters/ (choose pci in the options)
 
ASUS Xonar DSX PCIe 7.1 GX2.5 Audio Engine 192K/24bit Playback Support Sound Cards (60$)
ASUS Xonar DGX (38$)
ASUS Xonar DS (46 $)
ASUS Xonar DX (70$)
check amazon (US)..... I do not know about the difference between these cards. May be Head fier "PurpleAngel" could guide you.
 

 

 

[money4me247]

  Hi, i live in Brazil and i have this once in a year opportunity to buy things from US, and I need your help to decide what is best for me, with a price range around 200~220$
 
I've been looking the HD 598, 558, ATH M50 and other headphones below 200$; but plugging these in an onboard soundcard is worth the price? What soundcards/amps do you recommend? My main music genres are bass-oriented (house, chillstep, electro, rock etc), and I'll be using it for movies and some gaming as well.
 
ps: sorry for my bad english

just curious if you would be requiring these headphones to be portable (some of your options: HD98 are open, while the ATH M50 is closed), and if you are really only listening to bass-heavy music, you can get fun / v-shaped / non-neutral headphones & find them to be very enjoyable.
 
I always recommend spending more money on your headphones as headphones have a bigger impact on your sound quality compared to amps/dacs... esp if you are at the sub-$300 price point. I personally think that the ATH M50s are a bit overrated nowadays as there are a lot of newer headphones that perform just as well if not better, but just don't have such a large fan following.
 
I haven't personally heard the DT 990, but from reading about them, they seemed to be only suitable for home use. They are open & high impedance. That is a point to consider as I saw you are looking at portable amp/dacs... you won't need portable amp/dacs with these headphones, you can get better desktop dac/amp setups.
 
Is your $220 price range covering both the headphones & amp/dac? If it is, I would say that budget is too small and I would recommend maxing out your budget into headphones that do not require an amp/dac. A few great portable closed headphones that do not require an amp at the $200 mark off the top of my head include the Sony MDR-1R ($180ish) vs the new AKG K545 ($200 at razerdogaudio).
 
personal opinion disclaimer: The thing is that you will be spending around $100+ for an amp/dac and it's not going to improve the sound quality of your $200 headphones by 50%. It's not going to double the sound quality of your $100 headphones. Might as well get $200-$300 headphones rather than a $100 amp/dac in my personal opinion lol. You can score some seriously 'best-in-class' type headphones with $300.

 

[wintage]

Originally Posted by money4me247 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Is your $220 price range covering both the headphones & amp/dac? If it is, I would say that budget is too small and I would recommend maxing out your budget into headphones that do not require an amp/dac. A few great portable closed headphones that do not require an amp at the $200 mark off the top of my head include the Sony MDR-1R ($180ish) vs the new AKG K545 ($200 at razerdogaudio).
 

 
I don't need headphones to be 'portable', I'll use it mostly on my PC
 
It's just my first step into the audiophile world, and i want a new experience. If Sony MDR-1R offers a good onboard sound, i could go for it and delay a Xonar DG purchase.

 

[money4me247]

  I don't need headphones to be 'portable', I'll use it mostly on my PC
 
It's just my first step into the audiophile world, and i want a new experience. If Sony MDR-1R offers a good onboard sound, i could go for it and delay a Xonar DG purchase.

Then you can look at open options that are $220ish such as the AKG Q701 vs the Sennheiser HD598 vs Beyer dt880/dt990. those options will require an amp though. Note open headphones do not noise isolate, so people around you can hear em & you can hear outside noise.
 
another solid non-portable closed option is the AKG K550.

 

[wintage]

I'm almost pretty sure that i'm going with DT 990 250 + Xonar DG - although i'm a little worried about the volume, bass and other stuff if i didn't go with the E10's.
Could you explain that difference (if it is big)? And if another headphone around 170~180 dollars will benefit more from Xonar DG?
 
Thanks for the support.

 

[wintage]

Hi guys, now i have like 230$ to spend on headphones+amp/DAC+microphones.
 
DT-990 Pro 250 + Creative Sound Blaster Z (comes with mic) is a good combo? Or should i get another one?

 

[money4me247]

  Hi guys, now i have like 230$ to spend on headphones+amp/DAC+microphones.
 
DT-990 Pro 250 + Creative Sound Blaster Z (comes with mic) is a good combo? Or should i get another one?

you should probably get an amp for the 250ohm dt990.

 

[wintage]

  you should probably get an amp for the 250ohm dt990.

 
Which one? I believe Creative Sound Blaster Z already comes with it.

 

[rubinstein]

   
Which one? I believe Creative Sound Blaster Z already comes with it.

According to the specs, Creative Sound Blaster Z comes with a headphone amplifier that can drive headphones of impedance up to 600 Ohms.
http://www.soundblaster.com/products/sound-blaster-z.aspx#specs

 

[wintage]

Which one will sound better (on 990 pro): Fiio e10 + onboard or soundblaster Z?