[x7007]

ye what i I meant is there are pre set profiles in creative control panel. they set it like that. hmm yes i am used to dolby surround for movies. but watching a 5.1 is not as a 5.1 game , wont I need it to keep it ?

 

[NCSUZoSo]

I need you to elaborate more on what you mean by "won't I need to keep it".

 

[x7007]

  I need you to elaborate more on what you mean by "won't I need to keep it".

What I mean even if the Windows speakers is set to 5.1 I should still keep the SBX to be able to make positioning. Creative say it's good for movies and games, doesn't mean you need to disable it, what's Dolby Surround for if not for movies first and than games.

 

[NCSUZoSo]

So you are only running headphones, that is where I was confused.

 

[icecool]

Hi Im a noob audio guy here and i just wanna ask some questions
 
I just bought an akg q701 and the creative omni but the omni doesnt seem to be giving the akgs enough power since most of the time I need to set the windows volume at 100% to have some good listening levels, so does that mean I would be better off buying an external amp?
 
If I do need an amp, can I get an amp such as the O2 and connect the omni to the O2 and still get the surround effect?
 
thank you!

 

[genclaymore]

  Hi Im a noob audio guy here and i just wanna ask some questions
 
I just bought an akg q701 and the creative omni but the omni doesnt seem to be giving the akgs enough power since most of the time I need to set the windows volume at 100% to have some good listening levels, so does that mean I would be better off buying an external amp?
 
If I do need an amp, can I get an amp such as the O2 and connect the omni to the O2 and still get the surround effect?
 
thank you!

Yes you can just plug the O2 amp into the rear of the omni into the RCA out. The omni sends the sound to all of the output's so you can still use the SBX effects.

 

[icecool]

 
Yes you can just plug the O2 amp into the rear of the omni into the RCA out. The omni sends the sound to all of the output's so you can still use the SBX effects.

So it will be pc> usb> omni> rca out (red and white) to 3.5mm input in the o2? 

 

[genclaymore]

  So it will be pc> usb> omni> rca out (red and white) to 3.5mm input in the o2? 

Yea

 

[quantum27]

Hello,
 
I'm looking to purchase a new sound card and my first "good" pair of headphones (Sony MDR-MA900). Does anyone have any experience with the Sound Blaster Z (not the Zx or ZxR) and these headphones?
 
I searched both this thread and the MA900 thread and found a couple posts mentioning that because of the MA900s built in impedance control, the lack of impedance control in the Sound Blaster Z model isn't really an issue for the Sony headphones. I'm wondering if anyone has more information or personal experience with this. I'm not an audiophile by any means, but am looking for opinions if this is a sensible card to pair with these headphones. I'd rather not spring for the pricier ZxR if I really don't "have" to. (I'll be using this setup for equal parts gaming and music.)

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Hello,
I'm looking to purchase a new sound card and my first "good" pair of headphones (Sony MDR-MA900). Does anyone have any experience with the Sound Blaster Z (not the Zx or ZxR) and these headphones?
I searched both this thread and the MA900 thread and found a couple posts mentioning that because of the MA900s built in impedance control, the lack of impedance control in the Sound Blaster Z model isn't really an issue for the Sony headphones. I'm wondering if anyone has more information or personal experience with this. I'm not an audiophile by any means, but am looking for opinions if this is a sensible card to pair with these headphones. I'd rather not spring for the pricier ZxR if I really don't "have" to. (I'll be using this setup for equal parts gaming and music.)

 
I plugged my 42-Ohm Audio Technica ATH-A900Xs into the SB-Z's headphone jack (22-Ohms) and to me the combo worked well enough.
I've never heard of Audio Technica putting an "Impedance controller" in the A900X's headphones, so I would assume the MA900 would not have a noticeable issue with the SB-Z.
 
You could up your budget a little and get an Asus Xonar DX sound card, used $60 and a FiiO E11K headphone amplifier, $60.
The FiiO E11K's headphone output impedance is less then 1-Ohm

 

[plath]

Could someone please help me? I can't seem to get my 2.1 speakers to work with my Sound Blaster Z except in headphones configuration. Stereo, etc produce no sound. Using 8.1 and the latest Sound Blaster drivers. The speakers are just some old Harman Kardon HK395s

 
oh and Thanks for the info PurpleAngel both the times before.

 

[genclaymore]

Did you plug your speakers into the line out and not the Headphone out.

 

[gunxsword]

I'm pretty new to low-mid tier audio and I bought meself a SBZ for gaming and Dragonfly 1.2 for music. It's quite inconvenient to switch between them until I found out about using 'What U Hear' /listen to this device function.
 
I was wondering how the process is done. My primary concerns are:
1. Unaltered audio playback when all SBZ effects are off (i.e. will PC -> SBZ -> USB DAC = PC -> USB DAC?)
 
2. Will 5.1 channel VRS and all other Creative shenanigans (Crystlizer! Bass! Things!) performance improve/degrade when it's played back through a superior external DAC? (i.e. Schiit Modi/Bifrost or ODAC) using 'Listen to this Device'?
(Does the audio chain become PC -> SBZ DSP [skips SBZ DAC]-> USB DAC?)
 
3. My USB DAC is set to stereo 24 bit 44k playback. Do I set 'What U Hear' to 2 channel or 6 channel playback?
 
I'm skeptical about the disadvantages of using such a setup. Surely there would be some kind of delay, lost quality or whatnot when audio is played back from a device through another device right?
(A little bit of technical explanation behind what's happening would be great too)

 

[quantum27]

 
I plugged my 42-Ohm Audio Technica ATH-A900Xs into the SB-Z's headphone jack (22-Ohms) and to me the combo worked well enough.
I've never heard of Audio Technica putting an "Impedance controller" in the A900X's headphones, so I would assume the MA900 would not have a noticeable issue with the SB-Z.
 
You could up your budget a little and get an Asus Xonar DX sound card, used $60 and a FiiO E11K headphone amplifier, $60.
The FiiO E11K's headphone output impedance is less then 1-Ohm

 


Thanks so much for the info. I decided to just go with the Sound Blaster Z and the Sony MA900 for now, and maybe look into amplifiers a little bit later. But that amp looks like a great value itself -- on my watch list.

 

[plath]

  Did you plug your speakers into the line out and not the Headphone out.

It's in the headphone socket on the back panel.