Hi,
I plan on buying the Sound Blaster ZxR, a pair of Senns HD598 and the Edifier S550 Encore speakers. I'll use this combo for movies, gaming and music. Is this a good choice? Or can I get better SQ for the same price range?
I'm a little bit concerned about the lack of DDL and DTS decoding in the ZxR, because the speakers only have analog inputs. Is this really an issue in movies?
Hi,
ZxR support DDL and DTS connect (http://www.soundblaster.com/products/sound-blaster-zx.aspx#specs) other than this will need software decoding by your movie player. Also check specs for output, it has Front/Back/Center 5.1 output, so no worries, but You won't need it if You plan to use headphones. And DDL, DTSC used to pass via digital out forward (not decode DD/DTS), so again with headphones You won't be using it.
HD598 is nice in SQ but google "sennheiser crack" their design is not flawless and has a weak point.
For games i like my Beyerdynamic DT990, maybe for music something like AKG Q701 (they could lack of bass for games though, check
MadLust thread) would sound better with music i believe, because DT990 sometimes have very sharp heights.
My experience with ZxR is fine, listen to music and do games with SBX surround, like it more than CMSS-3D from creative ,though never tried DolbyHeadphone so can't compare.
UPDATE: DDL meant to convert any 5.1 surround, from games as example and convert it live to AC3 then pass it to external receiver. So again, if no external speakers with decoder or receiver is used no use in it. And then You do not even need expansion card to be connected (it adds I/O and opens some advanced features in SBX soft, i found it useless if only headphones is in use), only the main one.
UPDATE2: Missed the Edifier part, it only has "
5.1 channel and 2 stereo input options for versatile connections" digital input is not mentioned anywhere on page. So You will have "plain" 5.1 from ZxR outputs not encoded.
Also Keep in mind that it is better to connect headphones directly to ZxR than to Edifier. And then switch ZxR between headphones/speaker mode.
UPDATE3: As addition about DTSC and DDL to update part, basically you can't call them decoders, they are encoders, DTL support doesn't mean card can decode DolbyDigital so don't be mistaken in any way. To decode DolbyDigital or True HD as example You still need a decoder, hardware one or software, TotalMedia Theater or Power DVD have DD/DDS software decoders. And encoder creates DD stream and can send it via digital outputs further to decoder.