[Bootleg]

Elias - Simply put, with all things being equal, am I better off plugging the Benchmark DAC1 USB into an XP or Vista PC?

 

[SR-71Panorama]

I vote XP, without having heard Vista, and here is why:

XP AUDIO W/ ASIO:

VISTA AUDIO W/ASIO:

It isn't true asio in vista, it has to go through so many steps, w/no possible bypass. This seems stupid and limiting on Microsoft's part.

At least in XP, you can skip all the nonsense and go from your player, to asio, to external stuff. Much simpler and cleaner.

*edit: Im sorry, it looks like you were only addressing a specific person. Sorry.

 

[Bootleg]

I wanted to get Elias' attention, but that was very helpful...thanks!

 

[Bootleg]

quick question from a noob....what the heck is an asio? Where can I buy one?

 

[rabidmoose171]

asio is a sound driver

 

[EnOYiN]

HOLD UP!

There is ASIO in Vista. I am going to edit that picture tomorrow to avoid futher confusion. An audio application in Vista can still stream audio content via ASIO and OpenAL. Without trying to be arrogant I am quoting myself:
Quote:

For people who are using either ASIO or OpenAL there will be no significant changes.

The main thing changing in Vista is that direct sound can not use hardware acceleration effectively any more.

If you want to know more about ASIO the thread where that picture can be found is linked in my signature.

Edit: I am sorry if that picture was confusing and like I said above I am going to change it by placing a few more arrows.

 

[SR-71Panorama]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EnOYiN /img/forum/go_quote.gif HOLD UP! There is ASIO in Vista. I am going to edit that picture tomorrow to avoid futher confusion. An audio application in Vista can still stream audio content via ASIO and OpenAL. Without trying to be arrogant I am quoting myself: The main thing changing in Vista is that direct sound can not use hardware acceleration effectively any more. If you want to know more about ASIO the thread where that picture can be found is linked in my signature. Edit: I am sorry if that picture was confusing and like I said above I am going to change it by placing a few more arrows.

Lol, sorry for misrepresenting it, I guess I misread it as you say. Sorry

I also couldn't remember the thread i got it in, so I couldn't credit it to you.

 

[EnOYiN]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SR-71Panorama /img/forum/go_quote.gif Lol, sorry for misrepresenting it, I guess I misread it as you say. Sorry I also couldn't remember the thread i got it in, so I couldn't credit it to you.

I changed the picture so there won't be any more confusion about it.

 

[Bootleg]

Elias???

Help a brother out!

 

[Riboge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EnOYiN /img/forum/go_quote.gif I changed the picture so there won't be any more confusion about it.

It is still confusing...or incomplete, at least to me who is a novice in this area. It does not show how/if an application like foobar can output via ASIO directly, i.e., ASIO is shown as an alternative to Audio application with no input to it--as it is actually drawn there, which begs the very question it supposedly answers.

 

[EnOYiN]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riboge /img/forum/go_quote.gif It is still confusing...or incomplete, at least to me who is a novice in this area. It does not show how/if an application like foobar can output via ASIO directly, i.e., ASIO is shown as an alternative to Audio application with no input to it--as it is actually drawn there, which begs the very question it supposedly answers.

I would like to refer what I posted in the last post on page 9. This thread is not supposed to give detailed information about the workings of the audio architectures used in several Windows versions. It is merely a guide to setting up ASIO4All with a bit of explanation about the several other options. If you would like to get to the bottom of these things I would like to direct everyone to the AVS forums.

Sorry to the OP. I wasn't planning on hijacking your thread and I will not do so any further.

Edit: You can always send Elias a PM if your question is directly to him. I am sure that even he isn't omnipresent and he might miss this thread.

 

[EliasGwinn]

Hey there....sorry, I don't get around the other threads much. The gigantic thread is more then enough to keep me busy.

To answer your question, I can't say for sure. We only have a beta copy of Vista, which, from what I've heard, handles audio much differently from the final release.

From our experience with the beta version, I would say that the sonic differences between the two are minimal. Tests showed that Vista always converts the sample-rate to the rate set in the Audio setup page. Although I don't understand why they perform this conversion, the conversion is done well, so there are very few artifacts. XP, on the other hand, was able to bypass this conversion if everything was configured correctly. But, as I said, the sonic differences are very slight. If it were me, I'd fell comfortable with the sonic quality of both, and choose based on other factors such as usability, options, stability, etc.

Thanks,
Elias

 

[islewind]

What a great graphic, SR-71Panorama! Gotta love Microsoft for taking equal steps forward, back and sideways. Maybe sp1 will have things square...

 

[Scrith]

In Vista I can use DirectSound or Kernal Streaming from Foobar2000 with my Benchmark DAC1 USB. They both sound great (if really interested, I can set up a blind test between then two with my wife), but I noticed that using Kernal Streaming disables all other sounds in Windows, and prevents the Windows volume control from working. I'm guessing that is one way to bypass Kmixer in Vista without using ASIO.

I'd recommend using the USB connection with a DAC1 USB unless you already have heavy traffic over USB (like a USB hard drive). I've used all kinds of connections between my computer and DACs (E-Mu 1212M coax and toslink to regular DAC1, USB to M-Audio Audiophile USB to regular DAC1, USB to Empirical Audio Off-Ramp 2 Turbo to regular DAC1 and Lavry DA10, and now USB directly to DAC1 USB). I think regular USB output to DAC1 USB under Vista sounds at least as good as all those other options I've personally tried.

And today I hooked up some new Dynaudio Contour S 1.4 speakers. All I can say is wow.

 

[jiiteepee]

Hmm... CEntrance has lately prepared a driver for Benchmark DAC-1 which should also be Vista compatible.

(BTW, kX Projects Eugene Gavrilov seem to be listed as Senior Software Engineer @ CEntrance, Inc.)


jiitee