[rroseperry]

So I went to the excellent Bay Area Meet last weekend and spent a long time talking to Mike of Schiit. I liked their amps, but they don't do UBS connectors. Mike suggested I pick up an e-mu card. There's a good sale on all the Creative products right now, so the price is right.
 
But before I bought the card, I wonder what people thought about going this route better sound card -> desktop amp, rather than computer -> DAC -> desktop amp.  This is going to be a completely immobile set up, running off my desktop.
 
Thanks for any ideas or information

 

[bixby]

I used to own the emu 1212m.  Very nice sound card which is a dac BTW.  As far as it feeding a hp amp it should do very well.  Software is a bit of a pain to setup but once you get it set the sound is smooth and card is very quiet.  Also should you ever want to really go upstream the spdif out is very good and can be used to connect an even better dac in the future.

 

[rroseperry]

Thanks bixby, if I can ask a further question, what do you mean by the software is a pain? I'm moderately computer literate (have re-formatted hard-drives and reinstalled OSs a few times), but I'd like to know what I'm in for,

 

[Bones13]

I ran the 1212 a good while back with Windows XP.  The drivers and software were a distinct pain back then, slow, ornery, and caused system lock up from time to time.
 
Not at all sure how the drivers and software are faring now, both under Creative, and on Win7.  Perhaps current users can fill you in there.
 
When it worked right both the onboard dac (via the "balanced" analog outs, I got appropriate 1/4inch to RCA adapters at a local guitar center), and via the SPDIF to an external DAC, the sound and function are great.
 
The 1212 is one of those cards that can do a LOT more than just output sound from computer files.  Its complexity is part of the reason I used the much simpler XFi card to do my SPDIF out once I got external DACs.

 

[bixby]

Quote:

Thanks bixby, if I can ask a further question, what do you mean by the software is a pain? I'm moderately computer literate (have re-formatted hard-drives and reinstalled OSs a few times), but I'd like to know what I'm in for,

Those tasks are child's play compared to using E-mu software.  Unless you are familiar with a patch bay recording type concepts, you will have a learning curve.
 
Right Bones?

 

[rroseperry]

OK, there goes a weekend or two then .
 
I've got a friend who's a musician and engineer who I might be able to talk me through much of it.  I really want it for the DAC output and I'm still running Windows XP.

 

[Bones13]

Quote:

 
Right Bones?

Usually, unless I am in a discussion with my wife.