[bosiwollig]

Hello everybody,
 
I just realised my computersound sucks , I use a few year old Asus M4A785TD-V EVO, which uses an VIA1708S. The trable is horrible and the Bass isn't there . (My sansa clip+ with fiio e5 sound MUCH better)
 
The headphones I have: Creative aurvana live (CAL) and ATH M50
 
So I was thinking about upgrading my soundcard and thats where I noticed the FIIO e10, I've read many good reviews about it and the advantige compared to a PCIe soundcard, is that it's compatible with linux and I can use it with other devices like my laptop.
 
On the other hand there are also PCIe sound cards like the ASUS Xonar DSX. Which is less than half the price.
 
What do you guy suggest? Go with the fiio or with a dedicated sound card, like the asus, or another one?
Which one will give the best soundquality? external Fiio dac, or PCIe soundcard?
 
Thanks in advance

 

[techboy]

Sound cards should give better sound.

 

[trog]

Well do u need portability for example? If u run demanding cans in the future a soundcard + seperate desktop headphone amp is a possible option as well

 

[bosiwollig]

First of all thank you.
 
What soundcard do you suggest. Atm I only have M50 en CAL, so not really demanding cans. Does a soundcard really give better sq? I think I've read somewhere the fiio e10 was superior :/ 
 
Ans soundcar d+ amp. Doesn't the soundcard am palready? So it's double amp, isn't that bad?

 

[NamelessPFG]

It depends on what sound card you're comparing to the E10. I doubt the E10 compares to the likes of the X-Fi Titanium HD or Xonar Essence STX in terms of DAC quality, for instance. Maybe if you were talking about a JDS Labs-built ODAC or Schiit Magni...
 
I take it gaming is a complete non-factor, judging by your preference for Linux?
 
Oh, and as for double-amping, let's just get one thing straight: EVERY analog audio output is technically amplified, even line-outs (which are just amplified to a given spec). In other words, you're almost always double-amping at some point along the chain. What matters is that the amp at the end of the chain is given a clean signal to start with, and outputs a clean signal at louder levels with authority.

 

[bosiwollig]

Thank you for your post,
 
I game sometime, but it's more casual and don't care to much about the sound during games. I'm more interested in clean sound during music playback.
 
So for the money I can buy a fiio e10, I won't get better sq when buying a soundcard for my computer? (I know there are better >100$ cards, but I just want to compare to the pricerange of the e10)
 
The fiio e10 cost about 90$ where I live
 
 
 
Thanks in advance