[Pumba]

Hello,
I own Shure SRH750DJ headphones, lately my headphones sounded really bad when connected to my PC. 
I plugged them to my ipod and they sounded great, I figured there might be a problem in my PC's soundcard.
so I ordered fiio e10 dac which arrived today, plugged my headphones with the dac to the PC, guess what? still sounds like ****. bass was a lot more powerful but there was a lot of distortion. tried the line out socket, tryed  3 different usb sockets, still the exact same bad sound.
now I plugged my headphones with the e10 to my laptop, and they sound amazing!
but how can it be? what's the problem with my PC?
Help me out here guys!!

 

[Necrontyr]

I answered this question recently in the fiio e17 thread :
 
Question : like yours
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/587912/fiio-e17-alpen-first-impression-final-thought/4335#post_8644023
 
Answer : 
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/587912/fiio-e17-alpen-first-impression-final-thought/4335#post_8644415
 
Basically the USB connection is susceptible to power deviations caused by the voltage across the 0v and 5v pins not really being that, but maybe .9v and 4.2v , and fluctuating a lot in between, and its all caused by the ports not being properly grounded.

 

[Pumba]

what if i tryed all of my usb ports and they all sound bad, is there a way i can fix it by myself?

 

[Necrontyr]

Well it depends how computer savvy you are, a better option would be to use the optical output of your PC if it has one, but if it doesn't then I don't think you should alter the internals of your computer unless you built it yourself, or are 100% confident playing with its internals.
 
However I do believe an addon card with USB ports would solve your problem, may I ask are all the USB ports you tried on the back directly on the motherboard ? and you've also tried the front panel ports ( which are connected to the motherboard via a header) 
 
The addon card can be bought through amazon like the ones linked below : again the caveat is don't bother if your PC is by a manufacturer and opening it will void its warranty or if your uncomfortable with electronics
 
Standard USB 2.0 
 
http://www.amazon.com/Syba--Expres-5-port-Host-Controller/dp/B0026I4DZ2/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1346418156&sr=1-1&keywords=pci-e+usb+card
 
 
Why not get a 3.0 compatible one while solving your issue
 
http://www.amazon.com/Uspeed-Superspeed-PCI-E-Ports-Connector/dp/B005ARQV6U/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1346418071&sr=8-2&keywords=pci-e+usb+card

 

[lee730]

Quote:

Hello,
I own Shure SRH750DJ headphones, lately my headphones sounded really bad when connected to my PC. 
I plugged them to my ipod and they sounded great, I figured there might be a problem in my PC's soundcard.
so I ordered fiio e10 dac which arrived today, plugged my headphones with the dac to the PC, guess what? still sounds like ****. bass was a lot more powerful but there was a lot of distortion. tried the line out socket, tryed  3 different usb sockets, still the exact same bad sound.
now I plugged my headphones with the e10 to my laptop, and they sound amazing!
but how can it be? what's the problem with my PC?
Help me out here guys!!

Pumba maybe consider getting a USB Hub. That may solve that issue for you. I had the same problem with my DACport LX. The USB on my PC wasn't giving it enough power and it would cut in and out and crackle at times.

 

[Necrontyr]

Do you have a suggestion for a powered hub that solved your issue, I've not had the problem myself so haven't had to purchase one , so i cant really make a recommendation that will 100% work

 

[lee730]

Well if the problem is indeed due to power fluctuations then I would think it would help. But if that is not the problem then could it be synergy?
 

 

[Necrontyr]

Define synergy ? like what, software conflicts or some-such ?

 

[lee730]

No synergy means if the headphone pairs well with the source. You could have both top of the line headphone and amp and if they don't have good synergy they will sound like ****. Like matching an outfit, do they pair well together? Do you understand?
 

 

[Pumba]

yes, all the ports are directly on the motherboard. I didn't even try the front because they have not been working for a long time.
I think you provided enough information, I'll decide what to do. Thanks !
 
I think srh750 and e10 pair well, I'm not the first to buy this combination. I also noted that they sound good with my laptop.

 

[Necrontyr]

As soon as I hear distortion I nearly discount headphone synergy as a possibility, apologies. 
 
Yea , best bet probably is an external powered hub tbh, good luck !

 

[lee730]

No worries. Just was caught off guard with that one . Believe me I was really upset when my DACport was giving me all those issues. This is on a gaming machine and I never expected the USB ports on a gaming machine to not give enough power (Alienware Area 51).
 

 

[Necrontyr]

Its not necessarily a power issue, there could be more than enough power, but the cause is interference from other devices, good grounding is key, and something that happens a lot in desktop mobos is the grounding gets messed up, i had to stop using my front ports because my front usb ports would create noise on the 3.5mm jack on the same panel, all because they shared a ground. 
 
It happens , but still shame on alienware/dell 

 

[lee730]

Wouldn't a USB hub solve that issue too or no? I figured the constant power feed would keep the power from dropping in and out and solve the issue. I also have noise issues if I use my sound card. I get hiss and interference so I won't dare use that (HO on the PC). For my speakers its no problem but for sensitive IEMs is a big problem. Sounds like a rattle-snake is in my room  =P
 

 

[Pumba]

Well if I'm going for a USB hub is there one you could suggest or should I just get the cheapest I can find? 
Also a little off topic, but what would you prefer using with srh750(32ohms), low or high gain?