[Ibai]

Hi guys,
 
Im looking for best computer sound quality posible and I have some doubts. i want listenning to music and videogames.
Also have an external microphone and i need some power for it.
 
I Have an  Asus P5KC motherboard with internal sound card.. do you think an external sound car worth the money? Something like new Creative Sound Blaster new series Z, Zx & ZxR, ASUS Xonar DSX , Xonar U7.... 
 
Also its better having the combo of external sound card+ DAC like dragonfly or  FiiO E10K?
 
My headphones are Denon ADH 1001. 
 
I also play video games and have a 2.1 system but mostly I play with headphones (Denon ADH 1001).
 
 
Give me some advice!
 
Thanks for all.
 
 
Cheers.

 

[Ibai]

no one? :S

 

[atop50]

If you don't need/want any virtual surround options for gaming then you're probably fine with just getting a DAC. I'm not really qualified to recommend any, but from what I can tell the FiiO's are pretty popular on here. If you do want something like Dolby Headphone for gaming, then you'll want to look at getting a dedicated sound card and perhaps a DAC as well, or an all-in-one unit like the Xonar U7.
 
What microphone do you have, and what do you mean by "need some power for it"?
 
Hopefully someone more experienced with DACs will come along and make some real recommendations...

 

[Ibai]

Hi Atop50, thx for the reply.
 
I want to have dolby on headphones for gaming yes. For this, i have bought an Asus Xonar DGX ( it has headphone amplifier). But when you use the soudn card+ the DAC, you lose the dolby, right? cause DAC´s are all digital to analog.
 
WIll the sound improve with the sound card + the dac? or better only have the sound card.
 
Thx
 
Cheers.

 

[atop50]

  I want to have dolby on headphones for gaming yes. For this, i have bought an Asus Xonar DGX ( it has headphone amplifier). But when you use the soudn card+ the DAC, you lose the dolby, right? cause DAC´s are all digital to analog.

That depends on whether you connect the DAC via USB or use the DGX's optical output. USB will bypass the sound card and thus you will not be able to use any of the DSP options such as Dolby Headphone. If you get a DAC with an optical input and use the S/PDIF out on the DGX to run it, you should be able to take advantage of DSP on the card while also utilizing the external DAC rather than the one built into the DGX.

Originally Posted by Ibai /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
WIll the sound improve with the sound card + the dac? or better only have the sound card.

As for the difference in quality between plugging headphones straight into the sound card versus using an external DAC via optical out from the card:
 
I currently have a Xonar DSX (different form the DGX), an Audioengine D1 DAC, and a pair of Audio Technica ATH-AD700X's which I use in a similar setup to the one I described above (DSX→S/PDIF out→Audioengine D1→AD700X). When I plug straight into the DSX I can't really notice a difference in sound quality, however the result does seem warmer than the D1 which I've grown accustomed to.
 
For now I'd say hold off on getting a DAC and test out the DGX to see how it sounds to you. If you find that doesn't cut it for things like music then you might look into getting a DAC.
 
Sorry if any of that's confusing, I know it's a lot of information at once.

 

[Ibai]

Its okay atop50. I have understood eveything. Not problems at all. I will investigate the options you describe.
 
I will see.
 
Thanks again,mate.
 
Cheers.

 

[Ibai]

Atop50, the DGX arrived and wooo..... the sound is amazing... the sound has improved a lot from the on board i used to listen to... I will continue investigating about this, but i dont know why.. i liek the new Fiio E10K a lot... maybe for its price and because its 2in1 (AMPLI+DAC)
 
Cheers.

 

[eagle63]

   
WIll the sound improve with the sound card + the dac? or better only have the sound card.
 
Thx
 
Cheers.

Have you seen the article on Tom's Hardware from a few months back?  They did a big comparison between different DAC's, ranging from a $2 Realtek DAC built-in to a motherboard vs a $2000 external DAC.  The bottom line is they couldn't tell any difference.  An amp is one thing, but I'd be pretty hesitant on spending money for a sound card if you're hope is getting better sound quality.