[Chaay]

I was thinking of buying a Mixamp/Ear Force DSS for Dolby Headphone on my Xbox 360, but since I get audio off my sound card I have no idea if this will work. I wanted to post a small excerpt from a thread I made in case anyone here can answer for me:
 
Can I get sound on my Xbox 360 from my sound card, and also get Dolby Headphone (5.1 or virtual 7.1) from the Ear Force DSS/Mixamp? I will be ordering the Xonar DG for use with this.
 
 
Everything involved in my planned Xbox 360 setup would be:
Computer Monitor, Asus Xonar DG sound card (inside the running PC of course), Ear Force DSS/Mixamp, Headphones.
 

If not, is the only option for console gamers is to buy a TV, or something else?

 

[Tacoboy]

 
Quote:

Thank you for the offer, but realistically I guess it would be hard to show sound leakage.
 
Since I will have a campus job for spending money, I think I will go with closed cans to be on the safe side and pick up the AD700s later if its OK.
 
The A700/900s look nice but it's breaking the bank, my ideal budget is $30-$70 maxing out at $100, basically just entry-level headphones with a good soundstage for gaming.
 

Superlux HD-668Bs are semi-open and leak all most no sound (at normal volume levels)
Best price at Audiohipster.
 
 

 

[Chaay]

Quote:

 
Superlux HD-668Bs are semi-open and leak all most no sound (at normal volume levels)
Best price at Audiohipster.
 
 

Hey there. I was pretty unsure for awhile posting around but decided on the 668b the other day. The reviews are extremely good considering their price. Thanks for bringing me to their name initially.
 
The only thing I have left to figure out is if I can get the mixamp/DSS to work with my setup (two posts up).
 
 

 

[Rebel975]

 
Quote:

I was thinking of buying a Mixamp/Ear Force DSS for Dolby Headphone on my Xbox 360, but since I get audio off my sound card I have no idea if this will work. I wanted to post a small excerpt from a thread I made in case anyone here can answer for me:
 
Can I get sound on my Xbox 360 from my sound card, and also get Dolby Headphone (5.1 or virtual 7.1) from the Ear Force DSS/Mixamp? I will be ordering the Xonar DG for use with this.
 
 
Everything involved in my planned Xbox 360 setup would be:
Computer Monitor, Asus Xonar DG sound card (inside the running PC of course), Ear Force DSS/Mixamp, Headphones.
 

If not, is the only option for console gamers is to buy a TV, or something else?

Doesn't the DG already do Dolby Headphone? If not, then it would be easy to hook up a Mixamp. Optical out from the DG > Mixamp > Headphone out to your headphones
 
I'm reading your question again and I'm a little confused. Are you wanting Dolby Headphone with the Xbox or with the DG? If the DG, I'm pretty sure it does Dolby Headphone. If the Xbox, then you need only look at my sig to see how it's done.
 
Xbox with audio breakout dongle (to give it an optical port) > Mixamp > Headphone out  > Headphones. I'm kind of confused why you put that you want 5.1 with your xbox, but then are mentioning your Xonar DG. Your monitor and Xonar DG won't effect your sound setup with the Xbox at all.

 

[Tacoboy]

 
Quote:

Hey there. I was pretty unsure for awhile posting around but decided on the 668b the other day. The reviews are extremely good considering their price. Thanks for bringing me to their name initially.
 
The only thing I have left to figure out is if I can get the mixamp/DSS to work with my setup (two posts up).
 
 

I'm going to guess you can use the red/white RCA stereo audio output coming from the Xbox 360 cable, you would need a cable with 2 RCA female RCA connectors (red/white) on one end and a single stereo mini jack (3.5mm) male connector on the other end, this cable would connect the Xbox 360 audio output to the Xonar DG's port 1 (input, mini jack 3.5mm), then plug you headphones into the DG's port 2 (headphone/front output), Then set the DG control panel to Dolby Headphone (5.1).
If your computer has a headphone jack at the front of the case, you can plug your headphones there too.
Hopefully ??, this will give you Dolby headphone for the Xbox 360...Hopefully you will not need the mixamp/DSS.
 

 

[Chaay]

Quote:

 


Doesn't the DG already do Dolby Headphone? If not, then it would be easy to hook up a Mixamp. Optical out from the DG > Mixamp > Headphone out to your headphones
 
I'm reading your question again and I'm a little confused. Are you wanting Dolby Headphone with the Xbox or with the DG? If the DG, I'm pretty sure it does Dolby Headphone. If the Xbox, then you need only look at my sig to see how it's done.
 
Xbox with audio breakout dongle (to give it an optical port) > Mixamp > Headphone out  > Headphones. I'm kind of confused why you put that you want 5.1 with your xbox, but then are mentioning your Xonar DG. Your monitor and Xonar DG won't effect your sound setup with the Xbox at all.

I want Dolby Headphone with the Xbox. I understand that the DG itself would only give stereo (to the Xbox), but I don't understand how I will even get sound at all for my Xbox with a Mixamp/DSS.
 
I currently use a VGA cable http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-VGA-HD-AV-Cable/dp/B000B6MLTG to get video off my monitor and sound from my computer's onboard, integrated audio (which is output through desktop speakers). The VGA cable already has an optical port if its that little black square.
 
What I want to go to is using the VGA cable to get video off my monitor and using a Mixamp/Ear Force DSS to get Dolby Headphone, while using headphones instead of speakers.
 
But where would my sound then come from? Before it came from plugging the RCA cables into the line-in jack and then outputting it through desktop speakers. I thought the Mixamp/Ear Force DSS just acted as decoders and didn't provide any source of sound or amplification? Or am I totally missing something lol?
 
Here is a link to the thread I made, please let me know if I'm not explaining this right.
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/567464/xbox-360-sound-card-and-mixamp-dss-help#post_7686694

 

[RapidPulse]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chaay /img/forum/go_quote.gif

I thought the Mixamp/Ear Force DSS just acted as decoders and didn't provide any source of sound or amplification? Or am I totally missing something lol?

 
Yes...you are missing something  

 
Both the Mixamp and the DSS have 1/8 inch headphone jacks and do provide some amplification.
 
Or, if you prefer, like in Rebel's signature, you can connect the mixamp to a more powerful headphone amp and then plug the headphones into the amp.

 

[Jae304]

Quote:

But where would my sound then come from? Before it came from plugging the RCA cables into the line-in jack and then outputting it through desktop speakers. I thought the Mixamp/Ear Force DSS just acted as decoders and didn't provide any source of sound or amplification? Or am I totally missing something lol?

You're totally missing something! 

  The Mixamp does not require anything else in order to power your headphones -- it provides more than just decoding.  Simply connect the optical cable from the xbox to the mixamp, then plug in your headphones to the mixamp.  Done...well, besides USB to power it or batteries if you go with the wireless unit.    

 

[Chaay]

Wow...just...lol.
 
I can't believe I made things so over complicated and it was that simple. Thank you guys so much for helping me out! Honestly, I'm pretty annoyed I've been using stereo desktop speakers, from an integrated sound card , all this time when it turns out for under $200 you can get a combo like Mixamp+AD700 these days.

 
But if they are mostly the same I will probably go with the Ear Force DSS. I read that you lose the option to balance chat volume with non Turtle Beach headsets, but that won't be a big issue for me. It's $70 for the DSS off Amazon vs. $130 for the Mixamp.

 

[Eric_C]

Based on discussions in this thread, I would strongly advise you to take the mixamp instead of the Ear Force DSS. It consistently gets reviewed as the kind of thing you buy once and never have to worry about for gaming audio ever again.

 

[Tacoboy]

 
Quote:

Hey there. I was pretty unsure for awhile posting around but decided on the 668b the other day. The reviews are extremely good considering their price. Thanks for bringing me to their name initially.
 
The only thing I have left to figure out is if I can get the mixamp/DSS to work with my setup (two posts up).
 
 

I know you can run the audio cable from your XBox to the Xonar DG and hook your headphones to the DG, hopefully the Xonar DG can process that signal to Dolby headphone (5.1)
Hopefully, no need for the Mixamp/DSS,
The Xonar DG and the Mixamp/DSS do a lot of the same functions.
 
 

 

[Chaay]

Quote:

 
I know you can run the audio cable from your XBox to the Xonar DG and hook your headphones to the DG, hopefully the Xonar DG can process that signal to Dolby headphone (5.1)
Hopefully, no need for the Mixamp/DSS,
The Xonar DG and the Mixamp/DSS do a lot of the same functions.
 
 

I've looked into this and from what I've gathered am almost entirely sure this cannot work, the best you can do is stereo. I think it's possible with a more advanced (expensive) sound card and Dolby Digital Live, but this is only based off my research today. As for me, I'm just happy the Mixamp/DSS will work and that it's much less complicated than I imagined.
 


Quote:

Based on discussions in this thread, I would strongly advise you to take the mixamp instead of the Ear Force DSS. It consistently gets reviewed as the kind of thing you buy once and never have to worry about for gaming audio ever again.

As far as sound quality goes, based on reviews I've seen from reliable people, I feel confident the DSS and Mixamp are near equal. What you really lose with the DSS is the ability to chat using a headset that wasn't made specifically for Xbox360 (and maybe PS3, not sure). In order to do that, you have to spend $10 on a third-party cable, and even more if you want the ability to mix chat volume.
 
I don't think the chat functions justify the $60 premium for the Mixamp because I don't need them right now and money is tight. If it was two months from now and I was set up with my campus job and had an income I would not hesitate to get the Mixamp over the DSS.
 

 

[Eric_C]

So a MixAmp/DSS would be effective in place of a soundcard, no? Since both can work via USB, as well as with consoles.

 

[Rebel975]

Yes, the Mixamp will do a lot of things that a sound card does. It has a DAC. It provides some amplification to headphones (though not very much). It mixes stereo into surround sound. It's really an amazing piece of kit for console gaming, especially considering the voice to game volume mixer that you can use with any headphone/mic combo that you want.
 
That said, I would never recommend it for PC gamers. Any equally priced discrete sound card will do everything the mixamp does but better. Stronger amp, much better DAC, etc.
 
As for the DSS vs Mixamp: The DSS is really just a poor man's Mixamp. The DSS still does the most important thing you want it to do- process stereo into surround sound. What you lose out on are a game to voice volume mixer, and some inputs. The Mixamp will take RCA, 1/8" headphone, TOSlink, and Coaxial for inputs. The DSS will only take TOSlink and 1/8" headphone.
 
By the way, I just looked, and the Mixamp is only $40 more than the DSS. It also comes with a nice 12 foot RCA piggyback cable (like the one linked but much nicer), and everything you need to hook up a third party headset. To be fair, the DSS does come with an optical cable, when the Mixamp does not.

 

[Chaay]

How would I go about hooking the Mixamp/DSS to the PC without an optical port on the PC? Even without Dolby Headphone, does the Mixamp/DSS allow you to plug into one of the 3.5mm ports on the back of your PC for stereo?
 
I only use audio on the PC for streaming Hulu and Youtube, and I'm wondering if its worth ordering the Xonar DG ($30) for the optical port or not.