[Whyifide]

So I bought the ASUS Xonar Essence ST. It was an upgrade above my X-Fi XtremeMusic, but not huge. Then I got some OP Amps for $8 (LME49720NA's) which I'm really happy with, but still doesn't perform as well as I'd like it to. I was wondering if there are any DAC alternatives that would sound even better than my current set up at the moment. I plan on returning my Essence ST this week and purchasing something else with the $210. I heard something about the $130 Musiland Monitor 02 sounding better than the Essence ST, but only two people were able to "confirm" this. Anyway, make suggestions, give some insight. I'd be extremely grateful for any input at this point. Anything from $0 - $250 will be considered.

 

[abnorm]

I am wondering how ST compares to the new 1212M PCIe. I use to have 1616M, and loved the sound quality, but the breakout box kept failing.
I use Swan M200mkIII speakers.

 

[thoppa]

Onkyo SE-200pci might suit you. Straight out of the box, it is 'better' than the ST.

You could go usb with a Teralink X or X2 and then get a standalone dac. This has the potential to be much better than a pci card.

You've got so many options in fact, that you really need to clarify exactly what you want the thing to be able to do, what you're going to hook it up to, etc.

 

[Whyifide]

Well, here's the run down: I want something below $250 that my AD700's will go into (eventually upgrading those, as well). I'd like them to sound more natural, warm, yet clarity is also on the high and a massive soundstage. I'd like to be able to pick up timbre clearly, and I'd like sweet highs and soothing, deep lows. I'd like a prominent mid range that sounds realistic, like someone is literally speaking into your ears.

I'll be hooking it up to my computer and my AD700, with a possibility of a headphone amp later on.

 

[thoppa]

Good luck with that - sounds like a lot more than US$250 tbh or some serious modifying work.

I'd take a look at the HT Omega Claro Halo. However, if you can stretch your budget, contact MisterX and ask him how much to build you a usb y2 dac and a Mini3.

Alternatively, hang on - Asus might be bringing out a new Xonar soon in conjunction with Sennheiser.

 

[lxxl]

You are asking a lot for $250, even at 10x the budget you might not get what you requested.

Start looking into External DAC with Amp, you are already hitting the upper end sound card.

 

[sokolov91]

Yeah... that's quite a tall order for a 200$ soundcard, and pair of 170$ headphones...

AD700 won't give you deep lows anyways, it's very basslight. Not to mention it apparently suffers from congestion/compression as it isn't near as speedy as the higher tier AT headphones. Even with the BEST dac and amp, it wouldn't give you that.

Massive sound stage... sounds like you want AKG K70X. Wouldn't say it is the most natural sounding headphone though. If you wanna stick with AT, the W1000X gets my vote for big soundstage and naturalness, by my ears anyways.

Check out Audio GD stuff too... its cheap and very highly regarded around here, although several times over your budget. For what you are asking though, its go big, or go home.

Welcome to head-fi, sorry about your wallet

 

[CodeToad]

A usb Gamma2 will be a nice DAC for any headphone and it's performance is top shelf for the price. However, don't discount the Gamma1 usb either. Even though the chips in it may not be the newest thing on the market, the fact that you are getting sound from outside of the realm of the PC will probably help a lot.

A usb Gamma1 and a Mini3 is a very respectable combo. You might be surprised at the sound that comes out of those little black boxes.

(I say usb because it bypasses the sound card altogether...most of them can't keep their hands off the signal)

 

[ManuLM]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Whyifide /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well, here's the run down: I want something below $250 that my AD700's will go into (eventually upgrading those, as well). I'd like them to sound more natural, warm, yet clarity is also on the high and a massive soundstage. I'd like to be able to pick up timbre clearly, and I'd like sweet highs and soothing, deep lows. I'd like a prominent mid range that sounds realistic, like someone is literally speaking into your ears. I'll be hooking it up to my computer and my AD700, with a possibility of a headphone amp later on.

sounds to me also as a tough call for AD700...
You ask about changing the card, I fear changing the cans might actually be more what you need.
For a STX alternative, actually the prodigy HD2 is a very good one. Together with AD797 on the I&V and either LT1028 or OPA earth as buffer will give you a very convincing result.