[MBlue72]

Hello:
 
I will be buying a new computer soon – probably either a Dell XPS 8300 or one of the HP Pavilion series units. Today I listen to my Sennheiser HD800 phones via my McIntosh preamp (driven by a Squeezebox Touch) but am planning on buying a DAC and headphone amp later this year to allow me to listen to my library of music (FLAC files) directly from my new computer.
 
My question is simple – do I even care what sound card is installed on the new computer? I'll connect the DAC to the “digital audio out” from the new computer right? I imagine this will be the SPDIF … or I can even experiment and try one of the USB ports. Does the sound card play any role in the signal being fed to the DAC?
 
Also, I obviously prefer a computer that is relatively quiet. I have purchased quite a few Dells and HPs over the years and my take is that Dells are noisier than the HPs. Do any of you have experience with either the Dell XPS 8300 or HP Pavilion?  Any opinion on noise level?
 
Thanks very much,
 
Dave

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

I will be buying a new computer soon – probably either a Dell XPS 8300 or one of the HP Pavilion series units. Today I listen to my Sennheiser HD800 phones via my McIntosh preamp (driven by a Squeezebox Touch) but am planning on buying a DAC and headphone amp later this year to allow me to listen to my library of music (FLAC files) directly from my new computer.
My question is simple – do I even care what sound card is installed on the new computer? I'll connect the DAC to the “digital audio out” from the new computer right? I imagine this will be the SPDIF … or I can even experiment and try one of the USB ports. Does the sound card play any role in the signal being fed to the DAC?
Also, I obviously prefer a computer that is relatively quiet. I have purchased quite a few Dells and HPs over the years and my take is that Dells are noisier than the HPs. Do any of you have experience with either the Dell XPS 8300 or HP Pavilion?  Any opinion on noise level?

Sound cards come with DACs, when you use an external DAC, your are bypassing the add-on sound card (most of the time).
You would need an add-on sound card more for movies and gaming, if all your doing is music you can just get an external DAC & headphone amplifier.
A good low cost DAC is the DAC Destroyer (USB/DAC), as cheap as $50 off eBay.
 
 
 

 

[obobskivich]

If the DAC connects via S/PDIF, the internal audio controller is still being an audio controller, it just isn't performing the very last DtoA stage. If it provides any sort of processing or decoding (it likely does, even if it's just in drivers) that will still be available. If you're using a USB or FireWire based audio controller, it's doing a lot more than that last DtoA stage, and is acting as an audio controller as well (and these are the devices that get bandied around as a "USB DAC"). 
 
So in that light, no, you really shouldn't care.
 
Regarding the noise thing - that's a gross over-generalization to regard Dell as "noisier" and it's entirely inaccurate. Noise from a PC is dictated by a number of factors, and any PC can be noisy or quiet as a result; it does not matter who built it. Dell has made a number of silent or nearly silent machines, just as HP, and they've also made some real burners. If you're really obsessed with having an absolutely silent PC, I'd suggest building it yourself, and going with entirely passive components (this assumes all you care about is hi-fi) - there will be no noise beyond the potential transformer and coil hum and any mechanical drives that you need/bring in. 
 
 
 
 

 

[MBlue72]

Thanks to you both for your quick help. I just wanted to be sure to understand the role the sound card plays in all of this.
 
With regard to the Dell vs. HP decision ... I am actually leaning heavily toward Dell for a couple of reasons. First, I have been purchasing a new computer every two years or so for the last 25 years. Of those 12 computers, 10 have been Dells and the last 2 have been HPs. In every case, the Dells (knock on wood) have never had a single failure or significant problem. The HP I purchased 3-1/2 years ago has had two graphics card failures. Secondly, I am an active investor (really off topic!) and purchased Dell in the early 1990s. It was one of my very best investments ever. So I've been pretty loyal to them. I originally invested in them after I purchased my first Dell and became thoroughly impressed with what they delivered at the various price points.
 
I'm not obsessed with having a silent machine but would like it to be quiet. I wish TomsHardware or someone else quantified the fan noise of the different PCs. Clearly, the noise correlates to the heat building up inside the case which in turn depends on many factors including the load on the graphics card. I will probably get a higher-end graphics card that might help the overall system run smoother (and quieter?).
 
Thanks again to you both.
 
Dave
 
 

 

[obobskivich]

Your statements about computers are generally inaccurate. I don't mean to offend in saying this, it's just the honest truth. If you'd like more expansion on the topic I'd be happy (it will not be a short post), or if you'd like to just go on your merry way that's fine too. 
 
Quote:

Thanks to you both for your quick help. I just wanted to be sure to understand the role the sound card plays in all of this.
 
With regard to the Dell vs. HP decision ... I am actually leaning heavily toward Dell for a couple of reasons. First, I have been purchasing a new computer every two years or so for the last 25 years. Of those 12 computers, 10 have been Dells and the last 2 have been HPs. In every case, the Dells (knock on wood) have never had a single failure or significant problem. The HP I purchased 3-1/2 years ago has had two graphics card failures. Secondly, I am an active investor (really off topic!) and purchased Dell in the early 1990s. It was one of my very best investments ever. So I've been pretty loyal to them. I originally invested in them after I purchased my first Dell and became thoroughly impressed with what they delivered at the various price points.
 
I'm not obsessed with having a silent machine but would like it to be quiet. I wish TomsHardware or someone else quantified the fan noise of the different PCs. Clearly, the noise correlates to the heat building up inside the case which in turn depends on many factors including the load on the graphics card. I will probably get a higher-end graphics card that might help the overall system run smoother (and quieter?).
 
Thanks again to you both.
 
Dave