Keopele19
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2013
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I'm deciding between a couple options to upgrade my entry level computer setup:
I have grado sr80s currently powered by window's "high definition audio driver" or whatever it's called - basically the onboard soundcard from my ~7 year old asus motherboard. I also have ****ty 2.1 logitech speakers but mostly listen to rock / prog rock and some electronic through the grados, I might upgrade the speakers at some point, but more focused on being selfish with cans so might upgrade those sooner haha. I play SC2 and occasionally other games but mainly starcraft. and my focus is the music (between 192 and 320 bitrate mp3 mostly).
Will I benefit from an amp/dac upgrade? I had it narrowed down to a couple options, please help me decide or recommend a smarter alternative:
asus essence stx - i've heard great things about this sound card. will they work well with low impedance cans like grados?
hifiman ef2a - also, a dac/amp combo i've heard good reviews about, and at a tempting pricepoint. obviously won't have any of the gaming features of the internal soundcard, but will it sound better than the asus stx?
little dot i+ / fiio or similar dac - i've read reviews describing how well the LD i+ plays with grados, but what about a dac? most expensive option so am i right in assuming it will sound the best?
Thanks.
I have grado sr80s currently powered by window's "high definition audio driver" or whatever it's called - basically the onboard soundcard from my ~7 year old asus motherboard. I also have ****ty 2.1 logitech speakers but mostly listen to rock / prog rock and some electronic through the grados, I might upgrade the speakers at some point, but more focused on being selfish with cans so might upgrade those sooner haha. I play SC2 and occasionally other games but mainly starcraft. and my focus is the music (between 192 and 320 bitrate mp3 mostly).
Will I benefit from an amp/dac upgrade? I had it narrowed down to a couple options, please help me decide or recommend a smarter alternative:
asus essence stx - i've heard great things about this sound card. will they work well with low impedance cans like grados?
hifiman ef2a - also, a dac/amp combo i've heard good reviews about, and at a tempting pricepoint. obviously won't have any of the gaming features of the internal soundcard, but will it sound better than the asus stx?
little dot i+ / fiio or similar dac - i've read reviews describing how well the LD i+ plays with grados, but what about a dac? most expensive option so am i right in assuming it will sound the best?
Thanks.
