[constipationnow]

Hi
 
My Setup:
 
- VIA VT1818 8-Channel High Definition Audio CODEC (Onboard M4A87TD/USB3)
- Sony MDR XB500
 
Purpose/Goals and Background:
 
- I want mids and highs to be more clear, but i dont want to lose the deep bass. At the moment i think highs and mids are lacking, i need more clarity, is it possible to get even "better" bass too?. Sometimes it feels muddy, like if im playing a bad quality song on 128kbps, if you get what i mean (otherwise ask me ). 
- The EQ on my onboard sucks really hard. Lowest range is 60hz and it's impossible to make it sound good. I use iTunes EQ instead, and it works great, but only for music but i need it to work for everything, youtube etc.
- Pricerange at 30-80$ depending on price/performance and value. Is the pricerange stupid in comparison to my XB500?
- Im a basshead and a noob. Im not an audiophile nor a producer.
- I listen mainly to dubstep/hiphop/house and this soundcard is mainly for music. I do some gaming, but music is prio 1.
- If it's possible, i'd like to have a soundcard that's good for speakers too (if i buy for example Z-623 in the future) as an investment for the future.
 
I've been looking at Xonar DG (reviews, forums), but some people say that they can't hear a difference or a very small difference... If i decide to buy a soundcard i want to be sure that i will experience a really noticable difference. If the soundcard is good as an investment for the future headphones/speakers it'd be a plus. I'm NOT looking for high-end gear here.
 
Thanks a lot head-fi forums  

 

[weez82]

Quote:

- I want mids and highs to be more clear, but i dont want to lose the deep bass. At the moment i think highs and mids are lacking, i need more clarity, is it possible to get even "better" bass too?. Sometimes it feels muddy, like if im playing a bad quality song on 128kbps, if you get what i mean (otherwise ask me ). 

Kinda looks like you need new headphones? Do you have this same need for clearer mids and highs when using the headphones on other devices like an mp3 player or receiver?

 

[mephiska]

Two suggestions from me since I own and actively use both (and listen to Dubstep from time to time):
 
1.)  Get a FiiO E7 for around $90 and use that as a USB DAC for your computer.  That will give you fantastic sound, plus you can use it as a portable amp.   It'll also greatly improve all other sounds in Windows and PC games.  The only drawback is you don't get any 3d audio features as it's 2 channel sound only, but unless you're hooked on 3d virtual audio over headphones or are hooked into a 5.1/7.1 setup, you won't miss it.   It does, however, have some pretty good bass boost capabilities and goes down to 10 hz.
 
2.)  Best Buy has the X-Fi Titanium on sale for $60 right now.  It's really hard to beat at that price, plus you get 3d headphone capabilities.  Configured correctly, it works really well.  Audio fidelity-wise, it's not as good as an external DAC like the E7 or other pricier options, but it's certainly better than the onboard sound you have now, and the bass boost has options to go all the way down to 10 hz since you said you like bass.   It's not quite as good as a X-Fi Titanium HD but it's still pretty damned good

 

[fancypantaloons]

You would probably achieve your goals better by getting a different set of headphones.  The Xonar DG has an internal headphone amp.  That said, it probably is not the greatest at $30 or whatever it is at now.  Your biggest immediate benefit is a silent noise floor from a dedicated sound card, which is not your problem.
 
By the way, almost all consumer computer speaker systems stink.  The only decent ones come from real speaker companies like KRK, Swan, Axiom, etc.  ... well except Klipsch.  If you are dissatisfied with the clarity on the XB500, do not bother buying speakers from Logitech.

 

[stv014]

Quote:

it's not as good as an external DAC like the E7 or other pricier options

Although I do not have the X-Fi Titanium, I would not assume that the E7 is necessarily better just because it is external. The DAC on the E7 is actually not that great, and can be outperformed by similarly priced sound cards (e.g. the Xonar D1/DX).
 

 

[constipationnow]

Hi guys, thanks for the answers!
 
Yeah, but i just recently bought these (chistmas) XB500 and would like a soundcard that enchances these XB500 and at the same time is like a preperation for future headphones/speakers, if you get what i mean, it could be more of an investment. Any ideas? I'll be looking into X-Fi titanium and FiiO E7 !
 
I can get a decent clarity on mids and highs if i EQ on iTunes, but since it's only for iTunes, this will not be applied to everything else. And the EQ on my onboard really, really sucks