[leeperry]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 12Bass /img/forum/go_quote.gif IMO, the AD823 is not in the same league sonically... sort of bright/harsh, yet missing finer detail.

so what do you advise...the top of the line THS___? and what diff did you hear between 4562/49720?

do you own the STX?

Quote:

Originally Posted by hadouken /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have my eye on the Sony SA5000, Beyerdynamic DT880 (2005) and Denon AH-D5000.

all I can say is that the beyer are mind blowing in 600Ω

the higher the impedance, the faster/more transparent they get because the coil is lighter and more responsive!

 

[GWorlDofSPACE]

In the begining of this topic a guy did some experiments whit the PSU! I think the xonar essence has a really good DAC. But the PC PSU, I have a corsair one is ****. I searched the internet and found some linear regulated stuff but if the cards price is 199$ and then you buy a PSU for 100-300$ that is insane. Do you guys have any suggestions about PSU?

 

[12Bass]

Nope. No STX. More of an op amp junkie.

THS4032 might be worth a try for I/V. My experience with AD823 was in a few other applications. My memory of its tonality is not favorable. The differences I heard between LME49720/LM4562 were subtle... a little more clarity in the LME, with similar general tonality.

 

[leeperry]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 12Bass /img/forum/go_quote.gif Nope. No STX. More of an op amp junkie. THS4032 might be worth a try for I/V. My experience with AD823 was in a few other applications. My memory of its tonality is not favorable. The differences I heard between LME49720/LM4562 were subtle... a little more clarity in the LME, with similar general tonality.

what do you think of the NJM5532? too warm/distorted? gives sort of a "tube" sound?

the stock 2114D on the STX are mostly improved 5532 I think..

I recently read an external DAC manufacturer saying that op-amps changed the sound color more than DAC's...after he ran many tests w/ customers.

also, everyone raves about the burson discrete op-amps....but several say that he gets them from a chinese website for really cheap and makes crazy markups on them

I see TI gives samples away too, I'll try to secure some THS4032

oops: the THS4032 doesn't come in DIP8

 

[dex85]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GWorlDofSPACE /img/forum/go_quote.gif In the begining of this topic a guy did some experiments whit the PSU! I think the xonar essence has a really good DAC. But the PC PSU, I have a corsair one is ****. I searched the internet and found some linear regulated stuff but if the cards price is 199$ and then you buy a PSU for 100-300$ that is insane. Do you guys have any suggestions about PSU?

corsair sells one the best pc PSUs, although they not produce them theirselves. unless if you're feeling like spending money and getting no improvements, i wouldn't bother with getting new psu. especially if you have one made by Seasonic (HX520, VX450, i'm not sure about HX620 manufacturer - its either Seasonic or Channel Well, it's great psu regardless)

 

[GWorlDofSPACE]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dex85 /img/forum/go_quote.gif corsair sells one the best pc PSUs, although they not produce them theirselves. unless if you're feeling like spending money and getting no improvements, i wouldn't bother with getting new psu. especially if you have one made by Seasonic (HX520, VX450, i'm not sure about HX620 manufacturer - its either Seasonic or Channel Well, it's great psu regardless)

I have a corsair TX650 PSU! Do you think its good?

 

[leeperry]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GWorlDofSPACE /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have a corsair TX650 PSU! Do you think its good?

the most nitpicking PSU test I've ever seen was on this french site : CanardPC.com - Hardware > Alimentation > Alimentations ATX 2009 > Corsair HX620W

maybe you can translate it...anyway, they say that the HX620 should have bigger output caps and that the +5V should have a higher efficiency when under light load...but apart from these details, they say it's good stuff!

OTOH, some other PSU's in this test fail bigtime...the Seasonic S12-II doesn't even meet the ATX 2.3 specs for power micro-cuts, the input caps are not beefy enough.

I personally have a BeQuiet 500W, very happy w/ it! another serious site tested it and said that the efficiency was lacking a bit, but that it was dead silent and some of the most stable voltages they had ever seen(hardly any ripple at all)....plus it's got 3 years on-site warranty, they ship you a replacement unit right away by express courier. silence and voltage stability are my highest expectations from a PSU.

 

[dex85]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GWorlDofSPACE /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have a corsair TX650 PSU! Do you think its good?

yeah, its definitely good psu, slight concern might be somewhat high ripple on 12v under full load but i seriously doubt you will ever need more than half of its output power. depends on you pc rig.

btw, seasonic failing some test? most probably a faulty piece. reviewers praise seasonic, one the best pc psu manufucterers out there.

Corsair TX650W ATX12V power supply | silentpcreview.com

 

[Aquanote]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hadouken /img/forum/go_quote.gif I notice you have a pair of DT880's with this card Aquanote, what are your thoughts?

What I like about the 880´s is that they´re so comfy

and second what I enjoy about the the sonic qualities is the incredible soundstage. I creates such a defined space in my ear where all the sounds, intruments and voices can be heard without "interfering" with each other. Here are some adjectives: fast, clear, sparkling, analytical, voluminous.

I love them for electronic music. I dont like them so much with very loaded rock music where they add beackground noise and such. It gets screamy easily. For that I rather use the rx700 which is more direct. In every other department its inferior, though.

hope I didn´t offend anyone with my opinion. I give you the usual grain of salt with it

Im a noob and might be wrong anyway.

 

[12Bass]

Another point of note: many of the modern high performance op amps are limited to singles, SOIC, or both (e.g. AD797, OPA827, OPA211, OPA2365, THS4032). That necessitates SOIC -> DIP adapters.

 

[ROBSCIX]

True, there are many newer opamps, thta only come in SOIC, or single channel or both.

 

[riderforever]

Does somebody have tried the Essence with Windows7RC1? I do and it seems to me it's an improvement over Vista: the sound gets more transparent with tighter bass.

The side effect is that the Asus Audio Center does not work anymore, and the Windows Audio Mixer does not open. To change the master volume I have to use the knob integrated into my Logitech keyboard or to go into Sound Devices -> Playback Devices -> Levels... not very comfortable to say the least

Just to mention: there are also troubles with the wasapi plugin of foobar, it's not very reliable so I'm stuck with DS.

 

[leeperry]

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/5609459-post1322.html

so KS is not resampled by the stupid drivers?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ROBSCIX /img/forum/go_quote.gif @Boj, I got a set of extension wires, you can get them from Audio-GD or Burson and they allow you to do testing with opamps without removing your card. When you find the set of opamps you really like then pull the card and add the opamps.

I thought the distance between the PCB and the op-amp was vital?
apparently putting DIP8 adapters on SOIC8 connectors is a no-no because of this...the distance would be much longer and would ruin the THD ?!

 

[ROBSCIX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by leeperry /img/forum/go_quote.gif http://www.head-fi.org/forums/5609459-post1322.html so KS is not resampled by the stupid drivers? I thought the distance between the PCB and the op-amp was vital? apparently putting DIP8 adapters on SOIC8 connectors is a no-no because of this...the distance would be much longer and would ruin the THD ?!

I have heard varying opinions on that subject.
As for "putting DIP8 adapters on SOIC8 connectors" not really sure what that means. If you intend on doing any experiementing with discrete units, these wires are a necessary evil.

 

[leeperry]

well I meant putting DIP8 holders on PCB's that had SOIC8 op-amps in the first place.

I read several times and was confirmed that the metal 49720 sound better than the DIP8, mostly coz the case kills any possible EMI...but I was kinda dubious because the leads would be too long then

and I'm quite amazed that noone cares that the stupid drivers resample every <96KHz stream...especially through ASIO, which should be bit-perfect.

ah well, apparently KS doesn't get ruined by either KMixer or the Asus drivers? mostly I wanna be able to make playlists w/ 16/44.1 & 24/96 and hear them at the right pitch w/o clicking STOP....and w/o any sloppy resampling

maybe all of this occurs if you don't disable the DSP modes....I should get my card early next week.