ASUS Strix Raid DLX or ROG Xonar Phoebus?

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Laucien

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Pretty much that!.

I'm gonna buy a dedicated sound card and I'm between those models. I think the Xonar Phoebus is much older than the Strix but reviews say it's a really good card and in ASUS' site it does come up as the lates version of the ROG line... is it because it was replaced by the Strix?.

I've been looking for reviews but while I do find a lot of reviews of the Xonar Phoebus I can't seem to find that many (or that detailed) about the Strix. What I'm looking for is something with good sound, that allows me to connect headset+mic and 2 front speakers at the same time and hopefully with virtual surround capabilities... as far as I understand it both cards are capable of that, right?.

I'm in Argentina so access to not-that-mainstream hardware components here is pretty limited and high end sound cards fall into that. We either have no options to chose from or those are extremely overpriced so right now I'm limited to only one of these two.

Which one would you guys pick?. I'll be pairing it up with a pair of either HyperX Cloud 2 or Revolver (leaning more towards the Revolvers) and currently a pair of cheap speakers but those are on my 'to-upgrade' list soon.
 
TechLarry said:
Have you considered a DAC with headphone amp?
Click to expand...

I looked into it but after a quick search on our local equivalent of eBay gave up on it. The cost difference is simply too much. Also, I want to keep clutter to a minimum around my desk... that's also why I'm going with a pair of gaming headset as opposed to a better pair of headphones + separate mic.
 
With a gaming headset or run of the mill speakers, in most cases, I'd say that mb built in sound will serve adequately. Take a look at an Micca Origen+ as a rather inexpensive (~$100) external DAC/headphone solution that is a really nice step up before messing with a dedicated sound card and driver hell.
 
I wouldn't recommend buying any ASUS sound cards, I (and others I know) have had of lot of compatibility and software problems with ASUS sound cards. Add that to the fact that the cards in question are essentially just sound codecs like you'd find on a motherboard mounted on a card, best case scenario, the sound performance won't be noticeably better.
 
Supercharged_Z06 said:
With a gaming headset or run of the mill speakers, in most cases, I'd say that mb built in sound will serve adequately. Take a look at an Micca Origen+ as a rather inexpensive (~$100) external DAC/headphone solution that is a really nice step up before messing with a dedicated sound card and driver hell.
Click to expand...

I appreciate the offer but I just did a quick search and apparently that isn't available anywhere around here. I know there must be a zillion better options than what I listed but 90% of that won't be available here.

I'm not set into those two options because I want an ASUS item but because those two are pretty much the best options I could find and still be affordable.
 
Quix said:
I wouldn't recommend buying any ASUS sound cards, I (and others I know) have had of lot of compatibility and software problems with ASUS sound cards. Add that to the fact that the cards in question are essentially just sound codecs like you'd find on a motherboard mounted on a card, best case scenario, the sound performance won't be noticeably better.
Click to expand...

Is there any other brand you would recommend?
 
Okay I've been looking around and yeah, apparently the Strix have a shit-ton of driver issues... The Xonar Phoebus seem to have much better reviews but not sure how good their win10 support is.
 
I went the Objective2/ODAC route myself. Very happy with that solution and zero driver issues. You could potentially source the parts in kit form and build it... But it doesn't solve your mic problem though.
 
I wouldn't touch an Asus Phoebus with a 10 foot pole. Read about their wonderful drivers over on the Asus ROG website.
ASUS Xonar & Strix Series Sound Cards

I was told that Creative has a software solution for surround sound if you go with a DAC.
Sound Blaster X-Fi MB3

Then take the advice of others here and get a headphone amp of some sort. You don't have to do a DAC. Onboard sound amplified can sound good. Here is a company called Fiio that makes some good stuff from simple amps to DACs. Ask one of the guys here for advice.
Amazon.com: Fiio

Could run the optical from the motherboard to a receiver, and use that as your headphone amp, but you said space was at a premium.

Lastly here is a pro microphone guide. Your friends will love your new pristine voice. I'm sure that Pro audio gear is sold in all countries. So you should be able to substitute what is available where you live for the gear in this guide. There are lots of Pro Audio stuff in Brazil for example.
How to set up a streaming studio for under $150 | PC Gamer
 
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I have both a STX and RAID DLX.

Both are good cards with similar specs, although some of the minor components on the STX/STX II are of higher quality then the RAID DLX. Driver wise the STX II is the better card as it has 3rd party driver support under the Uni project. With the RAID DLX you are stuck with the Asus drivers, period. However, the drivers work just fine.

The phoebus is fairly low-end compared to the STX/RAID DLX.

Finally, anyone saying USB DAC's offer better audio quality period compared to these high end soundcards are just wrong. Both the STX and RAID DLX contain a headphone amp and DAC that are some of the best in the business and have outstanding analog stages. People may allude to sound cards getting more 'noise' from being inside a system; However, due to the PCB design and the analog portion of these cards being shielded and powered in a separate stage they are just as good as many higher end USB DAC's. The muse opamps on the STX II in particular are some of the best in the business for the price. The DAC in the RAID DLX is actually superior then the DAC in the STX II, however they don't utilize it's 32-bit capabilities and SNR is the same between to the two. Interestingly enough the RAID DLX is actually running a PCI-E bridge -> USB as the DAC they have chosen is a USB DAC. It's actually one of the best DAC's in the business currently. With upgraded opamps (Which the RAID DLX has socketed op amps) the RAID DLX could potentially be a better sounding card then the STX II. I believe the TI headphone amp on the RAID DLX is superior as well by a very small margin compared to the STX II. T

Both the STX II and RAID DLX will allow you to connect both a headphone and stereo speakers. The RAID DLX has 7.1 analog outputs integrated on the same board, while the STX II has a daughter board for anything beyond stereo output. So if you stick with just stereo you won't need the STX II daughter board.

Anyways both are superb cards. Ultimately the STX II is the better choice because of the superior driver support and higher end op-amps. Both cards support virtual surround. I will say that the virtual surround implementation on the Raid DLX may be superior, although I just keep my cards in flat stereo output mode as I use Razer surround when I want virtual surround. Razer surround to my ears is the best virtual surround out there for gaming, and the best part is that it's free.

As far as the RAID DLX having driver issues.. I don't have any, and i've read some of the complaints you are talking about. A lot of the complaints seem nebulous at best for pinning the issue on the drivers.

Again though, the STX/STX II have superior driver support due to third party driver builds.
 
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I have a Phoebus and had such a bad experience that I'm permanently biased against it. I will say that it sounded great in stereo. It is a beautifully engineered hardware solution as long as you never use the breakout box that doesn't have a warranty from Asus as it is considered an accessory. That breakout box can burn in hell it is so bad. Luckily you never need to use it as the back of the card has all the connection that you'll ever need. The mic in the breakout box sounds worse than talking to a friend through a makeshift phone concocted of tin cans with a string between them. Again there is a beautiful mic connection on the actual sound card that sounds heavenly. You lose access to the wonderfully engineered volume knob on the breakout box, but it is a small price to pay for not having to deal with the terrible mic that every program wants to access.

If I could get the sound to work in all of my games with the terrible drivers, I would have been happy listening to stereo sound from it. Surround sound was completely broken due to the horrendous drivers when I used the Phoebus. The drivers at the time were so bad that I wrote reviews for games on Steam lambasting them for not having a working sound solution. After I found out it was because of the terrible drivers that come with the sound card, I had to go back and make retractions. Needless to say I was embarrassed.

It is NOT compatible with the open source Uni driver package like Mchart mentioned in his post for the STX. If the Phoebus was compatible with the Open Source drivers I would be using it now. Now Asus says that they have supposedly working hard to improve the drivers to a degree. I'll never know though as it is sitting in a box on my floor gathering dust. :)


Here is a quote from the Admin named Bahz on the ROG forums.
Windows 10 Driver ? - Page 27

Please note that some Dolby features including like DDL are not supported in Windows 10, although a few users mentioned that this was fixed during the TH2 update but I confirmed with our audio team that it's not true. The first beta driver 4.24 used Windows 8.1 drivers and was able to bypass that and allowed the Dolby features to work but had a lot of issues so those drivers can't be used. The new Sonic Studio driver no longer has any Dolby features, so we're actually recreating our own drivers without Dolby, unfortunately this is no easy feat. Our team doesn't want to abandon support for the Phoebus but resources are limited but our goal is to create a stable Windows 10 version the new Sonic Studio UI which is comparable to drivers with Dolby.

There's obviously no set date as we're trying to make progress with each step and we ask that users who are using Windows 10 to be patient. We plan to release the future beta versions first through the forum to get feedback from all of you.
Last edited by Bahz; 05-03-2016 at 10:16 AM.


In closing this sounds like great news that they are putting in the time and effort to get the surround sound working properly. The catch is that I believe that the Asus engineers are wonderfully talented people and extremely diligent in utilizing their testing equipment. I can tell you that the sound card is wonderfully engineered without flaws when it comes to the physical hardware. I can also say that the engineers are completely tone deaf; and thus the Sonic Studio option sounded terrible last year. Now once again I have not tried the latest iterations of the software, nor can you pay me enough to install it to test it out. But if the same guy that made the original, is working on the new version, I feel sorry for those that are trapped using Sonic Studio. When the Dolby Digital was working on the card it was heavenly. Sonic Studio? :banghead:


Again I am completely biased against the Phoebus. But I think that you can pick truths from my post. I'll never sing it's praises unless I get word that it is actually working properly from multiple sources and I test it out again. Right now I'm just happy listening to my DAC with my games in stereo.
 
I recently went from an HT Omega eClaro to the ASUS Strix Raid DLX (decided against the Creative Sound Blaster ZxR after spending considerable time with it at my cousin's place, paired with his Beyerdynamic MMX 300s). I'd briefly considered trying out the ASUS Phoebus (due to it's being on eBay for a very low price), but decided against it based on what cageymaru mentioned above (which I also read in the course of looking up the card, along with HardOCP's review of the Phoebus: Introduction - ASUS DGX, DSX, & Xonar ROG Phoebus Sound Cards

Was also considering getting the PowerColor Devil HDX (which uses a Wolfson WM8741 DAC, also one of the best out there), but ultimately decided against doing so (after hearing of issues with the PowerColor drivers).

The Strix Raid DLX uses the excellent ESS ES9016S DAC, which is ESS's second-best DAC (their best is the ES9018S) and used in many a good hi-fi system. Some like the Ti Burr-Brown PCM1794 DAC better (as featured on the ZxR), but I'm liking the ES9016S (Burr-Browns are supposedly "warmer", while ESS is very "analytical"). The "USB implementation" that McHart refers to is actually the audio processor (C-Media CM6632A, sometimes called AX) which is indeed in C-Media's USB line, and is actually one of the very best audio processors, due to greatly reduced jitter compared to other solutions.

HT Omega's hardware implementations are very good, and their drivers are rock solid (both of which are why HT Omega has a well-deserved reputation for quality and performance), but I wanted to try out the DLX after I found that the ZxR, while very good, wasn't to my taste (somewhat too bassy). There was that nice control module that the DLX features (much better than that of the ZxR, IMO) and in gaming, I was quite sure that it would offer better results than my HT Omega, which is more of a music/audio creation card (I'm not a fan of Razer Surround after playing with it for two months). The headphone AMP on the DLX is also quite good.

So far, it's been almost a month, and I'm very happy with my DLX. Next on my sound hit list is (possibly) either getting a Feenix Aria or a Sony MDR-1A (both headsets).
 
Laucien said:
Pretty much that!.

I'm gonna buy a dedicated sound card and I'm between those models. I think the Xonar Phoebus is much older than the Strix but reviews say it's a really good card and in ASUS' site it does come up as the lates version of the ROG line... is it because it was replaced by the Strix?.

I've been looking for reviews but while I do find a lot of reviews of the Xonar Phoebus I can't seem to find that many (or that detailed) about the Strix. What I'm looking for is something with good sound, that allows me to connect headset+mic and 2 front speakers at the same time and hopefully with virtual surround capabilities... as far as I understand it both cards are capable of that, right?.

I'm in Argentina so access to not-that-mainstream hardware components here is pretty limited and high end sound cards fall into that. We either have no options to chose from or those are extremely overpriced so right now I'm limited to only one of these two.

Which one would you guys pick?. I'll be pairing it up with a pair of either HyperX Cloud 2 or Revolver (leaning more towards the Revolvers) and currently a pair of cheap speakers but those are on my 'to-upgrade' list soon.
Click to expand...

Why in the world would you consider the phoebus? That thing is an overpriced pig. It's not a hardware issue, the drivers are a nightmare. Heck, check the sticky thread at the top of the forum, here's the link even ASUS DGX, DSX, & Xonar ROG Phoebus Sound Cards @ [H]

4 years and there's still no decent driver support for a $200+ soundcard. Asus may claim they're working on it, but at this point there is simply no reason to waste your time or money on that thing.
 
Phoebus isn't even sold anymore. Any that you find being sold as new is just inventory distributors are trying to unload. The Phoebus was replaced by the Strix lineup.
 
I'll say this, if you ever plan on using a dedicated headphone amplifier, get an external DAC. I just bought a Schiit Asgard 2 after using my X-Fi Titanium HD for years as my DAC and headphone amp. Plugging the amp into the soundcard has revealed how "noisy" my PC is and really fucks up the audio quality, it's due to all the electronic components in the PC case...it happens, not always, but often enough. So I am finally going to CAN the internal card because lets be honest, there are NO features games take advantage of anymore (and there haven't been for a long time) with internal cards aimed at gaming. It's all gimmicky stuff. I just purchased a Schiit Bifrost DAC to pair with my Asgard amp, it should be a very solid combo and good upgrade from my ole' faithful Titanium HD.
 
Laucien said:
I appreciate the offer but I just did a quick search and apparently that isn't available anywhere around here. I know there must be a zillion better options than what I listed but 90% of that won't be available here.

I'm not set into those two options because I want an ASUS item but because those two are pretty much the best options I could find and still be affordable.
Click to expand...

delita said:
I'll say this, if you ever plan on using a dedicated headphone amplifier, get an external DAC. I just bought a Schiit Asgard 2 after using my X-Fi Titanium HD for years as my DAC and headphone amp. Plugging the amp into the soundcard has revealed how "noisy" my PC is and really fucks up the audio quality, it's due to all the electronic components in the PC case...it happens, not always, but often enough. So I am finally going to CAN the internal card because lets be honest, there are NO features games take advantage of anymore (and there haven't been for a long time) with internal cards aimed at gaming. It's all gimmicky stuff. I just purchased a Schiit Bifrost DAC to pair with my Asgard amp, it should be a very solid combo and good upgrade from my ole' faithful Titanium HD.
Click to expand...

wink wink ;)

The "gimmicky stuff" is primarily gamer-based, and actually works well in a number of games (yes yes, no A3D or Nvidia SoundStorm, but decent enough). Combine that with a halfway decent headset, and it's quite fun to use, IMO.

Also, to the best of my understanding, the X-FI Titanium HD never had a dedicated amplifier circuit, only a dedicated headphone output.
 
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tungt88 said:
wink wink ;)

The "gimmicky stuff" is primarily gamer-based, and actually works well in a number of games (yes yes, no A3D or Nvidia SoundStorm, but decent enough). Combine that with a halfway decent headset, and it's quite fun to use, IMO.

Also, to the best of my understanding, the X-FI Titanium HD never had a dedicated amplifier circuit, only a dedicated headphone output.
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No you're right, it wasn't a dedicated amp, it was just a headphone in that was somehow rated to 330ohm. No idea what it truly meant, but there's definitely a difference in clarity upon upgrading to a dedicated amp. As far as the card itself goes, I've had it for years and it used to work fine with my previous amp in another PC, but since upgrading my components it now suffers from electronic interference and causes noise through the amp, so using another DAC is my only option. Honestly I might just keep the card in there and use my new DAC over Toslink, the audio quality should be fantastic. Maybe some of the newer cards have some stuff focused towards gamers but I've always found the surround stuff to be lame at best, and as far as competitive FPS goes, great headphones with an amp that has the ability to go pretty high up in volume while retaining clarity is GREAT for hearing footsteps in games like CS -- no gamer gimmicky soundcard FX required
 
delita said:
No you're right, it wasn't a dedicated amp, it was just a headphone in that was somehow rated to 330ohm. No idea what it truly meant, but there's definitely a difference in clarity upon upgrading to a dedicated amp. As far as the card itself goes, I've had it for years and it used to work fine with my previous amp in another PC, but since upgrading my components it now suffers from electronic interference and causes noise through the amp, so using another DAC is my only option. Honestly I might just keep the card in there and use my new DAC over Toslink, the audio quality should be fantastic. Maybe some of the newer cards have some stuff focused towards gamers but I've always found the surround stuff to be lame at best, and as far as competitive FPS goes, great headphones with an amp that has the ability to go pretty high up in volume while retaining clarity is GREAT for hearing footsteps in games like CS -- no gamer gimmicky soundcard FX required
Click to expand...

TOSLINK is always a great option to use. If I go with a high-end system, though, I will most likely connect my Strix Raid DLX to whatever hi-fi receiver I'm using via analog (one of my cousins has an analog cable from his Sound Blaster ZxR to his Marantz PM7005, since he prefers the Burr-Brown PCM1794 DAC on his ZxR over the Cirrus Logic CS4398 DAC on the Marantz).

I'm kinda surprised that you're getting electronic interference to the X-Fi Titanium HD, as your rig's internals contain good quality items, and the HD has a decent EMI shield. Guess I'll chalk that up to Creative "monkey business" with their sound cards (something that they seem to have fixed up with their Z line).
 
tungt88 said:
TOSLINK is always a great option to use. If I go with a high-end system, though, I will most likely connect my Strix Raid DLX to whatever hi-fi receiver I'm using via analog (one of my cousins has an analog cable from his Sound Blaster ZxR to his Marantz PM7005, since he prefers the Burr-Brown PCM1794 DAC on his ZxR over the Cirrus Logic CS4398 DAC on the Marantz).

I'm kinda surprised that you're getting electronic interference to the X-Fi Titanium HD, as your rig's internals contain good quality items, and the HD has a decent EMI shield. Guess I'll chalk that up to Creative "monkey business" with their sound cards (something that they seem to have fixed up with their Z line).
Click to expand...
Yeah well like I said - I've hard the card for several years and in my last rig I had a Schiit Magni plugged via RCA and didn't notice the interference. New rig this year, everything new minus the sound card, and monkey business indeed. Hoping the external Schiit via Toslink will solve the problem for good. The creative card has served me faithfully for 5 years or so, so I'm not too upset to let it go.
 
delita said:
Yeah well like I said - I've hard the card for several years and in my last rig I had a Schiit Magni plugged via RCA and didn't notice the interference. New rig this year, everything new minus the sound card, and monkey business indeed. Hoping the external Schiit via Toslink will solve the problem for good. The creative card has served me faithfully for 5 years or so, so I'm not too upset to let it go.
Click to expand...

Probably worth selling it -- Sound Blaster Titanium HDs still command a good price used, due to the good quality of components on it.
 
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