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External sound card

M

marc0053

n00b
Joined
Mar 20, 2015
Messages
36
I plan on getting rid of my ASUS xonar STX sound card as I want to have quad SLI Titans X in my x99 Rampage V extreme. The sound card won't fit as these cards are 2x slots.

I currently use a PC360 Sennheiser gaming headset and love the sound quality paired with the STX.

I mostly use this rig for gaming including online multiplayer first person shooter games.

Is there an alternative to get similar sound quality without touching the pci-e slots?
I've read that USB sound cards have latency issues on occasion but looking forward to hear your experience and recommendations.

Thanks in advance,
Marc
 
IMO, get an external DAC that offers TOSLINK digital input, then use the motherboard onboard sound, running an optical digital cable from your onboard sound to your external DAC. That way you would avoid any finicky USB issues.
 
I love ASUS products and the asus xonar u7 is certainly an attractive option.
Would it be enough just to have the U7 plugged into the USB and run my headphones through there?
Any advantage of having MB3 on the onboard sound with the U7 already there?
I'm a bit of a noob on sound systems but know that I like hearing footsteps in FPS games and clarity.
I only use headphones as I share my office space with me wife.

Thank you all for the responses so far. It helps a lot!
 
I'm interested also what someone with a Dac has go say since I've never used one.

I will admit I do love having the xonar u7 because it also has a mic in Port which I don't believe cheaper dacs don't have. Since I use a headset to talk in game it makes everything nice and tidy for one area.

I have heard though that Windows 10 support for the Asus xonar cards are sub par. My gaming rig is running Windows 8.1 so can't speak to this.
 
The audio drivers from asus for win 10 were non-existant for the longest time but seems they are catching up now.
So if i understand correctly the 7.1 surround for headphones can be added by software and doesnt need to be built in the DAC system? Thanks for all the input so far everyone!
 
Would the magni and modi 2 combo be good for gaming as well?
Reviews talk moslty about music listening.

My pc360 sennheiser heaphones only have 3.5mm connectors for audio (green) and microphone (pink). How do i connect both of these into the magni/modi 2 combo?

Also i was looking at the back of the
Thanks for the great info guys!

1000

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CREATOR: gd-jpeg v1.0 (using IJG JPEG v62), quality = 85
 
I have a Creative Sound Blaster Recon3D USB, Astrogaming Mix Amp Pro, and just ordered a Fiio E10K.

I really like the Recon3D better than the Mix Amp Pro. The virtual surround options is great with my PC 360's too.

Hard to find right now though. If I was buying a new USB sound card with all the features I'd look at the Xonar 5.1, but I hear the Creative Omni 5.1 is good too.
 
I ended getting a Schiit magni uber and modi 2 uber combo and will run my microphone through the onboard sound.
Thanks everyone for helping out :)
Cheers,
Marc
 
Yeah i should have considered ASUS a bit more especially the U7 but figured id try something different. I will share my experience once i receive the Schiit combo
 
Just for the record. The soundblaster z series has the best directional sound aka footsteps I have heard.

The X-FI was good but not on the level of the new tech.

For music the xfi was noticeably better though.
 
I'm hoping the Schiit combo can give a good comparable gaming quality compared to the soundblaster z series and asus stx essence. Especially footsteps
 
I can't speak to gaming, but my Schiit uber stack just came in today. So far:
It beats the soundblaster z's ass in music, like big time. I'm a fan.
 
TheToE! said:
I can't speak to gaming, but my Schiit uber stack just came in today. So far:
It beats the soundblaster z's ass in music, like big time. I'm a fan.
Click to expand...

Yeah.. My Schiit valhalla is the king of music at my house...
 
That is the trade off. The sbz does not sound great for music. It does ok. For games though. Well. I call it an ear hack.
 
I received the modi and magni uber combo and tried to set it up today.
My onboard motherboard sound card has 3.5mm rca (lime color) but doesn't have a place to connect in the uber combo. So I assume I need some sort of converter from rca 3.5mm to something but not sure what to get for best audio quality. Also do I run the rca audio from motherboard to magni or modi first and where?

Thanks but I'm new to this.





 
Saw you got the DAC and amp /after/ writing that. Look to HammerSandwich's post below, he explains exactly how you want it set up.
 
Last edited:
marc0053 said:
I received the modi and magni uber combo and tried to set it up today.
My onboard motherboard sound card has 3.5mm rca (lime color) but doesn't have a place to connect in the uber combo. So I assume I need some sort of converter from rca 3.5mm to something but not sure what to get for best audio quality. Also do I run the rca audio from motherboard to magni or modi first and where?

Thanks but I'm new to this.
Click to expand...
You'll catch up - it's not too complicated. This will be a long response, but I hope it helps you understand a bit about how audio signals travel & not simply get you running today.

First, the PC is at one end of the chain & the Senns are at the other. Next, the Senns must connect to the Magni, because it has the headphone jack.

Your sound does this: PC -> ??? -> Magni -> Senns.

The Magni's only input is analog. You could just run a stereo 1/8"->RCA adapter cable from the PC's green port to the Magni's input. But you already have the Modi, so I assume you want to use it. The Modi must go where the ?s are. This makes sense, because it's the only component with a digital input, and its analog output matches the Magni's input. THAT's where you want the Digital-to-Analog Convertor (DAC).

IOW, a DAC essentially replaces a sound card. Make sense?

OK, more practically...

To feed digital from the PC to the Modi, you can connect USB or Toslink. (If your mobo supports coax, I didn't ID it in the pics.) Toslink runs from the PC's SPDIF port (above mic) to the Modi's black port (next to USB). USB's obvious, I hope.

If you have only a USB cable, try it. You might experience some hum & noise, because USB connects the devices' grounds. If so, Toslink should help, because it does not make an electrical connection.

Connect Modi to Magni with RCA cables as you drew. Modi OUT to Magni IN.

Headset goes to Magni's headphone jack, which may need an adaptor.

Enjoy! And let us know what you think after a few days.
 
Use the USB or the Optical in on the Modi. You don't need to use the 3.5mm sound card out... if you want to use that you could skip using the Modi altogether
 
Thanks for all the great info once again everyone :)
So it seems my two choices are:
1) get a 3.5mm to spdif cable on the modi such as this one:
http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B0081SDKHI?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00
or

2) get an optical cable from my motherboard to the modi like this one:
http://www.amazon.ca/HDE-Premium-To...&qid=1449678443&sr=1-7&keywords=optical+cable


Also I did buy this rca to rca cable yesterday:
http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B003L1717K?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00

Any difference in audio quality I should consider between these 2 options?

Thanks :D
Marc
 
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
Just find an old USB printer cable (A to B) and use that. You're over-complicating this a bit.
 
So I can simply run the printer cable usb from my pc to modi?
I imagine I need drivers for it and then it's good to go.
I'll certainly try that.
I also went ahead and ordered the optical cable and 3.5mm rca to spdif so I can compare all 3.
Thanks.
 
marc0053 said:
So I can simply run the printer cable usb from my pc to modi?
I imagine I need drivers for it and then it's good to go.
I'll certainly try that.
I also went ahead and ordered the optical cable and 3.5mm rca to spdif so I can compare all 3.
Thanks.
Click to expand...

It might identify and install the drivers automatically once you plug it in, but refer to Schiit to confirm. You also will likely have to change some settings in the "playback devices" section of Windows (right click the volume tab to access) and choose the right default playback device.
 
You will need a driver for usb.

Also, go to playback devices, right click the modi, go to properties, click advanced tab, change sample rate to 24bit 192000.
 
I plugged the usb cable (printer cable I had here) and the changed the sample rate to 24bit 192000 and wow this is nice!
 
Just a quick update. After running the modi and magni uber combo for about 2 weeks i absolutely love it!
 
I'm using a Teac AI-101DA that my wife gave me for Christmas. So far it is awesome.

With my old setup of running a 20ft cord from sound card to yamaha HT receiver across the room and speaker wires back to my Energy C-200's I use to get a slight humming sound. It got noticeably worse after I upgraded to GTX 970's. I could always hear it... it drove me nuts and the whining in something like Furmark was just insane.

Now I connect the optical out of my soundcard to the Teac AI-101DA and I get 100% clean sound and it powers my speakers just fine. As an added bonus I also picked up a Polk audio subwoofer today too for cheap since the Teac has a sub out too. System is rocking now.

I love the inputs. I connected the device using USB too, for testing but I'm sticking to optical so I can use the EAX effects and stuff from my soundcard. I'll switch to USB if I want to listen to 192kHz Hi Res audio.

I also have my Dell monitor audio out plugged in now too which is awesome because I sometimes use this for monitor for HDMI devices and game capturing and outputting audio was a pain before, now I just switch the input.

I still have an optical input free.

I even synced my PS Vita to the bluetooth so I can get the audio from my PS Vita to play through my speakers.

I love this device, great options on it, great build quality and dials and I love the volume knob being analog.... this is a quality product. In fact it would be the perfect device for me if it had an optical pass through so I could plug it into my MIXAMP Pro from Astro.

It fits perfect on my desk, right under my monitor because of the small footprint.

I might do a small review on it soon but this device is awesome so far.

ai-101-b_rear.jpg


ai-101-b_front.jpg


fbGpc5T.jpg
 
N1GHTRA1N said:
I'm using a Teac AI-101DA that my wife gave me for Christmas. So far it is awesome.

With my old setup of running a 20ft cord from sound card to yamaha HT receiver across the room and speaker wires back to my Energy C-200's I use to get a slight humming sound. It got noticeably worse after I upgraded to GTX 970's. I could always hear it... it drove me nuts and the whining in something like Furmark was just insane.

Now I connect the optical out of my soundcard to the Teac AI-101DA and I get 100% clean sound and it powers my speakers just fine. As an added bonus I also picked up a Polk audio subwoofer today too for cheap since the Teac has a sub out too. System is rocking now.

I love the inputs. I connected the device using USB too, for testing but I'm sticking to optical so I can use the EAX effects and stuff from my soundcard. I'll switch to USB if I want to listen to 192kHz Hi Res audio.

I also have my Dell monitor audio out plugged in now too which is awesome because I sometimes use this for monitor for HDMI devices and game capturing and outputting audio was a pain before, now I just switch the input.

I still have an optical input free.

I even synced my PS Vita to the bluetooth so I can get the audio from my PS Vita to play through my speakers.

I love this device, great options on it, great build quality and dials and I love the volume knob being analog.... this is a quality product. In fact it would be the perfect device for me if it had an optical pass through so I could plug it into my MIXAMP Pro from Astro.

It fits perfect on my desk, right under my monitor because of the small footprint.

I might do a small review on it soon but this device is awesome so far.

ai-101-b_rear.jpg


ai-101-b_front.jpg


fbGpc5T.jpg
Click to expand...


Argh looks like something I've been looking for but I can't justify the cost right now cause of Christmas spending.
 
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