Is it worth to upgrade from AE-5 to AE-9 ?

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t-tex

Limp Gawd
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Is there any noticable sound quality between AE-5 and AE-9?

I am using my soundcard mostly for listening to the music through my 5+1 Logitech Z906 and t use headphones.

So what you guys think, is it worth upgrade from AE-5 to AE-9 ?
 
If you're not missing details or hearing noise, or there isn't some functionality that you're missing then upgrading your DAC and headphone amp (what a sound card is, in addition to a software suite) isn't going to result in much if any discernible difference.

In a word, no. Upgrade your headphones or speakers first.
 
Definitely nicer than your standard 'gamer' cans, but in general?

The AE-5 is already a very nice card. I can't imagine really finding fault with it, or with the headphones you're using, unless you really do perceive something coming up short.
 
t-tex said:
some people say that the ae-9 is better from ae-5
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A lot of things are 'better'.

How much are you willing to spend?

You could spend $10,000 and not notice a difference with your speakers and headphones.
 
I bought an AE-5 to see how good it is.
While its a nice card, its missing a lot of air and micro detail. For the price its ok.
Tested with 3 way ribbon speakers + Emotiva XPA-2 amp. Meze Empyrean & Sennheiser HD650 Headphones + Bottlehead Mainline tube headphone amp.
Compared to Holo Audio - Spring, Level 3 DAC.
 
t-tex said:
what you mean is missing a lot of air and micro detail??
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Air is hearing the environment the recording is made in. ie reverb/reflections of the sound in the room.
Micro detail is self explanatory, tiny tiny details.
 
t-tex said:
do you believe that the ae-9 is better from the ae-5/?
Click to expand...

I do based on specs and reviews but I havent heard the AE-9 so I cant quantify how much.
Another issue as Idiotincharge says, you may not notice (or care for) the difference with your equipment.

As you appear to be new to this and are not familiar with some of the basic terms, it might be an idea to visit a few hifi showrooms to see what micro detail and air are about.
Take along some CDs you know well. Be sure to take quite a few because many are not good recordings and there wont be much difference when played on high quality hardware.
Then you will get some idea of how good those CDs can sound.
I recommend being honest about why you are doing this. Say something along the lines of, you want to hear how good your CDs can sound to know if you want to upgrade your hifi. Dont commit to buying anything though.

On the other hand you might not care at all for the difference, many of my friends are exactly like this.
They notice the differences on my system and are surprised but they dont even want a hifi. However some friends/colleagues bought decent kit after hearing mine.
Please take some CDs you know well to hifi show rooms to hear how the difference affects you, on quite a few different sound systems.
Its up to you to find out if its something you care about, there is no point spending money unless you do.
If you do care about it, its another world of enjoyment so its worth finding out.
 
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do you believe that the ae-9 has better dac and amp from ae-5 and ae-7/?
 
Consider this.
The raising in number represents better sound quality, at least with Creative.
But only if the equipment you are using it with lets you hear that.
And also depends whether you are capable of hearing it, as I said some people cant hear it or dont care.
You need to find out, unless that amount of money doesnt matter to you.

You want a definitive answer that will let you make this decision without any effort.
There isnt one.
 
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You wont understand if I explain in technical terms so I have avoided that.
The AE-9 is better than the AE-5, I said this earlier, but its wise to be sure the difference matters to you if you care about the cost.
Its easy to read reviews btw.
 
can you explain me in technical terms ?/ i will understand it..

can you tell me in technical terms why ae-9 is better from ae-5/?
 
t-tex said:
can you explain me in technical terms ?/ i will understand it..

can you tell me in technical terms why ae-9 is better from ae-5/?
Click to expand...

I'll keep it easy:
The DAC chip used has a much better s/n ratio and the analogue circuits supporting it keep the s/n high.
It has a better headphone amp in the breakout box by virtue of better circuit design, better components, better power delivery and a lower noise environment (ie not like inside a PC).
Further information would be just to back this up, it wont help you make your decision.
Specs are only a basic guide, reviews and user experiences tell the true tale.
I have no experience of the AE-9 unfortunately.

You can use another external headphone amp with the AE-9 and get better results.
It depends what you want and how much you are willing to spend.

I built a valve headphone amp, this is another option.
There are kits for sale.
 
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Nenu said:
Even the HD650 or Massdrop HD6xx are good enough to get some benefit.
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Likely, but that's why I was asking what the OP is 'missing'.

I mention the LCD-X and HD800S as the best, uh, 'attainable' examples of an all-around headphone in the Audeze, and the most detailed, most open headphone in the HD800S.
 
what is your opinion for my dt990 pro and akg712 pro?? do you believe that these 2 headphones which i have are very good for gaming?
 
IdiotInCharge said:
Likely, but that's why I was asking what the OP is 'missing'.

I mention the LCD-X and HD800S as the best, uh, 'attainable' examples of an all-around headphone in the Audeze, and the most detailed, most open headphone in the HD800S.
Click to expand...
Soz, I wasnt sure why you posted them.
Yep, they are great headphones. I considered getting the LCD-4z for the extra bass but settled on the Empyrean and a bit of quality bass EQ at times :)

I'm not sure the op knows what he wants.
I was quite surprised to have to explain air and micro detail to a potential purchaser of the AE-9.
It will serve him well to experience them and have an opinion on what he likes, I dont want to recommend kit he might not care for.

Soz to speak about you in 3rd person op.
Perhaps you can help us understand you?
 
do you believe that these 2 headphones which i have are very good for gaming? i am saying for my dt990 pro and akg712 pro
 
t-tex said:
what is your opinion for my dt990 pro and akg712 pro?? do you believe that these 2 headphones which i have are very good for gaming?
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For gaming, higher end sound quality is not a major concern.
The cans you have are fine based on what I have read but I havent used either of them.

If gaming is your main concern, the AE-5 will suit you fine.
 
what you have read for my dt990 pro and akg 712 pro?? can you tell me please??
 
lol, they are both decent quality for the price.
We need to understand why YOU are looking at the AE-9, what is it that you want to be better?

Are you looking to upgrade your headphones or hifi?
If so, around how much are you looking to spend?
 
Nenu said:
lol, they are both decent quality for the price.
We need to understand why YOU are looking at the AE-9, what is it that you want to be better?
Are you looking to upgrade your headphones or hifi?
If so, around how much are you looking to spend?
Click to expand...

He just wants you to tell him the other ones are better because they are more expensive. That's what. Just tell him and end this madness.
 
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i wanted to buy the ae-9 because i want to see how better is from ae-5 in gaming and music

also i want to buy the ae-5 becayse it has better amp and dac for my dt990 pro and akg 712 pro..

i didnt say that i have problems with my ae-5

the ae-5 in gaming and music is very good.. i dont have problems..
 
what madness my friend>?>?

i dont have problems with my ae-5..

i just want to buy the ae-9 for to see how better is from ae-5 in terms of dac and amp..
 
for this i am asking if someone has these 2 cards ae-5 and ae-9 for to tell me his experiences with these 2 soundcards..
 
The problem anyone will have helping you, even if they have heard both sound cards, we have no idea what you want improved.
Its impossible to advise you when we dont know.
I will bow out now.

I hope you find someone with both cards that is willing to assist in your one way discussion.
 
I would not bother to upgrade the ae-5, the logitech z906 won't gain much (if anything) but your headphone most likely would.
IMHO, you could do a lot better for your $ with a dac/headphone amp vs the ae-9.

If you'd like to pursue upgrading the headphone (or a 2.0/2.1 system) you should have start by taking a look at https://www.schiit.com
A Hel or Magni/Modi combo would be a good start or maybe the Asgard with the 4490 dac.
You could keep using the ae-5 for the z906 and switch to the dac/headphone amp when you need too.
 
I'm pretty sure the amp from the magni is better, for the dac in the modi the AK4490 dac chip is up to 24/192. The dac chip might not look as sexy as the one from the AE-9 but I'd be willing to bet on the analog section being better in the modi vs ae-9.
You can have the best dac but if you have a shitty analog section supporting it it will still be trash.
Not that I'm implying that's the case with the ae-9 but if it was my money and I wasn't planing on upgrading that speaker set, I'd go with schiit.
I had a magni3 with HD6xx and liked it a lot, can't speak about the modi since I have the original bifrost (with the same ak4490 dac) and it is awesome!
 
The DAC matters very, very little; it's not unimportant, but the actual chip used (or other technology) can only improve sound if the implementation around it is good. Generally, it just needs to be clean and relative to the source, distortion-free.

The amp matters more; it needs to have plenty of power on tap while being able to supply that power cleanly and without unduly coloring sound.

In both cases, putting them inside an electrically noisy environment like a PC seems... silly. Further, using all of the processing that Creative includes in their solutions also seems a bit silly with higher-end outputs. I understand the utility for certain gaming scenarios, of course. But for music, a good EQ should be the extent of processing applied, and only then to compensate for unwanted 'character' in speakers or headphones.

So I agree with xmadror here. Overall, there's very little reason to reach for 'more' than a Schiit stack (that is, Magni + Modi). If you are looking at more than that, you either know that you need it, your looking for even more flexibility, or you're just trying to burn money.
 
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