New sound card time (~175$)

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crazyjeeper

[H]ard|Gawd
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Aug 31, 2008
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I have reached the limits of my onboard sound and I have decided it is time to get a real dedicated sound card.

I have pretty much settled on the HT Omega Claro Plus+. Is there a better card for around the same price? Or will the Omega suffice?

It will be driving my Plantronics .Audio370 headset and my Aiwa CX-NA909 2 ch stereo.
 
"$175 budget + stereo only" tends to tell me to get an external device.
 
Essence STX is a pure stereo card with a good amp as sound cards go. If you've got to get a card for stereo / headphones, it's a good choice.
 
Ok, well, I think I'm going to go with the Essence STX. I like the fact that it has RCA out jacks and the built in headphone amp.

Thanks for the advice guys. :)
 
An amp built into a sound card...I'd still say go with a full external amp. But the STX is certainly one that makes fewer compromises while trying to cram it inside your computer.
 
ashmedai said:
An amp built into a sound card...I'd still say go with a full external amp. But the STX is certainly one that makes fewer compromises while trying to cram it inside your computer.
Click to expand...

I'm only driving a 40 dollar headset. When I get some serious cans then I will go external amp, but I'm sure it will do a much much better job of driving them than the crappy integrated audio.
 
It will certainly do that, no question. And I noticed the low-end cans. But an external amp now would do the same job as the STX, and save you another $175 later. If you have other (out-of-budget) plans of this sort, then full speed ahead.

I think you can configure the STX such that it bypasses the amplifier and just uses it as a DAC...this might be a good way to use it now and repurpose it later. Not 100% ideal, but a solid strategy nonetheless?
 
This is true, but the primary point is to get better quality out of my stereo. The headphone amp is just a nice side benefit. I rarely use my headset unless I need to use the mic function.
 
With that headset, I'd use it rarely too... ;)

Let us know how the STX works out...it should help significantly with things that aren't limited by the Aiwas.
 
The Xonar arrived today.

I would just like to say I never thought my speakers could sound this good. I have yet to test out the headphone amp, but so far, the sound is absolutely mind blowing.

Thanks for the recommendation guys :D
 
Ah, but not poor in spirit! And meanwhile you could have some really awesome music...
 
This is true. At some point I want to get a receiver or just an amplifier and some Klipsch RB-61s or something along those lines. But until then, the Aiwas do a surprisingly good job.

Just tried out the headphone amp. Probably the best sound I will get from 40 dollar cans. I set it to high gain +12db (64~300ohms) and it sounds excellent.

I <3 this card :D
 
This is why I love modularity in audio systems. You can come back later and add a speaker amp + speakers or better headphones or whatever and get even better results without having to rebuy everything.

I'd keep an eye out for used gear...it can take a while, which you have, and you can end up with significantly increased buying power.
 
My next audio purchase will probably be a pair of Beyerdynamic DT770 pros.

I know you guys probably won't believe me, but I really don't feel the need to replace the Aiwas. They really do sound excellent. At least until I have about 1k to blow on replacements.
 
That's more or less the way I did it...headphones first since that's where the money would do the most good, speakers after I was pretty happy with my headphones and found a nice deal.
 
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