I'm currently using Logitech Z-2300 2.1 speakers and occasionally I use my Sennheiser 555s. I'm thinking about buying the Xonar DX; it looks like a great card and I'm liking what I'm reading about it but is it overkill for my 2.1 setup? I do my fare share of games, movies, and music and I'm wondering if the Xonar DX's capabilities are going to be wasted on a set up like mine.
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Xonar DX for 2.1 setup?
- Thread starter dc458
- Start date
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2006
- Messages
- 3,260
What sound chipset/card are you currently using?
I finally got a Xonar D2X (only had a free PCI Express slot) to upgrade from my crappy onboard Realtek 882 sound, it's been quite a mindblower. I've never gone for any length of time without a sound card before but I could barely listen to anything through the Realtek without it really bugging me.
I only have a 2.1 setup using some older (but still nice) Altec Lansing speakers, and it's made a huge difference. Granted I hope to do some recording of older tapes and such with this card so I wanted one with a good input stage as well, but I don't see it as money wasted at all.
If you have a decent sound card already it might be overkill for your needs but it really sounds *amazing*. Acoustic stuff, especially, has a brightness/purity to it that I've never heard from PC sound, usually only through a nice home amp/speaker setup (or very very good headphones)... from what I've read it sounds like the DX is very, very close in performance for most situations.
I only have a 2.1 setup using some older (but still nice) Altec Lansing speakers, and it's made a huge difference. Granted I hope to do some recording of older tapes and such with this card so I wanted one with a good input stage as well, but I don't see it as money wasted at all.
If you have a decent sound card already it might be overkill for your needs but it really sounds *amazing*. Acoustic stuff, especially, has a brightness/purity to it that I've never heard from PC sound, usually only through a nice home amp/speaker setup (or very very good headphones)... from what I've read it sounds like the DX is very, very close in performance for most situations.
Sorry I forgot to mention that I am currently using onboard Realtek sound (My mobo is an EVGA 750i). Interesting observatio Justin42; sounds like there really is a difference even if you are on a 2.1 setup. I am pretty picky about sound and it seems pretty silly to have good speakers and have them be under-utilized with an onboard sound setup. Thanks for the replies.
D
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The Xonar DX uses a nice DAC for its surround channels and an even higher quality one for the front stereo channels, so using it for a 2.1 setup seems like something they had in mind when designing it. I posted a bit about the DACs here:
http://www.hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1032542710&postcount=8
Anyways, I think it would be a HUGE improvement over onboard audio, especially Realtek. If you were already using an X-Fi or an Oxygen HD card maybe not as much, but for analog output I think it's worth the $90. If you haven't read it already you may want to check out Tech Report's review of the card, they run a comparison against an X-Fi and an onboard Realtek solution in their tests.
http://techreport.com/articles.x/14500
http://www.hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1032542710&postcount=8
Anyways, I think it would be a HUGE improvement over onboard audio, especially Realtek. If you were already using an X-Fi or an Oxygen HD card maybe not as much, but for analog output I think it's worth the $90. If you haven't read it already you may want to check out Tech Report's review of the card, they run a comparison against an X-Fi and an onboard Realtek solution in their tests.
http://techreport.com/articles.x/14500
Thanks deruberhanyok, yeah I read the tech report review; thats actually what got me thinking towards the Xonar DX in the first place. So I guess it's settled, I think I'll go with this card; it fits perfectly in my machine right above my video card, its not Creative, and it works great with 2.1. Thanks for all the help.