Profile of Ronald Dumsfeld

Hello.

A recent article from Tom's Hardware which is pertinent to this thread.

Comparision of a $2000 USB DAC, A $200 USB DAC, a $150 Sound card and previous generation $2 Realtek on board.

DAC/Amp comparison.

There are several ways of doing what you want Volo.

The most common and economical is to get a suitable receiver/AVR, string the best speakers you can afford off that and use the remote to control the system. Second hand is a good source of inexpensive components.

This is the simplest method and ties in well with video on a big screen.

If you are running a desktop PC with a full size mobo the on-board sound module will do the decoding for you and output on those 4 coloured 3.5mm TRS minijacks you find round the back. If you have a laptop without a built in decoder you can buy one off ebay for ~$100. This is essentially the same thing you find on a desktop but in it's own box.

This is cheap but you then need amplifiers or powered speakers and control is usually via software which can be inconvenient.

You can also buy a quality sub-woofer which acts as the system hub. This is the current pro solution and the units can be super sophisticated. Some come with a microphone and suite of test tones. You place the mic at the listening position and the system then calibrates itself automatically for the optimum sound in your room.

Fantastic quality, especially with multiple subs, but eye wateringly expensive.

Yet another method and the one that I use is to get a multi channel audio interface (essentially several DACs in one box) and do all the set up and calibration in software. Works best with active speakers. You can also buy special 5.1 and 7.1 monitor controllers.

This is a very flexible solution and works well with a typical desktop and 24" and up monitor system. It can also become expensive as the cheapest unit I know of with 8 analogue outputs costs ~$400.

The AVS forum is a good source of advice on this topic.

AVS Forum Home

It's your forum man.

If you want to be right all the time that's your prerogative.

I think you'd be surprised Bud.

Modern converters are now so good and cheap you would need really, really good ears (i.e. it's impossible) to distinguish between current on-board and even the most expensive $2,000 DACs. I can measure differences between my MOTU Ultralite/NI Audio 2 and the on-board audio via line out from both my ASUS ATX mobos but I cannot hear it in an unsighted test. M-Audio Fast Track Pro I can but that's down to the crap drivers.

That's using ADAM A5X or Senn HD25-1 II.

That's assuming everything is set up and working correctly. Maybe you are picking up stray interference? You overclock heavy too so that might not help. Could also be expectation bias. Everyone is subject to it in some degree.

It's not the sound quality it's the convienience, versatility and features.

You don't need fancy processing to pick up directional clues. You only have two ears. Get better cans.

Don't believe me? These guys claim to be gamers and seem to be on the ball. If a bit slow.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1rXcJuEsy0#t=12[/youtube]