Xonar DG with Kave's... big improvement over onboard?

Soldier786 · 20 Feb 2011 at 17:05

Hi peeps,

So im in the situation where I don't think i should have bought the Roccat Kave's, for £70 I was expecting a lot more, I'm thinking that the onboard is the problem? :rolleyes:

The bass and that is pretty good, but I don't really feel the difference coming from a pair of stereo headphones that cost me £20, In CoD, BC2..

( I even have installed SRS Audio Sandbox, because without that, the sound is completely terrible..)

Right now the mobo i got is the Gigabyte UD7.
I would like to know that should I purchase the DG and will i see an "noticeable" improvement over onboard? or is it not worth it..

Thanks peeps!

joeyjojo · 20 Feb 2011 at 17:10

You can take your headphones to an audio retailer and audition some amps etc?

The only way to know is to try it and compare. I haven't used onboard in many years..

Marsman · 20 Feb 2011 at 17:16

Maybe you just have come to the decision that a lot of people have, that these multi drivers headphones, that for some reason are labelled as '5.1', suck. I know there are people who love these things, but many more think they are a terrible.

adrichardson81 · 20 Feb 2011 at 18:09

To be honest, £ for £ you'll get much better sound from 2.0 headphones. Add Dolby Headphone into the mix and you'll get better positional audio.

I don't think upgrading your soundcard will make much difference either way, sadly.

Kosmiche · 20 Feb 2011 at 18:16

You will get more bass with the dg, the kaves really come alive when you are able to push the bass (they even have this vibrating feature to eccentuate the bassiness). I have a xonar ds and roccat kave and find this combo more than pleasing, if you get the dg make sure you turn on "flexbass".

Global_Inferno · 20 Feb 2011 at 18:49

Unfortunately I agree with Marsman, for the most part anyways... 5.1 headsets aren't generally very good at reproducing surround sound.

As for taking it to a shop and trying some amps (I assume you mean headphone amps?) they won't work, as the Kave's require 3 inputs, a headphone amp will only deliver one.

Take a look at the link in my sig and you'll see why I could never recommend 5.1 headsets.

Uriel · 20 Feb 2011 at 22:03

Yeah - after spending a few years owning 5.1 headphones, trying a decent stereo set with virtual surround from a soundcard came as something of a revelation. I'll never go back.

Soldier786 · 21 Feb 2011 at 20:09

@global Inferno - very interesting read

Yea i guess i got tempted into the "5.1" gimmick, also the reviews that people have written.. say that the headset is really good.
I will try to mess around with the settings a little more until I give up, my last resort will be investing in a soundcard.

Thanks peeps!

Global_Inferno · 21 Feb 2011 at 22:09

Soldier786 said:
@Global Inferno - very interesting read

Yea i guess i got tempted into the "5.1" gimmick, also the reviews that people have written.. say that the headset is really good.
I will try to mess around with the settings a little more until I give up, my last resort will be investing in a soundcard.

Thanks peeps!

Glad you liked it!

As you say, I think the "5.1" headsets are a little bit of a gimmick really. Having said that however, having owned some Roccat Kave's they can sound alright, but I wouldn't say they re-produce "surround sound" very well. If you were to get a sound card and get them setup properly you might find them quite good-enough for the time being!?

Especially try messing with the sub-woofer crossover frequency as it will trigger the vibration units off a bit more easily... If that's a good thing?!

morkfromork · 21 Feb 2011 at 22:26

Tbh i have a pair of kaves. That i have running through an xfi gamer fatality pro card. Sounds good playing bc2 and other games. Not great with music but i need to tweek this.

I did try a xonar dg a couple of weeks ago and found the sound very tinny with lots of echo. I found turning the front speakers down seemed to help the problem. Tbh i went back to the xfi after two hours and sold the dg straight away.

If your going to go down the soundcard route my advise would be xfi but i'm sure someone else will come along and say use asus.

Global_Inferno · 22 Feb 2011 at 08:27

morkfromork said:
I did try a xonar dg a couple of weeks ago and found the sound very tinny with lots of echo. I found turning the front speakers down seemed to help the problem. Tbh i went back to the xfi after two hours and sold the dg straight away.

If your going to go down the soundcard route my advise would be xfi but i'm sure someone else will come along and say use asus.

Yup, and that person will probably be me! The "echo" you were experiencing is because ASUS put a delay on some channels by default. If you had used the UNi driver, or the most recent ASUS driver (I think?) the problem could easily have been cured.

Obviously the echo you wouldn't notice if you had speakers, but with all 5.1 drivers strapped to the side of your head (and at the same distance) it becomes a little more obvious!