Is a soundcard needed when using an amp?

Converge

Converge

Converge

Soldato
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Hey guys,

I'm in the process of buying some B&W 685's and a Marantz PM6003 amp, and I was wondering if I should be skimping on the soundcard or not?

Surely the amp deals with it all?!!

Am I being a bit of a plonker and missing out on spending a bit in the soundcard department? I've currently got an Asus Xonar DX 7.1 PCI-Express. Will this suffice or should I be going for the Xonar Essence?

Thanks in advance! :)
 
I'm confused, MilanoChris, you say that digital is all well and good for digital receiving equipment, but analogue needs a good soundcard, from what I could understand. And Sin is saying that I don't need a soundcard.

Which is right? Am I misunderstanding something?
 
If you connect optical, via SPDIF, you don't need a SC, just use the motherboard (providing it's true Dolby pass-through).

If you connect to the amp via analogue, use a soundcard.
 
Righto, thanks :)

So, would I need a better quality soundcard than the Xonar DX 7.1? Or would that be sufficient for the B&W's?

Thanks for the help so far by the way! :)
 
In that case, you need a decent sound card - the analogue line outs from your motherboard are horriffic. Something like the Asus Xonar D2 or Essence ST/STX cards would give a very good analogue line out. There are other options as well, but I think the Xonars are pretty decent without costing tonnes of cash.
 
No option to use SPDIF? If you use analogue, I think the sound card will do audio processing, rather than pass through.

Are the B&W's that much cop then?

Just bought a set of Edifier's, but have the option of getting B&Ws at Christmas.
 
MilanoChris said:
No option to use SPDIF? If you use analogue, I think the sound card will do audio processing, rather than pass through.

Are the B&W's that much cop then?

Just bought a set of Edifier's, but have the option of getting B&Ws at Christmas.
Click to expand...

From what I can tell, there are no coaxial or digital outputs from the Marantz 6300 amp. So no SPDIF as a result. Hmmm, if the sound card does the audio processing, doesn't that render the amp pretty pointless besides converting the sound?
Sheesh, I sound a little clueless!

The B&W's are immense. I've got edifiers myself at the moment, after having aego's previous to that. Definitely a case of B&W > Edifier > Aego in my opinion.
 
Converge said:
From what I can tell, there are no coaxial or digital outputs from the Marantz 6300 amp. So no SPDIF as a result. Hmmm, if the sound card does the audio processing, doesn't that render the amp pretty pointless besides converting the sound?
Sheesh, I sound a little clueless!
Click to expand...

The sound card only provides the audio signal, the amp will actually power the speakers. Soundcards are only capable of powering headphones, but even then people still use external headphone amps for demanding headphones.
Of course, you can have the best amp in the world, but it will still sound like **** if the audio signal is ****, hence why you need a good soundcard.
 
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Converge said:
The B&W's are immense. I've got edifiers myself at the moment, after having aego's previous to that. Definitely a case of B&W > Edifier > Aego in my opinion.
Click to expand...
How much of an improvement are they over the Edifier? I know they'll be better, but are they worth the extra money?

I guess I'm not paying so it doesn't matter...

As for the rest, sorry, it's a little out of my depth.
 
titaniumx3 said:
The sound card only provides the audio signal, the amp will actually power the speakers. Soundcards are only capable of powering headphones, but even then people still use external headphone amps for demanding headphones.
Of course, you can have the best amp in the world, but it will still sound like **** if the audio signal is ****, hence why you need a good soundcard.
Click to expand...

Alrighty, I think I'll be picking up an Essence ST/STX then!

Cheers for the help chaps, most kind :)
 
An amplifier does more than amplify. It can improve a mediocre sound device by quite a bit.

I've tried my using my Goldring DR150's from a netbook, and the sound is pants. If I connect my Audiolab amp to the netbook, then the phones to the amp, the sound quality is much better.

That's not to say a sound card is not needed if the amp is a good one, it's just surprising how much flat toneless onboard audio can be improved by an amp.

A good amp and speakers really deserve a good sound source though, whether it be a nice sound card, or a DAC.
 
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From what I can tell, there are no coaxial or digital outputs from the Marantz 6300 amp. So no SPDIF as a result. Hmmm, if the sound card does the audio processing, doesn't that render the amp pretty pointless besides converting the sound?
Click to expand...

Marantz SR6300? Looking at images on the web, it has at least two of each SPDIF and Optical digital inputs.
 
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