What sound card :)

FloppyPoppy

FloppyPoppy

FloppyPoppy

Soldato
Joined
27 Jan 2012
Posts
8,119
Location
The king of the north!
Hey guys im doing a new build at the moment

Im not 100% sure if i should go for the 4way sli 680s

Or two 690s and a high quality sound card

i have a set of Freq 5 headphones that can be run through 3.5mm jack OR usb.

Price is not a issue as im working again ive started to buy parts for the build and will be doing so each week i would like your opinions about what i should do

Should i get a sound card? how much difference will it make on " high end stereo headphones "

If i will see a big difference with adding a sound card what one should i buy? price is not a issue all though i would like to stay under 300-400
 
Well I have a few questions for you,

1. will you be using this computer for more than just gaming?

2. Will you be connecting the computer throught HDMI to a good receiver and then onto a screen?

3. What resolution do you play at? Are you multiscreen gaming or plan to go this route?

Personally, unless I was planning on surround gaming, I would just go dual 680's. I think 4 way sli would just be total overkill and a waste of money. Just waiting for gaming to catch up with the hardware. I you are looking for sound card advice but, thought I would mention that.

Now back to the sound card. You should definately get a good soundcard especially if you have high end headphones. The asus xonar essence st and stx are two of the best for sound quality and really good for driving headphones.

If space is a at a premium you could try get an external usb sound card or amp/dac. Some thing like the Asus Xonar essence one. But you lose out some of the gaming effects with going this route.

Lastly, Creative are coming out with new soundcards soon, I think one is due for release around the end of October. You might wait and see what they bring to the table. More info here

http://en.store.creative.com/sound-blaster/sound-blaster-zx/1-21384.aspx

There is a a zxr and a z version. I just linked the one I am most interested in :-)
 
I also will be using the machine for a lot more video editing.

The resolution to start is 2560x1600 but once the pc is finished i will be expanding that to 7680x4800

it will be used for heavy gaming purposes including lan tournaments

I will be using DVI wires as they just seem overall better :D
 
If i will see a big difference with adding a sound card what one should i buy?
Click to expand...

You won't see any difference, since it is a sound card. Just kidding.

It will depend on what headset/speakers you are using. If just standard gaming headphones on board audio should do the job just fine. Sound has been very high bit rate for years now, sound cards just get loaded with gimmicks I haven't seen anything actually innovative for a while.

I have a Creative card, it sounds good but the drivers and support are abysmal.

If I were to buy a card now I would get one of the Asus offering. It can give a better sound quality, but if your listening device isn't really up to playing that quality it will sound similar to on board anyway.

4x680 is cheaper? I would probably go for that. Can you not install a sound card above the 4x680s?

I don't think it's a big difference adding a sound card. It used to be because on board audio was pants. It has improved though and isn't so terrible anymore.
 
And this is where I disagree with Brian. Even upgrading to an asus xonar dg has made a huge difference in games to me. You will only get good positional audio from a dedicated sound card. Onboard audio just can't compete here yet. I would even argue that that they can't compete on a music level either.

I don't know what LAN events are like now, but, when I used to go to them, sound was way more important than graphics. Having better audio than the other players was such an advantage.

I think Harry is going to be using a high end pair of Stereo headphones Brian, well he said that in his first post. What headphones do you have Harry? or are you going to be buying a set? Any headphones in mind?

Harry, if gaming is your main use for this machine and you wont be listening to music on it, apart from a few mp3's etc. Then I would actually take a look at a creative card. I still think for gaming they sound better than any asus card. As I said there are new ones coming out soon which I think you should wait for, just to see what they are like.

IF you can't wait, then, it's between the Asus xonar essence stx and the creative titanium HD. I would go for the titanium, purely for gaming.

And like Brian says, you should have a pci-e slot above your graphics card that you can use.
 
melmac said:
And this is where I disagree with Brian. Even upgrading to an asus xonar dg has made a huge difference in games to me. You will only get good positional audio from a dedicated sound card. Onboard audio just can't compete here yet. I would even argue that that they can't compete on a music level either.

I don't know what LAN events are like now, but, when I used to go to them, sound was way more important than graphics. Having better audio than the other players was such an advantage.

I think Harry is going to be using a high end pair of Stereo headphones Brian, well he said that in his first post. What headphones do you have Harry? or are you going to be buying a set? Any headphones in mind?

Harry, if gaming is your main use for this machine and you wont be listening to music on it, apart from a few mp3's etc. Then I would actually take a look at a creative card. I still think for gaming they sound better than any asus card. As I said there are new ones coming out soon which I think you should wait for, just to see what they are like.

IF you can't wait, then, it's between the Asus xonar essence stx and the creative titanium HD. I would go for the titanium, purely for gaming.

And like Brian says, you should have a pci-e slot above your graphics card that you can use.
Click to expand...


I have a few different pairs at the moment, atm im using the Freq 5 ( my favourite ) i also have some Tritton AX Pro Precision

I can get a different set if requires but i really do liike the freq 5 and would like to stick with them. Sorry for the late reply very busy at the moment
 
harry5522 said:
I have a few different pairs at the moment, atm im using the Freq 5 ( my favourite ) i also have some Tritton AX Pro Precision

I can get a different set if requires but i really do liike the freq 5 and would like to stick with them. Sorry for the late reply very busy at the moment
Click to expand...

If you are only gaming, then they are fine. I would recommend you get a sound card tbh just to get proper positional audio.

If you plan to listen to some music, then I would consider getting another set of headphones :-)
 
Well the only range of products I'm quite familiar with are the Beyerdynamic headphones and with that price range there's obviously a few choices :)

Closed/Noise isolated headphones:

DT 770 - various impedance models from around £100-£160
T70 - £400 ish but there are second hand ones available for a little less now (not many since they're new)


Open/Semi open:

DT 880/990 - various impedance models around £180-200 from what I remember
T90 - around £500


They also have their new Custom One Pro headphones which can be both open/closed.

You need to do a little reading with that kind of budget to make sure you buy the kind of headphone you're looking for :)


On or around ear
Bassy/Neutral/Focused on highs
Comfy
Low/Med/High impedance etc
 
Can't really argue with Phal's choices. But I would stick to open headphones if you are doing a lot of gaming. Here is my list from cheapest to most expensive :-)

Fostex T50RP: getting rave reviews in various places for how cheap they are but how great they sound and the various mods you can do with them :-)

Creative Aurvana Live: Surprisingly good headphones, another good gaming choice for comfort and for sound quality when not gaming


Audio Technica AD700: Probably one of the most recommended headphones for gaming in the world :-) Haven't heard them, but supposed to have a really wide soundstage. Some would say they are lacking in bass.

Beyerdynamic DT990 (Premium): I am recommending these over the DT880's strictly because they are better for gaming. Get the 600 ohm version if you can.

AKG Q701: Another great headphone for games because it is has one of the widest soundstages ever and even has some bass!! Not quite as comfortable as come of the other phones here.

Lastly where would a headphone recommendation thread be without mentioning one Sennheiser. :) (around the same price as the beyer dt990's or so)

Sennheiser HD598: Another well respected headphone by both gamers and the audiophiles :-) IT has a bit of bass too and supposed to be very comfortable. Well within your budget too.


And I am going to through one wildcard in that is over budget, but you might be able to find a pair for around £650-£700.

Hifiman He-500: If I had the cash they would be the headphones I would buy without question. I have only heard good things about them.

It's a tough choice :-) If you want to play it safe then I would just get the Sennheiser 598's. Good all rounder and great for games. IF you could go somewhere to demo the Ak Q701's and the Beyer DT 990's then I would do that, because if you liked either of them they will both be better than the senn's. I would have no problem saying get the Q701's only the He-500's are a better headphone. But they are like marmite, some people love them, some people hate them :D
 
I would say open headphones are more pleasant than closed as the sound is more natural. If you've ever worn ear defenders for any reason than that's what it's like with closed insulated headphones like the DT 770s. I wouldn't say it's bad, just different and perhaps takes some getting used to for some people.

If you don't need to block sound out and there's no worries about letting sound leak out then open/semi open would be better.

As for DT 990s over DT 880s for gaming, I wouldn't say either is better as they won't sound all that different. 880s are supposed to be more neutral which would be better for gaming compared to the slightly bassier 990s.

Ultimately if you've never spent a decent amount on headphones before then you're in for a treat regardless of which of the decent ones you get.
 
Phal said:
If you don't need to block sound out and there's no worries about letting sound leak out then open/semi open would be better.

As for DT 990s over DT 880s for gaming, I wouldn't say either is better as they won't sound all that different. 880s are supposed to be more neutral which would be better for gaming compared to the slightly bassier 990s.

Ultimately if you've never spent a decent amount on headphones before then you're in for a treat regardless of which of the decent ones you get.
Click to expand...

I haven't heard either of the beyers so I can't speak from personal experience. I am just going from what I read on forums etc. And from what I read you are right, the dt880's and the dt 990's sound very much alike. The DT 990s premiums are not as bass heavy as the other DT990's. But the one thing that would annoy me about the DT880's is that they are supposed to be very poor for sound positioning from the rear. These would be a killer for gaming for me anyway.

And yeah, no matter what ones he decides to go for he is in for a treat :D Well his ears are anyway :p
 
I personally haven't heard the DT 880s either but I hadn't seen anything about poor positionals from behind either :)

The only semi open Beyer headphones I have are my T1s but I'm not sure it's fair comparing those with my ooooold DT 990s or my MMX 300 :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom