Best settings for Asus Xonar DX

sreeve1993 · 20 Nov 2016 at 14:23

Hey guys,

I was wondering if anyone is familiar with the ASUS Xonar DX settings?

If so can someone help me to get the best sound experience?

I'd want it set up to be best for competitive gaming.

My settings currently: Kingston Hyper X Cloud Headset

Audio Channel: 8 Channels
Sample Rate: PCM 96khz
Analog out: Headphone
SPDIF Out: PCM is enabled (unsure what this is)
7.1 Virtual Speaker Set off
Dolby Headphone off

I've tried Dolby Headphone and I'm 50/50 on it. I play a lot of Rainbow Six Siege and sometimes sounds throw me off in the wrong place.

Hope you guys can help

Thanks
Stefan

Marsman · 21 Nov 2016 at 11:26

Some people like DH, some don't.

If you're not going to use it, then the only thing to change, would be from 8 channels to 2. No point having 8 channels, if you are using stereo. Otherwise, 8 channels is what you want when using DH.

Have you tried all the DH presets, DH1, 2 and 3? Some people don't like it at all, but in case you have't tried all, it might be worth doing so.

PCM enabled is for the optical output.

Gimpymoo · 21 Nov 2016 at 12:56

I like my Xonar DX but I personally dislike Dolby Headphone.

Simulated positional sound is very much a Marmite thing.

I prefer Stereo when using headphones. Boring, I know.

sreeve1993 · 21 Nov 2016 at 16:24

I tried the Dolby headphone again and I think I might stick with it a little bit longer, I actually think I prefer it.

Regarding DH, I haven't really tested them all properly so I will give that a shot.

I tried installing 3rd party drivers however, My right headphone speaker was louder than my left. I checked "playback devices" but both were set the same.

One more question

Should I change sample rate back to 44.1khz? I read that if going too high without a source that can provide, it can degrade audio quality?

Marsman · 21 Nov 2016 at 16:50

When I used DH, I preferred DH2. DH1 was too close and DH3 was a bit distant. The echo sound that people dislike about DH, I could live with that on DH1 and 2. DH3 might have been a bit too much, even for me.

I did prefer CMSS 3D on X-Fi for gaming, but I found DH much superior when watching movies.

Not tried SBX, and I don't miss surround sound via headphones enough to buy a SB Z.

I think I'd leave it as 96k. I'd probably only put it on 44.1k for music.

Marsman · 21 Nov 2016 at 17:02

Gimpymoo said:
I like my Xonar DX but I personally dislike Dolby Headphone.

Simulated positional sound is very much a Marmite thing.

I prefer Stereo when using headphones. Boring, I know.

Sennheiser seem to have got it right on their GSX. I've seen a couple of people who dislike pretty much all surround sound DSPs found on sound cards, say they find the GSX works very well.

Not cheap at £200, but I suppose those who are serious about wanting decent surround sound via headphones will happily pay that.

sreeve1993 · 21 Nov 2016 at 17:38

I managed to reinstall one of the 3rd party driver from maxedtech and this time round I've got it to work properly.

Believe it or not, I was actually blown away by the difference!

I've never tried the GSX, i thougt it didn't work on the Xonar DX?