# USB DAC (SoundblasterX G6) does no difference compared to 2013 motherboard's onboard



## Primordiarch (May 11, 2022)

Hello.

Guys, please help. I have Creative SoundblasterX G6 and I can't even notice any difference compared to my onboard 2013 mobo.

Before, I have Creative X-Fi Titanium HD and with the same problem.

I've tried lossless 24bit FLAC with WASAPI. My speaker is Swans M50W Mk.I

Thank you.


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## Mussels (May 11, 2022)

those speakers are already amplified, why would you expect a large change?


USB soundcards/DAC's are primarily about the quality of their headphone amplifiers


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## chr0nos (May 11, 2022)

Is the input on those speakers digital or analog?.

If Digital there will be no change at all

And like @Mussels already told u the Creative SoundblasterX G6 is intended for headphone use


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## robot zombie (May 11, 2022)

Honestly... yeah, that's expected. Modern mobos have pretty good DACs in them these days. It's not possible for you to be getting the onboard output through an external DAC. That is how it sounds, and if there's a noticeable quality issue that is unchanging between the DACs you've used and the onboard, it's somewhere else in the chain. The DAC probably isn't your bottleneck.

That would be my real question for you here. What issue lead to you getting the DAC? If the only problem is really just down to not noticing an increase in quality, then a DAC is never gonna be the answer. I'm not familiar with those speakers, but from what I see they're your standard powered nearfields with a nice bonus having the sub with the amp integrated in... a lot like some Polk bookshelf kits I've seen. Should be pretty good to go with that setup. All I can really say is that there are some pretty significant limits on what speakers in the class can really do. A lot of the time, with nearfields in this price range, the weakness is the amplification itself... not so much in terms of power, but in distortion. They aren't the cleanest things. Tend to be pretty spartan plate amps.

JBL puts some pretty serious design tech into even their lower-end speakers. They're one of the biggest brands in professional audio. The 3-series that everyone knows for the LSR305's even gets that fancy diffusion stuff that goes on their high-end demoing and mastering speakers. And it works. But the amps in those LSR's are TRASH. Seriously, they are basic in design and componentry, and measure horribly. And while they don't sound bad at all, there are limits to how loud they can go before that distortion catches up and has them getting harsh. And obviously they do not have the detail of real, high-end studio monitors. I have them, and for years I've thought they sounded great, but they do still leave a lot on the table.

So that's part of the game, too. At this price, or really any price... but especially this one, the main limiting factor in sound quality is in the speakers themselves. Outside of that, you might consider messing around with the placement - it really is a pretty big deal with this kind of speaker... especially being that they typically wind up in bedrooms... acoustically perilous places. A desk is also about the worst thing for good sound. But I bet you're using one. As am I. Simply by placing them on a desk, even on 'isolating' desk stands, you have compromised more of the sound than the cheapest working DAC you can buy right now would. The surface of the desk still bounces all of the sound coming straight out of the speakers. Dealing with reflections is the number one difference-maker with any speaker setup. Everything else outside of a suitably powered amp is just money you could've spent on better speakers.


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## eidairaman1 (May 11, 2022)

Only way to do better is to use a dedicated sound card with a 5.1+ sound system


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## Primordiarch (May 11, 2022)

chr0nos said:


> Is the input on those speakers digital or analog?.
> 
> If Digital there will be no change at all
> 
> And like @Mussels already told u the Creative SoundblasterX G6 is intended for headphone use


I have this cable connecting my speaker to SBX G6 but I don't know if this is analog or digital. 



Spoiler: This














Mussels said:


> those speakers are already amplified, why would you expect a large change?
> 
> 
> USB soundcards/DAC's are primarily about the quality of their headphone amplifiers


Because the reviews online are so hyped.


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## SpittinFax (May 11, 2022)

Best to use headphones and do an A-B test between onboard and the USB DAC. There should be an immediate difference regardless of software drivers and music file type. Personally I find it harder to discern differences of DACs with speakers, so maybe that's the reason.

I disagree with the idea that onboard audio is equal to USB DACs. Even today it's just straight-up inferior. The SupremeFX on my Asus B550-F is very obviously boomy and lacking clarity when compared to my DAC (Zen DAC V2).


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## eidairaman1 (May 11, 2022)

SpittinFax said:


> Best to use headphones and do an A-B test between onboard and the USB DAC. There should be an immediate difference regardless of software drivers and music file type. Personally I find it harder to discern differences of DACs with speakers, so maybe that's the reason.
> 
> I disagree with the idea that onboard audio is equal to USB DACs. Even today it's just straight-up inferior. The SupremeFX on my Asus B550-F is very obviously boomy and lacking clarity when compared to my DAC (Zen DAC V2).


Onboard audio still can suffer from emi as well (screeches/beeps when moving mouse etc)...

Speakers for Game sound and a headset for com attached to card or a usb jack are fine.


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## ShiBDiB (May 11, 2022)

Primordiarch said:


> Because the reviews online are so hyped.



So I googled the item in question and didn't even have to go to any of the links to see that they market it for HEADSETS






"When paired with a good headset"

/thread


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## Ferather (May 11, 2022)

Multiple outputs and the same speakers, no better sound, then it sounds like the speakers, but it also sounds like you have good DAC's.
The difference between two DAC's could be so minimal you can't really notice, in this case changing speakers you should.


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## chr0nos (May 11, 2022)

Plug speakers here:





This should be your settings:

SBX Profile / Equalizer Available






Or try Direct mode: (This disables SBX/EQ/Effects)





LOL. Last edit:

If the cable you are using is the same as the image, change it ASAP, it's dogshit.


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## Steevo (May 11, 2022)

//You obviously need a audiophile SSD//

The point of digital till the end is the impossibility of a change in the audio signal since digital is accurate and discrete u til it hits the DAC. A DAC is only as good as it’s weakest ANALOG component. Power supply, IC power, amplifying circuits and power supply.

If you need headphones to tell you if you like the sound from your speakers…… well, you may need audiophile rocks on your cords, a audiophile SSD, and many other snake oils to soothe your ears so they hear what you like to be told is good sounding instead of what you may actually like.

I suggest listening to something you like and see if it sounds good, if it does disregard what anyone else says and enjoy it, if it doesn’t or you want to see if there is more, travel to a local store that has multiple speakers and amps setup and listen to something until you find what you like and buy that.


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## GerKNG (May 11, 2022)

did you installed soundblaster command and the drivers? otherwise it does not even work properly.

and imo it even sounds a LOT better than the ALC4080


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## Mussels (May 12, 2022)

chr0nos said:


> If the cable you are using is the same as the image, change it ASAP, it's dogshit.


Backing that up too.

Unless it came with the speakers and its verified to be high quality, it looks like a generic 20 year old cable.

Digital connections dont use the DAC, analogue does - but you're using powered speakers that have their own DAC, so it's being done twice. Not ideal.


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## Operandi (May 19, 2022)

A good DAC will always be better than onboard sound.  That said onboard audio can be pretty good, there are plenty of boards out there using good DAC chips but whats more important is how that chip was implemented.

robot zombie already covered the reasons why you might not be hearing a difference and pretty much nailed all of it.  The only thing I would add is try good headphones if you have them.  Headphones don't sound nearly as good as speakers in my opinion but they do present things more directly so you'll probably have a better chance at picking out differences. 

The other thing you can try is as suggested playing with the placement of the speakers.  If they are jammed up against a wall or worse in a corner thats going to cause early reflections which is going to cause all kinds of response and soundstage problems.  Soundstage and imaging is one of the things that is usually improved when you move up to better a DAC.


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## Frick (May 19, 2022)

Return it/sell it and just enjoy life. If you think it sounds good it's good.


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