ASUS Xonar Essence STX Sound Card with 124dB SNR Now Official

[npp]

The method ASUS uses to sell PCI-E sound cards is simple. PCI-E is there for compatibility (with modern motherboards) or simply a USP, but it offers zero advantage over PCI. The AV100/AV200 aren't PCI-E chipsets. They require a bus-translation logic to exist between them and the PCI-E interface. While the translation logic chip (ASUS uses the ones made by PLX) relays signal from PCI-E to PCI (and vice-versa) seamlessly, it doesn't relay power. The power it gets from the PCI-E slot, it uses it up for its own functioning. The AV100/200, and the rest of the sound card are left to the power from auxiliary inputs such as a Molex or Floppy power connector. You'd notice the Xonar D2 to require aux power, being PCI-E, while its PCI twin the Xonar D1 doesn't. Neither feature headphone amps.

It's very nice to see that there are still some people around who are using their brains instead of letting themself being fooled by pure PR B*S*. The fact that you've got a PCI-E interface is exactly as useless as the 124dB specs of the DAC, and all the other stuff like "Nichicon “Fine Gold” Professional audio capacitors offering rich bass and crystal clear high frequencies". I don't see how any of these could have perceptible effect on audio quality (i.e., in a blind test).

Pushing noise floors so low is completely useless, you must sit in an anechoic chamber to make any sense of it... Or else the ambient noise around will simply drown anything far above the -124dB floor. I seriously doubt this card will offer any noticeable advantages over an unexpensive x-fi, for example... Unless you've got some very unsensitive headphones or simply want to blow your head off.

 

[Deleted member 24505]

It looks nice this card,i would'nt mind trying one.

I did have an x-fail extreme music,but i gave it to my mate after all the crap with it on vista.Now i am using my onboard sounds digital out to my sony av amp which sounds fine to me.

 

[imperialreign]

It's very nice to see that there are still some people around who are using their brains instead of letting themself being fooled by pure PR B*S*. The fact that you've got a PCI-E interface is exactly as useless as the 124dB specs of the DAC, and all the other stuff like "Nichicon “Fine Gold” Professional audio capacitors offering rich bass and crystal clear high frequencies". I don't see how any of these could have perceptible effect on audio quality (i.e., in a blind test).

Pushing noise floors so low is completely useless, you must sit in an anechoic chamber to make any sense of it... Or else the ambient noise around will simply drown anything far above the -124dB floor. I seriously doubt this card will offer any noticeable advantages over an unexpensive x-fi, for example... Unless you've got some very unsensitive headphones or simply want to blow your head off.

you're extremelly right on this as well. There are a few of us here who'd understand this next point, but for everyone else - do you realize what kind of a upper-end speaker setup you'd need to be able to hear the difference in SNR audio qualiy between the Xonar D2 (118db SNR), and this card's 124db SNR?


As to the capacitors - well, they can have an effect on the warmth of the output quality. You'd really be surprised just how much of an influence these components have. It's more noticeable when going from cheap caps on a card, to better quality ones - e.g. removing the Jamicon caps on a X-Fi and replacing them with Elnas or BlackGates.

 

[Deleted member 24505]

Plus the fact that not that many people run seperate amps and descent speakers.As far as i'm concerned,most of the all in one 5.1 speakers you can buy are cack,bar maybe a few high end ones.The best way to get high quaity sound is a seperate av amp good speakers and good thick speaker wire.I'm using a sony av amp/mordaunt short ms 901signature speakers and QED special 25th anniversary silver speaker wire.I am only using my onboard sounds digital out to my amp and it sounds great.

 

[Hayder_Master]

asus become do good sound card's , so can anyone tell me about how can i count ( how much speaker watt size can i put on sound card ) . i don't know maybe it is not clear way to explain what i need but id anyone understand just know me

 

[swaaye]

Most of the high-end headphones need a amp to sound decent. It is not unheard of in any way (well, with headphone "enthusiasts" anyway). Headphone amps are pretty expensive too so this could be a real seller for some folks. It's certainly a unique feature AFAIK.

But yea these companies are really going at it hard with PR half-truths to try to differentiate their product. This card is all about what is almost certainly going to be placebo audio quality. It screams that magical pretentious audiophile quality that makes certain niches come alive.

 

[Deleted member 24505]

Hayder,you can put any wattage size speakers you like running from your sound card.I have 5x100 watt speakers running off mine with only a single coaxial digital cable going from my sound card to my amp.

 

[Zyrocenus]

I think you are talking about X-Fi Xtreme Audio.

Yes I was.....my bad....

Actually, with my experience with PC audio, I've seen "delays" as in latencies to lower when the CPU is directly dealing with audio, and not a part intervention where stacks are moved back and forth for the several stages of audio processing the CPU and audio processor share. With a decent DAC, there's no degradation as a result of it. When the CPU is strong enough to spend time processing audio even when it's at 100% load, it's good enough to make sure those "hiss"/"pop" things don't take place.

There is no Xtreme Music PCI-X. Creative never made a PCI-X card. That's Xtreme Audio PCI-E, which failed due to a flawed driver model among several other things that are not what's normal for CPU-accelerated audio. Notice this doesn't happen with a Xonar D2/D1, or Claro Plus+. Don't confuse integrated audio with CPU-accelerated discrete audio. In discrete audio, the various tasks are assigned to different parts of the cards (such as a host, a DAC/ADC, OPAMP, etc), where as there's a lot of consolidation with those HDA / AC'97 chips on motherboards. They'll never even come close to what a Claro / X-Meridean can ever do.

+1 on the Xtreme Music. It wasnt even a TRUE XiFi that is the top reaosn why it PHAILED in my opinion. It was basically their lowest end "XiFi" -correct me if i'm wrong but wasnt the APU a tweaked Audigy?- on the "newest" interface sound card wise. If thats not "designed for disaster" I dunno what is. And yes, I know thatonboard cant hold a candle to virtually anything available on an expansion card. Yer preachin to the recently converted man

It looks nice this card,i would'nt mind trying one.

I did have an x-fail extreme music,but i gave it to my mate after all the crap with it on vista.Now i am using my onboard sounds digital out to my sony av amp which sounds fine to me.

U gave yer friend a PHAIL card as a present? isnt that kinda like giving them a virus? lol

But yea these companies are really going at it hard with PR half-truths to try to differentiate their product. This card is all about what is almost certainly going to be placebo audio quality. It screams that magical pretentious audiophile quality that makes certain niches come alive.

+1 Amen to that.... The diff between this card and the Auzen Prelude are next to nill. This card touts 124 dB SNR the prelude has 123 dB. Neither of which would be dicernable even if you were in a sound room. This card seems designed to eek out the Prelude and nothing more. There is no problem with that as it is a HUGE diff between their last XONAR offering. All I'm sayin is that if you already own a Prelude this isnt REALLY an upgrade. If on the other hand yer comin from somethin a year or 2 old or onboard, fasten yer seatbelt.

Zyro

 

[Deleted member 24505]

He is using xp,that card seems to work ok on xp.

 

[imperialreign]

+1 on the Xtreme Music. It wasnt even a TRUE XiFi that is the top reaosn why it PHAILED in my opinion. It was basically their lowest end "XiFi" -correct me if i'm wrong but wasnt the APU a tweaked Audigy?- on the "newest" interface sound card wise. If thats not "designed for disaster" I dunno what is. And yes, I know thatonboard cant hold a candle to virtually anything available on an expansion card. Yer preachin to the recently converted man
Zyro

Well, it's very much true the Xtreme Audio was just a re-hashed Audigy 2 SE, which was itself a re-has of the Live! 24-bit card . . . and depending on specific components, we can trace this back even further . . .

Although the Xtreme Audio wasn't truly deserving of the X-Fi branding, as it didn't really support any of the marketed features of the true cards (no APU, no hardware acceleration, lack of EAX 5.0 support, no "game" mode, etc), it still is a typical, Creative "budget" card. TBH, the Xtreme Gamer is much better, and in most markets is only $20-$30 more.