Is this Sound card Better than mine?

[Athlonite]

Ok you won, I will buy a 2+1 speaker system. Do you think Edifier is a good brand?

for what you want yes as I said in recent years they've really pulled finger and are producing some really nice kit for not alot of money

 

[8tyone]

Ok you won, I will buy a 2+1 speaker system. Do you think Edifier is a good brand?

Do you have access to Swans speakers in your country? My friend had a Swans M50, he really liked it over the AltecLansing MX5021 he had earlier.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Depends on ones headphones.

Nah! Okay - if compared to a budget 2.1 set of computer speakers where all the electronics is included in the subwoofer and price, then sure, a nice set of headphones will likely sound better.

However... ...first, no headphones can ever reproduce music or sound effects anywhere close to that of quality loudspeaker systems. Simple laws of physics does not allow such tiny drivers to move that much air. Have you ever "felt" a big bass drum "pound" on your chest through a set of headphones? Of course not. Yet that experience is certainly a big part of listening to original (live) content.

Yes, no argument that a quality set of headphones can reproduce great sound. And they even have great entertainment value listening to music. But is the same as listening to the band up on the stage or in the studio? No.

And when it comes to gaming, for the vast majority of the time, the sound "effects" are (1), just that: "effects" and (2) the audio is secondary to what's happening on the monitor(s).

My AKG K601 sounds freakin' aweful on my onboard from 2021 (flat, shallow and soulless). It's why i still use my superiour Sound Blaster ZXR from 2013, and will do so for many years to come.

Second, and sorry, but you are missing the point and meaning of the word "audiophile". Besides the point a one-off anecdotal example does not render the whole point moot, just because a set of headphones or speakers sound great, that does NOT mean they are faithfully reproducing the sound as originally produced by the artist.

And in gaming in particular, while some of the sounds may be "sampled" from real sounds, many are simply simulated - that is, not real.

And I never said or implied that headphones cannot sound great. Nor did I ever say that "all" integrated sound is excellent.

You are vastly over-complicating things.

Not at all. If anything, I simplified things.

I'd highly disagree that Audio isn't that important either.

You really need to actually read what I said (and what you quoted, no less ) before you state you disagree.

I never ever said audio isn't important.

a VRZ Model One. $350 gets you 95% of the performance of a much more expensive audiophile setup.

95%? Sorry but that is nonsense! Total nonsense. Are they excellent headphones? Absolutely! No disputing that!!!

But can they come close to a "budget" pair of B&W 706 S3 speakers? No way! Please, dude. Don't pretend $350 headphones can match a decent set of loudspeakers, a "cheap" SVS powered LFE/Sub, and an "economical" Denon receiver.

 

[evernessince]

95%? Sorry but that is nonsense! Total nonsense. Are they excellent headphones? Absolutely! No disputing that!!!

But can they come close to a "budget" pair of B&W 706 S3 speakers? No way! Please, dude. Don't pretend $350 headphones can match a decent set of loudspeakers, a "cheap" SVS powered LFE/Sub, and an "economical" Denon receiver.

I would have said the same thing as well before I tried them out.

You can go to the headfi forum thread for those headphones and see audio engineers talk about demoing them to artists and other engineers and I can tell you in advance the reviews are glowing.

The VZR model one utilizes a meta-material based acoustic lens to shape audio waves to hit specific parts of the ears to emulate the way sounds hits your ears naturally. You get the same effect with speakers.

They are something best experienced to understand.

 

[Bill_Bright]

We clearly are not communicating. And I've been trying very hard, but you don't seem to be listening. So congrats - you outlasted my patience.

I have said repeatedly they are excellent headphones but you continue arguing as though I am saying otherwise. I am not, BTW, but since you seriously think $350 headphones can compete with those B&W being driven by a quality amp, along with that SVS sub, and refuse to admit otherwise, I see no reason to continue on.

Have a good day.

 

[Operandi]

The OP stated they are mostly looking at music playback so people should really stop fixating on gaming and exclusively speakers so headphone comparisons are not particularly useful.

Ok you won, I will buy a 2+1 speaker system. Do you think Edifier is a good brand?

You mean a 2.1 set? I would suggest a two channel (2.0) would be better if you have the room on your desk unless you listen to a lot bass heavy music. ELAC Debut 2.0 B5.2 paired with a small class D amp like a Topping PA3S would be a good combo, subwoofer can be added later.

Otherwise if you don't want separate components or won't be upgrading things for 2.1 (and powered 2.0) Edifier seem to be pretty legit despite not really getting much in the way of review press. The only thing I don't like about them is they often use non-standard cables to connect the speakers together and sometimes those cables are fixed on one side which can be a problem for length or if the cable gets damaged.

 

[qubit]

Audio quality to some extent is subjective. I think you should buy the card from somewhere like Amazon where you can return it easily and decide for yourself. It's likely to sound different to your onboard for sure.

Note that if you're getting a lot of digital hashing noise from the onboard, then this could fix it and would be worth it for that alone.

In my case, my first Creative X-Fi card sounded amazing, especially compared to the Realtek onboard and the budget Creative I had in there at the time. Note, I switched off all the special effects when comparing. I use a later version to this day and the effects are still switched off, although I've played around with them a lot over the years.

 

[mclaren85]

You mean a 2.1 set?

Yes, and I do love bass. Some claim creative gigaworks t40 has powerful bass without a sub-woofer with its proprietary technology. Don't know if it's true, though.

 

[claes]

We clearly are not communicating. And I've been trying very hard, but you don't seem to be listening. So congrats - you outlasted my patience.

I have said repeatedly they are excellent headphones but you continue arguing as though I am saying otherwise. I am not, BTW, but since you seriously think $350 headphones can compete with those B&W being driven by a quality amp, along with that SVS sub, and refuse to admit otherwise, I see no reason to continue on.

Have a good day.

Just FYI, you took a post about how amplification is needed to drive higher impedance components and turned it into a speakers vs headphones debate.

 

[evernessince]

We clearly are not communicating. And I've been trying very hard, but you don't seem to be listening. So congrats - you outlasted my patience.

I have said repeatedly they are excellent headphones but you continue arguing as though I am saying otherwise. I am not, BTW, but since you seriously think $350 headphones can compete with those B&W being driven by a quality amp, along with that SVS sub, and refuse to admit otherwise, I see no reason to continue on.

Have a good day.

I said they will get you 95% of the way there (which they will). All top end audiophile equipment is over that last few percentage.

It's not me refusing to admit something, it's that you aren't reading what I'm saying.

I digress, this conversation is off topic and clearly pointless.

 

[P4-630]

Edifier computer speakers

Computer Speakers | Edifier -【Edifier】

Whatever love playing music, games or videos on your computer, Edifier computer speakers could give you best choise.

www.edifier.com

 

[dogwitch]

for 98% of people. on board will do fine. last few percent is audio creators and high end audiophiles.

 

[Operandi]

Yes, and I do love bass. Some claim creative gigaworks t40 has powerful bass without a sub-woofer with its proprietary technology. Don't know if it's true, though.

Usually when you read "proprietary technology" you can just translate to that to "clever marketing". They do list a response down to 50Hz is pretty respectable but they don't state if thats an F3, F6, or F10 so its hard to say really but I'd be skeptical given their size and the drivers used.

I would suggest you want a two-way with a 5.25" woofer if you go 2.0, or go with a 2.1 like one of the many Edifiers. Going 2.0 (passive or powered) will give you an upgrade path and the option to expand but will be more components to source and configure. Going the 2.1 route will be simpler and easier to setup but no path to upgrade so what you have is it unless you start over.

 

[caroline!]

Ok you won, I will buy a 2+1 speaker system. Do you think Edifier is a good brand?

Using the S350DB from them right now, quality is more than enough for me and definitely a great upgrade from the cheap USB ones I had.

 

[thewan]

As your primary audio source of entertainment is music, an external USB DAC would be more beneficial than any internal PCIE based sound card. This is because the ESS SABRE DAC on your motherboard is technically superior to all with the exception of maybe the highest end internal sound cards DACs. The creative sound card may have better effects for gaming and movie watching, but it will not sound better for pure music.

Although MSI implementation of its ESS SABRE DAC may not be the best, the differences will be minor if none when compared to internal sound cards. In fact it maybe a regression, the MSI will simply sound superior to your internal sound card, especially for music.

 

[P4-630]

https://www.amazon.com/Denon-Theater-Amplifier-Bookshelf-Speaker/dp/B072635J3H/

Passive speaker upgrade possible.
As option you can connect a separate subwoofer.

 

[mclaren85]

As your primary audio source of entertainment is music, an external USB DAC would be more beneficial than any internal PCIE based sound card. This is because the ESS SABRE DAC on your motherboard is technically superior to all with the exception of maybe the highest end internal sound cards DACs. The creative sound card may have better effects for gaming and movie watching, but it will not sound better for pure music.

Although MSI implementation of its ESS SABRE DAC may not be the best, the differences will be minor if none when compared to internal sound cards. In fact it maybe a regression, the MSI will simply sound superior to your internal sound card, especially for music.

Tha'ts one of the perfect explanations. Thank you!

 

[P4-630]

@mclaren85 , so what did you decide?

 

[Operandi]

https://www.amazon.com/Denon-Theater-Amplifier-Bookshelf-Speaker/dp/B072635J3H/

Passive speaker upgrade possible.
As option you can connect a separate subwoofer.

Looks like an incredibly low value for $500; not much power from a unknown amplifier, speakers are complete unknown (but look very cheap), and bunch of pretty useless features in 2022 (CD player and FM tuner).

$100-$200 will get you a very impressive class D from like this SMSL which uses a quality Infineon chipset and has all the features you need including a sub out. Then you have another $300-$350 left to pair it up with whatever speaker you like.

 

[mclaren85]

@mclaren85 , so what did you decide?

I've decided not to buy any peripherals (sound card etc.) until the next upgrade. Currently I'm using AM4 socket..

But I think I should buy a good 2.1 speaker.

 

[P4-630]

Looks like an incredibly low value for $500; not much power from a unknown amplifier, speakers are complete unknown (but look very cheap), and bunch of pretty useless features in 2022 (CD player and FM tuner).

$100-$200 will get you a very impressive class D from like this SMSL which uses a quality Infineon chipset and has all the features you need including a sub out. Then you have another $300-$350 left to pair it up with whatever speaker you like.

At first I almost bought a 2.1 Edifier set but glad I didn't...
I just show there are other options as well, and Denon is a good brand though...
As I mentioned before you can buy different speakers for it and you can connect a separate sub.

I bought myself a Panasonic set recently, imo it's nice to have a CD player and radio DAB+ and FM as well...

 

[kozad]

IMHO - pick up a Creative G6, it's what I'm using and I love it. It's a solid USB DAC. That card in your OP is old af - with a USB DAC you'll have several benefits: works on any OS with basic USB DAC support, doesn't take up a PCIe slot, one less thing in the case, can be unplugged and used with other PCs or consoles, is outside of the case and thus isolated from EM interference from the PC itself.

If you do switch, be sure to remove the drivers from the old DAC and disable it in BIOS to save yourself some headaches unless you actually intend to use it for something.

 

[Athlonite]

IMHO - pick up a Creative G6, it's what I'm using and I love it. It's a solid USB DAC. That card in your OP is old af - with a USB DAC you'll have several benefits: works on any OS with basic USB DAC support, doesn't take up a PCIe slot, one less thing in the case, can be unplugged and used with other PCs or consoles, is outside of the case and thus isolated from EM interference from the PC itself.

If you do switch, be sure to remove the drivers from the old DAC and disable it in BIOS to save yourself some headaches unless you actually intend to use it for something.

Why buy an extra DAC when his onboard comes with one built in all he needs is a decent set of speakers and he'll be fine

 

[MrBeasterer]

For speakers, I get the best sound out of Audiotehnika 20cm+ drivers made for close volume inside enclosures with open volume and bass reflex. This gets proper dynamics. For Amp I use Onkyo because of the built in processing and general audio quality.

Even though the sound quality is impressive, I do not use the system often due to the fact that to be able to enjoiy it, the neighbors will also "enjoy it".

So eventually I realized that for personal enjoyment, the latest bluetooth enabled headphones will be best.

For sound enhancements I use FxSound General profile.

For USB DAC I use Creative G1 with 20$ headphones Zalman where I cut off the microphone with pliers to make them look kinda like studio headphones.

So my general advice is do not buy anything at all just use what you have + fxsound.

 

[mclaren85]

For those who wonder what I did.. Well I decided to stick to my onboard audio for now!