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Soundcard Advice

dillonminer
By dillonminer
in Audio
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Go to solution Solved by KamiKatze,

I am looking to but headphones and a soundcard. I am looking for a high quality setup and am looking to spend under $200 on the headphones. I am not sure how much I want to spend on the soundcard because I don't know much about them. I am primarily concerned with listening to music, I will be playing games and watching movies to but I don't care nearly as much about the audio in games and movies as I do in music. I currently have my eyes on the audio technica ath-m50s but if anyone thinks there are better headphone I could get for a similar price please do recommend them. As far as the soundcard goes I am looking for a soundcard that will match the headphones in quality so that I can take full advantage of the headphones I choose. My motherboard is an Asus Z-87 pro, I am not sure how good the onboard audio is, figured I'd include it.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated 

Thanks

 

What Motherboard do you have? Most on board chips are Your onboard chip is very good. Sound cards are a waste of money unless your goal is to get more volume. The quality really doesn't live up to the price. I'd recommend to take a look at the Fiio E10 or other DAC/AMPs. I'd spend around $100 on one.

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I am looking to but headphones and a soundcard. I am looking for a high quality setup and am looking to spend under $200 on the headphones. I am not sure how much I want to spend on the soundcard because I don't know much about them. I am primarily concerned with listening to music, I will be playing games and watching movies to but I don't care nearly as much about the audio in games and movies as I do in music. I currently have my eyes on the audio technica ath-m50s but if anyone thinks there are better headphone I could get for a similar price please do recommend them. As far as the soundcard goes I am looking for a soundcard that will match the headphones in quality so that I can take full advantage of the headphones I choose. My motherboard is an Asus Z-87 pro, I am not sure how good the onboard audio is, figured I'd include it.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated 

Thanks

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Dont waste your money on a sound card.

CPU: i7 8700 GPU: Asus ROG Strix GTX 1080 Mobo: Gigabyte Z370 Gaming 5 Ram: 16GB EVGA SuperSC SSD: Samsung 850 EVO 250GB 
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I am looking to but headphones and a soundcard. I am looking for a high quality setup and am looking to spend under $200 on the headphones. I am not sure how much I want to spend on the soundcard because I don't know much about them. I am primarily concerned with listening to music, I will be playing games and watching movies to but I don't care nearly as much about the audio in games and movies as I do in music. I currently have my eyes on the audio technica ath-m50s but if anyone thinks there are better headphone I could get for a similar price please do recommend them. As far as the soundcard goes I am looking for a soundcard that will match the headphones in quality so that I can take full advantage of the headphones I choose. My motherboard is an Asus Z-87 pro, I am not sure how good the onboard audio is, figured I'd include it.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated 

Thanks

 

What Motherboard do you have? Most on board chips are Your onboard chip is very good. Sound cards are a waste of money unless your goal is to get more volume. The quality really doesn't live up to the price. I'd recommend to take a look at the Fiio E10 or other DAC/AMPs. I'd spend around $100 on one.

who cares...

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What Motherboard do you have? Most on board chips are very good. Sound cards are a waste of money unless your goal is to get more volume. The quality really doesn't live up to the price. I'd recommend to take a look at the Fiio E10 or other DAC/AMPs. I'd spend around $100 on one.

 

:rolleyes:

 

 My motherboard is an Asus Z-87 pro, 

PC Build in LTT Gallery - JBL J88 - Fostex T50RP (Modded) - Pioneer SE-A1000 vs audio-technica ATH-AD500X - Skullcandy Aviator  
audio-technica ATH-T400 - CHC Silverado and Laredo - Clip-On Headphone Roundup - Sony LinkBuds

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I'd advise against the M50's, as they're really uncomfortable, at least for me. I went from M50's to Shure SRH440 with 840 pads, which are a lot more comfortable, and sounds even better imo. And you won't need a soundcard or external DAC/amp unless it doesn't get loud enough for you or there is crackling or hissing.

Reviews: JBL J33i   M50s   SRH440   Soundmagic PL50           

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I'd advise against the M50's, as they're really uncomfortable, at least for me. I went from M50's to Shure SRH440 with 840 pads, which are a lot more comfortable, and sounds even better imo. And you won't need a soundcard or external DAC/amp unless it doesn't get loud enough for you or there is crackling or hissing.

I would actaully still go for the ATH-M50s and just put the 840 pads on them, I've heard they fit quite well too. And why do you guys dislike soundcards? I'd like to know a good full explanation why aswell.

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I would actaully still go for the ATH-M50s and just put the 840 pads on them, I've heard they fit quite well too. And why do you guys dislike soundcards? I'd like to know a good full explanation why aswell.

Still avoid the M50, as they are also over priced, and go read the FAQ

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I would actaully still go for the ATH-M50s and just put the 840 pads on them, I've heard they fit quite well too. And why do you guys dislike soundcards? I'd like to know a good full explanation why aswell.

We dislike soundcards because 1) they cost money and 2) aren't any better than most modern onboard solutions.

PC Build in LTT Gallery - JBL J88 - Fostex T50RP (Modded) - Pioneer SE-A1000 vs audio-technica ATH-AD500X - Skullcandy Aviator  
audio-technica ATH-T400 - CHC Silverado and Laredo - Clip-On Headphone Roundup - Sony LinkBuds

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I would actaully still go for the ATH-M50s and just put the 840 pads on them, I've heard they fit quite well too. And why do you guys dislike soundcards? I'd like to know a good full explanation why aswell.

M50's and 840 pads don't go well together IMO, wrecks the bass response of them, and leaks sound.

Reviews: JBL J33i   M50s   SRH440   Soundmagic PL50           

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M50's and 840 pads don't go well together IMO, wrecks the bass response of them, and leaks sound.

Have you tried the sock mod?

PC Build in LTT Gallery - JBL J88 - Fostex T50RP (Modded) - Pioneer SE-A1000 vs audio-technica ATH-AD500X - Skullcandy Aviator  
audio-technica ATH-T400 - CHC Silverado and Laredo - Clip-On Headphone Roundup - Sony LinkBuds

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We dislike soundcards because 1) they cost money and 2) aren't any better than most modern onboard solutions.

 

So serious question here.

 

ALC1150 = Sound Blaster Z ?

9900K  / Noctua NH-D15S / Z390 Aorus Master / 32GB DDR4 Vengeance Pro 3200Mhz / eVGA 2080 Ti Black Ed / Morpheus II Core / Meshify C / LG 27UK650-W / PS4 Pro / XBox One X

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So serious question here.

 

ALC1150 = Sound Blaster Z ?

Usually the sound blaster performs worse.

PC Build in LTT Gallery - JBL J88 - Fostex T50RP (Modded) - Pioneer SE-A1000 vs audio-technica ATH-AD500X - Skullcandy Aviator  
audio-technica ATH-T400 - CHC Silverado and Laredo - Clip-On Headphone Roundup - Sony LinkBuds

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Usually the sound blaster performs worse.

 

Ok, thank you. I am by no means an audiophile....but from a gaming aspect I am having difficulty with audio. In BF4 I feel like I cannot tell where sounds are coming from directionally.

 

Using ALC1150 onboard (MSI MPower Z87) with Steel Series Flux headphones. Advice?

 

I almost left frys today with an SB-Z but didn't as I wasn't sure if was all marketing or not for the whole directional/virtual surround thing.

9900K  / Noctua NH-D15S / Z390 Aorus Master / 32GB DDR4 Vengeance Pro 3200Mhz / eVGA 2080 Ti Black Ed / Morpheus II Core / Meshify C / LG 27UK650-W / PS4 Pro / XBox One X

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Ok, thank you. I am by no means an audiophile....but from a gaming aspect I am having difficulty with audio. In BF4 I feel like I cannot tell where sounds are coming from directionally.

Using ALC1150 onboard (MSI MPower Z87) with Steel Series Flux headphones. Advice?

I almost left frys today with an SB-Z but didn't as I wasn't sure if was all marketing or not for the whole directional/virtual surround thing.

Lol, buy better headphones. Frys carries Sennheiser, so I'll suggest the 518 at least if you want to buy in-store.

Compared to headphones, there's next to no difference between sources.

PC Build in LTT Gallery - JBL J88 - Fostex T50RP (Modded) - Pioneer SE-A1000 vs audio-technica ATH-AD500X - Skullcandy Aviator  
audio-technica ATH-T400 - CHC Silverado and Laredo - Clip-On Headphone Roundup - Sony LinkBuds

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