Looking for some help finding a decent amp/dac/sound card

[Kirah]

Hi so im looking for something to replace my current Asus xonar xense sound card.

Sense it has started utterly crap it self building up a crap ton of static when idle.

And releasing it as a terrible deafening noise.

 

I'm looking for ether a external solution in the form of a amp/dac or a internal sound card

That is ether equal or better then the solution i have now.

I have a max budget of 220 USD or 1500sek/Swedish krona

 

I'm going to be driving a pair of Sennheiser PC350's so i wont be needing the fanciest solution out there.

I would however like it if the external solution has both a mic and headphone jack.

Otherwise i will need to hook up the mic to the internal and the audio to the external.

 

While its possible its going to be a right pain to make it look all neat and tidy.

I'm really ocd about how tidy my desk is which is why i have been putting of getting a external solution.

 

But im up for suggestions keep in mind i live in Sweden.

So i wont be able to order stuff from most US retailers sense they don's support international shipping.

Or if they do the shipping cost is most likely going to cost as much as the device it self.

 

I'm going to need a list of possible replacements in my budget range.

And then i need to hunt them down to see if i can find them at any of the online retailers here.

 

[creatip123]

If external mic jack is important, then go with the Syba DAC. It got the external mic jack. Personally, I'd rather go with the E10k, and use a cable extension for the mic plug to PC's casing, but that's me....

[Kirah]

If external mic jack is important, then go with the Syba DAC. It got the external mic jack. Personally, I'd rather go with the E10k, and use a cable extension for the mic plug to PC's casing, but that's me....

 

Wile the external mic jack would be nice its not a must have.

And i cant seem to find ether of those in Sweden tho so i will have to get is shipped over seas.

Which will be like crazy expensive so any others from like a more common brand?

Granted i don't really know whats common brands with in the land of audio stuff.

[creatip123]

Wile the external mic jack would be nice its not a must have.

And i cant seem to find ether of those in Sweden tho so i will have to get is shipped over seas.

Which will be like crazy expensive so any others from like a more common brand?

Granted i don't really know whats common brands with in the land of audio stuff.

 

Then write down some local webstores there, ones that's easy for you to buy stuffs from, and we'll see what they got there....

[Kirah]

Then write down some local webstores there, ones that's easy for you to buy stuffs from, and we'll see what they got there....

we don't actually have a whole lot lets see

these are 4 places i can just drive to and pick it up in the store

http://www.netonnet.se/

http://www.webhallen.com/se-sv/

http://www.elgiganten.se/

http://www.mediamarkt.se/

 

And 2 places that has pretty good shipping times

http://www.inet.se/

https://www.komplett.se

 

tho they all tend to have ether creative or Asus stuff

[Kirah]

Basically the stuff that is maxing my budget is ether a ASUS ROG Xonar Phoebus or ASUS Xonar Essence STX for internal sound.

 

Or a external sound dac called Pro-Ject Head Box S there is also some cheaper external stuff.

Like ASUS Xonar U7 and Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD.

 

Tho im not really sure if any of those are any good or not.

[ShearMe]

http://www.tradera.com/item/120305/211456222/horlursforstarkare-med-dac-20hz-20khz-16-600ohm-usb-rca-6-3mm-sv ?

 

Man, Swedish eBay really keeps out the Chinese competition. 

[Kirah]

http://www.tradera.com/item/120305/211456222/horlursforstarkare-med-dac-20hz-20khz-16-600ohm-usb-rca-6-3mm-sv ?

 

Man, Swedish eBay really keeps out the Chinese competition. 

 

Well to be fair tradera is kinda eeh i mean i can get stuff off normal ebay the problem is the insane shipping cost.

 

And as for that dac does that have any reviews or anything cause i cant even spot a product name or anything.

i don't just want my headphones to be louder i also want more detail in the audio.

And while i mostly listen to heavy base music i don't want the base to be so loud that its overpowering the rest

[ShearMe]

And as for that dac does that have any reviews or anything cause i cant even spot a product name or anything.

i don't just want my headphones to be louder i also want more detail in the audio.

And while i mostly listen to heavy base music i don't want the base to be so loud that its overpowering the rest

 

Well, I can't make any guarantees, but I'm pretty certain it's the same unit as Monoprice's desktop headphone amplifier. There's at least one good review on /r/headphones, though I think you're worrying too much about the "detail" and "base" volume. There's not a huge difference in sound between amplifiers. 

[Kirah]

Well, I can't make any guarantees, but I'm pretty certain it's the same unit as Monoprice's desktop headphone amplifier. There's at least one good review on /r/headphones, though I think you're worrying too much about the "detail" and "base" volume. There's not a huge difference in sound between amplifiers. 

Well darn that looks pretty much identical how would this compare to my current ASUS Xonar Xense sound card?

Sense that is what i'm looking to replace and the reason i worry is cause i use to have a amp thing before.

And it turned my music in to a base heavy mess.

 

[ShearMe]

Well darn that looks pretty much identical how would this compare to my current ASUS Xonar Xense sound card?

Sense that is what i'm looking to replace and the reason i worry is cause i use to have a amp thing before.

And it turned my music in to a base heavy mess.

 

Should sound about the same - an amp that changes the sound is a bad amp. Which "amp thing" did you have before? Many older AVRs were very boomy/muddy sounding.

[Kirah]

Should sound about the same - an amp that changes the sound is a bad amp. Which "amp thing" did you have before? Many older AVRs were very boomy/muddy sounding.

 

Okay that's good to know i take it the sound detail and games and such will pretty much the same as well?

And as for the amp i really cant remember it was pretty long ago

[ShearMe]

Okay that's good to know i take it the sound detail and games and such will pretty much the same as well?

 

Yeah, there's nothing special about game audio. If you're using virtual surround with your Xense right now, you'll have to switch to Razer Surround, but that's free software so no biggie.

[Kirah]

Yeah, there's nothing special about game audio. If you're using virtual surround with your Xense right now, you'll have to switch to Razer Surround, but that's free software so no biggie.

Ah fair enough just as long as i can hear the small details such as footsteps and where they are coming from and such it will be fine.

And i can prob mess around a bit with razer surround if i have too

[Tek_Addict]

Hi there

 

here is a suggestion thank you may want to consider buying a external Amp/Dac,i also checked to see if they ship to Sweden and yes they do for a pretty reasonable price to

you can go on the website and calculate the shipping to see how much it will cost to ship to you. 

I have bought one on their amp/dac setup's and the are a fantastic little device which really improves you audio and makes you appreciate good quality audio and how it should sound like.

 

Link here : https://www.mayflowerelectronics.com

[NannerBeans]

o2 amp if you want to go balls to the walls or Fiio has some good stuff too. 

[Kirah]

Hi there

 

here is a suggestion thank you may want to consider buying a external Amp/Dac,i also checked to see if they ship to Sweden and yes they do for a pretty reasonable price to

you can go on the website and calculate the shipping to see how much it will cost to ship to you. 

I have bought one on their amp/dac setup's and the are a fantastic little device which really improves you audio and makes you appreciate good quality audio and how it should sound like.

 

Link here : https://www.mayflowerelectronics.com

 

 

o2 amp if you want to go balls to the walls or Fiio has some good stuff too. 

 

i would really like the o2 amp / dac combo unit sadly with shipping and a EU power socket (which is also out of stock)

It will be pretty close to around 300usd which is above my 220 usd max budget.

So i would need to find ether a discount or if i can find it used.

[SSL]

Yeah, there's nothing special about game audio. If you're using virtual surround with your Xense right now, you'll have to switch to Razer Surround, but that's free software so no biggie.

 

Sure there is, you're just not mlg.

 

nub

[Kirah]

Sod it once i get my paycheck i'm picking up the Objective2 + ODAC Combo with Rear Power.

Granted i need to wait until the eu power plug is back in stock.

And for some reason i can only add it to my cart unless i say yes to adding a bamboo panel.

And there is no option in ether Firefox Waterfox Chrome or IE to just use the standard front panel what gives mayflower

[EmoRarity]

Sod it once i get my paycheck i'm picking up the Objective2 + ODAC Combo with Rear Power.

Granted i need to wait until the eu power plug is back in stock.

And for some reason i can only add it to my cart unless i say yes to adding a bamboo panel.

And there is no option in ether Firefox Waterfox Chrome or IE to just use the standard front panel what gives mayflower

If you are going to be spending that much I would go and swap out your headphone choice for something like the DT990's, just to make the choice of going for such a source solution more sensible. 

[Kirah]

If you are going to be spending that much I would go and swap out your headphone choice for something like the DT990's, just to make the choice of going for such a source solution more sensible. 

 

The thing is tho those headphones alone are another 200usd for the 250 ohm model even more if i want the really fancy 600 ohm.

And then i will need a half decent mic to go along with prob something along the lines of the mod mic which is another 70usd with shipping.

Or some how squeeze in a desktop mic which will prob be just as much but i have the option to pick it up locally.

 

Granted the mic is not much of a problem its just those headphones are so expensive.

Besides im going to need the headphones to have a closed design due to background noise.

 

And wile i do agree that spending like 300usd on audio equipment and just using the PC350s seems a bit silly sense they don't really need that much juice.

But i'm not really sure if i will be noticing much of a difference in audio i could completely wrong tho.

Sense the difference between the 350s and all the other headset i have used in the past was massive.

 

I might just do it anyway but not at the same time i don't think dropping a good 600usd for headphones and audio stuff in one go i such a good idea.

Maybe if there are some a bit cheaper but still good headphones otherwise im just going to have to wait a couple more months.

Until i have saved up a bit more before dropping another 250-300usd on a mic / headphone combo.

[EmoRarity]

The thing is tho those headphones alone are another 200usd for the 250 ohm model even more if i want the really fancy 600 ohm.

And then i will need a half decent mic to go along with prob something along the lines of the mod mic which is another 70usd with shipping.

Or some how squeeze in a desktop mic which will prob be just as much but i have the option to pick it up locally.

 

Granted the mic is not much of a problem its just those headphones are so expensive.

Besides im going to need the headphones to have a closed design due to background noise.

Then don't go for THOSE headphones, there are other options like the SRH440 or M40x, the DT's are not the only option of the face of the planet, though the DT770 would be a nice fit. But hell if I can find your local pricing. 

And wile i do agree that spending like 300usd on audio equipment and just using the PC350s seems a bit silly sense they don't really need that much juice.

But i'm not really sure if i will be noticing much of a difference in audio i could completely wrong tho.

Sense the difference between the 350s and all the other headset i have used in the past was massive.

Only really makes sense to buy something if your present solution is broken, then you should just be buying the cheapest thing that you can.

I might just do it anyway but not at the same time i don't think dropping a good 600usd for headphones and audio stuff in one go i such a good idea.

Maybe if there are some a bit cheaper but still good headphones otherwise im just going to have to wait a couple more months.

Until i have saved up a bit more before dropping another 250-300usd on a mic / headphone combo.

You can get away with spending in bits, but don't waste your money jumping around, pick a path and go down it.

[Kirah]

Okay lets say my max budget for a pair of headphones would be around 150 - 200 USD.

What types of headphones would you recommend to be used with the o2 amp and dac?

 

I need them to be over ear every on ear i have ever used makes my ears hurt.

And they don't tend to isolate as well as over ear headphones.

I also need them to be closed design due to background noise and i don't want them leaking a ton of audio

[EmoRarity]

Okay lets say my max budget for a pair of headphones would be around 150 - 200 USD.

What types of headphones would you recommend to be used with the o2 amp and dac?

 

I need them to be over ear every on ear i have ever used makes my ears hurt.

And they don't tend to isolate as well as over ear headphones.

I also need them to be closed design due to background noise and i don't want them leaking a ton of audio

Audio won't leak with an open headphone unless you listen at damaging levels. 

But I still would recommend the DT990, but if you want a closed headphone for better isolation then the DT770's will also do you well. 

[Kirah]

Audio won't leak with an open headphone unless you listen at damaging levels. 

But I still would recommend the DT990, but if you want a closed headphone for better isolation then the DT770's will also do you well. 

 

Neato i actually found a local retailer that sells the DT770's

/sigh i just wish good headphones didn't look like something from the 80s.

Oh well at least they are black and gray they could be beige / brown with wooden sides