Tek Syndicate Audio Myths with @MayflowerElectronics

[MayflowerElectronics]

the problem with an o2 in a computer case, is that the amp runs off 12v AC, if it was DC you could easily stick on a molex to barrel adapter to power it.

 

the small fiio/iBasso dac/amps on the other hand run off usb, you could easily come up with a mount and just run it off the motherboard usb headers.

 

I'm sure you can find a DC to A/C 12v converter somewhere. But you'll run into the same issue with noise and EMI.

[ShearMe]

the problem with an o2 in a computer case, is that the amp runs off 12v AC, if it was DC you could easily stick on a molex to barrel adapter to power it.

 

the small fiio/iBasso dac/amps on the other hand run off usb, you could easily come up with a mount and just run it off the motherboard usb headers.

 

Wait - the wall wort that comes with the O2 isn't an AC to DC transformer? Then how does the dual 9V battery option work?  :rolleyes:

[MayflowerElectronics]

Wait - the wall wort that comes with the O2 isn't an AC to DC transformer? Then how does the dual 9V battery option work?  :rolleyes:

 

No, it's AC to AC 12v @ 400 mA. Conversion is done within the amp to DC, The batteries work with snake oil and magic.

[ShearMe]

No, it's AC to AC 12v @ 400 mA. Conversion is done within the amp to DC, The batteries work with snake oil and magic.

 

unsure if sarcasm, because it seems legit

[MayflowerElectronics]

unsure if sarcasm, because it seems legit

 

I'm never sarcastic. B)

[EmoRarity]

I'm never sarcastic. B)

That would be unprofessional, and you are a businessman, you have to be doing the business every second of your life for the rest of it. 

[ShearMe]

That would be unprofessional, and you are a businessman, you have to be doing the business every second of your life for the rest of it. 

 

[EmoRarity]

CryBabyBitch.jpg

TheBusiness.mov

[Crion]

It's great to see that more gamers are actually being exposed to good information about audio.  I don't think anyone who has any decent level of knowledge about electronics would argue that a USB DAC is a superior solution to both onboard and sound cards.  I think many would argue and legitimately so that a sound card can be better than onboard which while the video didn't exactly say, it wasn't explained too well but that may have made this into an hour long video.

[Turkatron]

It's great to see that more gamers are actually being exposed to good information about audio.  I don't think anyone who has any decent level of knowledge about electronics would argue that a USB DAC is a superior solution to both onboard and sound cards.  I think many would argue and legitimately so that a sound card can be better than onboard which while the video didn't exactly say, it wasn't explained too well but that may have made this into an hour long video.

Next mission: get gamers to stop buying Razer's shit mechanical keyboards. I assume most of them only think Razer has mechanical keyboards or they were the first. My friend has the black widow and he likes it a lot and it really frustrates me about the Razer dick riding.

[h264]

I think many would argue and legitimately so that a sound card can be better than onboard.

 

I guess it COULD, but I haven't seen one that's worth it's salt yet.  A soundcard is only really better than no audio at all, which was their original purpose.

 

I say, legitimately so, that onboard is audible indifferent to a soundcard, and can be BETTER in terms of just listening to music or playing PC games.  Also it's free with your motherboard.  You can't beat that.

[Hikaru12]

Wait - the wall wort that comes with the O2 isn't an AC to DC transformer? Then how does the dual 9V battery option work?  :rolleyes:

 

It can't accept DC but I believe the conversion is done within the amp itself.

[unidentical]

Now this is quite interesting. I bought a Xonar STX on recommendation from Linus, and now Logan shows up and he's all like "You done wasted your money, n000000000b! LOL ROFL PWNT buy my album"

 

I just don't know what to believe anymore.

 

At the very least my system is sexier for having that card in it, so I've got that going for me.

[mr moose]

If you run digital out the sound card doesn't matter. Because it bypasses the DACs on the sound card / onboard.

But for line out it matters as you are outputting an analog signal; and the quality of the DACs used are variable between different solutions. Of course whether that difference is detectable to the human ear I do not know.

 

The reason line out doesn't matter is not because the SQ of a DAC which is only measurable with very expensive equipment, the human ear is not going to discern any real difference between devices and manufacturers (unless they are really cheap nasty shitty things, but we aren't talking about those).  But due to the architecture of line level signa; processing.  It is much easier to design and very predictable, therefore you get very little difference (read no difference) between devices or manufacturers.

 

 

Why are DACs external?  Why do we not see DACs installed in 5.25 bays?  They seem the right size,  I have seen amps (like the  Kama Bay Amp Pro) that can be installed and I have seen other audio interfaces that seem to be able to be installed, why not DACs?  Would there still be an interference issue if the DAC was in the bay?  Would that not mean you need to be careful about where you put it outside the case as well, or at least slightly? 

 

 

It's all horses for courses, you can get dacs to fill any form factor or need, internal external and combinations.

 

 

It can't accept DC but I believe the conversion is done within the amp itself.

 

Correct, there is a specific section of the amp design (half wave rectifier PSU) that controls the input power from the wall wart and connects to the batteries.

[pierrelucsav]

This video is so wrong. A sound card makes a HUGE difference.

Soundcard vs mediocre onboard a few years ago? Perhaps. Nowadays? Nay.

[TheProfosist]

I really couldn't tell a difference between the 7.1 surround sound and with 2 speakers when listening to the

. Now I know not to buy a 7.1 Surround Sound headset anymore

Thats optimized for stereo. If stereo is properly done it can give you very good positional awareness.

[TastyMidget]

... why cant they've made that video a year ago before i wasted money on a soundcard and learned the hard way.

[ShearMe]

Now this is quite interesting. I bought a Xonar STX on recommendation from Linus, and now Logan shows up and he's all like "You done wasted your money, n000000000b! LOL ROFL PWNT buy my album"

 

lel, your avatar is fitting

 

 

Correct, there is a specific section of the amp design (half wave rectifier PSU) that controls the input power from the wall wart and connects to the batteries.

 

Hmm, how much of a difference would 12v on the battery terminals be from 18v? 

[mr moose]

... why cant they've made that video a year ago before i wasted money on a soundcard and learned the hard way.

 

This type of thing has been hotly debated since the 70's, if it wasn't tube versus transistor it was vinyl v tape, then tape v cd then eq v processor then dac v tape the dac v vinyl and so on until we are debating which implementation of the DAC/AMP is better.

 

The funny thing about all this is that there is no reason why sound cards have to be shit, they only need to improve the headphone amp and de-clutter the software/driver package and bam, we have a product with a purpose. But companies like Asus and Creative have gone down a different path, one of capitalizing on market trends.

 

In all reality we will still be debating it in a year or two years time because there are some people that always fall victim to marketing and that's where reviews and advice comes from.

[unidentical]

lel, your avatar is fitting

My avatar is always fitting. It's like Peanut Butter. Mmmmmmmmm.

[mr moose]

lel, your avatar is fitting

 

 

 

Hmm, how much of a difference would 12v on the battery terminals be from 18v? 

 

their won't be 18v on the battery.  The circuit converts the 12-18v from the wall wart into a dual rail 12v supply,  each battery is feed 12v via a current limiting resistor to trickle charge the batteries. There are protection diodes in between the batteries and the supply circuit so that the amp can run of either but only a controlled charge will be feed to the batteries.  Then after that there is a circuit that incorporates a low voltage cutoff battery isolation protection and pop suppression.

[ShearMe]

their won't be 18v on the battery.  The circuit converts the 12-18v from the wall wart into a dual rail 12v supply,  each battery is feed 12v via a current limiting resistor to trickle charge the batteries. There are protection diodes in between the batteries and the supply circuit so that the amp can run of either but only a controlled charge will be feed to the batteries.  Then after that there is a circuit that incorporates a low voltage cutoff battery isolation protection and pop suppression.

 

So I could literally solder a yellow molex wire to one battery terminal, a black to the other, and it'd work perfectly? Why didn't you just say so?

[mr moose]

So I could literally solder a yellow molex wire to one battery terminal, a black to the other, and it'd work perfectly? Why didn't you just say so?

no, the input power needs to be AC it cannot be DC, Sorry I didn't realise that's what you were asking.

 

But if your talking about a 9 volt rechargeable then you would need a resistor to limit the current so you don't cook the battery.

[vredstein]

There is so much false information in the audio world it's insane.

 

Someone who is selling audio equipment will always tell you why other audio equipment is inferior or there is no reason for you to buy theirs.

 

The Tek video message seemed to be that sound cards are overkill for gaming and inferior for more intensive uses. The problem was that it offered only a DAC and amp seller's views, giving us the "unbiased" truth and unsurprisingly it was received as a "sound cards are inferior" declaration. Having an intro clip of them burying a sound card like a useless piece of garbage set the stage.

The Mayflower guest has a right to his opinion, but he has to understand his specific employment puts the motivation for his opinion and Tek's choice of sources into question. They could have chosen an expert with no vested interest in either solution apart from obtaining the best value. It would be like Linus interviewing an AMD rep about which is better-AMD or Intel, and passing it off as information all viewers should trust, treat as the unbiased truth, and act on. Benchmarking multiple audio solutions and presenting hard data would be received as more credible and might have helped people more.

It may seem much easier to make a decision when you don't confuse things with potentially conflicting opinions from multiple sources, but we've seen how that creates willfully ignorant consumers and viewers.  Maybe Tek chould interview JJ from Asus and let the viewers use their own judgement to determine which is best for them.

[Jizburg]

 

As a proud owner of a Xonar Essence STX this video has got my jimmies rustled to say the least. I can't say I find it easy to believe what they're saying. It seems highly unlikely to me that an entire category of PC products is useless and only sells based on marketing and false information.

That said I also don't see Logan as someone who would make a video like this without doing his homework first. I don't know what to think. 

I'd be really curious to see what Linus thinks of this, since he seems to be a strong advocate for Asus sound cards.

exactly my thougths... what will our proud leader say about this herrasy?!

no but seriously. i would like to hear linsus thoughts about this.