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Yet another Titanium HD or Essence STX thread

994 views 19 replies 11 participants last post by  Dhalmel 
#1 ·
I wanted to get a sound card and a pair of headphones to go with it. I got curious on all these talk about hi-fi and wanted to see what it will bring me. These are not high end in general but the best out here.
Shopping around I found that prices here are very different from the US.

I'm looking at
Titanium (non-HD) - $143
Titanium HD - $286
Xonar Essence STX - $205

My requirements when I began researching was to get a higher audio output from my PS3 (SPDIF connection + analog out on the sound card for 5.1 on crappy speakers going by this board), unfortunately I found that for sound cards, the above 3 are my only decent choice (The rest are lower end creative cards including audigy). And since I'm gaming less and less (Still do alot of WoW but I play that with in-game audio off and music turned on) I would say the use for hi-fi would be 90% music/10% games. Non Hi-Fi use 50% music/40% movies (mostly HDTV recordings)/10% games. So the SPDIF while a feature I really wanted is also a feature I will have little use on. Blu-ray movies I watch rarely, I watched 2 last year.

I wanted a D2/X but can't find 1 in my country. Neither can I find an H5 add-on to go with the ST. So the ST/X will be stand alone.

Planning to pair it with the SRH840 headphones for $197. I think I'm pretty much fixed on this. My music includes classical, pop, and a bunch of orchestra and a few rock (<10). No Metal, or anything louder than pop. My other headphone options include:

ATH-A700 - $238 (back order, I was able to get the price but I'm not confident I can get these)
M50 - $210
HD558 - $238
HD598 - $358 (This is way above my budget but this is the highest end I can find in my country)

Currently I'm leaning heavily on the STX. With my choice of headphones, I think this will be the best match.

My questions
1.) Would having the SPDIF in on the Titanium HD worth $81?
2.) Will the SRH840 be a good fit for the Titanium? This will satisfy all conditions (SPDIF, 5.1, headphones). But I don't think this is optimal for the headphones.
3.) Is there a way to make the STX or another way for my computer to accept SPDIF?
4.) Comments/suggestions on the headphones/sound cards/overall?

General feedback are welcome too. I'm new to this and wanted to get a discussion going with the above info. I could check if there are decent amps here if I'm going for the Titanium but I don't think I can fit that in my budget right now.

Edit:
Forgot, requirements for the headphones is for the cord to be removable. After breaking a lot of sub $30 headphones by stepping on the cord, sudden movement and other ways to dislocate the cord from the headphones. I wanted 1 that will release on pressure instead of breaking the wires. So that means the A700 and the M50 are pretty much out.
I can get Bose AE2, but at $238, I don't think they are worth the cost even with the 1year warranty and a service center within my area.

My speakers are Logitech X540. Did not realize the speakers don't show on the sig.
 
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#3 ·
sure that you know bothe Titanium HD and the STX are only 2 channels , right?

And about the SPIDF if it worth that money , it's all about your needs for it , althogh IMO it does not worth that 80$

And in overall the HD is slightly better than the STX , most in gaming , but considering the prices you got i will go for the STX
 
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Reactions: Famia
#5 ·
Id get the STX and a good pair of cans
 
#7 ·
You can't go wrong with an STX and ATH-A700. I got the same setup, and I love it!
 
#9 ·
Whichever one suits you. Honestly, hardware wise they perform neck-to-neck. You'd be hardpressed to find a difference. In my opinion though, I found the STX to be a bit flat (but maybe some of you like that), and the Creative's sound signature to be more prominent to my tastes. It basically boils down to brand preference (if applicable), software features, and aesthetics of the card. Like I said, the SQ is judgmental and on paper both should perform on par with the other. If you have the money buy both and return the one you don't like, that's what I would recommend.

EDIT: I just saw the prices for the cards. Get the STX in that case. It might not be worth the pay the extra $81 for the HD. However, the $50 above the Titanium is totally worth it. The SQ is a world of difference, especially with headphones. The above comparison still applies though if you can get them for around the same price and maybe even still at that price point. It all depends on you


EDIT 2: Also the STX DOES support S/PDIF out. Just to let you know
 
#12 ·
Well the seller is out of Xonar Essence, Next shipment is on September =(

How does the Auzentech X-Meridian 7.1 2G stack up against the STX? I'll pair it up with the SRH840.

I found Auzentech is willing to ship to my country ends up being $200.40. I'll probably have to pay toll to the sca...err customs so it'll come out to around $260 max, I'll have to ask the exact toll I'll need to pay, but 30% will be max if I'm not mistaken.

Good thing with this card is it has all that I need (SPDIF in, 5.1 out). Just not sure how good it is with headphones.
 
#13 ·
it has a Cmedia chip and has it's APIs so basiclly it's a Xonar card
Auzen cards are great but people calims that they die after a while of usage and they have bad RMA service, otherwise the card is amazing
 
#16 ·
Ok thanks, sounds good. I can't do RMA here anyway. Last time I did an RMA on my Razer Imperator I got charged $30 by our customs (Not Razer's fault, they clearly labeled it as a replacement, only thing I can fault them is they listed the retail price of the mouse).

I'll ask how long before backorders are processed on Auzentech and might go with that. Customs fee is $40 so that card will total $240.

Yeah, the prices are high. I'm not in the US, and over here they mostly go by SRP, we don't see price cuts like steam's summer sale, you'll be lucky to get more than 10% discount on sales. Only thing we got is 10% off if you pay by cash on most enthusiast shops, best buy size stores don't do this, only the mom and pop stores (and even this is smoke and mirrors, as the price after that 10% = US SRP)

If I want a sound card those are the lowest price I can get them, except if I can get an online store that do international shipping (Philippines). I went through 3 places that sells high-end components and none of them carries any sound cards (there is 1 or 2 that carries some generic pci sound card...). Those prices I list are from individuals that does selective imports.
 
#17 ·
You seem to find yourself in a situation where the Titanium HD is considerably more expensive than the STX. This is the reverse of the usual situation. I'd say it's a no brainer between it and the Titanium at those price points: get the STX.
 
#19 ·
Quote:


Originally Posted by Famia
View Post

For those that cared, I got the STX and SRH 850.

Loving it so far, using foobar now. For some reason there is huge static using winamp's version of ASIO.

I don't think the Xonars like ASIO actually. I BSODed once because I was messing around in Foobar2000's ASIO while using my Xonar D1. Never again.

Sent from my Samsung Epic 4G
 
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