Hey all.
I've been considering to upgrade the audio of my PC for a while, but I'm still undecided about what the best option is for me.. So I'm going to ask you for advice
My current hardware
I have an M5A99FX Pro R2.0 motherboard, which has a Realtek ALC892 onboard sound chip. Generally I have no issues with the audio, no cracking nor anything, but I'm quite sure I can get better sound quality.
I also have Audio-Technica ATH-M40X headphones. I don't plan on upgrading these. I just got them and am happy with them. They are 35 ohm headphones so they are easy enough to drive. I do want some speakers, but more on that later.
My uses
I mostly game on my setup as of late, but I love to use it for music listening also, sometimes for recording on some occasions. I play electric guitar, recording is for personal use, not for anyone else.
The games I play are varied... If I pick the last few games that I booted up, they are Dragon Age: Inquisition, 9Dragons, For Honor, Need for Speed and Rainbow Six Siege.
The music I listen to is also varied... I love soundtracks though. A few of my favorites are the soundtracks from Gladiator, The Last Samurai, Transformers, The Island.. Game soundtrack examples are Life is Strange, Pokemon series, Mass Effect series, Mirror's Edge series... As for music in general, might be easier to just look at my Last.FM profile.
I also watch movies from time to time on my PC, but I will be getting a home theater setup for the living room on a separate occasion, so it's not the current focus.
I use my headphones when I don't want to wake or disturb anyone. When I get my speakers, I must be able to easily switch between them and my headphones.
What I've considered
In the near future, I plan to add the JBL LSR305 as desktop speakers. Since they're active, this involves a 3.5 mm jack to dual 1/4" jack or to dual XLR. I think I made up my mind with this, but other suggestions are still welcome. Price would be max ~$300 for a 2.0 or 2.1 setup.
Since my use is varied and not focused on music only for example, I've been considering getting a Creative Sound Blaster Z, since it's considered a jack of all trades card with respectable quality. Still not quite sure though... My budget for the sound card or DAC is around ~$100. I can stretch to ~$150 if necessary.
FYI my knowledge on DACs and their quality is limited.
My doubts & questions
I've been considering to upgrade the audio of my PC for a while, but I'm still undecided about what the best option is for me.. So I'm going to ask you for advice
My current hardware
I have an M5A99FX Pro R2.0 motherboard, which has a Realtek ALC892 onboard sound chip. Generally I have no issues with the audio, no cracking nor anything, but I'm quite sure I can get better sound quality.
I also have Audio-Technica ATH-M40X headphones. I don't plan on upgrading these. I just got them and am happy with them. They are 35 ohm headphones so they are easy enough to drive. I do want some speakers, but more on that later.
My uses
I mostly game on my setup as of late, but I love to use it for music listening also, sometimes for recording on some occasions. I play electric guitar, recording is for personal use, not for anyone else.
The games I play are varied... If I pick the last few games that I booted up, they are Dragon Age: Inquisition, 9Dragons, For Honor, Need for Speed and Rainbow Six Siege.
The music I listen to is also varied... I love soundtracks though. A few of my favorites are the soundtracks from Gladiator, The Last Samurai, Transformers, The Island.. Game soundtrack examples are Life is Strange, Pokemon series, Mass Effect series, Mirror's Edge series... As for music in general, might be easier to just look at my Last.FM profile.
I also watch movies from time to time on my PC, but I will be getting a home theater setup for the living room on a separate occasion, so it's not the current focus.
I use my headphones when I don't want to wake or disturb anyone. When I get my speakers, I must be able to easily switch between them and my headphones.
What I've considered
In the near future, I plan to add the JBL LSR305 as desktop speakers. Since they're active, this involves a 3.5 mm jack to dual 1/4" jack or to dual XLR. I think I made up my mind with this, but other suggestions are still welcome. Price would be max ~$300 for a 2.0 or 2.1 setup.
Since my use is varied and not focused on music only for example, I've been considering getting a Creative Sound Blaster Z, since it's considered a jack of all trades card with respectable quality. Still not quite sure though... My budget for the sound card or DAC is around ~$100. I can stretch to ~$150 if necessary.
FYI my knowledge on DACs and their quality is limited.
My doubts & questions
- I don't exactly need the headphone amp of the SBZ, considering my headphone is 35 ohms only, right? The card would then only be for the potentially improved sound quality, and maybe the surround effects for gaming. Still worth it? Why not a Sound Blaster Audigy FX or Asus Xonar DGX?
- If I don't really need the headphone amp, I'll likely use my front panel connector instead. If I use my front panel, is the EMI shield on the SBZ useless?
- What about the Sound Blaster Zx? Worth the upgrade for the volume controller?
- Would I be better off buying an external DAC rather than the SBZ? If so, I'd prefer one that has optical in to receive the digital audio from my motherboard itself and let the DAC do all the processing. All recommendations are welcome. Again, budget = around ~$100. I can stretch to ~$150 if necessary. A good price/performance DAC in the ~$70-80 range is also welcome.
- Since the JBL LSR305 speakers have no optical in, it would need to be connected through the DAC as well. I would need some sort of switch to alternate between the speakers and the headphones. I don't want to be plugging and unplugging all the time. It must have a volume control knob as well. Any recommendations for this?
- Why should I go through all this trouble and not simply get a Sound Blaster X Katana soundbar and be done with it?