2. pc-audio
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Help me build a fine PC sound system


I’m looking for current suggestions to a great sounding desktop audio outfit which is pc driven or based completely.
!
Currently I’m using a Creative labs $50 USB sound card, and an Altec Lansing 2.1 desktop speaker system $200..

It really isn’t bad, and loads of fun. It allows me to play back lots of files & CDs I probably would not play too often on my main stereo.

So… I'm looking for recommendations of USB sound cards and a 2.1 speaker setup. Prefferably with both mechanical and software vol control, which will noticeably improve upon the aforementioned gear..

Noticeably.

What are your picks for:

USB sound card
2.1 speakers
2.0 speakers
Subwoofer

…… that will sound better than my above listed stuff? Actually it’s OK, but playing a setup disc it is easy to perceive how many areas of the bandwidth simply aren’t being honestly reproduced… but that’s about the only way to really highlight it’s shortcomings. Otherwise.. it’s well, fun…. And inexpensive.

Mainly the focus is for PC but if it will work with Macs too, that's great!. If it can integrate into a preamp or receiver or DAC too, that would be very nice, but not an absolutely necessary option.

Remember, the idea is a stand alone very, very nice sounding PC sound system first! It should be capable too of replaying file types from 16/44 to 24/192.

Do try to make the rig as inexpensive as is possible, so some reasonable and thoughtful blend of value to performance should be the real guideline.

I’m thinking too, as full range as is possible and likely a sub needs be in the mix… but nothing nutso.

Over achieving and high value items, front and center!

This might be fun…. Wadaya think?

Many thanks!
blindjim
sandstone
358 posts
 
Jim,

"According to what I saw the other day on the DVD Extractor web site… a Blu Ray version is upcoming."

Were you ever able to check out DVD Extractor?

Cerrot,
"I had predicted about about 5 years ago that within 10 years, ethernet would be the standard. I do believe we will see it."

Guess you can always hope, but not likely. Instead, it will soon be USB 3.0 (& subseq.) and Thunderbolt, i.e. Light Peak.

davide256's avatar
davide256
398 posts
 
Always intereesting to listen to people talk about how to throw their money around. Ignoring all that, heres my recipe for beating down the PC audio issues at lowest price for best results.

1) build your PC right to start... GIGO.
a) use a stable motherboard thats "green PC" ie energy efficient which equals lower noise
b) choose an energy efficient multi processor... the hotter it runs the more cooling noise and other woes you fight
c)use a speedy,quiet SSD for your main drive for programs only and a quiet hard disk drive to handle the space needed to store your music files
d) run a 64bit OS for best hardware performance
e) use at least 4 gig of RAM to minimize disk read activity
f) use a decent video card to offload cycles from your CPU
g) eliminate all unnecessary fans and use the quietest running after market CPU cooler you can.

once you have your system up and running, turn off indexing and if its a dedicated music server disable swap file... background disk processes are your enemy for jitter. So far your total PC cost should be around $600-$700.

The whole point of this path is to eradicate as much as possible the issues that cause noise and jitter before audio signal even leaves your PC. I'm not a big fan of trying to engineer around a design thats broken, that just leads to the fix creating new problems.

Now that you have done the analog equivalent of creating a good turntable to spin your disc, you have to make some choices that center around dollars for sound transfer... You have to get the music out of the PC to your preamp.

Cheapest option: ASUS sound card, supports up to 192Khz sample rate at 24bit, kernel streaming. Price anywhere from $50 for a DS to $200 for a Xonar Essence STX. I've been using the DS for a while about to switch to the Essence to get a better analog section + RCA out vs minijack.

Better option: use an external DAC and the SPDIF of the ASUS. Plan on spending $500 + for this.

I can't comment on the value of the asynch USB to SPDIF and reclocker options since I haven't tried them... and I have never seen a review trial where one of these went up against an optimized PC to show that it could improve output even on a dedicated music server design. They probably have value for off the shelf machines which are already design compromised.
jiminia
10 posts
 
"Any other pc sound system users out there owning a special configuration that yields a really nice sound? Please… let me know."

I use Steve N's Empirical Audio Off-Ramp 4, having upgraded from the 3, and before that, the original. Player is Foobar/wasapi. The Off-Ramp feeds a Perfect Wave DAC, which I also use as a preamp, via spdif. The rest of the system is Theta Citadels and Legacy Whispers with Revel subs. I'm the kind of guy who is always looking for a way to improve, but honestly, things are sounding pretty spectacular at the moment. Not sure what I would do to improve, unless it would be to try the next version of the Off-Ramp when there is one. My opinion - the Empirical Audio stuff is stellar. Not the cheapest, but I'm not after the cheapest. (By the way, something many people may not realize - Foobar can be controlled with the Apple Remote app on an iTouch or iPad.)
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