Sound card for PC

XP was horrble for sound. Even using all the tweaks. They fixed it all since Vista onward. Actually I think windows 8 is even better than 7 and is the best so far for sound. You're going to be blown away by how much better the sound is with the newer OS.

Anyway please please try the Creative Sound Blaster ZxR SBX. It has a much higer signal to noise ratio of 124db compared to the ESI Jui@. I haven't heard the Jui@ so I can't comment on the sound. But I can say that I am totally blown away by the sound of the Zxr SBX. I mean blown away. It's unreal how amazing it sounds. I would put it against dacs costing thousands any day. I get a totally 3D sound from it. That's of course going to depend on your power supply and how well everything plays nice in your case no matter what card you get. But get it right and it's magic. Also don't forget a good powercord for you PC. It made a big difference on mine. And run it straight to the amps leaving out the preamp (like you want to do, makes a huge differnce)

You'll have to turn off the affects they have on by default too first though.

What exactly makes Windows 8 sound better than 7? The reason I'm asking is that I'm putting together a new PC and am not sure what to go with. I thought 7 was a lot better than XP and Vista. I did try 8 on a new PC I bought and took it back because I hated using it (also, a virus took it out before I was able to figure out how to get the antivirus installed.). I've since seen 3rd party fixes that allow you to get a regular desktop and start button. I don't want to buy something old, but I don't want a problem either.

Also, have you tried Linux? I use that as my main OS and like it very much. I don't think I have enough experience with PC audio to make a fair comparison.

Op, have you tried the Unified drivers for the Asus STX?
http://maxedtech.com/asus-xonar-unified-drivers/

They are not as buggy as the asus original drivers, and yes..they work on windows 7.

Better drivers wont make that asus sound any better, it will just reduce the compatability problems. Its a very thin sounding card that fails to deliver the emotional content of the music.