ASUS Xonar DX 7.1 Channels PCI Express Interface Sound Card

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• 7.1 Channel Audio Card
• Main 7.1 channel, SPDIF Out, Line in/Mic in Combo Other Front Audio Header, Aux In
• Sound Noise Ratio (SNR) 116
• GX 2.0 (EAX 5.0)
• Dolby Demo CD

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About This Product

7.1 channel Line in/Min in SPDIF Out (combo with line-in), Aux In. 1 x Low profile bracket. 1 x Optical S/PDIF adaptor.

Customer Reviews

• Do not buy, on board audio is better than this

• Rating:
• Review: I was upgrading from X-Fi Xtreme Audio to something with better performance, and I gave this card a try, but this Xonar DX sound card sound really awful, even on board audio is MUCH better than this crappy sound card, I finally settle down with X-Fi Titanium, much much clearer treble and bass and it is THX certified. Asus lets me down again... I will not buy their products in the near future, it such a waste of time to install their products to the computer, take it out and return it later on!

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• The legendary ASUS creates another masterpeice, better than any card from Creative!!!

• Rating:
• Review: I have been a Audiophile for about 7 years now at the time of this writing August 2010. I have used many cards in the past but none compared to this. I own Denon D2000 headphones that I bought with my account right here on Amazon, I own Sennheiser HD 555 bought through a friend who went to the US. Because I live in the Caribbean some items I pay 38% TAX when it enters my country.
  I also ship with a skybox so package size is important to me. A huge thank you goes out to Amazon for also accepting international credit cards, something the New*gg website refuses to do.
  
  Asus ships this card in a very small and neat box. I totally love the box I have it on my PC desk as a decoration yes it even opens like a book. Because the box was so small I only had to pay [...] shipping from Florida to Trinidad and Tobago. This was a major bonus in my book. When shopping online I must also be sure to buy a product that can last more than 10 years and when it comes to computers ASUS ranks high up the highest in my book. Because I don't want to pay to ship back anything faulty to the US.
  
  Now onto the important part that matters most. The sound quality is incredible, when used with headphones costing upwards of $50 US you really notice the difference. It is indeed like magic never can I go back to onboard sound, the detail and bass you experience is phenomenal. It will power the HD 555 very very good with no AMP because of the high sensitivity neglect the impedance in ohms, the Denon D2000 is only 25 ohms but low sensitivity and hence has difficulty playing on the Xonar DX without an AMP for the Denon you would need the Xonar STX with built in headphone AMP. But for the HD555 sennheiser its 100% perfect. Anything made by the Taiwan born company ASUS is legendary there are no questions asked. How do they do it? I personally don't know but I assume ASUS hires the best Engineers from around the world and their products are well worth the money no matter who you are and where you are from you can always trust ASUS.
  
  PS EAX is old and dying even Creative admitted it. This ASUS also emulates EAX 5.0 if you really need it. But in reality this Card does play games much better with audiophile headphones I enjoy the dolby headphone option for games much better than the creative crap. And don't forget no driver issue with this ASUS. With creative, drivers are a nightmare I will never go back.

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• Good sound but frustrating set up

• Rating:
• Review: I purchased the Xonar DX for the optical out (s/pdif,toslink) connection and threw it in a Gateway SX2850-01 Desktop (Black) "slim" computer for a HTPC. Once I got it working the sound is great. Now I get true surround sound and deep bass watching digital movies and internet content. There are a few things to note when ordering this sound card that are frustrating (at least to me anyway). Mind you, I'm not as savy as some people. I'd say I'm an average user and I'm used to plugging in a card, powering on Windows, and Windows saying "new device found" "now installing" and "you're device is ready for use." First, it doesn't come with a manual. It comes with a bare bones installation guide which is not that helpful. You'll have to run a Google search to find the full pdf version. Second, it requires external power and they provide an old Molex style connector. The Gateway SX2850 HDD and DVD drive run off SATA power connections and the power supply has no spare power cables. So, I had to buy a SATA extension with extra Molex connector from NewEgg (Radio Shack and Best Buy do not carry them, I checked). To cut a long story short, the card is not PnP and does not auto-detect which ports you're using. You have to use the interface software that comes with the card to make adjustments (Windows 7 is futile). I spent a few hours before I figured out you have to check mark the s/pdif box in the packaged software. There is a fraction of a second delay in sound when using the optical. I only notice it when I log on to Windows though. Watching actual content is fine. So bottom line, great card and sound, just frustrating to hook up for the average user. Minus one star- for omitting the full user manual and supplying older style power connections. The full manual would have save a lot of headache.

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• Works great after install and setup work

• Rating:
• Review: This is a great audio card but keep in mind you may have to do like I did to install: 1. Grab an old computer case with power supply 2. Cut out a good long section of the little floppy power cord with end attached. 3. Cut the floppy power cord on your existing system at an appropriate length to reach the card. 4. Use electrical tape, insulators, or some such to connect the corresponding wires and thus lengthen your floppy power cord. 5. Be easy as you connect to the sound card, it doesn't take much force and you don't want to bend anything.
  That's it! Once it is up and running it sounds great, especially after you adjust the software for how you use it (in my case, optimized for music).

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• A must for any running Win7x64 and wanting excellent sound.

• Rating:
• Review: Paired with a Yamaha RX v363 digital receiver this beast of a card does high quality affordably and easily with Windows7 x64bit. I spent forever trying to find a card that could upscale 2 channel sound easily to 5.1 under x64. Creative and many others came short, this sweet card installed and now i went from bunch of heavy analog cables to one lone fiber cable pumping out the sweet taste of a Cyanide sweet tooth and Wizt Lizt madness.
  
  Only real knock against this card is if you do use the SPDIF out (and really who would buy this grade of card and not?) then you lose the mic input so you have to use the front headers on your PC.
  
  Sounds good, excellent form-factor went in my microcube without giving me a heart attack or smashed fingers and again no problem with advanced features with Win7 x64 bit, what more do you need?
  
  

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