STX or D2X

[A_ashish_A]

hi all
i am planning to upgrade my pc sound card. as topic says which one is better among Asus Xonar Essence STX and Asus Xonar D2X Masterpiece Audio Card for pure music listening?? plz reply urgent. thnx in advance.

 

[corElement]

Both are good, I found high preamp volume playback on the d2x to be better but vocal and details are better on the STX but preamp has to be kept around 70% or else sound becomes harsh at 80% above.

 

[BLASTO]

Both are good, I found high preamp volume playback on the d2x to be better but vocal and details are better on the STX but preamp has to be kept around 70% or else sound becomes harsh at 80% above.

@Core, are you saying D2X is better than STX for stereo listening?
Who will even buy the STX then? It is only 2 channels and is more costly than D2X?

 

[corElement]

No, I'm saying the default opamps on the STX get a little harsh beyond 80% preamp volume. The sonic quality of the stx is superior but on the default opamps, preamp should be kept lower than 80%. The d2x can be pushed to 100% but the sound quality on stereo I would say is about 15% lower than the STX.

 

[matbhuvi]

You can easily change the opamp in STX to suit your taste. The default opamp is bit too airy. Not sure about opamp rolling in D2X