Question about Coputer Audio system

[DanDanFlake]

I recently upgraded to Windows 10. After my upgrade was complete I realized my sound card (Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium Pro) the manufacturer won't update them anytime soon. This sprung me to do some research on finding a new audio solution. Upon doing some research I found that using an internal sound card especially one like the one I was using was inferior to many other options.

Now here comes my dilemma and confusion as to what I need. A buddy of mine uses a stereo receiver to play back audio over his computer. I like the way that looks and sounds and was thinking that would be the route I would go as I want something with multi-channel capabilities (I'm currently running 5.1 surround on my computer) although I would be willing to drop down to a 2 channel setup although ultimately I would like the option to have a full surround setup. Would a good stereo receiver benefit from a DAC? Or should I just hook the receiver directly up to my computer?

[gmgraves]

I recently upgraded to Windows 10. After my upgrade was complete I realized my sound card (Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium Pro) the manufacturer won't update them anytime soon. This sprung me to do some research on finding a new audio solution. Upon doing some research I found that using an internal sound card especially one like the one I was using was inferior to many other options.

Now here comes my dilemma and confusion as to what I need. A buddy of mine uses a stereo receiver to play back audio over his computer. I like the way that looks and sounds and was thinking that would be the route I would go as I want something with multi-channel capabilities (I'm currently running 5.1 surround on my computer) although I would be willing to drop down to a 2 channel setup although ultimately I would like the option to have a full surround setup. Would a good stereo receiver benefit from a DAC? Or should I just hook the receiver directly up to my computer?

 

 

Your first mistake was upgrading to Windows 10. There is a rule of thumb of which I thought all Windows users were aware: Never upgrade to a new version of Windows until at least the first Service Pack and preferably the second! My advice to you is to go back to your previous OS version and stay there. Most people who try to "downgrade" to the previous version of Windows find that they need to take the computer to a competent computer repair shop to have this done, as it is non-trivial. I, myself have remained at Windows 7 for this reason and I have a friend who migrated to Win8 only to have to pay someone to remove 8 and reinstall 7! I have another friend who uses Windows to do electronics design work; he's never upgraded from XP! His personal opinion is that one sticks with the Windows version that came with the computer when one bought it. This is probably not a bad idea all around, I've even had stuff stop working when upgrading OS X on the Mac, but it's not half the problems that one will encounter upgrading Windows.

[firedog]

I recently upgraded to Windows 10. After my upgrade was complete I realized my sound card (Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium Pro) the manufacturer won't update them anytime soon. This sprung me to do some research on finding a new audio solution. Upon doing some research I found that using an internal sound card especially one like the one I was using was inferior to many other options.

Now here comes my dilemma and confusion as to what I need. A buddy of mine uses a stereo receiver to play back audio over his computer. I like the way that looks and sounds and was thinking that would be the route I would go as I want something with multi-channel capabilities (I'm currently running 5.1 surround on my computer) although I would be willing to drop down to a 2 channel setup although ultimately I would like the option to have a full surround setup. Would a good stereo receiver benefit from a DAC? Or should I just hook the receiver directly up to my computer?

 

A little too general of a question. Depends on the receiver and the DAC. There are pretty good DACs starting at around $100 and really good ones starting at about $300-500. Are any of these better than the DAC built into your receiver (which is what I assume you are talking about)? Impossible to say.

 

Try the feed directly into your receiver and see how you like it. Satisfied? Then you are done. Not satisfied, or just curious? Find an online or local dealer that will let you buy an entry level DAC from companies like iFi Audio, Audioquest, or the Resonessence Labs Herus, and return it if you aren't satisfied.

 

Try and compare to the sound of your receiver on it's own.

[DanDanFlake]

Your first mistake was upgrading to Windows 10. There is a rule of thumb of which I thought all Windows users were aware: Never upgrade to a new version of Windows until at least the first Service Pack and preferably the second! My advice to you is to go back to your previous OS version and stay there. Most people who try to "downgrade" to the previous version of Windows find that they need to take the computer to a competent computer repair shop to have this done, as it is non-trivial. I, myself have remained at Windows 7 for this reason and I have a friend who migrated to Win8 only to have to pay someone to remove 8 and reinstall 7! I have another friend who uses Windows to do electronics design work; he's never upgraded from XP! His personal opinion is that one sticks with the Windows version that came with the computer when one bought it. This is probably not a bad idea all around, I've even had stuff stop working when upgrading OS X on the Mac, but it's not half the problems that one will encounter upgrading Windows.

That doesn't help me at all. I always upgrade to the latest version of Windows with the exception of 8. I enjoy installing new a OS and participated in the Windows 10 Technical Preview just like I did in previous versions of Windows. I also have experience with multiple Linux Distros. Also the issue isn't with Windows 10 its with creative labs drivers which one had issues with in the past. I may be new to Hi-Fi audio but ik my way around a computer both software and hardware wise. And BTW downgrading Windows isn't difficult as long as you still have your product keys just saying. Now I would appreciate a comment about my ACTUAL QUESTION and not about my operating system.

[firedog]

Your first mistake was upgrading to Windows 10. There is a rule of thumb of which I thought all Windows users were aware: Never upgrade to a new version of Windows until at least the first Service Pack and preferably the second! My advice to you is to go back to your previous OS version and stay there. Most people who try to "downgrade" to the previous version of Windows find that they need to take the computer to a competent computer repair shop to have this done, as it is non-trivial. I, myself have remained at Windows 7 for this reason and I have a friend who migrated to Win8 only to have to pay someone to remove 8 and reinstall 7! I have another friend who uses Windows to do electronics design work; he's never upgraded from XP! His personal opinion is that one sticks with the Windows version that came with the computer when one bought it. This is probably not a bad idea all around, I've even had stuff stop working when upgrading OS X on the Mac, but it's not half the problems that one will encounter upgrading Windows.

 

Great, the guy asks about a DAC vs. a receiver and you give him a so-called lesson in Windows.

 

The upgrade process for Windows 10 from Win7 or Win8 is completely reversible. It's a click in Win10. And I've confirmed that on one machine. In any case, even Microsoft advises to make a full back up or image before you upgrade. So your statement about "non-trivial" and "paying a repair shop" is a little extreme and sort of dated. People who aren't capable of doing the above probably shouldn't upgrade.

 

All reports say Microsoft has done a great job with this rollout. Obviously there will be a few issues for some users, mainly with vendors who haven't written a new driver if necessary. Most drivers for Win 8.1 will work seamlessly in 10. I personally have upgraded 3 PCs of different types, both Win7 and 8.1, without issue. Very happy with the result. It's basically Win 8 or 8.1 with the problems fixed.

[YashN]

Would a good stereo receiver benefit from a DAC? Or should I just hook the receiver directly up to my computer?

 

A dedicated DAC should be very good. Some amps and most receivers have their own internal DACs.

 

Most external DACs are USB connected. You'd route that DAC's output to your amp/receiver.

 

You could try another good sound card (PCM only) or else a new dedicated DAC (PCM + DSD).

 

You'll need an audiophile player as well (like HQ Player or else configure Foobar2000 for hires playback).

[davidbeinct]

Another route you could go is HDMI from the computer to the AV receiver. While not as good as a dedicated DAC it's likely better than the computer's sound card. Most modern AV receivers have multiple HDMI inputs, and many (most?) modern computers can do HDMI out.

[sandyk]

The upgrade process for Windows 10 from Win7 or Win8 is completely reversible. It's a click in Win10. And I've confirmed that on one machine. In any case, even Microsoft advises to make a full back up or image before you upgrade.

 

It's reassuring to hear that this works as Microsoft says, as I have a reserved copy, but the Microsoft alert tells me it may yet be a couple of day, or even weeks before I will receive it. I believe that we have a month time frame in which we can still rollback to the previous OS, which in my case is W8/64

[gmgraves]

That doesn't help me at all. I always upgrade to the latest version of Windows with the exception of 8. I enjoy installing new a OS and participated in the Windows 10 Technical Preview just like I did in previous versions of Windows. I also have experience with multiple Linux Distros. Also the issue isn't with Windows 10 its with creative labs drivers which one had issues with in the past. I may be new to Hi-Fi audio but ik my way around a computer both software and hardware wise. And BTW downgrading Windows isn't difficult as long as you still have your product keys just saying. Now I would appreciate a comment about my ACTUAL QUESTION and not about my operating system.

 

 

Well it sort of is with Windows 10, now isn't it? They obviously changed something that rendered your sound card inoperable. The card didn't change, the computer itself didn't change; only the OS changed. I certainly agree that installing a new OS is fun and exciting, but one always runs the risk that the new OS will break something, either hardware or software-wise. Sorry that you didn't find my suggestion to go back to the old system until such time that Creative Labs gets around to updating their software/firmware/hardware to work with Win10 to be a viable solution. I was just trying to give you an alternative and be helpful.

[gmgraves]

Great, the guy asks about a DAC vs. a receiver and you give him a so-called lesson in Windows.

 

The upgrade process for Windows 10 from Win7 or Win8 is completely reversible. It's a click in Win10. And I've confirmed that on one machine. In any case, even Microsoft advises to make a full back up or image before you upgrade. So your statement about "non-trivial" and "paying a repair shop" is a little extreme and sort of dated. People who aren't capable of doing the above probably shouldn't upgrade.

 

Well, it certainly was non-trivial with 8 back to 7. Win10 is too new for many people to have any experience with it, and I'm not about to be an early adaptor. Whether it's easy or difficult is really beside the point. The point is his sound card was "orphaned" by the upgrade in the OP's system, I was merely suggesting that he go back to his old system until such time as the ancillary hardware (such as his DAC) catches-up with Microsoft.

 

All reports say Microsoft has done a great job with this rollout. Obviously there will be a few issues for some users, mainly with vendors who haven't written a new driver if necessary. Most drivers for Win 8.1 will work seamlessly in 10. I personally have upgraded 3 PCs of different types, both Win7 and 8.1, without issue. Very happy with the result. It's basically Win 8 or 8.1 with the problems fixed.

 

That's good to hear, but my advice to folks stands: tread carefully when upgrading your OS (any OS) it can, and often will, orphan both software and hardware. I lost my Logitech Media Driver (for my Squeezebox Touch) for almost 6 Months when I upgraded to OS X Mavericks. It can happen to anyone.

[Kal Rubinson]

Now here comes my dilemma and confusion as to what I need. A buddy of mine uses a stereo receiver to play back audio over his computer. I like the way that looks and sounds and was thinking that would be the route I would go as I want something with multi-channel capabilities (I'm currently running 5.1 surround on my computer) although I would be willing to drop down to a 2 channel setup although ultimately I would like the option to have a full surround setup. Would a good stereo receiver benefit from a DAC? Or should I just hook the receiver directly up to my computer?

For a multichannel solution, I would suggest either a multichannel AVR to connect to your PC with HDMI or the new miniDSP U-DAC8 (the cheapest multichannel USB DAC).

[DanDanFlake]

For a multichannel solution, I would suggest either a multichannel AVR to connect to your PC with HDMI or the new miniDSP U-DAC8 (the cheapest multichannel USB DAC).

 

That's perfect! Thank you. My motherboard doesn't have an HDMI port (Asus P6T Deluxe) however my video card does and can do audio (Sapphire 280X). So that should hold me over until my next build. What multi channel AVR would you recommend? Budget isn't a huge deal but something I'm still conscious of. I'm not spending 2k for instance. I'm also still entirely open to other alternatives/solutions

[YashN]

That's perfect! Thank you. My motherboard doesn't have an HDMI port (Asus P6T Deluxe) however my video card does and can do audio (Sapphire 280X). So that should hold me over until my next build. What multi channel AVR would you recommend? Budget isn't a huge deal but something I'm still conscious of. I'm not spending 2k for instance. I'm also still entirely open to other alternatives/solutions

 

Probably best if you compare a couple of solutions, i.e. HDMI vs USB if the stores allow home trials.

[YashN]

the new miniDSP U-DAC8 (the cheapest multichannel USB DAC).

 

Very cool for surround and active crossover projects for that price.