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Topic: Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp) (Read 16513 times) previous topic - next topic
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Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

I am going to use the laptop for my main sound needs, and the Sennheiser 280HD for headphones (80 dollars of my approximately $200 budget).  Do you have any suggestions?  I will use it for games as well, and it would be great if it worked on linux

It only needs one headphone jack, and mabye a speaker jack (in case i want more than one person to listen) and i dont really want it to resample (although im not sure i could tell the difference)

How good is the audigy 2 zs notebook soundcard with headphones?

Should i try to make my own, combining an alien chip with a cmoy type of headphone amp (this would be difficult, since i would need to get friends and teachers to help me build it...

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #1 –
What do you need? Just a headphone out? A USB soundcard of some sort would be the best bet. M-Audio Audiophile USB, Waveterminal U24, upcoming E-MU 0202 USB.

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #2 –
Quote from: CSMR on
What do you need? Just a headphone out? A USB soundcard of some sort would be the best bet. M-Audio Audiophile USB, Waveterminal U24, upcoming E-MU 0202 USB.


Yes, just a headphone out... which i hope would be cheaper than those cards...

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #3 –
You could try an M-Audio Transit

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #4 –
You might want to look at http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/multimedi...igy2-zs_10.html which is conveniently portable since it goes in a cardbus slot.

It does resample, so doesn't fit your requirements completely, but I actually think the whole no-resampling thing is just a hype. The only real-world problem is that you can't stream wav-embedded-ac3 if spdif gets resampled.

The cards that were notorious for bad quality resampling algorithms were the original SB Live! series and the first Audigy, and a number of on-board solutions with crappy drivers. This one should be fine.

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #5 –
is there anything that just does headphones? or a good usb/firewire one?

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #6 –
Well, the Echo Indigo (a cardbus device) is stereo-only, and should have good headphone performance, but it's not like that saves you any money compared to 5.1 cards... it comes at 200+ euro.

Good USB cards don't really come any cheaper than the Transit that CSMR mentioned, either. Although... there's stuff like this: http://www.turtlebeach.com/site/products/audioadvantage/ - which nobody usually cares to consider, but might still be a good buy (don't know)? I've seen such USB-stick models from a few other, obscure brands too.

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #7 –
Quote from: Patsoe on
Well, the Echo Indigo (a cardbus device) is stereo-only, and should have good headphone performance, but it's not like that saves you any money compared to 5.1 cards... it comes at 200+ euro.

Good USB cards don't really come any cheaper than the Transit that CSMR mentioned, either. Although... there's stuff like this: http://www.turtlebeach.com/site/products/audioadvantage/ - which nobody usually cares to consider, but might still be a good buy (don't know)? I've seen such USB-stick models from a few other, obscure brands too.


how are the creative usb ones?

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #9 –
Is a headphone amp just a single output sound card? how would i connect a headphone amp to a laptop? And would it have better sound qualtiy than that optoplay

Edit: looks like a headphone amp is a single output soumd card...

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #11 –
Quote from: ruikou on
Is a headphone amp just a single output sound card? how would i connect a headphone amp to a laptop? And would it have better sound qualtiy than that optoplay

Edit: looks like a headphone amp is a single output soumd card...


Optoplay has one optical output and one analog low impedance output suitable for any type of loads – either line-in of an amplifier or headphones directly. The only restriction is 50+50 mW max power @1.0 Vrms. So, high impedance or low sensitivity headphones could be too quiet. Sound quality is great for me (with Fostex T50RP headphones).
keeping audio clear together - soundexpert.org

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #12 –
I use an audigy 2 zs notebook - and I'm very pleased with it. The notebook is applied to my main stereo. I cannot hear a difference between my notebook and a cd player. To me sound differences between amps, soundcards or even cd players turned out to be a rather academic discussion and I decided to enjoy music... Sorry I'm 34 and remember times of tape hiss and dolby b/c/s, etc... We're so far away from those days in audio reproduction... It's rather speakers and rooms, which make the difference.

I'd go for an sb. Creative software sucks, but you do not need to install any creative bloat, just the driver.

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #13 –
Quote from: Squeller on
I use an audigy 2 zs notebook - and I'm very pleased with it. The notebook is applied to my main stereo. I cannot hear a difference between my notebook and a cd player. To me sound differences between amps, soundcards or even cd players turned out to be a rather academic discussion and I decided to enjoy music... Sorry I'm 34 and remember times of tape hiss and dolby b/c/s, etc... We're so far away from those days in audio reproduction... It's rather speakers and rooms, which make the difference.

I'd go for an sb. Creative software sucks, but you do not need to install any creative bloat, just the driver.


how good is the creative as a headphone amp

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #14 –
Quote from: ruikou on
how good is the creative as a headphone amp
I don't know the necessities of a "headphone amp". What is a headphone amp? I can just tell you I use its analog output and to me it sounds transparent.

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #15 –
A headphone amp goes between a DAC and a headphone. A DAC doesn't expect to provide current; it expects something with a high input impedence I think. A headphone out on an Audigy will have some rudimentary sort of headphone amp.

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #16 –
I just bought an Echo Indigo I/O for $135 plus shipping (a bit out of your budget) I'm quite happy with the headphone output (Sony mdrv6 and Sennheiser hd 280, both low impedance) compared to the onboard sound that is on this laptop. (Sigma Tel Audio) Plus, I have a line level input I can use aswell. Another option I considered was this, (around $80 online) however this requires firewire and needs to be powered.
 

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #17 –
Quote from: CSMR on
A headphone amp goes between a DAC and a headphone. A DAC doesn't expect to provide current; it expects something with a high input impedence I think. A headphone out on an Audigy will have some rudimentary sort of headphone amp.


well, how well would the rudimentary amp function with my sennheiser 280s?

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #18 –
Quote from: ruikou on
Quote from: CSMR on

A headphone amp goes between a DAC and a headphone. A DAC doesn't expect to provide current; it expects something with a high input impedence I think. A headphone out on an Audigy will have some rudimentary sort of headphone amp.


well, how well would the rudimentary amp function with my sennheiser 280s?


My guess is that unless the output is designed to drive headphones you won't get clean high SPL output (over 110db)  from your phones unless you use an external amp. This was my experience with an M Audio Sonica. (similar to the transit)

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #19 –
Quote from: rexit2 on
Quote from: ruikou on

Quote from: CSMR on

A headphone amp goes between a DAC and a headphone. A DAC doesn't expect to provide current; it expects something with a high input impedence I think. A headphone out on an Audigy will have some rudimentary sort of headphone amp.


well, how well would the rudimentary amp function with my sennheiser 280s?


My guess is that unless the output is designed to drive headphones you won't get clean high SPL output (over 110db)  from your phones unless you use an external amp. This was my experience with an M Audio Sonica. (similar to the transit)


Well you see, i doubt i need 110db spl.... do I?

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #20 –
Quote from: rexit2 on
Another option I considered was this, (around $80 online) however this requires firewire and needs to be powered.


I considered getting that for my laptop (it's the Behringer FCA-202, for those who don't want to click the link ), but this review in German made me change my mind: http://www.amazona.de/index.php?page=26&am...;article_id=600

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #21 –
My earlier recommendations were bearing in mind that you would be connecting headphones directly. The transit is the cheaper recommendation and should be fine but the others should be better.

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #22 –
That still doesn't answer my question about whether the audigy 2 zs notebook is good enough for the Sennheiser 280s

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #23 –
Quote from: ruikou on
Well you see, i doubt i need 110db spl.... do I?


  Touchée.  I too never really understood the need for headphone amps.  I read on many other forums they make the sound so much "richer", "full" with really "powerful bass".  But... even on my onboard el-cheapo audio chipset, I would make my ears bleed if I brought the sound level to more than 50%.

I don`t get it.  I guess I will have to shell 200$ to buy a decent headphone amp to hear with my own ears if this is all BS (and then, I will officially be a sucker).

Best laptop sound solution for $120 (soundcard or amp)

Reply #24 –
Quote from: ruikou on
That still doesn't answer my question about whether the audigy 2 zs notebook is good enough for the Sennheiser 280s

You don't have much in the way of manners do you?

Quote from: Radetzky on
I read on many other forums they make the sound so much "richer", "full" with really "powerful bass".  But... even on my onboard el-cheapo audio chipset, I would make my ears bleed if I brought the sound level to more than 50%.

I don`t get it.  I guess I will have to shell 200$ to buy a decent headphone amp to hear with my own ears if this is all BS (and then, I will officially be a sucker).

The point is to have a low output impedence at all frequencies, giving a flat frequency response when connected to headphones, low noise and low distortion. Power is rarely an issue.

For some reason my two posts keep being merged into one. Curious.