Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 Sound Card

Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 Sound Card
Supports latest DS3D GX 2.0 for gaming on Vista & XP DS3D GX 2.0 not only revives EAX and DirectSound effects in games on Windows Vista as GX 1.0, but also incorporates Dolby Home Theater Technologies (Dolby Virtual Speaker, Dolby Headphone, Dolby Digital Live, Dolby PrologicIIX) to provide best gaming audio experience.
VocalFX is an innovative voice processing technology to let your voice get into the realistic game landscape (VoiceEX) or to emulate the background scenes in online chat (ChatEX). It also allows you to change your voice pitch to disguise who you are (Magic Voice). These features dramatically increase the fun for voice communication on PC.
The noise on Xonar DX audio card is only 1/35 (2.8%) of the noise level from most motherboard onboard audio. In addition, Xonar DX also produces as little as 1/32 (-105dB) of the total harmonics distortion from motherboard audio does (-75dB).
What It Is & Why You Need It!

• Xonar DX provides complete valuable Dolby Home Theater technologies for games and all home entertainments
• Innovative VocalFX makes gaming and online chat more lively and attractive
• Delivers about 35 times cleaner audio quality (116dB SNR) than most motherboard audio (85dB SNR)

Specifications

Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 Sound Card   Sound Card Type:  Sound Cards   Channels:  7.1   Interface:  PCI Express   Low Profile:  No

Detailed Features Specifications Output Signal-to-Noise Ratio (A-Weighted): - 116 dB for Front-out - 112dB for other channels Input Signal-to-Noise Ratio (A-Weighted): 112dB Output Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise at 1kHz (-3dB): 0.00056% (-105dB) for Front-out Input Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise at 1kHz (-3dB): 0.0004% (-108dB) for Line-in Frequency Response (-3dB, 24-bit/96kHz format): <10Hz to 48KHz Output/Input Full-Scale Voltage: 2 Vrms (5.65 Vp-p) PCI Express - PCI Express Rev.1.0a specification compatible - Max. full 2.5Gbps bandwidth per direction and optimized latency for high-definition audio processing - Compatible with X1, X4, X8, X16 PCI Express slots Audio Processor: ASUS AV100 High-Definition Sound Processor (Max. 192KHz/24bit) 24-bit D-A Converter of Digital Sources: - Cirrus-Logic CS4398*1 for Front-Out (120dB SNR, Max. 192kHz/24bit) - Cirrus-Logic CS4362A*1 for other 6 channels (114dB SNR, Max. 192kHz/24bit) 24-bit A-D Converter for Analog Inputs: Cirrus-Logic CS5361* 1 (114dB SNR, Max. 192kHz/24bit) Analog Playback Sample Rate and Resolution: 44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit Analog Recording Sample Rate and Resolution: 44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit S/PDIF Digital Output: 44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit, Dolby Digital, DTS Analog Output Jack: 3.50mm mini jack *4 (Front/Side/Center-Subwoofer/Back) Analog Input Jack: 3.50mm mini jack *1 (Shared by Line-In/Mic-In) Other line-level analog input (for TV Tuner or CD-ROM): Aux-In (4-pin header on the card) Digital S/PDIF Output: High-bandwidth TOS-Link optical transmitter (shared with Line-In/Mic-In jack) supports 192KHz/24bit Front Panel Header: - Headphone / Stereo Speaker Out - Microphone In Operation System: Windows Vista(32/64bit)/XP(32/64bit)/MCE2005 Dolby® Digital Live: Dolby Digital Live encodes any audio signal on PC in real-time to Dolby Digital (AC3) 5.1 surround sounds to your home theater environment through one single S/PDIF connection Dolby® Headphone: Dolby Headphone technology allows users to listen to music, watch movies, or play games with the dramatic 5.1-channel surround or realistic 3D spacious effects through any set of stereo headphones. Dolby® Virtual Speaker: Dolby Virtual Speaker technology simulates a highly realistic 5.1-speaker surround sound listening environment from as few as two speakers. Dolby® Pro-Logic IIx: Dolby Pro-Logic II is the well-known technology to process any native stereo or 5.1-channel audio into a 6.1- or 7.1- channel output, creating a seamless, natural surround soundfield. DS3D GX 2.0: DS3D GX 1.0 supports EAX gaming sound effects and DirectSound 3D hardware enhanced functions on Windows Vista. (DirectX/DirectSound 3D compatible) VocalFX™: Xonar DX provides VocalFX, the latest vocal effect technologies for gaming and VoIP, including: -VoiceEX: produces vivid environmental reverberation for your voice in EAX games -ChatEX: emulates different background environment effects when you chat online -Magic Voice: changes your voice pitch to different types (Monster/Cartoon…) for disguising your real voice or just for fun in online chatting Acoustic Echo Cancellation (AEC): Provides advanced Acoustic Echo Cancellation (AEC, eliminates up-to-40dB speaker echo return) and noise suppression technologies for best voice communication quality in VOIP applications or online gaming Smart Volume Normalizer™: Normalizes the volume of all audio sources into a constant level and also enhances your 3D sound listening range and advantages in gaming Karaoke Functions: Music Key-Shifting and Microphone Echo effects like professional Karaoke machine FlexBass™: Professional Bass Management/Enhancement system Xear 3D™ Virtual Speaker Shifter: Virtual 7.1 speaker positioning Other Effects: 10-band Equalier/27 Environment Effects 3D Gaming Sound Engines/APIs: DirectSound3D® GX 2.0 & 1.0, EAX®2.0&1.0, DirectSound® HW, DirectSound SW, A3D®1.0, OpenAL generic modes, 128 3D sounds processing capability ASIO 2.0 Driver Support: Supports 44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @16/24bit with very low latency Portable Music Processor Lite utility: Converts digital music content or CD audio into regular MP3/WMA files with Dolby Headphone, Dolby Virtual Speaker (w/ Pro-Logic II), and Smart Volume Normalization processing (Windows Media Player 10 or above is required) MCE Software Kit: Software kit with 10-ft GUI for Windows Media Center Edition RightMark Audio Analyzer 6.0.6: Easy but powerful software intended for testing the quality of audio equipments A Closer Look Features Dolby Digital Live Real-time 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound encoders Dolby Pro-Logic IIx Converts stereo or 5.1 sounds to seamless 7.1 surround soundfield Dolby Headphone Delivers a realistic and spacious 2-to-5.1 surround or 3D positional soundfield over any set of stereo headphones Dolby Virtual Speaker Simulates a highly realistic 5.1-speaker surround sound listening environment from as few as two speakers. Minimum System Requirements One PCI Express 1.0 (or higher) compatible slot for the audio card One available 4-pin power cable from PC’s power supply unit Microsoft® Windows® Vista(32/64bit)/XP(32/64bit)/MCE2005 Intel® Pentium®4 1.4GHz or AMD Athlon 1400 CPU or faster CPU >256 MB DRAM system memory >60 MB available HDD space for driver installation package CD-ROM drive (or DVD-ROM drive) for software installation High-quality headphones, powered analog speakers, or a Dolby Digital or DTS decoder, to enjoy the ultra-high fidelity sounds of the card Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 Sound Card Reviewed By Our Editors The Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 Sound Card provides a loud bang in your computer gaming experience. It provides impressive sound quality that is strikingly top-notch for its price. The sound card is equipped with the innovative home theater technology from Dolby which brings you realistic and mind blowing audio and sound. You can hear every detail such as footsteps and explosions with this soundcard installed in your system. It is abundant with features, each of which uniquely enhances the sound quality your computer produces, through whatever medium. One of its features, the Dolby Digital Live formats any audio signal on the personal computer in real-time to Dolby Digital (AC3) 5.1 surround sounds to your home theater environment using only one single S/PDIF connection. You and your friends will definitely love the clear and remarkable sound your home theater will produce. Well, if you’re not up to sharing the music with everybody else, you can let yourself lose with the Dolby® Headphone technology. This allows you to listen to music, enjoy an action movie or play exciting computer games with the dramatic 5.1-channel surround or realistic 3D spacious effects through any set of stereo headphones. Put the headphones on and forget about the outside world. With Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 Sound Card, the amazing sound quality will not change even between different sound sources. Ok, your computer system only comes with two speakers, and you fear that you will not experience the same sound quality as that of a home theater. With Dolby® Virtual Speaker, of course you can. This is another cool feature of Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 Sound Card which produces a highly realistic 5.1-speaker surround sound listening environment even if you have as few as two speakers. How about a seamless, natural surround sound field? Dolby Pro-Logic IIx is responsible for creating those accurate and convincing sounds. This processes any native stereo or 5.1-channel audio into a 6.1- or 7.1- channel output to produce sensational sounds. It seems like the Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 Sound Card is specially designed to be used by computer gamers. It has the DirectSound 3D GX 2.0 which supports environmental audio extension (EAX) gaming sound effects and DirectSound 3D hardware enhanced functions on Windows Vista. This is also DirectX/DirectSound 3D compatible, so you are assured of high-quality sound, especially on your gaming action. The VocalFX technology also adds spice to your gaming experience. This is the latest vocal effect technology for gaming and Voice-over-Internet protocol (VoIP). This has the VoiceEX, which produces life-filled environmental reverberation for your voice in EAX games. Communicate with your online allies with spunk and style, thanks to ChatEX. This emulates different background environment effects when you chat online. But Magic Voice is probably the coolest feature. It can change your voice pitch to different types for disguising your real voice or just for fun in online chatting! You can talk as a scary monster or a cute little bunny. The fun is virtually limitless! Hardware-wise, the front panel audio connectors are a great advantage. They allow users to easily connect headphones and desktop microphones to the front of the case. Now, you don’t need to reach behind the PC to connect headphones or microphones. And for a sound card on its price range, the Asus Xonar DX PCIe 7.1 is definitely a gem. You get hard-core gaming sound effects, thanks to this sound card’s impressive features and stunning sound quality.