2. pc-audio
  3. 175419-123815

Usb or Optical

Have a custom built computer has latest greatest Realtek Audio 1220 vb or whatever its called.  I have a Little Dot Mark ii tube amp and i just bought a SMSL D300 dac.  Should i go optical from computer to desktop dac ? or usb from computer to usb on back of destop dac ?????  im not trying to get dsd or any crazy hi res 24/192 is fine.  Whats going to give me the best sound ?

 

thanks for all input is welcome.

128x128audiomike33
audiomike33's avatar
audiomike33 OP
117 posts
 

What about egva sound card it's better than the Asus.

auxinput
2,920 posts
 

The EVGA Nu audio card does NOT have an RCA S/PDIF output. That’s what you really want. EVGA has an optical, but we are trying to avoid that interface because RCA coax will always sound better. For S/PDIF output, the Asus Xonar Essence STX will be better.

If you want to get rid of your D300 dac and use a computer sound card for analog output connecting directly to your Little Dot tube amp, then the EVGA Nu audio card will likely be better than the Asus Xonar Essence STX.

I don’t know how the EVGA Nu audio card will compare to your SMSL D300 dac. It will likely sound different in some ways (I could not tell you which would be better).

audiomike33's avatar
audiomike33 OP
117 posts
 

Maybe I'll look into those other sound cards I had the EVGA before and it sounds really good but I think my smsl d300 is going to smoke that EVGA sound card.

audiomike33's avatar
audiomike33 OP
117 posts
 

In fact I think the smsl d300 is going to be any sound card you can put in your computer.

audiomike33's avatar
audiomike33 OP
117 posts
 

Weird thing is I got my smsl d300 hooked up through USB and I'm playing Amazon music I can't get above 24/48 when I check on the song I'm playing it does 24/96 but it says my device is only capable of 2448 that ain't right can't figure out what's going on even when I go somewhere to play a higher rate flac file the screen on the DAC never goes above 48.

More to discover