[Jones_Rush]

Since my current sound card will not be supporting Windows Vista (M-Audio revolution 7.1), I'm in the market for a new sound card.


Now, a long desire of mine was that the sound card will replace my aging Dolby Digital external processor. This was one of the reasons I bought the Revolution 7.1 card in the first place.


I was sad to discover that the revolution 7.1 sound card couldn't replace my external DD processor, for two reasons:

1. The Dolby Digital quality through the revolution 7.1, was much worse than with my external DD processor (I did A/B comparisons, and could not believe the difference). I know this is more of a problem with the software I used to play the DVD (PowerDVD or WinDVD), but still, the end result was inferior to using an external Dolby Digital processor.

2. Everytime I opened or closed the computer, my speakers almost exploded because of the electrical current passing through the sound card.


So, is there a sound card on the market today that can defeat these two problems ?.

 

[alg7_munif]

 http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=765317

 

[Jones_Rush]

Well, I read every post in that thread, but *none* talked about the quality of those cards to do 7.1 analog DD/Dts decoding.

 

[Mark_A_W]

1. With AC3 filter I can't tell the difference between my Revo 5.1 and my (once flagship) Rotel Processor.


2. I get a small pop, sometimes.


We need to hammer M-audio about a Vista driver. I like my Revo5.1, and there's nothing wrong with it.


Mark


PS. Thanks for the DRC guide

 

[tsang1101]

Alot of the high end pro cards are in general as good if not better than most av recievers, however nothing matches a receiver pre/pro in terms of convienience. I use an RME hdsp9652, and I didn't feel like I lost anything in doing so after switching from my proceed avp2. The rme also has loudspeaker protection built in, so no pops or clicks. The 9636, and 96/8 PAD are older cards(2002-06) and are going for around $150-200 if you look around. Lynx also makes good cards but they'll cost you as much if not more than a decent used reciever or pre/pro. I agree with you about the revo, I was not impressed at all, however you can change the op-amps aswell as the capacitors and get a signifigant step up sound quality wise for relatively little investment.


Tristan

 

[jimwhite]

my X-FI Elite Pro fits the bill.... and sounds SOOOOO much better than either my mAudio 1010lt, Revo 5.1, or Firewire410.... AND it decodes external DD/DTS sources

I will do an op-amp upgrade soon, but it's just frosting on the cake

 

[Jones_Rush]



Quote:
my X-FI Elite Pro fits the bill.... and sounds SOOOOO much better than either my mAudio 1010lt, Revo 5.1, or Firewire410....

I don't understand, a post earlier I was told to expect DD/Dts decoding quality from the Revo 5.1, which is comparable to that of an external processor. Now you are telling me the Revo 5.1 is subpar (like I found before) ?.

 

[jimwhite]

the Revo 5.1 is audibly superior to the Revo 7.1 and audibly inferior to the X-FI.... this has nothing to do with the DD/DTS decoding but rather the sound quality itself which is determined by the DAC's and Op-Amps used... the X-FI uses the same DAC's (and ADC's) and Op-Amps as the EMU 18xx and the same DAC's (and better ADC) as the vaunted Lynx2b...

 

[Jones_Rush]



Quote:
the Revo 5.1 is audibly superior to the Revo 7.1 and audibly inferior to the X-FI.... this has nothing to do with the DD/DTS decoding but rather the sound quality itself which is determined by the DAC's and Op-Amps used... the X-FI uses the same DAC's (and ADC's) and Op-Amps as the EMU 18xx and the same DAC's (and better ADC) as the vaunted Lynx2b...

I have no problem with the Revo 7.1's DACs. and I'm quite surprised you say that the Revo 5.1, which is a cheaper product, has better DACs than the 7.1.


Anyway, the DACs on the 7.1 are better than those on my external DD processor, yet the processor sounded better for DD when I checked it two years ago. I will do another test this week and report.

 

[jimwhite]



Quote:
I'm quite surprised you say that the Revo 5.1, which is a cheaper product, has better DACs than the 7.1

I didn't.... actually, the 5.1 has better output filtering and op-amps AFTER the DACs.... this was pointed out by the late Cliff Watson in one of the many excellant threads he participated in....

 

[desertdome]

I used my M-Audio Revolution 7.1 for two years and loved the card. I used Theatertek with the advanced audio pack to decode DD/DTS and output directly to my 7 channel amplifier. At the time the advanced audio pack was released, many who tested it said it finally equalled the quality of an expensive pre/pro.


Last fall I replaced my Revolution 7.1 with an X-Fi Elite. I now have my X-Fi decode the audio from Theatertek and my MyHd MDP-130 HDTV card. I like the X-Fi better for several reasons:


1. The sound quality is better.


2. The analog output level is much higher than the Revolution so I can now drive my amp to its full level.


3. There are no pops on startup/shutdown so I can leave my amplifier and subwoofer on more.


4. I can now play DTS Audio DVDs. I have purchased just 3, but I really enjoy listening to them.


5. The bass management is slightly better than the Revolution. In additiona, I used to have separate Quickswitch settings in the M-Audio Control Panel depending on my source (Theatertek or J. River Media Center). Since the card now handles all decoding, I don't need to ever change anything.


6. I think CMSS-3D is incredible for stereo sources. It keeps the soundstage almost identical to the stereo image, but adds the ambiance to the rear channels. It is more advanced than ProLogic IIx and sounds better to me than ProLogic IIx, DTS-ES, and SRS Circle Surround II. I e-mailed one of the developers of CMSS-3D, Jean-Marc Jot, and he sent me one of his articles which explains the theory behind CMSS-3d.

 

Spacial Enhancement.pdf 347.3017578125k . file