ASUS started producing Xonar D2 sound PCI cards a long time ago, and then began to manufacture PCI-express versions - the D2X model.
First impressions
Gilding and PCIe are nice to have. The Burr-Brown 24-bit / 192 kHz DAC is a high-end and one of the best available. Dolby and DTS encoding are also good. But who needs LEDs and electromagnetic radiation protection? And why connect another power source? In the beauty contest Asus Xonar D2X could participate, but, frankly, this is already too much.
Previously, Creative dictated the fashion to a large extent with its Soundblaster series, whose exceptional performance was provided by DirectSound acceleration and support for EAX extensions in Windows XP. With the advent of Vista, the era of direct access to hardware has ended, putting an end to Creative's leadership.
Features and Benefits
Asus Xonar D2X is an upscale and uncompromising sound card, with which you can’t wish for anything better. It has so many features that previously, for example, Auzentechs X-Meridian did not have, but the manufacturer used not so many innovations. The most notable feature is quasi-functional, mostly cosmetic, protection against electromagnetic radiation. Quasi-functional because most of the noise comes from the PCIe power pins. The company did not stop there and also took precautions in the circuitry of the card.
Main settings
If you look at the technical specifications, the list of which takes several pages, then removing the unnecessary, the following can be distinguished from them:
- 8-channel (7.1) output 24 bit / 192 kHz;
- Texas Instruments / Burr-Brown DAC PCM1796;
- 2-channel input signal 24 bit / 192 kHz, through the Cirrus Logic CS5381 ADC;
- interface 1x PCI-Express slot;
- ASUS AV200 processor;
- optical and coaxial C / PDIF connectors;
- MIDI input and output through a daughter card;
- real-time encoding of DTS and Dolby Digital;
- Dolby Pro Logic IIx, headphones and logical speaker;
- DTS Connect
- EAX 2.0, OpenAL and DS3D GX;
- Stylish EMR protection.
Asus Xonar D2X: Feature Overview
Users always want to get a set of accessories that would allow them to make the most of their purchase. Creative has traditionally led the way, and Asus seems to have followed suit. The kit includes a lot of software, lots of cables and even an expansion card for MIDI cables.
Another interesting feature of the Asus Xonar D2X kit is the inclusion of 4 3.5 mm cables (tulip), which indicates the company's confidence in its product. There is everything you need to connect to a receiver or active speakers. It seems strange to users that all this is included in the card, since most prefer to transfer raw data through an optical cable, leaving the receiver the possibility of their conversion. This is also the main reason for performing DDL and DTS encoding. Given the quality of the analog output, it is worth remembering: to match it, you will need a very expensive receiver.
The surround standard in the Asus Xonar D2X-7.1, which has long been the norm in sound cards. There are also two analog-to-digital channels. The secret is that all of these inputs and outputs are of the highest quality - 24 bit / 192 kHz. The function, which Asus called ALT (analog ring conversion), takes advantage of this bitrate. It was not worth giving the DRM camp a map in the form of the name of an analogue gap with which you can record protected content with the least loss of quality.
Asus freely advertises its product as a legitimate way to bypass DRM, because it is technically not hacked - the content is simply played and then recorded. This is not an invitation to piracy, but only an opportunity to give the end user the right to copy the purchased music in any format that they wish to have.
Asus Xonar D2X has a non-native PCI-Express slot and relies on a chip that converts PCI to PCIe. While Creative in X-Fi caused such a delay, Asus seems to have no such problems.
At the heart of the card is the AV200 processor, which does not quite match the C-Media CMI8788 chip.
DAC
Creative loves to indicate the characteristics of the DAC (for example, SNR), but this is only half the truth. Operational amplifiers have a significant effect on the parameters of the output signal used by the speakers. The Auzentech X-Plosion and X-Meridian sound cards use interchangeable operational amplifiers. Asus didn’t go this way and chose an irreplaceable option, soldering the amplifier to the board.
D2X digital- to- analog converters of the highest quality and manufactured by Texas Instruments. In the PR literature, DACs are often used to give the customer an idea of the overall level of equipment. Although the given characteristics, as a rule, can give an idea of the sound quality, trusting them is a big mistake. Sound has to go through many circuits before it reaches the ears.
Let's play, for example, a 16-bit 44.1-kHz WAV file. After starting it, the file data gets to the card. Inside the sound processor, the data stream is sent to the appropriate place for changing the volume, oversampling, applying effects or filters), and then sent to the DAC for reconstruction to analog. Bits remain bits until they fall into the converter. From there, the analog signal is sent to the operational amplifier, where, depending on the volume and type of load (headphones, speakers, etc.), it enters the air to reach the listener's ears. It's nice to have a sophisticated DAC and LED illumination, but nothing affects the sound like the quality of the source and speakers. The mood, of course, also matters, but there should be as few intermediate changes as possible.
Performance
Performance in BioShock and Call of Duty 4 is 2-3 fps slower than competitors. Although it is important for some gamers, a better sound helps the player to better immerse themselves in the game world. For this you can donate a couple of frames. A pleasant exception was the game BF2142, where the performance is higher than that of others, both in normal and in GS3D GX modes.
High quality
According to users, it took them 5 seconds to understand that Asus Xonar D2X became the new standard for a sound card, which replaced, for example, the popular universal Auzentech X-Fi Prelude, which sounded great in games, when playing music and watching movies. However, with poor recording or low bitrate mp3-file card mercilessly highlights all the shortcomings. This is high definition audio and clarity. Because of this, high-frequency sounds, such as cymbals, do not seem so melodic. Also, certain recordings of an acoustic guitar may seem somewhat unnatural - the absence of distortion robs the sound of its brightness.
Software
The software is identical to the PCI version with the same Hi-Fi interface, which looks good, but which is difficult to use. The buttons are uncomfortable, poorly distinguishable, and sometimes confusing. PMP has the same limited capabilities as before - conversion is limited to either .WMA or .MP3 with a bit rate of 128, 192 or 320 kbps, and there is no .MP3 encoder (as Asus saves on licenses), so you have to Download separately.
ALT is entirely contained in this software, so there is no way to use it as a plugin anywhere else. The program now works much faster, but overall disappointing.
Drivers
Asus Xonar D2X driver is available for 32- and 64-bit XP and Vista. According to users, it is small and fast, with a minimum of bells and whistles. It is loaded with graphics, but undoubtedly better than the basic C-Media drivers. But the program has all the necessary features plus a DS3D GX to emulate EAX. Driver updates for Asus Xonar D2X (Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7) can be downloaded from the official website of the company.
Verdict
The Asus Xonar D2X sound card appeared a long time ago, and most users speak positively about it. In their opinion, she is simply amazing. The card has so much hardware and software that its price is more than worth it. She has wide functionality, beautiful view and the highest quality.
Among the things that displease owners are the LED backlight and the lack of connectors for the front panel. Otherwise, Asus with the D2X was a real winner.
In some respects, the card represents a rather miserable state of the industry - it became the first worthy extension for the PCI-Express bus and uses a bridge chip.
As for the Xonar D2X itself, lovers of clear sound, not burdened with additional Dolby or DTS functions, rate the device extremely highly. They regret that they have to pay for functions and software that they do not use - without them it would have been much cheaper.
Also, users are unhappy with the need to connect an additional power source, which unnecessarily complicates life. If the PSU does not have a connector for a floppy drive, then you need to look for an adapter and switch all the cables, which is extremely inconvenient and chaotic. Even a regular Molex connector, which is in every power supply, would be the best option. At least the appropriate adapter could be included.
The software package is huge and gives odds to competitors, although PMP and ALT are almost useless.
Is the Xonar D2X worth the money? Yes, if you need a good sound card for PCIe, but as an alternative to PCI cards, it is not very convincing. The costs may be justified if there is a need for at least some of the many features included.