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ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1 Channels PCI Express Interface 124 dB SNR / Headphone AMP Card
 
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ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1 Channels PCI Express Interface 124 dB SNR / Headphone AMP Card

Other products by Asus
3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews) More about this product

Usually ships within 1 to 2 months.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.
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12 new from $170.00

Frequently Bought Together

Customers buy this item with Sennheiser HD-595 Premier Headphone

ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1 Channels PCI Express Interface 124 dB SNR / Headphone AMP Card + Sennheiser HD-595 Premier Headphone
Price For Both: $348.88

These items are shipped from and sold by different sellers. Show details


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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1 Channels PCI Express Interface 124 dB SNR / Headphone AMP Card
82% buy the item featured on this page:
ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1 Channels PCI Express Interface 124 dB SNR / Headphone AMP Card 3.6 out of 5 stars (9)
$179.95
Asus Xonar D2X Sound Card (Black)
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Technical Details

  • Hi-FI Headphone Amplifier
  • Main Stereo RCA out, Headphone out, SPDIF Out, Line in (Mic in) Other Frount Audio Header, Aux In, S/PDIF header
  • Sound Noise Ratio (SNR) 124
  • GX 2.5 (EAX 5.0)
  • N/A
  See more technical details

Product Details

  • Item Weight: 10.2 ounces
  • Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
  • ASIN: B001OV789U
  • Item model number: XONAR ESSENCE STX
  • Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank

    Popular in this category: (What's this?)

    #10 in  Electronics > Computers & Accessories > Internal Desktop Components > Sound Cards
  • Date first available at Amazon.com: January 2, 2009

Product Description

Product Description

Industry-leading quality for Audiophiles , Industry-leading 124dB SNR, Headphone amp with <0.001% distortion, Nichicon “Fine Gold” professional audio capacitors adopted, Perfectly shielded analog output path , Swappable OPAmp socket.

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Customer Reviews

Average Customer Rating
3.6 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)
5 star:
 (4)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:    (0)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as I hoped, but definitely better than sound blaster, May 9, 2009
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
I bought this because I use a nice pair of Sennheiser headphones on my PC and wanted something better than my sound blaster Audigy 2 ZS which had a buggy user-interface and seemed to have weak bass response. I also wanted to be able to switch between headphones and powered speakers without unplugging anything.

Pros: First, and most importantly, this does sound much better than the Audigy 2 ZS. Plus, the user interface is nice and doesn't crash like the SB used to (I use WinXP Pro SP3). It's easy to switch from headphones to speakers without much hassle or unplugging anything, so that's nice. It can be adjusted for even high-end low-impedance headphones. I also has a real 1/4" headphone connector so you don't need an adapter for your expensive headphones. It comes with an RCA-to-headphone plug so you can connect your PC speakers.

Cons: You can't have the RCA connection and the headphone connection active at the same time. It's not a big deal, but it would have been nice. It needs an extra power connection. It doesn't draw crazy power like a video card, but keep it in mind if you are already pushing the limits of your power supply. The configuration app that runs in the background uses more ram than the SB app did, but it doesn't crash, so I guess it's worth it.
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8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Pathetic latency using line input!, July 31, 2009
By Robert E. Rice "everlost baggage" (Everett, washington United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
I bought this card a week ago and initially loved it because the detail in sound playback was excellent. Then I tried to use it to record live audio through the line input and there is a totally unacceptable latency issue. You hear the sound about a half second after you play something. I have NEVER had a audio card do that (not even onboard audio). I called tech support and they were completely useless.
At the ASUS website this is part of the specifications listed: "ASIO 2.0 Driver Support:
Supports 44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @16/24bit with very low latency"
Very low latency, NOT!!!!!!!!!!
If you do any recording of live audio, DO NOT BUY THIS CARD!

As an update to this review, I confirmed later with Asus technical support that the lowest latency this card will do is 20ms. To record live audio you need a card that will run at 5ms or less. Asus should put the 20ms spec. in the product description.
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The best soundcard I've ever purchased, September 25, 2009
By point & shoot (los angeles, ca) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
I bought this card and paired it with the AKG K702 headphones, with my existing Heed CanAmp headphone amplifier & M-Audio AV40 monitor speakers. With my setup, I dont' hear any electrical noise, unlike my previous soundcard. The music is crystal clear!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Not Recomeneded: Waste of my time and ASUS's time
Seems likw ASUS had a nice product, however their sales department is terrible and technical support is mixed depending on who you talk to. Read more
Published 22 days ago by George

5.0 out of 5 stars Great input section too
I bought this card after first considering the another brand for a similar price. I chose the Essence STX mainly on the strength of the quality of the Line-In components. Read more
Published 25 days ago by analog nut

5.0 out of 5 stars Audiophile sound card
I bought this sound card to drive my 2ch stereo system via the RCA connectors. I'm very pleased with the sound. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Audiophile on a Budget

5.0 out of 5 stars asus xonar essence stx
this sound card is amazing, especially if u have a pair of audiophile headphones. it's a little pricey, but if u love music, u will love this sound card for sure... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Chang Chen

1.0 out of 5 stars Miserable Card
I had several problems with this card so far, and unable to find much information from Asus forums.
I had a sennheiser pc 350 connected to STX card, in addition to a stereo... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Bayindir Ertugrul

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Audio Card
I had numerous sound cards in my PCs: Creative Audigy 2, Creative X-Fi Titanium, and now Asus Essence Xonar STX. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Gromit

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