Sound Card and Connection Queries

**SubJimbo** · 09-05-2009, 09:03 PM

Hey guys,

I'm currently in the planning stages of my first CarPC (I like to do a lot of planning before I do anything else)

I wont get into specifics of the system itself, Thats off the topic..

Basically I will be running :
Alpine Type "X" Pro 6.5" Speakers + Tweeters (Fronts)
Alpine Type "R" OR The Type X Rears
Alpine Type X Subwoofer

off of these amps:
Alpine PDX 1.100 (Speakers)
Alpine PDX 1.1000 (Subby)

Now my dilemma sits with actually connecting the speakers to the carPC. In my research it seems the PDX Amps have RCA out(Duh), Now I just need a sound card to provide me with the sound!

The two cards I like the look of are:
The ASUS Xonar DS:
http://www.asus.com/websites/global/...f10X/P_500.jpg

and the ASUS Xonar HDAV Deluxe 1.3: (I'm more interested in the daughter card than the main card..)
http://www.asus.com/product.aspx?P_I...NiQ&templete=2

I think I will stick with ASUS as the brand, as they have a pretty good rep for this line of sound cards.
I have had a look at the MP3 Car FAQ:
http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/advf...iew&advfaqid=7

In the First & Second diagrams, it shows a 3.5mil "Y" Adapter to connect the amplifiers into the sound card, Is this really the most ideal way to connect the amps to the sound card?
I would be using this method for the XONAR DS card, as opposed to direct RCA->RCA connection on the HDAV Deluxe correct? Is it really worth me spending the extra $$ for direct RCA connections to bypass the 3.5mil "Y" jacks? Will there be much difference?

I look forward to hearing your opinions!

Thanks in advance

James

**soundman98** · 09-08-2009, 11:21 AM

audio purists (the ones that usually will spend $1,000's on cables) will say that any connector/adapter will adversly affect the sound- and that is true, but it is probably not audible. i have never heard a difference, except for really cheap adapters-- most of the time, if they are gold plated, they are high enough quality.

**maverick69can** · 09-08-2009, 09:14 PM

I bought this http://www.audiophileproducts.com/fubar2 , its by far the best "audio card" Ive ever heard hands down! For 2 channel audio that is.
I also bought the regulated power supply for the hell of it.. havent tried it without it in the truck, but in the house the bass did seem crisper.. http://www.audiophileproducts.com/supplier

**soundman98** · 09-08-2009, 09:36 PM

Originally Posted by maverick69can

I bought this http://www.audiophileproducts.com/fubar2 , its by far the best "audio card" Ive ever heard hands down! For 2 channel audio that is.
I also bought the regulated power supply for the hell of it.. havent tried it without it in the truck, but in the house the bass did seem crisper.. http://www.audiophileproducts.com/supplier

does your truck have a 24volt electrical system? the tech notes say 24vdc, so how would one go about powering this in a 12 volt environment? if the 12 volt power is no problem, does that solution support mutiple units (i would need 6 outputs)?

SUBJIMBO: after looking over the thread again, is there a specific reason you are going with all alpine equipment? there are alot of other options in that price range (over all the brands), that, depending on what you looking for, could have better a better sound for you-- what drew you to the alpine only setup?

**maverick69can** · 09-08-2009, 09:46 PM

No standard ol 12v system here... I use a $12 75w inverter to power the "Supplier" which in turn sends a very well regulated 24v to the DAC..

sorry almost forgot...its got a nice 2v output if you buy a 6ch line driver you'd be set... you could probably find an old phoenix gold one on ebay

**soundman98** · 09-08-2009, 10:13 PM

Originally Posted by maverick69can

No standard ol 12v system here... I use a $12 75w inverter to power the "Supplier" which in turn sends a very well regulated 24v to the DAC..

sorry almost forgot...its got a nice 2v output if you buy a 6ch line driver you'd be set... you could probably find an old phoenix gold one on ebay

ah, now i see... i refuse to use a invertor(to many steps/to much noise), so i guess it is not a option for me...

**SubJimbo** · 09-09-2009, 01:10 AM

Thanks for all your replies guys, Appreciate it!

Originally Posted by soundman98

SUBJIMBO: after looking over the thread again, is there a specific reason you are going with all alpine equipment? there are alot of other options in that price range (over all the brands), that, depending on what you looking for, could have better a better sound for you-- what drew you to the alpine only setup?

I dont mind mixing and matching! Ive heard the Alpine X PRO Speakers at a local audio shop and they really do sound great. The PDX Amps have a pretty good rep, I was looking at them or the V Series amps.. The seem to meet my needs in this system..

For the Sub, I think I will be going with a JL Audio 12W7, It seems to crap all over the Type X.. Not many people are fans of the X 12".. That I can find anyways!

If there are any reccomendations out there, I would be more than happy to listen!

Cheers guys!

Jimbo

**_Dejan_** · 09-09-2009, 02:48 AM

Originally Posted by maverick69can

I bought this http://www.audiophileproducts.com/fubar2 , its by far the best "audio card" Ive ever heard hands down! For 2 channel audio that is.
I also bought the regulated power supply for the hell of it.. havent tried it without it in the truck, but in the house the bass did seem crisper.. http://www.audiophileproducts.com/supplier

This is not Audio card but it is DAC which use OPAMP: LM4562 same as i use in my sound card... Only thing that I don't like on this DAC is 16 Bit 44.1 KHz / 48KHz sampling rates.

**soundman98** · 09-10-2009, 11:46 PM

Originally Posted by SubJimbo

Thanks for all your replies guys, Appreciate it!

I dont mind mixing and matching! Ive heard the Alpine X PRO Speakers at a local audio shop and they really do sound great. The PDX Amps have a pretty good rep, I was looking at them or the V Series amps.. The seem to meet my needs in this system..

For the Sub, I think I will be going with a JL Audio 12W7, It seems to crap all over the Type X.. Not many people are fans of the X 12".. That I can find anyways!

If there are any reccomendations out there, I would be more than happy to listen!

Cheers guys!

Jimbo

the alpine subs do tend to be very bass heavy, and are not very sq oriented, but will do decent in spl. i have never heard a type x sub, only a type r, so assuming it is close, i would have to say that it is very spl oriented, might not do well complimenting the type x components. while there is not any perfect good-all-around sub, the w7 is the best that i have heard that can truly handle both extreme sound levels, and has enough control to have some sq chacteristics(though there are better sound quality subs, just not many that can do extreme output).

i would also recommend looking at the jl audio hd series amps-- they cost more than the pdx amps, but i feel that they are worth the cost(and am planning my next setup around them)--what really turns me off to the pdx sub amps was that they don't handle frequencies above about 125 hz--not horrible, but i want more expandability than that...

one of the places i have been frequenting has been diymobileaudio.com-- there is some good info and reviews on speakers there-- most can be purchased from either partsexpress.com or madisound.com--and some are VERY cheap (under $25 each). Before you pull the trigger on the type x setup, try to look at some of the other options listed there. i am not saying that the x components are horrible(they are very good), but there are so many options and combinations, that to only look at just one brand is doing a huge disservice to yourself. you could still end up getting the type x's, but will have done so knowing fully that it was the best speaker set for you.

try to determine what you like in a speaker (i prefer softer tweeters, and natural sounding mids...)and try to find speaker reviews with similar qualities...