Go Back   Home > Forums > Blogs > RJM Audio Blog

If I put my notes here, I might be able to find them again later!
Rate this Entry

Onkyo SE-300PCIe sound card review part II.

Posted 20th August 2014 at 02:18 PM by rjm
Updated 23rd August 2014 at 06:21 AM by rjm

Part I is here.

Setup notes are in part I. Listening system downstream is the Sapphire headphone amplifier and Sennheiser HD-600 headphones. As the SE-300's line output routes though the Windows sound mixer, while the SE-200's bypasses it, it was not possible to keep the headphone amplifier volume at a constant setting between cards. Since I found the built-in headphone amplifier of the SE-300 to be good but not at the level of the Sapphire, only the stereo RCA output is being reviewed here.

Let me begin by saying that Windows is fundamentally an anti-audiophile proverbial dog's breakfast of setting and driver layers (quick, what's the difference between the DirectX and WaveOut sound modules?), and most soundcards are also anti-audiophile in that they cater to gamers and casual listening with a full barrel of virtualization, equalization, and reverb features enabled by default.* No surprise then that both cards require careful setup to sound their best, or, in the case of the SE-300, anything but terrible. The SE-200 runs by default at 16bit 48kHz, this needs to be changed to 24/192. The SE-300 is the same, but in addition about 3 separate DSP features (3D, EAX, and eq.) must all be disabled using the Soundblaster XFi console which installs with the drivers.

In principle I have nothing against using DSP to, for example, optimize the L-R mixing, frequency response, and delay for headphone listening. In practice the implementation of this and all the other potentially useful features like the "crystallizer" by the XFi chip is so heavy handed as to be utterly unusable.

Okay then, straight line output, or as close to it as humanly possible...

The result of the test, repeated back-and-forth with a set of 7 wav tracks, including one commercial 24-96 digital recording from LINN and one LP of mine recorded at 16/96, is that while I do hear some merits in the SE-300 I prefer the presentation of the older SE-200.

I keep coming back to this word "restrained" in describing the SE-300. It has a wonderfully low noise floor, excellent resolution and definition, and a nice, rich warmth to the sound. But its missing air. The upper midrange is smooth but subdued. There is good subtlety to brass and percussion, but the transients seem sluggish and overdamped.

In direct contrast the SE-200 fills in the upper midrange. It is slightly harsher, less refined overall (The NE5532s in the output stage making themselves heard I think), but it commands you pay attention to the music, the lyrical flow is more easily grasped, and percussive transients seem more vibrant and intense.

That's basically it. I don't feel that the change to Creative XFi is the terrible mistake others have insisted it was, but I don't think the "audible dividends" of the improved DACs and output stage of the SE-300 add up to a more enjoyable listening experience either. It's better in certain listening metrics, but its not in my opinion worth the price or the upgrade over the SE-200. Which is a shame really, since the amount of technology packed into the new card is exceptional, and it would have been nice if, despite the additional cost, it had cleanly outshone its predecessor.

*While the bit depth and sample rate only have to be setup once, amazingly the SE-300 reverts back to the initial defaults (DSP effects enabled) after every cold boot. I assume this is a bug. Most inconvenient.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	DSC_3283_00039s.jpg
Views:	485
Size:	218.4 KB
ID:	1369   Click image for larger version

Name:	DSC_3277_00035s.jpg
Views:	3239
Size:	320.4 KB
ID:	1370  
Views 2067 Comments 0
Total Comments 0

Comments

 

New To Site? Need Help?
Copyright ©1999-2017 diyAudio