Best Motherboard for Audio

[geraldfryjr]

Yes, it has both opitcal and coaxial s/pdif interface connectors on it.
I have not yet tried them, as the only device I have is my Sony PCM-2600 Dat machine and I very rarely use it because it is only 16bit.

I am not sure exactly what modes it supports but I do think that I will do 24bit at 192Khz on the interface.
I do know that it does 16bit and at 192khz as it is standard in the mode selection box.
I will look into this for you and report back.

jer

P.S. Yes.it does support it.
Here are two screen shots displaying the digital playback options for the Asrock 990FX extreme 4.

[Mr. Green]

Fantastic just the info i needed. Much appreciated

[bohdan1232000]

Originally Posted by zman01

Freax,

Motherboard audio has improved in leaps and bounds over the last decade - probably more than good enough for most people.....

Hi zman01,

I certainly agree with your comment. Too many people are still clinging to the past.
I have made an attempt to quantify current performance of contemporary motherboard. The results are in:

http://www.bodziosoftware.com.au/Computers_SNR.pdf

Best Regards,
Bohdan

[Sabrosa]

I'm considering the Intel DH77EB and ASUS P8H77-M/CSM motherboards for a fan-less HTPC build in a Streacom FC5 Evo case.

Does anyone have a recommendation from an audio / video perspective?

The Intel boards are known for being very low-power, while the ASUS claims to have low EMI with their Protect 3.0 technology. Though I'm not sure how much of that is marketing vs real-world performance.

I'll be running audio through USB to an external DAC, video through HDMI, and data through Ethernet. All other onboard devices will be turned off as the BIOS will allow.

I'm leaning slightly towards the ASUS due to a known bug with the Intel board and 24p playback, but thought I'd seek out opinions here.

[bambadoo]

I am using a streacom pc5 case. Totally fanless setup. Have fitted a gigabyte sniper m3 mainboard. Disabling internal sound (still it god creative soundchip). Using a small pcie riser connected to an asus essence stx used as spdif out. Some ssd's, 32gb memomy etc. etc.
Sounds great - and dead silence

[bohdan1232000]

Hi Sabrosa,

The Intel DH77EB has ALC892 audio codec and ASUS P8H77-M/CSM has ALC887 codec. There are better audio on-board codecs.

See comparison at:
Audio Codec Comparison Table | Hardware Secrets.


This one looks good: X79 Extreme3

ASRock > X79 Extreme3

• ALC898 audio codec with 8 output channels. Excellent SNR – up to 110dB.
• Intel® Core™ i7 processor family for the LGA 2011 Socket
• 3 x PCIe slots – will accommodate future PCIe cards.
• 2 x PCI slots – will accommodate current PCI cards.
• Supports Core i7 SandyBridge E CPUs.

Best Regards,
Bohdan

[geraldfryjr]

The ALC 898 is much nicer than the ALC892 that I have.


FWIW

jer

[lazenna]

Originally Posted by bambadoo

I am using a streacom pc5 case. Totally fanless setup. Have fitted a gigabyte sniper m3 mainboard. Disabling internal sound (still it god creative soundchip). Using a small pcie riser connected to an asus essence stx used as spdif out. Some ssd's, 32gb memomy etc. etc.
Sounds great - and dead silence

The Gigabyte sniper uses Nichikon Muse capacitors. I am wondering are these caps on the sound card part of the mb and if so, if you are using a outboard dac that these caps are not utilized?

[Drico]

I am looking at a biostar g41d3c does it have good board audio?

[geraldfryjr]

At 95db SNR I wouldn't say it is the greatest.
But the price is what it is quality comes with cost.
Probably a good cheap board but you eat your savings having to buy a better sound card.

VIA Vinyl? VT1708B - VIA Technologies, Inc.

But it does support 8 channels at 24bit 192Khz.
Typical of today's codecs is 108db SNR or better.
You would be better off with an add on sound card or a board that shows at least THX noise level specs of 108db SNR for a little more.

At 95db to 98db SNR you will be only be getting the dynamic range of a typical cheap 16bit sound system or cd player.

FWIW

jer