sound card for music production

im looking for a sound card with a built-in amp such as the one below for example

ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1 Channels PCI Express x1 Interface 124 dB SNR / Headphone AMP Card

* Virtual 7.1 Channels
* 24-bit 192KHz
* PCI Express x1 Interface...

* Audio Chipset: ASUS AV100
* Sample Rate: 192KHz
* Digital Audio: 24-bit
* SNR: 118 dB Input Signal-to-Noise Ratio 124dB for Front-out 110dB for Headphone-out dB

my question is how or what settings should i be looking or how will i know it will be fully compatible to work full performance with the following headsets

$56 - Audio Technica ATHM40FS Precision Studio Headphones

$69 - Fostex RP T40RP

$80 - Sony MDR7506 Professional Large Diaphragm Headphone

$104 - Audio-Technica ATH-M50 Studio Monitor Headphones

$115 - M-Audio Studiophile Q40 Closed-back Dynamic Headphones

$149 - Shure SRH840 Professional Monitoring Earphones (Black)

$178 - Sony MDR7509HD Professional Headphone

$199 - AIAIAI: TMA-1

$204 - Denon AHD2000 High Performance Over-Ear Headphones

$250 - German Maestro GMP 8.35 D Monitor Headphone

$250 - beyerdynamic DT 880 Premium Headphones
(250 ohms)

$259 - AKG K702 Open Back Headphones

$279 - AKG K 242 HD High-Definition Headphones

$335 - AKG K701 Studio Headphones

$390 - Denon AH-D5000 Reference Headphones

$415 - Sennheiser HD 650 Lightweight Open-Air Dynamic Audiophile Headphone

$442 - Ultrasone PRO 900 S-Logic Surround Sound Professional Headphones

THANKS IN ADVANCE

That isn't a "Music Production" soundcard by my definition. What exactly will you be producing? What are your DAW requirements?

I have a profire 2626 that i use with the adat out on my mixer to do live multitracking. Thats what i would consider a production soundcard. The company I work for has a DSP5D that could be considered a sound card (well, sort of) when i'm using it with a tablet running studio manager.

I personally have a pair of DT770 pro 250 that I love. I also have an Audigy2 ZS platinum pro that I use when playing video games b/c of its multiple outputs.

So - what will you be using the card in question for with regard to music production? The Asus is not exactly made for "Music Production".

If you just want a good HP amp for the cans listed above - then use your Pro-Fire 2626 - either into a good DAC/HP Amp or use it's built in HP Amp...

The PM5D's are nice boards - but a bit "boring" sounding IMO. Stable and flexible, but boring in the "Flavor" area

Get a Protools M-Box. It's the only way to go in my opinion.

His M-Audio 2626 pretty much leaves the M-Box in the dust as-is Don;t fall for the Avid "Pro-Tools" brand name alone. The "good" Pro-Tools systems start around $10K (a bit less with the new Native versions - but you still need a $3495 HD-Native card and a $3000 Avid interface in that case).

Randyman... said:

His M-Audio 2626 pretty much leaves the M-Box in the dust as-is Don;t fall for the Avid "Pro-Tools" brand name alone. The "good" Pro-Tools systems start around $10K (a bit less with the new Native versions - but you still need a $3495 HD-Native card and a $3000 Avid interface in that case).

Click to expand...

You can do quite a bit with an Mbox, then step up to a Digi 002. Nice thing about Pro Tools is that is pretty well industry standard, so you can bounce a session to disk and get it mastered/edited in another studio.

His current M-Audio 2626 surpasses the M-Box (by a lot), and can run Pro-Tools M-Powered Opens PT and PT-HD projects just fine.

The PT-LE hardware isn't all that hot IMNSHO (I'd prefer M-Audio + PT M-Powered over any of the LE interfaces, but I'm actually using RME and SSL hardware as a preference over either).

The M-Audio's ASIO driver performance also surpasses the PT-LE line of hardware for use in other applications like Cubase, Studio One, and Reaper. M-Audio's drivers are just slightly behind RME's fabulous drivers for a fraction of the price.

I'd say just use your 2626's built-in headphone amp for now and skip the "ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1 Channels PCI Express x1 Interface 124 dB SNR / Headphone AMP Card". You can use the 2626 to feed any speakers you have as well (digital or analog - even 5.1). If you need a better headphone section - just feed an external HP amp from the 2626. Seems like a no-brainer...


Edit:
- Oops - I just realized I was replying to Unoriginal as if he was the OP
Sorry about that! Artyfresh doesn't have the 2626. But I would seriously consider re-thinking the "ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1" as a production tool...

Randyman... said:

Edit:
- Oops - I just realized I was replying to Unoriginal as if he was the OP
Sorry about that! Artyfresh doesn't have the 2626. But I would seriously consider re-thinking the "ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1" as a production tool...

Click to expand...

lol

I was giving my equipment as an example to the OP of what I would call professional gear.

and imo: Protools LE sucks. I know ppl who have had problems with it crashing mid show on them. PT HD works much better as it is hardware driven, but it is expensive, and one card is never enough DSP for most people. 2 instances of smack and you've used up most of your DSP thought-put.

Yep. I prefer Cubase/Nuendo on W7/i7 and RME hardware. No lack of DSP in sight - and round-trip analog-to-analog latencies in the 5ms range

DSP accelerator cards are so 2005

Still waiting for Artyfresh to reply on his exact "Production needs"...