ASUS Xonar Essence One

nicej · 2nd May 2012, 7:54 PM

Only yesterday afternoon, the hefty piece of machinery arrived. I am not going to lie, I was impressed off the bat with the box itself. You can really tell ASUS really were shooting for class with this amp/dac product; and since using it with my Beyerdynamic T70's, it is by far superior to any high end s/card I've heard and probably one of the purchases I am most happy with.

I have always thought 'sound' was the most important element in entertainment, and this E1 purchase coupled with the T70's really emphasise that for me.

I have no intention to change the OpAmps since the sound is ridiculous already.

Does this mean I've wasted a good $200 on the sound card I bought 2 months ago? Probably, but I figured that I cannot carry this hefty E1 to LANs so that's where the X-Fi will come into play.

Lantians · 2nd May 2012, 10:33 PM

So, Your headphones cost more than my entire PC minus the GPU now Nicej.

I am jelly.

ChesterMcCheese · 4th May 2012, 7:24 PM

are the T70s closed? looks a lot like DT880.

the only thing i dont like about 880 are the cheap plastic things that hold the cup to the headband and the cups wiggle around laterally instead of staying put. they seemed to have fixed that, or at least changed it. headband looks different too.

nicej · 13th May 2012, 3:04 PM

yea the t70's are closed.

the build quality is phenomenal. its their newest headphones from beyerdynamic and apparently has that Tesla technology in it. I dont actually know how it works inside it but I'm sure it plays an important role LOL

the only thing that's odd is when you run foobar2k or winamp with ASIO, (in order to get bit perfect playback), there is a delay between the time you press play on a song, and the time the driver kicks-in in the E1.

this translates into not hearing the very start of the song, about 0.5 seconds worth. and you can hear some "crackling" or a little thump at the start and end of playback; its not really crackling but its the sound that you would hear when connecting or plugging in a new device into something. like when plugging in a studio microphone into a speaker that's already turned on.

If you run wasapi instead, this "delay" is gone as the E1 isn't using ASIO drivers, and you will not see "bit perfect" led light up since it doesnt realise wasapi is bit perfect in itself.

Ma Baker · 23rd June 2012, 12:05 AM

nicej do not multi post edit your post or use multi-quote. Also if you keep posting rubish to get your post count up you will have your post count removed and receive a ban.

Kommandant33 · 24th June 2012, 9:26 AM

Nice - I just picked up my E1 the other day, too! It is a significant change from my Audioengine D1.
Just like you said - even the box was amazing! It was not easy smuggling it past my better half - it took her about 6 hours to notice the big chunk of machinery sitting on my desk

As for changing out op amps - This is one of the few closed pieces of kit that doesn't void the warranty if you open it up - it is just asking to be tinkered with, or at least just opened for a look!

Anyway, Back to enjoying a bit-perfect Hotel California...

2nd May 2012, 7:54 PM	#1
nicej Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Posts: 185	ASUS Xonar Essence One Only yesterday afternoon, the hefty piece of machinery arrived. I am not going to lie, I was impressed off the bat with the box itself. You can really tell ASUS really were shooting for class with this amp/dac product; and since using it with my Beyerdynamic T70's, it is by far superior to any high end s/card I've heard and probably one of the purchases I am most happy with. I have always thought 'sound' was the most important element in entertainment, and this E1 purchase coupled with the T70's really emphasise that for me. I have no intention to change the OpAmps since the sound is ridiculous already. Does this mean I've wasted a good $200 on the sound card I bought 2 months ago? Probably, but I figured that I cannot carry this hefty E1 to LANs so that's where the X-Fi will come into play. __________________ Follow my Blog!

2nd May 2012, 10:33 PM	#2
Lantians Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 25	So, Your headphones cost more than my entire PC minus the GPU now Nicej. I am jelly. __________________ Selling stuff is fun.

13th May 2012, 3:04 PM	#4
nicej Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Posts: 185	yea the t70's are closed. the build quality is phenomenal. its their newest headphones from beyerdynamic and apparently has that Tesla technology in it. I dont actually know how it works inside it but I'm sure it plays an important role LOL the only thing that's odd is when you run foobar2k or winamp with ASIO, (in order to get bit perfect playback), there is a delay between the time you press play on a song, and the time the driver kicks-in in the E1. this translates into not hearing the very start of the song, about 0.5 seconds worth. and you can hear some "crackling" or a little thump at the start and end of playback; its not really crackling but its the sound that you would hear when connecting or plugging in a new device into something. like when plugging in a studio microphone into a speaker that's already turned on. If you run wasapi instead, this "delay" is gone as the E1 isn't using ASIO drivers, and you will not see "bit perfect" led light up since it doesnt realise wasapi is bit perfect in itself. __________________ Follow my Blog! Last edited by Ma Baker; 23rd June 2012 at 12:04 AM. Reason: 2 posts merged. Please edit your post

23rd June 2012, 12:05 AM	#5
Ma Baker Forum Manager Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Melbourne Posts: 8,525	nicej do not multi post edit your post or use multi-quote. Also if you keep posting rubish to get your post count up you will have your post count removed and receive a ban. __________________ OCAU Image Hosting If anyone is considering buying the Victoria Entertainment Book 2013/2014 please consider purchasing it from Heartkids Victoria If you need one for another State google Heartkids State you require the book for and Entertainment Book for the link

24th June 2012, 9:26 AM	#6
Kommandant33 Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Cheltenham VIC Posts: 877	Nice - I just picked up my E1 the other day, too! It is a significant change from my Audioengine D1. Just like you said - even the box was amazing! It was not easy smuggling it past my better half - it took her about 6 hours to notice the big chunk of machinery sitting on my desk As for changing out op amps - This is one of the few closed pieces of kit that doesn't void the warranty if you open it up - it is just asking to be tinkered with, or at least just opened for a look! Anyway, Back to enjoying a bit-perfect Hotel California... __________________ Kommandant. Battlefield 3 - ollien33 Steam - ollien33

4th May 2012, 7:24 PM	#3
ChesterMcCheese Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: ACT Posts: 1,049	are the T70s closed? looks a lot like DT880. the only thing i dont like about 880 are the cheap plastic things that hold the cup to the headband and the cups wiggle around laterally instead of staying put. they seemed to have fixed that, or at least changed it. headband looks different too.