Virtual 7.1 from Sennheiser PC 363D or ASUS Sonic Studio

agrtga

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Jul 26, 2014
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I have a ASUS motherboard ordered that has the Sonic Studio capabilities that simulate 7.1 audio through a normal stereo headset. And I have a Sennheiser PC 363D headset ordered.

My question is in what virtualization technology should I use? The motherboard comes with Sonic Studio that sounds promising. I'll be running it through an ASUS front base that has low noise headphone input. The headset comes with an adapter with a soundcard that also sounds good.

I was hoping someone had some real world experience or opinions. I'll have enough to deal with when building the PC, so I'd rather not have to install both suites of software and try to figure it out and deal with possible driver conflicts.

It was suggested that I post here and not in gaming.
 

ttimberlak443

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Jan 11, 2014
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I'd probably just stick with whatever Sennheiser provides if you decide you even want to use virtual surround at all. I've found that these Sennheiser headsets already have great spacial positioning without any simulated surround. I tend to keep my PC360's on stereo (although I could switch on 5.1 or 7.1). Virtual surround (at least for me) makes music listening less enjoyable.
 
generally it seems that most people prefer either dolby headphone (found on asus soundcards) or cmss3d (found on creative soundcards) the best.

most motherboards do not come with virtual surround as an option although i suppose in this case it appears that yours does. i've never heard of sonic studio so cannot tell you how it compares.

it seems like the mini-soundcard provided with the pc363d is capable of dolby headphone. while i'm sure it doesnt have the quality associated with a standalone card like the xonar dx it should be sufficient for your needs unless you are an audiophile.
 

agrtga

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Jul 26, 2014
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I'm not an audiophile by any stretch.

Sonic Studio is ASUS' audio-tuning suite. In my case, the Maximus VII Hero is what is being used. It has a one-click virtual surround function through stereo headsets. Unfortunately, it doesn't say anything about the positional aspect.

I want good sound, and most of all I want to know the direction when there is a gunshot for example.