ASUS Xonar DX 7.1 PCI-E Sound Card Review

Right Mark Audio Testing

Test System Used

CPU: E4300
RAM: OCZ 2X1GB DDR2-800
MOBO: Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L
Video: ATI X1950 Pro 256MB


Right Mark 3D Sound



The graphs show the new DX against various cards to help illustrate what the Xonar DX is capable of when compared to other sound devices. We also decided to compare the DX to the original PCI model D2 but the D2 is measured using the first release of the XONAR drivers and the DX is using the new drivers. The contrast between these drivers is startling; the new drivers have improved performance of the Xonar cards substantially and really do warrant mentioning in this review. We also pitted the DX against a hardware gaming card and of course the software based Xonar DX can’t quite keep up to the onboard 10KX DSP of the Creative Audigy 2.



Above is the output from the Rightmark 3D sound application running under the Vista operating system. With the Xonar GX 2.0 gaming mode enabled, you can clearly see that EAX 1,2,3,4 and 5 shows as being available to audio applications. These offerings would disappear when GX driver mode was disabled. OpenAL shows a similar lineup of audio options.


Right Mark Audio Analyzer

Dynamic Range


This graph shows the card's operating range and the graphs illustrate the lowest and highest range the card is capable of producing. The Xonar has a very good dynamic range according to the measurements taken.




This graph shows the output characteristics of the Xonar DX. The more linear in nature of the graphed line, the better the sound output. Variances in the graph would produce color in that particular frequency range producing output higher or lower then the remaining frequencies. The DX is very linear in nature and shows no adverse coloration to the cards output.




This measurement indicates how much Total Harmonic Distortion and Noise is present in the output signal. Harmonic distortion presents itself as multiple odd and/or even harmonic overtones in the original audio signal. Lower measurements are always better in audio device.




This graph is a measurement of the bleed-through effect from one stereo channel to the other. The lower measured crosstalk the better below @ 24bit 96,196 the crosstalk cannot be measured in the lower frequencies although in the higher range they elevate somewhat.




This graph shows the measurement of IMD. This type of distortion results from multiple signals being mixed together and producing distortion in the form of overtones that are not harmonically linked to any of the base signals. Lower measurements are definitely preferred for any type of distortion measurements.