Audio hardware upgrade, worth it?

Hi all!
I own an Asus Motherboard Maximus Hero IX that has a SupremeFX audio chip and Sonic Studio software.
I have a Siberia V2 and Sennheiser HD 202 headphones and I use to play Racing games and listen to Rock and Heavy Metal and my previous motherboard has a normal Realtek HD audio chip (I am almost sure Supreme FX is Realtek regular drivers too lol).

I am not satisfied with the sound quality of the Asus motherboard. My previous mobo was an EVGA X58 Micro Sli and I am pretty sure all games and music sounded better.

I am considering to buy a Superlux Hd 668B headphone and an audio card to benefit from them to get a better audio experience, specially in racing games (90% Assetto Corsa) and to listen music.

I noticed that the sound I have now with my mobo is muffed and has not much output volume. I need to set in Sonic Studio a parameter to "Extreme" to be able to have a decent volume. In the older computer the sound was better, more detailed and louder... Seems like the Sonic Studio software distorts the sounds too much via software and I am not liking it. Even when I listen to music, the songs sound weird sometimes, as it has too much bass and are poor in detail. Everything seems to be overwelmed with "virtual and fake" effects.

I used the audio drivers from the cd that came with the mobo and let the Asus software update drivers automatically. Am I doing something wrong? Other people that own this series of mobo are getting better results perhaps?...

What you guys recommend me to do?
Buy an offboard audio card will improve the quality considerably or not much of a difference compared to onboad audio?
I am thinking to buy that headphone because I have been watching some great reviews and it is a very cheap product. I am in a budget so best bang for buck is a consideration.

Thanks in advance for helping.

Carlos.

 

If you really are going in the quality direction, buy an usb interface and a good pair of headphones. I have an Yamaha AG03 and I love the thing.

 

I'm using an old Bose OnEar through my Asus Mobo, with RealTek headphone virtualization, and it sounds good. Given the AC sound standard is not the best around.
Gives me decent auditive spatial awareness.

 

What Usb interface you have? Give me an example of a good one please! How much for this AG03?

 

Do your mobo has the Supreme FX? If yes, how are you using it? Sonic Studio on? Which effects?

 

Stock drivers, just checked "headphone virtualization" in the default ui.
Works surprisingly well.
Without it's quite meh...

 

The ag03 is the interface, here in Brazil I've paid 200 usd. You will have dedicated volume controls for your speakers and headphones.

 

Mine doesn't have it.

 

Your pic doesn't show here, but when I plug in my phones a GUI shows up, giving me a check box, called " headphone virtualization". Small, but readable...

 

If you care about sound definitely get a proper soundcard and some reasonable headphones.

An external USB audio device is probably best and easy to install (plug it in).

I've got a Focusrite Scarlet which I use for work (audio for video/3D mainly, music sometimes). It was cheap compared to pro-audio interfaces and works fine for my needs.

With headphones you probably want some with an open back if you want the best sound quality (I have some Grados, can't remember the model name, they were about £90.)

Or get some closed-back headphones if sound isolation is important to you (both sound getting in from outside or your sound bothering someone in the room for example). These headphones don't normally sound as good as open-back designs. I have some Beyer DT100s which I use for sound and music recording which sound OK but not as good as the open-back Grados.

Guessing you could get a basic USB device for about £40-60 and some ok open-back headphones for about £30.

 

Addendum

 

Audio is soo subjective.... everyone has their own ideas about what sounds good and what doesn't and what they'll actually be listening to. This is usually because everyone has their own ears

My setup is shown in my sig. I went to an audio supplier and tried out a couple of set ups before deciding.