Essence STX II Audio card User Guide
E9122 First Edition February 2014 Copyright © 2014 ASUSTeK Computer Inc. All Rights Reserved. No part of this manual, including the products and software described in it, may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language in any form or by any means, except documentation kept by the purchaser for backup purposes, without the express written permission of ASUSTeK Computer Inc. (“ASUS”).
Contents Chapter 1: Product introduction Package contents.............................................................................................................................. 5 System requirements....................................................................................................................... 5 Specifications summary.................................................................................................................. 6 Essence STX II card layout....................
Chapter 1 Product introduction Package contents • ASUS Essence STX II audio card x 1 • Quick Start Guide x 1 • Low Profile Bracket x1 • 6.3mm to 3.5mm adapter x 1 • S/PDIF adapter x 1 • Op-amp swap kit x 1 • Installation CD x 1 • RCA-to-3.5mm adapter cable x 1 Contact your dealer or retailer if any of the items is damaged or missing.
Specifications summary ENGLISH ITEM DESCRIPTION Audio Performance Output Signal-to-Noise Ratio (AWeighted) 124dB for Front-out Input Signal-to-Noise Ratio (AWeighted) 118dB Output Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise 0.0003% (-110dB) for Front-out 120dB for Headphone-out at 600ohms 0.001% (-100dB) for Headphone-out at 1kHz (-3dB) : Input Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise at 1kHz (-3dB) 0.
ITEM DESCRIPTION Analog Output Jack ENGLISH I/O Ports RCA jack *2 (Front R/Front L) 6.30mm jack *1 (Headphone Out) Analog Input Jack 6.30mm jack *1 (Shared by Line-In/Mic-In) Digital S/PDIF Output High bandwidth Coaxial/TOSLINK combo port supports 192kHz/24bit Front Panel Shared by Headphone out/2 channels out / Microphone in Driver Features Operating System Windows® XP/7/8 (32/64bit) Dolby® Digital Live Dolby® Digital Live encodes any audio signal on PC in real-time to Dolby Digital (AC3) 5.
ENGLISH ITEM DESCRIPTION Smart Volume Normalizer™ Normalizes the volume of all audio sources into a constant level and also enhances your 3D sound listening range and advantages in gaming. Karaoke Functions Music Key-Shifting, Vocal Cancellation, and Microphone Echo effects like professional Karaoke machine FlexBass™ Professional Bass Management/Enhancement system Xear 3D™ Virtual Speaker Shifter Virtual 7.1 speaker positioning Other Effects 10-band Equalier/27 Environment Effects ASIO 2.
Essence STX II card layout ENGLISH I/O ports Front right RCA output. Connect to the right input of the 2/2.1-channel speakers of your system. Front left RCA output. Connect to the left input of the 2/2.1-channel spearkers of your system. Amplified 6.3mm (1/4") headphone output. Connect to your headphones/headsets. • To prevent possible damage, please set up the compatible gain in audio center or mute the volume before powering up. • DO NOT connect your speakers to the headphone output port.
ENGLISH Multi-channel expansion board bridge connector: Connect to the multi-channel expansion board of Essence STX II 7.1 edition or Xonar H6. 4-pin Molex power connector: Connect to the power cable of your power supply unit. STX requires a 4-pin Molex connection to power the card. Front panel audio header: Connect to the chassis-mounted audio module.
ENGLISH Op-amps sockets There are three swappable op-amp sockets in Essence STX II. Changing the op-amps affects the tonal characteristics of the RCA outputs, while changing A and B affects the tonal characteristics of the 6.3mm (1/4") headphone output. A. Right channel I/V converters B.. Left channel I/V converters C. Low pass filter To swap op-amps: 1. Use an IC clamp to clasp an op-amp and remove it vertically upwards. 2. Replace it with a new op-amp from the op-amp kit.
ENGLISH 12 Chapter 1: Product introduction
Chapter 2 ENGLISH Getting started Before you proceed Read the following notes and precautions before you install the audio card. • Disable the onboard audio device in the BIOS settings or uninstall any sound cards on your computer. • For BIOS setting or uninstallation of other sound cards, refer to the user guides of your motherboard and sound cards. • Turn off your computer and disconnect all peripherals connected to it. • Unplug the computer’s power cord from the power outlet.
Installing the audio card driver ENGLISH After installing the ASUS Essence STX II to your computer, install the card driver from the bundled CD or download from ASUS support site (http://support.asus.com). • Essence STX II requires a 4-pin Molex connection to power the card. Connect it to your power supply unit before installation. • Driver version and the contents of the support CD are subject to change without notice. To install the audio card driver: 14 1.
Chapter 3 ENGLISH Connecting speakers and peripherals Connecting digital speaker systems (Home Theater) Essence STX II supports DTS Interactive technologies, which transcode any audio, including games and music, into industry-standard DTS surround bit-streams. This makes playback through your home theater system possible, creating an immersive and impressive cinema surround sound experience.
Connecting stereo headphones ENGLISH Front Out/Headphone Jack. The Front Out jack has a built-in high-quality amplifier to drive headphones. Connect your stereo headphones directly to this jack.
Connecting 2/2.1 channel speakers 2.1 Speakers ENGLISH 2 Speakers Left/Right Front Out. Left/Right Front Out ports have a built-in quality amplifier to drive headphones. Connect the 2/2.1 speaker set’s 3.5mm plug to the bundled RCA-to3.5mm Y cable, and then connect the Left/Right ends to the Front/Left Right Out ports on the Essence STX card.
Connecting a microphone ENGLISH Front/Left Right Out port/Headphone port. Connect the headphone’s 3.5mm plug to the bundled RCA-to-3.5mm Y cable, and then connect the Left/Right ends to the to Front Left/Right Out ports on the Essence STX II card. Microphone Input port. Connect your external PC microphone to this port by using the bundled 6.3mmto- 3.5mm adapter for voice communication, recording, or karaoke.
ENGLISH Connecting Line-In audio sources Line input jack. Connect the CD/MP3 player or any other line level analog audio sources to this line-in port by using the 6.3mm-to-3.5mm adapter for sound recording or real-time Dolby/DTS sound processing through the monitoring path. Refer to the Mixer section of the driver’s user guide.
ENGLISH 20 Chapter 3: Connecting speakers and peripherals
Chapter 4 ENGLISH Audio Center Audio Center The Audio Center, the graphical user interface (GUI) of the Essence STX II, allows you to control the functions and features of Essence STX II. To launch Essence STX II, double-click the Essence STX II icon on the taskbar. If the icon is not shown on the taskbar, click Start > All Programs > ASUS Essence STX II Audio > Essence STX II Audio Center to launch the Audio Center. Close button Minimize button Support link.
ENGLISH Display Area. The display area shows the 10-band signal meter, volume level, and the status of the Dolby/DTS technologies, EQ, and DSP modes. Note: this area just displays information, but is not used to alter settings. Setting Menu Panel. This panel gives access to settings tabs, including Main Settings, Mixer/volume, Effects, Karaoke, FlexBass, and VocalFX. Information icon. Click this icon to launch the driver information window. Menu Open/Close. Click this button to display more settings.
Main Setting Sample Rate ENGLISH The sample rate determines the number of audio samples per second that the Digital-to-Analog Converters (DAC) and S/PDIF digital interface will output. The Essence STX II card can support sample rates up to 192KHz (44.1K, 48K, 96K, 192KHz). Usually audio CDs and MP3 files are 44.1KHz; DVD-Video uses 48KHz; DVD-Audio or other HD media may contain 96KHz or 192KHz highdefinition audio content.
Analog Out mode ENGLISH Analog Out. The Analog Out settings are used adjust audio to match your actual speaker setting, such as headphones and 2/2.1 speakers. Essence STX II will play the channels and process the 3D/Dolby sound accordingly. Select the correct speaker type for your connected speakers. Speaker Test. Click this button to show the speaker test window in the right pane. Click the Play button to test each speaker one by one or click each speaker manually to test. HP Advanced Setting.
SPDIF Out / DDL ENGLISH Essence STX II is capable of outputting Dolby Digital Live, which is a real-time encoder that transcodes any audio, including games and music, into industry-standard Dolby Digital bit-streams on-the-fly. This is ideal for playback through a home theater system, creating an immersive and impressive cinema surround sound experience. It enables a single digital connection to carry high quality Dolby Digital surround audio from your PC to digital speakers and AV Receivers. SPDIF Out.
Audio Channels (For Windows® Vista/ Windows® 7 only) ENGLISH This setting only appears in Windows® Vista/ Windows® 7. Windows® Vista/ Windows® 7 delivers the audio channels to the audio driver according to this setting, no matter what the original audio content is or how many channels they have. Therefore, you need to set this in accordance with your audio content before you play it.
7.1 Virtual Speaker Shifter • Virtualizing 7.1 surround sound over any set of speakers • Shiftable virtual speaker positioning allows you to adjust the best sound field easily without moving physical speakers and wires ENGLISH The 7.1 Virtual Speaker Shifter has the following major features: • Expanding/upmixing audio to 7.1-channel surround sound 7.1 Virtual Speaker. Tick this checkbox to enable the 7.1 Virtual Speaker.
ENGLISH Counterclockwise. Click to rotate all speakers, except the Subwoofer, counterclockwise. Clockwise. Click to rotate all speakers, except the Subwoofer, clockwise. Manual Rotation. Manually drag and rotate all speakers, except the Subwoofer. Manual Drag Mode. This is the default mode that allows you to manually drag each speaker or the listener with your mouse. Dolby Pro-Logic IIx Dolby Pro-Logic IIx is a 7.
Dolby Headphone ENGLISH Dolby Headphone creates a stunning multi-channel surround experience over ordinary stereo headphones for playing 3D games, watching 5.1 DVD movies, or listening to music. Dolby Headphone produces surround sound cues so realistic that you will believe you are listening over speakers in a well-controlled studio. Dolby Headphone can also improve listening comfort and reduce listener fatigue from long listening over headphones/ Dolby Headphone.
Dolby Virtual Speaker ENGLISH Dolby Virtual Speaker technology simulates a 5.1-speaker surround sound listening environment rom as few as two speakers. Dolby Virtual Speaker also creates a wider two-channel environment during playback of stereo CDs and MP3 content, and when combined with Dolby Pro Logic® II processing, delivers a virtual 5.1-channel surround listening experience from any high-quality stereo source. Dolby Virtual Speaker. Tick this checkbox to enable Dolby Virtual Speaker.
Mixer/Volume ENGLISH The Mixer feature is designed to control the volume for playback and recording on Essence STX II. Essence STX II also provides a high-quality digital monitoring function for hearing the recorded audio from the speakers. You can also process the input signals with all playback sound effects such as Dolby and DTS technologies. Playback Volume Playback volume tab. Click this button to show the playback volume page. Volume slider. Drag this slider down to decrease the volume.
Recording/Monitoring Volume ENGLISH Recording Volume Tab. Click this button to show the recording volume page. Recording volume slider. Drag this slider down to decrease the recording volume. Drag up to increase the recording volume. The tool-tip displays percentage increments. Recording Selector button. Click this button to select the path/source you are going to record. The recording function on Windows is a one-path selector. Hence, you can select only one default recording source at a time.
ENGLISH Monitoring button. Click this button to monitor and loopback recording audio to output speakers. Te recording volume will affect the monitoring signals from speaker output. The audio will be mixed into the streams you are playing out from your PC and all DSP effects will be applied to the source and the output. A typical benefit is to apply Dolby Pro-Logic Ilx 7.1-ch spreading for your TV audio, CD, MP3, or stereo game console audio from Wii, Xbox, and PS2/PS3/PSP.
Effects ENGLISH Environment Effects Use environment effects to create realistic listening experiences that mimic different environments. There are a total of 27 environment options that can be applied to all 2D sound sources such as music. Default environments. These four buttons activate Bathroom, Concert hall, Underwater, and Music Pub environments. More options. Click this button to view more environment effects in the dropdown list, which contains 23 more options. Environment size.
10-Band Equalizer ENGLISH The equalizer modifies the audio output for different frequencies, and is used to compensate for deficiencies in your speakers/systems. There are 12 default patterns and you can also customize your own settings. Default equalizer options. There are 12 available equalizer patterns. Click one to apply it. Equalizer slider. Adjust the gain for each band (30~16KHz) User Defined. Click this button to view your customized equalizer setting. Save name.
Karaoke ENGLISH Essence STX II provides powerful features for Karaoke, including Key-Shifting, Vocal Cancellation, and Microphone Echo. Key-Shifting changes the pitch of Karaoke background music, and VocalCancellation reduces the original vocal in songs and keep the music and symphony for karaoke. On/Off. Click the switch to turn on or off the karaoke functions. Key-Shifting. Tick this checkbox to enable or disable the key shifting feature for music playback from 4 semitones below, to 4 semitones above.
FlexBass • Small: Common speaker that cannot produce low frequencies. • Large: Wide-band speakers that can produce low frequencies well. ENGLISH FlexBass, an advanced bass management and enhancement mechanism, allows you to select each satellite speaker’s type for optimal sound performance from the speakers. The Speaker types are: FlexBass comes with an adjustable crossover frequency for the boundary of the bass signals.
Smart Volume Normalization ENGLISH Smart Volume NormalizationTM (SVN) automatically keeps all music or video/TV audio output at a constant level to reduce manual adjustment hassles inherent with sound sources of different loudness. It allows you to listen to various content, like MP3, TV program, DVD video and even games with consistent sound level. The following graph shows how different signals 1 & 2 adjust to the same level (for example, 10dB below full scale) after you turn on SVN.
ENGLISH SVN On/Off. Click this button to enable SVN. This button is outlined blue when active. SVN blue light. When SVN is enabled, the master volume knob is illuminated by a blue light. It is illuminated red if the volume is muted. SVN display. When SVN is enabled, “Smart Volume” will be lit up at the bottom of the volume meter and the volume meter will show the level.
DS3D GX and DSP Modes ENGLISH Essence STX II introduces an innovative technology – DirectSound 3D Game Extensions v1.0 (DS3D GX 1.0)- to restore DirectSound 3D Hardware acceleration mode and its subsidiary EAX effects on Windows® Vista for 3D games. Unlike some proprietary API like OpenAL, DS3D GX does not require games to support OpenAL API. All existing games compatible with Microsoft DirectX and DirectSound 2D/3D are supported with DS3D GX technology.
ENGLISH GX Mode. DirectSound 3D Game Extensions mode to support EAX and DirectSound 3D Hardware extensions for lots of DirectX/DirectSound3D games on Windows Vista. Hi-Fi Mode. This mode is set for Hi-Fidelity playback, where all effects will be cleared to keep the original digital data and analog output quality as high as possible. Music Mode. This mode is set for Music playback. Movie Mode. This mode is set for DVD Movie playback. Game Mode. This mode is set for Games.
VocalFX ENGLISH VocalFX is an innovative voice processing technology that can immerse your voice in a realistic game landscape (VoiceEX) or imitate background scenes while chatting online (ChatEX). It also allows you to change your voice pitch to disguise who you are (Magic Voice). VoiceEX. It produces realistic and dynamic environmental reverberation for your voice in 3D gaming communication. Local VoiceEX.
1. Tick VoiceEX and Local VoiceEX checkboxes. 2. Ensure that you and your team member can talk to each other in the game. ENGLISH For 3D Games For VOIP 1. Click App List. 2. If you do not see your VOIP application in the list, click Add. Ensure that you have installed the latest version of Skype or MSN Messenger. 3. Navigate to the application then click Open.
ENGLISH 44 Chapter 4: Audio Center
Appendices Troubleshooting and FAQs Troubleshooting I cannot install the audio card driver on my computer. • Ensure that you have properly plugged the audio card in the PCI Express slot on your motherboard. • Check that the Windows hardware device manager has discovered a multimedia audio device. If no device is found, please try scanning for new hardware. • Try rebooting your computer. • Remove the card, plug it into another PCI Express slot, and try again.
I cannot hear audio input (Mic, Line-in, or AUX) from my speakers. ENGLISH • Go to the Mixer recording page in the Essence STX II Audio Center and select the correct input as the recording source. • Remember to turn on the digital monitoring button for that recording source. I found no sound effects when playing 96K or 192KHz sound sources. • Currently, Essence STX II effects including Dolby, supports common 44.
ASUS contact information Address Telephone Fax E-mail Web site Technical Support Telephone Online support 15 Li-Te Road, Peitou, Taipei, Taiwan 11259 +886-2-2894-3447 +886-2-2890-7798 info@asus.com.tw www.asus.com.tw ENGLISH ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. +86-21-38429911 support.asus.
ENGLISH 48 Appendices: Troubleshooting and FAQs
