Don't understand the new Asus HDAV1.3

[prerich]

Originally Posted by SQBubble

But where do you connect your hdmi to?

I don't know if the Xonar Essence STX is better for me... They say it has better SQ than the hdav1.3 but doesnt decode DTS and TrueHD...

Tweek Town has a review of this board and they say its the best sounding board in its price class (not withstanding the HDAV 1.3 - it's in another price class altogether - especially if you get the HDAV 1.3 Deluxe model with 7.1 analog outs). Both boards are fine boards but I would go with the HDAV if I'm going to watch BD movies with my PC. The best you can get out tof the Essence is sending a coax/optical bitstream to your receiver and get Dolby Digital, or DTS. The Essence is really made for a two-channel purist or a person that likes to listen with high-end head phones (not for gamers or BD fans) its SNR is 7 db higher than the HDAV but 120 is nothing to sneeze at either - let alone the 127 of the Essence. They both have Burr-Brown DAC's (same chips if I'm not mistaken). Pick your posion.