DD Encoding, and it's not SoundStorm!

[markgun]

Have any of you heard of HiTeC's X-Mystique 7.1 Gold? It's only available right now in Korea/<A HREF="http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=3701&item=5169703031&rd=1#ebayphotohosting" target="_new">Ebay</A>, but a lot of people who've gotten it have been very impressed from what I've read.

I'm pretty sure it does its DD encoding in hardware and not software, but I still haven't gotten 100% confirmation on that. I think it'll be interesting to see some reviews and decent prices once it becomes readily available. It's based off of C-Media's CMI8768+ chip.

I'm hoping to get such a solution if I ever upgrade my NF7-S.

 

[Codesmith]

5.1 DD encoding or just 2 channel like every soundcard with digital out has?

 

[Codesmith]

<A HREF="http://www.cmedia.com.tw/product/CMI8768_plus.htm" target="_new">http://www.cmedia.com.tw/product/CMI8768_plus.htm</A>

It's real time digital 5.1 encoding.

 

[markgun]

5.1 DD encoding or just 2 channel like every soundcard with digital out has?

Yeah, that's what I meant

I've been trying to contact C-Media to find out if the encoding is being done in software or hardware. Nothing yet, but I've checked some forums, and several people reported that turning off 5.1 DD encoding had no effect on the CPU utilization. So that's a good sign. I'm just weary because so many companies market their products with deception.

Terratec was supposedly working on a 5.1 DD encoding solution too, but that project might've been scrapped.

 

[Codesmith]

The DD encoding is listed under Valuable Software...

So no it doesn't have a specialized DD encoding chip. In fact most everything done my a cmedia card that doesn't involve analog output is done via the CPU.

It doesn't matter anymore since CPUs are so fast you won't notice it. Same with integrated RAID 0/1. Run a hard drive benchmark and the CPU utilization is virtually the same as a non-RAID drive.

Only exception is some cheap Raid 5 cards (any highpoint 454 and lower).

In fact integrated SATA can be faster than the best PCI card since its not connected via the 127.2 MB/s PCI bus.

Only thing I am worried about is game compatibility and driver quality.

As long as the software doesn't screw up the output quality will depend entirely on your reciever.

My experiences with CMedia has been that the latest drivers are just as likely to break one thing as fix another and so you just have to keep trying version until your games quit crashing.

Their SPIF passthrough is much better than creative though, no hard ware to get in the way

 

[markgun]

I saw that too and was just hoping it was a misprint .

From the user reviews I've read, it seems like the CPU utilization is still lower than using plain-jane onboard Realtek codecs. Most of the games have been reported to be working great except Far Cry, where people are only getting two discreet channels of sound.

I'm still disappointed that it seems to do all the encoding in software. Intel's latest audio implementation (when properly integrated by MB manufacturers) can do DD Live 5.1 encoding too, but in software of course.

All in all, it seems like a neat card, but probably not worth the $69 price tag it's going to retail at.

I'm curious what audio implementation Xbox 2 will have. NVidia initially developed the DD Live encoding for Xbox, and NVidia isn't on the Xbox 2 bandwagon.

 

[Codesmith]

Intel implements 5.1 DD encoding in software.

I didn't know that, how well does it work with games?

Games are the only reason anyone would need 5.1 DD encoding, so if a card isn't good for gaming it 5.1 encoding is irrelevant.

 

[markgun]

Well actually not all manufacturers' boards support it the DICE feature. To the best of my knowledge, their Azalia audio is a set of guidelines that the manufacturer must follow. The DICE requirement is optional.

Just to name a few..
1) Sample rate of 192Khz
2) Digital-to-analog converter's SNR >85dB
3) DICE (DD Live 5.1 encoding) OPTIONAL!

I'm pretty sure that the Asus P5GDC-V Deluxe is one of the few, if only boards that supports DD Live 5.1 encoding, since Intel made that optional.