ASUS Xonar Essence Stx User Manual

Xonar Essence STX

Audio card

User manual

E7806

Revised Edition V2
October 2012

Copyright © 2012 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”).

Product warranty or service will not be extended if: (1) the product is repaired, modied or altered, unless
such repair, modication of alteration is authorized in writing by ASUS; or (2) the serial number of the

product is defaced or missing.

ASUS PROVIDES THIS MANUAL “AS IS” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS
OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF
MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. IN NO EVENT SHALL ASUS, ITS
DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES OR AGENTS BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL,
INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS,
LOSS OF BUSINESS, LOSS OF USE OR DATA, INTERRUPTION OF BUSINESS AND THE LIKE),
EVEN IF ASUS HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES ARISING FROM ANY
DEFECT OR ERROR IN THIS MANUAL OR PRODUCT.

SPECIFICATIONS AND INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS MANUAL ARE FURNISHED FOR
INFORMATIONAL USE ONLY, AND ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE,
AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS A COMMITMENT BY ASUS. ASUS ASSUMES NO
RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS OR INACCURACIES THAT MAY APPEAR IN THIS
MANUAL, INCLUDING THE PRODUCTS AND SOFTWARE DESCRIBED IN IT.

Products and corporate names appearing in this manual may or may not be registered trademarks or

copyrights of their respective companies, and are used only for identication or explanation and to the
owners’ benet, without intent to infringe.

ii

Contents

Notices ......................................................................................................... iv

Safety information ....................................................................................... v

Trademarks ................................................................................................... v

License ......................................................................................................... v

1. Introduction .....................................................................................

1.1 Package contents ..............................................................

1.2 System requirements .........................................................

1.3

2. Xonar Essence STX card layout ....................................................

3. Installing the hardware ...................................................................

3.1 Preparing your computer ...................................................

3.2 Installing the Xonar Essence STX card .............................

3.3 Connecting to a TV tuner card ...........................................

4. Installing software ...........................................................................

Installing the card driver .................................................................... 9

5. Connecting speakers and peripherals ........................................

5.1 Connecting digital speaker systems (Home Theater) ......

5.2 Connecting stereo headphones ........................................

5.3 Connecting 2/2.1 channel speakers .................................

5.4 Connecting microphone ...................................................

5.5 Connecting Line-In audio sources ...................................

6. Xonar Audio Center

6.1 Xonar Audio Center GUI ..................................................

6.2 Main Setting .....................................................................

6.3 Mixer/Volume ...................................................................

6.4 Effects ..............................................................................

6.5 Karaoke ............................................................................

6.6 FlexBass ..........................................................................

6.7 Smart Volume Normalization ...........................................

6.8 DS3D GX and DSP Modes ..............................................

6.9 VocalFX ............................................................................

7. Troubleshooting and FAQs ..........................................................

[Troubleshooting] ............................................................................ 40

[FAQ] .........................................................................................

Specications summary ..................................................... 2

....................................................................... 15

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iii

Notices

Federal Communications Commission Statement

This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions:

•

This device may not cause harmful interference, and

•

This device must accept any interference received including interference that
may cause undesired operation.

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a
Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are
designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a
residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio
frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with manufacturer’s
instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However,
there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If
this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception,
which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is
encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following
measures:

•

Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.

•

Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.

•

Connect the equipment to an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the
receiver is connected.

•

Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.

Canadian Department of Communications Statement

This digital apparatus does not exceed the Class B limits for radio noise emissions
from digital apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulations of the
Canadian Department of Communications.

This class B digital apparatus complies with Canadian ICES-003.

Australia statement notice

From 1 January 2012 updated warranties apply to all ASUS products, consistent with
the Australian Consumer Law. For the latest product warranty details please visit
http://support.asus.com. Our goods come with guarantees that cannot be excluded
under the Australian Consumer Law. You are entitled to a replacement or refund for a
major failure and compensation for any other reasonably foreseeable loss or damage.
You are also entitled to have the goods repaired or replaced if the goods fail to be of
acceptable quality and the failure does not amount to a major failure.

If you require assistance please call ASUS Customer Service 1300 2787 88 or visit
us at http://support.asus.com.

iv

Safety information

•

Before installing the device on a motherboard, carefully read all the manuals
that came with the package.

•

To prevent electrical shock hazard or short circuits, switch off the power supply

before installing the device on a motherboard or connecting any singal cables
to the device.

•

If the device is broken, do not try to x it by yourself. Contact a qualied service

technician or your retailer.

•

Before using the product, make sure all cables are correctly connected. If you
detect any damage, contact your dealer immediately.

•

To avoid short circuits, keep paper clips, screws, and staples away from
connectors, sockets and circuitry.

•

Avoid dust, humidity, and temperature extremes. Do not place the product in
any area where it may become wet.

•

Place the product on a stable surface.

•

If you encounter technical problems with the product, contact a qualied

service technician or your retailer.

This symbol of the crossed out wheeled bin indicates that the product (electrical
and electronic equipment) should not be placed in municipal waste. Check local
regulations for disposal of electronic products.

Trademarks

Xonar and ASUS logo are trademarks of ASUSTek Computer Inc. “Dolby”
and “Dolby Digital Live”, “Dolby Pro Logic IIx”, “Dolby Virtual Speaker”, “Dolby
Headphone” are trademarks of Dolby Laboratories. EAX and A3D are trademarks
of Creative Technology Ltd. Microsoft, DirectSound3D, Windows are trademarks of
Microsoft Corporation. Other company and product names may be trademarks of
the respective companies with which they are associated. ASIO is a trademark and
software of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH

License

Dolby Master Studio driver is manufactured under license from Dolby Laboratories.

v

1. Introduction

1.1 Package contents

• ASUS Xonar Essence STX PCI Express audio card

• 3.5mm-to-RCA cable x1

• 3.5mm-to-6.3mm adapter x1

• S/PDIF TOSLINK optical adapter x1

• Support CD

• Audio Precision Test Report

1.2 System requirements

• One PCI Express 1.0 (or higher) compatible slot for the audio card

®

• Microsoft

• Intel

• 256 MB (or above) DRAM system memory

• 60 MB available HDD space for driver installation package

• CD-ROM drive (or DVD-ROM drive ) for software installation

• High-quality headphones, powered analog speakers, or a Dolby Digital

decoder, to enjoy the ultra-high delity sound of the card

Windows® Vista (32/64bit) / XP (32/64bit) / MCE2005

®

Pentium® 4 1.4 GHz or AMD® Athlon 1400 CPU or faster CPU

ASUS Xonar Essence STX

1

Items

Description

Audio Performance

Output Signal-to-Noise Ratio (A-Weighted):

124dB for Front-out
110dB for Headphone-out

Input Signal-to-Noise Ratio (A-Weighted):

118dB

Output Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise at 1kHz
(-3dB) :

0.0003% (-110dB) for Front-out

0.001% (-100dB) for Headphone-out

Input Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise at 1kHz
(-3dB) :

0.0002% (-113dB) for Line-in

Frequency Response (-3dB, 24-bit/96kHz format):

<10Hz to 80KHz

Output/Input Full-Scale Voltage

2 Vrms (5.65 Vp-p)

Headphone Impedance

Optimized for 32~600Ω

Bus Compatibility

PCI Express

-PCI Express Rev.1.0a specification compatible

-Max. full 2.5Gbps bandwidth per direction and optimized
latency for high-definition audio processing

-Compatible with X1, X4, X8, X16 PCI Express slots

Main Chipset

Audio Processor

ASUS AV100 High-Definition Sound Processor (Max.
192KHz/24bit)

24-bit D-A Converter of Digital Sources:

Texas Instruments PCM1792A*1 for Front-Out (127dB
SNR, Max. 192kHz/24bit)

High Fidelity Headphone Amplifier

Texas Instruments 6120A2*1 (120dB SNR, 100dB THD
+N @ Vcc±12V, RL=600Ω, f=1kHz)

24-bit A-D Converter for Analog Inputs:

Cirrus-Logic CS5361* 1 (114dB SNR, Max. 192kHz/24bit)

Sample Rate and Resolution

Analog Playback Sample Rate and Resolution

44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit

Analog Recording Sample Rate and Resolution

44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit

S/PDIF Digital Output

44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit, Dolby Digital

I/O Ports

Analog Output Jack:

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/TOS-Link combo port supports
192KHz/24bit

Other line-level analog input (for TV Tuner or CD­ROM):

Aux-In (4-pin header on the card)

Front Panel:

Shared by Headphone out / 2 channels out /
Microphone in

Driver Features

Operation System

Windows Vista(32/64bit) / XP(32/64bit) / MCE2005

Dolby Digital Live

Dolby Digital Live encodes any audio signal on PC in real­time to Dolby Digital (AC3) 5.1 surround sounds to your
home theater environment through one single S/PDIF
connection

Dolby Headphone

Dolby Headphone technology allows users to listen to
music, watch movies, or play games with the dramatic

5.1-channel surround or realistic 3D spacious effects

through any set of stereo headphones.

Dolby Virtual Speaker

Dolby Virtual Speaker technology simulates a highly
realistic 5.1-speaker surround sound listening
environment from as few as two speakers.

Dolby Pro-Logic II

Dolby Pro-Logic II is the well-known technology to
process any native stereo or 5.1-channel audio into a 6.1
channel output, creating a seamless, natural surround
soundfield.

DirectSound3D Game EXtensions 2.0 & 1.0 (DS3D
GX 2.0)

-DS3D GX 2.5 supports EAX gaming sound effects and

DirectSound 3D hardware enhanced functions for more
games on Windows Vista & XP. (DirectX/DirectSound 3D
compatible)

-DS3D GX 2.5 adds latest VocalFX voice effects for online

gaming or chatting.

1.3 Specications summary

2

(continued on the next page)

ASUS Xonar Essence STX

*Specications are subject to change without notice.

Items

Description

Audio Performance

Output Signal-to-Noise Ratio (A-Weighted):

124dB for Front-out
110dB for Headphone-out

Input Signal-to-Noise Ratio (A-Weighted):

118dB

Output Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise at 1kHz
(-3dB) :

0.0003% (-110dB) for Front-out

0.001% (-100dB) for Headphone-out

Input Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise at 1kHz
(-3dB) :

0.0002% (-113dB) for Line-in

Frequency Response (-3dB, 24-bit/96kHz format):

<10Hz to 80KHz

Output/Input Full-Scale Voltage

2 Vrms (5.65 Vp-p)

Headphone Impedance

Optimized for 32~600Ω

Bus Compatibility

PCI Express

-PCI Express Rev.1.0a specification compatible

-Max. full 2.5Gbps bandwidth per direction and optimized
latency for high-definition audio processing

-Compatible with X1, X4, X8, X16 PCI Express slots

Main Chipset

Audio Processor

ASUS AV100 High-Definition Sound Processor (Max.
192KHz/24bit)

24-bit D-A Converter of Digital Sources:

Texas Instruments PCM1792A*1 for Front-Out (127dB
SNR, Max. 192kHz/24bit)

High Fidelity Headphone Amplifier

Texas Instruments 6120A2*1 (120dB SNR, 100dB THD
+N @ Vcc±12V, RL=600Ω, f=1kHz)

24-bit A-D Converter for Analog Inputs:

Cirrus-Logic CS5361* 1 (114dB SNR, Max. 192kHz/24bit)

Sample Rate and Resolution

Analog Playback Sample Rate and Resolution

44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit

Analog Recording Sample Rate and Resolution

44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit

S/PDIF Digital Output

44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit, Dolby Digital

I/O Ports

Analog Output Jack:

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/TOS-Link combo port supports
192KHz/24bit

Other line-level analog input (for TV Tuner or CD-
ROM):

Aux-In (4-pin header on the card)

Front Panel:

Shared by Headphone out / 2 channels out /
Microphone in

Driver Features

Operation System

Windows Vista(32/64bit) / XP(32/64bit) / MCE2005

Dolby Digital Live

Dolby Digital Live encodes any audio signal on PC in real-
time to Dolby Digital (AC3) 5.1 surround sounds to your
home theater environment through one single S/PDIF
connection

Dolby Headphone

Dolby Headphone technology allows users to listen to
music, watch movies, or play games with the dramatic

5.1-channel surround or realistic 3D spacious effects

through any set of stereo headphones.

Dolby Virtual Speaker

Dolby Virtual Speaker technology simulates a highly
realistic 5.1-speaker surround sound listening
environment from as few as two speakers.

Dolby Pro-Logic II

Dolby Pro-Logic II is the well-known technology to
process any native stereo or 5.1-channel audio into a 6.1
channel output, creating a seamless, natural surround
soundfield.

DirectSound3D Game EXtensions 2.0 & 1.0 (DS3D
GX 2.0)

-DS3D GX 2.5 supports EAX gaming sound effects and

DirectSound 3D hardware enhanced functions for more
games on Windows Vista & XP. (DirectX/DirectSound 3D
compatible)

-DS3D GX 2.5 adds latest VocalFX voice effects for online

gaming or chatting.

VocalFX

TM

Xonar Essence STX provides VocalFX, the latest vocal
effect technologies for gaming and VoIP, including:

-VoiceEX: produces vivid environmental reverberation for
your voice to others in EAX games

-Local VoiceEX: enables yourself to hear the vivid
environmental reverberation by your speakers

-ChatEX: emulates different background environment
effects when you chat online

-Magic Voice: changes your voice pitch to different types
(Monster/Cartoon…) for disguising your real voice or just
for fun in online chatting

Smart Volume Normalizer

TM

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

TM

Professional Bass Management/Enhancement system

Xear 3DTM Virtual Speaker Shifter

Virtual 7.1 speaker positioning

Other Effects

10-band Equalier/27 Environment Effects

3D Gaming Sound Engines/APIs

DirectSound3D GX 2.5 & 1.0, EAX2.0&1.0,
DirectSound HW, DirectSound SW, OpenAL generic
modes, 128 3D sounds processing capability

ASIO 2.0 Driver Support:

Supports 44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @16/24bit with very
low latency

ASUS Xonar Essence STX

3

2. Xonar Essence STX card layout

6

1

2

3

4

5

No Item Description

1 Front Right Out port

Connect the Right audio cable (red) from your 2/2.1 channel
speakers to this port. For multi-channel speaker systems,
connects to the Front Right In port on the powered speakers.

2 Front Left Out port

Connect the Left audio cable (white) from your 2/2.1 channel
speakers to this port. For multi-channel speaker systems,
connects to the Front Left In port on the powered speakers.

3 Headphone Out port

Connect your headphones to this port.

NOTE:

- DO NOT connect your speakers to the headphone out port.
The possible high driving power may cause damage to your
speakers.

- To prevent damage to your headphone, before the
connection, adjust the headphone impedance settings
in the Xonar Essence STX Audio Center to match your
headphone impedance.

4 Microphone In port

Connect your external PC microphone to this port for voice

input. Built-in high-quality Microphone pre-amplier.

7

8

9

(continued on the next page)

4

ASUS Xonar Essence STX

4 Line In port

5 S/PDIF Out port

6 Front panel audio

header

7 Aux Input Header

8 Power connector

9 S/PDIF Out header

Connect analog devices like MP3 players, CD players,

music synthesizers and other line-level sound sources to

this 6.3mm port for audio recording or processing. (Through

Ultra-high delity 118dB SNR A-D converter)

Coaxial and optical TOSLINK combo digital output port.
Connects to external digital decoder or digital speaker
systems, Home Theater systems, AV receivers for outputting
digital audio including PCM, Dolby Digital, DTS, WMA-Pro,
etc.

Connect one end of the front panel audio cable to the front
panel audio header on the Xonar Essence STX card, with
the other end to the chassis-mounted front panel audio I/O
module.

Usually connects to the Analog Audio output of TV tuner card
or other sound source inside your PC system. (To monitor
your TV tuner card’s audio from this Aux-In, you must enable
the “monitor” function for Aux-In in the Xonar Essence STX
Audio Center’s recording mixer.)

Connects to the power cable of your power supply unit.

Connects to a graphics card with HDMI output.

NOTE: When using Dolby Digital Live on S/PDIF output,
make sure the connected graphics card is capable of

decoding DDL; otherwise, there will be no audio output from

the graphics card’s HDMI port.

ASUS Xonar Essence STX

5

3. Installing the hardware

3.1 Preparing your computer

Before you proceed with the following installation steps, it is recommended that
you disable the onboard audio device in the BIOS settings, or uninstall any other
sound cards on your PC.

For BIOS setting or uninstallation of other sound cards, refer to the user
manuals of your motherboard and sound cards.

1. Power OFF the computer, the monitor, and all other peripheral devices
connected to your computer.

2. Unplug the computer power cord from your computer and power outlet.

3. Touch the metal back or side panel of the computer to avoid static electricity.

4. Remove the chassis cover.

5. Remove the metal bracket from an available PCI Express x1 slot for the
Xonar Essence STX audio card.

6. Carefully insert the audio card into the PCI Express x1 slot. Ensure the audio
card sits properly in place.

6

ASUS Xonar Essence STX

3.2 Installing the Xonar Essence STX card

1. Secure the audio card with screws and the metal bracket.

2. Connect the 4-pin power cable of your power supply unit to the power
connector of the audio card.

3. Put back the chassis cover.

4. Reconnect all cables.

5. Plug the power cord to the computer and to a power outlet.

6. Power ON the computer.

The PCI Express high-quality audio card requires additional power from your
computer. If the power cable is not connected properly, the audio card will not
work at all.

ASUS Xonar Essence STX

7

3.3 Connecting to a TV tuner card

1.

If you have a traditional PCI or PCI Express TV tuner card on your PC, you

may need to connect it to the Xonar Essence STX card to send the tuner
card’s sound to your PC speakers.

2. Secure the PCI/PCI Express TV tuner card and screw it into the back-panel.

3. Connect the audio output header from the TV tuner card to the Aux-In header

of the Xonar Essence STX card.

For optimum TV audio quality, Xonar HDAV uses ADC recording to digitize the

signal and loops it back to DAC playback. Select Aux-In as the recording source
in the Xonar Essence STX Center’s recording mixer and enable the monitoring
button to pass this signal to the audio output. Using this setup, you can even
turn on sound effects such as Pro-Logic IIx to expand the stereo TV audio to 5.1
or 7.1 channel surround sound. TV audio on your PC will become even better
than on your TV set.

8

ASUS Xonar Essence STX

4. Installing software

Installing the card driver

Ensure that you have installed the VGA card driver before installing the Xonar
Essence STX driver. Otherwise, driver installation error may occur.

1. After you have installed the Xonar Essence STX card, turn on your computer.
Windows® automatically detects the HDAV card and searches for device
drivers. When prompted for the drivers, click Cancel.

2. Insert the support CD into the optical drive. If Autorun is enabled in your
system, the setup starts automatically. If not, run setup.exe from your
support CD.

3. The installation program will remind you to make sure you have connected
the additional power cable from your power supply unit to the card. If the
power cable is not connected properly, the card will not work at all. If it has
not been done, turn off the computer to install the power cable before you go
on the installation process.

4. Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the installation. Read the
“END USER LICENCE AGREEMENT” in the process and make sure you
understand and accept it before you continue the installation. When the

installation nishes, you may be prompted to restart your computer. You can

choose to restart the computer later if desired.

ASUS Xonar Essence STX

9

5. Connecting speakers and peripherals

5.1 Connecting digital speaker systems (Home Theater)

The Xonar Essence STX supports Dolby Digital Live technology, which
transcodes any audio, including games and music, into industry-standard Dolby
Digital surround bit-streams. This makes playback through your home theater
system possible, creating an immersive and impressive cinema surround sound
experience. A single digital cable connection can carry high-quality Dolby Digital
audio from any of your PC audio sources to any digital speakers or AV Receivers
with Dolby Digital 5.1 decoding capabilities.

1

SPDIF Out

No Item Description

1 Optical adapter

2 Optical cable

You can also use a coaxial cable for a S/PDIF connection. Just plug the coaxial
RCA male connector to the S/PDIF-Out combo jack and connect the other end
into the coaxial S/PDIF input on your decoder.

10

2

Plug the optical TOSLINK adapter into the S/PDIF-Out
combo connector.

Connect your decoder’s S/PDIF-In port to the optical adapter
with the TOSLINK optical cable.

ASUS Xonar Essence STX