creating a volume control

[MrRobotics]

Is the Focusrite and Alpha even necessary if I'm not doing any recording?

 

[speakerman39]

Is the Focusrite and Alpha even necessary if I'm not doing any recording?

I do not do any recording either. It serves merely as a DAC and to me the Lexicon Alpha sounds best. The Behringer UMC22 was also pretty good. I even owned the Mackie Onyx Artist and liked it the least. The Lexicon Alpha sounded noticeably better in my room. $50 for a DAC and another $50 for some Mo-Pads or stands will go a long ways if you want to improve things. But, that is up to you.


Cheers,

Phil

 

[lovinthehd]

Easy enough to see if raising your speakers off the surface of the desk will do anything before spending $50 on some pieces of foam....I just A/B'd my 305s with a towel underneath that raised one off the surface and one left on the surface....no difference, but could depend on the resonance of the surface they sit on...mine's a marble slab (and am using the little rubber feet on the bottom of the speakers) and are already at ear height (not a desk). YMMV. If the DAC in your pc doesn't introduce noise and performs well doubt you'll gain anything by an external dac.

 

[speakerman39]

Easy enough to see if raising your speakers off the surface of the desk will do anything before spending $50 on some pieces of foam....I just A/B'd my 305s with a towel underneath that raised one off the surface and one left on the surface....no difference, but could depend on the resonance of the surface they sit on...mine's a marble slab (and am using the little rubber feet on the bottom of the speakers) and are already at ear height (not a desk). YMMV. If the DAC in your pc doesn't introduce noise and performs well doubt you'll gain anything by an external dac.

Well honestly both helped mine tremendously in terms of clarity and articulation. Not exactly sure if it was going from the Behringer UMC22 to the Lexicon Alpha, but things improved significantly immediately thereafter. Another significant improvement came when I put my 305's on stands and completely off of my desk.

I also used the Mo-Pads on top of said stands which did not hurt things at all. My thinking was might as well use them as many people do in their studios. In my room, the Lexicon Alpha and the stands made all of the difference. Just wished I had measured the frequency response before and after doing so to compare. Oh well, maybe someday.


Cheers,

Phil

 

[lovinthehd]

Well honestly both helped mine tremendously in terms of clarity and articulation. Not exactly sure if it was going from the Behringer UMC22 to the Lexicon Alpha, but things improved significantly immediately thereafter. Another significant improvement came when I put my 305's on stands and completely off of my desk.

I also used the Mo-Pads on top of said stands which did not hurt things at all. My thinking was might as well use them as many people do in their studios. In my room, the Lexicon Alpha and the stands made all of the difference. Just wished I had measured the frequency response before and after doing so to compare. Oh well, maybe someday.


Cheers,

Phil

Or was it simply expectation bias? Did you A/B one dac/speaker setup vs the other? I can see better speaker positioning possible with removing them from the desk altogether, tho, that's not a great place for speakers in the first place. In the spare bedroom where my 305s are I'm sure better placement would do more than raising them off the surface of the dresser in any case. It just irks me to spend money on Auralex foam, can do just as well with household materials at hand.

 

[speakerman39]

Or was it simply expectation bias? Did you A/B one dac/speaker setup vs the other? I can see better speaker positioning possible with removing them from the desk altogether, tho, that's not a great place for speakers in the first place. In the spare bedroom where my 305s are I'm sure better placement would do more than raising them off the surface of the dresser in any case. It just irks me to spend money on Auralex foam, can do just as well with household materials at hand.

No everything was the same. I just simply replaced the Behringer with the Alpha and later put the 305's on studio stands. The improvement in sound was noticeable both times. I felt just as you regarding the "foam", but once I tried them it really does help. But, make no mistake the greater improvements came when I switched to the Alpha and then placed my 305's on studio stands. BTW, my expectations were very low but things improved nevertheless.

Plus, both the Behringer and/or Lexicon have volume knobs just as the OP is looking for. I also prefer to use a knob as opposed to using my mouse to change volume levels on my desktop. But like I said, it is up to the OP as to whether or not he wants to try it. Crutchfield and/or Sweetwater both have excellent return policies if need be.


Cheers,

Phil