Newbie to PC Audio Needs Help!

[sawdin]

I need some information and/or advice on how to download or stream music and have it sound good when it comes out of my speakers. I’m waiting for Dell to deliver a new XPS 8100 (1TB HD, BluRay player, not burner) which comes with the THX TruStudio PC soundcard from Creative. The soundcard is new and I have not yet found specs for it. I’m buying some new pc speakers (probably Audioengine A2’s or Swan D1080 MKII). The reason that I’m not purchasing better speakers is that I rarely listen to music while online and I plan on purchasing either a Squeezebox Duet or Touch to connect to my main system.

So, my questions are:
1) Rhapsody streams at 256kbps. If I don’t like the quality, can I improve it? If yes, can that be done via a soundcard or or a device like the Squeezebox Duet or Touch?

2) I like to ‘tweak’ what I listen to so that it sounds good to MY EARS. Yes, I like to fiddle around with the sound by using an equalizer. I believe this use to be sacrilege, and maybe it still is, but I want to listen to what sounds good to me, not someone else. Rhapsody has an EQ, but my guess is that it sucks. Any recommendations for EQ software? There might be some w/ the soundcard. (I realize that Creative soundcards are not considered the best, and if it doesn’t sound good, I’ll replace it.)

3) If I download a song, given my equipment, do I need to use lossless or will a good lossy format be okay? If I download using lossy, can a soundcard or the Squeezebox improve how it sounds by upsampling?

Thanks so much, in advance, for any and all suggestions. I’m not trying to be a lazy slug, as I’ve tried to find answers online, but most seem to be written for people who don’t care about how the music sounds or audiophiles on the other end who are driven to make sure they ‘hear the best.’ I’m in the middle, and given my equipment and ears, I probably could not hear the difference between really good quality and ultimate audiophile quality. Thanks again!

My equipment is okay, but not audiophile quality:
Headphones: HD 650
Amp: Perreaux Silhoutte SXH1
Speakers: Revel Concerta F12
Receiver: Denon AVR 3806
CD Player: Denon DVD 1920
Power Conditioning: Monster HTS 3500 MKII
Cables: Various (decent quality)

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

1) Rhapsody streams at 256kbps. If I don’t like the quality, can I improve it? If yes, can that be done via a soundcard or or a device like the Squeezebox Duet or Touch?

If the source is crappy, not much you could do, to live stream music over internet sacrifices has to be made - sometimes even if bitrate is 256Kbs, the encoder cuts a lot of higher frequencies - 14Khz and higher to save space/bandwidth. You can't just boost "treble" and magically get them back

2) I like to ‘tweak’ what I listen to so that it sounds good to MY EARS. Yes, I like to fiddle around with the sound by using an equalizer. I believe this use to be sacrilege, and maybe it still is, but I want to listen to what sounds good to me, not someone else. Rhapsody has an EQ, but my guess is that it sucks. Any recommendations for EQ software? There might be some w/ the soundcard. (I realize that Creative soundcards are not considered the best, and if it doesn’t sound good, I’ll replace it.)

Most sound card drivers include built-in EQ, but if you don't find its sufficient
check out KxProject - they make great alternative drives with TONS of tweaks- they work with most Creative cards

3) If I download a song, given my equipment, do I need to use lossless or will a good lossy format be okay? If I download using lossy, can a soundcard or the Squeezebox improve how it sounds by upsampling?

The difference between lossy and lossless usually decided based upon what kind of music you listening to. Rock/Techno/Electronica/Rap/Pop would be 99.99% same in lossy format, but Opera/Classical and Jazz would be a disaster for lossy format and DO require lossless to be properly enjoyed.
And no, you can't "improve" bad recording by upsampling...

checkout youtube - Audio Myths Workshop

 

[sawdin]

Thanks so much for the information and advice. It really is appreciated.

If I don't like the Rhapsody EQ, I like the idea of using the KX project software as an alternative before trying something like the Behringer SRC2496 and/or DEQ2496. Actually, I'm pretty sure that even if I like the Rhapsody EQ, I'll still try the KX to see if there's noticeable improvement.

Thanks again!