Subjective Listening tests - Music continued

Van Halen -Van Halen I

One of the amazing aspect of the STX, at least on my test gear is that a the STX brings the sounds out, allowing the music to have 3D imaging as some other cards just allow you to hear but the imaging is flat and lifeless.  Eddy's brown sound was filling out from the headphones and monitors. 

Very good imaging and spatial sense in heard throughout the mix.  Drums and bass guitar all had great articulation and great extension. 

Van Halen -Fair Warning

The card has exceptional "musicality" getting your foot moving or head bopping.  It is very easy to single out just the drummer, Bass, guitar or vocal as the card exhibits no smearing or confusion. Eddies guitar is articulate and has a great 3D sound you can hear the tubes instead of just distortion.  The guitar shows character.  Nice driving bass preset without sloppiness or looseness. Tracks tested, "dirty Movies", Unchained

Obie Trice Cheers

The tested track has many Background effects with echo and reverb making it a great test track for clarity and imaging.  You can easily hear each element within the track.  I have tested this song on other peoples systems and cards and there is always too much confusion, missing elements..Etc.  The STX kept up and showed all elements of the song easily trailing the reverb effects and present absolutely no smearing present.  Nice driving bass with no tubbiness or looseness.

Tracks tested:  Assassins

2Pac Shakur Greatest Hits

The tested track is quite complex, good bass guitar riffs that come through with no looseness or tubbiness.  Piano comes through with realism and articulation.  The background vocals push through without overshadowing the music or the min vocals.  There is much percussion work in this song also; cymbals, high hat, bells, kick drum all come through perfectly without smearing and sounding confusing.  The cards separation show through quite well on this song presenting the various aspects of the music clearly and equally.  Tested Tracks: Changes

AC/DC - Black Ice

AC/DC's newest album presents great material for testing as Angus and Malcolm duel away with saturated guitars.  Some cards can get lost and present distortion with no character. 

The STX allows you to hear the Tube overdrive sound of their amplifiers presenting a great deal of character and allowing you to hear the amplifiers instead of speakers the woodiness and presence of the guitar is right out front.   Tested Track: Rock n Roll Train

Janis Joplin Pearl

I sometimes use this album for testing also as Janis has much character in her voice and some cards can

struggle relating all the detail present in even here simplest tracks like Mercedes Benz.  This song is a solo vocal track and can demonstrate what a soundcard has to offer in terms of sound staging and openness.

The driving stomp/click and Janis' voice all work together to produce a sonic image which can sound excellent with the right gear or flat with the wrong gear. This card also presented a great deal  of "micro detail"  Which allows the system to relay the size of the venue the

track was recorded in and this track is loaded with reverb and micro details.  The STX didn't disappoint allowing all the background ambience of the track to come through and become a part of the music instead of just a side effect.  There is a noticeable hiss both from the STX being so clear and detailed but the album is dated 1971.  Me and bobby McGee Sounded quite "analog" which is one of the trademarks of the STX in my opinion is it has a very warm natural character to it. This is a relatively complicated track with the acoustic guitar strumming away and the organ thumping and lead guitars.  The STX allowed all elements to show their own character instead of the flat image sound some cards produce.   Tracks tested: Me and Bobby McGee, Mercedes Benz

Disclaimer:  Please understand, this is my personal impression of the card written while listening to the card and using the headphones/monitors listed.  Describing sonic and acoustic qualities is very difficult.  Your gear and ears will vary, so your impressions and interpretation of the tested tracks may also vary.  I attempted to use tracks with diverse mixes and genres to try and gauge as accurately as possible the card overall sound signature.  Please take it as just an opinion, yours will undoubtedly vary.

Overall findings  - The Essence STX presents excellent stereo imaging, with a deep wide sonic image.  The clarity, detail and separation are all quite good.  One of the most startling signatures of the Essence STX is the card isnt just clear, articulate...Etc, as many cards have this quality, No! What I find the best aspect of the Essence STX is that fact the card is very expressive...  Allowing more energy of the music to come through and reach your ears.  That quality to me is what makes a great audio device and that quality is what many look for in players, amplifiers, and speakers.  This quality isnt a formula that can be built into a piece of gear.  This is one of those qualitative aspects of the card that cannot be measured in numbers, either an audio device has this quality or it does not and the Essence STX definitely has itin fact you can hear this quality in any audio task you perform.