Is the GSX1000 the best DAC ever?

It is an external USB sound card designed primarily for gaming. It's equipped with Sennheiser's “own” 7.1 Binaural Rendering Engine, it offers exceptional immersion and has an easy output switch. So, what does that mean?!

[@sweetlemonade123]

Thanks for an honest review. I was about to pull the trigger on this card. Will look somewhere else. I currently use hd599 but might upgrade to hd650 or sundara or something similar down the road.

[@dtsdigitalden5023]

I thought it was generally accepted wisdom that the letters a, e, g, m and r are extremely expensive to print, and it's what makes these units fetch such a price premium! Thanks for the review, as I was very curious about these devices. Nice to see they received the Anton treatment!

[@AntonsHardware]

You forgot the D. As in DGX, DX, D2 etc from Asus :D

[@user-ir2sy9ut1e]

Thank you so much. Because of you, we can avoid buying uneconomical products.

[@AntonsHardware]

You are welcome! :D

[@DJaquithFL]

I bought the original GSX 1000 strictly for gaming and for that it works better than anything else that I can find. I built the second PC however and I purchased the 2nd Edition which was awful and I returned it. I'm thinking about getting the Schiit Hel 2E. I game and all I care about is identifying where the people are, in fact, I'm thinking about buying the discontinued version of the GSX 1000.

[@Krazy92]

Hey, do you know if sidetone playback filters mic background noise? Like.... when you monitor your mic can you hear the background noise your mic pics up or does the GSX filter it and you're not able to hear it while monitoring? Thanks in advance.

[@DJaquithFL]

@@Krazy92 .. There's no noise filtering, just input level control. The GSX just has the best built-in 3D spatial control. I ended up getting the Schitt Fula along with buying the Windows Dolby Atmos software and it's a pretty good solution. If you have Amazon I'd recommend at least trying it. However, if you need volume level control (you can do it in Windows) then the Schitt Hel 2E. If you're an Audiophile and a Gamer then I would recommend something like the $490 xDuoo TA-22. I bought the HIFIMAN XS Edition headphones and any of the DACs I mentioned work great. Another alternative is the $300 Audeze Maxwell Wireless Headphones and you don't need a DAC, they're Audiophile and Gamer grade.

[@Ryan-re1rs]

@@Krazy92 nope. It picks up EVERYTHING! I just bought it and I'm on the fence. I got it because I have the h6pro and it has no sidetone or software and I'm on the hunt to find something that will have sidetone and also sound good. Pretty sure this new gsx1000 is going back especially at 150 bucks,

[@MikeleKonstantyFiedorowiczIV]

i expect its a shitta. Price for this in my country is insane high. Will it be possible to test Creative Labs X-Fi HD 5.1 USB (70SB124000002) with you. It is like the improved xfi 5.1 that I recommended to you. You could also think about buying and listening to used audio interfaces (they are quite cheap and I wonder whether to give up sound cards and buy a used audio interface). Nice test.

[@xq0404]

I would go for Creative Soundblaster 5.1 Pro, as GSX1000 is for headphone listening only.

[@AntonsHardware]

I have the normal 5.1, the non pro version. I've been trying to get my hands on one!

[@DiabloKhel]

Is the surround sound of these (gsx 1000 and 300) better than just using Dolby Access in Windows for locating footsteps in games?

[@AntonsHardware]

In my opinion, both the GSX's will do a better job!

[@retagainez]

The virtual surround sound on the gsx 1000 is hands down the best. It takes maybe ~30 min of experimentation, but once you find the right presets, you will simply know.

[@arlokkkk]

After watching this video I decided to sell my gsx 1000. Which dac + amp combo do you recommend? I game and listen to some music too. I have two headphones, Fidelio X2HR and a Senheiser GameOne. THanks.

[@AntonsHardware]

Depend on your budget! I loved the Meridian Explorer and the Audioquest Dragonfly. If you have a bit more money to spend, check out Burson Audio!

[@arlokkkk]

@@AntonsHardware thank you!

[@sush2024]

Why are you using Rpos software for a Senheiser product because i have GSX1000 anf it has driver download from Sennheiser directly.

[@AntonsHardware]

There is no difference. The software from the EPOS site was the same at the time of recording. Besides that, I didn't want to confuse people that I downloaded files from Sennheiser, when it is an EPOS product.

[@emutt88]

please recommend an alternative, thanks!

[@AntonsHardware]

Creative G6! :D

[@rygar74nl]

Quite the letdown, I expected more from a brand like this, especially for 2.0 audio. It does look cool indeed, but for the price and with the hifi pedigree of Sennheiser, it should have turned out to be much better.

[@AntonsHardware]

It really was! I had higher hopes for this card!

[@blacksama_]

can you select 5.1 I only saw 7.1 and 2.1

[@AntonsHardware]

If I remember correctly it only upscales to 7.1 but I'm not sure.

[@selcukkolunsag5304]

dear is this or creative g6 better ?

[@AntonsHardware]

I like the G6 a lot more!

[@retagainez]

The g6 does not have a proper stereo to 7.1 virtual surround sound processing. So if you like to be in as much surround sound as possible, gsx 1000 wins here.

[@nton6665]

@@retagainez GSX 1000 sounds much better in games than G6, G6 didn't like its sound at all

[@retagainez]

@@nton6665 Yeah. G6 is good if you want pure audio quality and not necessarily immersion.

[@77th_KiLL3r]

@@AntonsHardwareut the G6 doesn’t have a game/chat mix for PC. Imo a very important feature nobody talks about. The GC7 has it to.

[@SpookyRamen]

Ive owned the first gen for more or less 4 years now, the only difference with the epos release is a slightly better mic amp all else are the same. The virtual surround is pretty ok, It does positional audio pretty well, sadly the sound quality is mediocre. Tbh my old sound blaster z sound card sounded better. It captured all the minute details of the high end which the gsx 1000 cannot.

[@MikeleKonstantyFiedorowiczIV]

i dont see frequency graphic :(

[@AntonsHardware]

I didn't include RMAA as standard back then! :D (you are included in my Q&A video! release in about 3 weeks!)

[@MikeleKonstantyFiedorowiczIV]

@@AntonsHardware Ye i noticed that, It's good that you develop the formula of this channel