ASUS announces Xonar D1 7.1 PCI audio card

ASUS recently announced it will soon start shipping its Xonar D1 7.1 audio card for PCs, responding to its customers' requests to offer a higher-performance PCI version of its PCI Express and 5.1-channel Xonar HD card. The new card combines Dolby Home Theater and DirectSound HW support for multimedia and gaming applications, respectively. The card also promises to deliver nearly distortion-free sound, thanks to an advanced Digital-to-Analog Converter, helping it to achieve a 116dB signal-to-noise ratio.

Based on ASUS' AV100 high-definition sound processor capable of delivering sampling rates of up to 192KHz at 24 bits, the card was reportedly designed with gamers in mind. ASUS' own DS3D GX 2.0 engine allows EAX HD 5.0 DirectSound HW effects in Windows XP and Vista games. It also supports MMOG Environment Audio Extension (EAX) online chat out of the box. The company also gave users the option of using its VocalFX voice processing software that allows them to make their voice sound like in-game characters or otherwise disguise it via the Magic Voice option.

Users will be able to connect their home theater systems to the Xonar D1 via their VGA cards' HDMI and optical connections. They can then play video games in Dolby Digital sound from up to 7.1 speaker systems thanks to the Dolby Digital Live support. Dolby Pro Logic IIx can create 7.1-channel sound from stereo or 5.1 sources. Meantime, Dolby Headphone simulates a surround sound experience from any connected headphones or headset.

ASUS did not announce pricing or a release date for the new product.