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Topic: PC audio - O2/ODAC - better headphone switch (Read 2731 times) previous topic - next topic
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PC audio - O2/ODAC - better headphone switch

You guys are great here. Way more knowledgeable than I am, and you've probably tried out many combinations at all price points.

Jump into the question first, with some background following.

Q: Any comments or suggestions for a better (sound/specs and looks) unit than my current $15 Manhattan switch? The O2+ODAC Combo for my PC, in addition to sounding great and looking great, is using the awful-looking Manhattan switch that kills me every time I look at it.

I became convinced to ditch my aging Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion system in my PC when I couldn't get it to work in a Win 8 test drive. After a fair amount of research, and is probably overkill for my purposes, I purchased the O2+ODAC Combo to use with my Sennheiser HD25-1 II headphones and Audioengine A2 powered speakers.

I knew going in to that purchase that there wasn't a built-in switch to toggle between speakers and headphones, but I bought the JDS Labs version and have been pleased with it.

To enable switching between speakers and headphones without having to constantly plug and unplug either, I'm using a well-regarded el-cheapo Manhattan 172851 Audio Speaker / Headset Switching Hub. It works decently enough to quickly switch between outputs, but I can't help thinking that this might well be a weak link in my setup that I use on my PC to listen to music or watching movies.

Frankly, I don't know anything about equipment in the recording industry, which is why I have a USB mic. Would some solution for running a podcast that gets me off a USB mic also fulfill my need in replacing the Manhattan switch? Every time I see something mentioned that sounds interesting, I go look it up to check the inputs and outputs,. Like, the Behringer UFO202 Audio Interface (actually not much better looking than the Manhattan!) or Behringer XENYX 1202 12-Input Mixer or a Scarlet 2i2 and next thing I know, I'm more confused than ever, lol.

Thanks for your consideration and time!

~Zombeezy

Hmm, looks like I didn't put it in the right section - didn't notice the "CD-R and Audio Hardware" before the "Audio Hardware" section I posted in