SupremeFX CODECs S1220 and S1220A; what's the difference

[isaacc]

Of the Z270 mobo that have SupremeFX, some are specified as using the S1220A CODEC and others the S1220. What's the difference between the two in terms of features? I've been all over the Internet and can't find any information about it. I wish ASUS had a dedicated SupremeFX page that lays out all the features and specifications of the various SupremeFX packages and CODECs. Thanks.

[Raja]

The 1220A lacks i2S output. The S1220 has i2S, and the ROG boards that feature this use the ESS Sabre DAC and headphone buffer to drive front panel audio output.

[isaacc]

Could that be a typo for the ROG Maximus IX Apex. It is described as both using the S1220A codec as well as having the Sabre DAC (ES9023P). Should it state S1220 codec instead? Otherwise, I'm confused. Thanks.

[MeTaL_SnAkE]

Raja@ASUS wrote:
The 1220A lacks i2S output. The S1220 has i2S, and the ROG boards that feature this use the ESS Sabre DAC and headphone buffer to drive front panel audio output.

My english is a little bad sometimes so i'm not sure if I understand correctly.. That means that the front audio panel won't use some of the benefits like the 'headphone buffer' in the front panel for the Apex?

[ikrananka]

Raja@ASUS wrote:
The 1220A lacks i2S output. The S1220 has i2S, and the ROG boards that feature this use the ESS Sabre DAC and headphone buffer to drive front panel audio output.

I had exactly the same question, and also agree with the OP that Asus really need a webpage that provides far more details of the various flavours of SupremeFX to help buyers in their decision making process.

Now, you state that the S1220 has i2S - does this improve the audio quality through speakers connected to the back panel connnectors?

Does the ESS Sabre DAC and the headphone buffer ONLY benefit the front panel connectors?

[Raja]

ikrananka wrote:
I had exactly the same question, and also agree with the OP that Asus really need a webpage that provides far more details of the various flavours of SupremeFX to help buyers in their decision making process.

Now, you state that the S1220 has i2S - does this improve the audio quality through speakers connected to the back panel connnectors?

i2S is a method of transferring digital data to a DAC. It has nothing to do with the analog domain as your post implies. To be more accurate, the ESS DAC is not connected to the rear panel outputs, so it does not supply the rear analog outputs.

ikrananka wrote:

Does the ESS Sabre DAC and the headphone buffer ONLY benefit the front panel connectors?

Yes.

[ikrananka]

Raja@ASUS wrote:
i2S is a method of transferring digital data to a DAC. It has nothing to do with the analog domain as your post implies. To be more accurate, the ESS DAC is not connected to the rear panel outputs, so it does not supply the rear analog outputs.



Yes.

Thanks for the clarification. So, does that mean there is no difference in analog audio quality output to speakers (rear panel) between the S1220A and S1220?

[Jaqey]

Raja@ASUS wrote:
the ESS DAC is not connected to the rear panel outputs, so it does not supply the rear analog outputs.

I found contradicting information @ https://unlocked.newegg.com/article/hands-asus-z270-motherboards

"A new change for ASUS is the inclusion of the DAC and amp on the back of the motherboard. Previously, the fancy audio equipment only worked on the front audio header. So if you plugged your high ohm audiophile headphones into the back, you’d have a bad time.Now, the killer ESS Sabre DAC (and amp) powers both the front and back jacks."

So is the news article correct?

Also, the Strix Z270 series have dual op-amps for headphones, but the more premium ROG Maximus IX series lack this.
Is this because only ROG has the switching mosfets and therefore can use the same op-amp for both rear & front outputs while Strix needs a dedicated op-amp for both front & rear? Otherwise it would seem the Strix series has more powerful headphone output than ROG.

Thank you.

[Raja]

Jaqey wrote:
I found contradicting information @ https://unlocked.newegg.com/article/hands-asus-z270-motherboards

"A new change for ASUS is the inclusion of the DAC and amp on the back of the motherboard. Previously, the fancy audio equipment only worked on the front audio header. So if you plugged your high ohm audiophile headphones into the back, you’d have a bad time.Now, the killer ESS Sabre DAC (and amp) powers both the front and back jacks."

So is the news article correct?

That article is incorrect. Boards that feature the ESS DAC do not reroute the DAC's audio outputs to the rear I/O. The only thing that's dynamic here is the impedance sensing, and I think that's what confused them.

Jaqey wrote:

Also, the Strix Z270 series have dual op-amps for headphones, but the more premium ROG Maximus IX series lack this.
Is this because only ROG has the switching mosfets and therefore can use the same op-amp for both rear & front outputs while Strix needs a dedicated op-amp for both front & rear? Otherwise it would seem the Strix series has more powerful headphone output than ROG.

Thank you.

The Strix boards use the codec's built-in headphone output, which then goes through a voltage gain stage (because it needs voltage gain) and then a buffer stage. In contrast, the Maximus boards bypass the codec's analog output's entirely, utilizing i2S to send the digital stream to the ESS DAC, which is then buffered by a RC4580. The ES9023 already outputs 2V, so it doesn't need the voltage gain stage, and it's analog output is arguably 'better' than the codec's native analog output.

Hope this clears things up...

-Raja

[Jaqey]

Raja@ASUS wrote:
The ES9023 already outputs 2V, so it doesn't need the voltage gain stage, and it's analog output is arguably 'better' than the codec's native analog output.

Hope this clears things up...

-Raja

Thank you for the detailed info!

However ROG front jack (ES9023) has 112 dB SNR while the rear jack (S1220) has 120dB & gold connectors.

Is front jack still the better option to connect headphones?