External USB soundcard vs amp?

[usernamed]

Hello!

Can anyone tell me exactly what is the reason for using a separate USB sound card with a laptop like i have? For example i use quality stereo headphones, so why would i use an external soundcard other than the onboard one? Some sound effects that are specific to the product, like EAX and Dolby license for Creative products?

I use X-Fi Surround 5.1 Pro, but i really can't notice the difference compared to the onboard one while listening to stuff. Maybe the volume goes higher with this separate card. Do these USB soundcards feature AMP chip? Or are they basically only DAC?

So for example if i wanna get the maximum out of my 80 or 250 ohm headphones, would i be better of with a separate AMP, not with some USB soundcard?

 

[Lutfij]

The external sound card you're asking of doesn't have any OP AMP's in fact it's considered an overpriced piece of hardware. All the enhancements you hear of are software based.

Even DAC's have an OP AMP and an elaborate circuitry. There are external sound cards available that have an AMP built in like the nuforce uDAC3.

We are yet to learn of your laptop's make and model while also wondering what sort of headphones/audio equipment you're dealing with to not notice any difference from your soundcard change.