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Topic: Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards (Read 5991 times) previous topic - next topic
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Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Quote
Creative will this month ship its latest Sound Blaster audio cards: the new-generation X-Fi range, based on technology the company believes will "completely replace the old hi-fi equipment in the home".

The line-up comprises a quartet of add-in cards: the X-Fi Elite Pro, the X-Fi Fatal1ty FPS, the X-Fi Platinum, and the X-Fi XtremeMusic.

All four are based on the X-Fi Xtreme Fidelity audio processor, which Creative introduced last May. The 51m-transistor chip provides 24 times as much processing power as the Audigy processor, Creative said. The system uses 24-bit quantisation running at 96kHz, and pushes the signal-to-noise ratio to between 109bB and 116dB. It also incorporates CMSS 3D, the latest version of Creative's sound 'spatialisation' process, which simulates surround sound audio on a pair of earphones or speakers. The latest version of Creative's EAX system, the 128-voice EAX Advanced HD 5.0, is built in too.

To enhance 'lesser' sound formats, X-Fi uses a 136dB "virtually transparent" sample-rate converter to "analyse and identify which parts of the audio stream have been restricted or damaged during the [conversion] to 16-bit and then the data compression stage to MP3 or WMA formats". The upshot, said Creative, are improved dynamics and enhanced low and high frequencies, making for "cleaner, richer sound".

"Sound Blaster X-Fi heralds the beginning of a new epoch in audio, where X-Fi enabled audio products will eventually and completely replace the old hi-fi equipment in the home," said Creative's ebullient chairman and CEO Sim Wong Hoo.

Yeah, right...  Wasn't this X-Fi technology old news? I am guessing this must be some newer generation BS, because the article is dated Aug. 9th.

Link to original article

Former HA Creative snake-oil threads: thread 1, thread 2, thread 3, thread 4.
The object of mankind lies in its highest individuals.
One must have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star.

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #1 –
Quote
To enhance 'lesser' sound formats, X-Fi uses a 136dB "virtually transparent" sample-rate converter to "analyse and identify which parts of the audio stream have been restricted or damaged during the [conversion] to 16-bit and then the data compression stage to MP3 or WMA formats". The upshot, said Creative, are improved dynamics and enhanced low and high frequencies, making for "cleaner, richer sound".

Hahaha. So is it "virtually transparent" or "cleaner, richer sound"? Surely the two are mutually exclusive.

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #2 –
I love marketing departments...
"You can fight without ever winning, but never win without a fight."  Neil Peart  'Resist'

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #3 –
Maybe they licensed the Burwen Bobcat?

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #4 –
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...the X-Fi Fatal1ty FPS...

oh dear - now finally there's a soundcard for 1337 h4x0r$. Even the name suggests improving your FPS. Now, i'm just waiting for the upgrade to magically improve my ping.
I am arrogant and I can afford it because I deliver.
 

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #5 –
Quote
Quote
...the X-Fi Fatal1ty FPS...

oh dear - now finally there's a soundcard for 1337 h4x0r$. Even the name suggests improving your FPS. Now, i'm just waiting for the upgrade to magically improve my ping.
[a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=318962"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]
There's a motherboard named after Fatal1ty as well. He's a Counter Strike player IIRC.

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #6 –
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Hahaha. So is it "virtually transparent" or "cleaner, richer sound"? Surely the two are mutually exclusive.


I love these Xi-Fi threads! they make me jump in delight. I was going to say the exact same thing "virtually transparent". 

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oh dear - now finally there's a soundcard for 1337 h4x0r$. Even the name suggests improving your FPS. Now, i'm just waiting for the upgrade to magically improve my ping.


don't even get me started 

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There's a motherboard named after Fatal1ty as well. He's a Counter Strike player IIRC


ohh hell, what will they come up with next  ? Can somebody please get their "grubby meathooks" on this things so we can test them out.
budding I.T professional

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #8 –
Oh, no: not another product that promises to polish turds into diamonds.

Their marketing statement sounds like it was penned by Ron Popeil or Chef Tony (two ubiquitous US informercial fixtures). Will anybody bite?

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #9 –
See the comparison table 

What about the next generation cards? Will they go beyond just "excellent"?
The object of mankind lies in its highest individuals.
One must have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star.

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #10 –
Quote
"- Advertised performance improvement = not worthless (if proven)
- LFE channel support = not worthless
- 24-bit DSP-driven headphone effects through CMSS 3d = not worthless
- 3-D soundfield (including vertical axis) thru CMSS 3d = not worthless
- cohesive ambient soundfield in games or music with speaks or headphones = not worthless
- 24-bit upsampling of game audio = not worthless
resampling of MP3's = not worthless"


  Basically they are using the card to push their new proprietary CMSS 3D API engine? proving to us yet once again Creative is only concerned about the gaming market. The only thing I found interesting was the fact that they are using 64MB of on-board RAM even with that though I don't know how beneficial it would be. Upsampling? need we say more? 

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"What are you getting at is the actual API used to position sounds. This of course is highly variable, and Creative holds all the cards currently."


If I were to respond I would say, right now they might, but a lot of developers who write computer games are also taking to using OpenAL

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What about the next generation cards? Will they go beyond just "excellent"?


Uber-Gold is the next step up in the "creative" ladder

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Their marketing statement sounds like it was penned by Ron Popeil or Chef Tony (two ubiquitous US informercial fixtures). Will anybody bite?


budding I.T professional

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #11 –
Why is it even legal to talk so much bollocks in order to sell a product?!

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #12 –
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Why is it even legal to talk so much bollocks in order to sell a product?![a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=320077"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


Creative is not even close to Monster Cable in the bollocks league.

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #13 –
<rant>
Does anybody here possess such a card? Tried to ABX the quality of the samplerate converters, to prove they really aren't transparent? I thought so.
The cheap jokes about the performance improvements are just as ignorant, in case someone cares about the facts can read here that dedicated sound hardware does help a lot, compared with AC97 or non-eax hardware: http://www.3dcenter.de/artikel/2005/08-04_a.php (german, but the diagrams should be self-explanatory).
I don't like the blabla of creative's marketing department. In fact, I think some of it is an insult to all intelligent human beings, especially the part where they claim to improve crappy mp3 and such. But prejudiced, predictable postings about how-it-will-so-not-rule are not helpful (although sometimes a source of delight, i must admit). We'd all be wiser by now if the above mentioned statements were falsified by means of technical reasoning. Once that happened, we can safely douse mockery and malice over the crackpots working at creative, but not before, as it could be embarrasing for us if some of their statements actually hold true. Just my 0.02 €...
</rant>

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #14 –
Quote
Does anybody here possess such a card? Tried to ABX the quality of the samplerate converters, to prove they really aren't transparent? I thought so.
The cheap jokes about the performance improvements are just as ignorant, in case someone cares about the facts can read here that dedicated sound hardware does help a lot, compared with AC97 or non-eax hardware: http://www.3dcenter.de/artikel/2005/08-04_a.php (german, but the diagrams should be self-explanatory).
I don't like the blabla of creative's marketing department. In fact, I think some of it is an insult to all intelligent human beings, especially the part where they claim to improve crappy mp3 and such. But prejudiced, predictable postings about how-it-will-so-not-rule are not helpful (although sometimes a source of delight, i must admit). We'd all be wiser by now if the above mentioned statements were falsified by means of technical reasoning. Once that happened, we can safely douse mockery and malice over the crackpots working at creative, but not before, as it could be embarrasing for us if some of their statements actually hold true. Just my 0.02 €...


I am going to have to read that.  If our statments are falsfied, by technical reasoning I will be the first to go quitely, but somehow I doubt that.  First we will need someone  who has "actually" bought the card to play around with it first and tell us their overall opinion, then they would need to be able to perform a test using the Rightmark Audio Anaylzer. .  We can be damn well sure it's not a card for an "audiophile" anyway just something to appease the niche gaming market seeing what we have learned.
budding I.T professional

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #15 –
My M-Audio Revolution 7.1 is getting old. The drivers haven't been updated for over a year, and the current revision of Envy24HT drivers even from another vendor happen to BSOD on init in Vista beta 1.

Even the entry level X-Fi cards are shaping up to be superior to my Revo, and Creative is (in)famous for regular driver updates. And thanks to a GTA:SA binge, I am once again interested in having *real* EAX support. Sensaura is dead, Qsound is inferior even to that. I want the real thing, and I want it in a product which also features acceptable music playback.

If the resampling is even equal to the Windows kernel mixer at the best quality setting, I'm OK with that. If it surpasses it by eliminating such bugs as source to target ratio being inaccurate enough that 22050Hz -> 192000Hz is audibly several notes lower than the original signal, and if it manages that without any clipping (passes the infamous udial test) then I'll be very happy.

Why yes, I'll be jumping on this train when the cards hit Best Buy, and I'll cast my opinions of the new product and the new drivers here. I don't buy the marketing bullshit, but I do expect that it will be a marked improvement over the EMU10kx series. It was high time they retired it in favor of something a little more flexible.

I will be sorely pissed if this shit still has annoying DirectSound3D/EAX glitches, but I was kind of thinking those were just because I was trying to squeeze extra mileage out of my old Live card and that the "Unified Driver Architecture" or whatever they call it is just not designed to work as well with 10k1 as it is with 10k2.

It can't be worse than what I already have...

Creative unveils Sound Blaster X-Fi boards

Reply #16 –
I'll probably be upgrading to an X-Fi card. Even it does upsample stuff, it can't sound any worse right? I don't buy all the marketing crap, but meh, I just want a good sounding card with EAX.
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