The good thing is that the analog inputs is decent(not extremely fantastic) so those hoping for a cheap way of converting their vinyls to digital copies have a solution there.
#Sound blaster x fi hd review driver
The headphone output clips when using Isone with my previous ATH-M50s, indicating that even 32ohm dynamic driver headphones bring it uncomfortably close to clipping. Now with the ODAC though, it is a pretty outdated component and I can't really recommend it to anyone for playback only. With my TF10, the X-fi HD is muddy yet harsh at the same time. Overall, I find that despite the release of new DACs like the E10, I find the X-fi HD quite competitive for the price as a DAC only device, since the E10 only barely makes it pass CD quality in 24 bit mode whereas the X-fi HD is fully 16 bit capable(-94db) and is capable of 18bit operation which is a lot of headroom for adding DSPs.
#Sound blaster x fi hd review drivers
Its optical inputs and outputs require external drivers which is a big minus when I want to use this with my cd player for instance, I will need to have a computer running to accept optical in. It is stiff with no notches and of course no indicators. The volume control is a rotary control of some sort with the worst feel positive. It is on kind loan from a member and it retails for USD 100 from Amazon with Prime shipping. Now on to its drivers, Creative does have its bloatware but has so far caused no particular issues with playback for me, I'm using Jriver Media Center's Wasapi Event style for all my music playback. This is a review and measurements of the SoundBlaster X-FI HD DAC/ADC and headphone amplifier. But for videos, I find that it is of little issue as audio in videos I watch is typically 48khz which is within the sweet spot for the X-fi HD Not resampling increases distortion quite a lot. I myself resample all my sources to 24/96 so it isn't too bad. The headphone output clips when using Isone with my previous ATH-M50s, indicating that even 32ohm dynamic driver headphones bring it uncomfortably close to clipping.Īnother issue that users experienced is the lack of 44.1khz input which is utterly ridiculous and a huge disadvantage compared to the competition. With my TF10, the X-fi HD is muddy yet harsh at the same time. Despite using a JRC4556, it fails with balanced armatures but fairs fairly well with regular headphones but is less capable than a E7 that I tried once. However, with headphones, it does a terrible job, I think it is a problem with output impedance like many before me has mentioned. Overall it is a pretty good dac that has good technical performance as expected of a DAC designed with proper tools. Still, its a pretty clean sounding dac, and less grainy than both the E7 and E10(I borrowed them). The creative X-fi back last year, was one of the best DACs out there with very good value for its performance, conducting some tests with RMAA, I found that it has good 18 bit performance and true 16 bit performance that was pretty much unmatched by any DACs at that price back then (there is now the ODAC). Decided to write this review to hopefully answer any queries anyone may have.