[VinegarBoy]

Congrats, the review is concise and pretty much spot on. I like conclusion first style as I generally read conclusions first.

No disagreement from my experience with the E5 except I believe the value to be greater than the design. The volume knob is most surely oversized and I believe the height of the unit should be smaller. With a smaller volume knob Creative could have made the housing a bit more portable by shortening said housing by ~25%.

Again, I like the style of your review and also look forward to seeing other ones in the future.

 

[VinegarBoy]

Maybe the app on your iPad just needs to be updated?

EDIT: Just confirmed this odd behavior. Also confirmed that it's all one app in the App Store. LucasCL?

First thing I did was delete and re-download the app from AppStore even though the versions I was using were identical.

That is what confuses me so much. Logic tells me the lines of code in the firmware update are calling operations that aren't generic. There must be some call that the iPad cannot process. Perhaps would be referencing the cellular function, I don't know if there's any other difference in the iPad and iPhone.

 

[thefitz]

Just pulled the trigger on this to use with my Android phone, and it works perfectly once the Creative plugin is installed. I'm very happy.
 
Does anybody know if this supports 192kHz from the phone directly? I can't use USB Audio Player Pro with this due to the plugin (which is fine by me), so I can't tell.
 
But one could argue that you can't tell if it's 192kHz anyway!

 

[Tobias89]

Congrats, the review is concise and pretty much spot on. I like conclusion first style as I generally read conclusions first.

No disagreement from my experience with the E5 except I believe the value to be greater than the design. The volume knob is most surely oversized and I believe the height of the unit should be smaller. With a smaller volume knob Creative could have made the housing a bit more portable by shortening said housing by ~25%.

Again, I like the style of your review and also look forward to seeing other ones in the future.

Thanks for your kind words. I do agree the value is much better than the design. The amount of features packed into it is definitely mind blowing.

I will try to update the review with more on the features when possible

 

[RojasTKD]

My review is finally up here: http://www.head-fi.org/products/sound-blaster-e5-24-bit-192khz-high-resolution-usb-dac-portable-headphone-amplifier/reviews/14551.

 
 Odd, you mention it dosen't work as a DAC with you Note 3. It works fine with both my Note 3 and Note 4. I'm using Micro USB to Micro USB, as I don't want the E5 to charge my phone and drain it's battery.
 
I use the E5 mainly with my computer though.

 

[dominik78]

Hey Guys,
 
Creative is having a $169 Sale on the E5. Which is what brings me here. The Sale is only for one more day.
 
I do most of my audio at the PC. Gaming, Movies, Music, Productivity all pretty much equally. I do care a bit about virtual surround for gaming purposes.
 
I'm about to bite the bullet on either the HD600 or H650 later today, but I only have a built in sound card, so would need something to drive these earphones.
 
I don't care that much about portability and am not sure how often I'd carry the E5 around, though it definitely is a nice option to have.
 
Do you think the E5 would be a good fit for me, or should I be looking at another internal or external soundcard from sound blaster or other manufacturers?
 
Usually I'd browse a bit more before asking, but I came across the E5 deal on the tail end of a 5-hour-down-the-rabbit-hole-research session that I think many of you can relate to. I'm not sure what I've done more of, answered questions I had, or come up with more.
 
Any input is appreciated!

 

[nmatheis]

If you don't care about portability or larger size and want the SBX features, I'd recommend holding out for Black Friday and see if you can't pick up one of Creative's desktop DAC/Amps. While I haven't heard them, I'd bet money that you'd like the listening experience better with desktop class gear.

If you do want portability and/or are budget limited, E5 is the best choice for DAC/Amp that gets you SBX features.

Just my two cents...

 

[thefitz]

After a few days with this unit, I'm quite pleased. It sounds great, especially with my IE800s. The fact that it works natively with my phone (which was having issues with my Fiio E18) and allows me to use my regular USB cable without any OTG connector makes me happy.

 

[RojasTKD]

  Hey Guys,
 
Creative is having a $169 Sale on the E5. Which is what brings me here. The Sale is only for one more day.
 
I do most of my audio at the PC. Gaming, Movies, Music, Productivity all pretty much equally. I do care a bit about virtual surround for gaming purposes.
 
I'm about to bite the bullet on either the HD600 or H650 later today, but I only have a built in sound card, so would need something to drive these earphones.
 
I don't care that much about portability and am not sure how often I'd carry the E5 around, though it definitely is a nice option to have.
 
Do you think the E5 would be a good fit for me, or should I be looking at another internal or external soundcard from sound blaster or other manufacturers?
 
Usually I'd browse a bit more before asking, but I came across the E5 deal on the tail end of a 5-hour-down-the-rabbit-hole-research session that I think many of you can relate to. I'm not sure what I've done more of, answered questions I had, or come up with more.
 
Any input is appreciated!

The E5 is good gear especially for all the features. If you don't need the portability or the mic and scout mode for gaming there are other solutions that might be better at driving those HD 600/650 (personally the HD 600 is on my want list). An O2+ODAC or a one of creatives desktop options would probably give you better overall audio quality.
 
I think my E5 is great and sounds really good and I love the added features, but my JDS Labs C5D, which is built to be close in sound to the O2+ODSC, sound it little bit cleaner. I only really notice if I AB then back to back, it's not enough to to make me want to move away from my E5 and all it's features. Also the E5 doesn't do surround sound, but with good headphones positional awareness should be good regardless.
 
If you have use for any of the E5 features, I'd go ahead and get the deal. It's almost as good as the Massdrop deal where I got my E5 (for about $9 less). It should do a good enough job driving the HD 600/650 and you can decide to get better DAC/AMP down the road.

 

[dominik78]

Thanks Guys,
I appreciate the good feedback. I'll spend the rest of the night researching other more desktop oriented soundcards that will be good for gaming and music and also drive the HD 6x0s, but like one of you mentioned, can always upgrade beyond the E5 later. Thanks!

 

[panzerfan]

I've gotten way better Bluetooth performance and less static after the firmware update. I don't know if it's just me, but the E5 has become much more responsive when I get to the control panel with my Samsung Note 4, and the buzzing noise that I get before has disappeared. 

 

[dominik78]

So I decided to go with the E5 after all for now!
 
 
Just FYI regarding the sale that's going on on the Creative Website.
 
The E5 is $169 (usually $200). But there's also a $10 coupon you can use for any purchase over $150.
 
That brings the pre-tax price of the E5 down to $159.
Final price if you are paying tax in California will be $174.39 + Free shipping
 
-----
TL;DNR:
E5 is currently $40 Off on the Creative website with coupon code + discount

 

[RojasTKD]

  So I decided to go with the E5 after all for now!
 
 
Just FYI regarding the sale that's going on on the Creative Website.
 
The E5 is $169 (usually $200). But there's also a $10 coupon you can use for any purchase over $150.
 
That brings the pre-tax price of the E5 down to $159.
Final price if you are paying tax in California will be $174.39 + Free shipping
 
-----
TL;DNR:
E5 is currently $40 Off on the Creative website with coupon code + discount

Congrats, Enjoy!
 
When you ready to upgrade you DAC/AMP  you''l have a nice portable option for on the go.
 
I really like the BT option so I can stick it on my pocket and use my phone like normal with no strings (or wires in the case) attached. I'm currently watching YouTube on my computer while listening to Spotify in the background via Bluetooth from my phone. If my phone where to ring I could choose to answer with my AKG K712s and the mic on the E5. It has come in more handy than I expected.

 

[panzerfan]

 
Congrats, Enjoy!
 
When you ready to upgrade you DAC/AMP  you''l have a nice portable option for on the go.
 
I really like the BT option so I can stick it on my pocket and use my phone like normal with no strings (or wires in the case) attached. I'm currently watching YouTube on my computer while listening to Spotify in the background via Bluetooth from my phone. If my phone where to ring I could choose to answer with my AKG K712s and the mic on the E5. It has come in more handy than I expected.

There is a small minus in that we have to pick up the phone and press answer in order to answer the call. E5 isn't E3, so it lacks a convenient call button to do that job.

 

[RojasTKD]

  There is a small minus in that we have to pick up the phone and press answer in order to answer the call. E5 isn't E3, so it lacks a convenient call button to do that job.

True, especially is using it as a portable. I do wish the E5 also had buttons for pause/play/ answer and forward and skip. That would of been fantastic.
 
 I mainly use it with my PC and my phone is usually on the desk charging, in that case it's not such a big deal. Still point well taken.
 
Oh, just hit me. With my Android watch I can use my watch to answer calls. I can leave it on the night stand charging and still answer. Yay, for Android Wear!