[black9white]

Hey everyone, 
 
I'm contemplating on buying a creative x7 for home use, mainly going to be used for gaming, powering the passive speakers (16ohms), and a bit of music, so in short an AIO.
 
Has anyone tried pairing it with the LCD 2, does it pair nicely with it? 
 
This is going to be a blind buy hence need to research a bit..

 

[raband]

Just got my LCD2's yesterday and have them hooked up straight to the X7 - no complaints at all.
 
That said - I haven't tried the LCD2's on any of the other amps yet so don't have a comparison.
 
The great thing about the X7 is the passthrough - if I ever find the X7 amp lacking with any of the headphones the SBX etc can be passed straight through to another amp or amp/dac combo (I run the HD800's this way)
 
Am almost ready to change out the OpAmps in the X7 to see if the gains are as good as mentioned too.
 
Overall I find the X7 an awesome bit of kit - only "annoyance" is the need to use the app to change any settings rather than onboard or a remote - with that though, I'm usually at the PC/desk where the unit is so it's only a slight one.

 

[Sonic Defender]

   
 
 
Thanks, surgery is basically a redo of the fusion I had last year that didn't take. 3 months in a back brace and limited ability to walk much. Lots of sitting around, listening to music, movies, and gaming. I'm not complaining, it isn't as bad as it seems. I am just better prepared for it this time, lol. 

Good luck, I live with a pretty bad herniated disc and some significant issues in the sacrum. Luckily in my case I have been able to after 20 plus years of pretty bad issues found some very good stretches that work wonders as much of my problem is from very tight hip-flexors and ham strings. I am still able to lift weights, but I can't really run or twist a great deal at the waist without extreme caution. My grandmother had fusion done, but back when it was pretty new and rather than encourage her to do physiotherapy the doctors told her to do almost nothing and as a result she of course had poor quality of life from the procedure. You I'm sure won't suffer that fate so good luck and get moving as soon as you can mate. 

 

[mbyrnes]

Just got my LCD2's yesterday and have them hooked up straight to the X7 - no complaints at all.

That said - I haven't tried the LCD2's on any of the other amps yet so don't have a comparison.

The great thing about the X7 is the passthrough - if I ever find the X7 amp lacking with any of the headphones the SBX etc can be passed straight through to another amp or amp/dac combo (I run the HD800's this way)

Am almost ready to change out the OpAmps in the X7 to see if the gains are as good as mentioned too.

Overall I find the X7 an awesome bit of kit - only "annoyance" is the need to use the app to change any settings rather than onboard or a remote - with that though, I'm usually at the PC/desk where the unit is so it's only a slight one.

The X7 amp is pretty darn good. Especially with the op amp swap. Should be able to drive most headphones well. Maybe TOTL headphones would benefit from a better amp, but most mid-fi should be fine. Very revealing headphones definitely benefit from the best power. X7 is ready whenever you need that, and as a DAC alone, it's very good still.

 

[raband]

  Thanks, surgery is basically a redo of the fusion I had last year that didn't take. 3 months in a back brace and limited ability to walk much. Lots of sitting around, listening to music, movies, and gaming. I'm not complaining, it isn't as bad as it seems. I am just better prepared for it this time, lol. 

 
I was thinking the same just before I got my back surgery - had to spend the 1st month lying flat - I thought it'd be the perfect chance to get into Diablo 3 (released the night before my surgery).
 
Took me the best part of that month to kick the effects of the anesthetic - was only good for an hour or so before I'd need another snooze lol.

 

[Digitalis]

  Hey everyone, 
 
I'm contemplating on buying a creative x7 for home use, mainly going to be used for gaming, powering the passive speakers (16ohms), and a bit of music, so in short an AIO.
 
Has anyone tried pairing it with the LCD 2, does it pair nicely with it? 
 
This is going to be a blind buy hence need to research a bit..

 
16 ohms? Your speakers will have to be pretty sensitive to get decent volume out of the X7. Distortion becomes problematic with Class D amps at high volume. Looking at the specs on paper, the LCD 2 should be fine on the X7.
 

   
 A Mimby vs X7 battle will happen

 
Be careful, holy wars have been started over smaller things. Which headphones are you planning on using? wouldn't it be better to use speakers for such a comparison?

 

[shuto77]

  Hey everyone, 
 
I'm contemplating on buying a creative x7 for home use, mainly going to be used for gaming, powering the passive speakers (16ohms), and a bit of music, so in short an AIO.
 
Has anyone tried pairing it with the LCD 2, does it pair nicely with it? 
 
This is going to be a blind buy hence need to research a bit..

 
What are your speakers' sensitivity? I agree - the X7 will definitely struggle to drive them with the stock power supply. Did you get the Limited Edition? If not, you should consider the aftermarket power supply, which gives the speaker am significantly more juice. That *may* get it done. Otherwise, you can pick up a decent, cheap stereo receiver for about $150 on eBay.

 

[mbyrnes]

   
16 ohms? Your speakers will have to be pretty sensitive to get decent volume out of the X7. Distortion becomes problematic with Class D amps at high volume. Looking at the specs on paper, the LCD 2 should be fine on the X7.
 
 
Be careful, holy wars have been started over smaller things. Which headphones are you planning on using? wouldn't it be better to use speakers for such a comparison?

 
I'll use my Hifiman Edition X V2, Fostex TH-X00 Ebony, and modded Monoprice M1060 for much of the comparison. Both DACs will be running into my Linear Tube Audio MicroZOTL2 with identical feeds and flipping the input switch will instantly change the DAC being used. No changing of cables, headphones, or other things that delay a comparison. Every second counts and I am able to do an instant switch, which many cannot do. I could easily listen through my Vienna Acoustics Mozart Grands speakers, as the MicroZOTL2 has a line out that runs into my AVR. I'll be doing listening all possible ways, basically how I listen to music now. 
 
This isn't going to be a bash one and praise the other comparison. With just casual listening to both, they both sound amazing. I am more interested in helping potential X7 owners who are torn between the X7 or Mimby as their next DAC. I'll be 100% honest, as I have nothing in the game and care less who wins. I am sure plenty of X7 owners are curious about the differences and if the $250 for a Mimby is justified. I was curious and that is why I bought the Mimby. I'm also lucky where $250 isn't going to kill me at all, and I REALLY wanted to hear an R2R DAC. Hopefully it helps a few people decide on such a dilemma. My opinion is far from "end game". We all hear differently and I am 39. So my hearing may not be as good as an 18 year. My hearing is actually still very good, able to hear clearly above 17KHz, but 18KHz I cannot. IMO, one review of this is better than none, and I will be able to do this blind. I am going to have someone plug in the RCA cables into the MZ2, so I won't know which DAC is input 1 or 2. Once I am done playing around, I'll look and see which is which. It'll be fun for me, and if anyone is in the Philly area, maybe we can arrange for you to stop by and compare for yourself. 

 

[ElectronicTonic]

Does anyone else have issues with the mic input on X7 having a high noise floor, hiss? Is there anyway around this, besides the noise reduction feature? It makes my voice sound like I'm in a cardboard box, but it does eliminate the noise issues.

 

[kellte2]

Does anyone else have issues with the mic input on X7 having a high noise floor, hiss? Is there anyway around this, besides the noise reduction feature? It makes my voice sound like I'm in a cardboard box, but it does eliminate the noise issues.

The mic in, without voice effects like what you discuss, is really poor quality. Shocking, actually.

 

[ElectronicTonic]

The mic in, without voice effects like what you discuss, is really poor quality. Shocking, actually.

Yeah, it's a bummer, everything else is great.

 

[kellte2]

Yeah, it's a bummer, everything else is great.

The effects at some latency. But not bad.

 

[Digitalis]

Does anyone else have issues with the mic input on X7 having a high noise floor, hiss? Is there anyway around this, besides the noise reduction feature? It makes my voice sound like I'm in a cardboard box, but it does eliminate the noise issues.

Some mics have inherently high noise floors - the first iteration of the Rode smartlav* springs to mind. For the X7 i'd suggest turning off autoboost and keep the Mic volume to modest levels. Also try moving closer to the mic if possible.
 
 
*not the smartlav+ version, which has an upgraded mic capsule which improves response and lowers noise.

 

[ElectronicTonic]

Some mics have inherently high noise floors - the first iteration of the Rode smartlav* springs to mind. For the X7 i'd suggest turning off autoboost and keep the Mic volume to modest levels. Also try moving closer to the mic if possible.



*not the smartlav+ version, which has an upgraded mic capsule which improves response and lowers noise.

It's definitely not the mics, I've tested them on multiple devices. Thanks for the suggestions though.

 

[Digitalis]

The right speaker channel on my X7 has recently started to produce a crackling sound every now and then - every time I switch the X7 on there is a slight, but audible click through both speakers.  I have been playing Dishonoured 2 when I noticed the right channel crackle - my main PC is connected through optical to the X7 - so this reduces the chances of it being a device driver issue considerably. I just switched it off, unplugged everything and made sure all the Burson V5i's were pushed in all the way. Seems to be fine now.