[stavros.m]

I use the sxfi amp for my 990 250ohms it works great sounds good i would get the x3

thank you

 

[illram]

Has anyone tried feeding the 3.5mm headphone output from the X-Fi dongle into a line in on a discrete amp? Either with an RCA splitter or a 3.5mm aux cable? I'm dying to try and dongle with my Koss estats or through a higher powered amp.

 

[Drog]

I just picked up the X3. Great unit and an unbelievable value at $120. The opening guitar in Mary Jane's Last Dance physically tickled my ears. I'm still sorting out SXFI as it seems to be a little different from my SXFI amp, but straight audio seems better so far.

 

[HieroX]

Hey guys! Creative just launched a new X3 firmware and SB command update.
Go check it out. I just did a little testing, it seems to have cleared the distortions significantly.

 

[Alexious]

Can anyone provide a recent or even current list of SX-Fi profiles? I'm sure it would help prospective customers a lot.

 

[halcyon]

Hey guys! Creative just launched a new X3 firmware and SB command update.
Go check it out. I just did a little testing, it seems to have cleared the distortions significantly.

Hi, is this "reduced" or "removed" distortions? Can you still hear them? thanks!

 

[halcyon]

Mine got real buggy after the last firmware upgrade.

Can you explain the bugs? What oddities did you experience?

Can you explain the bugs? What oddities did you experience?

 

[HieroX]

Can you explain the bugs? What oddities did you experience?

Can you explain the bugs? What oddities did you experience?

This was back in December, January, when I first noticed the issue.

Hey there, new user here. I have the same issues with the SXFi on the X3. It sounds inferior to the SXFi amp.

Creative support told me that both the X3 and SXFi should function similarly, but it's clearly not the case.

In my case, I get very bad distortions in the mids and lows, especially when it's a very busy part of the track. I didn't do much comparisons in terms of surround, but I don't think it's that much of a difference for me. 5.1 surround on BFV is bad on the X3, simply because all the explosions sound anemic and distorted. The SXFi amp did not suffer such issues.

I am on the latest drivers and firmware. (Firmware: 1.2.2000107.1510, Driver: 1.16.4.8) I even redid a new gen2 profile. While the distortions have cleared up some, it is still present in busy tracks. The SXFi amp does not suffer from this issue. For me, the distortions only appear when SXFi is enabled. When using SBX surround, there are no distortions.

Also, I did some comparisons between the X3 and SXFi amp when the SXFi feature is turned off. There are no distortions in either of them. So, the problem only lies in the way SXFi is implemented in the X3.

I have been communicating with Creative via email for quite a while now regarding this issue. In the latest response from Creative, they said that there was a difference in sound when checking Audio Enhancements, and unchecking it.

" Thank you for contacting Creative Labs.

We have forwarded your feedback to the relevant people.

We found that enabling and disabling "Enable audio enhancements" on Windows Sound settings gives a different output when Super X-Fi is enabled. "

This email was sent to me after the most recent firmware/driver/sound blaster update.

I have tried both checked and unchecked, if there were any difference in the output, I can't really hear it. However, the distortions are still very present in both settings.

I had also listed out the tracks that I used for testings, and here's the list:

- Detach from Interstellar OST

- The Trail from the Witcher OST

- Tenrai -Divinity I and II from Final Fantasy Advent Children OST

- Sara ni Tatakau Mono-Tachi from Final Fantasy Advent Children OST

To take note that these tracks are highlighted because they have very noticeable distortions. After the firmware update, this track - Molossus from Hans Zimmer's Batman Begins - have minimal distortions now.

When using the SXFi amp, there were no distortions at all.

All tracks used were .FLAC files, 24bit/48kHz-96kHz.

I was told repeatedly that the SXFi functions the same on both the amp and the X3. This is clearly not the case, and there are a number of users who experienced the same thing as me. You can also check out the dedicated SXFi thread on Headfi for those reports.



Also, after weeks of communicating with Creative on this issue, I offered to bring down the X3 to the service centre. I got this reply on 10th Feb 2020:

"Thank you for your reply.

If the issue is on the software and driver, there is nothing much we can help with on Creative Customer Care Center.

But we may be able to know more about the issue."

The distortions are only present when SXFi is turned on.
SBX, Direct Mode, or plain stereo are not affected by any distortions at all. Volume also doesn't affect the distortions, as they are still present whether soft or loud.
I have no technical way to describe the distortions, except that it feels like certain frequencies(mainly mids and lows) are not reaching the correct amplitude/loudness as needed. In comparison with the SXFi amp, the X3 fails in outputting the correct SXFi effect.

Orchestra music doesn't seem to be affected much, which makes sense since they tend to have less lows, even if the tracks are busy.

I think it's a firmware/driver issue, as the latest updates from Creative manages to reduce the distortions a little. However, it is still present enough to be not enjoyable.

 

[x7007]

Mine got real buggy after the last firmware upgrade.

What bugs did you notice? I just updated to 2.0.08

 

[illram]

If I remember correctly my profile wouldn't download in either Control Center or the Windows Store App, and then it would, but the dongle would magically turn off X-Fi, then I'd turn it back on, then it would all crash. And it would do this again and again. Eventually Control Center started working again but I gave up on the Windows Store App which just permanently seemed boned.

Also I don't know why they have two programs on Windows?

 

[x7007]

If I remember correctly my profile wouldn't download in either Control Center or the Windows Store App, and then it would, but the dongle would magically turn off X-Fi, then I'd turn it back on, then it would all crash. And it would do this again and again. Eventually Control Center started working again but I gave up on the Windows Store App which just permanently seemed boned.

Also I don't know why they have two programs on Windows?

Ha yes...... I have this annoying issue with profiles, Creative said they don't have this issue.

 

[jologskyblues]

I'm thinking of upgrading my sbz to the x3 but after reading some feedback on the product, I’m a bit hesitant.

Does sxfi still have that canned reverb effect or has that been fixed already with the latest firmware and driver updates to sound more natural?

Is the sbx mode in the x3 the same quality as the 5.1 sbx on the sbz or do they sound different?

 

[illram]

X-Fi sounds pretty good now but I don't know if the X3 and X-Fi dongle sound the same. I have the dongle.

It's virtualization is better than the X7 which also uses 5.1 SBX, but you should probably have a headphone on their list to ensure you're getting the most out of it. The list hasn't been updated in a while, sadly.

 

[halcyon]

I'm thinking of upgrading my sbz to the x3 but after reading some feedback on the product, I’m a bit hesitant.

Does sxfi still have that canned reverb effect or has that been fixed already with the latest firmware and driver updates to sound more natural?

Yes, canned reverb in the S-XFI mode and you can't turn it down/off.

 

[Casef]

The reverb has been noticeably lowered compared to how it used to be, IMO. Also, bear in mind that the whole thing wouldn't work without that, you can't simulate a speaker setup in a room without adding "reverb" to the sound. And also bear in mind that just like with any other virtual surround type of thing, you need some time to adapt to the sound - it will sound very "reverby" at first, but your brain will quickly adapt to it and it will start sounding very natural IMO. It really does sound like you are listening to speakers in a room.