[maarek99]

Quote:

I don't want to have to hassle with a control panel 100 times a day as i switch between activities.

Hah. I have the A2 + 0404 too and it is a bigger hassle to always switch between 44khz for music and 48 for gaming.

 

[skiguy411]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GotNoRice I think my EMU 0404 + Audidy2 ZS combo is pretty solid. I'd like to know how the X-Fi and the 0404 compare, sound quality wise. The drivers look pretty lame though, and the whole thing about it being "3 soundcards in one" and having to switch between modes just seems dumb. I don't want to have to hassle with a control panel 100 times a day as i switch between activities.

I was under the impression that you can set it up so that it will automagically switch modes based on the app you are running?

 

[lini]

Quote:

Originally Posted by YW_Slayer Where's our man from Hannover? The NDA must have ended by now. Impressions!!

For TH it's already lifted, yes. Ours ends on Sunday, 'cause on Monday the new issue will be available for the public.

Greetings from Hannover!

Manfred / lini

 

[]|[ GorE]

Sir Lini,
You MUST give us your review on the card on Monday !

 

[lini]

Gore: Well, you can get my summary already now: Measurement results were fine; CMSS-3D for headphones works nicely - I like it better than Dolby Headphone; 24Bit-Crystalizer is quite funny, but nothing I'd really miss; cpu hit is already low on the non-X-RAM-equipped versions and very low with the X-RAM-cards; full installation takes a while and is quite cluttered as usual, but it's not that bad - and usability is quite good; sonically it seems a step up from Audigy 2 (ZS), but the analogue output stage could still be better; altogether most recommended to gamers who want their soundcard to be quite good for music listening purposes as well; for that clientel, X-Fi cards - especially with X-RAM - now seem to be a better choice than the various ENVY24(HT) incarnations; EAX 5 shows quite a bit of potential as used in Battlefield 2; features: lots - and quite a few might actually be useful for some applications; for example I'd probably use that svm thingy (= night listening mode) for movie playback over loudspeaker, when it gets late...

What sucks: An X-RAM-card without any additional module is really missing in the current line-up. Scrooge-alert: The XtremeMusic supports optical and electrical s/p-dif i/o - however, you'll only get an electrical s/p-dif out, if you don't buy the optional Digital-I/O-Module (~ 30 Euro over here) as well. I'm not really fond of that FlexiJack concept (shared sigital i/o, mic-in/line-in), anyway - while upgradability with the external module might be desirable for some, I think a model like the XtremeMusic should rather feature more standard ports (like 4x stereo mini jacks for the 7.1-out), than wasting a lot of space for that module connector... Oversized: That external module of the Elite Pro is really a bit too large for what's inside, if you ask me. Headphone-out is somewhat on the weak side as well. Cumbersome: I really hate those 4-pole 1/8" (3.5 mm) mini jacks.

Coming up sometime or later: Creative is already working on a Linux driver - though that could be a rather basic one. And there might be an SDK sooner or later, too. And yes, there also will be some EMU incarnations sooner or later as well...

Well, that's about it...

Greetings from Hannover!

Manfred / lini

 

[]|[ GorE]

Does one get to adjust CMSS 3d for headphones.All of us have different ear shapes and sizes........

 

[Edwood]

Quote:

Originally Posted by korben_dallas Blown away? By price only. The ...how it compares to the E-Mu offerings. -Ed

 

[lini]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ]|[ GorE Does one get to adjust CMSS 3d for headphones.All of us have different ear shapes and sizes........

There's a front <-> surround slider that for me influences both the intensity of the externalisation effect as well as positioning. So it's not really a lot to adjust, but it still seems to work well for a wide range of listeners and for quite a lot of different source material.

Greetings from Hannover!

Manfred / lini

 

[korben_dallas]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edwood This is what makes up part of the other 3/4 of "features." Anyone want to take a gander at how large the drivers will be for the X-Fi? Will be interesting to hear what true audiophiles think of the X-Fi and how it compares to the E-Mu offerings. -Ed

..and this:

Routeable inputs & outputs.

Yeah, I expect the drivers to be Object Oriented Bloat Model.

 

[GotNoRice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edwood This is what makes up part of the other 3/4 of "features." Anyone want to take a gander at how large the drivers will be for the X-Fi? Will be interesting to hear what true audiophiles think of the X-Fi and how it compares to the E-Mu offerings. -Ed

FYI, Tomshardware has a anti-hotlinking system in place. For most people here, all we can see is a little pic of the tomshardware logo in your post.

 

[MisterX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GotNoRice For most people here, all we can see is a little pic of the tomshardware logo in your post.

Here ya go then.

Quote:

Has anyone heard anything about when this line will actually be released?

Check your local Best Buy store.

 

[Stangs55]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MisterX Check your local Best Buy store.

mkayyyy...I did....they looked at me crosseyed....now what?

 

[MisterX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stangs55 mkayyyy...I did....they looked at me crosseyed....now what?

Odd cause a lot of stores are selling them now.
Maybe they are gonna make you wait till the "official release" (Monday)?

 

[TempestX]

Got the XtremeMusic.
Better Than Chaintech AV-710
Better Than my Audigy 2 and 2ZS

Test will be against my M-Audio Rev 5.1. Will test without 3DCMSS and without Crystalizer. May be a few days or over this weekend to give my impressions. I am actually amazed. Makes me wonder what the new EMU products will sound like. ; )

 

[Jodiuh]

Haah, this is great TempestX, you've got a revo 5.1 too? Are you diggin' the positional fun in BF2 courtesy of the new x-toy?

I actually left the crystal on for awhile, but cmss3d got to go

The driver gui's nice n pretty too. I found the 3 modes to work out alright. Not as big a deal as I thought with a nifty benefit. It saves settings for the various modes. This makes it easy to switch on/off certain features.

Head to head with the revo 5.1...not quite ready to go single sound card...yet.