# X-Fi Support Syndicate & Owner's Clubhouse



## imperialreign (Sep 25, 2007)

*X-Fi Support Syndicate & Owner's Clubhouse*

This is an owner's club and support thread for owners of Creative's line of X-Fi desktop and notebook audio cards.  This thread is intended for people to be able to try and resolve issues with any hardware (and possible software) problems they might be encountering with their X-Fi products, and general discussion regarding the X-Fi lineup of audio cards and 3rd party audio cards making use of the X-Fi audio processors.

Please keep in mind that I am in no way trying to discourage anyone from buying a Creative X-Fi product!!!  These truly are amazing sound cards, and you would honestly have to hear the difference to believe it.  Plus, they are fairly priced, and readily available at any hardware outlet.  Although it may seem that there are a lot of problems with these cards, the vast majority of users don't ever have any issues at all.  There are just various quirks that one may possibly encounter, and I just wanted to try and bring as many issues and resolutions into one spot as possible because support information on these cards can be scarce.

If you wish to join, just say so - I'll probably make up an ongoing member list.
To join up, you must currently own (or have owned) a Creative X-Fi desktop or notebook audio card.  Please state your X-Fi model or have it listed in you system specs when you ask for admittance.

I've also made a fairly simple signature that you're more than willing to use, if you'd like.  I might make a couple more later, I'm not all that sure, yet.














PLEASE!!  I'd like for this support thread to be fairly straightforward and easily accessible to not only TPU members, but for the general users just browsing the TPU forums.  There are already way too many X-Fi related threads scattered across the internet that are stock full of tripe from either: a) the same question being asked over and over again, b) disgruntled users wanting to pitch a fit and complain about their product and lack of support, and c) thread-hijacks by users wanting to bash on either Creative or X-Fi owners . . . So - *NO CRAP!!*  If you want to go bashing X-Fi owners, Creative's tech support (as difficult as they are to deal with), or just to whine and complain about your hardware with no real purpose or a genuine intent to find an answer - go register at another message board!  It's difficult enough to find answers resolving hardware complaints without having to shovel through a sea of tripe.

That being said, I will try to keep up a list of common and uncommon problems and their resolutions, along with posting up rare or odd problems and possible work arounds.  Please, keep in mind that these audio cards are constantly evolving, and due to various differences between the audio cards, and individual user hardware and system configurations, any solution I may present to a certain issue *may not* fix your problem.  I cannot give 100% guarantees with hardware resolutions concerning these audio cards, all I can do is present information that I and others have had success with.  My intent is to provide a 'knowledge base' for help, in a manner where others can also be willing to help resolve issues if they can.  I will update the list of resolutions as I come across them, too . . . I'm willing to try and help with software issues regarding Creative's software, but these issues can be even harder to fix for numerous reasons, and it is usually best to contact Creative's Technical Support regarding their software.

*I, nor any other member of this forum, shall be held liable for any damage done to, or any loss of warranty to, any of your hardware, X-Fi or otherwise, by following any posted solutions or advice in this thread!!!  If you don't feel comfortable using any resolution or workaround to a problem you encounter, please seek the aide of a professional!*

Also, these lists are far from complete, and I will add to them as I have time, and as I run across other situations/solutions that aren't just a one time deal.  If anyone would like to add something to the lists, or if you see something that needs to be corrected, please let me know (if you are offering a correction for the X-Fi audio card hardware, could you please provide a link to a reputable source for the information you provide).

Foremost, to any aide that I can offer, there are a couple of major points that need to be emphisized:
1.  Make sure your motherboard's on-board audio is turned off, and the hardware drivers are removed (if possible)!!
2.  Make sure your Creative hardware drivers are as up to date as possible!  If for some reason you can't use any updated drivers provided by Creative, just explain what the problem is - it's usually a hardware problem.
3.  Make sure your hardware drivers for the rest of your system are as up to date as possible!  General hardware conflicts can arise with out of date drivers!

The most common, re-occuring hardware complaints with the X-Fi's are usually resolved by one of the aforementioned items!!


*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

*Update to thread:* 03-11-09
`added an image for the Auzentech X-Fi Home theater 7.1

*Update to thread:* 07-18-08
`added the Titanium series to the product list
`added Auzentech cards to the product list
`added some info on the new CA20K2 APU

*Update to thread:* 05-12-08
`edited some used terminology
`added to the "Modding" section; cooling, front panel connectivity, PCB component upgrading, EMI/RFI shielding

*Update to thread:* 04-02-08
`added information describing the ring architecture
`added diagram for ring architecture provided by btarunr
`resized this update section so that it doesn't get out of hand!
`reminded myself that I need to make some more updates this coming weekend!

*Update to thread:* 30-01-08
`added new siggie
`concluded to add support for the Auzentech X-Fi Prelude 7.1 - I will add a section for that card soon

*Update to thread:* 25-01-08
`added description of ALcehmy driver operation by *btarunr* 
`added mention of 3rd party software for use with X-Fi remote by *tigger69*
`anotated a possible issue with current beta drivers and *UT3* by *Batou1986*

*Update to thread:* 18-11-07
`added audio quality section

*Update to thread:* 10-11-07
`added update section
`added model section and model pics
`added section dividers
`adjusted section headlines

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*



The most current hardware drivers can be found at Creative's website - note that the Xtreme Audio cards use entirelly different driver packs than the rest of the X-Fi family.  (Vista32 & Vista64 current version is *2.18.0008*; XP32 & XP64 current version is *2.18.0008*; XP MCE current version is *possibly* *2.18.0008* - see #13 below for further details concerning the update drivers and MCE):

http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/


==================================================================

*Up-to-date driver version numbers:*


*Windows XP / Vista drivers*
current XP version is: *2.18.0008*
*last driver update: _December 17, 2008_
current Vista version is: _*2.18.0008*_
*last driver update: _December 17, 2008_


*Windows XP /Vista drivers* for the *X-Fi Titanium series* -
current XP version is *2.18.008*
current Vista version is *2.18.008*


*Linux 32bit/64bit drivers*
current linux driver version is: _*1.00*_
*last driver update: _November 6, 2008_


*Linux 32bit/64bit drivers* for the *X-Fi Titanium series*
current linux driver version is: _*1.00*_
*last driver update: _November 6, 2008_


*X-Fi Xtreme Audio* current driver number for both WIN XP and Vista: *1.3.02*
*last driver update:  _December 12, 2008_

================================================================


If your concern is related to sound playback with a game, please make sure you have the most current version of DirectX installed, and the most current version of OpenAL:

*DirectX version 9c* - https://www.microsoft.com/downloads...38-db71-4c1b-bc6a-9b6652cd92a3&displaylang=en
*OpenAL 1.1 (version 2.0.3)* - http://developer.creative.com/articles/article.asp?cat=1&sbcat=31&top=38&aid=46



*Attention Vista users:*  The X-Fi drivers for Windows Vista are still going through a lot of changes.  New drivers are released for the Vista platform fairly regularly, so please try to keep up to date.  Support for the Vista platform is continuing to improve, but I have no ability to aide in Vista related problems as I currently have no experience with this platform.  Again, make sure your drivers are current.  I will try to also include Vista related fixes here also.  Hardware acceleration in Vista is disabled by the OS, although there are developmental drivers that attempt to work around this issue (these are constantly being updated, also):

*ALchemy software application (current version is 1.10.01) * - http://www.soundblaster.com/alchemy/


a very concise, to-the-point explanation of how the ALchemy software works around the hurdle of the OS Kernel to deliver multichannel support, provided by *btarunr*:



btarunr said:


> Alchemy is a compatibility layer that translates DirectSound commands from an application to OpenAL. The EAX effects are processed by the APU and then sent back to be re-sampled to whichever multi-channel configuration the user has (in PCM format) and is sent to the OpenAL subsystem.
> 
> Follow the flowchart with the serial number-order of the arrows:
> 
> ...





*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*




*A Brief summary of X-Fi technologies and features:*

*X-Fi audio processor:*
The X-Fi CA201K audio processor is manufactured on a 130nm process, is clocked at 400MHz and utilizes over 51 million transistors that are capable of producing over 10,000 MIPS (Million Instructions Per Second).  In comparison, an AMD Athlon FX-57 is capable of producing 12,000 MIPS at 2.8GHz, and an Intel Pentium 4 Extreme Edition produces only 9,726 MIPS at 3.2GHz.  The X-Fi audio processor features a SRC (Sample Rate Conversion) engine that is precise enough to be able to convert any audio resolution to any other audio resolution at near transparency with 136db SNR (Signal-to-Noise Ratio) THD+N (Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise) and digitally-matched recordings at rates from 44.1kHz to 96kHz.  According to Creative's literature, the X-Fi audio processor is over 24 times more powerful than it's predecessor, the Audigy 2.  For further reading regaring the capabilities of the X-Fi audio processor and how it's architecture works, visit: http://techreport.com/articles.x/8884 


The X-Fi CA20K2 audio processor appears to be designed off the same manufacturing process as the CA201K APU, with the only major notable change being that the CA20K2 is a native PCI-E processor . . . meaning it will not have to rely on a PCIE translation chip for BUS communications, which would severelly impact audio processing latencies.  Little is known of this APU at the moment, more info will be added as it surfaces.



*CMSS-3D Virtual / CMSS-3D Headphone:*
Creates up to 8 virtual speakers in order to achieve a surround sound effect for gaming and entertainment purposes where surround sound speakers are not available.  The X-Fi algorithms upmixes the source and places the sound in it's most natural position.  Basically, the hardware can break down a 5.1 channel source, upmix it, and reproduce that source into a 2 channel feed in such a way that it still sounds like 5.1.  The capability of the CMSS-3D technology is more noticeable with headsets and 2.1 audio, and becomes increasingly harder to notice as one move up to 7.1 speaker setups.  For a slightly more in-depth description of how CMSS-3D works, visit: http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid=177&type=expert&pid=6

*EAX 5.0 HD:*
Environmental Audio eXtensions v5.0 High Definition is an assortment of DSPs (Digital Signal Processing) audio presets that utilizes the audio card's hardware filters to produce highly realistic and immersive sound, enviornmental effects, improved audio positioning, and a improved cinematic sound in games.  This feature is inteded to add to the realism and overall effect of gameplay.  The EAX 5.0 HD standard brings even more features to the table than the 4.0 standard did, and allows for double the voice count over EAX 4.0.  For further reading regarding the capabilities and features of the EAX 5.0 HD design, visit: http://soundblaster.com/eax/abouteax/

*X-RAM:*
*All Creative X-Fi cards have some amount of onboard memory.  The amount of onboard memory varies based upon the card model and revision, with RAM allotments ranging from 2MB to 64MB.  The audio processor needs a small amount of memory for storing the APU BIOS, buffering, sampling and playback, and the more memory, the more voices and audio files the APU can handle at a time.  The upper-end X-Fi models, are advertised as having 64MB or X-RAM, which really only means that they have 64MB as compared to lower models that may only top out at 32MB.

Found on the upper end cards, the X-RAM is 64MB of RAM native to the audio card, and dedicated soley for use by the X-Fi processor.  In theory, the X-RAM would allow for improved gaming performance by unloading much of the audio memmory access from the system hardware and permitting the X-Fi to take over duties of moving audio files into and out of it's own onboard RAM.  This would free up more space in the system RAM for use by the CPU, and transference of audio data would be minimized and audio files could also then be loaded and unloaded quicker by the audio processor.  Although, only a handful of games currently support use of the X-RAM technology, and support by game developers has been slow to near non-existant.  For further reading regarding how X-RAM works, visit: http://www.soundblaster.com/products/X-Fi/technology/x-ram/gamingXram.asp?page=3

*24bit Crystalizer:*
The 24bit Crystalizer is a processing innovation that is designed to enhance and restore lost information in the audio spectrum due to compression from an audio source, namely MP3s.  The Crystalizer attempts to restore those sounds that are lost during compression to bring the MP3 audio sound back to or surpass it's original CDDA form.  For gaming, the Crystalizer can bring not only a more crisp sound, but aslo enhance audio depth that can normally be lost through typical sound compression.  Although the Crystalizer does, to some extent, do what it is advertised as being capable of, the actual validity of these claims has come under scrutiny.  A rather interesting read regarding the Crystalizer technology, and what it's capabilities truly are, can be found here: http://www.digit-life.com/articles2/multimedia/creative-x-fi-part2.html

*Ring architecture:*
The X-Fi cards use an entirelly different architecture as compared to earlier Creative lineups and their competing cards.  Whereas in a typical audio processing stream, components are arranged within a straight line.  This type of architecture severelly limits both the number of audio voices that can be processed at a time, and also hampers the overall performance in regards to the amount of time it takes for that voice to be processed from source to playback.  The X-Fi's make use of what Creative calls a "Ring BUS" architecture, where all processing components on the PCB BUS are arranged like that of a ring.  Each component in the ring can pull the processed audio voice, manipulate it, and place it back into the ring for the next component to access.  This design, in turn, allows for thousands of audio voices to be processed simultaneously, and to also be processed faster.  If a component does not need to manipulate an audio voice, it never has to come into contact with the processed stream.  

*btarunr* has illustrated in a fairly easy to understand diagram how this architecture works:








*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*




*Creative X-Fi Sound Blaster Models*




*Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio PCI*
The Xtreme Audio is the cheapest of the X-Fi lineup as far as price in concerned.  If you’re in the market for a simple audio adapter card, and music and videos is your thing, this would probably be the best choice.  Not really recommended for serious gaming, considering this card is designed more for the home entertainment market, and lacks some of the gaming features and support that stand out on the other models.  Features CMSS-3D, 24-bit Crystallizer.







*Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio PCI-Express*
This card offers the same features as the Xtreme Audio PCI, although it utilizes a PCI-E x1 interface.  One of the few pieces of hardware on the market that make use of the PCI-E x1 slots so common on motherboards.  This might be alright for mini-towers where space is a major concern, or anyone looking for a solution for a multi-GPU rig.  Due to poor reviews, and potential problems with multi-GPU setups and mid-range motherboard chipsets, I honestly can’t recommend this card, yet.







*Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer PCI*
The Xtreme Gamer is targeted specifically at the gaming market, and also serves as a great card for video and audio playback, and audio “tweaking”.  Not recommended if you’re looking for a card that can handle serious audio creation.  This Xtreme Gamer features Creative’s CMSS-3D, support for EAX 5.0HD, and the 24-bit Crystallizer.







*Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Music PCI*
The Xtreme Music was targeted at audiophiles in general, and also has features catered towards the gaming enthusiast.  This model was supposed to pick up where the Xtreme Gamer left off in the line-up, by offering better audio creation support.  I believe this card, though, has been superceded by the X-Fi Platinum.







*Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum*
The X-Fi platinum is a package deal.  It comes with the Xtreme Music PCI card, plus adds the X-Fi I/O Front Panel Drive and a X-Fi Remote Control.  The Front Panel Drive utilizes a 5.25” drive bay, and allows for easy input and output jack access and adjustable volume control.  







*Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro PCI*
The XGFP is the flagship of Creative’s line-up, boasting full-feature support in all 3 areas (gaming, entertainment, audio creation), and also bringing in 64MB of X-RAM, power indicator LEDs, I/O support, and more.  This card is targeted at the audiophile, and those who are looking for the absolute best sound card solution.  Until the Auzentechs were released, this was the definitive audio solution.  Still capable of competing and surpassing the lower-end models offered by Auzentech, though, I personally recommend this card to anyone looking for the best solution possible, while still being on a budget.







*Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion *
This package includes the Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro PCI card, plus the I/O Front Panel Drive and remote.







*Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro*
This package includes the flagship X-Fi card, plus the I/O Console and remote.  The I/O console offers the same connect ability that the Front Panel Drive offers, but instead attaches to the back of the card and can be placed remotely.  The I/O Console is targeted more at a home entertainment setup, in this respect.  The Elite Pro sound card is the current highest audio playback quality card in the lineup, and is a completely different beast from the rest of the X-Fi models, right down to PCB components and component layout.








*Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional*
The most recent X-Fi branded card to enter the Sound Blaster line-up, the Titanium is a native PCIE x1 soundcard; being native PCIE, there is no additional audio processing latecny that would be introduced with a PCIE logic translation chip.  The card boasts the same audio quality specifications as the Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty cards, and improves upon that with the addition of an EMI shield.  This card, though, drops support for the AUD_LINK to the X-Fi reciever from the PCI bracket, and instead adds optical (TOSLINK) support, as well as offering 5 analogue jacks instead of 4 (subwoofer is now a seperate channel).  The Titanium is also the first X-Fi card that allows for Dolby encoding as well. 








*Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Champion*
This package option offers the X-Fi Titanium PCI-E x1 soundcard, and the new X-Fi Titanium Front Panel I/O bay drive.  Of note, the new I/O bay drive will readily fit a 3.50" bay, and also includes an adapter to fit a 5.25" bay, allowing for better installation versatility as compared to the earlier X-Fi I/O bay drives.  The new drive has seriously timmed down connectivity, though.  The 3.50" drive itself offers headphone-out and microphone-in mini-jacks, a volume knob, and a mode selector knob (>correction?<); the 5.25" adapter adds two RCA line-outs to the drive.









*Non-Creative X-Fi equiped cards:*



*Auzentech X-Fi Prelude 7.1*
Auzentech have made a name for themselves for selling extremelly high-quality audio cards that offer superior versatility and superior audio quality as well.  Combined with excellent customer and technical service, Auzentech have cemented themselves within a niche in the audio card market.  The Prelude is the first non-Creative owned audio card to carry Creative's hardware.  The Prelude boasts the X-Fi CA201K APU, and brandishes the typical high-quality components that Auzentech have become known for.  Amidst the upper-end DACs, ADC and OPAMPs, the Prelude even even boasts the ability for the user to swap OPAMPs as they see fit - giving the consumer a DIP socket instead of hard-soldering the OPAMPs to the PCB.  These cards feature the audio processing performance that the X-Fi APU has become known for, and offer all the hardware features of Creative's cards.  They also support Dolby decoding and encoding as well.








*Auzentech X-Fi Home Theater 7.1*
A new card still in the works from Auzentech, again featuring a X-Fi APU.  The card will make use of a PCIEx1 slot (rumored to make use of the new CA20K2 native PCIE APU), and will offer HDMI 1.3 support.  More information and an image will be added as they become available.  This card is not yet on the market, scheduled for release early 2009.










For owners who have the X-Fi remote found with the 5.25" bay front panel and the I/O Console, 3rd party software exists that offers better compatibility and functionality over Creative's bundled software:



tigger69 said:


> I have just bought this program-
> 
> http://melloware.com/products/intelliremote/
> 
> ...







*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*




*Common Problems and possible resolutions*



*Poor Audio Quality*
It goes without saying, but, if audio playback is poor quality, or not what you expected - keep in mind that your speaker setup has more to do with audio quality than the sound card does.  You can have the best audio card in the world, but it can still sound like total butt running on a cheap set of lacklustre quality speakers.  Same holds true for headsets.  Some thoughts here:

~Built in monitor/keyboard speakers - are fine for browsing the net or dealing with anything else that only has poor quality encoded audio to begin with.  But, if you intend to game or watch movies or anything else with good sound . . . you need to get a set of real speakers.

~Flat panel speakers - are alright, and even though the high end models can still sound very nice, they have a hard time producing very low tones and usually call for a subwoofer to produce any type of low tone at all.  They're great if you care about having that sleek, professional look, but, in my own opionion - they still don't cut it when it comes to high audio quality.

~Cone speakers - everything from bookshelf speakers to satellite speakers, cone-based will give you the best audio quality possible.  Being fully capable of rendering tones across the frequency range, there really is nothing comparable.  Granted, a good setup will still require a subwoofer for that deep bass playback found in most movies and in modern music - but if keeping the neighbors awake with a subwoofer isn't your thing, cone speakers are still capable of enough bass to keep you happy.  The biggest thing to look out for when choosing cone speakers, though, are the materials that are involved with their assembly.  Cheap sets of cone speakers will still sound horrible, compared to high quality ones.

If you have any questions concerning your audio playback, or how better to tell if your speakers really are the culprit of poor audio quality - either PM me or post a question in this thread.


*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*




*Snapping, Crackling, Popping*
This is the single most common problem with X-Fi cards, especially the early models.  These sounds are various forms of audio clipping which occur when the X-FI sends a BUS data request to the slot controller, and that data request is not serviced in a timely manner.  This in turn leads to gaps in the audio playback which can manifest itself in the form of snapping, crackling, popping, screeching, etc.  This condition can also arise when the X-Fi's ability to access system memory is slowed down or interrupted.  There are a few possible causes and quite a few different possible soultions to this issue:

*1.)  nVidia nForce 4 chipsets, VGA adapters:*
	These problems can possibly be cause by nVidia hardware present in the system, specifically, nForce 4 chipsets.  Othertimes it can be cause by nVidia VGA adapters.  This isn't to say that anyone who owns an nVidia VGA adapter or motherboard with an nForce 4 chipset will have these problems.  If you own any such hardware and are experiencing problems; first, make sure your motherboards BIOS is as up-to-date as possible, and that any installed nVidia VGA BIOS is also up-to-date.  It is possible that you have an early model X-Fi, and may want to inquire with Creative if they possess a solution for your card (meaning: if they can RMA it - the audio controllers on the later models don't seem to conflict with nVidia hardware as often).  Aside from the above options, there aren't many supported solutions to for this condition, although one of the soultions listed below may help.

*2.) Pentium 4 processors:*
	This is a somewhat uncommon problem, and I'm not sure why a Pentium 4 would cause this either, but I've run across a couple of complaints here and there that seem to justify this.  It seems to be more of an issue with the lower end, slower clocked Pentium 4's and the P4 models that suport HyperThreading.  Overclocking the CPU seems to resolve this issue.  If you're not comfortable, or not willing to attempt to overclocking the CPU, check for motherboard updates first.  Possibly turning off HyperThreading may help resolve the issue, also.

*3.) General hardare conflicts:*
	Owners of high-end VGA adapters, high-end hard drives, and other high-end hardware may recieve this problem.  If you think a high-end component installed in your system to be the cause, check for any motherboard BIOS updates for your system, any possible VGA BIOS updates, and check for any updated drivers for your hardware.  If after updating any out-of-date hardware drivers you're still experiencing problems, other possible soultions are listed below.

*4.) Insufficient system memmory:*
	Not enough RAM can also cause this problem, if you're currently only running 512KB of RAM, it would be a wise idea to go ahead and upgrade to at least 1GB of RAM anyhow.  As always, check to make sure your motherboard BIOS and hardware drivers are up-to-date.  If you're running 1GB or more, try closing out unecessary programs that may be running in the background, and any unecessary programs running in Windows taskbar.  If the problem goes away, or doesn't happen as often as before, you might want to consider upgrading your system memmory.

*5.) Slow system memory:*
	Installed RAM that is clocked too slow, or with too high of latencies can also be a cause.  If hardware permits, install your RAM in Dual-Channel mode, as this allows for higher memory bandwidth and speed.  Check to make sure your motherboards BIOS and hardware drivers are up-to-date.  If you feel comfortable doing so, you can try to overclock your system memory some, lower the memory latencies, or increase the CPU BUS.  It may be necessary to purchase new memory rated at a higher speed - especially if your current memory is running slower than the system BUS and cannot be clocked higher.  

*6.) Insufficient audio processor cooling:*
	Another possibility is that the X-Fi is becoming hot enough to start interfering with it’s ability to carry out commands.  Again, make sure your motherboard BIOS and hardware drivers are up-to-date.  You can estimate your audio processors temperature by hand while it’s in heavy use (when the problem is noticed).  If you put your fingers on the audio processor and it feels very warm or hot to the touch, you’re probably in need of better cooling.  If your X-Fi doesn’t have an installed heatsink, you can purchase a small northbridge cooler, and using thermal paste or thermal tape, install it onto the X-Fi processor.  If your X-Fi came with a heatsink installed, you can attempt to lap the heatsink (although difficult to do as the factory heatsink is installed with thermal paste), or attempt to install a northbridge fan (also a bit difficult, but can be done).




*Other possible snapping, crackling, popping resolutions:*

*7.) After updating the X-Fi drivers:*
             If you experience audio clipping (or any other issue) after installing updated X-Fi drivers, this is usually a good sign that other hardware drivers are out-of-date, or your motherboard's BIOS is out-of-date, and that the X-Fi drivers were writting around certain hardware updates.  Check for updates as necessary.  If the problem still persists, it maybe due to other hardware issues.  You can attempt some of the other resolutions I've posted here, but your best bet would probably be to contact Creative's Tech support first (in case there is an issue with the new drivers or otherwise).

*8.) In games:*
             If audio clipping only happens in certain games, and not others, it's possible that the game is trying to load more audio samples than the audio processor can handle (especially possible if the game automatically detects audio hardware).  Be sure you have the X-Fi processor set to "Game Mode" in the audio console, first.  Also, check to make sure that your playback resolutions are set at 44.1kHz.  If playback rates are already set at 44kHz, and if the game has an audio option menu, try adjusting the number of audio channels if possible.  If this isn't possible, you might need to do some research on the game and determine if there are any command line audio options or not.  If the game employs a "command console" where you can directly change the games behaviour (i.e. Doom3, Quake4), console commands might exist that would allow you change the games audio setup.

*9.) Adjusting the PCI slot clock speed:*
	Some motherboards automatically set the PCI slot clock speed based upon the CPU clock speeds.  This can lead to problems with certain hardware not functioning properly.  If your motherboard BIOS supports adjusting the PCI clock frequencies, you should first set the clock at the PCI native 33.3MHz.  If the problem still persists, you can attempt to increase the PCI clock speed.  Be careful to not raise the PCI clock speed to high, as you could potentially damage your hardware.  Also of note, if your BIOS does support changing the PCI clock, but does not list a clock speed for each individual PCI slot, and changes to the clock speed in BIOS will affect all installed PCI hardware.  Be careful.

*10.) Adjusting the PCI latency:*
	Some motherboards will automatically set the PCI slot latency timer for each piece of installed hardware.  Raising the PCI latency timer for the X-Fi can resolve audio clipping issues.  If your motherboard supports adjusting the PCI latency timing, try raising it in increments and re-checking to see if the problem goes away.  Some motherboards support changing the latency of each individual slot, and others only offer an adjustment that affects all PCI slots.  If you raise your latency timings too high, other PCI devices that require frequent access to the PCI BUS could potentially lose data and cause the system to become unstable.  Be careful.

*11.) Manually setting the X-Fi IRQ:*
	Be warned that changing a device IRQ to an incorrect or conflicting setting could lead to either the device not functioning properly in Windows, or lead to entire system instability.  Considering newer hardware and how device resources are implemented and controlled in Windows XP, it’s rare to have an IRQ conflict between devices.
If a hardware resource conflict arises after installing new hardware, make sure that the drivers for the new hardware are up to date, first.  You can also try to un-install and then re-install the hardware drivers.  You may also need to un-install the new hardware drivers, and the X-Fi drivers, and attempt a re-install from there.  Yet another option is to un-install the new hardware drivers and the X-Fi drivers, then change what PCI slots they are installed into, then re-install the drivers.
There are a couple of methods for going about changing a device’s interrupt request.  To start with, you’ll need to actually see what IRQ’s are assigned to what devices in Windows, and see what IRQ’s are available.  Go to Start>Settings>Control Panel>System, click on the ‘Hardware’ tab, and then click on the “Device Manager” button to open Windows Device Manager.  In Device Manager, open the ‘View’ menu, and select “View Resources by Type”, and then expand the ‘Interrupt Request (IRQ)’ tree.  Find the listing for your X-Fi, and make sure that it is the only device assigned to one specific IRQ.  If so, any audio issues are 95% probably not because of the devices IRQ assignment.  Although, it isn’t unusual for more than one device to be sharring an IRQ channel, certain devices (i.e. the X-Fi) function better when not sharring this resource.
	Note:  If you can change the PCI slot IRQ in BIOS, and the changes aren’t reflected in Windows Device Manger, you may have to manually change the IRQ settings within Windows itself – you will have to be logged into Windows as an Administrator or Owner to do so.
             If there is another device sharring the same IRQ, or a potential conflict, or you just want to set it anyways, make sure the device is not currently in use.  Right click on the device listing and open up ‘Properties’ then click on the ‘Resources’ tab.  If possible, de-select the “Use Automatic Settings” checkbox, and then select the resource you want to change, the device IRQ (you may have to change the ‘Settings Based On:’ box to a different basic setting to make any changes), and click on the “Change Setting” button.  In the new window that opens, use the scroll arrows to set the device IRQ and make sure you set it to a value not currently in use by another device (as in, a number either not listed in Device Manager, or one that is listed as ‘not currently in use’)!!  
	If you can’t make any changes to the X-Fi IRQ resource, and the device IRQ is conflicting with another device, you can attempt to change the conflicting device instead.  The idea is to try and free up the specific IRQ channel for only the X-Fi card.
	After changing the device IRQ, you MAY have to change various other resources (I/O Range, DMA, etc.) to enable the device to continue to function properly – I’m not going to get into the various wonders involved with correctly doing this and troubleshooting those changes, if you wish to experiment, feel free to . . . but heed the warning I posted at the beginning of this thread!
	If you don’t have access to changing the device(s) IRQ, there isn’t much further you can go with this . . . one option is to uninstall the devices from Windows, re-boot, and hope Windows allocates the IRQ channels a little better.  You can swap the components from one PCI slot to the next.  Your next option is to change the OS HAL from ACPI to Standard (NOT RECOMMENDED!), which will require a re-install of Windows, or just attempt to do a clean Windows install by itself.  If you do re-install Windows, upon initial boot up, follow the information I posted about a clean install of Windows.

*12.) Hardware Acceleration disabled*
	Disabling Hardware acceleration can also cause audio clipping in certain programs. Make sure your hardware drivers are up to date, and if you are encountering problems with a specific game, make sure the game is patched to the most current version.  Also, ensure that you are running the most current version of DirectX and OpenAL.  To the best of my knowledge, audio hardware acceleration is disabled in Windows Vista (could a Vista/X-Fi owner please verify this for me?).  In Windows XP, verify that hardware acceleration is enabled by going to Start>Settings>Control Panel>Sounds and Audio Devices; under 'Speaker Settings,' click "Advanced," in the new window that pops up, click the 'Performance' tab, and make sure the hardware acceleration slider is all the way to the right.  If for some reason, the slider keeps being set all the way back to the left, there may be a hardware conflict, see below.  In some programs, full acceleration has been known to cause audio clipping also, you may need to move the slider to the left one notch, if that proves unsuccessful, try two.  Very rarely will turning off audio acceleration cure an audio clipping concern.  You may also need to attempt to lower the playback quality in the same 'Performance' tab, and verify that playback resolution is set to 44kHz within the X-Fi Audio Console.

*13.) Incorrect driver version for installed OS*
             If you notice various audio clipping or other odd issues after installing the update driver from Creative's website, or after updates from Windows/Microsoft Update have been installed, and if you are currently running Windows Media Center Edition 2004/2005, there is a possibility that the most current driver version, 2.09.0007, will not function correctly, leading to various issues, including audio clipping, loss of EAX and hardware acceleration, non-functional CMSS-3D (either won't work at all, or will produce audio clipping), and possibly other issues.  _*Note: it is possible to have this driver installed on a MCE OS without your knowledge, as it is offered through Windows/Microsoft Update.  It is listed under the hardware section, and you may have to go to MS Update, uncheck it and hide it so that there is no chance that it will be installed.*_  Your best bet would be to just stick with the audio drivers supplied on the instalation CD.  If you did install the updated drivers, rolling back the drivers in Windows Device Manager won't necessarily fix the condition, either - it will call for a clean install of the X-Fi drivers, see below for the procedure.  If I notice an update has been posted by Creative specifically for MCE, I will post it in this thread.


*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*



*No EAX, OpenAL, or hardware acceleration*

	Some users may experience a lack of hardware accelaration with the X-Fi, which will also disable EAX and OpenAL compatibility on the card.  Hardware acceleration can be verified by use of the DirectX Diagnostic tool (which is installed to the Windows/System/ folder, DxDiag.exe), or by going to Start>Settings>Control Panel>Sounds and Audio Devices - under 'Speaker Settings' click "advanced," click the 'Performance' tab, and verify the hardware acceleration slider is all the way to the right.  To the best of my knowledge, Windows Vista does not support audio hardware accelration (could a Vista/X-Fi owner pleasy verify this for me?).  First, make sure that your hardware drivers and motherboard BIOS are up to date.  Also make sure that the most current version of DirectX and OpenAL are installed.

*1.) USB hardware conflict*
	I still don't understand why this can be a cause of disabled hardware acceleration, I think it has something to do with the X-Fi's ability to interface with X-Fi USB devices, not 100% sure . . . In some instances, having a USB peripheral plugged in can disable the X-Fi's hardware acceleration capabilities, EAX functions, and/or OpenAL support.  Certain products have been more well known at causing this condition, most specifically certain brands of gaming keyboards and optical mice.  Certain brands of USB webcams can cause issues, also.  Note, for this condition to occur, the device does not necessarilly have to be turned on, nor have drivers installed; just the fact of having the USB device plugged in can disable hardware acceleration.  This is kind of a process of elimination if you suspect a USB device to be the cause (especially if the condition starts to occur after new USB hardware upgrades).  First, remove all USB devices (if you're currently using a USB keyboard or mouse, you'll need to attach a PS2 or other non-USB peripheral) and boot the computer, then check if hardware acceleration is enabled and stays enabled.  If so, power down, install one USB device, reboot and recheck.  Keep repeating until you have no hardware acceleration after attaching a device.  To fix this issue, first check if there are any updated drivers for your USB component.  If you are currently up-to-date, you will need to remove the device drivers, and unplug the device.  Then completely remove the X-Fi drivers *{{{{remember to add how}}}}*.  Re-connect and re-install your USB device drivers, and then re-install the X-Fi drivers.  If this doesn't fix the problem, unless you don't mind leaving the device unplugged when not in use, you may need to contact Creative's Tech Support for further assistance.

*2.)*



*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*



*Audio static or other anomolies*
If you experience what sounds like faint static, a whirring or whining type of noise that changes frequency and pitch, and isn't always loud enough to drown out the audio sample itself, it's possible that the X-Fi is picking up some form of electronic noise or radio noise, which for pure simplicity's sake I will refer to here as EMI.
Certain components (and especially older ones) can generate electronic noise that highly sensitive audio equipment can pick up on and which will manifest itself as some form of white noise over audio playback. 
Also, some of the X-Fi audio clipping issues can sound very similar to EMI, if after attempting various soultions for the audio clipping issue without success, there could be an EMI issues instead. 

*Possible internal sources:*
**A high powered, faulty or failing PSU* - it's possible that a cheaply engineered and manufactured high-powered PSU can produce EMI.  It's also possible for any PSU to produce EMI if it has become faulty or starting to fail.  If possible, swap PSU's and if the noise is no longer present, you've found your culprit.
**VGA adapters* - some VGA adapters have been known to produce a small amount of EMI, most likely with cheaply built units, or high-powered ones.  Try to install the X-Fi in a slot furthest away from your VGA adapter, if the noise either sounds noticeably reduced or goes away, the VGA adapter is to blame.  Either replace the unit, or contact the hardware manufacturer for a possible RMA.
**Wi-Fi adapters and routers* - simply because of the very nature of their design.  These devices operate by producing a certain RF signal which in and of itself is a form of EMI.  These devices are more likely to potentially interfere with the X-Fi itself, or nearby speaker wire.  Although the possibly of EMI is more prominent with cheaply made units, even reputable units could potentially cause problems.  If you are using a PCI wireless adapter, attempt to install it and the X-Fi as far away from each other as possible.  With speaker wire, either but shielded cable, or attempt to route wires away from these devices.  If your Wi-Fi adapter makes use of an antenna and is attached to an expansion slot card by means of a cable, attempt to place the antenna as far away from the PC case as possible.
**Other system hardware; CPU, motherboard components, DC brush motor fans, HDDs* - although at the bottom of the list, that doesn't mean they are to be ignored.  Certain hardware components can produce enough EMI to be noticeable.  High-clocked CPUs due to their higher operating frequencies.  Specific motherboard components, usually the Northbridge chipset or Southbridge chipset.  DC brush operated fans, especially cheaper units - the brush design generates a magnetic field as the motor operates.  For the most part, cheaply manufactured components tend to be more of a problem.  Attempt to install the X-Fi into a slot furthest away from suspected components

*Outside EMI sources:*
**Appliances* - most home appliances can generate significant EMI, microwaves, blenders, refrigerators, freezers, washing machines, dryers, dish washers, garbage disposals . . . specifically, any appliance that utilizes some form of high powered motor to operate.  If your PC is relatively close to a suspected appliance, attempt to set the PC up else where.  If the EMI goes away, then you know the appliance was to blame.  Also, if an appliance is generating enough EMI to be picked up _inside_ the case by the X-Fi, that EMI signal could potentially be interfering with other components.
**Automobiles* - why you would have a PC within a very short distance of a running automobile I couldn't imagine . . . but, newer automobiles generate massive amounts of EMI, especially motors that use some form of electronic fuel injection.  The ignition coils under the hood of an automobile are capable of generating voltages anywhere between 10,000 - 80,000+ volts.  These extreme operating voltages can generate an EMI signal that even the most impervious appliances could pick up on.
**Neighboring sources* - if you live next to a power plant, a transformer park, broadcasting tower, sewage pump station, etc. you could be picking up EMI from these utilities.  Not all that much you can do here . . . maybe you can try petitioning your local city/county to relocate their public utilities . . . or you can move further away . . . maybe mod an old 3' refrigerator to ecase your PC, but that will present cooling concerns . . . unless the refrigerator still works 

*Possible fixes for external EMI:*
**Shield the system by use of the case* - In it's basic form, the PC case in itself will act as an EMI ground, but can only do so when fully enclosed.  Make sure the side panels are installed.
**By use of an antenna* - this will look odd, though . . . go to an automotive junkyard or parts store, and find a vehicle antenna that is shielded (it will look like it has a wire wound around the antenna, usually under a black coating).  Find a bolt or nut that fits the antenna's fastener from a hardware store, then drill a hole in the top of the case and install the antenna.
**By use of shielded cable* - if you don't want to bork your case's good looks with an antenna, buy some shielded cable from a local electronics store (shielded speaker cable is alright), then string the cable along the inside of the case.  It works best if you can use one continuous length of cable, running along the corners of the case - from the top to the motherboard side panel to the front panel to the bottom, etc.  You can use tape or whatever suits you to attach the cable to the case itself.  At the very end of the cable, expose the wires from the insulation, and attach them to the case by use of an already installed case screw (loosen the screw, wrap the wire around it and tighten - only one end of the cable need be grounded).



*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

*Modding*

Keep in mind that any direct physical modification to the hardware that is intended to, or does, change or alter the way in which the hardware was initially designed to operate will completely void any warranties.  That being said, proceede with any modifications to the card at your own risk.


*Cooling*
Considering the power that the CA20K1 APU is capable of, cooling should be a primary concern.  Most newer revision X-Fi cards come with a heatsink atop the APU, which is a good start.  If your X-Fi does not have a heatsink on the APU, I fully recommend installing one!  Not only will you prolong the life of the APU and further extend the life of the capcitors, the card will process better, and should lead to a very slight increase in audio quality.

For the APU, and decent chipset 40mmx40mm heatsink will do, preferably of the kind that uses thermal tape to affix it.  There are no mounting holes near the APU for the kinds of heatsinks that use a "solid" mount.  I also recommend using a copper heatsink over aluminum, as copper provides better EMI/RFI shielding qualities.  Another decent recommendation, after making sure the heat sink is firmly attached, would be to install a 40mmx40mm fan as well.

Other PCB components I recommend adding a heat sink to: the DAC, ADC, OPAMPs, DRAM modules, and mosfets

For other PCB components, you can use mosfet style passive heat sinks (they're very tiny squares), and for the DRAM modules, you can use DRAM style passive heat sinks.  


*Front Panel Connectivity*

Although not really modding, I thought I'd include it here.  Unless you have a newer revision card which actually makes use of an AC97/Azalia style 10-pin terminal, you'll have to jump a couple of hurdles to have front panel support.

For starters, the X-Fi does have a front panel out connector, but it's proprietary and doesn't interface easily with other connectors . . . plus, information as to what each individual pin on the terminal goes to has been scarce.  Thankfully, the X-Fi makes use of the same connector and pinout as the older Auidgy cards do.

The initial legwork has been already been taken care of by another user a long while back, and the information on how to add basic connectivity support for the Audigy cards can be found here: http://audigy2zshowto.blogspot.com/ 

To make use of the proprietary connector on the X-Fi without having to do some extensive soldering/modding, you'll need to purchase the following components from Digi-Key:
455-1127-1-ND  - crimp style female wire terminals to fit the proprietary 10-pin connector     
WM2522-ND      - 10-pin AC97/Azalia style terminal header(if you want to make an "adapter" style cable similar to the one in the link above)
WM2515-ND      - crimp style male wire terminals to fit the AC97/Azalia style terminal header (if you want to make an "adapter" style cable similar to the one in the link above)    
455-1151-ND     - 10-pin proprietary style connector to fit the 10-pin header on the X-Fi


This is the pinout legend for the 10-pin proprietary connector:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1 - Analog ground
2 - Left out
3 - Audio backpanel mute (grounded with headphone jack plugged in - I think this is Left Return)
4 - Right out
5 - same as pin 3 (I think this is Right return)
6 - Mic In from front panel
7 - no pin
8 - VREF Mic out (voltage reference for mic)
9 - Mic In mute (ground when mic isn't plugged in, +12V with mic plugged in)
10 - Audio Detect (ground when headphones plugged in, not normally used)


As I mentioned, the X-Fi uses the same exact setup as the Audigy . . . but what if you want further HD support and connectivity?  As best I can tell and have tested with my card, this setup will work: 









The connector representing the terminal on the card is number from 1-10; I wrote the legend so that all one needs to do is remove the wire from your AC97/Azalia connector, and insert them into the new 10-pin connector in the order listed.  

As I've tested with my card, I have full HD support through the front panel, and the card will also mute rear output when a jack is inserted.  The only capability that I don't seem to have, is that of the audio console changing speaker settings to "headphones" . . . I think this might only be supported with use of the X-Fi 5.25" bay front panel.


*EMI/RFI Shielding*

comming soon


*Capacitor, OPAMP and other PCB component upgrading*

comming soon



*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*



*XSS Members:*




imperialreign
malware
btarunr
Morgoth
thegave
department76
Ninkobwi
happita
Davidelmo
Craigleberry
Shadowfold
ElementImage
Kursah
hbkl
DaveK
Mussels
_jm
pabloc74
Cold Storm
CyberDruid
randomflip
hayder.master
J.M.D.
rpsgc
majestic12
sNiPeRbOb
Swamp Monster


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## Deleted member 24505 (Sep 26, 2007)

hello,i have a x-fi extreme music card.i'm running vista 32bit,and it seems fine really.at least there is somewere on here that i can post specifically if i do have problems tho'.so thanks for that.


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## imperialreign (Sep 27, 2007)

no prob, man - I'm more than willing to try and help out if something pops up


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## tkpenalty (Sep 27, 2007)

did you type that yourself?


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## mitsirfishi (Sep 27, 2007)

was it a copy and paste job ? and just did a few little edits of bold ect ect.


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## Random Murderer (Sep 27, 2007)

thank you, imperial. i do not own an x-fi card, nor do i ever plan to own another creative product, but this 'service' you're providing is definitely worth a thanks.


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## imperialreign (Sep 27, 2007)

> did you type that yourself?



yeah, and I still have quite a bit more to go . . . it's still a bit of a work in progress.



> was it a copy and paste job ? and just did a few little edits of bold ect ect.



I typed it in Wordpad, then edited it here.


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## malware (Sep 27, 2007)

Hi, I also use Creative X-Fi XtremeMusic retail, count me in the club.
Also today I repaired my Creative T7900 remote control, I can upload pictures with the simple repair guide later. Creative T7900 is known for its remote problems and bass disappearance, I think I'm on the right way to find an easy solution to fix that.
Tonight I'm going to repeat what I've done to my own speakers with another broken set...and if it works, I'll post the solution here.


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## imperialreign (Sep 27, 2007)

> Tonight I'm going to repeat what I've done to my own speakers with another broken set...and if it works, I'll post the solution here.



That would defi be awesome - it's the same remote that comes with the I/O Console, correct?


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## malware (Sep 28, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> That would defi be awesome - it's the same remote that comes with the I/O Console, correct?



Nope, I'm talking about this set and this wired remote:





The problem is, that the second system I tried to repair had other issues which didn't occur while I was testing (strange)...so I'll reserve my final judgement till I'm sure where the problem is. My set works fine. 

If somebody has problems with the T7900 wired remote can contact me at any time.


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## imperialreign (Sep 29, 2007)

> Nope, I'm talking about this set and this wired remote:



I see, sorry, I just assumed it was the I/O remote 

BTW, I've always been curious - how much better is the Creative 7.1 speaker set compared to some other similarly (and higher) priced setups?  I've heard they're defi worth the money, and they easily stand up to their competition, but there are a ton of highly reputable companies offering 7.1 combos for the same price, if not a whole lot more.


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## malware (Sep 30, 2007)

Don't know about other sets, but this particular model T7900 does not perform very well, but it's OK for daily movie/games use until you listen to music. Listening to music on this set is just not right...something's missing, although they have good bass.
Talking about Creative S750 is another story...they sound great.


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## imperialreign (Oct 1, 2007)

Hmmm . . . big difference in peak wattage, there, too - between the 92W of the 7900 and 700W of the S750.  I'd honestly imagine a night and day difference between the two based on those specs alone.

Although, I'd really like to hear them for myself, but all the shops around here only carry the 5.1 Inspire systems, cause no walk in customer in their right mind is willing to spend $500+ on a speaker setup.

I was just curious how they might stand up to Sony's products or Pioneer's.  Even though Pioneer doesn't offer a 5.1 or 7.1 package, you can easily buy a couple sets of their bookshelf speakers pairs, the middle channel and a subwoofer that will be in the same price range as the S750.  Honestly, between Sony and Pioneer, I find Pioneer's products to be clearer and offer a more dynamic range, plus a bit cheaper than Sony's.  If you ever get a chance, take a listen to the sound quality of just 1 pair of Pioneer's bookshelf speakers sound  


Oh, BTW anyone else reading this, I still plan on adding more to the main post - just been busy and lethargic the last couple of days . . .


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## btarunr (Oct 11, 2007)

*FP_Audio: HDA to AC97*

Hey.
I've got an Xtreme Gamer card, this one has the front-panel audio header. However this is of the Intel Azalia HD Audio spec that Creative claims to be incompatible with standard AC97 front-panel headers. My chasis has an AC97 front-panel header. Is there a way I can mod to make my FP work?







For your convenience, I'm sending the pin assignments of both HDA and AC97.

1. For Intel Azalia HD (that's on my card)










Thanks for this clubhouse, we needed it.


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## malware (Oct 11, 2007)

*btarunr* this might help you: http://www.driverheaven.net/audio-g...oundblaster-live-audigy-1-2-x-fi-pinouts.html


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## btarunr (Oct 11, 2007)

malware said:


> *btarunr* this might help you: http://www.driverheaven.net/audio-g...oundblaster-live-audigy-1-2-x-fi-pinouts.html



But this page doesn't have the pinouts for the FP_Aud that the Xtreme Gamer card has. Secondly all I want is to know where to plug my case's AC97 pins into the card's HDA Front-panel header so as to make my front-panel work.


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## imperialreign (Oct 11, 2007)

> For your convenience, I'm sending the pin assignments of both HDA and AC97.
> 
> 1. For Intel Azalia HD (that's on my card)



I hadn't realized any of the X-Fi's were utilizing Azalia's pinout!

Anyhow, just to make sure I understand you correctly . . . your case has connectors for either AC97 or HDA, correct?

Your X-Fi uses an Azalia pinout (like the pinout diagram you pictured), not a straight 10-pin connector?

Just wanting to make sure, as I didn't know that any of the X-Fi's were shipped with the 8-pin azalia pinout.

If so . . . if your case has an AC97/HDA connector, and your X-Fi has an 8-pin Azalia pin configuration, Creative's claims are a big neg-a-tory:

Intel High Definition Audio "Azalia"

and  the pinouts for AC97 and Azalia, which Intel claims are pin-compatible:

Front Audio Panel pinouts

so, therefore, you can plug an AC97 connector into an Azalia pinout, or plug an HDA (Azalia) connector in to an AC97 pinout and they _should_ work.  If not, you might have to do some wire swapping in the connector - just make sure to draw a diagram and label what color wires go to which slot before you remove any of them.


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## btarunr (Oct 12, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> I hadn't realized any of the X-Fi's were utilizing Azalia's pinout!
> 
> Anyhow, just to make sure I understand you correctly . . . your case has connectors for either AC97 or HDA, correct?
> 
> ...



Thanks man, well the following cards use Azalia's pinouts:

SB07xx - Xtreme Gamer PCI, Xtreme Audio PCI, Xtreme Audio PCIe

Intel Azalia pinouts are identical to the HDA pin layout. My system-case has a AC97 pin-set and I want to mod this to work with my card's Azalia pin-set.

Take a look at these pics:


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## imperialreign (Oct 12, 2007)

those must be newer revision cards, the Xtreme Gamer's I've seen don't have the Azalia pinout.  I guess that must be following on the heels of the OEM X-Fis Creative have been producing for Dell, Gateway, HP, etc.

I also hadn't realized they've gone to production with a PCI-E interface, nice to see, though, another hardware component that will make use of those near-worthless x1 slots 

Alright, then, you can plug an AC97 connector into the Azalia HD pinout, they both use they same pin configuration.  Some AC97 front panel connections will interface with the Azalia pinout 100% and have full capability, some won't.

so, then, your case doesn't have a second connector for HDA?  Just curious cause I'm running a Cooler Master Mystique, and the front panel harness has a connector for AC97, another for Azalia, and also every pin seperate for other configurations. 

But, yeah, even though the pinouts are labeled differently on Intel's page (the one I referenced), the harness wires themselves still go to the same components in the same manner.  i.e. pin1 is MIC_IN_L, pin2 is AUD_GND, pin3 MIC_IN_R, pin4 AUD_GND/SENSE, pin5 R_OUT, pin6 R_RETURN, pin7 AUD_SENSE, pin8 KEY (no wire), pin9 L_OUT, pin10 L_RETURN

now . . . if Creative decided to use the same pinout setup for the Azalia style connector that they've used with the proprietary 10-pin straight connector on the Fatal1ty and Platinums, that's an entirelly different configuration.

If you haven't done so already, try plugging in the AC97 (if you do have one labeled Azalia or HD Audio use that one instead) connector that would normally go to the mobo into the X-Fi.  If you don't have any functions with that connector, it's quite possible it's using a Creative setup which may have a different pin configuration.  I might be able to figure that out, if it is . . .


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## btarunr (Oct 12, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> those must be newer revision cards, the Xtreme Gamer's I've seen don't have the Azalia pinout.  I guess that must be following on the heels of the OEM X-Fis Creative have been producing for Dell, Gateway, HP, etc.
> 
> I also hadn't realized they've gone to production with a PCI-E interface, nice to see, though, another hardware component that will make use of those near-worthless x1 slots
> 
> ...




We're now in the same transition phase we were 13 years ago, of that between ISA and PCI busses. We'll see more cards soon. To make things tempting, Creative priced the PCIe X-Fi Xtreme Audio at an OEM price of $31 and Retail $39 ~ $45. But it doesn't have the XFi CA20K processing unit, but uses a Audigy core with bus-translation logic that translates PCIe to PCI for the core. So there really isn't a gain anywhere. Just that today's motherboards have more PCIe slots than PCI and so more people are dropping the idea of buying a sound-card and sticking to onboard audio, the el-cheapo Realteks, ADIs, CMIs etc. So this one way to woo them.

Did you notice the optical out and Co-axial SPDIF outs  on the PCIe card? First time for Creative to do that "on" a card without a dumb header.

My case dates back to early 2005 when CoolerMaster didn't really make cases with HDA pins. I love that case as it always stood lucky for my lan-parties. Just upgraded the whole thing step by step. Older card was an Audigy ZS that broke due to a burnt capacitor somewhere. There're no service-centres for an Audigy here in India. So Xtreme Gamer it is. Does this forum cover Auzentech XFi Prelude as well? Becase that's going to be my next card......all solid-state capacitors and an AWESOME set of OPAMPs and Asaki-Kasei Japanese DACs.

You must agree that Japanese analog components far exceed Taiwanese, quality-wise.

Ready to drool?












And ofcourse, do you see the Azalia header next to the CD/Aux_in ?


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## imperialreign (Oct 12, 2007)

I'm still amazed that Creative has gone and put Azalia pinouts on the new cards - damn, I wish mine had one!  Those pics are of the Auzenetech, right?  I find it curious that the card is packing that much onboard firepower, but lacks the X-RAM module, esepcially considering that Creative haven't scrapped that idea yet.

I completely agree tha Japanese components far excede the Tiawanese components, especially the capacitors.  IIRC, the first gen X-Fi's had a problem with the capacitors literally blowing up after a few months.  After they went to better caps, it wasn't a problem.  If you want even better quality sound out of the card, you can replace all the caps with even higher end models - something I might cover when I do a "mod" section.



> We're now in the same transition phase we were 13 years ago, of that between ISA and PCI busses. We'll see more cards soon. To make things tempting, Creative priced the PCIe X-Fi Xtreme Audio at an OEM price of $31 and Retail $39 ~ $45. But it doesn't have the XFi CA20K processing unit, but uses a Audigy core with bus-translation logic that translates PCIe to PCI for the core. So there really isn't a gain anywhere. Just that today's motherboards have more PCIe slots than PCI and so more people are dropping the idea of buying a sound-card and sticking to onboard audio, the el-cheapo Realteks, ADIs, CMIs etc. So this one way to woo them.



I think Creative using the old Audigy APU is simply for first gen testing.  Given enough time they'll start slapping the X-Fi APUs back on the cards, and prob up the performance of the card even more.  Still, I'm glad to see _someone_ is finding a use for those x1 slots - it seems ever mobo has at least one, positioned where it just is a waste of space (like, for instance, on my mobo, there's an x1 slot right above the primary x16 - it'll never be used).  I dont ever really see Creative building on the x16 platform, but ya never know sometimes . . .

Onboard audio is generally tripe.  Realtek has been busted before for sub-par HD capabilities, and most ever onboard chipset suffers from noise interference, especially with the addition of a high-end GPU.  Creative even has their own "X-Fi" chipset for certain manufacturers now, too - although, IMO, it can't be called X-Fi without the APU, y'know?



> Does this forum cover Auzentech XFi Prelude as well? Becase that's going to be my next card......all solid-state capacitors and an AWESOME set of OPAMPs and Asaki-Kasei Japanese DACs.



I'm guessing so - I don't know as much about these cards, except for the fact that they're using the X-Fi APU and utilitize the same style memory ring hub as Creative's cards (due to the processing architecture of the X-Fi APU, they don't have much of a choice here); so, I figure the cards will probably still run into very similar problems that the Creative cards encounter, although, hopefully not as often or as severe.

So, have you been able to get your front panel to work yet?  If not, what exact Centurion model is it, I'll try to look up your cases front panel pins and see how they match up . . .


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## btarunr (Oct 13, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> I'm still amazed that Creative has gone and put Azalia pinouts on the new cards - damn, I wish mine had one!  Those pics are of the Auzenetech, right?  I find it curious that the card is packing that much onboard firepower, but lacks the X-RAM module, esepcially considering that Creative haven't scrapped that idea yet.



No, the Auzentech XFi Prelude _does_ have the 64 MiB X-RAM do you see those Micron Technology 256 Mb banks next to the CA 20K1?





imperialreign said:


> I think Creative using the old Audigy APU is simply for first gen testing.  Given enough time they'll start slapping the X-Fi APUs back on the cards, and prob up the performance of the card even more.  Still, I'm glad to see _someone_ is finding a use for those x1 slots - it seems ever mobo has at least one, positioned where it just is a waste of space (like, for instance, on my mobo, there's an x1 slot right above the primary x16 - it'll never be used).  I dont ever really see Creative building on the x16 platform, but ya never know sometimes . . .



No they're not using the Audigy APU (EMU 10K1) in that PCIE version, it's the same chip they used in the Audigy SE cards, which is a host-signal-processing chipset, not an audio processor, it depends on the system's CPU to do its audio processing jobs. So since the chipset was designed for PCI, they just added a BTL (bus translation logic). Yeah, some mobos from MSI feature a "XFi Audio" well actually this is a gimmick. On your card, you will see a small square chip from Cirrus Logic, that's the DAC. Now this tiny chip draws its processing from the CA 20K1 processor. But, the chip itself is Intel HDA bus compatible, so it could work with the Intel southbridge chips' HDA bus, much like how those ALC850, ADI 1885 chips work. Now, this chip has no driver developed by Cirrus Logic and so depends on the Creative's driver and hence also comes with all the XFi dsps.




imperialreign said:


> I'm guessing so - I don't know as much about these cards, except for the fact that they're using the X-Fi APU and utilitize the same style memory ring hub as Creative's cards (due to the processing architecture of the X-Fi APU, they don't have much of a choice here); so, I figure the cards will probably still run into very similar problems that the Creative cards encounter, although, hopefully not as often or as severe.



Well, the XFi prelude at the outset, is a better card for audiophiles than gamers. Factoid: The XFi Xtreme Gamer line of cards perform better in games than the Elite Pro. Reason: too much circuitry increases latency. And in the same way, Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty professional outperforms the XFi Prelude. But the audio quality of the Auzen's card far exceeds any card ever made by creative, thanks to the God-grade analog circuity. And coupled with the Auzentech X-Tension DIN card, this card has more capabilities than the external module of the Elite Pro. The XFi prelude has a 116 dB SNR, beyond the original XFi specs. None of the Blue-cards you see in the pics above have the XFi APUs. Creative claims than any product that supports the XFi Crystalizer and CMSS 3D be deemed an XFi product. Did you know, Creative makes an XFi noise-cancelling headphone called the Creative Aurvana XFi ?

Yeah, I'm working out a mod based on the pinouts you gave me. 

...and I'm looking fwd eagerly for your capacitor mod. Please do a capacitor mod for the Audigy ZS too, If I had a PCB map of the Audigy, I'd have replaced the burnt cap long back.


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## imperialreign (Oct 13, 2007)

> No, the Auzentech XFi Prelude does have the 64 MiB X-RAM do you see those Micron Technology 256 Mb banks next to the CA 20K1?



yeah, I noticed that.  But, X-RAM is a different module on the cards, it's a 64MB chip - not the 256 Mb chips that all the cards have, those memory modules are to help out the buffers and filters more than anything else.  The X-RAM itself is for onboard audio file storage should a game support it.  I'll see if I can take the cover off the mem module on my card and snap a pic of it tomorrow . . .

I will say, though, that most of the cards I've seen only have one 256 Mb chip (even my high-end Creative).  Two of them buggars should really help the processor out and cut back on the card's BUS over-dependancy.  By the looks of them, I really don't think they'd ever have any problems what so ever, as long as Creative supplies them with non-faulty drivers.



> Yeah, some mobos from MSI feature a "XFi Audio" well actually this is a gimmick. On your card, you will see a small square chip from Cirrus Logic, that's the DAC. Now this tiny chip draws its processing from the CA 20K1 processor. But, the chip itself is Intel HDA bus compatible, so it could work with the Intel southbridge chips' HDA bus, much like how those ALC850, ADI 1885 chips work. Now, this chip has no driver developed by Cirrus Logic and so depends on the Creative's driver and hence also comes with all the XFi dsps.



so the "X-Fi" mobos are really just using the DAC?    The brilliance of marketing!



> Well, the XFi prelude at the outset, is a better card for audiophiles than gamers. Factoid: The XFi Xtreme Gamer line of cards perform better in games than the Elite Pro. Reason: too much circuitry increases latency. And in the same way, Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty professional outperforms the XFi Prelude. But the audio quality of the Auzen's card far exceeds any card ever made by creative, thanks to the God-grade analog circuity. And coupled with the Auzentech X-Tension DIN card, this card has more capabilities than the external module of the Elite Pro. The XFi prelude has a 116 dB SNR, beyond the original XFi specs. None of the Blue-cards you see in the pics above have the XFi APUs. Creative claims than any product that supports the XFi Crystalizer and CMSS 3D be deemed an XFi product.



I agree, Creative has gone full overboard with their marketing approach for the X-Fi's, which has left many people just broadsided by the equipments actual capabilities.  The lower end cards are farily weak (except for the XG), and I've tended to recommend to people to either grab an XG, or if you're willing to spend the extra $80, an Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro (I think they just call it the Fatal1ty at this point).  The XGFP is the head of the Creative line-up, and offers the best performance of the bunch, all the while packing 136db SNR and capable of handling up to 128 voices simultaneously - although, within Doom3 and Quake4, using the console, I've seen upwards of 160 seperate voice files loaded with no clipping.

But, you can't get that same power with the XG, XM, or the XA, there's a major difference in card architecture.  The next closest in Creative's lineup is the XG (which for some reason surprises a lot of people).

But, I defi know the Auzens are much better cards, but they can be quite a bit pricey, and no one within this region where I live carries them.  Again, part of the reason I recommend to people here to just grab an XGFP, $150 on the shelf, and audio is competitive with Auzens lower-end cards.  Most people won't hear any difference past this anyhow with their hoards of mp3's and youtube streams . . .

and defi on the caps mod - soon as I can get around to it and purchase all the caps I need to swap them all out - there's a friggin ton on my card.


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## btarunr (Oct 13, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> yeah, I noticed that.  But, X-RAM is a different module on the cards, it's a 64MB chip - not the 256 Mb chips that all the cards have, those memory modules are to help out the buffers and filters more than anything else.  The X-RAM itself is for onboard audio file storage should a game support it.  I'll see if I can take the cover off the mem module on my card and snap a pic of it tomorrow . . .
> 
> I will say, though, that most of the cards I've seen only have one 256 Mb chip (even my high-end Creative).  Two of them buggars should really help the processor out and cut back on the card's BUS over-dependancy.  By the looks of them, I really don't think they'd ever have any problems what so ever, as long as Creative supplies them with non-faulty drivers.
> 
> ...



First off, 256 Mb is 32 MB. And every XFi Card that has the X-RAM tag comes with two of these banks including the Elite Pro. 

The Elite Pro and XG FP have different PCB layouts. and the Elite Pro has two memory banks, one on each side of the PCB. Here, take a look at this babe, an Elite Pro:






And here's the back side:






Do you notice a 256 Mb bank above the sticker?

Now compare this PCB with that of your card, where both the banks sit beside the APU:






And there's nothing on the back side.

Yeah, you're right, Auzen cards cost an arm especially in a third-world nation like mine and I'm saving for one. Just love that card.


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## imperialreign (Oct 13, 2007)

sorry bout that, you're right on the X-RAM - that's what I get for debating something while drinking heavily!   I had just gotten confused on it . . .

Although, my card only has the one Micron chip right above the APU (sorry bout the poor image quality):






there's nothing on the backside of the card at all.  Y'know, makes me wonder . . . cause my card would have to have two of those chips to equal the advertised 64MB on the box - I think I'll have to pull the card out sometime today and look up the mem number on it.  Eventhough Creative says the onboard DRAM is only used for file storage in games that support it, that memory is used heavily by the APU when buffering voice files . . .

I tell ya it's hard to keep up with the new X-Fi revisions, seeing as how Creative tends to re-invent the PCB's and the lineup near about twice a year at this point.

Oh, did you want me to add you to the member list here?


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## btarunr (Oct 14, 2007)

Jeez...yours is SB046X rev 2U PCB. I really don't know if that single bank that your card has, is 512 Mb (64 MB). Yours looks to be MT. Only three vendors sell memory banks to CT today: MT (Micron Technology), Samsung, Hynix Hyundai. If there's something that looks like a mt (greek "mu" t) it has to be Micron Tech.

Send me its string (whatever is printed on the chip) and I'll tell you if its the expected 512 Mb.

On the back side of the PCB do you notice an unoccupied memory bank place-holder above the batch info sticker?

Yeah, add me as a member. I can solve problems as well.

The PCB your card has is exotic for the North American region, it's made by Creative's Singapore homebase for the Koren, Aussie and Japanese markets. Wonder how it got there. Decades later you could put it up in your living-room in a laminated shelf as an awesome show-piece. I did that that to my 1996 Creative Ensoniq ES1730 PCI card (all Japanese/American components, 0% Taiwan).


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## imperialreign (Oct 14, 2007)

> The PCB your card has is exotic for the North American region, it's made by Creative's Singapore homebase for the Koren, Aussie and Japanese markets. Wonder how it got there. Decades later you could put it up in your living-room in a laminated shelf as an awesome show-piece. I did that that to my 1996 Creative Ensoniq ES1730 PCI card (all Japanese/American components, 0% Taiwan).



 I had an Ensoniq, too - still layin around here somewhere, along with my old SB cards.  I've just about had the whole lineup: Sound Blaster 2.0, Sound Blaster Pro, Sound Blaster Pro 16, Sound Blaster AWE32 and a Sound Blaster Live!  I've considered, every now and then, to clean 'em up really well and build a shadow box for them.

(I also considered doing this for my 3DFx VooDoo3 3000 PCI)



> Yeah, add me as a member. I can solve problems as well.



Done, and glad to have the help, too 



> Send me its string (whatever is printed on the chip) and I'll tell you if its the expected 512 Mb.



yeah, it's the Micron 512 - MT 48LC32M16A2 - 8x16x4; and no, there isn't any unused mem socket on the back of the card.  The card is a completely different breed for the US market, even the Xtreme Audio card which has the same PCB dimensions and a similar look is different in architecture.  The XGFP is built for pure audio firepower, it's just that the quality of some of the caps is sub-par (Jamicons, which have been known for going thermo nuclear on these cards).  Granted, the XGFP can readily compete with Auzens lower end cards without too much of a hassel, but if one was to swap out the caps for higher quality components . . .


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## btarunr (Oct 14, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> yeah, it's the Micron 512 - MT 48LC32M16A2 - 8x16x4; and no, there isn't any unused mem socket on the back of the card.  The card is a completely different breed for the US market, even the Xtreme Audio card which has the same PCB dimensions and a similar look is different in architecture.  The XGFP is built for pure audio firepower, it's just that the quality of some of the caps is sub-par (Jamicons, which have been known for going thermo nuclear on these cards).  Granted, the XGFP can readily compete with Auzens lower end cards without too much of a hassel, but if one was to swap out the caps for higher quality components . . .



Right, the MT 48LC32M16A2 is a 512Mb bank.

Here's how to find out, for the MT chips -- 48LC*x*M*y*A2 : x*y=z where z is the capacity in megabits z/8 = capacity in megabytes.

So, for your chip, that'll be 32*16=512. 512/8 = 64. 

I need better capacitors badly since the place I live is very hot. The CA 20K1 is an absolute toaster, at full-load processing for EAX4 HD in Doom 3 for 30 minutes, the temp. for the APU goes upto 54 C. I'm working on a heatpipe mod once I buy the Auzen XFi prelude. This XG I'm using now will become my toy then, and on it, I can work out all my capacitor and heatpipe mods.


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## imperialreign (Oct 14, 2007)

> Right, the MT 48LC32M16A2 is a 512Mb bank.
> 
> Here's how to find out, for the MT chips -- 48LCxMyA2 : x*y=z where z is the capacity in megabits z/8 = capacity in megabytes.
> 
> So, for your chip, that'll be 32*16=512. 512/8 = 64.



Thanks!  I'll have to remember that seeing as how there's a ton of hardware that use MT components.



> I need better capacitors badly since the place I live is very hot. The CA 20K1 is an absolute toaster, at full-load processing for EAX4 HD in Doom 3 for 30 minutes, the temp. for the APU goes upto 54 C. I'm working on a heatpipe mod once I buy the Auzen XFi prelude. This XG I'm using now will become by toy then, and on it, I can work out all my capacitor and heatpipe mods.



I'm interested in hearing how the heat pipe mod works out for you, and what all is involved with doing that.  If your card has a heatsink over the APU, you can attach a 40mm chipset fan . . . although, the fan is a bit larger than the heatsink itself.  I'm still working on trying to remove the stock heatsink from the APU on mine - I think they used some form of thermal epoxy on it, as I just can't break it at all - rubbing alcohol and the use of an old credit card just can't loosen it, and I'm leary about using any stronger cleaner . . . acetone would destory the PCB, brakekleen could do so also . . . anyhow, once I get the buggar off, I plan on installing a 100% copper NSB cooler on it, and a 40m fan - I would just need to fashion some form of retention mechanism for the heatsink.

If you're looking to replace your caps, this is a "guide" I ran across that I plan on somewhat following:

x-fi cap replacement

if nothing else, it at least names high quality components to use - there are so many various component manufacturers, y'know?  But, I've done PCB repair before, so I'm not at all worried about damaging the card . . . not sure when I'll get to this, though . . . if nothing else, you should at least get the Jamicons off the card - especially if you live in a warm climate.


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## btarunr (Oct 14, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> Thanks!  I'll have to remember that seeing as how there's a ton of hardware that use MT components.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



 Dude! don't try to remove the heatsink off the PCB. That'll rip the chip off the board!!!
The CA 20K1 is soldered to the PCB using its weak ball-grid-array and the the conductive material between the chip and the heatsink is NOT a paste or gel by nature, rather a ceramic-silicone polymer that acts like quick-setting cement between two surfaces and is hard and the ceramic component of it acts as the thermal conductor. This material is a strong adhesive. So never attempt to pluck it off the chip!!!!

Here's what I have in plan: I'm using the same silicone-ceramic adhesive to fill each and every groove of the top side of the heatsink and using a mold made from match-boxes making a 12mm*12mm*4mm cuboid block in which during its semi-solid state, I'll dip two Al heatpipes, and keep it inside for the "cement" to set. After which the other end of the pipes will either go into a radiator the size of a deck of cards or I'll use a fusion block to connect a liquid cooler system. This trick will step-down the temp by upto 30 C. I'll make the radiator from the fins of one of our broken air-conditioner lying in the backyard. pipes come from Al suit hangers. And the thermal-cement come from Arctic Silver. And the whole assembly won't be suspended at the mercy of the chip's soldering with the PCB but I'm also working on a clip-clasp assembly that'll sling the thing onto the PCB like tiny bench-presses. I'll wire a pic once I make it, don't worry.


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## imperialreign (Oct 14, 2007)

> Dude! don't try to remove the heatsink off the PCB. That'll rip the chip off the board!!!
> The CA 20K1 is soldered to the PCB using its weak ball-grid-array and the the conductive material between the chip and the heatsink is NOT a paste or gel by nature, rather a ceramic-silicone polymer that acts like quick-setting cement between two surfaces and is hard and the ceramic component of it acts as the thermal conductor. This material is a strong adhesive. So never attempt to pluck it off the chip!!!!



Yeah, I had noticed the APU didn't look all that wonderfully attached, wich is why I didn't dare even think about doing any prying to the hsink.  The TIM has that distinctive greyish color of a form of epoxy or cement.  Some can be defeated though, but this stuff can't.  I was getting it soaked with some 90% rubbing alcohol, and then using an old credit card to 'saw' through the stuff, but it didn't do anything at all.  Which is why I've about given up on it.  Strong adhesive is an understatement.  I have chemicals at work that will eat right through any epoxy - but they're meant for working on cars!  That stuff would destroy a PCB.

It woulda been nice to have a card without a heatsink, which woulda given me the option of installing whatever I want . . .



> Here's what I have in plan: I'm using the same silicone-ceramic adhesive to fill each and every groove of the top side of the heatsink and using a mold made from match-boxes making a 12mm*12mm*4mm cuboid block in which during its semi-solid state, I'll dip two Al heatpipes, and keep it inside for the "cement" to set. After which the other end of the pipes will either go into a radiator the size of a deck of cards or I'll use a fusion block to connect a liquid cooler system. This trick will step-down the temp by upto 30 C. I'll make the radiator from the fins of one of our broken air-conditioner lying in the backyard. pipes come from Al suit hangers. And the thermal-cement come from Arctic Silver. And the whole assembly won't be suspended at the mercy of the chip's soldering with the PCB but I'm also working on a clip-clasp assembly that'll sling the thing onto the PCB like tiny bench-presses. I'll wire a pic once I make it, don't worry.



yeah, I defi want to see that.  I've got some other ideas for the stock heatsink seeing as how I've given up on removing it, I just got to think it over some more . . .


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## btarunr (Oct 15, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> It woulda been nice to have a card without a heatsink, which woulda given me the option of installing whatever I want . . .



No, thank God they put that heatsink. You already know that the first few batches of the XFi series didn't come with the heatsink and many cards from those batches had blown capacitors?
You know, that increase in temperature increases resistivity for conductors but decreases resistivity for semiconductors, right?

Now the CA 20K1 would soar to 57' c when doing multi-channel EAX HD processing in an ambient temperature of 20' c. And at 57 degrees, the conductor-part of the chip steps up resistance while the semiconductor part (internal micro-resistors, micro capacitors wheatstone/dhrystone bridges, etc) decrease resistance....which means the chip at that temperature becomes more "power-hungry". But all through the BGA, the PCB's wiring and the capacitors and clock-generators outside won't be able to meet the demand because their resistance just stepped up due to increase in temp. within a highly limited thermal envelope. So hence, many electrolytic caps "blow-up".....leak. Because more temperature = more power = clock-generator increasing capacitor discharge frequency = capacitors going bust eventually. 

So by adding the heatsink + TIM that steps up mfg cost by hardly a dollar, the CA 20K1 stays at a calculated lower temperature that'd keep other components safe enough.

Sure, we've modders, enthusiasts and nerds leaking in TPU Forums but not every common-man who's a audiophile with a Xtreme Music or a musician with an Elite Pro or a wanna-be teen gamer with an Xtreme Gamer would know much about cooling a sound-card's chipset, had the cards come without a heatsink. They'd use it just the way they're meant to be used, like any ordinary electronics consumer. After all, who would've imagined a couple of years ago that a sound-card would have heating-issues far worse than some video-cards? And who would've thought they'd have a 10 fn thousand MIPS of raw power into a chip the size of a postage stamp?


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## imperialreign (Oct 15, 2007)

> No, thank God they put that heatsink. You already know that the first few batches of the XFi series didn't come with the heatsink and many cards from those batches had blown capacitors?
> You know, that increase in temperature increases resistivity for conductors but decreases resistivity for semiconductors, right?



yeah, it was the biggest problem with the older cards - and part of the reason why the older cards were more prone to audio clipping, too.  I just meant that it'd be nice to be able to put a better cooler on it, y'know?  The stock one is decent, and gets the job done, but I'd still prefer cooler.  IDK, maybe with future revisions, they'll present a PCB that has chipset mounting holes like what is commonly used for a NSB or SSB cooler - either pushpins or a retention clip.

To be honest - when I first got my card and opened the box, I was shocked to see a heatsink on the APU.  It wasn't until I started researching the X-Fi APU that I realized just how powerful it really is.  Hell, even at it's 400MHz clock, it can perform more MIPS than a low end Pentium4 at 2GHz.


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## yzfboy (Oct 17, 2007)

Hello their you may be able to help me, i'am running a asus p5k deluxe wifi board a E6850 3 gig o/c to 4 gig 2x ati 2900xt's i purcashed the sb820 pci-e soundcard mainly because the 2 2900's cover the pci slots and installing this card takes down the crossfire option so only 1 2900 is shown all i can think is its a IRQ problem but not having much luck solving it ,the on board sound is ok but get bad feedback and hissing with the mic installed which you dont get with the creative card and the sound is much better so would like to use it but also crossfire my 2 cards cheers


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## imperialreign (Oct 18, 2007)

just to be certain, xFire did work before installing the X-Fi, right?

Have you tried re-installing ATI Catalyst after the X-Fi and driver's were installed?  If not, you might want to go ahead and give that a shot - use the ATI Software removal utility (found under the Add/Remove Programs control panel), and then reboot.  Once WIN boots back up, install whichever Catalyst drivers you're running, reboot, and see if Crossfire is available.


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## btarunr (Oct 18, 2007)

yzfboy said:


> Hello their you may be able to help me, i'am running a asus p5k deluxe wifi board a E6850 3 gig o/c to 4 gig 2x ati 2900xt's i purcashed the sb820 pci-e soundcard mainly because the 2 2900's cover the pci slots and installing this card takes down the crossfire option so only 1 2900 is shown all i can think is its a IRQ problem but not having much luck solving it ,the on board sound is ok but get bad feedback and hissing with the mic installed which you dont get with the creative card and the sound is much better so would like to use it but also crossfire my 2 cards cheers



Buddy, your board has a P35 chipset. Now, the P35 chipset has a total of 20 PCI-Express lanes in all. So, when you install two video-cards, the PEG lanes are not negotiated as x8 , x8 between the two cards, it's the other way round, the primary card gets a full 16 lane-width and the second card is supposed to get 4 lanes, so that's x16, x4 and not x8, x8 for your cards. Now any PCI Express video-card requires a number of PCIe lanes that's the multiple of 2 as in x2, x4, x8, x16 only. 

So remember I said that P35 has 20 lanes in all? now with 16 lanes for the first video-card and one lane to your sound-card, three lanes remain and the second video-card will not function.

Solution: Check your BIOS for PCIe lane negotiation options, which I doubt they exist for a P35 based board. Try removing the soundcard for the second vid-card to be detected.


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## yzfboy (Oct 18, 2007)

did that before and no difference crossfire worked before i installed the soundcard and when i removed it crossfire was back again ,my board as 2 pci-e slots for the soundcard and its same in both of them


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## btarunr (Oct 18, 2007)

yzfboy said:


> did that before and no difference crossfire worked before i installed the soundcard and when i removed it crossfire was back again ,my board as 2 pci-e slots for the soundcard and its same in both of them



That's the point:

You cannot have 2 video cards + the PCIe soundcard because out of the 20 available PCIe lanes from the P35:

16 go to the primary graphics card
1 goes to the sound card
3 remain, and a second video card cannot function on three lanes, it's asymmetric and the device stays disabled.

You can have 2 video cards OR 1 vid card and 1 snd card because:
16 go to the first card and 4 go to the second 
OR
16 go to the first card and 1 goes to the sound card.

Single lane devices get their lanes negotiated before multi-lane devices.


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## imperialreign (Oct 19, 2007)

> You cannot have 2 video cards + the PCIe soundcard because out of the 20 available PCIe lanes from the P35:
> 
> 16 go to the primary graphics card
> 1 goes to the sound card
> ...



he's absolutely right, I shoulda checked your mobo specs first (I didn't even think of it ).

Exactly which P5K board do you have?  ASUS P5K-E/WiFi or ASUS P5K Deluxe/WiFi?

check for setup options in the BIOS, there might be PCIE options listed under "Jumperfree Configuration" or the "Chipset" menu - they might also be labeled as PEG controls.  If there is an option titled 'PEG Port Force x1' . . . you could enabled that . . . it will force one of the x16 slots to x1 - not sure, but it might might force the primary slot to x1 . . . that might hurt your Crossfire performance significantly, though . . .


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## Deleted member 24505 (Oct 19, 2007)

is there a way to get a coaxial digital out from the extreme music? i know the flexijack does digital out with the module.

i did find this tho'


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## imperialreign (Oct 19, 2007)

I'll research it some - I think that you can run off the AUD_EXT pinout, but the S/PDIF pins follow the TTL interface, which is somthing like 5v/0v pulsed as compared to a coaxial connection which is .5v . . . so, I think you'd need to run a converter to correctly use it . . .


Honestly, man . . . this would probably be your best bet:

Creative Digital I/O Module



Creative used to make a S/PDIF digital I/O TTL <=> Coaxial internal converter module, but it was only for the Live! and Audigy SE series . . . maybe at some point they'll offer one for the X-Fis.


----------



## yzfboy (Oct 21, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> he's absolutely right, I shoulda checked your mobo specs first (I didn't even think of it ).
> 
> Exactly which P5K board do you have?  ASUS P5K-E/WiFi or ASUS P5K Deluxe/WiFi?
> 
> check for setup options in the BIOS, there might be PCIE options listed under "Jumperfree Configuration" or the "Chipset" menu - they might also be labeled as PEG controls.  If there is an option titled 'PEG Port Force x1' . . . you could enabled that . . . it will force one of the x16 slots to x1 - not sure, but it might might force the primary slot to x1 . . . that might hurt your Crossfire performance significantly, though . . .




its a P5K deluxe/wifi  i have stuck my audigy 2 in and thats fine but is covering my 2nd card quite alot ,i have put extra fans in to blow on the bottom card ,managed to stick the soundcard in a pci slot but the mic works fine now


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 21, 2007)

so . . . I'm a little confused . . . Do you currently have the X-Fi PCIE installed with your XTs?

Is it working at all, or . . . ?


----------



## yzfboy (Oct 22, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> so . . . I'm a little confused . . . Do you currently have the X-Fi PCIE installed with your XTs?
> 
> Is it working at all, or . . . ?




lol not pci-e using my well old pci card got a spare audigy 2 zs so managed to sqeeze that in between the 1st and 2nd card but like i say because its a full card it blocks part of the intack fan of the 1st card so not ideal but all working that way ,
could do with a smaller pci soundcard by this i mean shorter but i dont think creative do one or i could be wrong cheers kev


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 22, 2007)

well, if you've got enough room between the two GPUs for an Audigy, then you should easily have enough room for a X-Fi.  Granted, it'll be a bit of a squeeze by anymeans, but if case airflow from the front is on-par, then it shouldn't be a problem.  It's not like the back of the X-Fi card gets all that warm, anyhow.  It's a shame not much else can be done to get all 3 PCIE components to work properly, but it's also not worth sacrificing a rather expensive VGA adapter for a soundcard . . .

So, I guess you're going to return the X-Fi PCIE, then?  Or did you order it online?  I'm curious, though, how much are the PCIE versions running?


----------



## Morgoth (Oct 22, 2007)

can i join?


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 22, 2007)

> can i join?



sure, no prob . . . I'll add ya to the list . . .

sometime soon I really need to add more to the main post and organize it some more, too (I've just been a bit lazy recently)


----------



## btarunr (Oct 29, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> how much are the PCIE versions running?



There's only _one_ card in production from the X-Fi stable, and that's the Xtreme Audio PCI-Express. The lowest price from an online store is from Newegg, click here 

Many regard this as the worst sound-card from Creative till date.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 29, 2007)

wow, that's cheaper than even the low end PCI cards.



> Many regard this as the worst sound-card from Creative till date



reviews have been that bad, huh?  I haven't even had the time to research it at all over the last few weeks . . . somehow, though, it doesn't surprise me . . .


----------



## btarunr (Oct 30, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> reviews have been that bad, huh?



Yes. Infact Creative isn't entirely responsible for this, it's the direction in which the industry is moving which it to be blamed. 

While a common man like you and I would think of PCI Express as an advancement of the computer bus and that we have to make a shift to this bus, the biggest flaw with the PCI Express is that it greatly affects devices that hate electromagnetic-interference like sound-cards and video-capture devices. 

Reason: The PCI Express is a bi-directional bus, in which data moves in both directions per clock-cycle, and the clock-speed of the bus itself is high. The clock-generator is located inside the hub, usually the northbridge. Now, data moving in both directions causes 'collisions' of data streams much like how we had 'packet collisions' in our networks before CSMA-CD. 

Result: With 16 or more PCIe lanes going to a video-card, you can expect huge levels of EMI within the hub despite the PCIe itself being a 'non-shared' bus like the PCI.

Impact: Devices sensitive to EMI like sound-cards and HDTV-capture cards experience loss of output quality.

PCI must survive.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 30, 2007)

> Result: With 16 or more PCIe lanes going to a video-card, you can expect huge levels of EMI within the hub despite the PCIe itself being a 'non-shared' bus like the PCI.
> 
> Impact: Devices sensitive to EMI like sound-cards and HDTV-capture cards experience loss of output quality.



agreed!  and for anyone else that might not be aware of it, there's a section in post #1 that covers various EMI with the X-Fi.

But, the only reason I had originally figured they wanted to move towards PCIE was because of how much of a BUS hog the X-Fi is.  There are far too many generic, OEM and low to mid range motherboards on the market that don't negotiate the PCI BUS well and it leads to a lot of audio clipping.  Someone going out and buying a mid-range eMachines or Dell and then trying to upgrade to a XGFP might not be happy with how the card sounds in-game.

I agree, too, that PCI must continue, and I'm sure within the next couple of years we might actually see another advancement in the PCI architecture as it is.  There's no way Creative would be dumb enough to develop an AGP card, considering that AGP is very slowly being phased out . . . but if their next gen audio processors are more powerful than the X-Fi, they'll have to do something . . .


----------



## mysticjon (Nov 1, 2007)

hey i have owned an soundblaster x-fi fatal1ty edition for sometime, sorry if this has been mentioned before, but does the red LED that illuminates the fatal1ty block on the card, can it be taken off.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 1, 2007)

potentially, it doesn't look that hard to do.  My only reservation, I don't know if those circuits feed any other component on the card.

If you're trying to keep them from lighting up, remove the two screws that hold the LED cover in place, and on the inside of it, you can put a small piece of electrical tape or duct tape to cover where the Fatal1ty logo shows through.  It'll block the LEDs from illuminating it.

If you have the guts to take the risk, though, the two LEDs should unsolder from the PCB without much of a problem - but that's your call, you could seriously damage the card doing so . . .


----------



## mysticjon (Nov 1, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> potentially, it doesn't look that hard to do.  My only reservation, I don't know if those circuits feed any other component on the card.
> 
> If you're trying to keep them from lighting up, remove the two screws that hold the LED cover in place, and on the inside of it, you can put a small piece of electrical tape or duct tape to cover where the Fatal1ty logo shows through.  It'll block the LEDs from illuminating it.
> 
> If you have the guts to take the risk, though, the two LEDs should unsolder from the PCB without much of a problem - but that's your call, you could seriously damage the card doing so . . .



yeah thank you, i wasnt sure if somehow the the circuits powering the LED were intertwined with other circuits that could be useful in other areas of the card. i actually wanted to switch out the LED to a different color and used "less" power" if thats even the case.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Nov 1, 2007)

I think it would be safe to remove the leds,why would the circuit neet to be for anything else.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 1, 2007)

> I think it would be safe to remove the leds,why would the circuit neet to be for anything else.



I would tend to agree - but you can never be sure sometimes, y'know?



> i actually wanted to switch out the LED to a different color and used "less" power" if thats even the case



that's defi doable.  Again, they'll have to be removed with a soldering gun and installed the same way, but it's not too hard if your careful.

I'm not sure on the voltage spec for the LEDs, though.  I couldn't imagine that they'd be 12v, and I eve doubt 5v.  More than likely they're either 3.3v or 1.2v LED - if they're in series with each other, probably 1.2.  Anyhow, you can either take a voltage reading at the LED pins themself - or just go ahead and try replacing them with a different unit.  

If you do notice any markings on them, try googling them and see if you can run across some specs for them.


----------



## namrac (Nov 5, 2007)

*X-FI  Fatal1ty Professional Series High Pitch Noise*

I have had this card for 3 weeks now and I can't seem to get the card to work all the time. The problem is every few hours or more of gaming the card goes to a high pitch constant sound that can only be stopped by rebooting. If I change to a different mode in the console it will stop the screech however the card will not work (no sound or Mic) until a reboot. I have requested a refund from newegg however I still have a few more day to solve this before I have to send it back and throw away $27 dollars and I love the sound! This is a problem that other people have since it is on creative forum with no one having a clue how to resolve this.


This is the thread on creative if interested 

http://forums.creative.com/creative...essage.id=76653&view=by_date_ascending&page=8

HELP !! 

Asus P5N3sli Premium
Intel Duel Core 6600 3gh oc
2 Gig Ram
SLI Mode 2 EVGA 8800 GTS Cards
Antec 900 case
Roswell 650w CERTI SLI power
XP service pack 2 lastest
ALL Drivers Bios etc are latest


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 5, 2007)

a few questions right off the back . . .

1.  What X-Fi model do you have?  And, which interface does it use, PCIE or PCI?

2.  Did your X-Fi come with a heatsink over top the audio processor?

3.  Aside from your 2 8800s, do you have any other adapter cards installed in any of the PCIE or PCI slots?

4.  What on-board hardware do you have _enabled_, and you do have onboard _disabled_, correct?

It sounds to me like it's either an overheating issue, the card is losing control of the PCI BUS, or its interrupt isn't being answered by the motherboard's chipset.


----------



## namrac (Nov 5, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> a few questions right off the back . . .
> 
> 1.  What X-Fi model do you have?  And, which interface does it use, PCIE or PCI?
> 
> ...



I believe it is an interrupt by reading the hundreds of posts on creative. Some say this card cannot share an interrupt and that is the problem.

Thanks for the quick reply


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 5, 2007)

I don't think the onboard NICs would interfere with the PCI BUS, so that shouldn't be an issue . . .

Do you have an option in BIOS that allows you to adjust the PCI slot latency?  If so, try bumping the PCI latency from [32] to [64] or from [64] to [96] (depending on the default value).  This _may_ help.

Also, you have WIN XP installed, not WIN Media Center Edition, correct (wanted to make sure, as some programs look at MCE as XP)?


Out of curiosity, do you have this audio problem if you only run one GPU?


----------



## namrac (Nov 6, 2007)

Yes I am running XP and I will check on the other things tonight. I have not tried to run just one PGU however many others have posted that even 1 gpu and sli board will cause this problem.   Out of curiosity did you happen to look at that thread  I posted on my previous message I know that you are very knowledgeable about this and may find it interesting reading.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 6, 2007)

The only reason I asked if you still had the issue with only one GPU installed, is that would tell me it's definitely a problem with the chipset not negotiating the BUS correctly, and allowing the two GPUs to have more control than they should.

Even one GPU on an nVidia chipset is known to cause this problem, too . . .

Increasing the PCI latency of the BUS might help the audio card to retain control of the BUS long enough it can carry out it's business, but it won't always work, either.


I just get the feeling this might be out of my ability to help solve as I'm fairly certain it's a conflict problem on the hardware level.  I'll still try to help you pinpoint exactly where or what is causing the problem, though.

Check with nVidia to see if there are any chipset/INF updates (ASUS _should_ have the newest updates available on their site).  But, you might have to continue to pester ASUS, nVidia and Creative over this issue.



> Out of curiosity did you happen to look at that thread I posted on my previous message I know that you are very knowledgeable about this and may find it interesting reading.



I only kind of glanced over it, I haven't had the time yet to read through most of the thread.  I do intend to, though.


----------



## namrac (Nov 7, 2007)

Thank you for your time I had to make a decision today either keep the card and trouble shoot  without hope or send it back to Newegg for a full refund (man I love Newegg). I decided to pickup a Barracuda AC-1 gaming audio card since it has been reported that there are no bugs for my chipset. Thanks for your time and help on this matter. BTW does it bother you that Creative has known about this forever and has not addressed it as of yet. 

I did try what you suggested and still got the screech which is why I sent card back this morning.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 7, 2007)

> Thanks for your time and help on this matter. BTW does it bother you that Creative has known about this forever and has not addressed it as of yet.



hey, it's no problem, man.  You gotta do what you gotta do.

I can't really say that it bothers me, but I think it's rather pittiful on Creative's part - my own opinion, I don't think they spent enough time product testing the X-Fis before going to market with them.  Also, the numerous problems with only nVidia chipsets has a bit to do with nVidia's architecture - they've designed chipsets in the past that allow the graphics card(s) to have almost full reign of the BUS.  It allows for much better frame rates and performance, which is what they're after.  I don't really like it, but it's how they do things.  Creative just didn't really take the time to research and address the issue.

Best of luck with your new card, man!


----------



## segovich (Nov 8, 2007)

*New Driver for X-Fi extreme music*

Hi *imperialreign* I need some help, something interesting happened to me today, I have a year and half old X-Fi extreme music card, from the beginning was working kind of ok some pop and clicks but hell I get used to it! but then one day after I booted up the machine started doing some kind of a high pitched noise, the only way to get rid of it was booting again! and it became an every day practice for months just around July 2007 I installed again my windows Xp due to a new harddrive installation and I found from TECHPOWERUP website a BETA Driver downloaded and was working flawlessly until TODAY

http://www.techpowerup.com/?35990

well the driver I had timed out today was very difficult for me to put my machine back to work after I tried using the latest 2006 driver from sound blaster website my machine crashed and was into an infinite loop until I cleaned the drivers leftover in SAFEMODE and physically pulled out the card from the PC 

for now I'm using the stinking on board audio very sad that SB doesn't release any newer driver the the 2006 and solve a lot of the existing problems!

how we can use that beta driver unlocking the due date? there any solutions??
Thanks!

my machine is (no over clock):
AMD X2 4800+
MSI K8N NEO4 platinum NF4 ultra PCB1.0
2GB RAM OCZ DDR400
EVGA 7900GT KO SC 512MB
2 WD Raptors RAid 0 74GB 
4 WD5000AAKS
Thermaltake TR2 500 PS


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## imperialreign (Nov 8, 2007)

well, if the beta driver timed out, there isn't much you can do about that, honestly.  Sometimes, manufacturers will 'time' their beta drivers during their testing period.

Just to make sure, have you checked for any updates to your motherboard BIOS and motherboard's chipsets?

To be honest, it sounds more like a hardware problem with the card - the drivers for it have nothing to do with any sound the device might put out when the system in initially booted up . . . the driver doesn't come into play until WIN starts to boot.  First, though, check you speaker connections on the back of the card.  A loose plug, or one that is falling out can pickup feedback when the system boots and the card is powered up.

If your speaker connections are alright, and if possible, you might want to try installing the X-Fi into a different PCI slot.  Turn off the computer, move the audio card to a different slot, and boot up.  If you don't have the issue that you had before, you should be alright, but that would indicate that there might be a problem with the motherboard.  If everything seems alright with the card in a different slot, turn the computer back off, remove the audio card and reboot, then, remove all the drivers from WIN using the driver setup utility in the C:\Program Files\Creative\Sound Blaster X-FI\Program directory.  Then run a registry cleaner, if you have one, and remove all the old Creative driver references.  Turn the computer off, re-install the X-Fi into the good slot, boot up and install the driver from the installation CD.  

Let me know how that works out for ya!


----------



## segovich (Nov 9, 2007)

*imperialreign * the X-Fi problem is a combination of hardware and software problem, it is well known that X-Fi cards have incompatibility issues with NFORCE chipsets nothing new there  but the questions is that the beta driver I had was working ok much better than the one I used before from the creative website, now because expired we don't have a replacement until today I found this link I will try that later I'm lazy to open the machine again

http://connect.creativelabs.com/beta/default.aspx

thanks!
Leo


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 9, 2007)

yeah, the first chipset that was recognized as actually having a problem was the NF4s.  I would've recommended the beta driver sooner, I guess I just got confused as to what you were explaining.  No problem.

If in the future you need to check on what the most current drivers are, both beta and alpha, check post #1 in this thread - I update the listed driver numbers as soon as I notice that there has been a newer release.  Plus, there are links to where the most current drivers can be obtained.


----------



## namrac (Nov 9, 2007)

WOW I wonder if this beta would have helped me with my problem? I guess I will never know until I find a cheap X-FI somewhere just to satisfy my curiosity.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 9, 2007)

> WOW I wonder if this beta would have helped me with my problem? I guess I will never know until I find a cheap X-FI somewhere just to satisfy my curiosity.



Maybe - but I typically don't recommend installing beta drivers for what is typically a hardware conflict, simply because beta drivers aren't supported and could cause more problems than they're worth . . .

it would really help, though, if Creative would mention what the beta drivers are supposed to address and for what cards and OSes they're released for, instead of just posting them with no desccription about them.


----------



## segovich (Nov 9, 2007)

I'm very surprised that Creative Labs is still in business with such a lousy customer service and support we need another company to produce something and put some pressure on them, just  like between Nvidia and ATI

hails
LEO
PS. The Beta one was working perfect for me!


----------



## btarunr (Nov 10, 2007)

segovich said:


> another company to produce something and put some pressure on them, just  like between Nvidia and ATI.



Creative already has pressure, from the el-cheapo AC'97 / HDA compliant audio-codec manufacturers, like those of Realtek, Analog Devices, C-Media, etc. People either choose a Creative card or stick to the audio their motherboards came with, that's the competition Creative faces with. Now since these audio-codec mfgs don't have a customer support of their own since the motherboard manufacturers like Intel, Asus, MSI, etc manage technical support of the audio-codec as well, you very well know the standards of tech-support from Intel or Asus. 

In another way, there's no pressure on Creative because they're the only manufacturers of hardware-accelerated audio. We had Nvidia SoundStorm about five years ago, which was a little more capable than X-Fi, with the function of real-time Dolby-Digital encoding, something even the powerful X-Fi can't handle. But Nvidia was stupid-enough to stop it's production. The day they modify the SoundStorm to function on discrete PCI / PCIe add-on cards, it's good-bye Creative.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 10, 2007)

> In another way, there's no pressure on Creative because they're the only manufacturers of hardware-accelerated audio.



Vista would've leveled the playing field in this area - but Creative has found a work-around with the Alchemy drivers.  But, anytime that there is a strong competitor to Creative that comes along, either the go out of business or just stop produncing any audio hardware.  The SoundStorm is a good example - remember the Ensoniq PCI?  First audio card to use a multichannel design and DirectSound3D . . . until Creative bought them out.


----------



## btarunr (Nov 11, 2007)

Nyaah. The ALchemy thing didn't really improve things very much. Sure you get multi-channel audio from the games that were originally coded for the DirectSound 3D and the EAX extensions, but all you get is the multi-channel positional audio and _not_ the brilliant reverb and environment-specific effects that the CA 20K1 and EAX 5.0 HD were originally made for....what a waste!

ALchemy is basically a compatibility layer between the application's DirectSound commands and the operating-system's OpenAL api. Windows Vista lacks DirectSound. So all those pre-Vista games that had those amazing multi-channel audio effects that relied on DirectSound, now send their commands to the OS HAL, and ALchemy forms a pre-layer to the HAL and captures these commands, translates them into OpenAL commands and sends it to the ICD (Installable client driver). Stacks from here now go to the OS kernel and finally to the hardware. ALchemy can't translate EAX 5 commands and hence, it's goodbye EAX for us. So this completely defeats the purpose of having a 10000+ MIPS audio processor.


----------



## btarunr (Nov 13, 2007)

Today is a Red-letter day. I bought and installed an Auzen X-Fi Prelude.  Wow! what a sound !!! I was listening to a DTS encoded movie and the sound of an aircraft flying above actually made me look up with reflex. Only a second later I realised it came from the speakers. 

Okay, so with the entry of this card my old one, an Xtreme Gamer is now my lab-mouse. I'm buying solid-state capacitors to replace all the electrolytic ones on the card. Also to follow, is the heatsink mod. Any suggestions on which brands and makes of capacitors I should be using, would be appreciated. 

Oh yeah...my first mod for the Xtreme Gamer: Gold electro-plating of the expansion bracket.


----------



## Morgoth (Nov 13, 2007)

anny one knows if Creative X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro PCI supports dual channel sound recording?


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 13, 2007)

> Today is a Red-letter day. I bought and installed an Auzen X-Fi Prelude. Wow! what a sound !!! I was listening to a DTS encoded movie and the sound of an aircraft flying above actually made me look up with reflex. Only a second later I realised it came from the speakers.
> 
> Okay, so with the entry of this card my old one, an Xtreme Gamer is now my lab-mouse. I'm buying solid-state capacitors to replace all the electrolytic ones on the card. Also to follow, is the heatsink mod. Any suggestions on which brands and makes of capacitors I should be using, would be appreciated.
> 
> Oh yeah...my first mod for the Xtreme Gamer: Gold electro-plating of the expansion bracket.



I'm defi interested how the cap mod will turn out - as I plan on doing that as soon as I can afford to.  I posted somewhere in this thread a link to a "guide" that lists good parts . . . it might be worthwhile to ask on a circuit forum, people that work on PCBs all the time, y'know?

But, I'd defi like to hear how a modded X-Fi compares to a Prelude.  I've heard rumor here and there that they're very comparable, I'd just like some confirmation 





> anny one knows if Creative X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro PCI supports dual channel sound recording?



I believe so . . . I haven't done any recording with it yet . . . I'm not sure how well dual channel would turn out using just the mic input on the back of the card - you may need to snag the I/O console of Front Panel to have good seperate L/R inputs.

I'm certain the card can do that kind of work, but I don't know about Creative's bundled software.  Your best bet would be to look into a copy of SoundForge.  It'll give you much better support than Creative's software.


----------



## btarunr (Nov 15, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> I plan on doing that as soon as I can afford to.



Afford to do so? In a context, a fresh set of caps from say Matsushita Japan wouldn't cost you over $20 if you go to a good components store. In another context, yes you'd need some first-rate soldering equipment.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 15, 2007)

Oh, I've got the equipment, that's not an issue - it's just around here, we don't have many places that sell decent circuit components to the public.  The few that do only sell sub-par stuff.  It'd be better to order online - but I want to get my current bills down some more first.


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## btarunr (Nov 16, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> Oh, I've got the equipment, that's not an issue - it's just around here, we don't have many places that sell decent circuit components to the public.  The few that do only sell sub-par stuff.  It'd be better to order online - but I want to get my current bills down some more first.



Discount equipment? Nope. I'm talking retail prices here. 

Futurelec.com is for you


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## imperialreign (Nov 16, 2007)

I'll take a look around there at capacitor prices and whatnot . . . at least I don't need to buy the soldering equipment and all, my equipment is old but still works great.


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## btarunr (Nov 17, 2007)

Sure, besides equipment what we need is the precision when it comes to the slum of capacitors that's located near the audio ports. The caps there are just so jam-packed. My soldering gun is over 6 years old. And yes, it's not very high-end. Just that is has a wooden handle that has all those Indian carving art on it. I even modded a soldering gun...haha.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 17, 2007)

> I even modded a soldering gun...haha.



LOL!!  That's hardcore, man! 

That qoute just might get put into my sig, too!


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## imperialreign (Nov 30, 2007)

<BUMP>


All seems to be quiet on the X-Fi front . . . I haven't run across any news or updates, etc . . . I'm planning on adding some more to post #1 this weekend . . .


----------



## btarunr (Nov 30, 2007)

imperialreign said:


> <BUMP>
> 
> 
> All seems to be quiet on the X-Fi front . . . I haven't run across any news or updates, etc . . . I'm planning on adding some more to post #1 this weekend . . .



Unlike all those non- X-Fi users who piss and moan at Creative, we think differently. Our sound-cards are trouble-free. So this thread not having updates is a good sign

Just installed 7.1 speakers to the Auzen card. Man..this sounds noisy than immersive in comparison to 5.1.


----------



## Batou1986 (Nov 30, 2007)

might wana add on there not to try creatives new beta drivers for ut3 cause they don't work at all killed my sound in windows and there a PITA to remove


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 5, 2007)

> might wana add on there not to try creatives new beta drivers for ut3 cause they don't work at all killed my sound in windows and there a PITA to remove



I'll make a mention about it.  Betas are kinda a "use at your own risk" sorta deal.  It'd be nice, though, if Creative would specify what the beta is trying to address, y'know?



> Unlike all those non- X-Fi users who piss and moan at Creative, we think differently. Our sound-cards are trouble-free. So this thread not having updates is a good sign
> 
> Just installed 7.1 speakers to the Auzen card. Man..this sounds noisy than immersive in comparison to 5.1.



Honestly, I really don't get what the big deal is with people's gripes against Creative.  Sure, Creative's Tech Support is pure crap at this point, but everyone seems to forget just how many different motherboards, processors, VGA adapters, network adapters, DRAM modules, etc are on the market nowadays as compared to 10 years ago - it's almost impossible to not have issues with some hardware sooner or later down the line.  

Also funny how many people that bitch about Creative have never used their products, or, bought the cheapest thing they could find, or some hand-me-down part off of ebay and whine when it doesn't work right with other legacy components.


----------



## btarunr (Dec 6, 2007)

What pisses me off about these Creative haters is that they don't want to spend on good sound. but spend heavily on video cards saying:

"My Realtek 'sounds' just as good as your XFi when not gaming, and just listening to music"

My reply:
"Yeah? then an Intel Extreme graphics 'looks' just as good as your 8800 GTX when not gaming and in 2D".

The point is you need both, performance and quality. An 8800 GTX can give you both (Even a 2900 XT can  ), just as an XFi does.

Their biggest complaint about Creative is of the drivers being too "complicated". Pray how? On the other hand they're smart enough to do CPU modding, overclocking, video-card flashing and shit (how ironic).

I'd much rather spend $500 on a 8800 GTS and a X-Fi XG Pro than on a single 8800 GTX. These people lack buying sense. They don't realize that they're not only missing better sound quality but also genuinely high overall system performance.




Tidbit: The X-Fi processor, CA-20K1 was originally designed by the VLSI team of E-MU. E-MU designed all the audio-processors for Creative even after the takeover. Even when the X-Fi released the processor was originally called EMU-20K (successor of the EMU10K that drove the Audigy ZS). Creative renamed it to CA-20K1. The "1"  for an added 8-bit ring-bus to the 64bit ringbus that connects the processor's logic. The "CA" meaning Creative was a clear indication that Creative would be licensing the processor to 3rd parties like Auzen, and it would be inappropriate carrying "EMU", a subsidy.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 6, 2007)

I completely understand - but, I think a lot of people have gotten wrapped up in all the hardware that review sites are pushing; and the lack of follow up reviews to the same product . . . like, with the first gen X-Fi cards, how the caps went thermo nuclear and people were complaining left and right - but no one corrected their arguments when Creative corrected the problem and, to the best of my knowledge, it hasn't been a problem since.

Or - the issues with the X-Fi's and nVidia chipsets and GPU's . . . everyone blames Creative for designing a product that isn't 100% hardware compatible, even though with the nVidia hardware, the chipset doesn't want to give up the GPU's reign of the BUS . . . and needless to say, Creative's products weren't the only hardware experiencing problems with those pieces of equipment.



TBH, my absolute biggest gripe with people complaining about their audio playback - is when they start ranting that they spent $100+ amount on a supposed "leading audio card (X-Fi)" and the audio playback still sounds like butt . . . then you realize they're running on some $10 2.1 setup or, my absolute favorite, a $300 set of flat panel speakers with no sub woofer :shadedshu


----------



## btarunr (Dec 6, 2007)

X-Fi cards run just fine with NForce. I had a NF 570 Ultra and there were no issues. Issues are something people cook up as lame excuses because they don't want to buy a $100 sound card for playing their YouTube streams (low-quality encoded audio) and porn (that's all loud screams of enacted orgasm, for which they lower the volume anyway), their Realtek chips the size of a 10yr old's finger-nail can do the job. When gaming, the el-fatto Crossfire or SLI setup compensates the choppy audio with better visual experience.

The best equipment to test the output quality of a sound card is a good pair of noise-canceling headphone, any brand would do. Infact, I'd strongly recommend you to buy the Creative HN-605 for $40. This is a giant-killer. Use this with your XFi to listen to http://somafm.com/groovesalad48.pls using Winamp with the Crystalizer turned on to medium. Listen for 30 minutes. It's a 64 kbps AAC stream that'll easily sound better than lossless WMA. You'd want to pull your card out at once and kiss it.


Explanation: The AAC+ is so encoded that every MPEG frame of audio data has different kbps size to suit the fidelity of the the stream. And the CA20K1 is capable to hardware-decode AAC in realtime with Winamp 5.5 's in_mp3 plugin. Being a Windows XP user, make sure you use DirectSound and not Wave_out as your Winamp output plugin, else no hardware decoding. Vista users are unlucky, no DSound. Nullsoft is working on a OpenAL plugin.


----------



## yzfboy (Dec 6, 2007)

i solved my problem while trying to run 2 x 2900xt and xfi together ,the answer was to sell the 2 2900;s and buy a 8800gtx and put that in with the xfi and works a treat .their wasnt room for the creative card running crossfire so they had to go as on board sound isnt up to much even when it says it 7.1  and anyway the 8800gtx is better than the 2 2900;s was anyway so its win win  ,but its true people buy expensive vid cards and forget about sound  it makes the game's come alive just as much as the graphics does


----------



## btarunr (Dec 6, 2007)

Performance-wise,   1x 8800 GTX <<< 2x HD 2900 XT. 

Absolutely nothing can prove that wrong.


----------



## yzfboy (Dec 6, 2007)

btarunr said:


> Performance-wise,   1x 8800 GTX <<< 2x HD 2900 XT.
> 
> Absolutely nothing can prove that wrong.




 i can cos run it on my system and telling u 1 8800gtx o/c edition is better than 2 2900xt's on crysis the xt s on high settings run choppy but playable on the 8800gtx smooth as silk and noticed hlf2 episode 2 runs better on the gtx and thats a ati game  but to be honest i was a big ati fan but not anymore


----------



## btarunr (Dec 6, 2007)

benchmarks, son. show me one popular reviewer chart or review showing 1 8800 GTX > 2 2900 XT, regardless of the 8800 being OC'ed.


----------



## yzfboy (Dec 6, 2007)

btarunr said:


> benchmarks, son. show me one popular reviewer chart or review showing 1 8800 GTX > 2 2900 XT, regardless of the 8800 being OC'ed.




lol oh no i found the person who plays benchmarks and not real games  dont care what benchmarks say it when u play the game you notice the difference ,
i can remember a few years ago 1 of the so called big 2 wrote a program into the bios of their card so when u run say 3dmark 05 it turned loads of stuff off or down and then it had really good benchmarks  anyway dont wont to get into a argument about it  just said wot i found using both set ups


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 6, 2007)

> i solved my problem while trying to run 2 x 2900xt and xfi together ,the answer was to sell the 2 2900;s and buy a 8800gtx and put that in with the xfi and works a treat .their wasnt room for the creative card running crossfire so they had to go as on board sound isnt up to much even when it says it 7.1  and anyway the 8800gtx is better than the 2 2900;s was anyway so its win win  ,but its true people buy expensive vid cards and forget about sound  it makes the game's come alive just as much as the graphics does



yeah, I had to re-arrange my PCI layout when I got my 2nd 1950.  I don't like having my X-Fi being neighbor to a power hungry GPU.  Thankfully, my mobo has enough slots that I was able to keep everything seperate enough for my taste.



> The best equipment to test the output quality of a sound card is a good pair of noise-canceling headphone, any brand would do. Infact, I'd strongly recommend you to buy the Creative HN-605 for $40. This is a giant-killer. Use this with your XFi to listen to http://somafm.com/groovesalad48.pls using Winamp with the Crystalizer turned on to medium. Listen for 30 minutes. It's a 64 kbps AAC stream that'll easily sound better than lossless WMA. You'd want to pull your card out at once and kiss it.



I've actually been looking into another, better headset than what I currently have.  Granted, my headset isn't some cheap, junk model . . . I just think it could be better.  I only use a headset when gaming or working late at night, otherwise I've got a decent speaker setup for whatever.

I'll check that dl out a bit later for sure, it's got my curiosity.  TBH, I've got a few specific tracks on my system that I use for "fine-tuning" the software mixers and all, mostly because the audio range in the tracks is phenomenal, and being digitally recorded music, there is so many different layers to each track that it's easy to tune to my tastes . . . but, I still find it amazing tracks like that, though - because ever time you listen to it, you notice something else that you never heard before, and it breathes life back into the recording.  If you ever want to check any of it out, you can PM me.

Plus, having an audio processor that can handle and reproduce that kind of a range is key - I've listened to those tracks in my car's beefed setup, or on other peoples computers, even on some high-end shelf units . . . and I still feel that the best sounding playback is with my X-Fi . . . 


. . . except for that super high $1500 Pioneer audio system . . . unbelievable


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 14, 2007)

<bump>


all quiet on the Creative front . . . it's been quiet, too quiet, to say the least.  There have been a couple of new product releases, but no PC hardware.

I just realized this thread has had over 3,000 views in the 2 and a half months it's been up, but not too many problems have surfaced (which is good, IMO).  I can only assume, then, that people have found a use for it, which is great.


----------



## grunt_408 (Dec 14, 2007)

Hi I did have a problem with my old drivers... They were always switching to 2 channel mode and I was forever having to go back and change to 5.1. I updated the driver and voila problem solved.


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## imperialreign (Dec 14, 2007)

That's kinda odd, but defi was a driver issue.  Only thing I can think of on that was your initial drivers might not have installed correctly.

At least it's working for you now, man.


----------



## grunt_408 (Dec 15, 2007)

I was using the same driver with my last rig and had the same issue... I put it down to the fact I was using a VIA chipset at the time maybe a conflict,  but when it done the same thing with my P35 I started to wonder and in the end found it was the driver!


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 15, 2007)

Thanks for that info - I hadn't realized there were some driver issues causing the hardware to revert back to 2 channel mode.  I'll look into it some more and decide if it needs to go on the front page.


----------



## grunt_408 (Dec 15, 2007)

Yep I have the audigy 4 series card. I am sorry I cannot tell you what driver version it was. (I threw the disc out)


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## imperialreign (Dec 22, 2007)

> Yep I have the audigy 4 series card. I am sorry I cannot tell you what driver version it was. (I threw the disc out)



maybe it was only the Audigy's, then, as I haven't found anything on X-Fi's acting like that.

Anyhow . . . <bump>


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## imperialreign (Dec 24, 2007)

Alchemy drivers have been updated to version 1.00.30.  Taken from Creative's website:



> This download is an application for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices. It restores 3D audio and EAX® effects for certain DirectSound®3D games in Microsoft® Windows Vista™. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> This download supports the following audio devices only:
> 
> ...



you can download them here: Creative Alchemy


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## Deleted member 24505 (Dec 26, 2007)

I have just bought this program-

http://melloware.com/products/intelliremote/

Manual-

http://melloware.com/products/intelliremote/Intelliremote User Manual.pdf







It is called intelliremote,heres a quick summary-

Intelliremote is a software program that replaces the cumbersome Creative Remotecenter software that is bundled with Soundblaster Live!, Audigy, and X-Fi models. Intelliremote also replaces the EHTray application for Microsoft Windows Media Center. Creative and Microsoft had an excellent idea bundling an infrared remote control with their products...it's just to bad the software doesn't even do what you want it to do! 

Intelliremote is roughly 900K in size, and it packs the punch of Microsoft's Intellitype instructions. So any application can be controlled with the IR remote that "listens" for Intellitype messages such as ITunes, Winamp, BSPlayer, Foobar2000, VLC, Windows Media Player, and many more! Each remote key can be assigned to an instruction, a mouse event, application event, or even a windows automation script. 

If anyone has a creative or vista remote and wants a better program to run it,PM me and i will send you it,or the exe that unlocks it.I doubt i will be allowed to post it on here even tho' i have just paid for it.


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## imperialreign (Dec 26, 2007)

> It is called intelliremote,heres a quick summary-
> 
> Intelliremote is a software program that replaces the cumbersome Creative Remotecenter software that is bundled with Soundblaster Live!, Audigy, and X-Fi models. Intelliremote also replaces the EHTray application for Microsoft Windows Media Center. Creative and Microsoft had an excellent idea bundling an infrared remote control with their products...it's just to bad the software doesn't even do what you want it to do!
> 
> ...



Nice find, man!  Let me know how well that works out for you with all the available features and all - I might add that info to the main post . . . looks like it'd come quite in handy for remote control users!


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## Deleted member 24505 (Dec 26, 2007)

It works great.I have the creative upgrade remote control with the usb reciever.It works great on wmp/wmc,not tried nowt else yet but i will.You have to pay £7 to unlcok it,but i dont mind shareing it if anyone wants it.

This is what creative should have had with the remote,not the software that came with it.


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## strick94u (Dec 29, 2007)

I got my extream music a few months ago marked down to 50 bucks at office depot was just there yesterday and saw 2 more marked down to 50 I am tempted to co get them also.
Great card and no problems


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## Deleted member 24505 (Dec 29, 2007)

Get the upgrade remote,the proggy above is tops for the x-fi and remote.i can use it for everything on vista now.it does work on xp too tho'


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## jlmike (Dec 29, 2007)

This looks like a great idea to me. Thanks


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## imperialreign (Dec 29, 2007)

> I got my extream music a few months ago marked down to 50 bucks at office depot was just there yesterday and saw 2 more marked down to 50 I am tempted to co get them also.
> Great card and no problems



I thought those were no larger being sold . . . maybe they were just after stock . . . good card's, though.  IMO, they're a step down from the Fatal1ty PRO.  If you can snag 'em for $50, even better (I think original retail was about $120).


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## btarunr (Dec 29, 2007)

Where did he get that from again?


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## imperialreign (Dec 29, 2007)

> Where did he get that from again?



not sure what you mean . . .


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## grunt_408 (Dec 29, 2007)

P.M him for more info yo.


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## Widjaja (Dec 29, 2007)

Is there any big improvement with Xfi-Xtreme Gamer over the Audgy 2 ZS if you only use 2.1channel config?


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## imperialreign (Dec 30, 2007)

you mean, as in, sound quality?  Yeah - most defi, even with a 2.1 or a headset - even more so if you play a lot of games that make use of EAX, the X-Fi can support the newer EAX implimentations, and does a ton better job of audio positioning.  TBH, even if you use some cheapo $10 headsets, you'd be amazed at how the X-Fi can pull off 3D sound (although, 3D capable headsets are better).

As for processing power - the X-Fi can handle more voices in game than an Audigy can, too, plus it can process them much faster.

Although, the Audigy is a highly capable card in itself, and is still capable of dealing with even newer games - and they've never really sounded that bad, either . . . it's really up to you, though.


----------



## acousticlemur (Jan 3, 2008)

i was just wondering how the X-Fi and the Audigy 4 Pro stack up against each other.  i have the audigy 4 pro with the external box-o-gadgets connected by the adlink and fire wire and a remote, so they are similar but as far as sound quality what is the dif?


----------



## grunt_408 (Jan 3, 2008)

I like the performance of my Audigy 4. Although have not heard an X-fi so I cannot say the difference but I know my Audigy sounds heaps better than onboard.


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 3, 2008)

> i was just wondering how the X-Fi and the Audigy 4 Pro stack up against each other. i have the audigy 4 pro with the external box-o-gadgets connected by the adlink and fire wire and a remote, so they are similar but as far as sound quality what is the dif?



well, TBH, the X-Fi and the Audigy (even the Audigy 4 PRO, which is kinda the creme de la cream of the Audigy series) are two completely different beasts.

Although the X-Fi is capable of EAX HD 5.0, CMSS-3D (environmental audio positioning), Dolby 5.1 and a few other piddly features - unless you do a lot of gaming or DVD watching, you're _probably_ not likely to notice a _major_ difference over the Au4.  Gaming, though, is a whole other story.  The X-Fi can "position" sounds in an unbelievable manner, even if you use a cheap headset, you'll be amazed by it.  The X-Fi can also handle more voices in game than an Audigy processor can, and can manipulate, buffer, and playback those files a lot faster also.  Creative pretty much went back to the drawing board for the newer processors, and whipped up something that is in essence designed for gaming performance.

If you spend a lot of time watching DVD's and HD media, you'll more than likely hear a difference here, too.  The built in Dolby decoders for the card bring out what those high dollar 5.1 and 7.1 setups can offer, and when combined with the environmental positioning, you can be sure that the APU is putting sounds exactly where they need to be.


I hope that kinda answered your question . . . unless you wer ewanting me to get into the technical differences between an Audigy and a X-Fi . . .

TBH, though, if you're looking for the all-out best audio quality you can get for your setup, forget Creative and try to find yourself an Auzentech X-Meridian, if that's not possible - the Auzentech X-Fi Prelude.  Either of those two card's outperform even the Creative X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro in the realm of audio quality . . . but, if gaming is your forte, and you want a soundcard that can handle massive amounts of audio files, and process them extremelly fast, look for the Creative X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty PRO.


----------



## acousticlemur (Jan 4, 2008)

well that was exactly what i was looking for. thanks alot.  i have been thinking about getting a new sound card for a while now as creative dropped the ball on vista support for the au 4 pro.  as far as vista is concerned my au 4pro sounds like a 15$ no name card.  they only offer driver support and not the EQ, THX, EAX and other apps that really made this card sound amazing.  and that is truely the only reason i have not made the switch yet.  now dont get me wrong i like vista for it's eye candy and DX 10.  but if the sound is shit then the gaming / movie experiance is lame.  any way thanks alot man


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## imperialreign (Jan 4, 2008)

well - the X-Fi's still sound great on Vista . . . but as for anything that relies heavily on audio acceleration - like DirectSound - it's kinda touch and go.  Vista doesn't support audio accelearation, so by the standard Creative drivers - EAX, goes out the door (as with a couple of piddly things).  Creative have been toiling on a work-around for this issue, the ALchemy drivers for Vista.  OpenAL drivers are a good start, too.  I don't really forsee Creative working on any Vista drivers for the Audigy series until they get the X-Fi line-up into a "peaceful" state (meaning that there aren't a lot of complaints about various issues, y'know, when things quiet down).

Although, if you're more interested in re-enstating audio acceleration for your Audigy in Vista, Creative does offer ALchemy drivers for the Audigy: http://www.soundblaster.com/alchemy/, the shit part, though, is that they ask you to pay $10 for 'em :shadedshu - PM me on this if you'd like to learn more . . .

All Creative's Vista drivers for the X-Fi's are still a little buggy here and there, and they update to new beta drivers quite often - but they're slowly getting things squared away.  As much as I hear people left and right blaming this on Creative, it's not their problem.  MS recieves the honors for this foul-up.


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jan 4, 2008)

I agree,microsoft shafted creative.


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## imperialreign (Jan 13, 2008)

Creative X-Fi beta driver *2.14.0001* for WIN XP have been released:



			
				Creative.com said:
			
		

> This download is a beta driver providing Microsoft® Windows® XP support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> Take note of the following:
> 
> ...



you can d/l it here: Creative.com


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## Skrabrug (Jan 18, 2008)

I've been after to get a X-Fi sound blaster for awhile but i was just going to get the fatal1ty one through some online store because it was fairly cheap, But today i checked e-bay for any cheap ones and someone is selling a "Creative X-Fi XtremeMusic Xtreme Music"

and they said in their listing:

"This card is better than X-Fi Gamer and X-Fi Audio, Don't buy X-Fi Xtreme Audio if you play games or create music as it doesnt have EAX for Games or music

creation mode. X-Fi Xtreme gamer doesn't have Audio Creation mode either (And i am still selling it cheaper than X-Fi Gamer !!!!)



This card is the TRUE complete X-Fi, Other X-Fi cards have featured removed !!! Don't settle for second best and my Price is still cheaper !!!"


and i was wondering is it true? (its like $60 AUD cheaper too)


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## imperialreign (Jan 18, 2008)

Skrabrug said:


> I've been after to get a X-Fi sound blaster for awhile but i was just going to get the fatal1ty one through some online store because it was fairly cheap, But today i checked e-bay for any cheap ones and someone is selling a "Creative X-Fi XtremeMusic Xtreme Music"
> 
> and they said in their listing:
> 
> ...



Yes and no.  If you look at post #1 of this thread, I list the current Creative X-Fi lineup pretty much in order from the most basic card to their top of the line model (which is the X-Fi Fatal1ty).  The early versions of the Xtreme Gamer, IIRC, didn't support audio creation mode, but I believe they do so now - although, it's still lacking in it's capabilites of the higher end cards.  TBH, the Xtreme Gamer is targeted specifically at gamers, as it's gaming features are more advertised.  The Xtreme Audio is the basic, bottom line X-Fi card - it's really targeted more at home entertainment, instead of gaming and performance.

The Xtreme Music was a discontinued card - but it looks as if Creative are offering the card for sale again . . . it's intended to be the next step up from the Xtreme Gamer, offering good gaming support (although, not the same performance the XG does), but better audio creation capabilities and playback over the XG card.  TBH, both the XG and XM cards are very similar in price.

Not sure what your budget is, but I personally recommend the Xtreme gamer Fatal1ty Pro, if you can afford it.  It's the top of the line X-Fi, pretty much packing all the features of the others into one piece of hardware.

Here's some links from some '4 star' sites with decent prices for the XGFP card:

Comp-U-Plus

CompUSA

Newegg - would be your best bet; $50 mail-in rebate = *$85 after rebate*


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## btarunr (Jan 18, 2008)

I always end up confusing USD with AUD.

Didn't Creative stop the production for Xtreme Music? It's been out-of-stock on the Creative store for over seven months now and most American and Britt online stores as well. The only ones you find are those sold used on ebay and Amazon.


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## Skrabrug (Jan 18, 2008)

Does newegg ship to Australia?
Also the rebate is for US citizens only  (but its still cheaper even without the rebate)

edit:

this was where i was going to get the X-Fi fatal1ty before:
http://www.scorptec.com.au/product/21427/


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## btarunr (Jan 18, 2008)

Nope, Newegg doesn't ship outside of US.


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## Skrabrug (Jan 18, 2008)

Damn i r full of fail!!

Guess I'll check ebay again on pay day and if theres no ebay store ppl selling them I'll get it from scorptech xD


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jan 18, 2008)

My xtreme music is fine,and tbh i would never buy any of the fatlity branded stuff,its just marketing guff.Does the fatality one make you a better gamer or make your pc run the games better.....nope.

Each to his own tho' i guess.


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## btarunr (Jan 18, 2008)

I know but the sad part is that all the Creative X-Fi cards that have the 64 MB X-RAM are now Fatal1ty branded except the Elite Pro. Marketing stuff on Fatal1ty's name doesn't make sense to me at all. We used to buy a popular English-willow cricket bat made by Sunridges. They later started branding the same bat after Brian Lara, the WI batsman and its sales crashed.


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jan 18, 2008)

I dont think the onboard ram particulary does anything.The xtreme music has a ram chip on it,not 64mb i guess.


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## btarunr (Jan 18, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> I dont think the onboard ram particulary does anything.The xtreme music has a ram chip on it,not 64mb i guess.



Nope, it's a 2048 KB bank that stores the BIOS for the CA20-K1 processor. I have an old abandoned blog entry on what this bank does in detail. If you want to give it a reading, feel free:

http://btarunr-gd.blogspot.com/2007/09/what-2-mib-sdram-bank-on-x-fi-xtreme.html


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## Skrabrug (Jan 18, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> My xtreme music is fine,and tbh i would never buy any of the fatlity branded stuff,its just marketing guff.Does the fatality one make you a better gamer or make your pc run the games better.....nope.
> 
> Each to his own tho' i guess.



actually funny thing is the Fatal1ty brand is cheaper here in PC stores than the same product without the branding mainly because ppl try to avoid buying it.

i honestly don't care if it has a brand on it or not. I'm buying the cheaper out of the two : /


----------



## Kursah (Jan 18, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Nope, it's a 2048 KB bank that stores the BIOS for the CA20-K1 processor. I have an old abandoned blog entry on what this bank does in detail. If you want to give it a reading, feel free:
> 
> http://btarunr-gd.blogspot.com/2007/09/what-2-mib-sdram-bank-on-x-fi-xtreme.html



Very nice info for sure beta! I have an Extreme Music and it's a great card, and yes it only has the 2mb chip on it which I now know what is actually used for. I will say that some games seemed a tad smoother when using an add-in sound card in comparison to my bunk on-board sound (my on-board is only bunk because if a crap chip that Asus put on this MB model...I've ran on-board on my MB's without issue or need for an add-in card before).


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 18, 2008)

btarunr said:
			
		

> Didn't Creative stop the production for Xtreme Music? It's been out-of-stock on the Creative store for over seven months now and most American and Britt online stores as well. The only ones you find are those sold used on ebay and Amazon.



I'm fairly certain that the XM was removed from the lineup, but during that time Creative didn't even have the card listed in their store or on the main site under "Products."  IDK, though, as now it's listed under Products again, but it still doesn't appear on the Creative Store 

I thought, though, the reason why it was removed from the lineup was because of how similar it was to the XGFP; there are very few differences between them as far as capability (although the XGFP still had better quality and performance), and TBH, the XGFP was just a better buy at the time.



			
				tigger69 said:
			
		

> My xtreme music is fine,and tbh i would never buy any of the fatlity branded stuff,its just marketing guff.Does the fatality one make you a better gamer or make your pc run the games better.....nope.
> 
> Each to his own tho' i guess.



Usually, the "Fatal1ty" name is just thrown around as a marketing gimmick - and most propducts brandishing that name don't really offer much more that another product by the same manu already offers.  As to Creative's card - even if you remove the "F1" name from the product, it still really is the best card out of the lineup.  Although, I'd much rather see it called the X-Fi Elite or something else to signify top-o-tha-line.  Using a name like Fatal1ty is just a fad - what is a company to do once he's ousted as a gaming champ?  All celebrity endorsements are short lived. 



			
				Skrabrug said:
			
		

> Damn i r full of fail!!
> 
> Guess I'll check ebay again on pay day and if theres no ebay store ppl selling them I'll get it from scorptech xD



sorry, man - I hadn't even noticed you were in Aus.  Didn't even think to look.  




			
				tigger69 said:
			
		

> I dont think the onboard ram particulary does anything.The xtreme music has a ram chip on it,not 64mb i guess.



btarunr's link there does a great job describing the purpose of the "X-RAM."  All X-Fi cards have some amount of on-board RAM, but the XGFP is the only one _advertised_ as having 64MB.  TBH, even though it only _supposed_ to be used in certain _supported_ games; I've gotten the impression before that the APU also uses the on board memory for temporary storage of files it's working with (i.e buffering, downsampling, etc), instead of it being solely used to store loaded up audio files.  It removes a lot of the dependancy on using the SYS MEM for temporary storage of working files. I'm sure it's used more than Creative have come to advertise, because saying that it's only for 'gaming' (and advertising it only on the XGFP) makes people think they're getting something specifically designed for a specific purpose.  It's just, with 64MB, an APU can process more sounds faster at any given time than a card only stouting 16MB.

damn, I best shut up cause I feel like I'm babbling an not making any sense


----------



## affinity0 (Jan 19, 2008)

Are any of you using 5.1 analog output on your X-Fi's? I have the XtremeGamer and when set to 5.1in the control panel (and in Windows settings) I am only getting left and right channels. The only way for me to get 5.1 is though CMSS Running Windows XP SP2 32bit, tried drivers on cd on the newest.


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## btarunr (Jan 19, 2008)

Have you configured them in the Creative console in both Entertainment and Game modes?

Okay welcome to my second rig. This one runs my older Xtreme Gamer. Take a good look at the screenshot, under the calibration tab, make sure these are the  default values, click on 'default'. Under the speaker-selection tab, click on the polarity button, keep clicking next one time each to hear the test noise from each of your speakers including the sub-woofer, choose a polarity setting that works with your speaker set. Run the Creative Diagnostics tool if required.

Screenshot:


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## affinity0 (Jan 19, 2008)

5.1 works, but it seems only in games that are taking advantage of EAX. So far of the games i have installed, just Bioshock and STALKER are using 5.1 appropriately. Even games that do support 5.1 are not always getting 5.1 output. UT3 works as well. But some games, like FarCry for isntance, even when set to 5.1, is not outputing in 5.1. Oblivion is another game that supports 5.1 but i only get 2 channel. I guess i hate Creatives way of implementing 5.1. My integrated Realtek makes everything 5.1. I really wish i had kept my Auzentech X-Plosion, was a GREAT sounding card


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## btarunr (Jan 19, 2008)

I don't see any 'special implementation' on Creative's part. The games have to be properly configured to exploit the multichannel capabilities. Your Realtek codec doesn't make everything 5.1, it just spreads the same left/right stereo channels to even the rear speakers, the center/sub channel is left+right channels downmixed to mono....not really 5.1 you see. With a X-Fi card, every sound source gets its right channel arrangement. i.e. when there's a stereo source, you'll only have the FL, FR channels giving out output then again, if you want, you can configure Winamp to use 'WaveOut Output' as your default output plugin in the place of DirectSound if you want your music to come from all the speakers (while still technically being stereo).


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## bud951 (Jan 20, 2008)

I have a Prelude 7.1 that i just installed last night on my new 780i system. It turned a completley stable system into a wreck. At first i was having the high pitch noise and constant hang ups. I figured it was heat related since the card is cramed between an 8800gt and my 750 psu in a coolermaster cosmos case. Since I have browsed this thread I am now thinking it is an incompatability with my mobo. I set the pci latency from 32 to 64 and no help. Should I even try to reintall this card in my other pci slot that does have alot more breathing room or am I just hoplessly screwed? I love the sound but hate the probs. I would hate to have to go to another mobo just to keep the sound card but I may just do it. Are there any suggestions? Thanks.


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## imperialreign (Jan 20, 2008)

bud951 said:


> I have a Prelude 7.1 that i just installed last night on my new 780i system. It turned a completley stable system into a wreck. At first i was having the high pitch noise and constant hang ups. I figured it was heat related since the card is cramed between an 8800gt and my 750 psu in a coolermaster cosmos case. Since I have browsed this thread I am now thinking it is an incompatability with my mobo. I set the pci latency from 32 to 64 and no help. Should I even try to reintall this card in my other pci slot that does have alot more breathing room or am I just hoplessly screwed? I love the sound but hate the probs. I would hate to have to go to another mobo just to keep the sound card but I may just do it. Are there any suggestions? Thanks.





I'd defi recommend moving the card to a more open area, if possible.  The X-Fi can pick up a lot of EMI from a GPU.

Also, double check to make sure that your BIOS is up to date, too.  If need be, you can try to bump up the PCI latency another step to 96; anything higher than that won't really help, though.


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## bud951 (Jan 21, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I'd defi recommend moving the card to a more open area, if possible.  The X-Fi can pick up a lot of EMI from a GPU.
> 
> Also, double check to make sure that your BIOS is up to date, too.  If need be, you can try to bump up the PCI latency another step to 96; anything higher than that won't really help, though.



Hi. I nstalled it in the other slot and it has not locked up or given the high pitch noise since even though I have not had alot of time to test it. I still get a crackle from just the right front channel in games and music. I was getting this before but the lockups overshadowed it. Could this be the sign of a bad card? Maybe a bad d/a or somthing? Thanks for the help.


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## btarunr (Jan 21, 2008)

nope, it's a sign of electro-magnetic interference from the video cards.

Do this DIY:

You need some transparent cellophane sheet, some Aluminum foil from the kitchen. using the cellophane and some sealing tape, over the back side of the Auzen card, cover half of the top side while leaving the X-Fi processor exposed. Now, cover the cellophane cover with aluminum foil, make a small cut at the Front panel header at the NW of the PCB if required. Now you have your very own EMI shield. The Cellophane sheet electrically insulates the components from the aluminum foil, the aluminum foil absorbs the EM waves, you can use a double sheet of the foil if required.

No your Auzen card can't be defective. Auzen's build quality is the best in the industry for sound cards at the moment.


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## bud951 (Jan 21, 2008)

btarunr said:


> nope, it's a sign of electro-magnetic interference from the video cards.
> 
> Do this DIY:
> 
> ...



Thanks for the info. Would you happen to have a pic of this? It sounds easy enough but I am hoping not to short anything out using foil in the pc. I have just watched two DVD movies and I dont get the crackle but when I fire up a game or mp3 music it is there. Weird. This mod could tide me over until the 9800 GX2's come out which should give the same or better performance as my 2 8800gt's but without butting one up against the sound card. Thanks again for the info.


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## btarunr (Jan 21, 2008)

bud951 said:


> Thanks for the info. Would you happen to have a pic of this? It sounds easy enough but I am hoping not to short anything out using foil in the pc.



Which is why I've suggested the use of cellophane layers. Cellophane is a plastic sheet that insulates plus also absorbs static charges.I Don't have a pic since I haven't tried it with mine yet but later this year when I plan to buy a GA-X38-DS4 and two HD3870 cards, I will need to do that to my card. Maybe I'll try that out with my card this weekend and keep you posted with pics, kk?


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## bud951 (Jan 21, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Which is why I've suggested the use of cellophane layers. Cellophane is a plastic sheet that insulates plus also absorbs static charges.I Don't have a pic since I haven't tried it with mine yet but later this year when I plan to buy a GA-X38-DS4 and two HD3870 cards, I will need to do that to my card. Maybe I'll try that out with my card this weekend and keep you posted with pics, kk?



Sounds good. Thanks.


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## imperialreign (Jan 21, 2008)

btarunr said:


> nope, it's a sign of electro-magnetic interference from the video cards.
> 
> Do this DIY:
> 
> ...




damn, btarunr beat me to it!   +1 on Auzen's build quality and the EMI bit.

Seeing as how at this point you only hear interference in the RF channel - how are the speakers connected to your card?  I'm guessing you have Line1, Line2 and Line3 plugged into the back, or do you use a seperate console plugged into the AUD connector, or do you only have one line and seperate remote channel splitter?

Reason I ask, is that EMI can also interfere with the signal being sent through the cable - if you have 3 seperate plugs at the back of the card, the one leading to your front channel might be picking up EMI from some appliance or other high powered device (Plasma TV, some DVR tuners, etc).  If this might be the case, you can try re-routing your audio cables, and if it gets better, but the noise is still present, you might want to look into buying some shielded audio cable.


EMI, is a PITA, honestly - the clearer and more "high def" our audio capabilities are becoming, the more they become succeptable to noise interference, too.  And to top that, the more powerful other electronic appliances become, the more EMI they produce - it's kinda a lose/lose situation


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## btarunr (Jan 22, 2008)

Something tells me his system is starving (overloaded PSU). At least if I calculate things using the Newegg.com wattage calculator. The Ageia PhysX card draws 30W~35W peak, the X-Fi draws 15W "when switching modes", 12W in game mode, 8W in entertainment/ac mode. External EMI has disastrous effects on the X-Fi series cards when switching modes. Wanna know in detail?


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## bud951 (Jan 22, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Something tells me his system is starving (overloaded PSU). At least if I calculate things using the Newegg.com wattage calculator. The Ageia PhysX card draws 30W~35W peak, the X-Fi draws 15W "when switching modes", 12W in game mode, 8W in entertainment/ac mode. External EMI has disastrous effects on the X-Fi series cards when switching modes. Wanna know in detail?



actually, I am not using the Ageia right now. i am trying to get the soundcard ironed out first. I cant imagine that i am overloding my PSU even with Ageia but you guys know more than me. Its a good one that peaks at 825w.

"Seeing as how at this point you only hear interference in the RF channel - how are the speakers connected to your card? I'm guessing you have Line1, Line2 and Line3 plugged into the back, or do you use a seperate console plugged into the AUD connector, or do you only have one line and seperate remote channel splitter?"

"Reason I ask, is that EMI can also interfere with the signal being sent through the cable - if you have 3 seperate plugs at the back of the card, the one leading to your front channel might be picking up EMI from some appliance or other high powered device (Plasma TV, some DVR tuners, etc). If this might be the case, you can try re-routing your audio cables, and if it gets better, but the noise is still present, you might want to look into buying some shielded audio cable."


As far as EMI due to cables, that may be an issue as I am using the 3 analog wires that came with my speakers. I cant remember if it crackled using toslink with DDLIVE. I will check that out. It sounds much better using the analog out since I get the benifit of the Auzen hardware. I will try moving the analog wires around since they are surrounded by all kinds of other power lines and wiring. So far, other than the crackle, everything is ok since I moved the card. Thanks for the input guys!


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## imperialreign (Jan 22, 2008)

bud951 said:
			
		

> As far as EMI due to cables, that may be an issue as I am using the 3 analog wires that came with my speakers. I cant remember if it crackled using toslink with DDLIVE. I will check that out. It sounds much better using the analog out since I get the benifit of the Auzen hardware. I will try moving the analog wires around since they are surrounded by all kinds of other power lines and wiring. So far, other than the crackle, everything is ok since I moved the card. Thanks for the input guys!



no prob - glad to help.  As to the PSU, it's defi something to consider (sorry, I didn't take that good of a look at your specs earlier).  A PSU that is either overloaded, or beginning to fail _can_ produce stoopifying amounts of EMI . . . it usually isn't too much of a problem, though, as the PSU is generally quite far seperated from the PCI slots . . . unless your PSU is housed at the bottom of your case.

Anyhow, the more advanced these audio adapters are getting, the more succeptable they are to the minute stuff we haven't had to think about over the last 20 years.  Sadly, though, as these audio cards become more powerful and easy prey to the other ever increasingly powerful components in a setup, people have gotten on a kick about blaiming Creative (mostly) or Auzen of poor build quality.

TBH - I forsee the audio card going one of two routes - either they start implementing some form of EMI shielding on the card itself, or moving the card entirelly external.


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## bud951 (Jan 22, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> no prob - glad to help.  As to the PSU, it's defi something to consider (sorry, I didn't take that good of a look at your specs earlier).  A PSU that is either overloaded, or beginning to fail _can_ produce stoopifying amounts of EMI . . . it usually isn't too much of a problem, though, as the PSU is generally quite far seperated from the PCI slots . . . unless your PSU is housed at the bottom of your case.
> 
> Anyhow, the more advanced these audio adapters are getting, the more succeptable they are to the minute stuff we haven't had to think about over the last 20 years.  Sadly, though, as these audio cards become more powerful and easy prey to the other ever increasingly powerful components in a setup, people have gotten on a kick about blaiming Creative (mostly) or Auzen of poor build quality.
> 
> TBH - I forsee the audio card going one of two routes - either they start implementing some form of EMI shielding on the card itself, or moving the card entirelly external.




My PSU is on the bottom and the soundcard was directly between it and my 2nd 8800gt. Maybe thats why I was having so much trouble before I moved it. I was having hangups at startup and when I wasent playing games or listining to music. Now its just the crackle in the R/F. I havent had a chance to move the cables around yet but I will tape them up and away from everything else if it helps. They just arent that long. Do you know where I can find some longer quality sheilded analog cables with the mini jacks for PC use? Thanks.


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## imperialreign (Jan 22, 2008)

bud951 said:


> . Do you know where I can find some longer quality sheilded analog cables with the mini jacks for PC use? Thanks.



I think something like this might be what you're looking for: http://www.impactacoustics.com/


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## bud951 (Jan 24, 2008)

This is weird, I cant get x-fi alchemy to recognize Fear Combat. I try to update alchemy and it says There is no supported product installed. Does that mean x-fi or Fear? Fear Combat is supposed to be supported by Alchemy. Its the only legacy game I have installed and of course it does not give me EAX in Vista.


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## imperialreign (Jan 24, 2008)

bud951 said:


> This is weird, I cant get x-fi alchemy to recognize Fear Combat. I try to update alchemy and it says There is no supported product installed. Does that mean x-fi or Fear? Fear Combat is supposed to be supported by Alchemy. Its the only legacy game I have installed and of course it does not give me EAX in Vista.



It's possible that it's FEAR Combat - I believe that uses a different executable over the original FEAR and Extraction Point, IIRC . . . not sure, though, TBH.  I think the ALchemy drivers need to be able to recognize the game executable to que them to fire up - yeah, I just looked at the most recent games list on Creative's site (http://www.soundblaster.com/alchemy/), and FEAR Combat isn't listed yet . . . Although, TBH, I'm not really sure how it works, as I don't run Vista and haven't messed around with it too much . . .

If you have FEAR or Perseus Mandate, or some other title listed on Creative's site - give that a shot and see if you're having the same issue.


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## bud951 (Jan 24, 2008)

I found a way to get it working by editing the alchemy.ini file. Sounds pretty good now. I think the new alchemy program restores more of the reverb eax effects. I need to get that working now.


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## imperialreign (Jan 24, 2008)

I never would've guessed there was a configurable .ini file with the drivers.  Funny how easy it can be sometimes


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## bud951 (Jan 24, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I never would've guessed there was a configurable .ini file with the drivers.  Funny how easy it can be sometimes



Isnt Alchemy a program? Yea it was easier than I thought. I googled it and there were some regpaths already made up on websites with info on how to add it to the .ini file. Editing .ini files is trickier in Vista than XP but just copy, edit, delete old, paste new and boom! I had all of the EAX settings available in FEAR Combat. It actually sounds damm good. Not as good as XP but I will take it over 4 way stereo.


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## imperialreign (Jan 25, 2008)

bud951 said:


> Isnt Alchemy a program? Yea it was easier than I thought. I googled it and there were some regpaths already made up on websites with info on how to add it to the .ini file. Editing .ini files is trickier in Vista than XP but just copy, edit, delete old, paste new and boom! I had all of the EAX settings available in FEAR Combat. It actually sounds damm good. Not as good as XP but I will take it over 4 way stereo.




ALchemy isn't really a program - it's more a set of drivers that bypass the designed limitations of Vista.  In essence, it's a work-around to re-enable audio hardware acceleration


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## btarunr (Jan 25, 2008)

Alchemy is a compatibility layer that translates DirectSound commands from an application to OpenAL. The EAX effects are processed by the APU and then sent back to be re-sampled to whichever multi-channel configuration the user has (in PCM format) and is sent to the OpenAL subsystem.

Follow the flowchart with the serial number-order of the arrows:







1. Audio data and EAX commands are sent to the driver + ALchemy extension that decode these DirectSound commands.

2. EAX processing to be done, data sent to the CA 20K1.

3. EAX processed, sent back in the raw PCM format, multiple PCM channels.

4. Multichannel PCM data sent to the OpenAL installable client driver in the form of OpenAL commands generated by ALchemy.

5. OpenAL has its own abstraction to the CA20K1 and since the CA20K1 has hardware support for OpenAL, the OpenAL data is sent to the sound card back as output, this time in multichannel PCM like any other OpenAL application.

6, 7:  APU > DAC > Output.


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## imperialreign (Jan 25, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Alchemy is a compatibility layer that translates DirectSound commands from an application to OpenAL. The EAX effects are processed by the APU and then sent back to be re-sampled to whichever multi-channel configuration the user has (in PCM format) and is sent to the OpenAL subsystem.
> 
> Follow the flowchart with the serial number-order of the arrows:
> 
> ...




that's a lot more concise than how most sites describe it, and even the MS Paint diagram is easier to read without really needing an explanation (but, y'know all the other sites that describe it are aimed at us hardware audiophiles that understand the jargon and concepts already).

If it's cool with you, I was thinking of putting that diagram and explanation in post #1; I'll cite you for it, too.


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## btarunr (Jan 25, 2008)

go ahead. MSPaint FTW 


Edit: Gee I didn't realise the X-Fi support syndicate sigpic was free for use by members


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## imperialreign (Jan 27, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Edit: Gee I didn't realise the X-Fi support syndicate sigpic was free for use by members




s'all good - I've been thinking about doing something a little better . . . the one I currently use I had just kinda slapped together in like a 5min Photoshop session.

BTW, y'all - I'm glad to see this still fledgling thread has registered over 6,000 views already, and is the third link listed if you google "X-Fi support," right behind Creative's sites (and it's the 2nd listed if you google "xfi support") 

Surely hope we're helping people out!!


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## btarunr (Jan 27, 2008)

Yup, it takes a TPU effort to beat Microsoft's forums, the MSDN. This thread is the best non-Creative online resource in terms of hitrate and Google's listings.


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## Anomaly (Jan 27, 2008)

*Major problems with X-Fi fatal1ty*

Hi all

I'm a newbie here, and I've been reading the posts to find a solution to my problem with my sound card. BTW, great intro page with some useful information @imperialreign, it's just my own stupidity and fear of damaging my new setup that has prevented me from trying all listed solutions.

Here's the skinny. I have complete loss of sound through my Creative speakers (this happened on both the Inspire 6.1 set and now the Gigaworks S750 7.1 set) but if I turn my system volume up on full, there is a faint crackling that sounds vaguely like the track that I'm currently playing. The weird thing is, if I plug my headphones into the creative port in my 5.23 bay, sound is absolutely fine as if there were no problems. Initially I thought it was the speakers so I got the new set (as if I needed an excuse!) I then overhauled my system. Here's some specs:

My first system;
Asus A8R32-MVP Deluxe Motherboard
AMD Athlon FX60 CPU
4 X 1gb OCZ Platinum XTC DDR ram (possibly running at 333mhz due to all banks being full)
Western Digital Raptor 150gb HDD
Asus EAX1900XTX GDDR3 512mb PCI-E Graphics Card
FSP Sparkle Epsilon 700w ATX 2.0 PSU
Windows Vista x64 Ultimate Edition OEM
and
THE DREADED SOUND CARD that never worked properly from the start but I thought it was something I was doing wrong.

So I got a new system built up:
Asus Maximus Formula Mobo
4 X 1gb Transcend AXERAM PC2 - 8500 1066mhz Ram
Intel q6600 Quad Core CPU
WD Raptor 150gb (running Vista x64)
WD Raptor 150gb (running XP x86)
FSP Sparkle Epsilon 700w PSU
and the same poxy sound card.

I got the dual-boot system up and running the other day and sound worked great on both operating systems (unlike the first rig when I first installed the sound card and it DIDN'T work for the first day but magically started working on the second), but then it proceeded to shut down to the present problem on XP (after which I then get an error in the device manager on one of the Windows devices - something like Winmm WDM audio something-or-other), now sound won't even work on Vista (but does in the headphones).

I looked at the IRQ 17 which is where my card is listed, but next to it are some intel root thingy's that I really didn't feel like messing with. I looked at flashing my video card but couldn't backup the existing vga bios let alone get the new one to work.

I've done everything (I even called creative in Ireland a couple of times just for them to suggest the same fixes that I wouldn't have the knowledge or the nuts to go through with!) The only thing I would have liked to try but didn't know how, was to sort out the pci resources in the bios, but I'm not even sure that my system would have the option!

After all my ranting and raving, can anyone help me, or has anyone had similar problems before?

I really appreciate your time, and thanks in advance for putting up with me!


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## imperialreign (Jan 27, 2008)

so, I take it you're currently running a dual boot system?  Which audio card do you have?  If you have an X-Fi, which driver sets are you using?  Also - your XP install, is it a version of Windows Media Center?


anyhow, first off, just to make sure, you do have onboard audio disabled in BIOS, right?


Do your speakers need to be plugged into a power source (curious, because mine do, and will sound the same exact way as you described, although the headphone plug from the RF speaker works even with power off)?

also, just occured to me . . . go into WIN Device Manger, and make sure that there are no ADI audio drivers installed, either.  If there are, r-click on them and disable those drivers, and then see if you have the same issues or not.


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## Anomaly (Jan 27, 2008)

Hi imperialreign, thanks for the rapid response.

Yes I'm on Dual-boot with XP professional SP2 (not Media Center), but the issue was exactly the same when I have just Vista on a single Raptor HDD on the old rig.

I'm running a Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion which is about 6 months old, I only set the new rig up 3 days ago so I tried the latest web release drivers on Creative's website (I believe I have tried Beta and final releases in the past with no difference to the main issue).

The board has it's own Asus Extreme audio card that I just put to one side, I then disable the HD audio in the BIOS.

The Gigaworks speakers are externally powered, I leave it plugged in at all times (as were the Inspire 6.1), all I do is switch off the control box every night.

In terms of audio drivers (in Vista at present), all I can see installed are ATi T200 Unified AVstream Driver, and Creative SB X-Fi. Should I disable the ATI T200 Unified AVstream Driver? I just wanted to double-check.

Thanks again.


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 27, 2008)

Anomaly said:
			
		

> Hi imperialreign, thanks for the rapid response.
> 
> Yes I'm on Dual-boot with XP professional SP2 (not Media Center), but the issue was exactly the same when I have just Vista on a single Raptor HDD on the old rig.
> 
> ...



odd, I've never seen that ATI driver before - not really sure what it's purpose is.  Doing some digging, it seems people have had issues with that drivers for various other hardware problems . . . you can try disabling it and see what happens with your sound.

everything else is looking peachy, though . . .

when do you experience the audio cut out?  is it only when using Win Media Player, or only while gaming, both, etc?



<edit>:

come to think about it - the headphone jack on the X-Fi front panel works, right?  How about plugging the headphones in directly to the back of the card?  Do your speakers work if you plug them into the front panel?


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## Anomaly (Jan 27, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> odd, I've never seen that ATI driver before - not really sure what it's purpose is.  Doing some digging, it seems people have had issues with that drivers for various other hardware problems . . . you can try disabling it and see what happens with your sound.
> 
> everything else is looking peachy, though . . .
> 
> when do you experience the audio cut out?  is it only when using Win Media Player, or only while gaming, both, etc?



I disabled the ATI driver and no change to anything noticeable. I still get the sound through the speakers when the system volume is turned up to max. It sounds as if it would on full volume (heavily distorted), but at a really low volume level (if that makes sense!), even when I plug in the headphones I can still hear it through the speakers until I check the box on the audio console that says 'Automatically mute speakers', then I get normal sound through headphones and nothing at all through speakers.

In terms of the cut out of sound in general, I have not found a specific time when it is lost or when it returns. I used to try to ascertain whether the system was overworking but that can't be the case otherwise it would drop out during gaming. In Vista and XP I have had no normal sound all day today (ever since boot up), but last night I was playing Crysis for over 3 hours with no issues. There is no consistency whatsoever for loss or regain of sound. Occasionally it will comeback out of the blue, I will have been playing music on media player all day waiting and it will come on and scare the crap out of me!

I really can't work it out. The only thing I can think of (being a useless tool at this sort of thing) is that I should try to seek a replacement. I may try disabling the front panel first though. What do you think?

Usually when the sound comes back on it stays on for a few hours, when it goes off again it stays off for days sometimes without any normal sound.


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## Anomaly (Jan 27, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> come to think about it - the headphone jack on the X-Fi front panel works, right?  How about plugging the headphones in directly to the back of the card?  Do your speakers work if you plug them into the front panel?



Unfortunately I only have a single jack on the front panel, the Gigaworks have to be plugged into the 4 coloured jacks that are on the back of the card. The real bummer is that I use the system as my media system to as I have the 7.1 Gigaworks all around my living room. We haven't been able to watch a DVD in a couple of days now!


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## imperialreign (Jan 27, 2008)

odd . . .



y'know, just for shits and giggles . . . open up the Creative Volume Panel, Windows Media Player (if installed), and Windows Volume Panel (Start>Control Panel>Sounds and Audio - then open up speaker volume and device volume).  Go to your mixer settings in all the windows, and look for anything that is almost all the way down - either a master level, wave, line out, etc. 

In the Creative Volume Panel, also check to make sure you're audio is setup for playback through a speaker setup, instead of a headphone - and also check the THX panel for anything odd, too.

The way you're describing it there, it's making me think that some types of media are almost muted, while other's aren't being affected . . .


if everything seems fine there . . . yeah, you can try disabling the front panel.  I guess just unplug it's power source, and/or remove the cable that connects to the X-Fi.

I really don't think that would impede output from the back of the card, but, I'm not certain.  I know it's a dumb question, but you do unplug the headphones from the front panel when not using them, right?


----------



## Anomaly (Jan 27, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> odd . . .
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Yeh, I have a case door that I always keep closed so I rarely plug the headphones in!

I tried tinkering with the mixer but all levels were on full. Interestingly enough the THX controls appear to have dissappeared, ever since reinstalling Vista I don't seem to have the volume control in the system tray either so I can't even run the diagnostics. I only have the Windows looking speaker but it does control the audio console too so I guess its ok.

I'm not current;y in a position to be able to unplug the console but I'll try it tomorrow and post any updates on that.

Also, I just spent the last half hour uninstalling and reinstalling all Creative drivers and programs, I didn't even get a crackle from the sound (and I still didn't get the creative system tray control!)

I really am losing it with this card!


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## imperialreign (Jan 28, 2008)

hmmm . . . not having the Creative's Volume Control Panel isn't set to load at startup.  Go to Start>Programs>Creative>Sound Blaster X-Fi>Volume Control Panel.  It should put the icon into the taskbar.  r-click on the icon and make sure 'Load at Startup' is checked.  Also, double click on the icon to bring up the audio console, and double check to make sure that "synchronize with Control Panel" is selected.

Some ques . . . where'd you buy the Fatal1ty Champion from?  Was it brand new or open box?


TBH - some of the issues you mention make it sound like it's a software issue, others make it sound like it's hardware (especially considering that it was acting the same on your old system), and the fact that you're having the same issue in Vista as you are in XP.

You've changed out the motherboard, the CPU, and the DRAM - same issues mean to me that it can't be a problem with the PCI BUS.

Your video card isn't known for a being a problem at all with the X-Fi's, except for EMI. - by chance, though, you do have the X-Fi as far away from the video card as possible, right?

If it was just the Vista install, I'd recommend installing the ALchemy drivers and OpenAL drivers; you can still give that a shot, though, but I really don't think it'll fix anything.

I doubt it's your speakers - maybe, slightly, a bad connection at their power connector to a wall outlet - you might try a different wall outlet if possible, or a different outlet on your control box.  If you're up to it - remove the X-Fi, enabled onboard audio, and plug the main speaker connector into the onboard outlet on the motherboard, or try to connect them to some other device (like a tv or home stereo).  TBH, though, I get the feeling it's not speakers.

My only other thoughts, at this point, would be to completely wipe the creative drivers and software off, and then install just the audio driver (if it came with Vista drivers), the audio console and the volume control panel from the Installation CD - don't even worry about any of the software at this point.

Make sure the card is 100% fully seated in the motherboard slot, too.

But, TBH, I'm starting to think the card might have been faulty out of the box and needs to be RMAed.


_<edit>_

I'm curious . . . what all were Creative's recommendations?


----------



## btarunr (Jan 28, 2008)

An interesting question that pertains to both the X-Fi Elite Pro and the Auzen X-Fi Prelude 7.1 was posed to my by a user, let me share the PM conversation, it is useful:



			
				bratan said:
			
		

> Hello Btarunr,
> 
> First of all, thank you for your posts, reading them with interest. New here, as well new to HD. I did submit a question about sound options (mobo+HTIB vs. Prelude vs. HT Omega Claro Plus vs. Asus D2)
> http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=50909
> ...



Hello,
The LM4662 is the OPAMP for the front channel routed to a dedicated AKM DAC. The FP_Out pin header isn't routed to the LM4662 but with a bypass logic to the CA20K1 processor, just thru the Front channel's DAC (bypass logic as in the system driver chooses the FP output vide the Intel Azalia specifications of 2006 (includes the pin-header layout, jack sensing logic and the ability to mute the Front Channel / All channels of the analogue output if a headset is plugged into the FP_Out. As per the Azalia specifications, the CA20K1 audio processor infact has 10 channel audio out, just like the CMI8788, some high-end onboard CODEC's such as ALC888, ADI1988B, etc. Channels 9, 10 go to the front-panel output and aren't routed to an OPAMP and the DA conversion are carried out by the Front-channel DAC. Don't confuse Front panel out to Front channel. Front channel is the Front-left Front-right speaker output in the stereo setup commonly having a green coloured 3.5 mm connector.

Besides the LM4662 gives out a screaming 5V output to the Front channel analogue out. You really don't need that when running even the most up-market headsets. A normal headphone/headset/in-ear monitor can use the direct output of the AKM DAC upto 2V, if it's routed to the 5V OPAMP, you will encounter distorsions, extreme loudness, loss of variations, etc. which can be corrected only by lowering the volume by software (Volume Panel) and as you know, lowering the system volume while connecting a low-input device such as a headphone to a screaming OPAMP, will cause loss of audio information, get the logic? am I clear enough?

So my verdict, it seriously isn't a big deal if the FP_Out isn't routed to the OPAMP, it need not be. Even in the X-Meridean, the FP_Out goes thru a similar bypass mechanism. 







rgds,
btarunr.


----------



## bassmasta (Jan 28, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> odd . . .
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I know the answer!  before I gave up on my x-fi, I found that sometimes it felt like putting 5.1 or 7.1 through random jacks, regardless as to whether or not you have more than two speakers. i.e. in BF2, sometimes I could only hear gunshots from behind me in 2.1, and in AOE 3, I couldn't hear gunshots unless I used my rear speakers as side speakers {to simulate 7.1}


----------



## Anomaly (Jan 28, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> hmmm . . . not having the Creative's Volume Control Panel isn't set to load at startup.  Go to Start>Programs>Creative>Sound Blaster X-Fi>Volume Control Panel.  It should put the icon into the taskbar.  r-click on the icon and make sure 'Load at Startup' is checked.  Also, double click on the icon to bring up the audio console, and double check to make sure that "synchronize with Control Panel" is selected.
> 
> Some ques . . . where'd you buy the Fatal1ty Champion from?  Was it brand new or open box?
> 
> ...



I finally gave up and RMA'd the card (it's only taken me since August!) It was a brand new retail unit from Ebuyer so no problems there, they even collect by courier.

I tried different variations of the software and drivers but to no avail, I also tried disconnecting the front panel with no change. Since I had to pack up the card for return I broke out the Extreme Audio Card that came with my Maximus formula board, the speakers fit in but unfortunately because the output jacks are slightly different I don't get anyting from my two side speakers, the rest however, work like a charm. The Sound Blaster card was seated in the furthest PCI slot originally, the video card got my suspisions up because other than the Raptor (which I have now tried two) it was the only other constant that would appear to give me trouble.

All I can hope is that there were some bad connections somewhere but as I am getting a direct replacement I'm not confident that I won't experience the same issues. 

Creative's recommendations were not too dissimilar to your own (maybe exactly the same, sorry can't remember), I dod find their recommendations on their website after talking with them over the phone.

Everyone else's problems seem to be crackling noises which I only experienced very rarely when the sound was in the process of dropping out so all I can do is hope that the card itself was faulty and that I will never experience this again with the new card on arrival.

I will of course post the outcome, and thank you for your help thus far.

Cheers.


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 28, 2008)

Anomaly said:


> I finally gave up and RMA'd the card (it's only taken me since August!) It was a brand new retail unit from Ebuyer so no problems there, they even collect by courier.
> 
> I tried different variations of the software and drivers but to no avail, I also tried disconnecting the front panel with no change. Since I had to pack up the card for return I broke out the Extreme Audio Card that came with my Maximus formula board, the speakers fit in but unfortunately because the output jacks are slightly different I don't get anyting from my two side speakers, the rest however, work like a charm. The Sound Blaster card was seated in the furthest PCI slot originally, the video card got my suspisions up because other than the Raptor (which I have now tried two) it was the only other constant that would appear to give me trouble.
> 
> ...



No problem - sorry we couldn't have been of more help.  I'd really like to hear, though, if the RMA fixes it up.  Usually, with an RMA, they just send you another known good unit - it might be brand new, or as close to the condition of yours as possible.  It's rare that a company takes the effort to diagnos out which component(s) on the board are failing and replace them.  I know getting a defective product right out of the box is a PITA, but it does happen now and then with every company - my ASUS motherboard had to be RMAed within the first month (faulty temp sensors), and I've had a couple of ATI cards back in the day dead out of the box.

It's very rare, though, for the problem to still exist as a software issue when you've changed out the major organs of a system . . . I shoulda caught it quicker, but it's usually a dead give away to a hardware problem, especially considering that you weren't getting staticy or crckling type sounds, which is a whole other issue.




			
				btarunr said:
			
		

> Hello,
> The LM4662 is the OPAMP for the front channel routed to a dedicated AKM DAC. The FP_Out pin header isn't routed to the LM4662 but with a bypass logic to the CA20K1 processor, just thru the Front channel's DAC (bypass logic as in the system driver chooses the FP output vide the Intel Azalia specifications of 2006 (includes the pin-header layout, jack sensing logic and the ability to mute the Front Channel / All channels of the analogue output if a headset is plugged into the FP_Out. As per the Azalia specifications, the CA20K1 audio processor infact has 10 channel audio out, just like the CMI8788, some high-end onboard CODEC's such as ALC888, ADI1988B, etc. Channels 9, 10 go to the front-panel output and aren't routed to an OPAMP and the DA conversion are carried out by the Front-channel DAC. Don't confuse Front panel out to Front channel. Front channel is the Front-left Front-right speaker output in the stereo setup commonly having a green coloured 3.5 mm connector.
> 
> Besides the LM4662 gives out a screaming 5V output to the Front channel analogue out. You really don't need that when running even the most up-market headsets. A normal headphone/headset/in-ear monitor can use the direct output of the AKM DAC upto 2V, if it's routed to the 5V OPAMP, you will encounter distorsions, extreme loudness, loss of variations, etc. which can be corrected only by lowering the volume by software (Volume Panel) and as you know, lowering the system volume while connecting a low-input device such as a headphone to a screaming OPAMP, will cause loss of audio information, get the logic? am I clear enough?
> ...




quite interesting . . . so, that type of setup is only found on the Prelude and Elite Pro cards?  So, if I read that correctly (sorry if I'm getting confused, just got home from work ), plugging in a headset or similar device to the FP will technically "mute" output to the FC output, right?


----------



## Skrabrug (Jan 29, 2008)

I have a Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro PCI and was wondering if there was a way to wire up the front side audio pannel on my case to my X-Fi card?

the wireguide for my case is kind of horriable though.

i have the NZXT Alpha case... which according to a reveiw on this site it can connect to soundcards

"The front I/O connections are as expected, but NZXT goes all out on the audio plug, even providing individual pins so that you will be able to connect it no matter what. This even gives you the option to connect sound cards to the front audio which do not officialy have an HD or AC '97 audio header."

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NZXT/Alpha/images/ioconnectors.jpg


----------



## btarunr (Jan 29, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> quite interesting . . . so, that type of setup is only found on the Prelude and Elite Pro cards?  So, if I read that correctly (sorry if I'm getting confused, just got home from work ), plugging in a headset or similar device to the FP will technically "mute" output to the FC output, right?



In respect to the question whether the FP_Out is routed to an OPAMP or not pertains only to Elite Pro and X-Fi Prelude because that's where there are separate DAC's for every two output channels:







In the X-Fi Prelude, do you notice the front-channel DAC and the lage OPAMP in an odd position? The guy was asking if the FP_Out is routed to that OPAMP. It's really loud for a headphone and it isn't routed. Many reviewers have noted the FP_Out to have more clarity when using a headphone than plugging the headphone to the Front-Channel jack on the sound card. The odd front-channel DAC+OPAMP:





Regarding the headphone plugging in to mute front-channel thing, every Intel Azalia compliant audio device be it Elite Pro or Realtek ALC885 are capable of it.


----------



## btarunr (Jan 29, 2008)

Skrabrug said:


> I have a Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro PCI and was wondering if there was a way to wire up the front side audio pannel on my case to my X-Fi card?
> 
> the wireguide for my case is kind of horriable though.
> 
> ...



The X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro and X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion cards do not have a Azalia compliant pin-header to the front-panel. Instead the AUD_Ext (that connects to the internal 5.25" bay expansion module has pin locations so you could manually mod your FP_Out if you don't have the expansion module:


```
AUD_EXT connector pin assignments

Note

ADC stands for Analog-to-Digital Converter

Pin	Name	Description
1	VCC	+5V power supply
2	VCC	+5V power supply
3	GND	Ground
4	AC97CLK	24.5 MHz clock output
5	GND	Ground
6	GP_SPDIFIN#2	SPDIF input signal
7	GND	Ground
8	GND	Ground
9	SPDIFO#3	SPDIF Out signal
10	GPO1	General Purpose Output #1
11	GPO2	General Purpose Output #2
12	GND	Ground
13	GPO0	General Purpose Output #0
14	GND	Ground
15	GP_SPDIFIN1	SPDIF Input signal
16	GND	Ground
17	SPDIFO#0	SPDIF Out signal

18	GND	Ground
19	SPDIFO#1	SPDIF Out signal
20	GND	Ground
21	GND	Ground
22	SPDIFO#2	SPDIF Out signal
23	GPI0	Digital Input (GP Input 0; Reserved)
24	GPI1	Digital Input, (GP Input 1; Reserved)
25	OUTMIDI	MIDI Output
26	GND	Ground
27	INMIDI	MIDI Input
28	GND	Ground
29	KEY
30	KEY
31	ADCSDO2	I2S audio data input.
32	GND	Ground
33	ADCSDO1	I2S audio data input.
34	GND	Ground
35	ADCSDO0	I2S audio data input.
36	GND	Ground
37	I2SCLK	I2S serial bit clock.

38	GND	Ground
39	I2SFS	Frame sync.
40	GND	Ground

Copyright Â© 1998-2000 Creative Technology, Ltd.
```

Here is the reference Azalia front-panel pin-out:






To make things visual:


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jan 29, 2008)

whats the floppy power connector on the x-fi for? mine has one o them,just wondering.


----------



## btarunr (Jan 29, 2008)

If you're hinting at the floppy power connector, its actually for powering the card. While the card can function without it, it's strongly recommended that you connect floppy-power to it else it loads the motherboard heavily when in Game mode. It's more of a power stability thing, ironically the Auzen X-Fi Prelude doesn't have it.


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 29, 2008)

btarunr said:


> The X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro and X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion cards do not have a Azalia compliant pin-header to the front-panel. Instead the AUD_Ext (that connects to the internal 5.25" bay expansion module has pin locations so you could manually mod your FP_Out if you don't have the expansion module:
> 
> 
> ```
> ...




I didn't think you could connect front panel headers to any of those pinouts, safely - IIRC, the AUD_EXT pins are for the IDE cable that is used to connect to the X-Fi 5.25" bay Front Panel.

This is the connector that you'll need to utilize for your front panel connections:






And this is the legend for that connector:

1 - Analog ground
2 - Left out
3 - Audio backpanel mute (grounded with headphone jack plugged in - I think this is Left Return)
4 - Right out
5 - same as pin 3 (I think this is Right return)
6 - Mic In from front panel
7 - no pin
8 - VREF Mic out (voltage reference for mic)
9 - Mic In mute (ground when mic isn't plugged in, +12V with mic plugged in)
10 - Audio Detect (ground when headphones plugged in, not normally used)





btarunr said:


> If you're hinting at the floppy power connector, its actually for powering the card. While the card can function without it, it's strongly recommended that you connect floppy-power to it else it loads the motherboard heavily when in Game mode. It's more of a power stability thing, ironically the Auzen X-Fi Prelude doesn't have it.



I thought I was pretty sure the 4-pin power connector was to allow the card to provide power to the I/O external console.  That's the first I've ever heard of the card being able to utilize any additional power when in game mode . . . hmmmm . . . nowsa gots mai tinkin . . .

. . . I might do some fiddling this upcoming weekend and see what I can turn up on my system. 




			
				btarunr said:
			
		

> In respect to the question whether the FP_Out is routed to an OPAMP or not pertains only to Elite Pro and X-Fi Prelude because that's where there are separate DAC's for every two output channels:
> 
> . . . .
> 
> ...




Oh, I get it now.  I knew of that Azalia, Realtek, etc. bit - I just didn't quite comprehend that initial post right off the back.  9 Hours stuck in garage around cars messe with yer head some


----------



## btarunr (Jan 29, 2008)

Wasn't that something Creative calls the "propritary connector"? Thanks, I didn't know that either. I've seen many people personally and from our case-gallery who power their cards even without an external IO module, but again you could be right, I don't have such a connector on the X-Fi Prelude. ANother correction I'd like to make is there infact is a OPAMP for the FP_Out in the X-Fi Prelude, just that it isn't the LM, do you see it between the CD/Aux-in and the FP_Out?


----------



## Skrabrug (Jan 29, 2008)

Ah cool thx for that imperialreign 

on the weekend i will try it out but i have gotta warn you i might be back asking questions seeing as this case seems to have all of its front audio wires labeled oddly and the instructions were in French in the manual xD


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 29, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Wasn't that something Creative calls the "propritary connector"? Thanks, I didn't know that either. I've seen many people personally and from our case-gallery who power their cards even without an external IO module, but again you could be right, I don't have such a connector on the X-Fi Prelude.



As to the 4-pin power connector, I had always heard to not connect power to it unless you have the I/O Console - but, TBH, it wouldn't surprise me if it might help in some way.  I might try testing some things out this weekend, if I get around to it.

The other connector I pointed out is a proprietary connector, same one Creative used on the Audigy 2 cards.  Because it's a 10-pin proprietary connector, it's a bit of a pain to install the single pin connectors used for a typical chasis FP (distance between pins is small).  TBH, though, I have yet to figure out what exactly the X-Fi uses that connector for, as it doesn't connect to the X-Fi 5.25" bay front panel, nor was it used for the internal I/O Module.  



			
				Skrabrug said:
			
		

> Ah cool thx for that imperialreign
> 
> on the weekend i will try it out but i have gotta warn you i might be back asking questions seeing as this case seems to have all of its front audio wires labeled oddly and the instructions were in French in the manual xD




If you're looking for a little more info, the guy that originally devised how to do those posted instructions on how to make an adapter cable here: http://audigy2zshowto.blogspot.com/ - even though the instructions are for the Audigy, the X-Fi uses the same pin-out (thanks to the moderators at Creative Forums who posted that pinout legend a long time ago).  I'm also trying to come up with some kind of mod that might be easier than having to buy the connector needed for it . . . we'll see.  Only problem I forsee, really, is that the instructions use the typical AC97 pin settings, meaning that it's not really an HD connection and you don't have full capability.

I had come up with a pin-crossover that *should* work, but I never got around to testing it (aside from buying the correct connector) as I haven't found a way to connect the FP pins without bending the pins on the card:  http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=443557&postcount=1

Any thoughts on that pin setup?




			
				btarunr said:
			
		

> ANother correction I'd like to make is there infact is a OPAMP for the FP_Out in the X-Fi Prelude, just that it isn't the LM, do you see it between the CD/Aux-in and the FP_Out?




yeah, I see it.  I take it, then, that one should be specifically for the FP_Out connections?


----------



## Skrabrug (Jan 29, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> If you're looking for a little more info, the guy that originally devised how to do those posted instructions on how to make an adapter cable here: http://audigy2zshowto.blogspot.com/ - even though the instructions are for the Audigy, the X-Fi uses the same pin-out (thanks to the moderators at Creative Forums who posted that pinout legend a long time ago).  I'm also trying to come up with some kind of mod that might be easier than having to buy the connector needed for it . . . we'll see.  Only problem I forsee, really, is that the instructions use the typical AC97 pin settings, meaning that it's not really an HD connection and you don't have full capability.
> 
> I had come up with a pin-crossover that *should* work, but I never got around to testing it (aside from buying the correct connector) as I haven't found a way to connect the FP pins without bending the pins on the card:  http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=443557&postcount=1
> 
> ...




the NZXT case i have came 3 different audio connections depending on what i needed to use. the HD audio set and the AC97 set are both complete bocks though without the option to connect each part separately but luckily they also put a 3rd connection off from that which is the split pin connection.. hopefully I'll just have to only follow the wire colours of the HD or 97 block set to work out what they are in the single split pin mode


----------



## btarunr (Jan 30, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> As to the 4-pin power connector, I had always heard to not connect power to it unless you have the I/O Console - but, TBH, it wouldn't surprise me if it might help in some way.  I might try testing some things out this weekend, if I get around to it.
> 
> The other connector I pointed out is a proprietary connector, same one Creative used on the Audigy 2 cards.  Because it's a 10-pin proprietary connector, it's a bit of a pain to install the single pin connectors used for a typical chasis FP (distance between pins is small).  TBH, though, I have yet to figure out what exactly the X-Fi uses that connector for, as it doesn't connect to the X-Fi 5.25" bay front panel, nor was it used for the internal I/O Module.


Beats me man. But doesn't the IO module / Audigy drive have a headphone jack? Doesn't that imply that one of those pins at the back of the card next to the SPDIF pins have to have an analog stereo out?

Do you see that headphone jack next to SPDIF?





...is should have a pin on the headers I was pointing at (AUD_EXT)


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jan 30, 2008)

Maybe,but the pre amp for the headphone socket is on the module.The output from the pins would not work.


----------



## btarunr (Jan 30, 2008)

Or maybe there's a digital connection between the card and the module and that the module isn't just an expansion of whatever pin is on the card?


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 30, 2008)

this is the only pic I've ever found of the front panel hooked up:






as you can see, the 4-pin power connector, and an IDE interface (which connects to the AUD_EXT connector on the X-Fi), but no connection that appears to interface with the proprietary connector on the X-Fi . . .

Funny thing is - the Audigy series also had a 5.25" bay Front Panel, also (I've seen ones with the Audigy logo and the Audigy 2 ZS logo):






notice how *EXACTLY THE SAME* it is to the X-Fi FP . . . and the Audigy's stouted the same AUD_EXT connection (albeit different sources for the pins), and also the 10-pin proprietary connection . . . although, I have yet to see anything that actually makes use of that 10-pin


----------



## btarunr (Jan 30, 2008)

business idea: Lets make a converter cable for the 10 pin to standard Azalia front-panel header layout, buy patent, sell to Creative 

The X-Fi Internal IO module and the Audigy drive even have exactly the same PCB layout from whatever you can see.


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 30, 2008)

btarunr said:


> business idea: Lets make a converter cable for the 10 pin to standard Azalia front-panel header layout, buy patent, sell to Creative



  They'd probably respond with "What connector _are_ you talking about?!"

[/QUOTE=btarunr]
The X-Fi Internal IO module and the Audigy drive even have exactly the same PCB layout from whatever you can see.[/QUOTE]


didn't look that close, but now that I have . . . the copyright printed on the board is the same in both pics 

Creative should win an award for their ability to re-brand aging hardware!


----------



## btarunr (Jan 30, 2008)

That's really Creative, isn't it? Audigy SE to X-Fi Xtreme Audio and now this


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 30, 2008)

nice pun 

they spent so much money developing the X-Fi, they didn't even worry about the I/O panel.

even the model numbers on the lower PCB are the same - only difference I see is the metal plate covering the upper PCB on the X-Fi panel.


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 1, 2008)

all right guys here is one for ya... I just bought the Xtreme Music card... Well I am using Vista x86 and for some reason the only thing I can run is the Audio Creation Mode... When I check the gamer one and the Entertainment mode, it says that I don't have the drivers for it.. So is there a place to go to... I went to creative and I'm lost on what to download really... I thank you guys for any help..


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 1, 2008)

I have a extreme pain in the arse,i mean music too.I'm considering taking it out and trying my onboard.I dont even try and switch to game mode,eax dont work anyway so whats the point.

As far as i'm concerned,if your on xp use the x-fi,if your on vista,use onboard.The drivers for the x-fi still suck bawls even after all this time.

If i take it out,i'm gonna smash the piece of crap with a hammer in the back garden.


----------



## Random Murderer (Feb 1, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> I have a extreme pain in the arse,i mean music too.I'm considering taking it out and trying my onboard.I dont even try and switch to game mode,eax dont work anyway so whats the point.
> 
> As far as i'm concerned,if your on xp use the x-fi,if your on vista,use onboard.The drivers for the x-fi still suck bawls even after all this time.
> 
> If i take it out,i'm gonna smash the piece of crap with a hammer in the back garden.



unless someone wants to buy it?


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 1, 2008)

yeah, i got jumped when i told a few people i did this... I didn't know what I was really thinking.. thought I could still use my front panel... my tv tuner covers up the pins for the front panel headphone and mic jack... So I didn't think it through... lol... good thing I can take it back...


----------



## Random Murderer (Feb 1, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> yeah, i got jumped when i told a few people i did this... I didn't know what I was really thinking.. thought I could still use my front panel... my tv tuner covers up the pins for the front panel headphone and mic jack... So I didn't think it through... lol... good thing I can take it back...



you CAN still use your front panel connectors, i put together the pin assembly last night, just needs to be soldered to your board.
as for whether or not you get the drivers working right... that's another beast on its own.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 1, 2008)

If anyone in the uk wants it,they can have it for £20 with the upgrade remote.


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 1, 2008)

Yeah, when or if we get the drivers working, then we'll do the mod.. If the drivers don't work right, I'll turn in the b1tch...


----------



## Random Murderer (Feb 1, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> Yeah, when or if we get the drivers working, then we'll do the mod.. If the drivers don't work right, I'll turn in the b1tch...



and get a sound card that works, right?


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 1, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> all right guys here is one for ya... I just bought the Xtreme Music card... Well I am using Vista x86 and for some reason the only thing I can run is the Audio Creation Mode... When I check the gamer one and the Entertainment mode, it says that I don't have the drivers for it.. So is there a place to go to... I went to creative and I'm lost on what to download really... I thank you guys for any help..



Well, if you have the most recent hardware driver, download the Console Launcher from Creative and see if that works.  When you initially install the X-Fi drivers, you're given a choice as to what mode you want as default, but if you didn't install the console launcher, it's very difficult to switch between them.




> I have a extreme pain in the arse,i mean music too.I'm considering taking it out and trying my onboard.I dont even try and switch to game mode,eax dont work anyway so whats the point.
> 
> As far as i'm concerned,if your on xp use the x-fi,if your on vista,use onboard.The drivers for the x-fi still suck bawls even after all this time.
> 
> If i take it out,i'm gonna smash the piece of crap with a hammer in the back garden.



biggest reason why I still haven't gone over to Vista.  If Creative ever get their Vista drivers stable, reliable and strong . . . I might think about it.  But in the meantime, screw MS.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 1, 2008)

As far as i'm concerned,if your using vista DO NOT buy a x-fi.

The thing is,i DO NOT blame creative at all,ms royally screwed creative with the x-fi.Just after the x-fi came out,ms released vista and completely rewrote how the sound works on windows.Which did not do creative or the x-fi any favours at all.


----------



## Random Murderer (Feb 1, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> Well, if you have the most recent hardware driver, download the Console Launcher from Creative and see if that works.  When you initially install the X-Fi drivers, you're given a choice as to what mode you want as default, but if you didn't install the console launcher, it's very difficult to switch between them.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



yea, the drivers on the disc caused the system to hang when installing, so we downloaded the latest drivers off of creative's site, that's what he's running now.


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 1, 2008)

Here is what it says every time I try and change the Console Launcher..
 	that nothing is there for it...


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## sneekypeet (Feb 1, 2008)

Would that be a Razor-1911 file I see on your desktop??????


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## Cold Storm (Feb 1, 2008)

whats that??? don't know what your talking about... its a picture... i promise!


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## imperialreign (Feb 1, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> Here is what it says every time I try and change the Console Launcher..
> . . . .




alright, so you installed the drivers . . . but, did you install the Audio Console launcher?  It's seperate software from the X-Fi audio drivers.  The drivers will let you change mode, which can be done from within the X-Fi Control Panel, but you need the audio console software to be able to open the GUI.

if you downloaded the drivers from Creative's website, the software isn't bundled with their update driver packages.


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## Cold Storm (Feb 1, 2008)

so I need to go and use the cd to put in that driver? and yea, I used the updated drivers from the website. Like Rm said, it hard freeze on me when i got to 84%.


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## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 1, 2008)

Take the x-fi out,and use it for scraping up cat shit.


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## imperialreign (Feb 1, 2008)

Prob just a Vista thang.

Naw, you don't need the CD for the console launcher.  Follow the link I posted a few posts back, you should be able to dl it from Creative.


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## sneekypeet (Feb 1, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> whats that??? don't know what your talking about... its a picture... i promise!



Good tip.....Next time use Alt+PrintScreen key and just get the little window!!!!D


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## Cold Storm (Feb 1, 2008)

still don't know what your talking about with crysis... pm me and help! lol.. thanks for the advice also


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## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 1, 2008)

It is just a vista thing.

The x-fi works a treat on xp.

I'm sorry for my comments,i'm just pissed that i spent £60 on the card and its poo on vista,specially as i bought vista so it seems a waste of the money i paid for vista to go back to xp.


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## Cold Storm (Feb 1, 2008)

Hey tigger, it happens.. I'm in the same boat as you are.. So now I'm just needing to find if this works for me, or go back to staples and throw it at them like i did my mp3 player.. lol


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## sneekypeet (Feb 1, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> still don't know what your talking about with crysis... pm me and help! lol.. thanks for the advice also



Crysis...who said anything about Crysis...LMAO....BTW let your lawyer do the talkin...you would just do yourself no favors....J/K

OK sorry fellas I will stop hyjacking now....continue on!


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## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 1, 2008)

I'm gonna take it out tonight and try my onboard,which has a digital out which i can connect to my av amp.I'm not sure if the onboard does 5.1 from the digi out or not.The x-fi only does 2.1 from the digi out,and then you have to pay another £15 for the digital adapter,which hangs off the back of the card and looks pap.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 1, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> It is just a vista thing.
> 
> The x-fi works a treat on xp.
> 
> I'm sorry for my comments,i'm just pissed that i spent £60 on the card and its poo on vista,specially as i bought vista so it seems a waste of the money i paid for vista to go back to xp.



s'all good man, we understand your pain 

I highly doubt MS will do anything to address the issue with any future SP for Vista, though - hopefully Creative will be able to make their work-around drivers as near perfect as possible.  They haven't really focused at all on their XP drivers since Vista's release, but then again, the cards are solid on XP.

Hopefully, MS will learn from this venture, and will give this kernel design some second thoughts before their next OS.


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## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

Well i'm going to do the same tigger! froze on me then when i installed it, it says there is no such thing.. wtf?? back to the drawing board!


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

sneekypeet said:


> Crysis...who said anything about Crysis...LMAO....BTW let your lawyer do the talkin...you would just do yourself no favors....J/K
> 
> OK sorry fellas I will stop hyjacking now....continue on!



what?!?! i don't even see a picture of my desktop... !?!? what are you looking at? your not over my shoulder are you?? and if so... what does my desktop look like?!?!


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

all right.. the audio creation mode now works right, but I don't have any game or entertainment mode... well off to my tv tuner.. enough working on the sound card tonight..  lol


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## imperialreign (Feb 2, 2008)

alright, then - try going to Start>Programs>All Programs>Creative>Sound Blaster X-Fi

do you have an application listing as "Creative Volume Panel," and "Creative Mode Switcher?"

If so - open Creative Volume Panel.  It should place an icon into the System Tray.  R-click on that icon, and make sure that 'Load Volume Icon at Startup' is selected.  Double click on that icon, and it should go ahead and bring up the current mode console.

Once the Audio Creation Mode console is open on your desktop, l-click on the button in the lower left hand corner with "Mode" written beside it.  If the Creative Mode Switcher is installed, your current console will close out and change to a window that allows you to switch between modes.

The other way to change modes, if you have the Volume Panel icon in the System tray; is to r-click on the icon, go to "Switch Mode" and choose from there.  Then just double click the volume icon to bring that console up.



If you don't have these applications installed - you'll have to use the installation CD.  Once it's loaded up and all, use "Custom" install settings, and de-select the audio drivers (you already have them installed), and check off whatever else you want installed.

Hopefully, there might not be a problem if it's not trying to install the hardware drivers from the CD.


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

It works now that way... but if I go and click on the "Creative Mode Switcher" it gives me an error...  stating its not installed... so now everything is a go... Sweetness! thanks Imperialreign! now just have to make all the fuzzy's go away on my tv tuner and i'm hooked up!


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 2, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> It works now that way... but if I go and click on the "Creative Mode Switcher" it gives me an error...  stating its not installed... so now everything is a go... Sweetness! thanks Imperialreign! now just have to make all the fuzzy's go away on my tv tuner and i'm hooked up!



no prob, man.  If you want the mode switcher - you'll have to install it from the CD, then.  It's not offered on Creative's site.

Not sure I can help with a TV tuner - no experience there


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

I just have to work with the coax and it will be fine... i'm pulling on it because the case is out to far... and i thank you again. I really don't care about the switcher since you can do it in the mode your in now...


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## SK-1 (Feb 2, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> no prob, man.  If you want the mode switcher - you'll have to install it from the CD, then.  It's not offered on Creative's site.



I think that it is crap that Creative wont allow the mode switcher to be downloaded:shadedshu


----------



## btarunr (Feb 2, 2008)

guys, X-Fi goes well with Vista, just that you lose out on a lot of multichannel features for the lack of DirectSound. Please let's not build a taboo around Vista and X-Fi. Every diver release of ALchemy brings with is support for dozens of games so there is an effort from Creative's side for sure.


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

I'm all for it... got upset at first, but now Creative FTW!


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 2, 2008)

SK-1 said:


> I think that it is crap that Creative wont allow the mode switcher to be downloaded:shadedshu



It's not considered "necessary" software for use and operation of the card - one can change the mode by going into the X-Fi control panel, or using the volume icon r-click menu.



> guys, X-Fi goes well with Vista, just that you lose out on a lot of multichannel features for the lack of DirectSound. Please let's not build a taboo around Vista and X-Fi. Every diver release of ALchemy brings with is support for dozens of games so there is an effort from Creative's side for sure.



agreed - I'm just irritated with MS over various things in Vista, not Creative.  I give them a lot of credit for how hard they're focusing on Vista issues.  Like I pointed out, I don't recall them releasing any XP updates or betas since Vista was released to market.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 2, 2008)

I just thought i'd let you guys know.

I connected the ac97 front panel headphone connectors to the 10 pin connector on the x-fi,and now my front headphone socket works.YaaaaY


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

can you show in pics tigger? if so I'll thank you so much! you don't even know!


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## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 2, 2008)

Heres how its connected-







What i did was used a 8 pin connector from an old dvd player that fitted on the connector on the x-fi,tha had 8 wires coming off it.Then i took some connector pins from a firewire connector thing that came with my board(see below pic) and soldered the little connectors onto the ends of the wires on the 8 pin connector.Then just pshed them into the correct holes on the cases ac97 fp connector.If you dont understand still i will post some more pics and try to explain a bit better.


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

I'll be linking that to rm and seeing if it was the same way we were going to do it.. thanks a lot man.


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## EarlZ (Feb 2, 2008)

Hi,

Been using my X-Fi Extreme Music nearing 3 years or so and i had no issues with it and hopefully it will stay like that forever, Im just wondering why the newer cards ive seen come with a heatsink on the X-Fi chip as mine doesnt have any...


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 2, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> Heres how its connected-




I kinda thought I had the x-fi pins backwards in the other pic I posted, but I also thought I was pretty sure I had it right   I should change that pic and re-host it . . .

I'm planning on doing some stuff with my card today, I'm going to see if I can't get all 9 pins from an HD/Azalia pinout working with a FP connection, simply because I'd rather have the HD headset capability instead of just minimal, y'know?

If I get it working, I'll post that up, too.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 2, 2008)

You might wanna stick a sink on it.i think creative started putting them on coz they was getting hot.If its ok tho' maybe not.My extreme musc has one on it.

Edit-on my case the fp connections have 2,a ac97 one and a hd one.I dont think it matters which one you connect to,it does the same thing.I dont know what the differance is.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 2, 2008)

tigger, can you work out a similar chart for making use of a Intel HDA front-panel header to be put to use with a AC'97 connectors? I have an antique CM Centurion (2005) that comes with AC'97 front-panel.


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> Hi,
> 
> Been using my X-Fi Extreme Music nearing 3 years or so and i had no issues with it and hopefully it will stay like that forever, Im just wondering why the newer cards ive seen come with a heatsink on the X-Fi chip as mine doesnt have any...



have you been using xp or vista? Tigger and I are using Vista and thats where we are having problems with.. Microsoft doesn't care for creative anymore..


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 2, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> You might wanna stick a sink on it.i think creative started putting them on coz they was getting hot.If its ok tho' maybe not.My extreme musc has one on it.
> 
> Edit-on my case the fp connections have 2,a ac97 one and a hd one.I dont think it matters which one you connect to,it does the same thing.I dont know what the differance is.



it's all in the wiring.  Both the AC97 and the Azalia connections are interchangeable, but the Azalia is wired for HD connectability at the FP PCB.

about the HS, if you're talking about the passive sink they put on the APU, all newer revision X-Fi's have a heatsink.  The early models had a nasty problem of overheating the capacitors, which lead them to either pop or start leaking.  Keeping the APU cool actually helps prevent the capacitors from reaching critical mass.

I'm going to be heading out soon, as I'm planning on picking up some supplies for some mods - I'm going to swap out the LEDs on the board, and I also intend to make an EMI shield/heat spreader for the card.  I'm not too worried about the DAC, OPAMPs, mosfets or other chips getting too hot, but I want to try and keep the capacitors as close to the same temp as possible.  Because capacitor operation is directly affected by how hot they are, you'll have more consistent audio quality if you can keep them as close to the same temp as possible.




			
				btarunr said:
			
		

> tigger, can you work out a similar chart for making use of a Intel HDA front-panel header to be put to use with a AC'97 connectors? I have an antique CM Centurion (2005) that comes with AC'97 front-panel.



this is from a post here at TPU I made months ago - I think this pin setup will work for the Azalia connections:

Here's the AC97/Azalia pinout, taken from Intel.com:

1 2
3 4
5 6
7 8
9 10

1 Mic_In - Front panel microphone input signal (biased when supporting stereo microphone)
2 Aud_GND - Ground used by analog
3 Mic_Bias - Microphone power / additional MIC input for stereo microphone support
4 Aud_GND - Ground used by analog audio circuits
5 FP_Out_R - Right channel audio signal to front panel (headphone drive capable)
6 FP_Return_R - Right channel audio signal return from front panel (when headphones unplugged)
7 AUD_5V - Filtered +5 V used by analog audio circuits
8 Key - No pin
9 FP_Out_L - Left channel audio signal to front panel (headphone drive capable)
10 FR_Return_L - Left channel audio signal return from front panel (when headphones unplugged)

and here's Creative's I/O drive pinout for Audigy/X-Fi (as best I've been able to research online):

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1 - Analog ground
2 - Left out
3 - Audio backpanel mute (grounded with headphone jack plugged in - I think this is Left Return)
4 - Right out
5 - same as pin 3 (I think this is Right return)
6 - Mic In from front panel
7 - no pin
8 - VREF Mic out (voltage reference for mic)
9 - Mic In mute (ground when mic isn't plugged in, +12V with mic plugged in)
10 - Audio Detect (ground when headphones plugged in, not normally used)

Soooooo . . . I've figured this crossover from my AC97 connector to the X-Fi (I list the AC97 pin numbers in the X-Fi pinout configuration):

2 9 10 5 6 1 8 3 7 4






I plan on seeing if that will work later today


----------



## EarlZ (Feb 2, 2008)

Mine doesnt even get hot at all, im just using a 2.1 speaker system if that matters. Any application maybe i can try to probably stress test the APU so i can see how much heat it generates ?


----------



## btarunr (Feb 2, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> Hi,
> 
> Been using my X-Fi Extreme Music nearing 3 years or so and i had no issues with it and hopefully it will stay like that forever, Im just wondering why the newer cards ive seen come with a heatsink on the X-Fi chip as mine doesnt have any...



1. X-Fi cards don't have any problems in cooler countries/air-conditioned environments but they do, in arid/semi-arid/hot conditions because the chip heats up a lot and this chip heating up affects the operation of other components such as capacitors and several units from some of the first production batches faced severe capacitor problems, little did many realise that a heated IC overloads its power-conditioning circuit. Even with this heatsink I can touch the heatsink after 30 minutes of Doom 3 (with EAX 4.0 HD) and find it seriously hot. 

2. The Heatsink also acts as a basic EMI shield. Yes, a metal plate that can dampen EM waves can shield a component of EMI.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 2, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> Mine doesnt even get hot at all, im just using a 2.1 speaker system if that matters. Any application maybe i can try to probably stress test the APU so i can see how much heat it generates ?



Sorry, didn't even notice your original post there!  Welcome to TPU!

One of the best means of stressing the X-Fis is to load up an audio heavy game - Doom 3 or Quake 4, if you have them, are both capable of bringing even the Fatal1ty cards to their knees.  You can use a temp diode to read temps on the APU, or an IR temp gun, but there is no software to do such, though.

TBH, if you don't have a heatsink on the APU, I'd seriously recommend installing one.  It need not be anything fancy, a typical copper or aluminum chipset 40mmx40mm heatsink without motherboard mounting provisions will work.  Most come with some form of thermal tape or thermal epoxy to allow you to affix it, just make sure that the top of the APU has been cleaned with rubbing alcohol first, to allow for the tape to adhere well.  You can even go one better and attach a small 40mm fan to this.  The HS that Creative has put on the cards are a tad small for 40mm fans, though


----------



## btarunr (Feb 2, 2008)

The best way to stress CA20K1 is that you enable 7.1 speaker mode (even if you don't have the speakers), turn on Crystalizer, CMSS-3D, and play a game that fully supports hardware mixing and EAX 5.0 HD (like BF2/ Bioshock), play a multiplayer game online with several players firing from all directions. That should be a task the CA20K1 was really designed for.


----------



## EarlZ (Feb 2, 2008)

Thanks for the welcome but ive been here in the forums since 2006 but only having a VERY few post till i saw this forum topic on the side bar ( i visit this site daily for tech news/updates )

anyway here is a pic of my card





The APU is indeed covered with a X-Fi sticker... lol








I've always been wondering why this lone capacitor is installed with its contact points a bit higher first time ive seen it on a PCB




I dont have airconditioning in where my computer is located nor it can be considered cold here ( only during rainy season ). Been using this card for almost 3 years from now.. 

Any other game aside from Doom3 and Quake4, I dont have any thermal diodes so the finger touch test is my only method


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 2, 2008)

I've edited the pic with what i think is the headphone connectors for the hdaudio connector.I'm not sure about the mic tho' but i do know that the port2 connectors are headphone and the port1 connectors are mic.






Feel free to check them and correct me if i'm wrong.


----------



## EarlZ (Feb 2, 2008)

btarunr said:


> The best way to stress CA20K1 is that you enable 7.1 speaker mode (even if you don't have the speakers), turn on Crystalizer, CMSS-3D, and play a game that fully supports hardware mixing and EAX 5.0 HD (like BF2/ Bioshock), play a multiplayer game online with several players firing from all directions. That should be a task the CA20K1 was really designed for.



Any other possible test that i can complete alone ?


----------



## btarunr (Feb 2, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> Any other possible test that i can complete alone ?



Any game that supports HW mixing and EAX 5.0 that is utilizing more than 64 hardware voices will stress it. You can do it even in stereo, stepping up output channels will stress the DAC more than APU, take back my word.

Finger testing  my heatsink after even 30 minutes of Doom 3 (5.1ch + EAX 5.0) heats it up badly.


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 2, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> I've edited the pic with what i think is the headphone connectors for the hdaudio connector.I'm not sure about the mic tho' but i do know that the port2 connectors are headphone and the port1 connectors are mic.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



The only thing I see wrong is the color coding! yellow is blue??! from the pic it looks right... just need to wait til this evening to make sure and I'll post pics and stuff for everyone... plus my case pics... I'm hoping at lease


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## imperialreign (Feb 2, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> Any other possible test that i can complete alone ?



If you don't have access to any game software, you can try these downloads: http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/223/RightMark_3DSound_2.3.html

The CPU utilization test would probably be the best one to run - I'm pretty sure, IIRC, that it simulates how a game engine would interact with the card (been a long while since I've run this software, though).  Updates can be found here: http://audio.rightmark.org/download.shtml, as well as Rightmark Audio Analyaer - if anyone ever feels a need for analyzing SNR, dynamic range, or any of those other audio specs 


and, Creative's methodology for testing X-Fi using RightMark Audio Analyzer v5.5 (PDF): http://audio.rightmark.org/downloads/Sound%20Blaster%20X-Fi%20Testing%20Methodology%20And%20Results%20For%20RMAA%20v5.5.pdf


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## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 2, 2008)

i just foud this,i think it may help












EDIT- the color of the dots i used on the pic has nothing to do with the color of the wires,it was just for illustration.


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## EarlZ (Feb 2, 2008)

I have a lot of games actually but i cant recall w/c of them can support all of the X-Fi features and that i can test alone, but i havent had any issues for a long time so i guess i have a golden card


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## imperialreign (Feb 3, 2008)

update on my mods:





well, yesterday I went to get some supplies - hardware store didn't have the correct thickness copper flash that I wanted (was too thin) for my EMI shield/heatspreader, so I'll have to wait a few more days for new stock.

Couldn't find correct LEDs to swap out the red ones on my card, so I guess I'm going to have to order some 1.5v blue online, instead.

As to the FP conncetion . . . ARRGGHHH!!  I couldn't find a connector that I could resonably use, so I decided (in my infinite brilliance here) to completely remove the proprietary connector from the PCB.  That was fine, all the pins came out without a problem.

So, I figured I would replace those with the pins used for FP connectors on a motherboard, this would let me use the single pin connectors on my chasis, and I can swap connectors around while testing stuff out - luckily, I had an old ABIT socket 7 board still laying around, so I removed 10 pins from that.  Well, when I went to solder them on to the X-Fi, they turn out to be about .5mm bigger than the pins I removed, so the wouldn't go through the holes in the PCB.  Next thought - I've got a butt load of 24AWG wire laying around in various colors, so I'll just solder the wire directly through the hole in the PCB.  That'd work fine, except I couldn't find my fine point tip for my soldering gun for dealing with the solder inside small holes like that - so, now I need to run back out and get a new tip for the gun for that kind of work.  At this point, I'm just a bit too aggrevated by it right now, so I guess I'll deal with that in the morning


----------



## btarunr (Feb 5, 2008)

*News: New Auzen X-Fi Prelude 7.1 driver updates SW Dolby Digital Live and other fixes*










Auzentech released the RC5 driver for the Auzen X-Fi Prelude 7.1

Here are the changes as listed by Auzentech:



			
				Auzentech said:
			
		

> New Changes / Fixes in RC5 driver
> ㆍ Corrects "Error I-001" seen by some users with RC4 driver.
> 
> New features carried forward from RC4 driver
> ...



The driver can be downloaded from here.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 7, 2008)

Alright - I wouldn't typically consider posting a review of a PC speaker setup here unless something came along that really caught my attention.

I guess you've figured then that something has 

Recently, I received as a gift a Harman/Kardon SoundSticks II 2.1 speaker setup.  I typically shy away from 2.1 setups . . . not saying that 2.1 aren’t good, TBH.  Actually, 2.1 is great for the average user, whether for watching movies, playing games, or just listening to your favorite tracks; even better for users who are tight on space, and just don't have enough room for multi channels setups . . .

But, anyhow, they were a gift, and they looked intriguing, so I figured I could at least give them a go 'round.  Harman/Kardon is quite well known for exceptional quality equipment, and two of their sub-divisions (JBL and Infinity) are heavy players in the car audio market (as well as home entertainment, also).  Seeing as how they were a gift, also, I couldn’t help but look up the typical price of this set . . . about $200 USD.






The SoundSticks II is basically your typical 2.1 setup.  You have a subwoofer which plugs directly into the audio_out port on your rig by means of the typical mini-jack, and two satellites that plug into the back of the sub.  The speakers are self powered, so you’ll also need a spare wall outlet available.  Both satellites are rated at 10W per channel, and the subwoofer is rated at 20W, with a total frequency range of 44Hz-20kHz.

The design is very modern . . . both satellites are tubular shaped clear plastic, with 4 1” mini speakers per satellite.  Attached to the base of the satellites are circular stands, which appear to be some form of metal (appears to be aluminum) cased in a clear-bluish silicone based rubber, giving them exceptional grip and stability.  The speaker enclosure itself can rotate a full 180* around the base, allowing for optimal speaker setup, making it possible to hang these speakers from a wall or from the ceiling.  Although, the hook up lead from the base of the speakers is not exceptionally long, and would probably limit you to a desk setup.  Each satellite, though, has independent leads – the speakers are not connected together with a cable at all.  Volume control for the speakers can be found on the right side satellite, and is very easy to miss thanks to how well blended into the design they are.  The volume up and down buttons are touch sensitive, which I found to be a rather unique feature I haven’t seen too often; adjustment only requires one to touch your finger to the button, and volume will go up or down – you don’t actually have to “press” on them.  

The subwoofer enclosure follows similar styling cues as the speakers, being made of clear plastic – one can easily see the backside of the 6” woofer.  Power to the speakers is indicated on by a blue LED that somewhat illuminates the subwoofer enclosure in a rather unique way.  The satellite speakers attach to the back of the subwoofer, along with the power cable.  Gain control is located at the back of the enclosure too, directly beside the output lines.  The enclosure itself is of the vented variety, with one main vent positioned directly behind the subwoofer, channeling air straight up and out.  This is probably one of my biggest issues I’ve had with this setup, as dust and debris can easily collect inside the enclosure, or act as a funnel for a catastrophic drink spill.  Otherwise, though, I found the placement of the woofer (pointing directly down) to be quite different also, allowing your floor or stand to help normalize the bass sound itself – and when coupled with the vent on the backside of the woofer, it allows for this little 6” cone to produce quite a range one wouldn’t normally find with an equal offering this small.

Well, how do they sound?  After spending a good 15min setting the speakers up just so, resetting all sound controls within Windows, and then tweaking outputs based on the angle and distance that the speakers were from me – I wasn’t really expecting much out of them.  Once everything was setup nice and to my liking, I loaded up some of my favorite audio tracks from my hard drive which feature a broad dynamic range and that I know all too well.  At first, playback was kind of flat, and just didn’t sound right – and after fiddling with various mixer settings, equalizer settings, bass, tone, etc; I finally realized it’s the speakers themselves – their design is very, very linear.  I then proceeded to reposition the speakers closer to my level instead of more overhead, reset everything and started again.

Wow!  Response from the speakers was absolutely phenomenal – much better than I would’ve expected for 2.1.  The satellites produced very crisp highs, and a dynamic full mid range, even starting to cross into lower frequencies.  The subwoofer produced very rich and deep bass for such a small 6” cone, easily keeping pace with some of the quick low frequency changes in some of the tracks I listened too.  Taking the volume even higher, I heard no distortion, crackling or noise.  The subwoofer enclosure was even dead quiet, not a single rattle from it at all – even with the gain set on maximum.

So, I decided to test them in-game, using Crysis, FEAR, Doom 3 and Black & White 2 for comparisons (all games I’ve been playing the most recently).  The setup proved quite well within Crysis, FEAR and Doom 3.  Gun shots were very crisp, while larger weapons still had their deeper tones.  Ambient sounds were never over shadowed by the ‘closer’ sounds of your weapons or an Imp breathing down your neck, and left to right positional was dead on the money.  I think, though, that I preferred these speakers to use with Black & White 2 than I did with the first person shooters – B&W2 is a very rich and ambient game as far as sound is concerned, and with my avid gaming, I tend to prefer the intimacy of a headset while engaged in a FPS.  Which brings me to a drawback that really bugs me . . . there’s no headphone jack on either of the satellites or the subwoofer.  You’ll be stuck with using your front panel port.

Overall, I’m very much impressed by the SoundSticks II, they’ve far surpassed my expectations of what they’re capable of, and I’m quite happy about letting them take over stereo duties in wake of my 5.1 setup kicking the bucket.

Pros:
*unique styling
*impressive frequency response
*easy setup
*powerful and clear

Cons:
*high price
*subwoofer design could potentially shorten the woofer’s lifespan if one’s not careful
*no headset jack


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 7, 2008)

that was a great review! i give you a 10 on that man. I have worked with both jbl and Infinity on there car divisions and They are some great products to work with. I don't think I would be buying these speakers because of the price, but the review was pretty nice!


----------



## btarunr (Feb 7, 2008)

imperialreign, 

please PM W1zzard/Darksaber and seek permission to post a full-fledge review in the review section along with all the pics, dissembly, performance, etc. your style of writing is very good, TPU needs reviews on its main site.


----------



## Cold Storm (Feb 7, 2008)

+1 on that! the review was out of this world! Pretty nice I might say.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 7, 2008)

thanks, y'all - I PMed W1z with a copy of that review earlier for his consideration to the main site - I asked him the same thing I'll ask y'all now; if you see anything in that review that should be changed, re-worded, expanded upon or removed - let me know.



			
				Cold Storm said:
			
		

> that was a great review! i give you a 10 on that man. I have worked with both jbl and Infinity on there car divisions and They are some great products to work with. I don't think I would be buying these speakers because of the price, but the review was pretty nice!



I've worked with JBL and Infinity car audio in the field, too - Infinity is the choice for Chrysler's premium sound systems, along with Nissan.  JBL has excellent quality for their price range.  TBH, my personal preference, though, is Pioneer car and home audio.  I've heard some of their mid-range and lower end components blow top dollar equipment out of the water, on top of being able to withstand some extreme abuse.

Yeah, though, crazy price on those SoundSticks!  Personally, I'd never buy a 2.1 setup for $200, as I think I'd personally be happier with a 4.1 or 5.1 setup for the same price - but, they were a gift, and I'm too considerate to turn something like that down.  At least I don't have to spend any money out of my pocket to replace my dead 5.1 setup - maybe I'll determine what actually went bad and jimmy rig a 7.2 setup together


----------



## EastCoasthandle (Feb 7, 2008)

who's willing to mod their x-fi


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 7, 2008)

EastCoasthandle said:


> who's willing to mod their x-fi



I plan on it - but, I've been doing some more research into the differences between some of the components used on the board.  Another TPU member, trodas, PMed me with some info that I found to be really helpful and makes a ton more sense than I've seen elsewhere . . . a link to another thread of his: http://capsmod.net/forum/viewthread.php?tid=94&extra=page%3D1


----------



## btarunr (Feb 7, 2008)

That's one of the threads I'm reading for cap-modding my Xtreme Gamer. Just that I'm planning to use ECIL solid-state capacitors with the same properties.

And yes, I'm planning on a EMI shield mod, watch this thread.


----------



## EastCoasthandle (Feb 7, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I plan on it - but, I've been doing some more research into the differences between some of the components used on the board.  Another TPU member, trodas, PMed me with some info that I found to be really helpful and makes a ton more sense than I've seen elsewhere . . . a link to another thread of his: http://capsmod.net/forum/viewthread.php?tid=94&extra=page%3D1



You might want to read this as well
Black Gate appear to be the best caps!


----------



## btarunr (Feb 7, 2008)

You are very resourceful, EastCoastHandle


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 7, 2008)

EastCoasthandle said:


> You might want to read this as well
> Black Gate appear to be the best caps!



yeah, I've seen that before, and I also intend to repace the OPAMPS.  Although, I'm kinda leaning towards wanting to recap the board first, as I'm under the impression that to achieve the most out of a set of new OPAMPS, the caps should really be upgraded.

Asides, the power filter capacitor (closest to the APU) is starting to bulge ever so slightly at the top - she's on the way out and it'll need to be replaced fairly soon anyhow.


BTW, was wondering - does anyone know if the DAC is swappable with a better unit?  In discussing things with trodas, I was getting the feeling that the DAC is probably the cause of a certain issue he's been having with the cards: http://forums.virtualdub.org/index.php?act=ST&f=7&t=15093&st=15#entry62170, and he's also had the same issue with the Live! series and the Audigy series - to the best of my knowledge, Creative has used the sam CS4382 DAC since the Live! era . . . the only X-Fi cards to not have it are the Xtreme Audio and the Elite Pro, and I've never heard of any similar type of problem with the Elite Pro . . .

I just wasn't sure if there is a better DAC unit that one could swap, or if replacing it will partially render the card useless . . .


----------



## vexen (Feb 8, 2008)

Hello, i own a X-Fi Xtreme Gamer, and i was wonder if the use of CMSS-3D and 24Bit Crystalizer can lower my in-game performance.

If it does, is it worth it? Thanks.

I have Sennheisers HD555 mid/high end headphones ($120~200USD).


----------



## btarunr (Feb 8, 2008)

vexen said:


> Hello, i own a X-Fi Xtreme Gamer, and i was wonder if the use of CMSS-3D and 24Bit Crystalizer can lower my in-game performance.
> 
> If it does, is it worth it? Thanks.
> 
> I have Sennheisers HD555 mid/high end headphones ($120~200USD).



Hello Vexen, nice headphones.

CMSS-3D processing is carried out differently in different modes. In the _Entertinment Mode_, the driver directs the audio stack to be processed by the system CPU, same is the case with Crytalizer. However in the _Game Mode_, the CMSS-3D and Crytalizer DSP is processed by the X-Fi processor. This should very slightly affect the performance when a games does Hardware sample mixing, utilizes several hardware voices, EAX 5.0/4.0 HD processing, multichannel output. In a headphone scenario it shouldn't affect you at all since an application has never used 192 kHz sample rate for two output channels (stereo) and that's what X-Fi is all about.


----------



## vexen (Feb 8, 2008)

Hello again, thanks, 

Would you recommend any audio benchmark i could test with/without CMSS etc.?


----------



## btarunr (Feb 8, 2008)

Since you're evaluating the overall system performance being affected with/without using CMSS-3D/Crystalizer, I'd suggest an in-game benchmark where you measure the FPS count with/without the said. Use Battlefield 2 / Battlefield 2142 / F.E.A.R.. In BF2 make sure you set the audio renderer to "Creative X-Fi". Use FRAPS to measure the FPS count. 

Oh yeah show us the results.


----------



## vexen (Feb 8, 2008)

i will try this weekend with CoD4.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 8, 2008)

CoD4 should be fine, remember to select HW Mixing/Audio in the audio options of whichever game you use that has the option. 

BTW, I use the Creative HN-601 headphones. It costs just around $40 but is quite a bargain.

I'm being creative in being Creative fanboy


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 8, 2008)

btarunr said:


> CoD4 should be fine, remember to select HW Mixing/Audio in the audio options of whichever game you use that has the option.
> 
> BTW, I use the Creative HN-601 headphones. It costs just around $40 but is quite a bargain.
> 
> I'm being creative in being Creative fanboy



those Creative are great for the price, and sound quite well too . . .

Still using an Altec Lansing AHS615 headset (~$50) . . . not bad, but I would like to upgrade to something a bit better.

BTW, Vexen . . . are you by chance using Vista or XP as your OS?


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 10, 2008)

Well, an update on the front panel mod:

The pinout crossover I had come up with:



> Here's the AC97/Azalia pinout, taken from Intel.com:
> 
> 1 2
> 3 4
> ...




does indeed work with (as best I can tell) full compatibility.  I have both left and right channels on my headset, stereo mic appears to be working correctly - headphone detect seems to be somewhat working . . . when you plug a headset in, the X-Fi mutes the output from the rear of the card to the primary speakers, but it doesn't enable headphone audio settings within the Audio Console .  Possibly, two of the connectors need to be swapped, I dick with it some more tomorrow - it's quite possible, too, that the 'enable headphone settings' only works in conjunction with the X-Fi 5.25" front panel.  As it is now, I can live with it, though.

I took some pics of my hack & slash mod - I removed the proprietary connector and pins from the board, and soldered in some motherboard pins (cause I'm too damn cheap to buy the correct connector ).  As I mentioned before, motherboard pins are a tad larger than the pins Creative used, so I had to narrow the ends of the pins going into the PCB with a dremel.  Even still, once soldered into place, the pins are still a tad too close together for motherboard pin-style connectors, so I had to bend every other pin outwards  - it's a decent soldering job for what it is, and it works, it just looks a little . . . spartan, lol!

Anyhow, I'm going to work up a diagram of sorts sometime tomorrow.  If anyone else is willing to use that pinout also, I'd really like some feedback that it's fully functional for anyone in need of HD capability before I post it as gospel to the front page.

Next mods up - heat spreader/EMI shield and LED replacement - whenever I can finish getting the materials needed.



<edit>:







anyone else willing to try it - I'd like some more feedback if possible


----------



## Preacher35 (Feb 12, 2008)

*Ready to smash Vista or X-Fi into small pieces*

Wow, glad to find this forum club.  Having issues with my Vista install and X-Fi and hoping you all can help.  

Here's what I've got: 
Intel X6800, BFG 680i mobo, 2 BFG 8800GTX in SLI, X-Fi Fatality (original Fatality issue w/IO panel & remote), 2gb of Corsair PC9136, Vista Ultimate OS, Logitech Z5500 surround 5.1 setup

So, from the day I installed Vista, and the Creative supplied X-Fi/Vista compatible drivers, my speaker/channel assignments were all screwed up.  I went into the THX console and through extensive finaggling, got the assignments to work OK.  It's been about three weeks now, and suddenly, after booting up my PC one morning, the assignments in Game mode are all screwed up again.  So, back to the THX console I went.  This time, however, There is no
sound channel for the front right speaker.  I can, however get sound to come out of thefront right speaker if I assign a different channel to it, just not the correct front right channel.  So, I completely removed the drivers and all bundled software and reinstalled... same problem.  I checked, of course all cables and Z5500 equipment through ancillary means and all check out fine.  It's been three days of frustration and irritation.  I'm considering going back to XP and sacrifice DX10.  Any ideas or possible solutions?


Thanks,
Preacher


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 12, 2008)

Preacher35 said:


> Wow, glad to find this forum club.  Having issues with my Vista install and X-Fi and hoping you all can help.
> 
> Here's what I've got:
> Intel X6800, BFG 680i mobo, 2 BFG 8800GTX in SLI, X-Fi Fatality (original Fatality issue w/IO panel & remote), 2gb of Corsair PC9136, Vista Ultimate OS, Logitech Z5500 surround 5.1 setup
> ...



By any chance have you tried installing the ALchemy drivers along with the Vista drivers? http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/download.asp?DriverLang=1033&searchString=ALXF_PCVTAPP_LB_1_00_30.exe&x=22&y=22&details=1

And, to be sure, you also have your speaker selection in the audio console set to 5.1, correct?

I've heard that in these instances, sometimes swaping the jacks around on the back of the card works, too - to the best of my understanding, this is a common Vista problem, and it resolves around how Vista interacts with the architecture of the card, which is why you lose channels, or they get swapped around.

Curious, did you ever have any issues in XP while also running the 2x 8800 in either single or SLI setup?


----------



## btarunr (Feb 12, 2008)

I guess it has more to do with his speaker polarity. Both the card and his speaker set are THX compliant, he should fiddle with different speaker polarity settings in the THX console. ALchemy only pertains to DirectSound applications that do multichannel. Those apps that do wave_out or OpenAL instead of DirectSound aren't affected.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 12, 2008)

Come to think of it, also - all settings in the Creative/THX console will change whenever going from one mode to the next, and each mode utilizes the card's hardware differently - and that directly affects output to each individual channel . . .


@preacher35 - does the loss of audio from your speakers only happen when in one audio mode, or all 3?


----------



## Preacher35 (Feb 13, 2008)

Imperialreign, thanks for replying.  The channel assignments stay static regardless of application/task.  But, let's cover our bases.  

-Yes, I definately have the Creative Console speaker set up set to 5.1
-No, I do not have the Alchemy software installed, but for the last 3 weeks, it hasn't been  an issue.  But, I think that btarunr is correct, in that Alchemy is only utilized in Directsound applications. 
-No, I did not have these issues w/XP however, I did not have the dual 8800GTX cards w/XP either as, of course, I wanted to utilize DX10.  I have read other posts that the proximity of the 8800GTX to the PCI slot containing the X-Fi can be an issue, but I thought that was more related to the "crackling and popping" sounds.

What's interesting is that a few days ago, when I lost my front right channel, it was only in Game mode.  Entertainment mode had all channel assignments correct and present.  After I reinstalled the Creative drivers, the Entertainment mode was missing the center channel.  Go figure.  I used to be an "onboard" sound guy, but have been spoiled by the X-Fi card.  Am I really in the position of having to choose DX10 or X-Fi?  This sucks.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 13, 2008)

Make sure you have these values in the THX setup console, keep changing the speaker polarity setting (in the "Speaker Selection" tab) till you get all your speakers working.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 13, 2008)

Preacher35 said:


> Imperialreign, thanks for replying.  The channel assignments stay static regardless of application/task.  But, let's cover our bases.
> 
> -Yes, I definately have the Creative Console speaker set up set to 5.1
> -No, I do not have the Alchemy software installed, but for the last 3 weeks, it hasn't been  an issue.  But, I think that btarunr is correct, in that Alchemy is only utilized in Directsound applications.
> ...




I was wondering on the ALchemy thing, as I thought it was only happening in game mode, but, anyhow . . . you don't leave EAX effects on in every mode, do you?  btarunr is right about the ALchemy drivers with DirectSound, but, IIRC, it also affects any usage of audio hardware acceleration beyond just DirectSound applications.

I'd try checking over the polarity settings in the THX console if you can, as btarunr recommended (I hadn't realized from your first post).  Another thought, too, open up the audio & sound control panel in WIN, and make sure that volume settings for seperate channels are up, too.  I've had a couple of time where WIN for some unknown reason, drops volume of one channel to 0%-5%, and I always overlook checking it first 

TBH, what you're describing doesn't sound to me to be any type of EMI issue from the card being too close to the 8800s - I was looking more along the lines of two powerful GPUs combined with an nForce motherboard.  Not everyone has had problems with nVidia hardware, though, and your issue doesn't really sound like the usual complaint with nVidia hardware - so no worries, there.


----------



## Preacher35 (Feb 13, 2008)

Hey, I truly appreciate both of you helping me out on this.  I haven't looked in the Win properties for individual channel volumes (I had no idea that Vista contained such capability).  I will also try playing around with the polarities tonight as you recommended and report back.  As I'm sure that this is the same with you, I love my X-Fi card more than pretty much anything else in my rig and would be hard to live without.


Thanks again


----------



## btarunr (Feb 14, 2008)

*News: MSI P7N Diamond with Xtreme Audio.*






Creative X-Fi technology has penetrated into a variety of products ranging primarily from Sound-cards to headphones, external audio filters and now even motherboards. This isn't for the first time that MSI (Micro-Star International) is incorporating X-Fi audio into its motherboard audio subsystem, the *MSI P7N Diamond* is their latest board. It's based on the NVidia NForce 780i SLI chipset. More details on this board can be found on the company website here.

With manufacturers cramming more and more features into today's high-end motherboards, the PCB's are definitely running out of space for the audio subsystem. Hence several manufacturers such as ASUS, DFI, Abit are opting the use of audio riser cards. An audio riser simply put is a tiny expansion card with all the onboard audio circuitry you'd otherwise find on the main PCB of the motherboard. This usually includes an Intel Azalia specs. compliant CODEC chip, its power circuit, input headers for CD/Aux in, digital in ; has the external connectors of the analogue out and usually the coaxial/optical SPDIF IO. In some boards such as the ASUS ROG series, the SPDIF connectors are on the main PCB. 

The X-Fi Xtreme Audio that comes with the MSI P7N Diamond isn't an audio riser but a fully discrete card PCI-E card that goes into any PCI-E slot. This design has many flaws however.

Take a close look at the board layout and that of the card:










...and how you're supposed to install them...








The card is a full-height expansion card that ideally would go into the first PCI-E x1 slot in which case the video-card won't fit (into the first PCI-E x16 slot). 

Let's say I have to install three cards into a tri-SLI (I can't in reality but just assume). I lose out on all options of an audio subsystem.

A. The first slot is blocked with this card on the second x1 slot. 
B. Even if I use three cards into the first, second and fourth x16 slots with this audio card in the second x1 slot, I'll have trouble with the SLI interconnect defeating the purpose of a 780i based board.
C. How can I use tri-SLI anyway with such a bundle ?






All in all the card seems a decent thing, it's based on the design methodology of the X-Fi Xtreme Audio PCI-Express but in the context of this board, the design is extremely flawed thanks to the shabby PCB layout of the board. Mind you, this card doesn't have the CA-20K1 processor meaning no EAX 4.0 HD / 5.0 HD acceleration but you still get the Crystalizer and CMSS-3D.

I rather compliment the older MSI board that implemented X-Fi, the P6N Diamond based on the NForce 680i. Isn't that a much more sensible PCB design now?


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 14, 2008)

it seems quite a few motherboard manufacturers are heading the route of an x1 style PCB - although that MSI is the first I've seen brandishing the X-Fi name.  That is a crappy layout on MSI's part, though - it's as if the audio was an afterthought.

But, they do this for their "performance" motherboards to isolate the chipset from the motherboard PCB itself to eliminate EMI issues from the mobo componentry, but still want to cram the riser card butt-up against the primary PCIE slot :shadedshu

MSI deserves a  for that one


----------



## dwax (Feb 14, 2008)

I have the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic. still have the drivers from the disk installed. Do you have to uninstall the old ones before you update to new drivers?


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 14, 2008)

dwax said:


> I have the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic. still have the drivers from the disk installed. Do you have to uninstall the old ones before you update to new drivers?



you shouldn't have to;

although, if you are using Vista, I'd recommend doing so.  You should be alright if running XP.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 15, 2008)

Preacher35 said:


> Hey, I truly appreciate both of you helping me out on this.  I haven't looked in the Win properties for individual channel volumes (I had no idea that Vista contained such capability).  I will also try playing around with the polarities tonight as you recommended and report back.  As I'm sure that this is the same with you, I love my X-Fi card more than pretty much anything else in my rig and would be hard to live without.
> 
> 
> Thanks again



any developments to getting your audio straightened out?


----------



## Preacher35 (Feb 15, 2008)

No.  I've tried all of your appreciated suggestions, but the channel issue is worse now then before.  I've tried playing with polarities, swapping cables, making adjustments in the control panel.  No dice.  At the moment, I'm back to onboard sound and that is messed up as well (no center channel and front left is coming out of the center channel speaker).  I'm confident that this is a Vista issue.  I guess, I'm gonna have to sacrifice DX10 and switch back to XP.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 15, 2008)

Preacher35 said:


> No.  I've tried all of your appreciated suggestions, but the channel issue is worse now then before.  I've tried playing with polarities, swapping cables, making adjustments in the control panel.  No dice.  At the moment, I'm back to onboard sound and that is messed up as well (no center channel and front left is coming out of the center channel speaker).  I'm confident that this is a Vista issue.  I guess, I'm gonna have to sacrifice DX10 and switch back to XP.



odd that onboard audio is doing the same thing you were having issues with the X-Fi, considering those are two different styles of audio playback and drivers are different.

By chance, the issue you are currently having with your onboard audio, is it exactly the same as with the X-Fi card, or are there differences?

If it is exactly the same, I'd reason to say that the problem might possibly be with your speakers - in this case, I'd recommend trying another set if you have them, or, try hooking your speaker setup to some other form of device, like a TV, DVD player, DVR, stereo, etc.  If the problem is still apparent, the speakers themselves might be defective - rare, but not entirelly impossible either.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 16, 2008)

Do this: Keep the card in 5.1 ch setting, use a pair of stereo headphones, plug it in all the three jacks of the sound card and see if you're getting any sound with the multichannel demo.


----------



## DaMulta (Feb 16, 2008)

So I bought this today






Plugs in via USB and installs all the drivers via windows. USB X-Fi sound card that works in ALL GAMES!!!

So far I'm loving this thing.


Games sound better.

Youtube sounds better

Higher volume

X-Fi works in all things.

Bad
USB power plug sold sep..



Do you guys think there is anyway to install Xfi soft for this?


----------



## DaMulta (Feb 16, 2008)

Oh I also picked up a pair of these.






Short Description
The RS 130 wireless RF headphone system with switchable surround sound is an ideal choice for both hi-fi and TV use. The lightweight RS 130 lets you enjoy freedom of movement from any audio source. In addition, the transmitter features a convenient metal stand for storing and recharging the headphones.
Features
	Open, circumaural wireless stereo RF headphone system
	For hi-fi and TV use
	Switchable SRS surround sound mode
	Intelligent auto-tuning with memory function
	Self-learning automatic level control provides optimum signal reception
	Very lightweight headphones, extremely comfortable to wear
	Easy recharging: simply hang the headphones onto the charging cradle
	Rechargeable NiMH batteries included
	Supports the use of multiple headphones receiving the RF signal from one transmitter.
	Delivery includes transmitter, power cable, audio cable and headphones
	Connects to RCA jacks (red and white outputs), 1/8" and 1/4" headphone sockets (anything with a headphone jack including laptop and desktop computers!)

http://www.sennheiserusa.com/newsite/productdetail.asp?transid=009925


I can go all over the house and no wires to get wrapped up in my chair.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 16, 2008)

DaMulta said:


> So I bought this today
> 
> 
> 
> ...




maybe, but the software the is part of the X-Fi driver package I don't think would work at all.  But, you should be able to dl the other Creative software from their website, I would think . . . you bought it brand new?  It didn't come with a diks of creative software at all?



			
				DaMulta said:
			
		

> Oh I also picked up a pair of these.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



how well do they sound?  Do get any loss of signla at all, or is it a constant strong signal?  TBH, I've always been a bit leary of wireless headsets, but technology has changed a lot over the alst year or two


----------



## DaMulta (Feb 16, 2008)

They sound good when sound is going on. When sound is off you can hear a slight noise, not a bad noise tho. Granted I'm supposed to charge them for 16 hours and I turned them on out of the box the batteries could need more charge.  I have walked maybe 30-50 feet away with good sound. O they charge on the set which was a major plus to this.

I have a pair of hd 465, and I think these wireless are better than them in ways.


For the Xmod I found there is new firmware on creatives website, maybe this is how the drivers are installed? There is no CD, no soft no notting that comes with this X-Fi it's a plug in and windows install type of hardware. Tomb Radier the game I have tried it with so far is much better now, and I can hear things that I didn't hear before in the game.


----------



## DaMulta (Feb 17, 2008)

COD4=fantastic sound now!!!!!


----------



## btarunr (Feb 17, 2008)

DaMulta said:


> COD4=fantastic sound now!!!!!



Aah...finally you guys are realising the importance / benefits of X-Fi Technology on gaming. Try BF 2142. You're listening to CoD 4 in EAX 3.0 Advanced HD. 

Yes, the X-Mod is very ideal when you're in a multi-GPU setup not being able to install a PCI card or if you use the USB port as in notebooks or the PC itself. It offers the same X-Fi Crystalizer and CMSS-3D. The signal processing however is carried out by the system CPU. 

Doom 3 with EAX 4.0 HD pwns


----------



## DaMulta (Feb 17, 2008)

I had a X-Fi fatilty that I sold because 2 out of 3 motherboards it would snap crackle pop.


I just need to find a mixer for this thing.

Well with this I can go to my 5.1 with my onboard, and headphones with this. I'm on headphones 98% of the time.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 17, 2008)

DaMulta said:


> I had a X-Fi fatilty that I sold because 2 out of 3 motherboards it would snap crackle pop.
> 
> 
> I just need to find a mixer for this thing.
> ...



The newer X-Fi revisions don't tend to have as much of a problem with hardware conflicts or overheating issues.  Updated PCBs and firmware have done wonders for them.

I can't think of any really good and free software mixers . . .

although, seeings as how you have Realtek HD, the driver package should come with a software mixer and all, right?  Or are you looking for something that directly interfaces with the X-Mod, instead of adjusting output settings?

Awesome, though, that you have such great range with that headset!  I remember when some of the early wireless headsets first came out, they were very receptive to interference and all.



			
				DaMulta said:
			
		

> COD4=fantastic sound now!!!!!



why I stress to people (especially gamers) that nothing beats out the EAX capability of X-Fi products.  Enjoy it man! 



			
				btarunr said:
			
		

> Yes, the X-Mod is very ideal when you're in a multi-GPU setup not being able to install a PCI card or if you use the USB port as in notebooks or the PC itself. It offers the same X-Fi Crystalizer and CMSS-3D. The signal processing however is carried out by the system CPU.
> 
> Doom 3 with EAX 4.0 HD pwns



Doom3 with EAX4HD + OpenAL


----------



## trodas (Feb 17, 2008)

I just want to report there as X-Fi owner (at lest till I kill the card by modding it too much ) and now off to reading some interesting things in this thread  

Good work there, *imperialreign*  I do wonder how the custom drivers for X-Fi works, compared to the Creative ones that are mostly major pain in the a$$


----------



## mab1376 (Feb 19, 2008)

I have an X-fi Xtreme music which is had RMA'd through creative for random thumps through the subwoofer of my Logitech Z-5500's I also had the speakers RMA'd and it is still happening, is it possible its doing this due to "dirty power"?

If so which power cleaner would you recommend? a Monster brand one or something else?


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 19, 2008)

mab1376 said:


> I have an X-fi Xtreme music which is had RMA'd through creative for random thumps through the subwoofer of my Logitech Z-5500's I also had the speakers RMA'd and it is still happening, is it possible its doing this due to "dirty power"?
> 
> If so which power cleaner would you recommend? a Monster brand one or something else?



Hmmm . . . I don't really think it's either the X-Fi, nor the speakers themself . . . going to need some more in-depth info, there;  Are you're speakers connected through minijacks, RCA or S/PDIF?
When does it typically occur, when the PC is on or off, when the subwoofer is on or off?


It's possible voltage spikes through the line might cause the woofer to kick, but, if it happens at somewhat regular intervals, it might be power electrical interference - a central HVAC unit can cause this, as well as most modern appliances.  If you leave anywhere near a public utilites lot of some sort, that too could cause problems.  TBH, I'd recommend a good, high-end surge protector any how, as that will help control most of it - if it's still present, a power conditioner might be in order, also.

Also, as I'm not sure the exact capabilities of that speaker setup; do they have some kind of energy saving feature, where they go into a 'standby' mode if not being used for a while?  If so, it's quite possible the kick you're hearing is from the sub turning on and then back off.  

But, I must ask also, are there any high powered wireless phones near the unit?  A WiFi network router?  Do you charge your cell phone near by the subwoofer, especially with it being on?  If so, you might want to remove these items from the room, and see if the woofer is still randomly kicking.


----------



## DaMulta (Feb 19, 2008)

You should add the budget Xmod to the list.

So far I'm loving this, and for the people that only install drivers with no soft I think this would almost be better for them. BUT they would need to be a 2.0 or headphone user like myself.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 19, 2008)

DaMulta said:


> You should add the budget Xmod to the list.
> 
> So far I'm loving this, and for the people that only install drivers with no soft I think this would almost be better for them. BUT they would need to be a 2.0 or headphone user like myself.



I might add it in, external X-Fi solution and all . . . BTW, how much did it cost?  I might pick one up sometime soon, just to be able to compare it myself to a true-blooded PCI card; at least to be able to answer anyone's questions about them . . .

Curious - what exactly would you compare the audio quality to?  I mean, is it up to snuff with a standard internal PCI card, or not so much?

I figured it's aimed more at those that are more interested in ipod/mp3/wma playback and watching some streaming vids or TV on their rig . . . what's your thoughts?


----------



## DaMulta (Feb 19, 2008)

http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd/prod...AFEED->PRODUCTS&cm_ite=1 PRODUCT&cm_keycode=4

40usd there.

What are my thoughts. Well the CMSS-CD I missed a whole lot with headphones. That tech helps so much on things it's not even funny for me. I had to sell my old X-FI card because of the motherboard problems. You say that went away, but I'm not sold on that. For the money yes this thing is worth it. In movies you can use AS3-Filter for an eq, but I haven't found one for this yet. You can plug this in to an onboard sound, but you need to have a USB power to do that. That might sound better because of the EQ. Now I haven't tried any EAX games to see if you can use them with this after this movie I'm watching I might see what Bf2 does.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 19, 2008)

Reviews suggest the X-Mod to have the same output quality as any other X-Fi product from Creative. We must remember that the term  X-Fi (eXtreme Fidelity) doesn't apply only to sound-cards but a whole range of products that implement Creative's proprietary technologies. The Aurvana X-Fi  is a superb noise-canceling headphone that implements X-Fi (as in X-Fi Crystalizer and CMSS-3D _inside_ a headphone) so you can even make a tiny Xen Stone player knock off even an iPod in terms of output. Another feat of this headphones is its incredibly light-weight. I'm sounding like a salesman now but I promise I'm going to buy it next. The only glitch is..it costs way more than a Bose QC II (but is better than it) even more than a X-Fi Elite Pro sound card :shadedshu .








An extremely viable aternative to the Aurvana X-Fi if you're on a PC would be Creative HN-602 + X-Fi X-Mod


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 19, 2008)

DaMulta said:


> http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd/prod...AFEED->PRODUCTS&cm_ite=1 PRODUCT&cm_keycode=4
> 
> 40usd there.
> 
> What are my thoughts. Well the CMSS-CD I missed a whole lot with headphones. That tech helps so much on things it's not even funny for me. I had to sell my old X-FI card because of the motherboard problems. You say that went away, but I'm not sold on that. For the money yes this thing is worth it. In movies you can use AS3-Filter for an eq, but I haven't found one for this yet. You can plug this in to an onboard sound, but you need to have a USB power to do that. That might sound better because of the EQ. Now I haven't tried any EAX games to see if you can use them with this after this movie I'm watching I might see what Bf2 does.



I might just pick one up then within the next few weeks then; if nothing else it might make listening to stuff on my gf's PC a bit more enjoyable 

Asides, I think being able to have a comparison here, running the external solution through a HD onboard vs a X-Fi internal solution would be worth it, also.




btarunr said:


> Reviews suggest the X-Mod to have the same output quality as any other X-Fi product from Creative. We must remember that the term  X-Fi (eXtreme Fidelity) doesn't apply only to sound-cards but a whole range of products that implement Creative's proprietary technologies, the Aurvana X-Fi  is a superb noise-canceling headphone that implements X-Fi (as in X-Fi Crystalizer and CMSS-3D _inside_ a headphone) so you can even make a tiny Xen Stone player knock off even an iPod in terms of output. Another feat of this headphones is its incredibly light-weight. I'm sounding like a salesman now but I promise I'm going to buy it next. The only glitch is..it costs way more than a Bose QC II (but is better than it) even more than a X-Fi Elite Pro sound card :shadedshu .
> 
> . . . .



+1

Had a chance to use a set yet?!  Good friggin lord, man - they left me speechless as far as a headset is concerned.  Simply unbelievable.  They're on my wish-list, for sure, but it'll be a long ways off before I snag a pair.

Plus, Creative's CMSS-3D is a major selling point for their equipment; and the only thing I can say to others to really describe it, is they must hear to really believe what it is capable of.


----------



## DaMulta (Feb 19, 2008)

What I would like to know is how many sounds this thing can produce at one time, seeing that I'm plugged in USB with this thing. Creative didn't really make this for PCs, but they did put it there, just with no software. I really wish they gave some kind of soft controls with this.


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## imperialreign (Feb 19, 2008)

DaMulta said:


> What I would like to know is how many sounds this thing can produce at one time, seeing that I'm plugged in USB with this thing. Creative didn't really make this for PCs, but they did put it there, just with no software. I really wish they gave some kind of soft controls with this.



not sure . . . you mean, if it's capable of 5.1 or 7.1?  Or do you mean sounds as in the actual number of audio voices (files) being played back through the speakers?  If this is the case, I'd fathom to say it's probably limited by what the audio chipset is capable of . . . not really sure just yet, though . . .


----------



## DaMulta (Feb 19, 2008)

sounds as in the actual number of audio voices

The X-Fi can do 127 sounds at one time.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 19, 2008)

Since it's software-accelerated, the X-Fi driver allows 65535 software voices, and that's way above the Microsoft WDM specifications for software-accelerated audio.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 19, 2008)

That's actually supposed to be 64 * 1024 but always remember, the last voice is reserved. Even in the CA-20K1 powered cards you have 127 hardware voice + 65535 software and not 128 + 65536 though the last voices exist.

That's Xtreme Gamer in the attachment notice the OpenAL driver got initialised _before_ the intro music file (mono, ~48 kbps ogg-vorbis)


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 19, 2008)

btarunr said:


> That's actually supposed to be 64 * 1024 but always remember, the last voice is reserved. Even in the CA-20K1 powered cards you have 127 hardware voice + 65535 software and not 128 + 65536 though the last voices exist.
> 
> That's Xtreme Gamer in the attachment notice the OpenAL driver got initialised _before_ the intro music file (mono, ~48 kbps ogg-vorbis)



OpenAL is a great hardware extension in itself, also . . . but, it's another one of those things that's dependant on developer support, much like EAX.

Although, Vista being the way it is, I think more devs are joining the OpenAL movement, as it works around the OS much better than the ALchemy drivers do.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 19, 2008)

OpenAL is an api, much like DirectSound. EAX are extensions of OpenAL, including the X-RAM parser (the software code that allows applications to read/write/use the X-RAM). 

When an application uses OpenAL instead of DirectSound to interact with the audio hardware, the features/capabilities of the audio hardware exist in the form of 'extensions' much like how the hardware capabilities of a GPU are interacted by the OpenGL's GL extensions. 

Unlike OpenGL, OpenAL doesn't have a well-defined ARB (Architecture Review Board) and hence the dominant players (users of the API), Creative Labs, defines the standards. The EAX HD (4.0, 5.0) are exclusive for Creative and are hardware-specific OpenAL extensions while other features such as positionAL and EAX 2.0 are free for use by any hardware vendor and count as ARB extensions. Remember those GL_arb_  openGL extensions? And that NVidia and ATI came up with their own hardware specific extension (such as GL_NV_distancefog and GL_ATI_truform) ? same case here.


The interesting fact is ALchemy infact emulates DirectSound while being and OpenAL extension. So since Vista takes OpenAL, all DirectSound apps are able to use their features thru OpenAL.


----------



## hat (Feb 19, 2008)

btarunr said:


> That's actually supposed to be 64 * 1024 but always remember, the last voice is reserved. Even in the CA-20K1 powered cards you have 127 hardware voice + 65535 software and not 128 + 65536 though the last voices exist.
> 
> That's Xtreme Gamer in the attachment notice the OpenAL driver got initialised _before_ the intro music file (mono, ~48 kbps ogg-vorbis)



Man I only have 64 voices


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 19, 2008)

Yeah,them headphones are nice,but they're £207 in the uk.However nice they are,they can shove em up there ass for that price.Rip off britain strikes again


----------



## btarunr (Feb 19, 2008)

I feel sorry for you Britts. UK needs some serious trade reforms. The economy is strong, just that the import duty, VAT, etc suck.


----------



## mab1376 (Feb 19, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> Hmmm . . . I don't really think it's either the X-Fi, nor the speakers themself . . . going to need some more in-depth info, there;  Are you're speakers connected through minijacks, RCA or S/PDIF?
> When does it typically occur, when the PC is on or off, when the subwoofer is on or off?
> 
> 
> ...



They are connected through the mini-jacks ATM, although i would like to get the i/o module and use optical, i usually notice it when the pc is on doing non-audio related tasks, but it has happened when the pc was off which is why I RMA'd the speakers first. ATM there is no wireless router in my house, but there is a 2.4GHz wireless phone and multiple cell phones, but for the most part the thumps are pretty uniform in the loudness and gap between them.

i'll try getting a good surge bar seeing as my current one is from 1997.

also off topic: how do you like the Azuntech X-FI prelude, for that fact is any card with X-RAM worth it?


----------



## thegave (Feb 19, 2008)

Fack yes my XtremeMusic finally arrived today.

Imp, may I join?


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## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 19, 2008)

The x-fi cant do 5.1 through the optical/coaxial can it? I think there is a way to get coaxial through the digital out jack.I've not tried it,but i heard it dont do 5.1 from digi out.I have mine connected to my sony av amp via analogue jacks because of this.


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## thegave (Feb 19, 2008)

Are there any special modded drivers I should consider like YouPax or kX or should I just stick with Creative's?


----------



## btarunr (Feb 19, 2008)

Stick to the latest drivers from Creative's website. They're the most stable drivers yet.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 19, 2008)

mab1376 said:


> They are connected through the mini-jacks ATM, although i would like to get the i/o module and use optical, i usually notice it when the pc is on doing non-audio related tasks, but it has happened when the pc was off which is why I RMA'd the speakers first. ATM there is no wireless router in my house, but there is a 2.4GHz wireless phone and multiple cell phones, but for the most part the thumps are pretty uniform in the loudness and gap between them.
> 
> i'll try getting a good surge bar seeing as my current one is from 1997.
> 
> also off topic: how do you like the Azuntech X-FI prelude, for that fact is any card with X-RAM worth it?



Well, if you're cordless phone is installed in the room, you might want to relocate it just to be sure - anything that generates a RFID signal could potentially interefere with a subwoofer . . . but I think a good surge protector should help.

As to the Prelude - I honestly couldn't tell you how I like it, as I don't have one.  You'd have to ask btarunr.  The Prelude is known for completely blowing all of Creative's cards out of the water in terms of audio quality, though.



			
				thegave said:
			
		

> Fack yes my XtremeMusic finally arrived today.
> 
> Imp, may I join?
> 
> ...



sure, no prob.

I agree with bta on this - Creative's drivers are the most stable.  All the modded drivers came about from people who were trying to "unlock" features of the cards that Creative doesn't offer through their drivers, or were trying to fix issues that Creative hadn't addressed at the time.


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## thegave (Feb 20, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I agree with bta on this - Creative's drivers are the most stable.



Is that only the official drivers (dated 10/30/06... That seems like ages ago) or are the Creative Beta drivers (dated 1/9/08) ok too?


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## imperialreign (Feb 20, 2008)

thegave said:


> Is that only the official drivers (dated 10/30/06... That seems like ages ago) or are the Creative Beta drivers (dated 1/9/08) ok too?



Yeah, those are the most current.  TBH, I haven't had any issues with the aplha drivers - beta drivers are worth installing only if you're having issues that can't be resolved.  Creative has a bad habit of not specifiying what the beta drivers are trying to address.

I'm hoping within the next couple of months we'll see new X-Fi drivers for the XP OS.  After Vista was launched, Creative has been focusing solely on thos drivers sets - which is why it's been so long since the last XP update . . . but the existance of beta XP drivers means that we'll see another alpha driver release at some point.


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## DaMulta (Feb 20, 2008)

Well my Xmod is not an X-Fi in games. In BF2 I can't use the X-Fi, but I can use hardware EAX on high. In King Kong the game will not let me use the EAX option. I don't know about openAL as of yet.


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## imperialreign (Feb 20, 2008)

DaMulta said:


> Well my Xmod is not an X-Fi in games. In BF2 I can't use the X-Fi, but I can use hardware EAX on high. In King Kong the game will not let me use the EAX option. I don't know about openAL as of yet.



I'm guessing you're on Vista?

It might be possible you only have the onboard EAX2.0 capability + whatever the X-Mod can deliver with Crystallizer and positional audio.

Curious, does the OS recognize the X-Mod as an external audio card, though?


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## btarunr (Feb 20, 2008)

X-Mod supports upto EAX 3.0 , it doesn't come with the X-Fi hardware audio renderer, its featuresets are comparable to the Xtreme Audio.


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## DaMulta (Feb 20, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I'm guessing you're on Vista?
> 
> It might be possible you only have the onboard EAX2.0 capability + whatever the X-Mod can deliver with Crystallizer and positional audio.
> 
> Curious, does the OS recognize the X-Mod as an external audio card, though?



XP Pro 32bit


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## Russtavo (Feb 21, 2008)

*PowerDVD SPDIF Problem*

I hope someone can save my sanity and help me with this problem!  I have my new HTPC connected to my amp with Coax S/PDIF. Applications such as Windows Media Player are sending the correct multi-channel streams as my amp displays "Dolby Digital" or "DTS" depending on the source. One major problem: PowerDVD outputs NO sound whatsoever when I change the audio settings to "S/PDIF". If I set it to anything else (e.g. "2 Speaker", "6 speaker") I just get stereo sound. My suspition is a compatibility issue between PowerDVD and my X-Fi Sound Blaster drivers. Here's my system spec:

PC: Dell Vostro 200 Slim
OS: Vista Ultimate 32-bit SP1
Graphics: ASUS Radeon HD 3450 (Catalyst 8.2)
Audio: Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio (latest drivers)
Display: Sony Bravia KDL-32D3000
Amp: Denon AVR-3802
PowerDVD Ultra: 7.3.3730.0
LG GGW-H20L Blu-Ray/HDDVD Combo Drive

I have disabled the onboard Relatek audio, and disabled the High-Def Audio on the graphics card.

I've done screengrabs of all relevant settings/info, they are here:

http://demon.xssl.net/~admin2/spdif/index.htm

I've e-mailed Cyberlink support but they are s-l-o-w, and not helpful. I want to play Blu-Ray and HD-DVD discs, so I really need PowerDVD to work. Any help is really appreciated.


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## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 21, 2008)

sorry i cant help,but i will say,niiice amp.I have my x-fi connected to a sony 5.1 amp,by analouge cables coz i'm not even sure if the x-fi can output 5.1 through the optical digital out.Plus i play a lot of games and need the 5.1 sound.

I'm sure someone will be able to help tho'


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## Russtavo (Feb 21, 2008)

Thanks, it does output 5.1 very nicely through it's coaxial out (the X-Fi Gamer is the one with optical Out). Only PowerDVD is spoiling my party :-(


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## imperialreign (Feb 22, 2008)

Russtavo said:


> I hope someone can save my sanity and help me with this problem!  I have my new HTPC connected to my amp with Coax S/PDIF. Applications such as Windows Media Player are sending the correct multi-channel streams as my amp displays "Dolby Digital" or "DTS" depending on the source. One major problem: PowerDVD outputs NO sound whatsoever when I change the audio settings to "S/PDIF". If I set it to anything else (e.g. "2 Speaker", "6 speaker") I just get stereo sound. My suspition is a compatibility issue between PowerDVD and my X-Fi Sound Blaster drivers. Here's my system spec:
> 
> PC: Dell Vostro 200 Slim
> OS: Vista Ultimate 32-bit SP1
> ...



I'm not all that good with Dolby features of the cards (as I haven't had much use for the capabilities, yet), but I'll still give it a shot:

I'm kinda getting the feeling it's either a driver issue, or a codec issue . . .

have you checked Cyberlink's site for any updates, and are you using a full retail version?

TBH, I'd start with first removing all FFDSHOW and 3rd party codecs (except for those that came with media player and PowerDVD), and installing only the AC3 codecs from http://ac3filter.net/


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## btarunr (Feb 22, 2008)

One simple preliminary question: Where are you connecting the coaxial-SPDIF to? The connector on the motherboard?


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## Russtavo (Feb 22, 2008)

> have you checked Cyberlink's site for any updates, and are you using a full retail version?
> 
> TBH, I'd start with first removing all FFDSHOW and 3rd party codecs (except for those that came with media player and PowerDVD), and installing only the AC3 codecs from http://ac3filter.net/



Yes full retail version, latest build. Tried removing all codecs and just using AC3Filter. Problem is PowerDVD uses it's own codec reglardless (from what I can tell).



> One simple preliminary question: Where are you connecting the coaxial-SPDIF to? The connector on the motherboard?



No, from my X-Fi Audio card to my amplifier. Onboard sound is disabled in the bios.

Heeeelp!


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## btarunr (Feb 22, 2008)

How are you taking the co-axial connection out? Digital IO module? External IO module? X-Fi Platinum drive?

2. In the Entertainment mode console, have you tried to set the Digital IO output sampling rate to 48 KHz from its default 96 KHz?


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## Russtavo (Feb 22, 2008)

> How are you taking the co-axial connection out? Digital IO module? External IO module? X-Fi Platinum drive?



Just a 75ohm Coax cable with a 3.5mm Mono Plug to Phono Socket Adaptor on the Sound Card end, it plugs straight into the Digital Out port on the X-Fi card. I just want to reiterate - *this works*! PowerDVD is the problem, it just won't pass through SPDIF like all other apps, there must be a registry entry or something I can change?



> 2. In the Entertainment mode console, have you tried to set the Digital IO output sampling rate to 48 KHz from its default 96 KHz?



Yes I have it at 48 KHz.


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## imperialreign (Feb 22, 2008)

Russtavo said:


> Just a 75ohm Coax cable with a 3.5mm Mono Plug to Phono Socket Adaptor on the Sound Card end, it plugs straight into the Digital Out port on the X-Fi card. I just want to reiterate - *this works*! PowerDVD is the problem, it just won't pass through SPDIF like all other apps, there must be a registry entry or something I can change?
> 
> 
> 
> Yes I have it at 48 KHz.




Alright, then - have you installed the ALchemy drivers and OpenAL

From what all I've read of others having this issue with Vista (not just X-Fi owners, it seems), it's related to how the OS handles output, and because of how Media Player and MS apps are integrated with the OS, they're capable of playback, while 3rd party apps aren't.

I ran across a couple of pages that listed some registry fixes for these issues, but I'm having a hell of a time finding thos pages again.  As soon as I run across them, I'll post the links for you to read and take a look at, too.


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## btarunr (Feb 23, 2008)

You need a replacement AC3 CODEC/

http://www.free-codecs.com/download/K_Lite_Mega_Codec_Pack.htm

It comes with several AC3 multi-pass filters / CODECs


----------



## Russtavo (Feb 23, 2008)

Imperialreign thank you so much for the suggestions, I installed Alchemy and OpenAL as you suggested, but no difference I'm afraid. I think your on the right track about 3rd party apps. Could you please *PLEASE *try and find those registry settings? It's my last hope before I have to buy a different sound card 

btarunr, as far as I know (unless someone can correct me), PowerDVD only uses it's *own *CODECs when playing discs, and they can't be changed.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 23, 2008)

I'm not sure what an OpenAL compatibility layer can do with erratic SPDIF pass. The X-Fi drivers come with the OpenAL ICD (installable client driver) and it isn't something you install on top of it. In case you have searched for, downloaded, and installed a generic OpenAL32.dll from Creative, I'm afraid it will be of an older, incompatible version and could affect performance with gaming. I don't link ALchemy to SPDIF's functionality.

For the sake of a test, you might want to try another application such as VLC, you can configure it.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 23, 2008)

I'm still diggin for those pages . . . problem being, there's so many "copy-cat" forums now that list the same message you started in this thread, and so many board-reader pages . . . plus, I can't remember the exact keywords I punched into google 

but, from what all I've read across quite a few different pages concerning Vista and 3rd party apps like PowerDVD, it stems from how Vista is set up in registry to capture audio through it's own codecs.  When a 3rd party app attempts to capture and process audio, it has to rely on it's own software as Vista blocks the apps ability to fully interact with the hardware, and you end up with a downsampled audio stream.  It appears X-Fi owners, C-Media owners, and onboard audio users have all complained about the same exact or similar issues as you're describing with PowerDVD - they either have no s/pdif output at all, or only 2 channel stereo; but playback through WIN Media Center or Media Player works perfectly fine.  So, even buying another soundcard probably won't resolve the issue - in the meantime, though, for shits and giggles, if you have s/pdif output from the motherboard, you could try attempting to see if your onboard chipset can actually playback multi-channel in PowerDVD (if you're Realtek chipset is capable of 5.1, etc).  If you have the same exact problem, I'd think it's fair and safe to bet we're looking at a definite issue with the OS, and not with your hardware.

Also, try another application as btarunr suggested, also - it could perhaps be just an issue with one specific 3rd part application, too.

In the meantime, I'll keep looking . . .


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## btarunr (Feb 23, 2008)

Makes me feel special that other forum sites are ripping our intellect. Goes on to make us the originals.


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## imperialreign (Feb 23, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Makes me feel special that other forum sites are ripping our intellect. Goes on to make us the originals.



yeah, imitation is the most sincere form of flattery  - but it's a PITA when your trying to do some research, though


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## btarunr (Feb 23, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> yeah, imitation is the most sincere form of flattery  - but it's a PITA when your trying to do some research, though



I have a very numb 'back', tolerated so much pain already looking up whitepapers, talking to technical people, making people understand things in the simplest forms possible, writing pages of tech-blogs, drawing schematic diagrams,.....you can almost light a dynamite stick in my 'back', I wouldn't feel the pain


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## Cold Storm (Feb 23, 2008)

Just to let you guys know. Random replaced the power capacitors  on my card and the sound is out of this world. so much better then it was before. Can turn up to about half way on my speakers and they are just... Speech less... If needed I'll get some pictures for you guys on both the front panel mod and capacitor mod...


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## btarunr (Feb 23, 2008)

I was planning on doing a cap-mod for a long time myself. Can't find replacements for the X-Fi Prelude, they already look/sound great but my Xtreme Gamer is the lab-mouse for now. Let's see a close-up of the capacitors, they're compatible for all SB X-Fi cards.


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## Cold Storm (Feb 23, 2008)

all right, later on tonight I'll take some pictures for yeah. I had the cap put on the other side of the card because of the fact that the psu is at the bottom of the cosmos and I have every slot but one used right now. lol.


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## imperialreign (Feb 23, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> all right, later on tonight I'll take some pictures for yeah. I had the cap put on the other side of the card because of the fact that the psu is at the bottom of the cosmos and I have every slot but one used right now. lol.




This thread just broke 10,000 views!!  w00t!! 

I've been conversing with trodas here and there, and he found that completely removing the audio filter caps, combined with replacing the OPAMPs yielded phenomenal results, as well as replacing the other caps as well.

Defi take some pics CS!




			
				Russtavo said:
			
		

> Imperialreign thank you so much for the suggestions, I installed Alchemy and OpenAL as you suggested, but no difference I'm afraid. I think your on the right track about 3rd party apps. Could you please PLEASE try and find those registry settings? It's my last hope before I have to buy a different sound card



Still looking . . . But, from what I understand and have dug up within the last couple of hours, though, it seems this decoder utility will allow you to change what Vista sees as the default decoder, by changing the same registry settings you'd have to change by hand: http://www.xpmediacentre.com.au/community/downloads.php?do=file&id=119, it may or may not work, but might be worth a shot, probably a lot easier than having to change settings by hand - I'm still looking for thos pages I ran across the other night . . . once I find them I'll post those links, too.


~~~


In between stuff the last day or two, I did up some EAX sigs, just for the heck of it.  What do y'all think:


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## Cold Storm (Feb 23, 2008)

Yeah, I'll take some pictures a little later. and I like the sigs..


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## btarunr (Feb 24, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> In between stuff the last day or two, I did up some EAX sigs, just for the heck of it.  What do y'all think:



Brilliant 

I'm going to use the Doom 3 sig.  How about something on CMSS-3D ?


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## imperialreign (Feb 24, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Brilliant
> 
> I'm going to use the Doom 3 sig.  How about something on CMSS-3D ?



Thanks!  Personally, I like the Thief one myself, but I'm biased that way (been a fan of the Thief series since 98 when The Dark Project was released) . . .

Ummm . . . CMSS-3D sig, sure - have anything specific in mind, a specific game or otherwise?

Same goes with the EAX sigs . . . if anyone can recommend any other game (that does support EAX), I'll whip up a sig for it.

I'm debating adding them to post#1.


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## Russtavo (Feb 25, 2008)

> For the sake of a test, you might want to try another application such as VLC, you can configure it.



Ok, here's an update: I installed the latest VLC player. Set to "Stereo" everything plays fine. If I set it to "A/52 over S/PDIF", the amp correctly detects DTS and Dolby Digital, but playback is extremely juddery (and I mean *bad*! Both picture and sound) 

I don't know how to solve this one


----------



## btarunr (Feb 25, 2008)

Russtavo said:


> Ok, here's an update: I installed the latest VLC player. Set to "Stereo" everything plays fine. If I set it to "A/52 over S/PDIF", the amp correctly detects DTS and Dolby Digital, but playback is extremely juddery (and I mean *bad*! Both picture and sound)
> 
> I don't know how to solve this one



Set the output sample rate in the Creative Console to 96 KHz and try this again.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 26, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Set the output sample rate in the Creative Console to 96 KHz and try this again.



agreed.


and, if running a different 3rd party app actually works, then it's some issue with PowerDVD, IMO - now to just nail the jello to the wall . . .


----------



## Russtavo (Feb 26, 2008)

> Set the output sample rate in the Creative Console to 96 KHz and try this again.



Ok, tried this, I get the same horrendous stuttering. Played with every possible VLC setting (WaveOUT, etc.). No difference 

Not that I want to use VLC, it was just a test. Is there nothing out there apart from PowerDVD that I can use for Blu-Ray playback that supports ATI Hardware Acceleration? I'd still need to nail this audio problem though. Any more ideas?


----------



## mab1376 (Feb 26, 2008)

How do people feel about monster speaker cable? do you think it will make a difference once my  card is hooked up via S/PDIF? 

also its decided im upgrading to and X-fi Prelude.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 26, 2008)

mab1376 said:


> How do people feel about monster speaker cable? do you think it will make a difference once my  card is hooked up via S/PDIF?



Not sure what you mean by that. If it means a low resistance copper coaxial cable then it still doesn't make a big difference if it's short distance since that's a digital interconnect. Aah, one way of looking at it would be that as it is, a coaxial cable adds to the latency over optical and that a low-res good quality co-ax cable would be a good connect between your card and the receiver. If you're hinting at the connection between the amplifier and the speaker, it solely depends on the speakers' parameters. 



mab1376 said:


> also its decided im upgrading to and X-fi Prelude.



Thattaboy!  but don't expect a big change. There would be a change no doubt but not seriously much. I moved from a Xtreme Gamer to this card. The digital and front_panel audio output is pure gold, front channel is a screaming 5V.


----------



## Russtavo (Feb 26, 2008)

Think I have a handle on the problem - Taken from Wikipedia:

Applications communicate with the audio driver through Sessions, and these Sessions are programmed through the Windows Audio Session API (*WASAPI*). In general, WASAPI operates in two modes. In exclusive mode (also called DMA mode), unmixed audio streams are rendered directly to the audio adapter and no other application's audio will play and signal processing has no effect. *Exclusive mode is useful for applications that demand the least amount of intermediate processing of the audio data or those that want to output compressed audio data such as Dolby Digital, DTS or WMA Pro over S/PDIF*. WASAPI exclusive mode is similar to kernel streaming in function, but no kernel mode programming is required.

It seems Media Player/Centre is using exclusive WASAPI, hence why it works great and third-party apps like PowerDVD aren't using it, thus my problem. Seems there is no solution


----------



## mab1376 (Feb 26, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Not sure what you mean by that. If it means a low resistance copper coaxial cable then it still doesn't make a big difference if it's short distance since that's a digital interconnect. Aah, one way of looking at it would be that as it is, a coaxial cable adds to the latency over optical and that a low-res good quality co-ax cable would be a good connect between your card and the receiver. If you're hinting at the connection between the amplifier and the speaker, it solely depends on the speakers' parameters.
> 
> 
> 
> Thattaboy!  but don't expect a big change. There would be a change no doubt but not seriously much. I moved from a Xtreme Gamer to this card. The digital and front_panel audio output is pure gold, front channel is a screaming 5V.



actually i was planning on using optical, and using monster speaker cable from the sub woofer to to the speakers on my Z-5500's.

also how do you like the driver/software package for the prelude compared to the creative cards?


----------



## btarunr (Feb 26, 2008)

mab1376 said:


> also how do you like the driver/software package for the prelude compared to the creative cards?



Same drivers, just a couple of strings and graphics changed (where you had the creative logo, you have Auzen). No change. The latest driver allows DTS Interactive, etc. that's all.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Feb 26, 2008)

I have QED silver anniversary speaker cable on my speakers and it DOES make a differance.Most people use bell wire(crappy thin wire) on their speakers,just no.


----------



## btarunr (Feb 26, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> I have QED silver anniversary speaker cable on my speakers and it DOES make a difference.Most people use bell wire(crappy thin wire) on their speakers,just no.



Co-axial SPDIF cable might not since it's just a path for digital transmission and signal-loss occurs only if the cable is too long (due to the resistance).

But you were right, and were hinting at the analogue cable that connects the amplifier to the speaker.


----------



## Wile E (Feb 26, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> I have QED silver anniversary speaker cable on my speakers and it DOES make a differance.Most people use bell wire(crappy thin wire) on their speakers,just no.



Yeah, but it doesn't have to be the overpriced Monter Cable stuff, or anything similar. Just buy standard 12ga speaker wire, and you'll never hear the difference between it and the premium stuff.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 26, 2008)

Wile E said:


> Yeah, but it doesn't have to be the overpriced Monter Cable stuff, or anything similar. Just buy standard 12ga speaker wire, and you'll never hear the difference between it and the premium stuff.



for the most part - but high end, sensitive speakers will pick up EMI through standard speaker wire.  You'll never hear the faint static and clicking on low end components, though - unless you route your speaker wires near some powerful appliances.

I still tend to recommend shielded cable for most people - it's not much more expensive, really.




			
				Russtavo said:
			
		

> Think I have a handle on the problem - Taken from Wikipedia:
> 
> Applications communicate with the audio driver through Sessions, and these Sessions are programmed through the Windows Audio Session API (WASAPI). In general, WASAPI operates in two modes. In exclusive mode (also called DMA mode), unmixed audio streams are rendered directly to the audio adapter and no other application's audio will play and signal processing has no effect. Exclusive mode is useful for applications that demand the least amount of intermediate processing of the audio data or those that want to output compressed audio data such as Dolby Digital, DTS or WMA Pro over S/PDIF. WASAPI exclusive mode is similar to kernel streaming in function, but no kernel mode programming is required.
> 
> It seems Media Player/Centre is using exclusive WASAPI, hence why it works great and third-party apps like PowerDVD aren't using it, thus my problem. Seems there is no solution



The only thing you could keep hopeful about would be a driver update for PowerDVD that works around that issue - if indeed that's what the problem is.  I had kinda gotten that feeling from what I've been able to research on the problem, hence why I recommended installing ALchemy and OpenAL - I wasn't sure how PowerDVD interacted with both Vista and the X-Fi hardware.  Most people only report being able to use 2 channel stereo with PowerDVD . . .

As to the suttering . . . if you feel comofortable enough to go into your SYS BIOS . . . look for a setting entitled PCI Latency, and increase that one step.  If it's currently set at 32, set it to 64 or 96.  Giving the card a bit longer of a hold on the PCI BUS might resolve the suttering issue.


----------



## Wile E (Feb 26, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> for the most part - but high end, sensitive speakers will pick up EMI through standard speaker wire.  You'll never hear the faint static and clicking on low end components, though - unless you route your speaker wires near some powerful appliances.
> 
> I still tend to recommend shielded cable for most people - it's not much more expensive, really.


Most of the EMI that infiltrates the audio signal happens on the input side of things, not after the signal has already been amplified. More often than not, it's caused by ground feedback, although there are other sources to consider. Use shielded cable for all of your source connections, and you'll be fine. The only exceptions might be if, like you stated, you run your speaker wire past some heavy duty appliances that have nice, big electric motors, but in reality, you shouldn't be doing that anyway.

As an example, I have a pair of Polk Monitor 70s on my setup. I have them running thru an Onkyo DS696. I know it's not the highest end of setups, but it is very good. I used to have an EMI problem with my setup, once I switched to shielded source cables, the problem disappeared.


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 27, 2008)

Wile E said:


> Most of the EMI that infiltrates the audio signal happens on the input side of things, not after the signal has already been amplified. More often than not, it's caused by ground feedback, although there are other sources to consider. Use shielded cable for all of your source connections, and you'll be fine. The only exceptions might be if, like you stated, you run your speaker wire past some heavy duty appliances that have nice, big electric motors, but in reality, you shouldn't be doing that anyway.
> 
> As an example, I have a pair of Polk Monitor 70s on my setup. I have them running thru an Onkyo DS696. I know it's not the highest end of setups, but it is very good. I used to have an EMI problem with my setup, once I switched to shielded source cables, the problem disappeared.



well, kinda what I meant - output coming from the card itself.  Once the feed hits an amplifier, it's generally safe from there.  Your average units nowadays that run from the rig to the amplifier/subwoofer enclosure tend to be alright from the sub to the speakers.  Even still, most setups nowadays make use of shielded cables to begin with - especially the higher end units.  The only time it would prob be more of a concern, is if your outputs run to a splitter of some sort - where an input is split between two or three different channels, and all you use is your standard speaker wire that plugs into both the unit and the speaker itself (as composed to speakers now where the input line is attached right out of the box).

Good example of types of stereo setups where EMI is really common is car stereos.  I can't count the number of aftermarket setups I've heard where you can clearly hear audio interference from various vehicle components . . . even if everything has been properly grounded, too.


----------



## syborfy (Mar 2, 2008)

Is there any way to hook up Front panel Audio to my X-fi Fatality Extreme gamer? 
Are there any documentation on the pin outs? 

Thank you


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 2, 2008)

syborfy said:


> Is there any way to hook up Front panel Audio to my X-fi Fatality Extreme gamer?
> Are there any documentation on the pin outs?
> 
> Thank you



Depends, which Xtreme Gamer card do you have?

If it's the standard Xtreme Gamer, the newer revisions have an Azalia connector on them, it will also work with AC97.

If you have an Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty card: http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=651670&postcount=274

original instructions for making an adapter that will connect to the 10-pin connector: http://audigy2zshowto.blogspot.com/

a few reputable sites even sell those connectors already made for a small fee


----------



## Electric (Mar 3, 2008)

This might be useful!


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## imperialreign (Mar 3, 2008)

Electric said:


> View attachment 12652
> 
> This might be useful!



I think that's the clearest image of a Creative proprietary connector I've ever seen! 

For anyone that's wondering, the Audigy and X-Fi card's use the exact same connector and pinout, as that image demonstrates.


----------



## Electric (Mar 3, 2008)

EDIT=Sorry... you wont see me in this forum again!


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## imperialreign (Mar 3, 2008)

TBH, I really don't see the need for a link to the Sound Blaster timeline in this thread . . . seeing as how I'm attempting to cover only X-Fi models, and the fact that very few users actually make use of anything prior to the Live! models anymore.

TBH, I'm not sure what you're trying to get at, either.  If it makes you feel any better, I've owned at least one card from every Sound Blaster incarnation over the years, minus anything from the Audigy lineup; so, that timeline is kinda pointless for me, as I've been there, done that . . .


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## hat (Mar 6, 2008)

This needs to be stickied.
I want a sound card that can handle 128 voices. My Audigy II is a good card but it handles only 64. Will the Audigy 3 handle 128 voices? Will the Audigy 4? Or do I need an X-Fi card? If so, which one should I get? I've heard horror stories of X-Fi cards that are re-branded audigies or something and didn't handle X-Fi technology (worth a shit).

You wouldn't mind some free advertising would you? (I.E. me taking the sig pic, using it and also making the pic a link to this thread)


----------



## btarunr (Mar 6, 2008)

hat said:


> This needs to be stickied.
> I want a sound card that can handle 128 voices.



You're lucky. Newegg has a rebate for you, X-Fi Xtreme Gamer (CA20-K1 processor) that will effectively cost you $ 55.69 (shipping included, comes with a $30 MIR) clicky.



hat said:


> My Audigy II is a good card but it handles only 64. Will the Audigy 3 handle 128 voices?



No.


hat said:


> Will the Audigy 4? Or do I need an X-Fi card? If so, which one should I get? I've heard horror stories of X-Fi cards that are re-branded audigies or something and didn't handle X-Fi technology (worth a shit).



That's just the Xtreme Audio PCI. Stay away from this card. It's just a Audigy 4 SE + Crystalizer + CMSS 3D, etc. No gaming advantages.



hat said:


> You wouldn't mind some free advertising would you? (I.E. me taking the sig pic, using it and also making the pic a link to this thread)



Go ahead.


----------



## hat (Mar 6, 2008)

I wasn't planning on OMG I WANT ONE NOW, I was gonna get one with my birthday money (plus a video card of course).

I see Audigy 4's going CHEAPO on Ebay. Do these handle 128 voices?


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## hat (Mar 6, 2008)

hat said:


> I wasn't planning on OMG I WANT ONE NOW, I was gonna get one with my birthday money (plus a video card of course).
> 
> I see Audigy 4's going CHEAPO on Ebay. Do these handle 128 voices?





> go ahead


what do you think of my... uhh... picture link thingy skillz?


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## hat (Mar 6, 2008)

BTW found this error in Post #1:
"Sound *Lbaster* X-Fi Xtreme Audio PCI-Express"


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## btarunr (Mar 6, 2008)

hat said:


> Do these handle 128 voices?



No, they don't have 128 hardware voices, it's exclusive to the CA20K1 processor X-Fi cards.


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## imperialreign (Mar 6, 2008)

hat said:


> This needs to be stickied.
> I want a sound card that can handle 128 voices. My Audigy II is a good card but it handles only 64. Will the Audigy 3 handle 128 voices? Will the Audigy 4? Or do I need an X-Fi card? If so, which one should I get? I've heard horror stories of X-Fi cards that are re-branded audigies or something and didn't handle X-Fi technology (worth a shit).
> 
> You wouldn't mind some free advertising would you? (I.E. me taking the sig pic, using it and also making the pic a link to this thread)



I agree with all of bta's recommendations.

As to the sig thing, not a problem!  TBH, I don't think enough users here actually realize this thread exists, considering the number of x-fi related threads (and other sound related threads) that keep popping up in General Hardware - was a big reason why I recommended adding a "soundcard and audio" forum on the main page (); to get all those threads out of General Hardware.  They pop up quite often, but are still buried by all the other threads, and I don't think people know how to use the search function (or are too lazy) . . . but I guess not enough 'important' people thought the new forum is worth the hassle . . . oh, well . . .

Anyhow, like bta said, the Audigy 4 doesn't support 128 hardware voices; it's still restrained to 64 voices like the rest of the Audigy lineup.

TBH, though, unless you're really strapped for cash, it's worth upgrading to an X-Fi.  The Audigy 4 line is probably the best sounding Audigy series, but, the Au4s were released along side the early X-Fi cards in 2004/05, and really just add some new revisions and EAX capability over the Au2s (plus some other nominal additions).  I don't think Creative plans on keeping up with official drivers for the Audigy's past this year, as they've neared the end of their support life.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 7, 2008)

caught wind of a new gaming headset that will be joining the market here soon:

http://www.ideazon.com/us/products/banshee.asp

not sure bout the speaker offerings of it, but spec wise looks like it could potentially compete with the Razer Barracuda - although, I think the Razer would still have the upper hand with the true 5.1 speaker capabilites of their headset.

although, the Banshee looks like it'll be priced in the $70-$100 range.


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## btarunr (Mar 7, 2008)

Nice headset. Ideazon keyboards pwn. But no headsets/headphones for me until Aurvana


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## imperialreign (Mar 7, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Nice headset. Ideazon keyboards pwn. But no headsets/headphones for me until Aurvana



I'm defi interested in the Ideazon, I have the MERC Stealth keyboard and it just kicks ass - worth the money, IMO; but, I'm liking the specs of their headset.  Anyhow, you going after the Aurvana X-Fi?


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## btarunr (Mar 9, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I'm defi interested in the Ideazon, I have the MERC Stealth keyboard and it just kicks ass - worth the money, IMO; but, I'm liking the specs of their headset.  Anyhow, you going after the Aurvana X-Fi?



Yes, I'm after the Aurvana. It's selling for $249 in Singapore (home of Creative). Someone I know is going there this summer. I'll have them bring me one.

Hmm. They gave the product page an edit.


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## btarunr (Mar 9, 2008)

*News: Creative rolls out a full range of Aurvana personal audio products*







Creative has rolled out a revised full range of Aurvana personal audio products, namely professional headphones, earphones. There's a broad range of applications and prices vary. The top of the line being Aurvana X-Fi.

The description extract from the website is as follows:


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## Wile E (Mar 9, 2008)

Those in-ear phones look good on paper. Wonder how they sound in person.


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## imperialreign (Mar 9, 2008)

Wile E said:


> Those in-ear phones look good on paper. Wonder how they sound in person.



from reviews I've read, they've been given rave reviews in the earbud market.  I haven't had a chance to use them in person yet, though.


@btarunr - whenever you acquire you're Aurvana headset, defi try and write up a review of sorts or something - I'm truly curious how well they sound.  Reviews that I've read so far have been very posititive, and most seem to respond they're as good or better than competing high-end headsets in that same price braket - but, I haven't really seen any reviews fro any audiophile sources, so I've taken them all with a grain of salt.


----------



## Wile E (Mar 9, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> from reviews I've read, they've been given rave reviews in the earbud market.  I haven't had a chance to use them in person yet, though.
> 
> 
> @btarunr - whenever you acquire you're Aurvana headset, defi try and write up a review of sorts or something - I'm truly curious how well they sound.  Reviews that I've read so far have been very posititive, and most seem to respond they're as good or better than competing high-end headsets in that same price braket - but, I haven't really seen any reviews fro any audiophile sources, so I've taken them all with a grain of salt.



I only ask, cause my Shure E3C's just took the dump. I was listening to them, and they got caught on my gf's arm as she walked by. Ripped the cord right out of the right bud.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 9, 2008)

Wile E said:


> I only ask, cause my Shure E3C's just took the dump. I was listening to them, and they got caught on my gf's arm as she walked by. Ripped the cord right out of the right bud.



that sucks, man!  they aren't cheap, either (I figure you spent over $100, right?).  To the best of my knowledge, though, the Aurvana earbuds are more inline with the Shure E2Cs, but I might be wrong, though . . .


----------



## Wile E (Mar 9, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> that sucks, man!  they aren't cheap, either (I figure you spent over $100, right?).  To the best of my knowledge, though, the Aurvana earbuds are more inline with the Shure E2Cs, but I might be wrong, though . . .


Yeah, I paid $150 for them (MSRP $199 at the time). I don't think I can spend that much this time around tho. I miss them already.


----------



## btarunr (Mar 10, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> fwhenever you acquire you're Aurvana headset, defi try and write up a review of sorts or something.



Aye aye


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## imperialreign (Mar 14, 2008)

New X-Fi drivers released - it appears that WIN XP SP2 Home and Professional x86 and x64, XP MCE 2004 and MCE 2005, Vista x86 and x64 have all been brought up to driver package 2.15.0006.  

If anyone notices any degregaded performance or audio issues after installing the updated drivers, please inform me here so I can annotate post #1 accordingly - I'm really curious about the Media Center Edition drivers, as this is the first certified driver update for MCE.


----------



## btarunr (Mar 15, 2008)

I was going to post that under news. Beat me to that


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 15, 2008)

btarunr said:


> I was going to post that under news. Beat me to that



EastCoastHandle beat me to it - he posted it up in general hardware.  I hadn't even realised the new drivers were released until that post . . . for some reason, I wasn't updated by Creative's RSS feeds . . . they musta been lazy today . . .


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## department76 (Mar 16, 2008)

thow me on the members list.


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## imperialreign (Mar 16, 2008)

department76 said:


> thow me on the members list.



will do, and welcome aboard!


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## Dready (Mar 17, 2008)

Hello, i've got some questions concerning my xfi extreme audio notebook card. I've posted this on numerous forums but people seem to be clueless so i'm hoping this place might hold some answers. Here it goes :

Whenever i'm gaming while being on ventrilo and i alt-tab(windows key) back to deskptop my sound either gets screwed up for the people listening to me on vent(so my outbound) or all my own sound goes crazy. 90% of the times this happens and i'm not sure what to do about this as when it's just my outbound messing up it seems to get fixed by reconnecting to ventrilo but when all my own sound is screwed i sometimes have to reboot to get it working normally again. The best way i can describe what happens is that my sound get very metalic, sharp and distorted. Is this a known issue with vista and my sound card (xfi xtreme notebook audio)? My gf has the exact same laptop as me and she also has the same issue, she's had it alt tabbing out of her bookkeeping program back to desktop(this takes ventrilo out of the equation). And she has it also under the same circumstances as the ones i listed above.

Thnx for your time

*update* I managed to narrow the problem down to the xfi xtreme notebook audio card. When i switch to the onboard realtec i can't duplicate the issues. The problem is everything sounds so much better with the xfi card when it's working properly that i dread going back to the realtec full-time. Are there no other xfi notebook card owners out there that can tell me if they can alt-tab out of 3-D applications without messed up sound?


Hoping someone else has experienced similar issues so i can either put the issue to rest while i wait for new drivers or actually fix the problem.


----------



## btarunr (Mar 17, 2008)

This case isn't isolated to the Xtreme Audio Notebook. In fact it's a known bug with all EAX 3.0+ cards be it notebook cards or PC expansion cards. 

The explanation would be that: EAX 3.0+, unlike being a stream of audio data to be processed for reverb/echo effects (or other EAX effects), is transported in the form of blocks.

When an audio card has to playback simple wave output (as in music/videos, etc) there is no processing to be done and the audio data moves in the form of a stream from the system to  the audio device. However during EAX processing, (that is upwards of EAX 2.0), the data moves in the forms of blocks, each block of data is perfectly synchronised to other outputs like the video (when gaming). When you task-switch, the video-output of the game is disturbed. The application skips several frames, the video and audio lose synchrony and as an aftereffect, the sound gets garbled. Garbeld as in: 1. There is a disturbance in the balance of stereo output. There is choppy output. 

This affects audio input as well, input as in any analog/digital input because while an analog input (like say from a microphone) is perfectly a stream, the audio device cannot transport as stream and blocks simultaneously so block transfer takes place, unless the audio device's archtecture has seperate DAC and ADC. Most audio devices have combined DAC and ADC in a single chip, while the chip has seperate circuitry for DA conversions and AD conversions, the convertors share the same clock generator. In case of AC'97 codecs, the AC in the southbridge uses the SB's clock, could be similar with Intel Azalia HDA.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 17, 2008)

That might be a good part of it, as there are also a ton of issues with EAX and Vista from the start.

@ Dready; make sure you have the most recent OpenAL drivers installed, too.  The OpenAL API + the EAX DSPs will give you the same playback as in XP.

I'm wondering, though, if the software he's using loads up access to a specific API within the OS kernel, and when you alt+tab out, Vista re-directs audio to a different API (i.e. WASAPI), resulting in a software conflict trying to access the hardware, and trying to alt+tab back into your application, the OS API either doesn't want to relenquish control and close down, or the application API was hung due to the conflict.

Certain early software applications in WIN XP had these types of issues a few years ago, and the only thing one could do was to avoid alt+tabbing, wait until a patch was released, or go about some registry hacks to keep the conflict from occuring.


----------



## btarunr (Mar 17, 2008)

Vista only has one API, that's WASAPI. OpenAL comes with the audio drivers.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 17, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Vista only has one API, that's WASAPI. OpenAL comes with the audio drivers.



OpenAL comes with the X-Fi Vista drivers?  I didn't realize Creative was that . . . Creative, lol!


Actually, though, Vista has 4 core API's:

Windows Audio Session API
Windows Multimedia Device API
DeviceTopology API
EndpointVolume API

the WASAPI is the beast of the bunch, though, and makes use of a few smaller API's to go about the legwork of audio sessions.


----------



## v7100 (Mar 17, 2008)

2.15.0006 seemed to updates the firmware.

This is the most stable version for 4GB with ASIO playable in both XP x64 and Vista 64-bit.



imperialreign said:


> New X-Fi drivers released - it appears that WIN XP SP2 Home and Professional x86 and x64, XP MCE 2004 and MCE 2005, Vista x86 and x64 have all been brought up to driver package 2.15.0006.
> 
> If anyone notices any degregaded performance or audio issues after installing the updated drivers, please inform me here so I can annotate post #1 accordingly - I'm really curious about the Media Center Edition drivers, as this is the first certified driver update for MCE.


----------



## btarunr (Mar 17, 2008)

I installed the new driver. In short: Thumbs up! That's Xtreme Gamer + Windows XP.

The driver actually improved the Crytalizer...or at least I noticed an improvement, higher Crystalizer settings don't cause the sound to crap out now as much as it did before. Another one is this:







I couldn't manipulate the individual volumes or each analog output channel before. There's a sndvol32 extension that comes with this driver. I did a driver cleaning before installing this driver. In the process I lost the Creative Console launcher. Now I'm left with using the control panel. There's no update on the website, leaves me with only one option: use the CD. Would this cause a version conflict in any way?


----------



## Dready (Mar 17, 2008)

Thnx for the replies guys, you guys seem to know your stuff! I guess we'll just have to wait for a new driver and hope that fixes it.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 17, 2008)

btarunr said:


> I installed the new driver. In short: Thumbs up! That's Xtreme Gamer + Windows XP.
> 
> The driver actually improved the Crytalizer...or at least I noticed an improvement, higher Crystalizer settings don't cause the sound to crap out now as much as it did before. Another one is this:
> 
> ...



cool . . . I hadn't noticed that the new driver allowed for individual channel volume settings; that change applies to XP as well 

As to the Creative Audio Console, yeah, you'll have to install that from the CD - I've never seen Creative offer that seperately to download on their site.

Not sure if there'll be a conflict in Vista, but as for XP, the Audio Console still works flawlessly.  If for some odd reason you need the installation package for the console and the mode switcher, PM me and I'll send it to ya.


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## imperialreign (Mar 18, 2008)

actually . . . come to think of it - I might see if it'd be possible to host a couple of those installers and link them in post #1, like the Console Launcher, Mode Switcher and Volume Control Panel - simply because Creative doesn't offer those files for download with their driver packages . . . and should your installation CD ever become damaged, know what I mean?


 . . . just not sure if there's any legal limitations to me doing so; maybe I'll send Creative an e-mail.

Thoughts, anyone?


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## Cold Storm (Mar 18, 2008)

well, as you have done for me, the cd didn't work for me. You found the right version of the switch for me, and it works. Only problem is that if I click on it going through "All Programs" it gives me an error.. But I believe thats due to the fact its all ready on.. 
I think its a good idea, and you should contact Creative on it all


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## Neziak (Mar 18, 2008)

I see that there is a solution for connecting an AC'97 front panel to an X-Fi with the '10 pins in a row' connector. But is there a way to connect an AC'97 FP with the "X-Fi XtremeGamer" which has a Intel HD connector?


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 18, 2008)

Neziak said:


> I see that there is a solution for connecting an AC'97 front panel to an X-Fi with the '10 pins in a row' connector. But is there a way to connect an AC'97 FP with the "X-Fi XtremeGamer" which has a Intel HD connector?



To the best of my knowlege, an AC97 and an Azalia (Intel HD) connector are interchangeable, meaning that if your case has an AC97 connector, it will plug into an Azalia pinout without any problems.


----------



## Neziak (Mar 19, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> To the best of my knowlege, an AC97 and an Azalia (Intel HD) connector are interchangeable, meaning that if your case has an AC97 connector, it will plug into an Azalia pinout without any problems.



Is there anyone who can confirm this? Because I'm deciding whether to get the X-Fi XtremeGamer or the X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty. I would much rather get the XtremeGamer because of the price but if it doesn't work with my front panel and since it isn't possible to use the I/O drive kit with it I would consider the Fatal1ty version.

I tried to switch my motherboard front panel output from AC'97 to Intel HD. My front panel works with AC'97 but doesn't with Intel HD. In the Realtek control panel the outputs for the front panel are greyed as if there's nothing connected. So I'm really hoping that this is just the case for my motherboard and that my AC'97 front panel works with the X-Fi XtremeGamer.


----------



## btarunr (Mar 19, 2008)

Read through this thread thoroughly, it has already been discussed.


----------



## department76 (Mar 19, 2008)

Neziak said:


> Is there anyone who can confirm this? Because I'm deciding whether to get the X-Fi XtremeGamer or the X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty. I would much rather get the XtremeGamer because of the price but if it doesn't work with my front panel and since it isn't possible to use the I/O drive kit with it I would consider the Fatal1ty version.
> 
> I tried to switch my motherboard front panel output from AC'97 to Intel HD. My front panel works with AC'97 but doesn't with Intel HD. In the Realtek control panel the outputs for the front panel are greyed as if there's nothing connected. So I'm really hoping that this is just the case for my motherboard and that my AC'97 front panel works with the X-Fi XtremeGamer.




my front panel has connectors for HD and AC97, i've tried both on my Preludes AC97 connector, headphones seem to work fine on both.


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## Neziak (Mar 19, 2008)

Thanks for the reply. I did read the thread but in the Creative website it says that it does not work with AC'97 front panels and my front panel didn't work when I changed the front panel output of my motherboard to Intel HD so I just wanted to confirm if this means my front panel doesn't work with HDA at all or just with this motherboard.


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## imperialreign (Mar 19, 2008)

Neziak said:


> Thanks for the reply. I did read the thread but in the Creative website it says that it does not work with AC'97 front panels and my front panel didn't work when I changed the front panel output of my motherboard to Intel HD so I just wanted to confirm if this means my front panel doesn't work with HDA at all or just with this motherboard.



According to Intel's site which describes the pinouts of both AC97 and Azalia, the two connectors are interchangeable as far as functionaility is concerned.  What you won't have using an AC97 pluc on an Azalia connector, is the HD capabilities . . . meaning in short, the sound solution won't be able to 'detect' when you plugged in a jack or otherwise, and might not ever redirect audio to your front panel and mute the rear output.  But, as far as left channel/right channel output is concerned, both AC97 and Azalia pinouts use the same pin number for these functions, which means that you should have playback through the jack.







Asides, everyone; I'm planning on doing quite a bit of an update to post #1 this weekend, addind some new issues I've come across - I'd also like to expand a bit on the descriptions of the X-Fi models, and also include the X-Mod, etc.  And I've also decided to add a small section for related software and include some liks to a few applications (like Rightmark Audio Analyzer, Sonic Foundry Sound Forge (I believe now owned by SONY), and possible some Creative apps (If I obtain permission);

I've also decided to go ahead and include the Auzen Prelude into the list, as it stouts the basic X-Fi design inherent to Creative's lineup.  @ btarunr: if you'd like to write a description of the Prelude and what it's advantages, etc are, I'd be glad to post it up - you know quite a bit more about the Prelude than I 

So, if anyone want's to be included in the member list, has an issue to bring up, noticed anything they feel should be changed, updated, or clarified, any noticed mistakes, or has anything in general they would like to add that they feel would benefit the thread, post it up for consideration, I'll make sure to credit you if I add it to the main post!!!


I'd also like to give a sincere thanks to everyone who has contributed to this thread so far - I wasn't really sure how well it would go over, considering the other "Creative/X-Fi" threads that abound on the internet, and I'm glad to see it hasn't fallen into the depths of spam posts and Creative bashing like so many other threads have.

Thanks, y'all!


----------



## btarunr (Mar 19, 2008)

Yup, Sunday I will PM you the description.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 19, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Yup, Sunday I will PM you the description.



thanks!  I appreciate it


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## Heichef (Mar 20, 2008)

Hi!
Could you please tell me at which master volume you do the RMAA test with your X-Fi cards? I have an Auzentech Prelude and even at 90% in master volume, RMAA reports that the distortion is too high, although the preset to RMAA in the audio console uses 98%. The RMAA guide to test the X-Fi advises to use 94% of volume. I have to use 86% in the master volume to make the test. I can actually hear the distortion in the sine wave when I use higher volumes, like 90%. My previous Audigy2ZS didn't have this issue. Is my Prelude faulty in any way?
Thanks in advance.


----------



## btarunr (Mar 20, 2008)

Heichef said:


> Hi!
> Could you please tell me at which master volume you do the RMAA test with your X-Fi cards? I have an Auzentech Prelude and even at 90% in master volume, RMAA reports that the distortion is too high, although the preset to RMAA in the audio console uses 98%. The RMAA guide to test the X-Fi advises to use 94% of volume. I have to use 86% in the master volume to make the test. I can actually hear the distortion in the sine wave when I use higher volumes, like 90%. My previous Audigy2ZS didn't have this issue. Is my Prelude faulty in any way?
> Thanks in advance.



Use the Front-panel out headers, the headphone port of your system chassis and not front-out on the card. The front-channels are amplified to 5V which many reviewers found could distort.


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## Heichef (Mar 20, 2008)

Thank you for the quick reply and the advice.
So...I presume it's normal then. At least I hope so...


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## btarunr (Mar 20, 2008)

Heichef said:


> Thank you for the quick reply and the advice.
> So...I presume it's normal then. At least I hope so...



Yes, the LM4562NA (amps the Front channels) provides an output of ~5V while the OPA2134 (that amp the other output channels including the FP_out) at ~2.2V


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## Heichef (Mar 20, 2008)

Well, I tested the rear channels and they exhibit exactly the same kind of distortion on the same master volume levels. I used foobar2000 in Kernel Streaming mode with the plugin "Move stereo to rear channels". The Prelude's audio console was in Audio Creation Mode and Bit-Matched playback, matching the frequency of the sample wav file I used (which is a 1000hz sine wave). It appears that the problem isn't in the front channels opamp...


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## btarunr (Mar 20, 2008)

When the soft-volume is '50%', the output is at its maximum volume, when it's > 50%, it's amplified.


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## Heichef (Mar 20, 2008)

btarunr said:


> When the soft-volume is '50%', the output is at its maximum volume, when it's > 50%, it's amplified.



I see by your system specs that you also have the Prelude. Do you confirm my situation in the RMAA tests? Thank you for your help.


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## btarunr (Mar 20, 2008)

Heichef said:


> I see by your system specs that you also have the Prelude. Do you confirm my situation in the RMAA tests? Thank you for your help.



You got it. I'll do it over the weekend. Meanwhile I have to mod an end-to-end 3.5mm jack cable. Since I'm testing the Linux drivers for the SB X-Fi (which seem to be specially programmed not to work), I have a SB Xtreme Gamer running in this machine now.


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## imperialreign (Mar 20, 2008)

btarunr said:


> You got it. I'll do it over the weekend. Meanwhile I have to mod an end-to-end 3.5mm jack cable. Since I'm testing the Linux drivers for the SB X-Fi (*which seem to be specially programmed not to work*), I have a SB Xtreme Gamer running in this machine now.



I about lost some soda through my nose reading that . . . pretty funny 

The Linux X-Fi drivers are buggy, huh?  Are they for all distros, or certain specific ones?


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## btarunr (Mar 21, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I about lost some soda through my nose reading that . . . pretty funny
> 
> The Linux X-Fi drivers are buggy, huh?  Are they for all distros, or certain specific ones?



All that Creative says is it's a 'beta'...implies it won't support it and that it's Linux 64-bit. That's all, they just dumped the source files into a .tar.gz with close to no documentation. I'm having to go through countless Linux forums, spend hours chatting with those Linux nerds about crap like what is my kernel....most of the time it's about the Linux kernel, sometimes it deviates to apricot :shadedshu
(how gay)

I tried Ubuntu (Gutsy Gibbon), OpenSuSE 10.2, Fedora 7....all of the most popular distro's already fail. It's funny how Linux users (on an average) spend at least four hours to properly install a new device...automotive techies change a car's engine in that time while Windows users connect the device, insert the CD and five minutes later they're using it....and yet the Windows users complain of 'complicated' drivers.


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## imperialreign (Mar 21, 2008)

btarunr said:


> I tried Ubuntu (Gutsy Gibbon), OpenSuSE 10.2, Fedora 7....all of the most popular distro's already fail. It's funny how Linux users (on an average) spend at least four hours to properly install a new device...automotive techies change a car's engine in that time while Windows users connect the device, insert the CD and five minutes later they're using it....and yet the Windows users complain of 'complicated' drivers.



or Linux users firmly stating that their OS is easier to use . . . sorry, I haven't been sold on it, yet - much like Vista.  Hell, I'd prob rather install Vista than run Linux as of now.  There's too many 1337 in the open source realm, IMO.  It's a shame it has to be that way, too . . .


Wish I could be of help to ya with the Linux drivers - but I know absolutely nothing when it comes to Linux OS and driver installations/issues


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## Neziak (Mar 21, 2008)

I just got my X-Fi XtremeGamer today and it thankfully it works with my cases AC97 front panel.  I found it quite troublesome to keep opening the console to change modes at first but I found this program. X-Fi Mode Changer
It installs a tray icon where you can change modes easily. Sorry if this has been mentioned before.


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## btarunr (Mar 21, 2008)

You can do that by right-clicking the Creative Console Launcher and selecting the mode you want from the menu. It has Application profiles, yay!


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## Deleted member 24505 (Mar 21, 2008)

Just thought i'd say.i'm using my card with a co/ax digital out to my sony amp.sounds cracking and it works fine on 5.1.


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## imperialreign (Mar 21, 2008)

Neziak said:


> I just got my X-Fi XtremeGamer today and it thankfully it works with my cases AC97 front panel.  I found it quite troublesome to keep opening the console to change modes at first but I found this program. X-Fi Mode Changer
> It installs a tray icon where you can change modes easily. Sorry if this has been mentioned before.



thanks for that link - I'll give it a shot, too . . . I might end up adding that link to post #1.



			
				tigger69 said:
			
		

> Just thought i'd say.i'm using my card with a co/ax digital out to my sony amp.sounds cracking and it works fine on 5.1.



first off . . . damn dude, where ya been around these parts?!  Ain't seen you on TPU in quite some time!

Otherwise, did you mean to say you were having an issue with your sound?


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## Wile E (Mar 22, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> thanks for that link - I'll give it a shot, too . . . I might end up adding that link to post #1.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


No, he was saying it sounds really good.


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## omi5cron (Mar 23, 2008)

i need some simple advice, sorry if this is not the corrcet place to post this. i recently got a Fatal!ty X-Fi card and I/O  drive component, but i need a replacement for the AD_EXT ribbon cable. should i just email Creative, as there is no sign of that cable anywhere on there, except as part of an I/O upgrade package. frankly, i REALLY want to get a rounded cable substitute. i know it needs to be 40 pin, and UN-blocked. i have been searching for an hour, and i must be using the wrong terms. any info or directions would be greatly appreciated. if this is incorrectly posted, please let me know. i don't wish to hijack a thread!! thanks again!


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## Alex Clarke (Mar 23, 2008)

Thanks for the detailed information imperialreign.

I've been running my Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty for a few weeks now on Windows XP Professional x64 (after ditching Vista) and have only experienced problems after upgrading to the latest drivers.

After installing the latest drivers I became victim of the X-Fi crackling/popping issue. Even simple sounds, when played in Windows would stutter - making music and games unplayable!

The drivers I'm using are *Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi series Driver 2.15.0006 (63.05 MB)*.

What's annoying is that everything was working fine before installing these latest drivers.

I've tried to uninstall the drivers and reinstall the old ones, but when doing so I get a BSOD. This occurs as the old drivers are being installed. I think it has something to do with the latest drivers updating my sound card's firmware. Whatever the cause of this problem, I cannot install the old drivers.

I did some troubleshooting and even reinstalled my OS, but the problem was still there.

In the end I turned the sound card's Hardware Acceleration down to Basic. This resolved the issue. However, now I can't benefit from the X-Fi's built in memory and any of the EAX features.

After all this I found your guide! 

I've read the section regarding crackling/popping issues and tried the fixes, but been unsuccessful.

Do you know of a way to fix this or will I have to wait for Creative to release new drivers?


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## btarunr (Mar 23, 2008)

Try Driver Cleaner. You have to remove all traces of a newer driver from your system before you install an older one to avoid version-conflicts and related errors.


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## imperialreign (Mar 23, 2008)

omi5cron said:


> i need some simple advice, sorry if this is not the corrcet place to post this. i recently got a Fatal!ty X-Fi card and I/O  drive component, but i need a replacement for the AD_EXT ribbon cable. should i just email Creative, as there is no sign of that cable anywhere on there, except as part of an I/O upgrade package. frankly, i REALLY want to get a rounded cable substitute. i know it needs to be 40 pin, and UN-blocked. i have been searching for an hour, and i must be using the wrong terms. any info or directions would be greatly appreciated. if this is incorrectly posted, please let me know. i don't wish to hijack a thread!! thanks again!



s'all good.  You're talking about the 5.25" front panel drive, correct?  If so, do you by chance have a pic of what the end of the cable looks like?

I'm pretty sure you can use a standard 40-pin IDE ribbon, like what you would use to hook up older HDD and CD-ROMs.  Although, I can't say 100% for sure.  If you might be able to provide a pic of the old one, that'd help.


@Alex Clarke - if btarunr's suuggestion of Driver Cleaner doesn't for some odd reason work (I can't imagine it wouldn't), you could give Creative's method a try as well.

right click on your Start button and select 'explore'  Navigate to C:\Program Files\Creative\Sound Blaster X-Fi\Program and run the application entitled 'setup.exe'  

when the Creative Driver Update Utility opens, click the box labeled "Overwrite existing shared Creative audio driver files," then select "Driver Uninstallation," and check the box labeled "Delete all shared Creative audio driver files."  Finally, hit the 'OK' button.  The utility will completely clear XP of all traces of Creative hardware and software.

next, install the driver from the update package first - and check your audio playback before you go adding software from the Installation CD.


Also, not really sure it will work in this case . . . but, do you have an option in BIOS to adjust your PCI latency?  If so and you haven't tried it yet, raise it one notch.  It may or may not make things better, and my gut feeling says it won't - but worth a shot, anyways.

If neither of these methods work, my best recommendation would be to stick with the drivers from the Installation CD, or whichever version worked for you last.  Some versions of WIN XP don't seem to be compatible with newer X-Fi drivers (Windows XP Media Center, for example, the only driver version that is known to function properly is on the CD).  If Creative releases any XP beta drivers, you can give those a shot, but they might not neccessarily fix the issue, either.


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## 4PLaY (Mar 23, 2008)

Hello XSS, I received an X-FI in a cardboardbox with 2 CDs one was a sampler and one I don't know what, How can I identify what type of XFI I have?


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## btarunr (Mar 23, 2008)

Give us a pic if you can.

Visually inspect the card. There should be a model number (eg: SB073A, SBxxxx). What do you see?


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## omi5cron (Mar 23, 2008)

i found a temporary fix for the broken I/O ribbon cable. what you see in the pic is an old ribbon cable from a very old PC. it has the 40 pin connector and none are blocked. i have used this successfully, but i really want a round cable. this is really ugly!! in fact, so was the original ribbon cable! any ideas on finding a round , compatible cable? i would mod this one, but it has the two connectors for slave/master drives, so no go. any help would be appreciated. oops, pic not loaded, i will try again later.


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## Alex Clarke (Mar 24, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Try Driver Cleaner. You have to remove all traces of a newer driver from your system before you install an older one to avoid version-conflicts and related errors.



I used the Creative application (found on my original X-Fi drivers CD) to remove all traces of the new drivers. This has been recommended by many others X-Fi users (so my Google search tells me).

I also manually checked for any files left behind before installing the old drivers.

At the moment, I still think this is a firmware issue and the old drivers will not install correctly with cards using the new firmware.



imperialreign said:


> if btarunr's suuggestion of Driver Cleaner doesn't for some odd reason work (I can't imagine it wouldn't), you could give Creative's method a try as well.
> 
> right click on your Start button and select 'explore'  Navigate to C:\Program Files\Creative\Sound Blaster X-Fi\Program and run the application entitled 'setup.exe'
> 
> ...



The 'setup.exe' file you mentioned does not exist on my system. I simply downloaded and installed the new Creative drivers and have not (and will not) install anything from the CD.

As mentioned above, I'm pretty sure the reason I can't install the old drivers is due to the firmware update applied by the new drivers. The reason I think this is because I couldn't install the old driver even after a complete format!

I also doubt that the drivers on the CD will work (again due to the new firmware), but have not tested this.

I've just changed my PCI Latency (for all devices it looks like) in the BIOS. It was set to 8 (out of 31). So, I set it to 31... and my X-Fi now works with the new drivers and hardware acceleration set to max! 

My motherboard (LANPARTY UT RDX-200) manual states:



> *PCI Latency Timer (CLK)*
> This feature is used to select the length of time each PCI device will control the bus before another takes over. The larger the value, the
> longer the PCI device can retain control of the bus. Since each access to the bus comes with an initial delay before any transaction
> can be made, low values for the PCI Latency Timer will reduce the effectiveness of the PCI bandwidth while higher values will improve it.



By default the value is set to 8 and the max (as mentioned above) is 31.

Do you know why this default value of 8 is used? Also, will setting this value to max (or much higher than 8) have any adverse affect on my system performance?

Thanks for the help so far and, fingers crossed, everything will keep on running fine!=.


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## Alex Clarke (Mar 24, 2008)

Ok, here's another update.

After reading up on PCI Latency (just a Google search) I found that it is best not to set the value too high in the BIOS.

So, I changed the value from 31 (max) to 9 (1 above default, which was causing me issues) and my X-Fi still worked!

I wanted to confirm that it was this PCI Latency setting that had been conflicting somehow with my X-Fi, so I changed it back to the default setting of 8.

Windows loaded fine and I was able to play some music and a little Battlefield 2 (sound on max settings) without any issues.

What does this tell us? I don't really know!

Changing the PCI Latency value has obviously fixed the problem (hopefully for good), but the problem doesn't return if I undo this change.

Hopefully this information will help someone else out.


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## imperialreign (Mar 24, 2008)

@Alex - the setup file I mentioned is the same exact application as the driver utility on the X-Fi installation CD.  Typically, when doing an install of the drivers, etc, from the CD, it should be copied also to the HDD.  No worries, though.

As to PCI latency, it's a measurement of how long of a time a device is allowed to have access to the systems PCI BUS.  The BIOS will specify a default setting that WIN interpets when managing device intertupt requests.  Not all BIOSes have an option to change this setting, though.  By increasing the latency, you're providing more clock cycles for a device to have access to the BUS.  With short latency times, it becomes harder for the sound card to transfer files from SYS MEM to the card and back, and can typically lead to audio clipping or partially processed playback.

Typically, setting a high setting _shouldn't_ damage your system, it would just lead to a somewhat instable state, and very long wait times for components, which would slow the system down overall.  I wouldn't have recommended putting the latency setting to max, nor would I have recommended leaving it there, either.  But, there should be no harm done to your system.

Glad to hear it's running fine now, though!


----------



## Alex Clarke (Mar 24, 2008)

Well... I did set the PCI Latency back to default (as mentioned above) and my X-Fi worked fine.

However, after playing a few songs (using Windows Media Player 11) I noticed some crackling and popping (nothing as bad as before).

So, I moved my PCI Latency up by 1 (again) to 9.

All seems to be fine now.

Thanks again for all your help.


----------



## Russtavo (Mar 26, 2008)

Russtavo said:


> Think I have a handle on the problem - Taken from Wikipedia:
> 
> Applications communicate with the audio driver through Sessions, and these Sessions are programmed through the Windows Audio Session API (*WASAPI*). In general, WASAPI operates in two modes. In exclusive mode (also called DMA mode), unmixed audio streams are rendered directly to the audio adapter and no other application's audio will play and signal processing has no effect. *Exclusive mode is useful for applications that demand the least amount of intermediate processing of the audio data or those that want to output compressed audio data such as Dolby Digital, DTS or WMA Pro over S/PDIF*. WASAPI exclusive mode is similar to kernel streaming in function, but no kernel mode programming is required.
> 
> It seems Media Player/Centre is using exclusive WASAPI, hence why it works great and third-party apps like PowerDVD aren't using it, thus my problem. Seems there is no solution



Ok for those that remember my posts and who helped me, I have solved my problems by ripping out the X-Fi card and putting in a Sweex C-Media based card, and used the Open Source drivers. Everything now works as expected in all apps!


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## Heichef (Mar 26, 2008)

btarunr said:


> You got it. I'll do it over the weekend. Meanwhile I have to mod an end-to-end 3.5mm jack cable. Since I'm testing the Linux drivers for the SB X-Fi (which seem to be specially programmed not to work), I have a SB Xtreme Gamer running in this machine now.



Hi!
Hope you had success with those problematic Linux drivers.
Do you have any news on the Prelude's high volume distortion in RMAA tests?

Thank you in advance.


----------



## Mistral (Mar 28, 2008)

Hello,

I've had a "Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fat Champion" for quite a few months now, without any problems if I dare add. 

Thing is, I now have 4x1GB RAM and cracking galore in ViSHTA64 if I turn on the thing (sorry, can't remember the exact name) that lets you use all 4GB.

Anyhow, my question is as follows: are there any fixes for that?


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 28, 2008)

Mistral said:


> Hello,
> 
> I've had a "Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fat Champion" for quite a few months now, without any problems if I dare add.
> 
> ...




TBH . . . not that I am aware of 

Did you upgrade to the new driver version that was released last week?


<edit>

in the meantime, I'll research it some . . .


----------



## Mistral (Mar 29, 2008)

The 06 from march 14? I did. IIRC, even in 04 there was something about them having fixed the 4GB problem, but as lots of users can attest to, that clearly isn't the case.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 29, 2008)

Mistral said:


> The 06 from march 14? I did. IIRC, even in 04 there was something about them having fixed the 4GB problem, but as lots of users can attest to, that clearly isn't the case.




Yeah, the driver details mention something about fixing an issue with 4GB of RAM, but it doesn't offer much further info.

TBH, I hadn't even known there was an issue with 4GB systems . . . I'm still digging for further information on it; perhaps I can turn up some kind of info of value - if I can at least get a better idea about what the specific issue is and what is cause/affected by it . . .


----------



## Alex Clarke (Mar 29, 2008)

Just a quick update, my problem as reported in earlier posts (crackling/popping issues) here is back! 

I too am running a system with 4GB of memory (and memory hole enabled in the BIOS).

Unlike Mistral, however I'm using Windows XP Pro x64 as my OS.

I might actually contact Creative about this issue as the old drivers ran fine!


----------



## Myssi (Mar 29, 2008)

*X-Fi fatal1ty modechange problemo.*

Not sure if this has been already answered here somewhere, search funtion didn't bring out any usefull results and I got bored going through these posts somewhere around page 20.

But anyways, having odd issue with the mode changing software, it seems to be stuck on Game mode for good, when I try to switch into Entertaiment or Audio creation mode I get the following Audio Console error message.

'This operation cannot be carried out. This may be because the audio device is in use. Please quit all audio applications and games, and try again.'

The funky thing is that I'm not running any audio programs, even shut down IRC-client and Messenger.
It slapped the game mode on by itself and now it refuses to let it go. I've had the card for about 5 days now.

I've re-installed all the software and changed the card into different PCI slot, with and without the frontpanel and still nothing.
Drivers are newest ones I could find on Creatives website ofcourse, everything else works just perfectly, all the CMSS thingies go on and off like they should, it detects when I plug my headphones in and so on.

System specs go something in the lines of
Asus P5B-deluxe, onboard sound turned off.
Intel C2D E6600 @3.37Ghz
2Gigs of DDR2 800Mhz
Vista home premium 32bit
Club3d 8800GTS320
And ofcourse X-Fi Fatal1ty pr0 XtremeGamer with that frontpanel thingie.

Ventilation should be ok, Antec P182 with one 120mm fan blowing air to the case infront, 2 at the rear taking it out.
All drivers and BIOS are up to date as far as I know.

Edit. It worked Ok for a while and then it jammed itself into the game mode.


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## imperialreign (Mar 29, 2008)

Alex Clarke said:


> Just a quick update, my problem as reported in earlier posts (crackling/popping issues) here is back!
> 
> I too am running a system with 4GB of memory (and memory hole enabled in the BIOS).
> 
> ...



Sorry to hear the issue has cropped back up again 

couple of other thoughts . . . do you have the Mar08 DirectX update installed?

I seriously doubt it has anything to do with it, though.  Also, have you made sure hardware acceleration is fully on?







			
				Myssi said:
			
		

> Not sure if this has been already answered here somewhere, search funtion didn't bring out any usefull results and I got bored going through these posts somewhere around page 20.
> 
> But anyways, having odd issue with the mode changing software, it seems to be stuck on Game mode for good, when I try to switch into Entertaiment or Audio creation mode I get the following Audio Console error message.
> 
> ...



Can you change the mode from within the Creative Audio Console (as compared to using the mode switcher/console launcher)?  Go to Start>Programs>Creative> and open the Creative Audio Console, and try it from there.

If it still won't change, would you mind posting a screenshot of thr running processes in Task Manager?  Hit ctl+alt+dlt, select the processes tab, and hit alt+print screen; then go into Paint, hit paste, save it and post it if you don't mind.







Asides - @ btarunr, have you had any issues with your XG after the firmware update?  I've noticed playback in games seems to be extremelly sharp now - like a slight snap at the beginning of a playback; and seems to do it  no matter what the sample rate is, or having the Crystallizer on/off.

I'm getting the feeling the firmware update is what is causing all these new issues that seem to be cropping up recently.


----------



## Alex Clarke (Mar 29, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> Sorry to hear the issue has cropped back up again
> 
> couple of other thoughts . . . do you have the Mar08 DirectX update installed?
> 
> I seriously doubt it has anything to do with it, though.  Also, have you made sure hardware acceleration is fully on?



I've got the latest DirectX release (even reinstalled it a couple fo times to ensure everything is up to date).

My hardware acceleration is currently set to basic. Anything above that causes me issues (crackling/popping). Obviously basic acceleration does not allow me to benefit from EAX and the onboard memory of my X-Fi. 

As I've said before (and you mentioned in your last post) this is probably a firmware issue. I just hope Creative sort this out... quickly!


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 29, 2008)

I'm not 100% defi that it is an issue with the updated firmware, but it does seem a bit unusual.  I've even had a few minor issues that I've been trying to work out that only cropped up after the updates - they're small enough issues that most people probably wouldn't notice, though.

I'm still looking into a couple of these "newer" issues, if I find something concrete I'll post them up.


----------



## Alex Clarke (Mar 29, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I'm not 100% defi that it is an issue with the updated firmware, but it does seem a bit unusual.  I've even had a few minor issues that I've been trying to work out that only cropped up after the updates - they're small enough issues that most people probably wouldn't notice, though.
> 
> I'm still looking into a couple of these "newer" issues, if I find something concrete I'll post them up.



Would one of these issues be the lack of DVD audio?

I had DVD audio with the old drivers and firmware, but now it's gone! 

What's really annoying is that I can't install the old drivers with this new firmware... and I can't flash my card to the old firmware (well... I don't think it's possible) either.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 29, 2008)

Yeah, I don't know how to back date the firmware version on these cards . . .

but, I haven't had any issues with DVDs yet, perhaps I'll give a couple a try and see how that goes.
But, aside from the slight snap I mentioned earlier, I've also lost volume adjustment control within games.  I have to alt+tab out of a game to adjust volume level now.
Audio positioning sounds different as well in-game, somethings sound way too far away or too near.


----------



## Alex Clarke (Mar 29, 2008)

I'm using these headphones (http://www.razerzone.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_16&products_id=38) with my X-Fi and have noticed that the sound appears to be louder in the right speakers/headphone.

This makes things sound strange... especailly games.

I've used these headphones with the new drivers and firmware only, so cannot comment on what the sound positioning was like before.

Anyway... I'll be contacting Creative about my 2 issues and see what they say.

When I get a reply I'll post it here.


----------



## btarunr (Mar 30, 2008)

Alex Clarke said:


> I'm using these headphones (http://www.razerzone.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_16&products_id=38) with my X-Fi and have noticed that the sound appears to be louder in the right speakers/headphone.
> 
> This makes things sound strange... especailly games.
> 
> ...




You are mistaken. These headphones do not in any way connect to your X-Fi. They come with either HD-DAI / USB interface and have their own audio chipset. Just that their volume is routed to sndvol32 common and when you use your X-Fi volume control, you can adjust volume for this. If you're using the analog inputs instead of USB, set the volumes of each individual channels to 50% for the X-Fi.


----------



## Alex Clarke (Mar 30, 2008)

They have their own 'pre-amp' (which takes power from the USB port), not their own chipset.

Are we talking about the same headphones?


----------



## Myssi (Mar 30, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> Can you change the mode from within the Creative Audio Console (as compared to using the mode switcher/console launcher)?  Go to Start>Programs>Creative> and open the Creative Audio Console, and try it from there.
> 
> If it still won't change, would you mind posting a screenshot of thr running processes in Task Manager?  Hit ctl+alt+dlt, select the processes tab, and hit alt+print screen; then go into Paint, hit paste, save it and post it if you don't mind.



The problem seems to have fixed itself for some reason. 
I'm just guessing wildy here, but me thinks that it had something to do with the way Vista handles audio.
Some of those funky new modules that process all sound refused to kindly go away when not needed anymore and keeping sound card in Game mode.

Tried to boost my brain into remembering things and I think the problem manifested only after when played some X-Fi game, BF2142 \ BF2 in this case.
After a bootup it allowed me to change modes, even when VLC or WinAmp was running.

Edit: No, it didn't allow me to change the mode even from audio console.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 30, 2008)

Myssi said:


> The problem seems to have fixed itself for some reason.
> I'm just guessing wildy here, but me thinks that it had something to do with the way Vista handles audio.
> Some of those funky new modules that process all sound refused to kindly go away when not needed anymore and keeping sound card in Game mode.
> 
> ...



Odd, but I find this: *"Some of those funky new modules that process all sound refused to kindly go away when not needed anymore and keeping sound card in Game mode."* pluasible.  Vista's audio is a little dodgy, and that's not the first time I've heard complaints like that.


----------



## EastCoasthandle (Mar 30, 2008)

I find some headphones from Sennheiser the best when paired with your X-Fi.  I am sure there is one other brand that is arguably better but I forget the name.


----------



## btarunr (Mar 30, 2008)

Yup, my brother has a pair from the DJ series, I'll give them a try soon.


----------



## Mistral (Apr 3, 2008)

Well, I've more or less given up on searching and trying to solve my X-Fi/4GB/NF4/ViSHTA64 problem. I've settled for turning off memory remapping in the bios and running with 3GB usable and normal sound.

I have another question though, about the power connector on the card. I looked through the thread and there was some word on it, but nothing conclusive (at least as far as I could see). I have a power connector in on the front bay, need/should I also plug one on the sound card itself? Kind of sounds ridiculous...


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 3, 2008)

Mistral said:


> Well, I've more or less given up on searching and trying to solve my X-Fi/4GB/NF4/ViSHTA64 problem. I've settled for turning off memory remapping in the bios and running with 3GB usable and normal sound.
> 
> I have another question though, about the power connector on the card. I looked through the thread and there was some word on it, but nothing conclusive (at least as far as I could see). I have a power connector in on the front bay, need/should I also plug one on the sound card itself? Kind of sounds ridiculous...



no, you don't need to.  The 4-pin power connector on the card is for if you have the external I/O console, so that it can be powered through the attachment cable.  Otherwise, it has no other useful function, to the best of my knowledge.

Sorry to hear you couldn't get the 4GB + Vista issue solved.  There have been some dodgy issues with the vista drivers, and haven't been able to turn up anything truly conclusive on your issue.  Other seem to have been able to fix the problem by changing drivers, but a lot of those complaints were from before the most recent driver release.  Asides, though, I'll keep my eye out, and if I happen across any information that would prove useful, I'll either post it or PM it to you.


----------



## btarunr (Apr 3, 2008)

Mistral said:


> Well, I've more or less given up on searching and trying to solve my X-Fi/4GB/NF4/ViSHTA64 problem. I've settled for turning off memory remapping in the bios and running with 3GB usable and normal sound.
> 
> I have another question though, about the power connector on the card. I looked through the thread and there was some word on it, but nothing conclusive (at least as far as I could see). I have a power connector in on the front bay, need/should I also plug one on the sound card itself? Kind of sounds ridiculous...



The power connector of the card comes useful when you connect an external IO module (that which comes with the Elite Pro). Since the external module doesn't come with a DC input, it draws power from the system. There are rumors doing rounds that a power input to the card fixes pops and scratches when in Game mode but that's BS, with no explanation. But for sure, the CA20K1 is power hungry at 13 W (Game mode) and ~4W (Entertainment/Audio Creation). There's a long explanation for that.


----------



## mab1376 (Apr 8, 2008)

*Help!*

all i get is hissing through my center channel, i was plugging my stuff back in after i unhooked everything to install some new ram while the system was on. now it only works in 2 channel mode...

have a x-fi xtreme music..


----------



## Wile E (Apr 8, 2008)

Install the Daniel_K drivers, I say. Have them running on my machine, and everything is better.


----------



## mab1376 (Apr 8, 2008)

where can i get them? 
(pm me)

-edit-

im using xp....


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 8, 2008)

mab1376 said:


> all i get is hissing through my center channel, i was plugging my stuff back in after i unhooked everything to install some new ram while the system was on. now it only works in 2 channel mode...
> 
> have a x-fi xtreme music..



odd . . . I thought this kind of issue was limited mostly to Vista 

curious - you said you had the system on?  Have you rebooted since the issue started occuring?


----------



## btarunr (Apr 8, 2008)

Try 'Bumbchucking' : Switch modes from Ent to Game during output, the other way round isn't possible, reset the values in the THX console to defaults, set the soft volume to 50% in Volume Control (sndvol32) and tune the center channel volume:


----------



## mab1376 (Apr 8, 2008)

that doesn't fix it i think it might be a hardware issue... 

scratch that... I'm retarded i had the center/sub channel plugged into the microphone port...


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 9, 2008)

mab1376 said:


> that doesn't fix it i think it might be a hardware issue...
> 
> scratch that... I'm retarded i had the center/sub channel plugged into the microphone port...



It dawned on me last night that I should prob ask you if you'd double checked your connections, but wasn't thinking.

S'all good


----------



## btarunr (Apr 9, 2008)

mab1376 said:


> scratch that... I'm retarded i had the center/sub channel plugged into the microphone port...


----------



## NinkobEi (Apr 10, 2008)

sign me up  splurged a bit, got the Prelude. I think im in love


----------



## btarunr (Apr 10, 2008)

You're in. I've got a Prelude too, it's with my brother for this week.


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 10, 2008)

Ninkobwi said:


> sign me up  splurged a bit, got the Prelude. I think im in love



sure thing; and congrats on such a sweet-ass card


----------



## mab1376 (Apr 11, 2008)

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=57457

everyone who runs linux and own an x-fi card look here!


----------



## btarunr (Apr 11, 2008)

So, X-Fi + Linux finally possible!


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 11, 2008)

hey, if it seems to work without any major hiccups - I'll link that in post #1.


----------



## btarunr (Apr 11, 2008)

No hiccups at all. It works just fine despite being a beta. This driver module is not coded by Creative, what bigger assurance do you need?


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 11, 2008)

btarunr said:


> No hiccups at all. It works just fine despite being a beta. *This driver module is not coded by Creative*, what bigger assurance do you need?






I can't give you any flak on that statment after what came to light from Creative's camp a couple of weeks ago.


----------



## mab1376 (Apr 11, 2008)

yeah definitely a very big leap forward!!


----------



## Wile E (Apr 11, 2008)

I may actually be in the market for a X-Fi now. Good find mab.


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 12, 2008)

Wile E said:


> I may actually be in the market for a X-Fi now. Good find mab.



if you've got any questions about the models and differences between them, we're more than willing to help


----------



## Wile E (Apr 13, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> if you've got any questions about the models and differences between them, we're more than willing to help



Thanks imperial. I'm pretty much squared away with what I want tho. My eyes are on the Auzen.


----------



## btarunr (Apr 13, 2008)

Wile E said:


> Thanks imperial. I'm pretty much squared away with what I want tho. My eyes are on the Auzen.



Perhaps?


----------



## Wile E (Apr 13, 2008)

Nah, don't like the phones. I just can't keep my eyes off of the Prelude either. lol.


----------



## btarunr (Apr 13, 2008)

HS900 is an excellent pair, the same that's rebadged now with Fatal1ty branding and sold for ~ $125. Besides you're getting this along with Elite Pro. Daniel K's drivers don't cover X-Fi Prelude.......yet. A serious lot of ASIO features of the Elite Pro can be unlocked by Dan's drivers that aren't available on Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro / Platinum Fatal1ty Champion.


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 13, 2008)

All right guys. RM redid the sodering on the X-fi Music card. So I took pictures before putting it in.
The Top of the card: Power cap mod, opamp mod, and a something else... I'm bad with names! Really bad... 






The back of the card with the front panel mod





sorry for the big pictures... the TPU free image isn't working for me...


----------



## btarunr (Apr 13, 2008)

Kinda blurry. How about turning off the auto-focus on the camera and manually doing it? I see you've replaced the phase I capacitor (that big blue one), some details on that please.


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 13, 2008)

yeah, they are blurry. I changed it to where it captures pictures at 70cm... I still can't use the capturing part with TPU so I'll just link you to my photobucket.. I really don't mind people looking at things I like. 

As for the phase capacitor, I heard that after a while the stock cap can corrode and leak over the sound card. So, I had rm do the mod. I don't do a lot of modding myself with a sodering iron because of the fact that RM has more practice at it, and just gets a high doing that sort of thing. I'm learning, just don't want to f up the card...
I did every single mod but the padding to this card. I haven't yet found a place to buy it at a good price.


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 13, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> yeah, they are blurry. I changed it to where it captures pictures at 70cm... I still can't use the capturing part with TPU so I'll just link you to my photobucket.. I really don't mind people looking at things I like.
> 
> As for the phase capacitor, I heard that after a while the stock cap can corrode and leak over the sound card. So, I had rm do the mod. I don't do a lot of modding myself with a sodering iron because of the fact that RM has more practice at it, and just gets a high doing that sort of thing. I'm learning, just don't want to f up the card...
> I did every single mod but the padding to this card. I haven't yet found a place to buy it at a good price.



yeah, the big power filter capacitor right next to the APU is the single most notorious leaker on the X-Fis.

If you're looking for recommendations, PM trodas on it - he's done a lot of work with the Fatal1ty card so far, and can offer some excellent recommendations as to what to replace with what.  I believe, IIRC, on his card, he's even completely removed the audio filter capcatitors for the output channels as well - the ones prior to the OPAMPs.  He's suggested that with the OPAMP replacement, sound is much better and clearer as well.

By the way - a really good idea would be to pick up some of those small RAM-sinks (similar to these: http://www.frozencpu.com/products/7191/vid-106/Enzotech_BCC9_Memory_Ramsinks_-_8_Pack_BMR-C1L.html?tl=g40c18s236), and place one on the DAC and one on each OPAMP, mosfet, <one of the other chips on the lower right side of the card, don't remember what it is off the top of my head> - also, if you have a larger, rectangluar RAMsink, slap one on that piece of DRAM.  Copper preferablly - the copper will act as a small EMI sheild for the chip, and will help remove some heat from the component, especially if you do a lot of intense gaming.  The cooler the components run, the better and clearer the sound will be.  Aluminum HSes will work as well, but don't provide the same level of EMI benefit that the copper will.

Asides, looks good so far CS! 




			
				btarunr said:
			
		

> HS900 is an excellent pair, the same that's rebadged now with Fatal1ty branding and sold for ~ $125. Besides you're getting this along with Elite Pro. Daniel K's drivers don't cover X-Fi Prelude.......yet. A serious lot of ASIO features of the Elite Pro can be unlocked by Dan's drivers that aren't available on Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro / Platinum Fatal1ty Champion.



very true!  @ Wile, if you're in the market for the best sounding audio card, and money isn't a big problem - keep your eye on either the Auzentech X-Fi Prelude, or the Creative X-Fi Elite Pro.  Auzen's is still reigning supreme, but 3rd party drivers are opening up the versatility o the Elite Pro a lot.  Asides, as far as Creative's X-Fi cards are concerned - the Elite Pro is a beast all to it's own.


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 13, 2008)

I've done every mod to this card that there is. Random Murderer found the mod's and is apart of hifi, so he and tordas have talked a few times about the card. I'm happy with the card.. just not vista.. lol


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 13, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> I've done every mod to this card that there is. Random Murderer found the mod's and is apart of hifi, so he and tordas have talked a few times about the card. I'm happy with the card.. just not vista.. lol



big reason why I haven't upgraded to Vista yet is it's audio architecture.  BTW, double check that previous post of mine, I added to it while you were posting


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 13, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> big reason why I haven't upgraded to Vista yet is it's audio architecture.  BTW, double check that previous post of mine, I added to it while you were posting



just did. I'll have to look at it. right now I'm having problems because of not doing a clean os with my processor swap. so I'm thinking of just going back to xp myself. DX 10 is great, but I really don't mind the difference. 
I love the card, just don't like how it takes it with vista... know what I'm saying...


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 14, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> just did. I'll have to look at it. right now I'm having problems because of not doing a clean os with my processor swap. so I'm thinking of just going back to xp myself. DX 10 is great, but I really don't mind the difference.
> I love the card, just don't like how it takes it with vista... know what I'm saying...



I completely understand - I've worked with Vista, but still refuse to install it for the time being.  TBH, DX10 is a poor excuse for the need to upgrade, and really that's the only thing I see truly beneficial over XP.  XP can be just as secure - if you know what you're doing.  Vista eleiminates, IMO, a lot of responsibiliy on the users part in regards to security.

Anyhow, IIRC, I recall reading somewhere that it is possible to run true DX10 within XP, and I think there are a couple of hacks for it out there . . . but not 100% sure on that.


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 14, 2008)

I really don't care much for vista any more.. ran it since Oct. and I'm just done with it. I'll have xp and window blinds and I'll be set! 

I've seen where the dx10 is for xp, but i don't care for it. Its just a little drop that i really don't care for. I'll go with dx10 whenever its needed... Right now its not a thing that is needed to play games... only a few games get a boost from it, and its not worth it. give me xp and I think I'll be good


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 14, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> I really don't care much for vista any more.. ran it since Oct. and I'm just done with it. I'll have xp and window blinds and I'll be set!
> 
> I've seen where the dx10 is for xp, but i don't care for it. Its just a little drop that i really don't care for. I'll go with dx10 whenever its needed... Right now its not a thing that is needed to play games... only a few games get a boost from it, and its not worth it. give me xp and I think I'll be good



funny thing is - IIRC, DX10 doesn't really bring all too much to the table over DX9.  But, considering the average performance drop for gaming in Vista, it doesn't make it worth it, IMO.

I wish they would re-write the audio architecture, though.  A lot of audio hardware has issues with Vista, Creative aren't the only ones.  Many 3rd party applications also have issues with playback as well, and that's not due to the audio hardware or the specific application.


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 14, 2008)

Yeah, I'm all for vista as being a great os, but because of the fact that there isn't much to work with on hardware or software, then its gets maddening! I love music, and if my card gets to teh fact where if you use it, then it needs a restart or it will bsod, then I'm all for the xp!

I don't do a lot of gaming. Don't have the time too... I like to do multi player games to have fun.. but the ohter stuff is ok... IMO.


----------



## Syborfical (Apr 14, 2008)

Running an Xfi in vista is shit. 

Why can someone make there own HAck drviers that get all the nice bits working for vista. but the company that make the card can't.

Creative are run by retards end of line .. i hope they go broke ..


----------



## btarunr (Apr 14, 2008)

Syborfical said:


> Running an Xfi in vista is shit.
> 
> Why can someone make there own HAck drviers that get all the nice bits working for vista. but the company that make the card can't.
> 
> Creative are run by retards end of line .. i hope they go broke ..



Please refrain from such comments on this thread, it's a support thread with the odd technology discussion, constructive discussions work here. Perhaps you could voice your opinions on *this thread*.


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 20, 2008)

all right guys. I'll have rm tell you all the monbo jumbo whenever he can... I've fixed the opamp problem that I had. The left side was louder then the right.. well or I thought it was fixed. Now, with the new Opamp I hear the left perfect, but the right isn't "really" there. Worse then how it was with the other opamp.. Rm is thinking its something to do with Volts to the right side of the  opamp.. Me, I don't know.. lol.. So, what do you guys think it is???


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 20, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> all right guys. I'll have rm tell you all the monbo jumbo whenever he can... I've fixed the opamp problem that I had. The left side was louder then the right.. well or I thought it was fixed. Now, with the new Opamp I hear the left perfect, but the right isn't "really" there. Worse then how it was with the other opamp.. Rm is thinking its something to do with Volts to the right side of the  opamp.. Me, I don't know.. lol.. So, what do you guys think it is???



just curious, what kinda setup are you running?  Also, double check your channel volume levels in the WIN audio control panel as well; go to start>control panel>sounds & audio devices - then under speaker settings click on "speaker volume"   For some reason, XP likes to drop certain audio channels now and then.  Asides - what volume level do you have playback set at?

If it's something to do with the board itself, though . . . did you remove the audio filter capacitors on the board?  I don't think it has anything to do with it, but it might . . . need to think on this one a bit . . .


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 20, 2008)

my set up now is with the Striker II and running xp. I decided to go xp since I wanted the sound card to WORK! lol 

I believe the audio filter was not removed but changed out. I changed out two of the capacitors. 


as of settings on xp, its







If I turn down the left speaker, I don't even hear the right. Not at all.. This is the same thing that happened when I changed out the opamp the first time..


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 20, 2008)

are you 100% sure you have the OPAMP oriented correctly on the PCB?


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 20, 2008)

I can have RM change it out after getting back from CompUSA... Then I can tell you if its that.. but I believe he did do it right..


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 20, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> I can have RM change it out after getting back from CompUSA... Then I can tell you if its that.. but I believe he did do it right..



not doubting ya, but it can happen, and it's quite possible it could cause that kind of an issue.

From the way you make it sound, it's as if the left and right channels have been bridged and are partially running together


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 20, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> not doubting ya, but it can happen, and it's quite possible it could cause that kind of an issue.
> 
> From the way you make it sound, it's as if the left and right channels have been bridged and are partially running together



I know. and I wasn't say you where. It does sound like that.. lol.. We'll I'll see about that and get with it. talk later


----------



## btarunr (Apr 21, 2008)

Huh!? You replaced the OPAMP? That's amazing. How about a close snap of those OPAMPs ? If they work on Xtreme Music, it should work on Xtreme Gamer as well. Give us either a close-up or at least tell what's printed on the surface of the OPAMPs.....so I could try and get some myself.


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 21, 2008)

I make RM show you the stuff. He's getting together a Mod thread. Just have to light something under his a$$ to get it going. I don't have the card anymore.. lol.. Told him if he can make it come life again, then its his.. He's thinking its something to do with not being fully connected to the board itself...


----------



## btarunr (Apr 21, 2008)

lol 100% soft-volume for X-Fi is 200% hardware volume (or 200% signal). It causes distortion. Always maintain software volume (of volume control) at 50% for 100% signal without distortions. Anything beyond 50% SV is amplified, which isn't needed.


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 21, 2008)

Oh yeah, I hear that when I move up the volume.. well the popping i guess you say it as... But for some reason every opamp he put on it just would work with the left and not the right side of the speaker... 

So, since now he has better sodering stuff, I think he'll be able to fix it.


----------



## Jonny_doe (Apr 26, 2008)

I'm running Vista x86 , with a Creative X-Fi Xtreme Music Sound card , 
does anyone know where i can download the Daniel_K's  X-fi vista drivers from ???
I've been told there the best to use ,   but i can't find them anywhere now


----------



## btarunr (Apr 26, 2008)

Jonny_doe said:


> I'm running Vista x86 , with a Creative X-Fi Xtreme Music Sound card ,
> does anyone know where i can download the Daniel_K's  X-fi vista drivers from ???
> I've been told there the best to use ,   but i can't find them anywhere now



Hi,

You will find all DK drivers related info and additional help in *this thread*. Look out for posts by a user named Solaris17. He has the details with him.


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 26, 2008)

Oh, I forgot to tell you Bta, that RM got it working! It was a connection that was tampered with. So he used in ink and fixed it. I'll try and steal it back from him to take pictures for you. You might just want to PM Rm and ask what he did.. I couldn't begin to tell you how everything was changed.


----------



## btarunr (Apr 26, 2008)

Nice. My advice to you would be that you connect the power-input (4-pin floppy power input). While its job is to power the external IO, a molex typically has a +12v and +3.3v phase....which can be utilised by the card. So, since you have a new set of OPAMP circuitry, feed the card well....to keep up with the  upto 6V output.


Secondly, the newest (March 2008) drivers require you to click 'default' in the consoles of all three modes to reset the soft-volume. After that you can set your preferences with CMSS, Crystalizer, SVM, etc. There's a bug detected with the console routing soft-volume with sndvol32 in Windows XP/2000


----------



## Jonny_doe (Apr 26, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Hi,
> 
> You will find all DK drivers related info and additional help in *this thread*. Look out for posts by a user named Solaris17. He has the details with him.



Hey many thanks i've found and installed the drivers ,  but the software update wants to update to the 0006 drivers ,  will update take away the good that D_K did ,  or will his fixes still remain ???


----------



## Cold Storm (Apr 26, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Nice. My advice to you would be that you connect the power-input (4-pin floppy power input). While its job is to power the external IO, a molex typically has a +12v and +3.3v phase....which can be utilised by the card. So, since you have a new set of OPAMP circuitry, feed the card well....to keep up with the  upto 6V output.
> 
> 
> Secondly, the newest (March 2008) drivers require you to click 'default' in the consoles of all three modes to reset the soft-volume. After that you can set your preferences with CMSS, Crystalizer, SVM, etc. There's a bug detected with the console routing soft-volume with sndvol32 in Windows XP/2000



Well, I gave the Card to RM. Its his baby now.. I bought another card.. Wish I didn't in ways since Now I can see if the front panel mod works and what not... oh well... I'll let him know...


----------



## btarunr (Apr 26, 2008)

Jonny_doe said:


> Hey many thanks i've found and installed the drivers ,  but the software update wants to update to the 0006 drivers ,  will update take away the good that D_K did ,  or will his fixes still remain ???



Ignore software-update. It will download and install the March 2008 driver from Creative, bye bye Dan.


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 26, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Nice. My advice to you would be that you connect the power-input (4-pin floppy power input). While its job is to power the external IO, a molex typically has a +12v and +3.3v phase....which can be utilised by the card. So, since you have a new set of OPAMP circuitry, feed the card well....to keep up with the  upto 6V output.
> 
> 
> *Secondly, the newest (March 2008) drivers require you to click 'default' in the consoles of all three modes to reset the soft-volume. After that you can set your preferences with CMSS, Crystalizer, SVM, etc. There's a bug detected with the console routing soft-volume with sndvol32 in Windows XP/2000*





I thought as much - but wasn't sure, and I haven't heard much else about it.  TBH, I thought it was just an issue with my install of XP 

It has been driving me batty trying to figure out why my volume levels seemed to be all over the place at times, and I had noticed that the volume set in the Volume Control panel was different than what was shown in the Audio Mode panel.



As to the power connector - I've truly been starting to wonder _if_ it might actually do some good to have it plugged in.  I've been meaning to take the card out and trace the board to see if the power pins are actually routed to other components on the board as well, or if they only feed to the I/O connector on the PCI plate.  Perhaps I'll get to that either this evening or tomorrow.


----------



## Jonny_doe (Apr 27, 2008)

Hey ,  i just noticed that  daniel_k  has released 'SB X-Fi Series Installation Disc for Windows XP/Vista (unofficial)'

I thought he'd given up ,  these have the newer 0006 drivers in ..


more details here ...



```
http://forums.creative.com/creativelabs/board/message?board.id=Vista&thread.id=32040
```


----------



## EarlZ (Apr 29, 2008)

It it just me or do my mp3's sound better on entertainment mode ( same settings with game mode ) ???


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 29, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> It it just me or do my mp3's sound better on entertainment mode ( same settings with game mode ) ???



They should - entertainment mode utilizes more "software" acceleration for carrying out audio processing, and for playing back a broader audio spectrum as compared to game mode . . . you should also find that audio creation mode should sound very similar to entertainment mode as well.

Game mode puts the card under full hardware acceleration, and combined with the software drivers, it looks for "clues" in the audio calls and within a game engine as to how to play a certain audio file - in regards to it's loudness, occlussion or any other filtering.  In general, your run of the mill mp3s, and other compressed audio files don't have any filtering information sent to the driver, so files are played back "as is".  Big reason why audio files will sound different in-game, as compared to if you extract them and play them seperately.


----------



## happita (May 1, 2008)

Hello. May I join? I have an X-Fi in my sig. Check it out.


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## btarunr (May 1, 2008)

happita said:


> Hello. May I join? I have an X-Fi in my sig. Check it out.



Ofcourse you can, welcome aboard. Imp will update the member list as soon as he comes up.


----------



## imperialreign (May 1, 2008)

happita said:


> Hello. May I join? I have an X-Fi in my sig. Check it out.



done!


----------



## imperialreign (May 8, 2008)

not really related to the X-Fi series at all, but I thought I'd mention and point it out here that I had noticed on tweakguides.com:



> ALchemy for Audigy
> 8 May 2008
> 
> 
> Creative has announced that shortly they will release the ALchemy for Audigy software - which allows DirectSound games to run with hardware audio support under Vista - as a free download to all users. Existing purchasers are therefore entitled to a Refund of their $9.99 purchase price.



the refund form can be found at Creative's website here: http://us.creative.com/alchemy/welcome.asp

apparantly, this one is coming in under the radar - from what I can tell, Creative have been sending e-mails to users who've already paid for the software in the past, instead of making some kind of official notice or news report.

Audigy users should never have had to pay for the service in the first place, IMO, but at least Creative has had a little sense knocked into them over the last couple of months.  Hopefully, this will be a start on re-establishing their customer relations.


----------



## btarunr (May 10, 2008)

*ASUS SupremeFX X-Fi*







Say hello to the newest sound-card featuring X-Fi technology, the ASUS SupremeFX X-Fi






ASUS would be shipping this with several of its ROG motherboards, notably Maximus II Formula/Extreme, possibly Crosshair II Formula (since it's still not made it to the market and replaced by M3N32 series). 

Funny though, is that it's advertised to support EAX 4.0 HD which is supposed to be a hardware accelerated feature. I don't think this features CA20K1 because:


The presence of CA20K1 would mean there should be a PCI-E bridge chip (that translates PCI-E to PCI)
Presense of a bridge chip would jack up manufacturing costs significantly, and it would cost ASUS ~$60 for this part alone.
If there was a CA20K1 in there, the sticker would be screaming 'EAX 5.0 HD'.

That brings us to the next question, how are they accelerating EAX 4.0 on the same chipset that drives the PCI-E X-Fi cards from Creative and MSI ? Software? That could jack up CPU overhead.


----------



## imperialreign (May 10, 2008)

very interesting, btarunr!

I'm shocked, honestly, that ASUS is now brandishing X-Fi's mini-boards . . . funny, too, how similar it looks to their current offering . . .


damn!  I'm itchin to see that PCB without the shield!!!


----------



## btarunr (May 10, 2008)

Lesson to learn for Creative: "install EMI shields on sound-cards. ASUS SupremeFX cards are well shielded from major interference because it's intended to be installed in a place between the first video-card and the northbridge.






Do you see the ROG badge on the northbridge cooler? That's no sticker. It's a plate which glows, there's a white cold-cathode tube inside (see the wires going out). So cold-cathode = massive EMI.

Next in line to use this chipset is DFI. They're working on a "Bernstein II" audio module that features the same chipset. Expect those top-end LANparty boards to come out with it soon.


----------



## Wile E (May 10, 2008)

Damn. I wish my Maximus would've came with that. I would've retired the Audigy 2 ZS to the second rig, and just used the card that came with the board, to save the space below my second gfx slot.


----------



## Cold Storm (May 10, 2008)

My striker II board came with a glowing ROG badge. You can tell when your resetting Cmos because of the light turning off while you are holding down the button. Pretty nice thing Bta!


----------



## btarunr (May 10, 2008)

Does Striker II come with AMI BIOS? It's unrelated, but my ASUS M3A has a weird way of finalizing any BIOS setting. Suppose I make any settings change, save and exit, the whole system powers down for a second or so, then it starts back up.

A correction, the ROG badge has white LED's not a cold-cat. My bad.


----------



## Cold Storm (May 10, 2008)

Yeah, my bios is the same as yours. If you do anything different it shuts down then restarts. Then if you have the power turned off for a long period of time you have to hit the reset button after powering it up so it can go threw a test run of everything. It is strange. I'll take a picture of my R.o.G. badge once I get home and post it once I get a computer up and running... I don't have the striker II's sound card because of the fact I bought it open box... Still trying to get Asus to allow me to register the thing so I can get them to send me the parts... 

My badge is also just a big white led under it


----------



## btarunr (May 11, 2008)

Ask them for a SupremeFX X-Fi


----------



## imperialreign (May 11, 2008)

Cold Storm said:


> Yeah, my bios is the same as yours. If you do anything different it shuts down then restarts. Then if you have the power turned off for a long period of time you have to hit the reset button after powering it up so it can go threw a test run of everything. It is strange. I'll take a picture of my R.o.G. badge once I get home and post it once I get a computer up and running... I don't have the striker II's sound card because of the fact I bought it open box... Still trying to get Asus to allow me to register the thing so I can get them to send me the parts...
> 
> My badge is also just a big white led under it



Same with my P5E3 Deluxe, and my P5W-DH Deluxe did that as well.

For some reason, though, ASUS specifies for this board, after a new BIOS flash, to go into BIOS and load and save defaults and then reset again . . .


----------



## Cold Storm (May 11, 2008)

I haven't went to do a bios flash yet.. It needs one, I'm like 11 revisions old! lol... But once the board and everything get working again!


----------



## EarlZ (May 11, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> They should - entertainment mode utilizes more "software" acceleration for carrying out audio processing, and for playing back a broader audio spectrum as compared to game mode . . . you should also find that audio creation mode should sound very similar to entertainment mode as well.
> 
> Game mode puts the card under full hardware acceleration, and combined with the software drivers, it looks for "clues" in the audio calls and within a game engine as to how to play a certain audio file - in regards to it's loudness, occlussion or any other filtering.  In general, your run of the mill mp3s, and other compressed audio files don't have any filtering information sent to the driver, so files are played back "as is".  Big reason why audio files will sound different in-game, as compared to if you extract them and play them seperately.



I see, so is there a way for game mode to have that kind of sound quality.. switching modes is really a hassle for me..


----------



## btarunr (May 12, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> I see, so is there a way for game mode to have that kind of sound quality.. switching modes is really a hassle for me..



Use X-Fi Mode Changer. You can set application profiles, so when you launch a game, it switches to Game mode and when you launch apps like WMP/Winamp/VLC, entertainment mode. You have to set app profiles.

http://www.freewebs.com/spectra9/xfmc.html


----------



## imperialreign (May 12, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Use X-Fi Mode Changer. You can set application profiles, so when you launch a game, it switches to Game mode and when you launch apps like WMP/Winamp/VLC, entertainment mode. You have to set app profiles.
> 
> http://www.freewebs.com/spectra9/xfmc.html



+1; and if you also use the Creative Volume Control Panel, after installation, you can enable it to start with WIN and load to the taskbar - then, all you need to do is double click the Creative volume control icon in the taskbar and it'll take you right into the audio console/mode switcher


----------



## EarlZ (May 12, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Use X-Fi Mode Changer. You can set application profiles, so when you launch a game, it switches to Game mode and when you launch apps like WMP/Winamp/VLC, entertainment mode. You have to set app profiles.
> 
> http://www.freewebs.com/spectra9/xfmc.html



I've thought about using that program, Example i launch winamp then warcraft 3 both apps having different profiles.. can i set the mode changer to prioritize winamp profile over war3 ?


----------



## btarunr (May 12, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> I've thought about using that program, Example i launch winamp then warcraft 3 both apps having different profiles.. can i set the mode changer to prioritize winamp profile over war3 ?



Change in mode is triggered by application launch, much in the same way NVidia control panel has application profiles. Lets say I have Winamp running (but not giving output), and I start a game that I set to switch to game mode, it will change to game mode. But when say Winamp is giving output and I launch an app that triggers change to game mode, the mode will not change.


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## Black Panther (May 13, 2008)

I can't believe that I have the xtreme music and I just noticed this thread...

I must be really distracted most of the time I'm online, maybe the fault because I'm online late...

Sure I got a lot of reading to do tomorrow, since I just saw this at ~1:00AM


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## bassmasta (May 14, 2008)

just a quick question.  with my new mobo, i was hoping to give my old X-fi a new try.  creative doesnt have drivers on their site for my... "soundblaster xfi xtreme gamer fatal1ty pro edition", but they do have drivers for the xtreme gamer.  I was wondering if the drivers would work, considering creative wont anser my emails.


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## imperialreign (May 14, 2008)

bassmasta said:


> just a quick question.  with my new mobo, i was hoping to give my old X-fi a new try.  creative doesnt have drivers on their site for my... "soundblaster xfi xtreme gamer fatal1ty pro edition", but they do have drivers for the xtreme gamer.  I was wondering if the drivers would work, considering creative wont anser my emails.



TBH, I don't think the XG drivers would function correctly with a Fatal1ty card - different PCB architecture and components.

It looks like Creative are trying to reorganize their download section again . . . here, this driver will work: Fatal1ty driver


----------



## bassmasta (May 14, 2008)

thanks.  I hope I have better luck with the DFI 790 boards than I did with my m2r32 and finally get this thing going.


----------



## imperialreign (May 16, 2008)

Creative have released a new version of the ALchemy software, version 1.10.01 is now available.

Downloads are now available from their main support site here: http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/

ALchemy for Audigy is now 100% free, and available for download as well.


----------



## imperialreign (May 16, 2008)

thought I'd mention it here as well:

pics of the new X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Titanium Fatal1ty PCIEx1 card:











as soon as I run across some pics with the EMI shield, I'll post them as well . . . prob won't be until some site has one for a review.

The cards are already up for sale on Creative's website; $150 for the stand-alone card, $299 for the card + the I/O drive


----------



## btarunr (May 16, 2008)

That EMI shield with pits deflects EMI better. It's the same that's used on communication satellites to shield delicate components from _very_ harmful radio-waves. They've done their homework well this time around, with more people taking to multi-GPU setups.


For current X-Fi owners, there's no reason to upgrade apart from the newer PCI-E bus. If your card is running fine on a PCI slot, stick to it, this card beings with it no significant changes, except for a CMSS-3D upmix. Sources tell that this card could (and I mean _could_) have compatibility issues with _certain_ motherboard chipsets due to the translation logic used (PCI-E to PCI). Nothing is clear now, that's as far as we know.


----------



## Wile E (May 17, 2008)

All I want to know is, does it have the DSP?


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## imperialreign (May 17, 2008)

Wile E said:


> All I want to know is, does it have the DSP?



that was my first thought when I first saw the pics, and I based that purely on the size of the PCB alone . . . it's rather small for what they're claiming the card is capable of . . . but until we can see some picks without the shield, or someone here on the forum buys one and dismantles it


like I mentioned in the other thread, though, considering this card is carrying the "Fatal1ty" moniker, I doubt it has a chipset.



Aside from, as bta pointed out, this card would work well with crossfire/SLI setups that block a viable PCI slot; the only other thing this card could have over the PCI X-Fis is a better processing speed through lower latency thanks to the increased bandwidth of the PCIE BUS as compared to the PCI BUS.

But, if it is stouting the APU, and dependant on how efficient the PCIE <-> PCI translation is, somewhat higher latency could easily negate any increased processing performance.



I guess we must be patient on some reviews to crop up . . .


----------



## Polaris573 (May 17, 2008)

Give me a hand if you can guys.

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=60434


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## EarlZ (May 21, 2008)

Noob questions on alchemy

1.)I know it restores the EAX effects under vista, but im wondering if plain hardware acceleration for audio is enabled even if i dont have alchemy

2.)I see a new alchemy on creatives site, the version has no X-fi edition written on it but X-Fi is part of its compatibility list, is it safe to update to that version ?

3.)Does alchemy modify some files in the game or what ?


----------



## imperialreign (May 21, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> Noob questions on alchemy
> 
> 1.)I know it restores the EAX effects under vista, but im wondering if plain hardware acceleration for audio is enabled even if i dont have alchemy
> 
> ...





1) No, you still don't have hardware acceleration _within_ Vista, the OS doesn't accomodate it directly.  ALchemy, though, allows for use of hardware accelerated features, like EAX, by translating EAX calls to the OpenAL API, which can directly access your card.

2) It should be - the new version is for both the Audigy series and the X-Fi series.  The two cards are no longer seperate for ALchemy use.  I doubt there are any bugs with the new software version because of this, and I haven't heard of any yet, either.

3) No, ALchemy will not modify any of you game files - it's an application that will run in the background and intercepts the EAX calls within the game, and translates those audio calls to ones that the OpenAL API will understand.


----------



## EarlZ (May 21, 2008)

For #3 i never noticed alchemy running on the background, i guess it becomes one of those system drivers/services that you cant normally see ?


----------



## imperialreign (May 21, 2008)

EarlZ said:


> For #3 i never noticed alchemy running on the background, i guess it becomes one of those system drivers/services that you cant normally see ?



it might be, or it might be listed as a generic service.

TBH, I'm not 100% sure, as I haven't used ALchemy yet . . . no need for it with XP.


----------



## btarunr (May 23, 2008)

*MSI X-Fi Xtreme Audio gets a makeover*







We've already seen this card feature with the MSI P7N Diamond and certain other models based on the NForce 700i series chipsets from MSI. Well, the newest revision of the card brings with it two core features. 


EAX 4.0 HD
A new sporty EMI shield






Existing users of this card (who got it as part of the P7N series boards) can use the latest drivers from MSI website to get EAX 4.0 HD functionality. You have to install this latest driver after you've installed the Consoles from the driver CD.

This new card is bundled with all fresh stock and is available with the new K9N2 Diamond.


----------



## imperialreign (May 25, 2008)

interesting all these X-Fi stand offs we're seeing for motherboards now . . . although, that decal on that EMI shield is a little too fruity for my taste 



Anyhow, just a quick update - trodas and I will be beginning on hard modding our cards, and they should both come out a bit different, but similar, based upon what all we intend to use our cards for - so, as I make progress, I will post that up, and he might write a guide to re-capping the cards as well (seeing as how he's done most of the leg work there).

But, seeing as how mine hasn't been touched yet, I'm also going to post up RMAA test results in between each change and burn-in period, so we can see just how much of a change is taking place to the cards output capabilites.  First up will be replacement of the OPAMPs, followed by removal of a large number of capacitors.

I also have a newer, somewhat better DAC that I'm going to see what all it would take to swap out, and I'm still considering trying to get ahold of a newer ADC as well.

Expect that I will post up the RMAA results of my un-modded card, as these results will serve as a baseline, and I will also compare those results to the testing results that Creative had made for these cards as "brand new" - so we can see just how much degradation has taken place in a little over a year and a half of heavy use.


----------



## imperialreign (May 26, 2008)

sorry for the double, but this is worthy of a seperate post; how my card currently rates out.

First, here are the specs that Creative rated and tested the X-Fi Fatal1ty as a brand new unit:







and here are the results of testing my card in it's current unmodified state, using the same exact method that Creative outlined in the RMAA 5.5 X-Fi series testing methodology .pdf from Creative:







and we can see how much degredation has occured over the last year and a half since I had purchased the card (Jan 07).  We now have a baseline for further modification - my goal is to see if we can't get the specs of this card back up and beyond what it was originally rated at, plus make use of components that won't degrade so quickly, even under the rigors of my system.


----------



## mullered07 (May 29, 2008)

ok have posted a thread in general software about this but no joy, maybe this is a better place  , does anyone know where to download the modded xfi drivers for vista from ?


----------



## imperialreign (May 29, 2008)

mullered07 said:


> ok have posted a thread in general software about this but no joy, maybe this is a better place  , does anyone know where to download the modded xfi drivers for vista from ?



not really sure, man - I haven't really kept up with them

trying to google them doens't turn up much, either . . . perhaps btarunr would know


----------



## dwax (May 30, 2008)

I have the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic. still have the drivers from the disk installed.  Is there any advantages to updating to the latest drivers? Not having any problems now just wondering what improvements or downsides would be on updating?  

Edit:
I see they updated the drivers on 3-2008 anyone try these?


----------



## imperialreign (May 30, 2008)

dwax said:


> I have the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic. still have the drivers from the disk installed.  Is there any advantages to updating to the latest drivers? Not having any problems now just wondering what improvements or downsides would be on updating?
> 
> Edit:
> I see they updated the drivers on 3-2008 anyone try these?



I have the newest drivers installed, no issues so far

typically, updating the drivers allows for better hardware and software compatibility - it's meant to help resolve issues with certain programs and hardware, and can even help improve how the hardware itself functions.


I've noticed, though, that you're running WIN XP Media Center edition, correct?  There is a possiblity that the new drivers might not work correctly if you install the any releases besides what is on the installation CD.  If you install the newer drivers and notice odd playback, broken playback or no audio playback in some cases, you'll have to re-install the drivers from the CD.

Just something to keep in mind if you do update and run into issues.


----------



## dwax (May 30, 2008)

Thanks imperialreign Think I will stay with what I have. Yes I have WIN XP Media Center edition. Came with the PC. I figured maybe they added some goodies to the update, but prob no luck since they no longer make my version.


----------



## imperialreign (May 30, 2008)

dwax said:


> Thanks imperialreign Think I will stay with what I have. Yes I have WIN XP Media Center edition. Came with the PC. I figured maybe they added some goodies to the update, but prob no luck since they no longer make my version.



s'all good - I used to run a version of MCE as well, but I couldn't get any driver updates to work, even when the download information listed Media Center edition 2004/2005 as supported OSes.

Funny, too, as the drivers on the installation CD worked flawlessly


----------



## btarunr (May 30, 2008)

Nice reading, Imp!

I'll make myself an end-to-end cable and try out myself.


----------



## imperialreign (May 30, 2008)

that'll work if you can't buy a cable with two male jack ends.

I believe the OPAMPs I installed last weekend should be fairly burnt in by now, I'm going to retest the card again tomorrow or Sun.

I replaced the 4 OPAMPs with LM4562 units, and removed the 16 Jamicon capacitors in line of each output channel.

I'm also going to run an test from the cards f/p out connector, and then I'll be replacing the 8 capacitors that filter these outputs and inputs - retest a week later.


----------



## imperialreign (May 31, 2008)

alright, done some more testing.  

I'll repost the last testing results to make comparison easier:








and this is after replacing the 4 OPAMPs and removing the 16 Jamicons in the output channels:







Of particular note, first, is the frequency response - especially in the 96khz tests.  After modification, the range of response does not drop as far as before, but notice that the max hasn't changed.  What this means for us, is that frequency changes in the output signal are now deviating less from the original signal as compared to before, as our max/min marks are now closer to 0.00db.  Of note as well, in the 48khz tests the frequency response appears to have "shifted" lower, we now have a lower max, but min is now slightly greater than before.

there has been no noteworthy change in noise level . . . which is interesing seeing as how we removed the "filters" between the DAC and the OPAMPs (filters being the 16 capacitors that were removed).  I do not expect to see any change in dynamic range until I replace the DAC and/or ADC.

But, of major importance, is distortion levels across the board have risen (kinda to be expected with having removed the output filters) . . . it is possible now that all the capacitor terminals have been jumped, that the lines could be picking some levels of EMI which could effect this - I might try a make shift shield to see if there's any improvement.  Otherwise, installing some new (and better than OE) capacitors might be in order.


-ED-

I just added small copper heatsinks to the OPAMPs, the DAC, ADC and DRAM on the card, and the results of just this tiny mod (keeping in mind, that small copper heatsinks will act more as mini EMI shields, they will only aide with any cooling when the card is working at 100% for long periods of time - which in most cases is within a game):






[/IMG]




no change in frequency response (didn't expect any), and negligible change in overall noise levels . . .

but, of keen interest, there has been a slight drop in distortion levels - which further resounds my belief that these cards could seriously benefit from a good EMI shield.

granted, we've only been looking at very, very small changes in tested specs so far . . .


----------



## dark2099 (Jun 1, 2008)

Feel free to slap me around if this is a crap question, but I just put my SB X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty back in my PC (had it out for a while) and am running Vista x64, but there are no drivers for x64 listed on the website, so should I just use the Vista x86 drivers/


----------



## Davidelmo (Jun 2, 2008)

New member to the clubhouse here.. my Auzen Prelude came 2 days ago.

Still trying to figure everything out but so far, pretty good.


----------



## department76 (Jun 2, 2008)

Davidelmo said:


> New member to the clubhouse here.. my Auzen Prelude came 2 days ago.
> 
> Still trying to figure everything out but so far, pretty good.



awesome.  i think you'll come to love it as i do mine.


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 2, 2008)

dark2099 said:


> Feel free to slap me around if this is a crap question, but I just put my SB X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty back in my PC (had it out for a while) and am running Vista x64, but there are no drivers for x64 listed on the website, so should I just use the Vista x86 drivers/



her you go: Vista64 Fatal1ty drivers

sometimes you gotta poke around with their selection menu, they keep changing stuff; usually it's under Sound Blaster> X-Fi> Fatal1ty series


----------



## dark2099 (Jun 2, 2008)

Another question, I noticed the power connector on the card that is similar to the power connector on floppy drives, do I need to connect this.  Thanks by the way.


----------



## department76 (Jun 2, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I just added small copper heatsinks to the OPAMPs, the DAC, ADC and DRAM on the card, and the results of just this tiny mod (keeping in mind, that small copper heatsinks will act more as mini EMI shields, they will only aide with any cooling when the card is working at 100% for long periods of time - which in most cases is within a game):



from my knowledge of electromagnetics, i am and EE student btw (not that i'm an expert lol):  conductors (i.e. copper heatsinks) will only sink EMI if they are grounded, otherwise they will just build up the charge on the outside of the solid conductor itself.  though that can stop a field from entering whatever is hiding under it, it really won't do the same thing unless it provides a path for the charge build up to flow to.  so i tihnk those heatsinks will do no more than dissipate heat and not really provide any shielding unless additonal measures are taken.

anyone correct me if i'm wrong.


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 2, 2008)

dark2099 said:


> Another question, I noticed the power connector on the card that is similar to the power connector on floppy drives, do I need to connect this.  Thanks by the way.



no - at least, I have yet to run across any instance where the additional power is needed.  The connector allows for power to be passed through to the rear AUD_EXT connector, so the card can power the I/O drive (if you purchased one).



			
				department76 said:
			
		

> from my knowledge of electromagnetics, i am and EE student btw (not that i'm an expert lol): conductors (i.e. copper heatsinks) will only sink EMI if they are grounded, otherwise they will just build up the charge on the outside of the solid conductor itself. though that can stop a field from entering whatever is hiding under it, it really won't do the same thing unless it provides a path for the charge build up to flow to. so i tihnk those heatsinks will do no more than dissipate heat and not really provide any shielding unless additonal measures are taken.
> 
> anyone correct me if i'm wrong.



you're 100% correct.  In cases such as this, it won't completely avert EMI interference, but should help to somewhat diminish the effects, but not completely stop it.  Now, if I were to take some copper braid, and connect all of the HS together, and then ground one end of the cable to the case, it would be a lot more effective.  

I was only simply trying to demonstrate that a small gain in clarity can be had, nothing major, as the results demonstrate.  I'm working on trying to design an EMI shield for the card that will cover the front and back, but materials here are hard to come by, no one sells minimal amounts of copper, and copper here is expensive currently.  Copper, also, is not the best material for a good EMI shield, but it's the closest we could probably come to. MuMetal would be most preferred, but very expensive.  Nickel-plated copper or a copper/nickel alloy would be the ideal on a cost standpoint, but hard to find, and plating kits are expensive as well.

Lead would be the best under all circumstances, but I don't think the PCB could withstand that kind of weight


----------



## Wile E (Jun 2, 2008)

So, anyone find a review on the Titanium yet?


----------



## Davidelmo (Jun 2, 2008)

I've got a few questions about my new prelude. I'm totally overwhelmed with all of the control panel options.

I have a pair of 5.1 surround sound headphones. However, when I play a game like FEAR (using Game mode of course) I can tell very noticeable jumps from one speaker to the next. i.e. if I stand in the same place and rotate 360 degrees, I can hear sound "jumping" from rear to front speakers instead of smoothly transitioning between the two.

If there any cause of this or is it something to do with the game?

Also, it seems like the bass is lacking using the 5.1 headphones in game mode. Explosions to the rear are loud and bassy but those at the front don't seem to have any bass at all. Why isn't the sub being used when sounds are played from some directions?

Again, is there some option I need to tick/untick?

Thanks.


----------



## department76 (Jun 2, 2008)

Davidelmo said:


> I've got a few questions about my new prelude. I'm totally overwhelmed with all of the control panel options.
> 
> I have a pair of 5.1 surround sound headphones. However, when I play a game like FEAR (using Game mode of course) I can tell very noticeable jumps from one speaker to the next. i.e. if I stand in the same place and rotate 360 degrees, I can hear sound "jumping" from rear to front speakers instead of smoothly transitioning between the two.
> 
> ...



yes, maybe you do need to adjust something.  what are your current speaker settings?  i am assuming you have an analog connection to your 5.1 setup.  in that case, you don't need DDL enabled.  also, for game mode the jumping channel to channel could be the game it self, but do ensure your CMSS 3D is enabled for game mode, that helps a lot and you can also shift the emphasis from front to back.  There are bass settings to tweak, but more importantly ensure your speaker configuration in windows is set to 5.1 at all times.  if you have 5.1 headphones, connect them in 5.1.  if you have normal stereo headphones, leave your speaker mode in 5.1 and check "optimize for headphones" and the card/software will downmix for you.

hope that helps


----------



## department76 (Jun 2, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> you're 100% correct.  In cases such as this, it won't completely avert EMI interference, but should help to somewhat diminish the effects, but not completely stop it.  Now, if I were to take some copper braid, and connect all of the HS together, and then ground one end of the cable to the case, it would be a lot more effective.
> 
> I was only simply trying to demonstrate that a small gain in clarity can be had, nothing major, as the results demonstrate.  I'm working on trying to design an EMI shield for the card that will cover the front and back, but materials here are hard to come by, no one sells minimal amounts of copper, and copper here is expensive currently.  Copper, also, is not the best material for a good EMI shield, but it's the closest we could probably come to. MuMetal would be most preferred, but very expensive.  Nickel-plated copper or a copper/nickel alloy would be the ideal on a cost standpoint, but hard to find, and plating kits are expensive as well.



ya that could be a cool mod to do, is ground that all to the chassis with a flashy copper braid.

i remember seeing an EMI "sheet" for pci cards once, all i remember is that it was expensive and i have not been able to find it whenever i try searching for it now.


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 2, 2008)

Wile E said:


> So, anyone find a review on the Titanium yet?



not yet - I've been keeping my eye out.  I don't think we'll see a review until mid-late July; the card with the I/O drive is supposed to go on sale at the end of July, the card by itself will go on sale in Sept (as last I've heard).  That may still change, though . . .



			
				Davidelmo said:
			
		

> I've got a few questions about my new prelude. I'm totally overwhelmed with all of the control panel options.
> 
> I have a pair of 5.1 surround sound headphones. However, when I play a game like FEAR (using Game mode of course) I can tell very noticeable jumps from one speaker to the next. i.e. if I stand in the same place and rotate 360 degrees, I can hear sound "jumping" from rear to front speakers instead of smoothly transitioning between the two.
> 
> ...



first, make sure you're running the game with the audio console in Game Mode; with a set of 5.1 headphones, first try running the game with the speaker configuration set to headphones, if that doesn't work, try 5.1 - I'm not sure which is the best way to set these up; then, under the CMSS-3D tab, make sure that 3D positioning is enabled, and make sure both filters are set to auto - if in 5.1 mode, set upmix mode to "stereo surround" and upmix to "auto" - then adjust the slider all the way to 1005 surround.  Hit the test button - the playback should smoothly transition, without any major change from one speaker driver to the next.

with the subwoofer - I've found with headphones to that you usually can't have bass-boost turned up too far, even default settings tends to be way too much in many cases. In the audio console, go to your bass tab - if set for headphones, set bass boost level to 1db, and cutoff frequency to 30Hz; if set for 5.1, reduce bass redirection to 30Hz, and leave gain unchecked.



TBH - I'm kinda feeling my way through this with ya, I haven't had a chance to use 5.1 headsets, so I'm in the dark as to what is the best and optimal settings for them.  I'm curious, how do the 5.1 headsets attach to the card?  Is it just the one green mini-jack, or do you have the 3 jacks?




department76 said:


> ya that could be a cool mod to do, is ground that all to the chassis with a flashy copper braid.
> 
> i remember seeing an EMI "sheet" for pci cards once, all i remember is that it was expensive and i have not been able to find it whenever i try searching for it now.



I've seen what you're talking about as well - I'm not sure if you're in the states or not, but everything I've seen online wants bulk orders . . . so that's outta range of us commoners


----------



## Davidelmo (Jun 3, 2008)

department76 said:


> yes, maybe you do need to adjust something.  what are your current speaker settings?  i am assuming you have an analog connection to your 5.1 setup.  in that case, you don't need DDL enabled.  also, for game mode the jumping channel to channel could be the game it self, but do ensure your CMSS 3D is enabled for game mode, that helps a lot and you can also shift the emphasis from front to back.  There are bass settings to tweak, but more importantly ensure your speaker configuration in windows is set to 5.1 at all times.  if you have 5.1 headphones, connect them in 5.1.  if you have normal stereo headphones, leave your speaker mode in 5.1 and check "optimize for headphones" and the card/software will downmix for you.
> 
> hope that helps



Right, will give those things a go.

I'm hooking the 5.1 headphones up as specified in the manual and the "noise" test sounds fine - everything plays in the correct place. Using the normal analogue (pink, orange and black ended cables.) 

DDL is disabled.

Which setting do i need for the CMSS 3D? and where do I set the envelopment percentage?

Like I said, I'm completely overwhelmed with options!

I tried a couple of 5.1 mp3s and a dolby .vob file with a 5.1 demo and they sound great. The only time I'm noticing this problem is in FEAR.. so maybe it is something to do with the game (although the back of the box says best played with X-fi, lol)

Other thing I noticed is that in Oblivion, again with the 5.1 headphones, is that I hear the voice of anyone I am talking to coming out of all speakers, not just the front. Kinda spooky to be looking into the guys face and hear his voice from all around you!

I'm still happy with the card though.. music sounds fantastic and I played Bioshock the other day and scared the crap out of myself. There's a hell of an advantage knowing where the bad guys are coming from!


----------



## Davidelmo (Jun 3, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> not yet - I've been keeping my eye out.  I don't think we'll see a review until mid-late July; the card with the I/O drive is supposed to go on sale at the end of July, the card by itself will go on sale in Sept (as last I've heard).  That may still change, though . . .
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Thanks for your response.. I was typing my response while you were typing this one!

The surround sound headphones have all three cables. I have this set:
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/SpeedLink/Medusa51/5.html

They sound brilliant for movies or anything else with surround sound.

Thanks for the bass boost tip.. I'll try it out.

edit - just a note.. i think my control panel is slightly different to yours. For the CMSS 3D I have the following options:
Stereo Xpand
Stereo Surround
and I don't have a "test" button.
The only other option is "upmix" where I can select from on/off/auto


----------



## department76 (Jun 3, 2008)

ok since your h/p are the true 5.1 variety, you don't want "optimize for headphones" checked, then i think you want to leave your card/speakers setting in 5.1 mode.

i wouln't be surprised if it was poor sound channeling in the games you mentioned and not necessarily your soundcard causing the channeling issues.  look for an options within the game you might be able to play with.  also, the front-back envelopement slider is in the CMSS-3D tab in game mode.


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 3, 2008)

@Davidelmo - any update?



On a side note, Creative have released new beta drivers for the Audigy and X-Fi series for both XP and Vista; taken from Tweakguides.com:



> SoundBlaster Audigy & X-Fi 2.18.0000 Beta
> 2 June 2008
> 
> 
> Creative has released a Beta 2.18.0000 driver for the majority of the Audigy and X-Fi series under Windows XP and Vista. These drivers add Dolby Digital and DTS decoding and DVD-Audio playback in Vista for cards which supported these features in XP, fix a range of application and OS sound-related issues and improve performance in OpenAL.



they can be downloaded here: http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/

I'll d/l the new XP beta and give it a go tomorrow

the full release notes for the beta:



> This download is a beta driver providing Microsoft® Windows Vista® and Windows® XP support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> Take note of the following:
> 
> ...


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jun 3, 2008)

why didnt i see this, btw in June Issue of CPU mag, Creative Labs doesnt want the guy that is helping Xfi Users get Full Capability Back in their Cards to modify their drivers apparently.


----------



## Davidelmo (Jun 3, 2008)

I'm using the latest drivers from Auzentech.. came out only 2 days ago:
http://www.auzentech.com/site/download/updates.php

Fiddling with the CMSS 3D seems to have helped. I had it disabled before. The surround sound is better but there is still some channel hopping. I tried a couple other games but it's only noticeable in FEAR... I'll put it down to a fault in the game.

I noticed another weird thing in FEAR too. If a guy is in front of me shooting, I can hear the bullets whizzing past but they sound like gunshots and they are very loud which often makes me turn around because it sounds like somebody is shooting from behind me. Maybe I'll try patching the game and seeing what happens.


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 3, 2008)

Davidelmo said:


> I'm using the latest drivers from Auzentech.. came out only 2 days ago:
> http://www.auzentech.com/site/download/updates.php
> 
> Fiddling with the CMSS 3D seems to have helped. I had it disabled before. The surround sound is better but there is still some channel hopping. I tried a couple other games but it's only noticeable in FEAR... I'll put it down to a fault in the game.
> ...



that sounds odd, like EAX isn't being correctly implimented - defi try patching, most recent version is 1.08 - also, double check that EAX 2.0 is selected, as well as EAX advanced HD, and hardware mixing is also enabled in the game options menus.  You may possibly need to attempt a reinstall as well.


in the audio console, also try lowering EAX effects to like -4.0db or so . . . some games, EAX effects are way too loud and that might be more noticeable with a 5.1 headset.


----------



## Oliver_FF (Jun 3, 2008)

Here's something to wrap your noggins around... I've got an X-Fi Elite Pro:







However, when inserted to my motherboard at the time, ASUS P5WD2-E Premium, it was detected as being model "00201102", which sadly is not in the list of supported X-Fi cards the drivers come with... supported models are 002[1-6]1102. The pic should explain more:






If i plug the card into my current mobo it simply fails to post


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 3, 2008)

hmm - that is rather odd . . . 

have you installed the most recent driver with the firmware update?  If not, give that a shot and see how the card is detected.  The only reason the card model would be detected incorrectly is if the APU BIOS got corrupted somehow . . . sadly, I don't know of any software that can flash the BIOS on the X-Fi cards, and to the best of my knowledge, the chip would need to be removed to be hard flashed . . .


Unless btarunr could offer a solution, I'm thinking the card might need to be RMAed to fix that.


A word of advice, as well, if you do RMA the card - when you get it back, if there is no heatsink on the X-Fi APU, I seriously recommend installing one.


----------



## Oliver_FF (Jun 3, 2008)

You're probably right about the RMA, but sadly the time's past for that - it's more of an ornament now haha. One day i'll use it as a paper-weight or something 

It's very bling-bling though


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 3, 2008)

Oliver_FF said:


> You're probably right about the RMA, but sadly the time's past for that - it's more of an ornament now haha. One day i'll use it as a paper-weight or something
> 
> It's very bling-bling though




It's a dman nice card, the Elite Pro's are 1337 - even that older, first release revision you've got there


----------



## Apocalypsee (Jun 5, 2008)

I bought X-Fi XtremeMusic a couple of weeks ago. Just finished modding it, very happy with the result, the difference is night and day 

Anyone else mod the card?


----------



## trodas (Jun 5, 2008)

I did... and still planing more to do


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 5, 2008)

Apocalypsee said:


> I bought X-Fi XtremeMusic a couple of weeks ago. Just finished modding it, very happy with the result, the difference is night and day
> 
> Anyone else mod the card?



in the middle of modding mine as well - I've already started posting in this thread testing results after modification, just go back one page


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jun 5, 2008)

Apocalypsee said:


> I bought X-Fi XtremeMusic a couple of weeks ago. Just finished modding it, very happy with the result, the difference is night and day
> 
> Anyone else mod the card?



Tell us about this modification you did, share the knowledge.


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 5, 2008)

First X-Fi Titanium review I've come across: http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,2845,2316939,00.asp

the card appears to run on-par, if not better than a Xonar, and topping the current Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro flagship card.  Hefty price, though ($200).

Still no pics of the card sans EMI shield


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jun 5, 2008)

Now Only if BlueGears, HT_Omega, and Auzentech would get in gear.


----------



## Apocalypsee (Jun 5, 2008)

trodas said:


> I did... and still planing more to do


Ah, trodas, you're here too  Thanks for all the knowledge on Head-Fi my good friend 



imperialreign said:


> in the middle of modding mine as well - I've already started posting in this thread testing results after modification, just go back one page


Ah I see, cheers 



eidairaman1 said:


> Tell us about this modification you did, share the knowledge.


I will post some picture plus some information on what I did


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jun 6, 2008)

SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_15_0006 driver package for XP sucks...I think Creative tried to add more functionality but they totally wrecked it gonna revert back to the 2_15_0003 drivers unless somebody tells me that the BETA is running fine on XP


----------



## Wile E (Jun 6, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> First X-Fi Titanium review I've come across: http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,2845,2316939,00.asp
> 
> the card appears to run on-par, if not better than a Xonar, and topping the current Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro flagship card.  Hefty price, though ($200).
> 
> Still no pics of the card sans EMI shield



Ahhh man, that makes my decision a tough one. Get the Titanium for it's use of PCIe to give me more space around my gfx slots, or just get the Auzen card for it's superior hardware.


----------



## Apocalypsee (Jun 6, 2008)

Alright as I promised, here is my mod. Yeah looks crappy (don't laugh) as I don't have the right equipment to do so so I end up like so 

Things I done is removed the front opamp and replaced with LME49720 (plus 20pF bypass on V+ and V-), replaced 13 capacitor, short the 4 decoupling caps, remove 2 capacitor near AUX_OUT and output the front channel to RCA out with separate grounding

Here's the capacitor value and its places:

C177 - 3900uF 6.3V
C107 - 1000uF 6.3V
C108 - 330uF 16V
C56 - 470uF 16V
C16 - 510uF 4V
C43 - 330uF 16V
C75 - 470uF 16V
C74 - 181uF 16V
C72 & C46 - 470uF 6.3V
C91 & C119 - 470uF 6.3V
C172 - 100uF 16V


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jun 6, 2008)

Grrr I thought id test the beta drivers out - not as bad as before this time they dont BSOD my machine - instead it just CTDT when im playing games - 0007 revert ftw! the last set of drivers that were hassle free for me


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 6, 2008)

Wile E said:


> Ahhh man, that makes my decision a tough one. Get the Titanium for it's use of PCIe to give me more space around my gfx slots, or just get the Auzen card for it's superior hardware.



yeah, I'd say that'd be a touch choice - by specs and that review, the Titanium is coming in above the current Xonar cards in terms of of clarity and audio quality, and is also making use of a PCIEx1 slot as well - plus, the EMI shield looks like it's really been thought out and should be more effective than ASUS designs - which leaves only the Auzentech Prelude above the Titanium so far.

Although, Creative is pre-ordering the Titaniums for $150 - which is on par with the Xonar series . . . but, TBH, the new Xonars that we just saw a preview for the other day look like they might be a bit better than the Titanium - IMO, price will determine the best buy out of the two.

Still looking forward to more revies, though, especially from the better audio review sites (techreport. techgage, etc)



			
				FreedomEclipse said:
			
		

> Grrr I thought id test the beta drivers out - not as bad as before this time they dont BSOD my machine - instead it just CTDT when im playing games - 0007 revert ftw! the last set of drivers that were hassle free for me



I just installed the beta last night, and no issues with it so far . . .


----------



## MrHydes (Jun 7, 2008)

guys i need the Digital adapter (but i cna0t find in Portugal) to my Xtremegamer Fatal1ty so i can output 

Digital sound to my Logitech Z5500... i don't understand why these cards don't come

with Coax Spif or optical... doesn't come sense have to buy more stuff to complete 

the card


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 8, 2008)

MrHydes said:


> guys i need the Digital adapter (but i cna0t find in Portugal) to my Xtremegamer Fatal1ty so i can output
> 
> Digital sound to my Logitech Z5500... i don't understand why these cards don't come
> 
> ...



you could always get it off eBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/Creative-30SB000200003-Soundblaster-Digital-I-O-Module_W0QQitemZ300208716834QQcmdZViewItem


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jun 8, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I just installed the beta last night, and no issues with it so far . . .



the thing is now that ive totally reinstalled XP & Rolled on with 0007 update (think it was the 'WEB UPDATE 4' pack)

im not having any problems at all - even the sound is balanced & CMSS is actually working instead of me needing to go into windows audio menu thing & set the volume for each individual speaker!!!

the revert has worked wonders for me so far - everythings perfect like it use to be - all i needed to do was to dial in my old settings & boom game on. no BSODs or CTDT

god knows what the problem is - sometimes my machine gets mighty f**ked off with somethings even if they were designed/written for it specifically.

I guess we will never know anyway, this machine is on its way out. got a Xonar in my sights or what ever the newest most hip graphics card is when it comes to laying Ol' growler to rest.....


::Edit::

I noticed i said graphics card what i meant was *Sound card


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 8, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> the thing is now that ive totally reinstalled XP & Rolled on with 0007 update (think it was the 'WEB UPDATE 4' pack)
> 
> im not having any problems at all - even the sound is balanced & CMSS is actually working instead of me needing to go into windows audio menu thing & set the volume for each individual speaker!!!
> 
> ...





TBH - I've been starting to think a lot of the issues that have been cropping up over the last few months all revolve around the firmware update in the lastest alpha driver release . . . I've even had a few strange issues recently that I've just had to cope with - i.e. the volume control panel, the audio console, and windows sounds& audio control panel no longer seem to cooperate and work together.  WIN control panel keeps turning down 3 or 4 channels and I have to manually reset those, and changes keep reverting at next bootup.  the audio console and volume panel seem to work independant of each other now, and I have to turn both up to 100%, and then use the volume panel to further adjust the volume back down.  it's a little aggrevating at times.  I also can no longer access the volume control with my keyboard in some games . . . but not all 

too bad I don't know of anyway to revert the firmware


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jun 8, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> TBH - I've been starting to think a lot of the issues that have been cropping up over the last few months all revolve around the firmware update in the lastest alpha driver release . . . I've even had a few strange issues recently that I've just had to cope with - i.e. the volume control panel, the audio console, and windows sounds& audio control panel no longer seem to cooperate and work together.  WIN control panel keeps turning down 3 or 4 channels and I have to manually reset those, and changes keep reverting at next bootup.  the audio console and volume panel seem to work independant of each other now, and I have to turn both up to 100%, and then use the volume panel to further adjust the volume back down.  it's a little aggrevating at times.  I also can no longer access the volume control with my keyboard in some games . . . but not all
> 
> too bad I don't know of anyway to revert the firmware




I was having the same exact problem (plus the BSODs & CTDTs) what was Creative trying to achieve??? I thought Creative had just messed things up & the beta driver was to correct it but theres no real in depth info on what they _'really'_ have done - im sick of the volumes defaulting & having to set the volume of each speaker manully - & sometimes that even dont work. not to mention that it messed with the Creative Audio console a bit

web update pack 4 always worked for me anyway.


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 8, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I was having the same exact problem (plus the BSODs & CTDTs) what was Creative trying to achieve??? I thought Creative had just messed things up & the beta driver was to correct it but theres no real in depth info on what they _'really'_ have done - im sick of the volumes defaulting & having to set the volume of each speaker manully - & sometimes that even dont work. not to mention that it messed with the Creative Audio console a bit
> 
> web update pack 4 always worked for me anyway.



I'm thinking of rolling back as well -

TBH, though, I can't recall if the issue with WIN control panel was always present or not; but I know for sure the issue between the Creative volume control and the audio console was never present before.  The only reason I started noticing the WIN panel issue, was that I would have to go into that window and hit "reset defaults" before I could use the audio console correctly.


I'm considering a clean-sweep driver install.  It'll take a hell-o-lot longer than a typical rollback, but it at least allows for the drivers to be installed to a clean state.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jun 9, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> I'm thinking of rolling back as well -
> 
> TBH, though, I can't recall if the issue with WIN control panel was always present or not;



no its not always been present - even when i have Creatives own audio console up I always have the windows volume thing at the bottom of my bar. - I sometimes have nothing better to do then mess around with volume controls blasting out music & pretending im a DJ by 'scratching' the volume. - yeeeaaaah, fun times.

I wish Creative would actually give a shit. - back in 2001 - 2005 i use to think creative was the shit. now they _are_ shit.  the day i bought their Audigy ZS - i was so proud cuz i could play CoD-UO in 5.1

like most companies recently a lot of the successful ones seem to forget who actually made them successful in the first place. its more about money then customer satisfaction - or in creatives case their possibly just too lazy


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 9, 2008)

I kinda agree - in all fairness, their hardware development is still great, but their PR departments aren't worth the toll-free phone call.

I remember a company that was very customer oriented, and this is going way back - back when Creative and all other audio cards were still on ISA standards.  It wasn't until the Live! series that Creative started going downhill in these regards.  It's sad, though, that such great and innovative (sometimes) hardware is wasted on a crap driver team that just keep phoning in driver releases.


anyhow, back OT, I'll roll some drivers back this week and see at what point the two volume control panels cooperate together . . . but, if it's due to the firmware update, there will be no way to fix it, and I'll be a little irritated . . .


----------



## DaMulta (Jun 9, 2008)

Still no Xmod on the front of this thread


----------



## DaMulta (Jun 9, 2008)

Apocalypsee said:


> Alright as I promised, here is my mod. Yeah looks crappy (don't laugh) as I don't have the right equipment to do so so I end up like so
> 
> Things I done is removed the front opamp and replaced with LME49720 (plus 20pF bypass on V+ and V-), replaced 13 capacitor, short the 4 decoupling caps, remove 2 capacitor near AUX_OUT and output the front channel to RCA out with separate grounding
> 
> ...



Did it help?


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 9, 2008)

DaMulta said:


> Still no Xmod on the front of this thread



I'm still meaning to do so - I've just been lazy and forgetful


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## FreedomEclipse (Jun 10, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> anyhow, back OT, I'll roll some drivers back this week and see at what point the two volume control panels cooperate together . . . but, if it's due to the firmware update, there will be no way to fix it, and I'll be a little irritated . . .



I done this a 2 days ago - clean install of XP & web pack 4 drivers (before they messed it up) its fine - everything is back in Sync, even the windows & creative control panels


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## imperialreign (Jun 10, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I done this a 2 days ago - clean install of XP & web pack 4 drivers (before they messed it up) its fine - everything is back in Sync, even the windows & creative control panels



good to hear - perhaps then I'll try a clean install with the newest driver set first, it's possible the update doesn't install properly over the old driver set.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jun 10, 2008)

keep me updated then  but I wouldn't hold my hopes up too high as i think its more of a situation where  thats the way creative wanted it to be so thats how it is despite how you installed it. god knows who gave the programmers the idea for these last 2 sets of drivers - its like the blind leading the blind


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jun 11, 2008)

Look at my post here-

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=832271&postcount=125


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## MrHydes (Jun 11, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> you could always get it off eBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/Creative-30SB000200003-Soundblaster-Digital-I-O-Module_W0QQitemZ300208716834QQcmdZViewItem



Thanks for the help!

one more thing Dolby Digital at 96KHz/24bits exists?


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jun 11, 2008)

Yes,its selectable on the x-fi.


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## MrHydes (Jun 11, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> Yes,its selectable on the x-fi.



some people say that Dolby Digital at 96KHz/24bits doesn't exist because 

it's trough Spdif and this cable cannot push all that.

we know that Dolby analog 24/96KHz exists about some years now, but digital it's 

44KHz/16Bit loosy!


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## FreedomEclipse (Jun 11, 2008)

anyone know if the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi 2.18.0000 beta is any good for XP?? I dare not try it in case it f**ks everything up again


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jun 11, 2008)

I'm using it on vista and its fine,if that helps.


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## Bluesman (Jun 11, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> anyone know if the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi 2.18.0000 beta is any good for XP?? I dare not try it in case it f**ks everything up again



According to these posters, it looks like it can be bad. http://forums.creative.com/creativelabs/board/message?board.id=soundblaster&thread.id=124966

I just bought my card and will be installing from the CD today.  UPS is scheduled to arrive this afternoon, so I don't know the driver versions yet.  I am concerned about firmware upgrades from the Beta and in the prior release.  However, if I have noise issues, and cannot fix them with Spread Spectrum in the Bios or other tricks, I am going to have to take a chance.  I also have 4 gig of RAM which can be an issue with earlier releases but again it appears to be a mixed bag according to forum posts.

I am thinking of uninstalling my video card drivers and then installing the X-Fi first.  Maybe this will allocate more PCI bandwidth to the soundcard.  I am guessing here but I have seen in postings that folks who reinstall XP have good luck with noise abatement.  Maybe that is due to the system allocating more PCI bandwidth to the soundcard.  Who knows??


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## FreedomEclipse (Jun 11, 2008)

apparently 'mystery firmware' f**ks things up - nuff said - thanks for the post bluesman. now i know all creative's driver programming team need to be lined up in front of a firing squad & shot.

this set of drivers is as bugged out as the last 2

I think their making a mistake somewhere - a conflict between the XP & vista perhaps??? IDK but thats what im assuming since all drivers for each O/S are included in the same installation package.

however if this were to be the case, it wouldn't surprise me - creative are doing nothing out of the norm.


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## imperialreign (Jun 11, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> apparently 'mystery firmware' f**ks things up - nuff said - thanks for the post bluesman. now i know all creative's driver programming team need to be lined up in front of a firing squad & shot.
> 
> this set of drivers is as bugged out as the last 2
> 
> ...



I agree at this point as well on the new drivers - I think it's an issue with the firmware update that's cause a lot of headaches.  I think I'm going to dig up one of the first X-Fi driver updates that were ever released, and see if that firmware update included will work and clear this mess up.



			
				Bluesman said:
			
		

> According to these posters, it looks like it can be bad. http://forums.creative.com/creativel...read.id=124966
> 
> I just bought my card and will be installing from the CD today. UPS is scheduled to arrive this afternoon, so I don't know the driver versions yet. I am concerned about firmware upgrades from the Beta and in the prior release. However, if I have noise issues, and cannot fix them with Spread Spectrum in the Bios or other tricks, I am going to have to take a chance. I also have 4 gig of RAM which can be an issue with earlier releases but again it appears to be a mixed bag according to forum posts.
> 
> I am thinking of uninstalling my video card drivers and then installing the X-Fi first. Maybe this will allocate more PCI bandwidth to the soundcard. I am guessing here but I have seen in postings that folks who reinstall XP have good luck with noise abatement. Maybe that is due to the system allocating more PCI bandwidth to the soundcard. Who knows??



It's a good idea - especially with nVidia hardware; even using ATI I'd still recommend it.  It has more to do with how WIN allocates IRQs than anything else, and for new hardware that hasn't had any driver installed yet, WIN seems to keep that device IRQ as temporary.  If it's adjustable in your BIOS, I also recommend bumping up PCI Latency from it's default 32 to 64 - even if the X-Fi is the only card on the PCI BUS.

As to the 4GB issue - it only seems to be with WIN Vista; using XP 64 I haven't heard of any conflicts . . . yet.

And, for right now, I wouldn't worry about installing any update drivers - just use the drivers that come with the Installation CD.  The way things have been looking and all, I'm starting to believe that the best driver release for any given card is the version to be found on the Installation CD . . . unless you start experiencing issues, then it might be worht trying the update.


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## Bluesman (Jun 11, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> apparently 'mystery firmware' f**ks things up - nuff said - thanks for the post bluesman. now i know all creative's driver programming team need to be lined up in front of a firing squad & shot.



Ahmen Brother!  Are you aware that in one release the Creative prgramming team actually deleted VISTA system files!!  Yes, they killed protected system files in the C:\Users directory.   You can read about it here: http://forums.creative.com/creativelabs/board/message?board.id=Vista&thread.id=31494

I try to always keep my hardware drivers uptodate but with X-Fi I will not.  Maybe once I find some that work well in XP, I will wait until my VISTA upgrade before I replace any.  My ASUS laptop uses VISTA, and I have just now found ways to retain UAC while eliminating the annoying popups; and I have also discovered how to load certain startup programs, like ZoneAlarm, that were causing huge problems.  HINT: I use VISTA Task Scheduler now for tons of stuff.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jun 11, 2008)

well as you've probably heard me singing about Web Pack 4 update - still the best XFi drivers out there for XP as far as im concern'd

found Here

TBH the last 2 beta drivers did hold some benefits - ive noticed when playing around with the Bass management settings the sounds were a little more pronounced - a bit sharper???
but the bugs out weigh all things that are good about the drivers.


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## Bluesman (Jun 11, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> well as you've probably heard me singing about Web Pack 4 update - still the best XFi drivers out there for XP as far as im concern'd




You are a mind reader!!  I have spent some time trying to figure out which drivers you were referring to in your posts.  I thought 2.14.0004 because of your reference to Web Pact 4.

Anyway, I just got the right ones.  Thanks for the url.


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## Bluesman (Jun 12, 2008)

*Old, Old Drivers on New XtremeGamer CD*

UPS finally delivered a few minutes ago.  Thought some of you might want to know that the new X-Fi XtremeGamer is shipping with XP drivers dated 5/23/2006.  I guess Creative doesn't want to take a chance with 2007 or 2008 XP drivers!

I bet Creative's Sales Dept. wants to minimize RMAs.  Maybe try to hit their sales target this quarter....


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## imperialreign (Jun 12, 2008)

Bluesman said:


> UPS finally delivered a few minutes ago.  Thought some of you might want to know that the new X-Fi XtremeGamer is shipping with XP drivers dated 5/23/2006.  I guess Creative doesn't want to take a chance with 2007 or 2008 XP drivers!
> 
> I bet Creative's Sales Dept. wants to minimize RMAs.  Maybe try to hit their sales target this quarter....



wow - they updated their Installation CDs then! 

Drivers on my CD were dated 05 - and I bought my card Jan of last year . . .


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## btarunr (Jun 13, 2008)

When did all this happen. 

Ok trying to catch up...


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## MrHydes (Jun 14, 2008)

Bluesman said:


> UPS finally delivered a few minutes ago.  Thought some of you might want to know that the new X-Fi XtremeGamer is shipping with XP drivers dated 5/23/2006.  I guess Creative doesn't want to take a chance with 2007 or 2008 XP drivers!
> 
> I bet Creative's Sales Dept. wants to minimize RMAs.  Maybe try to hit their sales target this quarter....



The thing is creative doesn't want to enable Digital DTS or other features in X-FI

they want you to go and buy X-Fi2, that's what happens when the market doesn't

have competition...


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## eidairaman1 (Jun 14, 2008)

Cough, they been pulling the Driver Functionality Disable since 2001, also there are 5 Players out there that can actually beat CL if they wanted to, Dont forget CL is a Defacto not a Standard.


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## btarunr (Jun 14, 2008)

*Enter SB1090*







And just how could we turn a blind eye to this one? Highlighting products that come in without a bang has become important. So say hello to the SB1090. 

First off, it's a external device, succeeds the X-Mod. It provides upto 5.1 channel 24-bit @ 96 kHz output. This device connects to the system using USB.






Looks pretty compact. This device explicitly requires the bandwidth of USB 2.0 (HiSpeed, not FullSpeed). At FullSpeed (12 Mbps), it will not be able to perform both input/output simultaneously (usage scenario such as gaming with voice-chat features). Speaking of gaming, it supports EAX 4.0 HD. Looks like Creative is opening up EAX 4 to all its non-CA20K1 X-Fi products albeit Xtreme Audio PCI. 

Of latencies, well, let's be optimistic. Remember ULi? They sold out to NVidia? And then NVidia rebadged their AM2 chipsets? The chipset lacked a HD Audio interface. The ASUS M2N-SLI, based on the NForce 560 SLI incorporates a C-Media onboard audio which in fact, communicates with the system using USB ! No AC'97 interface either. I had my try on a M2N-SLI and There's hardly any latency issues at least when gauged by the DS output of Winamp's status tab. So USB doesn't significantly affect latencies, maybe yes with the CPU overhead (and also that with EAX 4.0 thrown in, massive amounts of data are transported to the device during output so USB 2.0 is a must) and also to know that USB 2.0 (unlike FireWire-B doesn't have a constant bandwidth, it varies. USB 2.0 is pretty standard and so, no issues there.


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## Nihil (Jun 14, 2008)

Hi everyone, I wonder if you guys can help me with a problem that's really driving me mad...
I recently bough an AV receiver (Denon AVR-1508), and I want to connect it to the analog exits of my X-Fi Extreme Gamer. I don't want to use the spdif exit because i use the card for videogames mainly, so i need the EAX decoding. I bought 3 Y cables (3.5mm jack to 2xRCA) and i connected the receiver like this:

audio card --> AV receiver

front --> front L + front R
rear --> rear L + rear R
center/sub --> center (black RCA) + subwoofer (red RCA)

and... everything works fine except the subwoofer, that doesn't receive any input. I'm sure it's a problem related to the X-Fi, because:

-listening to the radio with the receiver the sub works
-connecting my onboard audio card in the exact same way to the receiver the sub works
-i tried the X-fi card in another pc, with the exact same configuration as the first, and the sub doesn't work...

I'm running on XP sp3, and I tried both the latest stable drivers (2.15.006) and the beta ones (2.18.0000), but to no avail. Next thing I'll try is instaling Vista, but I doubt this will change anything.
So I wonder, is it possible for the rear exit of the X-Fi to be damaged so that only the center channel works, while the sub one is muted? Or am I doing something wrong with the connections?
Thx in advance for any help =)

Nihil


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## imperialreign (Jun 14, 2008)

Nihil said:


> Hi everyone, I wonder if you guys can help me with a problem that's really driving me mad...
> I recently bough an AV receiver (Denon AVR-1508), and I want to connect it to the analog exits of my X-Fi Extreme Gamer. I don't want to use the spdif exit because i use the card for videogames mainly, so i need the EAX decoding. I bought 3 Y cables (3.5mm jack to 2xRCA) and i connected the receiver like this:
> 
> audio card --> AV receiver
> ...



first, go to Start>Control Panel>sounds & audio devices - click the button labeled "advanced" under speaker settings, make sure this is set to 5.1 or whatever configuration your setup is, click ok; then click "speaker volume" and hit "restore defaults", then check your playback again


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## Nihil (Jun 14, 2008)

eh... wish it was so simple . No offense, but I've been struggling with this problem for 3 days now. My conf is 5.1. The panel is set to 5.1. I also tried to set it to 4.1 (and if I do so the center channel stops working, like it should) and 7.1 (same as 5.1, center but no sub).

I didn't try the "restore default" bit, and I can't do it right now since I just finished installing Vista and I'm downloading the various drivers for my system, but I'll try it later, if Vista doesn't resolve the problem.

Thx for trying, anyway .


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## Nihil (Jun 14, 2008)

Ok I finished installing Vista and I think I discovered something... Vista has got this nice panel that lets you click on a speaker to test it. I click on the sub and BOOM... it works. It's likely that the sub was working all along, but the applications were not using it. And they still aren't using it. I tried Winamp, VLC media player and no sign of signal on the sub channel . I've yet to try a game, but if it's like XP it won't use the sub either. Got any idea on why this is happening???


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## imperialreign (Jun 15, 2008)

Nihil said:


> Ok I finished installing Vista and I think I discovered something... Vista has got this nice panel that lets you click on a speaker to test it. I click on the sub and BOOM... it works. It's likely that the sub was working all along, but the applications were not using it. And they still aren't using it. I tried Winamp, VLC media player and no sign of signal on the sub channel . I've yet to try a game, but if it's like XP it won't use the sub either. Got any idea on why this is happening???



huh . . . in both OSes, too . . . that just doesn't make sense - I'd fathom to say it's a driver issue, but you've already updated to the newest version . . .

perhaps try clean installing the drivers, and then install the driver version that came on the Installation CD.

I don't really see how it could be a dead channel on the card, if the Vista test panel produces any kind of playback - that says to me that the signal is being output by the card . . . but, there's still the possibility something might be partially dead.

did you have this issue at all before you purchased the reciever?


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## Nihil (Jun 15, 2008)

I finally managed to get everything working... turns out I need this function called "Bass Redirection" (Thx God for giving us Google!!!), which, obviously, is not included in the Creative Audio Console. I had to download the "Creative Console Launcher" from the support site and then my sub started working. Without this function the LFE is sent to all the speakers and not to the sub :|.

I didn't have this issue before buying the receiver, I guess because my previous audio system (Klipsch ProMedia 5.1) had his amplifier directly in the sub, and to that i connected all 6 channels, so the sub/amplifier itself made the work of separating LFE from the rest.

On a side note, why does Creative include lots of utilities in their Installation CDs and then all of them are not working anymore if you download new drivers from their site?? That doesn't make sense... I could have resolved my problem instantly if I had this "Creative Console Launcher" from the start.

Well, Imperialreign, thx anyway for your support, and have a good day !


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## imperialreign (Jun 15, 2008)

Nihil said:


> I finally managed to get everything working... turns out I need this function called "Bass Redirection" (Thx God for giving us Google!!!), which, obviously, is not included in the Creative Audio Console. I had to download the "Creative Console Launcher" from the support site and then my sub started working. Without this function the LFE is sent to all the speakers and not to the sub :|.
> 
> I didn't have this issue before buying the receiver, I guess because my previous audio system (Klipsch ProMedia 5.1) had his amplifier directly in the sub, and to that i connected all 6 channels, so the sub/amplifier itself made the work of separating LFE from the rest.
> 
> ...




good to hear you've got it all working!


The Creative Console Launcher is included with the driver and software package on the Installation CD, although I don't believe that it is included with the driver update packages.  The Audio Console is, though.

Bass redirection is an included feature with the audio console, but the audio console must be set to 5.1 or larger speaker configurations for that option to appear under the "bass" tab, and for it to appear as well in the THX panel.


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## Nihil (Jun 16, 2008)

I think you are confusing the two applications. There is no bass redirections feature in the audio console, no "bass tab" and no THX panel. Those are features of the "Creative Console Launcher" (They sure have a lot of fantasy in creating names for their utilities...), which is NOT included with the driver updates. That was the problem.


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## imperialreign (Jun 16, 2008)

Nihil said:


> I think you are confusing the two applications. There is no bass redirections feature in the audio console, no "bass tab" and no THX panel. Those are features of the "Creative Console Launcher" (They sure have a lot of fantasy in creating names for their utilities...), which is NOT included with the driver updates. That was the problem.



sorry, I have a bad habit of calling the actual GUI pop-up window as the audio console, and I tend to refer to the actual "audio console" as the X-Fi control panel  - yeah, Creative didn't really name the applications all that well, TBH.  It's confusing at times, even for me.

I had thought, though, that the newer driver releases did come with the console launcher, but now, come to think of it, I don't remember being promted for the copy over last time I updated my driver set . . .

so, I just hit up Creative's site to see if it's available seperately, but no; although, there is a beta version available that looks like it addresses some issues.  Don't know why I didn't notice it before, it's been available since the 30th of May.

So, I'll wrap a quick update into this post - anyone experiencing issues that this beta claims to address might want to check it out, here's the download details:



> Release date: 30 May 08
> This download contains the Creative Console Launcher Beta application for use with your Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices on Microsoft® Windows Vista® and Windows® XP. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> Filename: CSL_PCAPPBETA_US_2_50_42.exe
> This download contains the Creative Console Launcher Beta application for use with your Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices on Microsoft® Windows Vista® and Windows® XP. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> ...



beta application can be downloaded here: http://support.creative.com/downloads/welcome.aspx?nDriverType=13


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jun 16, 2008)

I'm running the beta one,and the beta driver with no probs.


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## Bluesman (Jun 17, 2008)

*Update on New X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Card*

Here's an update on my new X-Fi card install.  Well, as one might expect, it has not been easy and hassle free.  First, I had a conflict/timing issue with startup programs - specifically ZoneAlarm Security Suite.  ZoneAlarm takes a while to initialize and the number of Creative drivers/processes that load at startup were conflicting with that initialization.  Fortunately, I have a freeware program called "StartUp Delayer" that gives me the option of delaying each startup program.  After some screwing around, I was able to fix this issue.

Next, came an issue with Battlefield 2 "Complete Addition".  This was on sale at WalMart so I decided to buy it to test out my system/soundcard; and have some fun too.  I had read that some folks have had trouble with X-Fi and this game, mainly static and stuttering.  I have also heard it was a fun game and was anxious to try it out.  Each attempt at install failed, either with a BSOD (but no minidump surprisingly) or a failure notice.  I have a freeware program, called "SmartClose", that shuts off non-essential Windows processes and other programs.  It did not work either!  Finally, out of desperation, I tried installing this game in Safe Mode.  That worked!!  I mention this story because I suspect it was creative drivers causing the conflict - I had never, ever experienced this situation before.

Now for the game test.  The game initialized with EAX detected and selected.  Once I started the first Map, I was astounded by the sound quality.  Never have I heard such fidelity and bass.  I have an Altec Lancing 2.1 system that has so-called surround speaker incorporated into the front speakers, plus a subwoofer.  Wow, wow, WOW!!  The tanks are so much fun to drive and shoot!  I played this thing for 3 hours right off the bat.  

OK, so I decided to see if the headphone detection worked.  I hooked up my el-cheapo headphones and tried the above game.  Well, the headphones were not up to the task, the soundcard was but they weren't.  So, I placed a "rush order" with NewEgg for Creative Fraility headphones.  They arrived yesterday, and I played another 3 hours with them on.  The bass handling and comfort of these headphones is outstanding.  Some folks have complained about the pad size but they fit my ears perfectly - a real custom fit.

In summary, my experience with the X-Fi was about as I expected.  I am sticking with the CD drivers for now but may change to the November 2006 drivers if I continue to have game install problems.  Fortunately, I have yet to hear the static that I had with my C-Media  MOBO onboard USB audio - which is a relief since I have a nVidia chipset and a ULI PCI-E chipset.  The Creative headphones were a great edition as well.  I will be using these often so I don't disturb "she-who-must-be-obeyed" as I play BF2.


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## imperialreign (Jun 21, 2008)

As of June 5th, the Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional series of sound cards is now available.  Here is the press release posted on Creative's site:



> CREATIVE PCI EXPRESS SOUND BLASTER X-FI TITANIUM FATAL1TY PROFESSIONAL SERIES SOUND CARD NOW AVAILABLE
> PCI Express Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series Wins Coveted "ExtremeTech Approved" Award
> MILPITAS, Calif. - June 5, 2008 - Creative Technology Ltd, a worldwide leader in digital entertainment solutions, today announced that the PCI Express Sound Blaster® X-Fi® Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series sound card is now available at Amazon.com/pcguts, B&H Photo, Buy.com, Creative.com, Fry's Electronics, Frys.com, J&R.com and Newegg.com for US$149.99.
> 
> ...




The cards are retailing between for $149 at newegg.com, the models which include the I/O drive are retailing for $199 at other online retailers.


As soon as I run across more in-depth reviews of these cards, I'll be adding them to post #1 here.  No new images of the cards themself, yet, though . . .

we should also see the price of the current X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Professional series of cards come down in the near future as well . . .


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jun 21, 2008)

The standard vanilla one is £119 in the uk from the creative website.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jun 21, 2008)

even if it was cheap id really think twice about buying another creative product. Ive tried to look on the bright side but creative are really leaving a bad taste in my mouth. & also for £119 

a Asus Xonar D2 7.1 Ultra Fidelity 7.1 PCI Soundcard costs less + u get better support with it. however i do understand that the 'X-FI TITANIUM FATAL1TY PROFESSIONAL' is supposed to be on some next uber high level making the Xonar look a tad bit expensive but only reviews will tell. even so im leaning towards the asus


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jun 22, 2008)

I might get in touch with creative,and ask if the titanium serious has "proper" working drivers on vista,and if you still need to use alchemy.Plus if the control panel works properly.


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## Alex Clarke (Jun 22, 2008)

Ok, I seemed to have fixed my issue with my card! (hopefully, this time...)

If you've read my previous posts, you'll remember that I installed the latest drivers for my Creative X-Fi Fatal1ty card (SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_15_0006.exe) and then found that my sound was 'crackling' and 'popping'. Yes, I fell victim to the "Windows XP x64 + 4GB Ram" issue (despite everything working fine before).

I worked around this issue by lowering my hardware acceleration. While this fixed the problem it disabled the nice features of my card and gaming audio.

Anyway... I've just installed the latest BETA drivers (SBXF_PCDRVBETA_US_2_18_0000.exe). These claim to fix the 4GB issue. And, for once, I think they have!

So, if anyone else is having the same issues I would recommend getting the latest BETA drivers.

Hope this helps others!


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## FreedomEclipse (Jun 24, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> I might get in touch with creative,and ask if the titanium serious has "proper" working drivers on vista,and if you still need to use alchemy.Plus if the control panel works properly.



so your gonna email or call up creative & ask them if their platinum series cards have propper working drivers???

1. do not bite the hand that feeds you

2. are u nuts???

3. get packing - their gonna send a meat truck full of crazy doctors to take you to the local funny farm..


working drivers from creative??? your having a laugh


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## mab1376 (Jun 24, 2008)

the X-fi Beta 32-bit driver for linux 2.4+ is out.

check it out.

http://support.creative.com/downloads/download.aspx?nDownloadId=10530

here my post in the Linux section

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?p=853991#post853991


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## imperialreign (Jun 25, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> so your gonna email or call up creative & ask them if their platinum series cards have propper working drivers???
> 
> 1. do not bite the hand that feeds you
> 
> ...



now, now . . . let's not rip on Creative too-too hard here; sure, we all know their driver releases can be buggy at times, but we've been seeing more beta releases recently - which says to me they've been trying to address issues.

But, I'd like to keep any Creative bashing to a minimum or non-existant in this thread.  There's already too many other threads on the net that have been polluted with those kinds of posts.



Anyhow, there's a new review of the Titaniums out: http://whatifgaming.com/sound-blaster-x-fi-titanium-review

Sometime in the near future, I'll be adding these to the X-Fi product list in the OP, as well as also adding some info on the new Auzen, and for the Prelude as well.


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## mab1376 (Jun 26, 2008)

you think its worth it to upgrade from my XtremeMusic to the Titanium?


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## imperialreign (Jun 26, 2008)

mab1376 said:


> you think its worth it to upgrade from my XtremeMusic to the Titanium?



TBH - probably not . . . hell, even the Fatal1ty Pro isn't really worth the upgrade from a XM.  If you really need Dolby encoding, though, the Titanium is the only X-Fi (supposedly) with that capability fully supported; and compared to the price of an Auzen or Xonar.

Asides, though, as far as functionality is concerned, there is very little extra that the Titanium brings to the table over the XGFP, and there is very little functionality difference between the XGFP and the XM.  The XM does have less onboard RAM, but the card is more suited for a wider range of tasks, whereas, although the XGFP can handle any type of task, it's more suited for gaming . . . same with the Titanium.


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## Mistral (Jun 27, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> ...sure, we all know their driver releases can be buggy at times...



Understatement of the month.

Anyhow, I'm posting to let you know that the latest beta drivers from Creative somehow fixed my 4GB RAM problem. Well, not the drivers themselves, but the "firmware" update that sneaks in with them. I've got both ViSHTA and XP (well, triple boot, 2 installations of the same XP... that's OK, right?) and I only installed the Creative betas on my "test" XP. Curiously, now the sound quality (the popping/cracking part) is fine for all the boots without going to the beta drivers for them.

P.S: Imp, shouldn't it be "УлтраВаялет"


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## imperialreign (Jun 27, 2008)

Mistral said:


> Understatement of the month.
> 
> Anyhow, I'm posting to let you know that the latest beta drivers from Creative somehow fixed my 4GB RAM problem. Well, not the drivers themselves, but the "firmware" update that sneaks in with them. I've got both ViSHTA and XP (well, triple boot, 2 installations of the same XP... that's OK, right?) and I only installed the Creative betas on my "test" XP. Curiously, now the sound quality (the popping/cracking part) is fine for all the boots without going to the beta drivers for them.



nice to hear some feedback on the 4GB issue with the beta drivers, I've been starting to wonder if anyone has been able to have the issue resolved . . .

(and on a rather odd note, my father's system runs an Elite Pro on Vista64 with 8GB of RAM and has yet to even have a hiccup of a problem )




> P.S: Imp, shouldn't it be "УлтраВаялет"




TBH, I didn't even know it could be spelled that way . . .

but, I thought in Russian, Ultraviolet was a compound word as it is with english - a prefix word "ултра-" followed by the noun form of "фиолет" . . . and considering the adjective form of ultraviolet is "ультрафиолетовый"  . . .

but please, correct me if I'm wrong, Russian is not my native language by any means, and I'm still nowhere near fluent


----------



## mab1376 (Jun 27, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> TBH - probably not . . . hell, even the Fatal1ty Pro isn't really worth the upgrade from a XM.  If you really need Dolby encoding, though, the Titanium is the only X-Fi (supposedly) with that capability fully supported; and compared to the price of an Auzen or Xonar.
> 
> Asides, though, as far as functionality is concerned, there is very little extra that the Titanium brings to the table over the XGFP, and there is very little functionality difference between the XGFP and the XM.  The XM does have less onboard RAM, but the card is more suited for a wider range of tasks, whereas, although the XGFP can handle any type of task, it's more suited for gaming . . . same with the Titanium.



thanks for the info.


----------



## Wile E (Jun 28, 2008)

So, has anyone seen a shot of the Titanium naked yet? Should I consider getting one?


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 28, 2008)

Wile E said:


> So, has anyone seen a shot of the Titanium naked yet? Should I consider getting one?



nothing . . . yet 

I'm still keeping a close watch out for some pics, though . . . I'm hoping a review by TechReport or Techgage isn't too much further off . . .




-edit-


come to think of it, I'm seriously starting to entertain the idea of purchasing one and doing a review for it . . . we'll see . . .


----------



## mab1376 (Jun 30, 2008)

x-fi mp3 player gets released:has Wi-Fi too!!

check it out.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/06/29/creatives-zen-x-fi-player-with-wifi-gets-a-lot-more-real/


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## MrHydes (Jun 30, 2008)

creative suck*s


----------



## NinkobEi (Jun 30, 2008)

I think this is interesting..semi-concerns the Daniel K drivers. Also interesting to see where the ASUS xonar came from 

http://www.auzentech.com/site/company/letters.php#regsys


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 30, 2008)

MrHydes said:


> creative suck*s



:shadedshu

exactly the kinds of posts that do not need to be in this thread.  If you have nothing of any source or value to contribute, take it elsewhere.  




			
				Ninkobwi said:
			
		

> I think this is interesting..semi-concerns the Daniel K drivers. Also interesting to see where the ASUS xonar came from
> 
> http://www.auzentech.com/site/compan...ers.php#regsys



very interesting, and sheds a lot more light on why Creative put a stop to his drivers as well (although, I fail to see why Creative couldn't have mentioned something like that to begin with - it would've avoided some part of the headache a couple of months ago).


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jun 30, 2008)

only thing about them is their driver support is very low.


----------



## mab1376 (Jun 30, 2008)

more info on the X=fi player

http://www.engadget.com/2008/06/30/zen-x-fi-more-details-with-a-touch-of-meh/


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## btarunr (Jun 30, 2008)

*X-Fi brand extends to Zen players.*

epiZENter, a fan site for Creative Labs MP3 Players, has revealed images and details of Creative's X-Fi branding, amalgamating into its ZEN line of MP3 players.

The Creative ZEN X-Fi, by accounts, perhaps leaves innovation fighting for a back seat and isn't, necessarily, a revolutionary step upwards from Creative's current ZEN line-up.

However, peering beneath the surface, Creative's X-Fi branding contributes more than just its name, by adding Crystallizer and Expand effects to the mix.

Take into account improved rated battery life (audio equalling 36 hours, up from 30 hours) together, with built-in Wi-Fi technology, to allow not only wireless streaming, but also instant messaging support via Windows Live Messenger or Yahoo! and, the ZEN X-Fi has, perhaps, better prospects.


----------



## trodas (Jul 4, 2008)

WoW! I'm glad to see my ideas in reality working well. The 16bit 48kHz (most used) gain was like 4dB for cooper simple heatsink!
WoW!
I thought the change was like minimal, but hey, this is worth every penny.
Of course with other opamps that are the picky LM4562 ones it might not be as great, since these LM4562 love to pick up noise from RFI and EMI as well...

Time to put the AD8599 ones there and see what it go!

PS. what about a nice pure cooper heatsink on the DAC, finally?


----------



## kenkickr (Jul 4, 2008)

I've been using the Daniel_k drivers and especially the Dolby Digital work around.  All I have to say is I love watching movies again on my system.  Before when watching movies the speakers would just change output, 5.1 to 2.1, on it's own and every single Creative driver I've tried never solved the issue.  Found this, http://nomoregoatsoup.wordpress.com/x-fi-drivers/, and it's been aweswome.

What is the 4Gb issue?  I've had 4Gb in my system since I've had my card and never really heard about an issue with 4Gb.


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 4, 2008)

trodas said:


> WoW! I'm glad to see my ideas in reality working well. The 16bit 48kHz (most used) gain was like 4dB for cooper simple heatsink!
> WoW!
> I thought the change was like minimal, but hey, this is worth every penny.
> Of course with other opamps that are the picky LM4562 ones it might not be as great, since these LM4562 love to pick up noise from RFI and EMI as well...
> ...



I did that as well, along with a HS on the ADC for testing.

With the LM4562, frequency response improved a bit, as did noise level and dynamic range . . . but, you're right, the LM4562 pick up a ton of interference, as THD and IMD worsened - although, installation of copper HS over top of the OPAMPs, DAC and ADC brought distortion levels back down, and slightly better than the unmodified card.  Still shows how much these cards could benefit from a true EMI shield.

True as well, there was more improvement with 48kHz sampling rates than 96kHz, and with 16b versus 24b.  

just occured to me . . . I wonder as well, though, just how much intereference the BUS wire used in place of the output caps are introducing into the output . . . might have to rig something up and test that out - and try out the AD8599s this weekend as well . . .


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 4, 2008)

Thanks to KBD in this post for providing some images of the x-Fi Titanium sans EMI shield:







now that I can read the APU model, I was able to find some hi-res images of the Titanium from a Ukranian (I belive) site;


The Titanium PCB layout - notice the header seats for an internal HDMI hookup . . . possible we might see an HDMI-output capable X-Fi later down the road:







X-Fi CA20k2 APU (this, I believe, is a new APU entirelly) and DRAM module . . . the PICE bridge chip must be integrated in with the APU, as I see no evidence of one on the board - I'm a little puzzled as well why no HS on the APU, considering the increased bandwidth the card is capable of using through a PCIE slot compared to PCI :







Digital to Analogue Converter, the same Cirrus Logic CS4382 used on other X-Fi models (except the XA and EP):







Analogue to Digital Converter, the same Wolfson WM8775SEDS used on other X-Fi models (except the XA and EP):







STMicroelectronics 4558C OPAMPs, same used on the X-Fi Fatal1ty card:


----------



## btarunr (Jul 5, 2008)

Impressive. So the CA20K2 is a native PCI-E chip. Doesn't need a translation logic. This helps chop latencies big time. Everything else is the same, some conjested real estate on the PCB, though not a demerit as such. 

CA20K1 was a 90nm fab process based, could this be a die shrunk? What are this chip's thermal properties? Was there a heatsink over it?


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 5, 2008)

btarunr said:


> Impressive. So the CA20K2 is a native PCI-E chip. Doesn't need a translation logic. This helps chop latencies big time. Everything else is the same, some conjested real estate on the PCB, though not a demerit as such.
> 
> *CA20K1 was a 90nm fab process based, could this be a die shrunk? What are this chip's thermal properties? Was there a heatsink over it*?



not entirelly sure yet, as I haven't been able to dig up any other useful information on the APU.  Here's the site I found the pics on: http://ko-online.com.ua/blogs/oleynik  Some close up shots of the Xonar DX PCIE at the top of the page as well.

The CA20k2 does look like a die shrink, though, but it's kinda hard to tell.  It almost appears to have an IHS over top of the unit itself, as one can't clearly see the PCB contact feet - unless there is a means of transferring heat to the EMI shield through use of thermal pads or otherwise (which wouldn't be the brightest move, IMO), I see no other means of passive cooling and no evidence of any HS having been installed . . . perhaps the units thermal properties have been improved enough as to not have additional need for one . . .

I wonder as well . . . the new Auzentech X-Fi HomeTheater thats being prepped . . . could possibly be making use of this same processor as well considering it will support HDMI and the only specs Auzen have released claim the 'Audio Interface' to be a "Creative PCI Express X-Fi audio processor"

damn, we need some thorough reviews from sites that get the tech info on these things 




-edit-

after looking further at the PCB design and layout, this card is extremely similar to the Fatal1ty card.  Although quite a few components have been removed: the 10-pin proprietary f/p connect, the AUD_EXT connector, CD_IN, 4-pin molex, rear AUD_EXT support . . . and all the extra components associated with these circuits.  In place of the multi-pin AUD_EXT connector at the back, they've included S/PDIF, and bumped up the mini-jack connectors from 4 to 5 (subwoofer now has it's own seperate channel).  The removal of so many components will drastically cut down on audio latency at the PCB level, as well as PCB level EMI/RFI.  Also appears to include an AC97/Azalia 10-pin f/p connector as well . . .

But, if you thought the Fatal1ty was one fast card . . . this beast should scream.  I don't think there will be anything else on the market that will be able to touch this card in it's performance capability.  I wish, though, there was some form of software bench test to be able to measure overall audio latency per number of voices being processed, from when a command is given to play the voices to when they're actually spit out, as well as rate the quality of the output files and percentage processed correctly.

Also of note, Creative must be specing out this card at either component quality, or through playback testing . . . much like ASUS and Auzentech have been doing.  There is no way with that DAC and ADC combination they can achieve the specified ratings they've slapped on these cards (SNR 109dba, THD+N 0.004%) if tested in loopback modes.

Either way, if in the market for a high-quality-playback gaming audio card, this would well be worth the extra $10-$20 over the PCI Fatal1ty.

Still not fully compelling enough yet to warrant an upgrade from a PCI Fatal1ty.

I'd love to see the RMAA spectrum tests of this card, though . . .


----------



## Specsaver (Jul 10, 2008)

Just a heads-up on new X-Fi development:

http://www.vr-zone.com/articles/Cre...ital_Audio_Player_with_Wireless_LAN/5933.html

Apparently X-Fi technology is no longer limited to sound cards ...

Good? Bad? What do you think?

For myself I am just glad to finally see proper earphones bundled with the player and reasonable pricing (have to convert from Singapore dollars ==> $145US - 8GB  $209US - 16 GB $254US - 32 GB).


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 10, 2008)

I am afraid i wont be buying another creative card until they work on vista without using alchemy.The only thing they can do to recover from the x-fi diaster,is to make a card that works natively and supports the uaa architecture natively.The "new" titanium cards are having exactly the same issues on vista it seems,it is just a pci-e capable x-fi chip.It is using basically the same drivers as the x-fi,and needs alchemy on vista.I dont know if the front end is the same as the audio console/console launcher programs though.

The only thing making my vista crash was the x-fi card,it has gone now,i sold it for £20 to my mate.

Do you have any idea if the xonar ds supports vista natively? i am considering buying one to replace the x-f(a)i(l)


----------



## Specsaver (Jul 10, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> The "new" titanium cards are having exactly the same issues on vista it seems,it is just a pci-e capable x-fi chip.It is using basically the same drivers as the x-fi,and needs alchemy on vista.I dont know if the front end is the same as the audio console/console launcher programs though.



Do you have anything to back up this statement?

From Creative's Titanium product page
*"UAA (Universal Audio Architecture) design ensures maximum compatibility in Windows Vista."*

It is X-Fi PCI Express chip i.e. a new chip - no bridge. And it uses UAA driver. If you want to use ALchemy you can - there is nothing wrong with that and it does not contradict UAA architecture. 

People who bought Titanium say the opposite to what you say - and have no issues in Vista (except for a need to reboot PC twice at the installation)


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 10, 2008)

> We have re-architected our X-Fi processor





> Creative ALchemy to restore EAX and surround sound in DirectSound game titles running under Vista



From here-http://nexus404.com/Blog/2008/06/06...es-the-professional-gamers-choice-sound-card/

So that still means no hardware eax in games,so how is that full uaa supported in hardware then.


----------



## Specsaver (Jul 10, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> From here-http://nexus404.com/Blog/2008/06/06...es-the-professional-gamers-choice-sound-card/
> 
> So that still means no hardware eax in games,so how is that full uaa supported in hardware then.



You mean you want hardware eax in games that is served by uaa driver?

This is not possible. Vista blocks hardware path - the only way to circumvent this is by using Alchemy with Creative hardware. 

Or any other similar tweak with any other hardware - if it exists but I am not aware of such. Which takes us to your previous question



tigger69 said:


> Do you have any idea if the xonar ds supports vista natively? i am considering buying one to replace the x-f(a)i(l)



Xonar works with Vista built-in driver. Same as X-Fi Titanium. The difference between Xonar and Titanium is that Xonar does not support upper EAX only emulates something supposed to be similar but - it is not done in hardware. 

Secondly Xonar is actually a PCI card made hastily into PCI -express. It uses a bridge so cannot use up PCI express bandwidth or draw enough power off the buss- this is why you have to use floppy power connector with Xonar.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 10, 2008)

Dont get me wrong,i have near enough always bought creative cards,i do like them.It is just the fubar between x-fi and vista,it did take creative an awfully long time to sort the drivers out.I do realise it was partly microsofts fault by changing the way audio is handled in vista.

Does the titanium output 5.1 from the digital out or is it still 2 channel?

Also,why does vista block the hardware path? will there ever be a sound card which uses that hardware path?

Thanks for your patience.I am just a little down on creative at the moment.But until i get another sound card,i will see if vista can be stable without the x-fi in it.


----------



## Specsaver (Jul 10, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> Dont get me wrong,i have near enough always bought creative cards,i do like them.It is just the fubar between x-fi and vista,it did take creative an awfully long time to sort the drivers out.I do realise it was partly microsofts fault by changing the way audio is handled in vista.



Probably so. Apparently they decided to release X-Fi Titanium to finally sort out Vista issues for those who had them. Most people did not as far I know though. Those who have problems and are kinda ignored become very vocal but I met many people saying their X-Fi worked just fine under Vista. But with certain combinations of hardware you could run into problems, though. 

PCI Express is a different bus, it does not share resources and the issues with old X-Fi all had to do with clogged bandwidth, this or the other device keeping the bus too long for itself. Audio could not maintain its integrity, audio is sensitive to errors more than anything. 




tigger69 said:


> Does the titanium output 5.1 from the digital out or is it still 2 channel?



Well this was fixed with one of the latest driver  for the original X-Fi I believe. As for gaming audio with enabled EAX - this would not come out as 5.1. over the digital with the original (old) X-Fi. With Titatnium it does- the card has Dolby Digital *EN*coding (DDL) 




tigger69 said:


> Also,why does vista block the hardware path? will there ever be a sound card which uses that hardware path?



Do I look like a fairy? 



tigger69 said:


> Thanks for your patience.I am just a little down on creative at the moment.But until i get another sound card,i will see if vista can be stable without the x-fi in it.



You are very welcome. Creative initially dropped the ball on Vista support but I think they managed to catch it again. Sure you choose what suits you, but it is good to leave gripes aside and make informed decisions. 

Good luck!


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 10, 2008)

Whats this about? the chip is further along the board and it has optical in/out's apparently.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SC-055-CL


----------



## trodas (Jul 10, 2008)

> Also,why does vista block the hardware path? will there ever be a sound card which uses that hardware path?



And who cares? Vista is so obviously the new ME - dead system. They lock user and even programmer up in the system, so they can very well eat it. I do not care at at.


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 10, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> Does the titanium output 5.1 from the digital out or is it still 2 channel?
> 
> Also,why does vista block the hardware path? will there ever be a sound card which uses that hardware path?





Titanium, AFAIK, can output 5.1 across the optical connections.


As to the Vista thing - Specsaver is right . . . you still have full functionality, but, any aspect of the cards functions that rely on pure hardware access and support can not function dircetly with Vista - i.e. EAX.  

That's where ALchemy came about, where you have a software interpretuer that intercepts the EAX calls within a game, translates them to audio calls that the OpenAL API understands, and passes them to the OpenAL API to carry through.

In XP, EAX calls can directly access the hardware through the OS.

Essentially, software audio calls function on the user end of the kernel, instead of like with XP where audio drivers functioned on the OS side.  MS designed the Vista audio architecture like this because they felt that the vast majority of system crashes with XP were due to audio related issues (which IMO was a load of BS - out of all the years I've been using XP, I can't ever recall a single system crash, lock or BSoD that was audio related).  In their words, it would make the system more stable.

Creative's cards aren't the only one's affected - any card that has functions which rely on hardware acceleration, thos functions will not work correctly in Vista.

But, thatnks to the Vista audio structure, we've also seen many other issues (i.e. 5.1 playback support or downsampling) within various 3rd party programs, and these issues are not limited to just Creative's hardware; the ASUS cards, the Razer, HT Omegas . . . all of them have run into quite a few issues with Vista, thanks to the audio architecture.

Although - MS programs which can access the hardware directly through the OS (i.e. WIN Media Player), don't run into the downsampling or mixing issues . . . only 3rd party programs . . . funny, ain't it?

Also, onboard audio configurations don't run into these issues, either, being integrated with the motherboard which is directly controlled by the OS . . . funny again, ain't it?

Even more odd is that MS was cooperating with nVidia and Creative during Vista's design to incorporate DirectSound support with DX10, but for some reason, nVidia dropped out of the project, and soon after MS dropped the project altogether, leaving Creative high and dry . . . personally, I believe this little incident is what caused creative to be about 6 months behind with official audio drivers for Vista; they had to go back and rewrite everything for a different audio architecture, and also design and impliment the ALchemy software and tweak down OpenAL a bit more.  And right about the time that Vista went to release was when we got the explanation from MS to the change in the audio architecture, and why they did it that way (the XP and stability thing) . . . sounds to me like someone just was trying to cover their ass.


Either way, though, Creative's drivers can be a headache at times - my biggest gripe is that they don't release new drivers often enough.

And, I'm not saying that their isn't some blame on Creative for their shoddy Vista drivers, but rather that some blame should also be placed on MS for the fiasco as well.




My personal stance with Creative is that I find their technical and customer service to be near about pointless.  Their drivers are hit-or-miss.  As many people that complain about driver issues, there are also an equal amount that report them to function 100% fine, and considering they're the largest player in the audio card market . . .

But, I still find their hardware and designs to be their strongest feature - hopefully that will contuinue.


----------



## Davidelmo (Jul 10, 2008)

I found some useful info for anyone running Linux.

I'm now dual-booting with Ubuntu and found a way to install my Auzen Prelude with at least basic functionality - although no crystalliser, fancy menus, EQ etc etc etc.

Here goes with a couple of links:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=4874981#post4874981

and
http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php?p=4874981&postcount=2

and finally:
http://www.4front-tech.com/wiki/index.php/Configuring_Applications_for_OSSv4


----------



## btarunr (Jul 10, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> Also,why does vista block the hardware path? will there ever be a sound card which uses that hardware path?



DirectSound allowed a supportive app to talk directly to audio hardware. Without it, the apps talk to hardware using Chinese-whispers. It's not that DS is the only thing that allowed it, you have OpenAL too, but way too many apps supported DS and were all reduced to Chinese-whispers with DirectX 10 kicking DS, leading Creative to work out translation layers such as ALchemy.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 10, 2008)

Looks to me like microsoft shafted creative.

So apart from using onboard is there really a properly usable sound card for vista that works with no driver issues?

Has anybody on our forum got a creative titanium? i would like to hear from someone on here all about it.Buy one someone please


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 10, 2008)

tigger69 said:


> Looks to me like microsoft shafted creative.
> 
> So apart from using onboard is there really a properly usable sound card for vista that works with no driver issues?
> 
> Has anybody on our forum got a creative titanium? i would like to hear from someone on here all about it.Buy one someone please





It was part-and-partial between MS and Creative, IMO . . . Creative did get a  from MS, but considering they're the biggest audio card manufacturer and have pwned the market for 2 decades now, they should've had a contingency plan, and it shouldn't have taken them so long to get official drivers out.  I could reason with being 2-3 months behind, but 6 is pushing it.



As to the Titanium - I know of one user who currently does:  KBD


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 14, 2008)

I had swapped out the LM4562 OPAMPs that I had used in place of the OE units, with a set of AD8599 OPAMPs instead;

here's the detailed hardware testing results:

first - the Fatal1ty with LM4562









here's the same card, but with AD8599 instead:








I ran the AD8599 tests 4-times each to make sure of those results -


comparatively, the AD8599 allows for a better dynamic range at all testing levels, compared to the LM4562 . . . it might only be an average difference of -2dbA, but for such a small component thats only concerned with amplifying the output signal, that's a lot . . .

THD and IMD+N results for the AD8599 are very-slightly better, the most improvement difference, though is at 16bit playbacks; coupled with the slighlty higher dynamic range, I'd conclude as well that these OPAMPs aren't as affected by EMI as the LM4562


also of note - the AD8599 rated better at stereo crosstalk than the LM4562 . . . meaning there's less channel bleeding 


TBH, the AD8599 sounds the same to me now as it did after first installation (surprisingly) - no drastic change after burn in like with the LM4562.  I really also dig how they sound compared to the LM4562 as well; the 4562 OPAMPs produce some very sharp frequencies that I personally found to be annoying at times.  The 8599 has a lot warmer sound, IMO it has a lot more depth to it.  The 4562 is also prone to a bit of oscillation, noticeable with tones that are held for extended periods of time (one knows the playback tone is supposed to be a constant and steady, unwavering tone - you can hear it start to oscillate with eh 4562 OPAMPs, and not with the 8599).  The 4562 is also more susceptible to EMI/RFI than the 8599 - this would be more of a problem with setups running more powerful, or severely OCed hardware.  

For the cheaper price ($10/unit, on average), I'd say the AD8599 ousts the LM4562.

I have some other recommendations to supposed better OPAMPs as well, I will attempt to obtain some other options and test those out in the near future.


----------



## MiN_SAHC (Jul 19, 2008)

Hello..
I'm new member in this forum and I seek help regarding connection for Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi
XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Pro to CM Centurion 5 front panel. I
 have follow every instructions listed at 1st post.. I can use the front panel but, the rear speaker doesn't mute. 




I include a picture that show how i connect the card to the front panel.

Before this, i use on board sound to connect to the front panel., that why i make comparison between CM Centurion 5 front panel connector with on board connection
Can anyone suggest what wrong with my X-fi connection to the front panel?


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 19, 2008)

first, open up the console launcher - whatever mode it's currently set in, click on "settings."  In the new window that pops up, go to the 'Headphones' tab, and make sure "Automatically mute speakers" is checked.


----------



## MiN_SAHC (Jul 19, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> first, open up the console launcher - whatever mode it's currently set in, click on "settings."  In the new window that pops up, go to the 'Headphones' tab, and make sure "Automatically mute speakers" is checked.



Actually I already check 'Automatically mute speaker'. Currently I'm using Vista 64bit with latest driver (Driver version: 2. 15. 6). I need to make some correction regarding my 1st post. Not only rear speaker doesn't mute, but all my 5.1 speaker. The volume from 5.1 speaker became a little bit slow when earphone jack is plugged in but not mute.


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 19, 2008)

Set the speaker config to 'headphones' once they're plugged in . . . do you still have any output from the rear of the card to your 5.1 setup?

Only reason I mention, is that the drivers won't switch the speaker config over to headphone when you plug in a connector to the front panel . . . I think we would need the X-Fi Front Panel drive for that function to operate correctly.  It's a bit of a hassel sometimes to have to manually switch the output speaker configuration.


----------



## MiN_SAHC (Jul 20, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> Set the speaker config to 'headphones' once they're plugged in . . . do you still have any output from the rear of the card to your 5.1 setup?
> 
> Only reason I mention, is that the drivers won't switch the speaker config over to headphone when you plug in a connector to the front panel . . . I think we would need the X-Fi Front Panel drive for that function to operate correctly.  It's a bit of a hassel sometimes to have to manually switch the output speaker configuration.



If I set to 'headphone', only front speaker produce sound, but the volume became a little bit slow. Headphone work prefectly, the sound also good.. From my connection configuration, dont you find any problem?


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 20, 2008)

MiN_SAHC said:


> If I set to 'headphone', only front speaker produce sound, but the volume became a little bit slow. Headphone work prefectly, the sound also good.. From my connection configuration, dont you find any problem?



TBH, the only thing I see that could be of concern is the brige between pins 1 and 10 . . . is there any way you can sperate these two wires for testing?


To the best of my knowledge, though, and IIRC, AC97 supported front panel connections aren't capable of rear output muting

I'll dig out an older case of mine tomorrow with AC97 connectivity and see if I can duplicate your condition; and if so, what I can do to fix it


----------



## MiN_SAHC (Jul 20, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> TBH, the only thing I see that could be of concern is the brige between pins 1 and 10 . . . is there any way you can sperate these two wires for testing?
> 
> 
> To the best of my knowledge, though, and IIRC, AC97 supported front panel connections aren't capable of rear output muting
> ...



CM Centurion 5 have 8 wire only, that why I add 1 brigde between 1 & 10. X-fi required 9 connection rite? The configuration I made follow the HD front panel, not AC97.


----------



## NinkobEi (Jul 20, 2008)

Davidelmo said:


> I found some useful info for anyone running Linux.
> 
> I'm now dual-booting with Ubuntu and found a way to install my Auzen Prelude with at least basic functionality - although no crystalliser, fancy menus, EQ etc etc etc.
> 
> ...



Good find thanks. Supposedly Auzentech will come out with official Prelude-Linux drivers in Q4.


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 20, 2008)

MiN_SAHC said:


> CM Centurion 5 have 8 wire only, that why I add 1 brigde between 1 & 10. X-fi required 9 connection rite? The configuration I made follow the HD front panel, not AC97.



well, from what I can tell, you have the connector wired properly, and you description makes it sound like the X-Fi does notice the connection when you plug in the headphones (the slightly muted output from the rear) . . . but, my concern is with the bridged pins . . .

reason being, is that pin number 10 on the X-Fi is for audio detect . . . which functions similar to pin 4 on an Azalia/HD connector.  The card is looking for a very low powered signal from to this pin (ground) from the the front panel connector; as long as now jack is plugged in, the card doesn't see any signal.  Bridging the pins means that the signal that would be coming back from the connector would be bypassing that pin and going straight to ground (pin 1).

but if the connector from the case only has 8 wires, and not 9, I'm not quite sure rear output mute will function correctly . . .


----------



## MiN_SAHC (Jul 22, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> well, from what I can tell, you have the connector wired properly, and you description makes it sound like the X-Fi does notice the connection when you plug in the headphones (the slightly muted output from the rear) . . . but, my concern is with the bridged pins . . .
> 
> reason being, is that pin number 10 on the X-Fi is for audio detect . . . which functions similar to pin 4 on an Azalia/HD connector.  The card is looking for a very low powered signal from to this pin (ground) from the the front panel connector; as long as now jack is plugged in, the card doesn't see any signal.  Bridging the pins means that the signal that would be coming back from the connector would be bypassing that pin and going straight to ground (pin 1).
> 
> but if the connector from the case only has 8 wires, and not 9, I'm not quite sure rear output mute will function correctly . . .



Thanks for all the idea and info you give to me.. I will try something this weekend and will update in this forum.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jul 25, 2008)

New drivers available for Creative Audigy 2 series cards for windows XP/Vista found>Here<

its the 'Final' drivers so if they are messed up - dont be expecting a fix


----------



## Davidelmo (Jul 25, 2008)

Ninkobwi said:


> Good find thanks. Supposedly Auzentech will come out with official Prelude-Linux drivers in Q4.



That's good news.

I can get basic play back functionality but there are some drawbacks:
Microphone port doesn't work
No ASIO, Crystalliser etc
5.1 sound doesn't work
Can only have one audio application open at once - i.e. if I have firefox open with a youtube page I can't play an MP3 and vice versa.


----------



## NinkobEi (Jul 30, 2008)

^^ no 5.1  I've been really considering switching to linux but the lack of sound support really drives me nuts...and I _never_ have only one program open at a time... that and I've got my windows media player set up to automatically download video codecs so it will play any format. I even went out and bought a linux for dummies book lol


----------



## Davidelmo (Jul 30, 2008)

Ninkobwi said:


> ^^ no 5.1  I've been really considering switching to linux but the lack of sound support really drives me nuts...and I _never_ have only one program open at a time... that and I've got my windows media player set up to automatically download video codecs so it will play any format. I even went out and bought a linux for dummies book lol



Yup, though remember it's one AUDIO application at one time.

So you can have firefox, office and VLC open at once.

But if you have VLC open, you won't hear the sound on a youtube video on firefox until you close VLC etc etc

Although hopefully this will all be sorted with a PROPER, official driver... fingers crossed!


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 2, 2008)

Creative have released an assortment of software goodies over the last couple of weeks.


*First off, new drivers for both Windows Vista and XP in both 32b and 64b flavours.  New version is 2.18.004.  Release notes:  http://support.creative.com/downloads/*



> Filename: SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_18_0004.exe
> This download is a driver providing Microsoft® Windows Vista® and Windows® XP support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> *
> This download supports the following audio devices only:*
> ...





*Next up, Creative have released verson 1.20.04 of the ALchemy software for Vista.  Release notes:*



> Filename: ALMY_PCVTAPP_LB_1_20_04.exe
> This download is an application for use with Creative audio products. It restores 3D audio and EAX® effects for certain DirectSound®3D games in Microsoft® Windows Vista®. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following audio products only:*
> ...





*The Creative Console Launcher has also been updated to version 2.60.27 for both XP and Vista:*



> Filename: CSL_PCAPP_LB_2_60_27.exe
> This download contains the Creative Console Launcher application for use with your Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices on Microsoft® Windows Vista® and Windows® XP. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following devices only: *
> ...






Other software that has been updated in the last few weeks includes WaveStudio, CD Burner plugin for MediaSource, MediaSource Player 5, MediaSource DVD-Audio Player, and a couple others.

Update as needed 





*Also of note, Creative have released a new driver suite for the Xtreme Audio cards, version 1.04.0079:  http://support.creative.com/downloads/*



> Filename: XFXA_PCDRV_LB_1_04_0079.exe
> This suite of driver and application has been updated and combined for your convenience. It installs Creative Audio Console to control your audio device's settings. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *Game Fixes:*
> ...


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 2, 2008)

Hey imperial - did they manage to fix the windows volume panel problem?? or am i still able to set the volumes for each speaker when i install the most recent drivers??? I dont want to have to waste effort installing then waste time rolling back.


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 3, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Hey imperial - did they manage to fix the windows volume panel problem?? or am i still able to set the volumes for each speaker when i install the most recent drivers??? I dont want to have to waste effort installing then waste time rolling back.



not sure I follow - which specific issue are you refering to?


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 3, 2008)

the conflict between creatives audio control panel & the windows audo panel - we spoke about it before in this post about they both not being 'in sync' - I will try look  for the post


:Edit: Ok - here they are.....



FreedomEclipse said:


> I was having the same exact problem (plus the BSODs & CTDTs) what was Creative trying to achieve??? I thought Creative had just messed things up & the beta driver was to correct it but theres no real in depth info on what they _'really'_ have done - im sick of the volumes defaulting & having to set the volume of each speaker manully - & sometimes that even dont work. not to mention that it messed with the Creative Audio console a bit
> 
> web update pack 4 always worked for me anyway.





imperialreign said:


> I'm thinking of rolling back as well -
> 
> TBH, though, I can't recall if the issue with WIN control panel was always present or not; but I know for sure the issue between the Creative volume control and the audio console was never present before.  The only reason I started noticing the WIN panel issue, was that I would have to go into that window and hit "reset defaults" before I could use the audio console correctly.
> 
> ...


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 3, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> the conflict between creatives audio control panel & the windows audo panel - we spoke about it before in this post about they both not being 'in sync' - I will try look  for the post
> 
> 
> :Edit: Ok - here they are.....





I got it now . . .


TBH, I'm not sure, I haven't installed the newest driver yet, I'll be doing that tomorrow - as well as the new console launcher version.

My gut feeling, though, say that that particular issue hasn't been resolved.  We'll see.  I'll let ya know if it is or not.


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 3, 2008)

alright, man - I had installed the new driver (2.18.0004) and the new Console Launcher (2.60.27) - which, surprisingly, also comes with a newer, updated version of the Creative Volume Panel - 

so far, I haven't had any issues with volume levels defaulting back to either 50% or 100% when switching between headphones, 2.1 and 5.1 - everything stays where you leave it, or so it appears right now.  Although, if you set your channel levels for 5.1, and then switch to 4.1, they carry over - same with if you switch to 7.1 and then to 2.1.  Multi-channel setups will carry you volume settings over.  But, if you set your volume settings for 5.1, and then switch to headphones, those setting _won't_ carry over, and headphone settings _won't_ carry back over to multi-channel.  Headphones and multi-channel seem to be completely independant now.

Although, like usual, after the driver and application update, you'll have to reset all your EQ, volume level, and mixer settings for your audio setups.  Y'know, I really wish their applications would save all your EQ and mixer settings into a profile so that they will carry over to a new driver and application version.  It's a major PITA to have to reset them all.  So, you've been warned on that!  Write down your settings before updating!



Of note as well - if you have the 2.18.0000 beta installed, some of the files in the 2.18.0004 driver are older than the beta files - OVERWRITE THEM!  It's not worth the hassle with Creative applications to go with files that _are not_ included with the driver pack you're trying to install.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 3, 2008)

thanks man, its good to hear that most things are back in order, now to install & see if i'l be waiting another 3-4hrs for a complete system restore.....

ah Irony at its best!

much appreciated Imperial


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 3, 2008)

Ive just installed them - I dont see a new volume control panel  its just the same one as before - & im currently looking for the new volume panel in the driver executable just to make sure....

so far the drivers have been alright - still need to take it gaming but that will be in another 15mins or so cuz i want everything to be all green before i take to the skys....

::EDIT:: ~~1~~ 

still the 'last edit - 2005' volume control panel 


::EDIT:: ~~2~~

well after a few rounds of CoD4 & tweaking the settings - i am glad to also acknowledge that the problem with the creative audio panel & Windows's own panel have pretty much dissapeard - but for me - a new problem has come up..... now the creative control panel is bugged out with something else.... (LOL)

it has an amazing issue with my Logitech keyboard - now because my wired remote for my speakers is dodgy (to say the least - if i set the volume to how loud i usually have it - it changes volume without me even touching the dial. its loud 1 mo the quiet as a lamb the next) because of the issue i tend to use the volume dial on my keyboard after setting my speakers at a suitable stable volume on my wired speaker remote. & since ive installed these drivers - depending on where the volume dial on my keyboard is currently set to - it will just from 50%-100% at the slightest tap....

its not as bad as the other problems ive had with creative drivers but even this problem is like heven compared to past issues with creative....


----------



## trodas (Aug 19, 2008)

*Hardware question.*

I bought my X-Fi Fatal1ty in USA, and it have heatsink on main chip and the *DC coupling caps between DAC and opamps* are *Jamicon 22uF 16V*.

Now I moded friend X-Fi Fatal1ty card, it did not have heatsink on main chip and the *DC coupling caps between DAC and opamps* are *Wincap 10uF 16V* ones.

Question - what are yours caps there?


----------



## grunt_408 (Aug 20, 2008)

I can now be a member of this club i just got me a xfi extreme


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 20, 2008)

trodas said:


> *Hardware question.*
> 
> I bought my X-Fi Fatal1ty in USA, and it have heatsink on main chip and the *DC coupling caps between DAC and opamps* are *Jamicon 22uF 16V*.
> 
> ...



On both of my cards, they use Jamicons - same with an Elite Pro I've had my hands on.

I've seen Xtreme Gamer and Xtreme Music cards use Luxon or Jamicons, depending on the revision of the card.

From the pics of the Titaniums I've seen, looks like they're still using Jamis as well.




Craigleberry said:


> I can now be a member of this club i just got me a xfi extreme




added - welcome aboard, man.  Which card did you pick up?


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 27, 2008)

Creative have released a new driver/software, 2.17.0007, package for the X-Fi Titanium series of cards.  Release notes:



> This suite of driver and application has been updated and combined for your convenience. Download it for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Titanium series of audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following audio devices only:*
> 
> ...




Also be aware that there is a new Dolby DTS Connect software package available for the Titanium series, ver 1.02.00.


Both downloads can be found here: http://support.creative.com/Products/ProductDetails.aspx?catID=1&CatName=Sound+Blaster&subCatID=208&subCatName=X-Fi&prodID=17791&prodName=PCI+Express+X-Fi+Titanium+Fatal1ty+Pro+Series


----------



## btarunr (Aug 27, 2008)

Guys, check this out: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102024

Essentially it's a Titanium Fatal1ty without X-RAM (but uses MT chips?!) and that EMI plate. Sells for $99. Just think of it as a PCI-E Xtreme Gamer


----------



## Lescal (Aug 28, 2008)

Hello everyone,

 I've just bought a new PC and I'm in the process of installing my X-Fi Elite Pro on it. You might guess... slightly irritating...  So, I'm happy to find you, dude...

 Note: it's still an XP system, and the seller installed the Service Pack 3 on it.

 For now, and in spite of all the blue screens / freezing boots / error messages, and abnormal behavior I've witnessed, I would have only 2 short and precise questions:

In your opinion, should I install the "SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_15_0006.exe" (labelled "reader") before the driver update "SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_18_0004.exe", or it's not necessary ? And, should I overwrite existent versions of package files (even if they are newer on my system than the package ones)?

Abnormal behavior encountered:
- little freezings of mouse/keyboard actions in Windows (yet, no IRQ conflict) after original CD installation (driver + software)
- (after launching SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_15_0006.exe) pb in speakers configuration [a creative 7.1 system, which was working fine before the update]; only front left and front right are hearable, plus the lateral right; the rest is like mute. Important notice: During that update, I had a message saying that the file ct_oal.dll of the package was older than the one on my system, and I chose to keep the newer version (thinking it was an SP3 update).

I've just installed the SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_18_0004.exe over an original CD intallation (driver only), with overwriting of that same file by the package one; it seems ok (no blue screen), but I hadn't the time to reboot since then (I'm at work now). I'll keep you inform...

Configuration details:
- Motherboard: MSI P45D3Platinium
- 4Go RAM
- Quad Core
- MSI GForce9800GX2
- Radeon 7300 (for Cintiq12W management)
- Bi-monitor (+ the Cintiq)
- X-Fi Elite Pro
- (on board audio device has already been disabled; I know I know :shadedshu not good...)

To the question: "Am I crazy?", I would answer... m'yeah, probably. Although considering what I intend to do in years to come, I need this kind of hardware.

Anyway, thanks for advice,

Le Scal


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 28, 2008)

I only have a few brief moments before between work and class here, so I'll have to be brief - but, I'll be around later tonight and this weekend . . .



			
				lescal said:
			
		

> In your opinion, should I install the "SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_15_0006.exe" (labelled "reader") before the driver update "SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_18_0004.exe", or it's not necessary ? And, should I overwrite existent versions of package files (even if they are newer on my system than the package ones)?




1.) TBH, from past experiences, there typically isn't any problem with installing one of the update packages instead of the driver set on the Installation CD (i.e. in the event of a system restore, reformat, clean OS installation, etc).  But, there are some applications you might find useful that can only be installed from the CD as they're not available for download from Creative.  Either way, I've always recommended the most recent driver package - _unless_ you experience issues with it, in which case I recommend rolling back.  I've also found that the driver package on the Installation CD typically is the most stable, and causes the least amount of issues with XP.  For some strange reason I have yet to understand, certain cards (probably based upon their revision number), will develop some issues after driver updates.  Note, though, that the only way to obtain new firmware updates is with the driver packages 


2.)  As to overwriting files - yes, most definitely let the installer overwrite duplicate files.  Even if the installer is trying to install a file that is older than the version currently on your harddrive, there is typically a reason why they'll go back to an older version, and the drivers and other software installed with that package has been written to work with the file being copied from the installer . . . not allowing the installer to overwrite will almost assuredlly run into numerous conflicts and issues.





> Abnormal behavior encountered:
> - little freezings of mouse/keyboard actions in Windows (yet, no IRQ conflict) after original CD installation (driver + software)
> - (after launching SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_15_0006.exe) pb in speakers configuration [a creative 7.1 system, which was working fine before the update]; only front left and front right are hearable, plus the lateral right; the rest is like mute. Important notice: During that update, I had a message saying that the file ct_oal.dll of the package was older than the one on my system, and I chose to keep the newer version (thinking it was an SP3 update).




as to the system stuttering . . . did it do that at all when you were running the onboard, prior to any installation of Creative hardware?  If not, then I might need some further info - does it stutter at specific times, or with specific programs?  Does it stutter in game, or only at the desktop?  etc.

- as to multichannel systems going mute except for the LF and RF; this is a rather common issue.  For whatever reason, the X-Fi drivers don't cooperate properly with WIN Control Panel.  What happens is that you set you speaker config to 5.1/7.1, etc, within the Console, but WIN doesn't change it's settings in the audio control panel.  WIN stays at 2.1, and overrides the X-Fi drivers, so you only get 2.1 sound; or, it keeps each channel volume at 0%.  To fix this, you'll have to go to _Start>Control Panel>Sounds and Audio Devices_, in the window that pops up, under the box 'Speaker settings' click on the 'advanced' button.  In the new window, select your speaker configuration, then click 'OK'.  Back in the first window, click the button labeled 'Speaker Volume.'  In the volume panel window that will pop up, click on the button 'Restore Defaults,' then click 'OK' and your done.  you can now adjust you volume correctly from within the X-Fi console.

Or, you could attempt to install the latest driver package.  That issue seems to have been resolved with it, and multi-channel configurations will now carry over when changing them within the console, or within WIN.


----------



## Lescal (Aug 29, 2008)

Hi, thanks for all this info.

 I guess the problems I did have after the update were then related to the fact I didn't overwrite the newer file.

 And big thanks for the reminder of where is the windows speakers configuration 

I couldn't work on it yesterday evening (some other crap to deal with...) but be sure I'll keep you inform of what I'll find tonight. Because, yes! It ends tonight! 

Oh! Last thing, almost forgot... I'm just beginning playing Crysis, guys... Don't spoil it to me...

"Where were you Gandalf?"
"Bah... I've been delayed..." 

Scal


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 30, 2008)

As of the 27th, Creative have released a new version of the Console Launcher application, new ver 2.60.29, for all X-Fi cards (except Xtreme Audio), for both XP and Vista platforms.  Release notes:





> This download contains the Creative Console Launcher application for use with your Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices on Microsoft® Windows Vista® and Windows® XP. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following devices only: *
> 
> ...


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 30, 2008)

For some obscure reason the new Console & Audio Control Panel wont detect my hardware......

not quite sure what to do next lol - im gonna have to dig out the old old old Driver installation CD & grab the Audio Control Panel back from that....


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 30, 2008)

well It now turns out that I cant do f*ck all the ANY of the creative control panels - why why why did i ever buy a Creative card...... I would toss it away but i cant afford a a Xonar....


::EDIT::

Well....I tried uninstalling the new Console installer but everything is still there & the 'unsupported' audio panel still pops up

so like looks like im gonna hve to reinstall EVERYTHING from scratch for like the 5th time in less then 3 months - nice one Creative..


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 30, 2008)

Ugh - its made my OCD kick in & now im furious.... im so close to taking the XFi card out of my system & throwing it into a pot of boiling water with my mums pasta then frying up some hot oil & then throwing the card in it THEN smashing it into little peices with a meat cleaver & garnishing it with some honey roast ham Rolling it into a torilla wrap & feeding it to next doors cat or dog......

Matt the cat i may soon join you with your on board sound....

I hereby decree never to buy or touch another CREATIVE made 'master peice' their products are just far too good


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 31, 2008)

damn, Freedom - sorry to hear things went to hell in a handbasket so quickly . . .

there might still be some hope, though . . . it sounds to me like something was corrupted during an install somewhere down the line, perhaps with the latest software installation, perhaps earlier and is only now cropping up.  You've got 2 options you can try:

1)  You can attempt a system restore.  WIN creates a resotre point prior to any driver or software installation, so as long as you haven't disabled the System restore service, you can give that a shot.  Just select the point that should be labeled to identify the installation of the console launcher.  Flip side to this, though, is a restore isn't always a 100% sure deal to a fix.  Some issues might still be present after a restore, might not - it's worth the shot, though.


2)  Your other option would be to do a "clean installation" - it will completely remove all Creative drivers, software, folders, etc from the system.  It's fairly involved though, but if you're up for it . . .  

First, you'll need the most recent X-Fi driver package (2.18.004), and the Console Launcher _prior_ to the most recent version (you can get the last version, 2.60.27, here: http://drivers.softpedia.com/get/Other-DRIVERS-TOOLS/Others/Creative-Console-Launcher-26027.shtml), also download and install Driver Sweeper, and a good registry cleaner if you don't already have one (prefereablly one that will backup your registry before removing errors - i.e. RegistryFix).  Next up, open Windows Explorer, and navigate to *C:\Program Files\Creative\Sound Blaster X-Fi\Program\*, then run the *setup.exe* application.  In the window that pops up, make sure the "WDM drivers" option is selected, select the "driver uninstallation" option, make sure "delete all Creative audio driver files" is selected and hit 'OK.'  After that program has finished running, don't reboot yet.  Before rebooting, open WIN Add & Remove Programs, and remove any Creative software that might still be listed.  Once that's done, reboot the rig.  Right after POST, and before OS bootup, press F8 to enter the WIN OS boot selection menu, select *Safe Mode*, and boot into WIN.  Once in safe mode, run driver sweeper, and have it remove whatever Creative drivers, files or folders it can - you might need to have it run a couple of times to clear everything out.  Don't let it reboot yet, though.  Open your registry cleaner, and let it scan.  Whatever errors that pops up with, you can either let it clean them all, or manually go through the list and have it clean anything related to Creative files and folders.  Once that is done, turn the rig off, and remove the X-Fi from it's slot.  Boot up the rig and let WIN get to the desktop, then shut the system back down.  Install the X-Fi and boot up.  When the Add New Hardware wizard starts pestering you, close it out.  

Go ahead and run the 2.18.004 driver installation package, that should have the audio console and volume panel bundled with it.  At this point, install the 2.60.27 console launcher.  Everything should be peachy (hopefully) from this point.

It's entirelly up to you, though, if you're willing to risk installing the 2.60.29 console launcher.  TBH, though, if the current setup is working fine, don't worry about it just yet.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 31, 2008)

well Ive already un-installed & reinstalled everything to its current state prior to  installing the new console so it looks like i will have to give the clean installation a go thanks for the advice


::EDIT;:

on 2nd thought - f**k it. the most important thing right now is that everything is actually working despite their console bugs which are annoying when it happens but not exactly serious like slicing off a finger. - I'l stick with my setup as it is now.

(i'l probably try the clean install when my perfectionisim from my ocd kicks in, in a few mins....)


----------



## grunt_408 (Aug 31, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> On both of my cards, they use Jamicons - same with an Elite Pro I've had my hands on.
> 
> I've seen Xtreme Gamer and Xtreme Music cards use Luxon or Jamicons, depending on the revision of the card.
> 
> ...



PCI  Xfi-xtreme music

I couldnt afford to lash out too much


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 31, 2008)

well - I did try it out & the good news that it worked but in light of that i have sacrificed the EQ controls to get it working so i cant tweak the sound..... oh well looks like its back to Square 1


----------



## vega22 (Sep 6, 2008)

anybody which services i need to have running on v64 for my xfi to work?


----------



## imperialreign (Sep 8, 2008)

marsey99 said:


> anybody which services i need to have running on v64 for my xfi to work?



not really sure what you mean?

have you disabled any of the Creative services?


----------



## kenkickr (Sep 12, 2008)

I think I have a X-fi issue.  Last night my girlfriend and I were watching "The Love Guru" and after about 2-3min the first two times we would watch it the system would just hard lock(screen freezes but no BSOD).  I figured it had something to do with my OC so I turned it down to stock and the third try was a charm, watched movie without a problem but I'd here some crackling every now and then.  This morning I was trying to listen to to the new Metallica album.  Went out for a smoke, came back in; and the system was hard locked again!!  I guess I'll try going back to the onboard sound.  Could this be the cheap ass capicator issue I've been reading about?


----------



## imperialreign (Sep 12, 2008)

kenkickr said:


> I think I have a X-fi issue.  Last night my girlfriend and I were watching "The Love Guru" and after about 2-3min the first two times we would watch it the system would just hard lock(screen freezes but no BSOD).  I figured it had something to do with my OC so I turned it down to stock and the third try was a charm, watched movie without a problem but I'd here some crackling every now and then.  This morning I was trying to listen to to the new Metallica album.  Went out for a smoke, came back in; and the system was hard locked again!!  I guess I'll try going back to the onboard sound.  Could this be the cheap ass capicator issue I've been reading about?



well, possibly, but how long have you had the card?  Still, if it was a capacitor failing, you could verify that by pulling the card and looking at the caps - any failed units would either be leaking, or the top of the cap will be expanded like a balloon about to burst.

what program were you using to watch the movie, and which program while listening to audio - have you ever had any issues with these programs before?


Also - how long have you had the motherboard, and what kind of an OC do you run (25%, 35%, 50%, etc)?  I get the feeling it's a hardware issue right off the back - right now, I'm thinking either the X-Fi is dying, or the PCI slot is dying.


----------



## kenkickr (Sep 12, 2008)

I did look at the card about a month ago after reading this thread and didn't notice any bulging or leaking but haven't since.  The card I purchased over a year ago and the motherboard I picked up in April.  The programs I use are Windows Media Player 11 on Vista Home Premium 64 and most of the time I use PowerDVD.  Tonight I'll try the card on my old ECS KA3-MVP board to see what it does.  With the OC, I have my Phenom 9850, which runs stock @ 2.5Ghz, up to 2.8Ghz right now.


----------



## imperialreign (Sep 12, 2008)

kenkickr said:


> I did look at the card about a month ago after reading this thread and didn't notice any bulging or leaking but haven't since.  The card I purchased over a year ago and the motherboard I picked up in April.  The programs I use are Windows Media Player 11 on Vista Home Premium 64 and most of the time I use PowerDVD.  Tonight I'll try the card on my old ECS KA3-MVP board to see what it does.  With the OC, I have my Phenom 9850, which runs stock @ 2.5Ghz, up to 2.8Ghz right now.



that doesn't sound too extreme, really, of an OC.

If you try the card on another board, try using PowerDVD as well.

There have been a lot of issues with the X-Fi drivers, in regards to Vista (especially x64) and PowerDVD.  The software and drivers don't seem to cooperate well, and Cyberlink's codecs can even wreak havoc on Media Player.

If you're up for it, possibly try removing PowerDVD and it's codecs, and try installing another DVD player software if you have one; or even see if you have issues trying to watch a DVD in Media Player without PowerDVD installed.


----------



## kenkickr (Sep 12, 2008)

I will try that and keep you updated.


----------



## kenkickr (Sep 15, 2008)

Saturday night the GF and I watched another movie, The Shining, and not a single issue.  The thing I noticed there wasn't even any garble, crackling sounds at all during the movie which I've noticed with the X-fi in.  So after the movie I played some MVP08 and again not a problem.  Let the system run all night and tried again to listen to the new Metallica album.  Album sounded great and no issues with the sound.   

Something I forgot to mention.  When I had the X-fi in the sound seemed to switch channels on it's own.  I know it sounds weird but even my GF noticed it, and she's not much of an audiophile.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Sep 15, 2008)

I used to have an x-fi,i too am back on onboard sound with no problems.Its a shame as it was such a good card on xp.


----------



## eidairaman1 (Sep 15, 2008)

My Opinion, i think it is a ploy so they can sell the XFi Titanium (PCIe X1) parts, i guess because they view they have no competition, yet they do in the Form of Auzentech, HT_Omega, and Blue Gears, but this adoption of PCIe Slots lower than 16X is extremely slow, i mean PCI Express has been out for 4 years already and only thing really utilizing them are video cards.


----------



## imperialreign (Sep 15, 2008)

eidairaman1 said:


> My Opinion, i think it is a ploy so they can sell the XFi Titanium (PCIe X1) parts, i guess because they view they have no competition, yet they do in the Form of Auzentech, HT_Omega, and Blue Gears, but this adoption of PCIe Slots lower than 16X is extremely slow, i mean PCI Express has been out for 4 years already and only thing really utilizing them are video cards.



well, aside from video cards, there isn't anything else out there that can really make use of all the bandwidth offered by even a PCIEx1 slot.

The X-Fi APU, though, is a different matter.  The majority of it's early problems with PCI cards was no having enough bandwidth on the PCI BUS, and systems that would cut it's BUS access times.  Only way to fix it was to send the card back to Creative for a revised model (different BIOS), or increase your PCI latency timing to give the card more access to the BUS.

The APU on the titanium, though, can make use of almost the full PCIEx1 bandwidth, in a native environment as well (no translator chip).  Only audio card with that much processing power to need that kind of system communication.

Aside from that, the only reason ASUS and HT Omega jumped on the PCIEx1 idea was to offer better system build flexibility due to how few PCI slots are avaiable on modern motherboards - coupled with enthusiasts running 2 or 3 video cards, that usually eliminates all but 1 PCI slot . . . and if you have a need for a WiFi adapter, the audio card gets nixed, and the users runs with onboard . . .




			
				kenkickr said:
			
		

> Saturday night the GF and I watched another movie, The Shining, and not a single issue. The thing I noticed there wasn't even any garble, crackling sounds at all during the movie which I've noticed with the X-fi in. So after the movie I played some MVP08 and again not a problem. Let the system run all night and tried again to listen to the new Metallica album. Album sounded great and no issues with the sound.
> 
> Something I forgot to mention. When I had the X-fi in the sound seemed to switch channels on it's own. I know it sounds weird but even my GF noticed it, and she's not much of an audiophile.



Unless I misunderstood you - this was with the onboard audio, correct?  On Vista as well?

Onboard audio with Vista 32b and 64b is near about flawless due to the intergration of the audio kernel at the system level.  Seeing as how the BIOS itself allows direct access to the onboard chipset, Vista doesn't have to "play nice" with any drivers . . .

once you get into expansion card audio, though, it's a different ball game - now you're hoping that the drivers are solid, and that Vista is willing to be a team player.  Sadly, Creative isn't the only audio manufacturer out there with Vista issues - both Auzen, ASUS, HT Omega, Diamond, Razer and others seen to share the same headaches over and over (5.1-channel reverting to 2-channel, faulty channel upmixing, random channel volume changes, etc).  The only reason, IMO, Creative have taken so much flak is because of their dominance in the audio market . . . kinda like, if y'all recall, Microsoft blaming nVidia for the majority of video-related crashes with Vista.  Dominant market share = dominant issues and complaints.


----------



## kenkickr (Sep 15, 2008)

Yes, that was done with the onboard audio.  I have the X-fi in my friends build I'm doing for him to try it out for a week or so.  If the card's fine I guess I'll just sell it on Ebay even though I can tell a HUGE difference in game sounds, the creative rocked the onboard audio.  My bass sucks with the onboard audio now.  Makes my Logitech 5300's sound like crap.


----------



## imperialreign (Sep 15, 2008)

kenkickr said:


> Yes, that was done with the onboard audio.  I have the X-fi in my friends build I'm doing for him to try it out for a week or so.  If the card's fine I guess I'll just sell it on Ebay even though I can tell a HUGE difference in game sounds, the creative rocked the onboard audio.  My bass sucks with the onboard audio now.  Makes my Logitech 5300's sound like crap.



you have an nForce motherboard, correct?


If so, I would recommend moving over to a Xonar or something - but I've seen quite a few reports recently where the DX cards are starting to have issues with nForce motherboards . . .

much like Creative did a couple of years ago


----------



## kenkickr (Sep 15, 2008)

I have a 790FX chipset motherboard.  The Asus M3A32-MVP Deluxe.


----------



## imperialreign (Sep 16, 2008)

kenkickr said:


> I have a 790FX chipset motherboard.  The Asus M3A32-MVP Deluxe.



Odd . . . never heard of any issues with AMD's chipsets . . . but it very well could be - I'm still thinking it's a hardware related conflict or something similar.


----------



## ShadowFold (Sep 16, 2008)

Why is it asking me to login to some guru3d thing when I go to the topic page?


----------



## eidairaman1 (Sep 16, 2008)

On the first part the card i have, i dont experience any problems, but then again im running XP with last known drivers to work well with it, i think they cut driver support so they can sell the titanium.


imperialreign said:


> well, aside from video cards, there isn't anything else out there that can really make use of all the bandwidth offered by even a PCIEx1 slot.
> 
> The X-Fi APU, though, is a different matter.  The majority of it's early problems with PCI cards was no having enough bandwidth on the PCI BUS, and systems that would cut it's BUS access times.  Only way to fix it was to send the card back to Creative for a revised model (different BIOS), or increase your PCI latency timing to give the card more access to the BUS.
> 
> ...


----------



## grunt_408 (Sep 16, 2008)

I have hda no issues using my xfi with my 64-bit vista


----------



## eidairaman1 (Sep 16, 2008)

yet why does your machine say audigy 4?


----------



## imperialreign (Sep 17, 2008)

ShadowFold said:


> Why is it asking me to login to some guru3d thing when I go to the topic page?



I just noticed that - thanks for pointing it out . . . I'll have to doublecheck any links or images I might have up . . .




			
				eidairaman1 said:
			
		

> On the first part the card i have, i dont experience any problems, but then again im running XP with last known drivers to work well with it, i think they cut driver support so they can sell the titanium.




I'm kinda fenceposted on the issue with them cutting driver support - looking back in hindsight, especially concerning the Dank drivers and all -

I think there was some issues with Vista with the X-Fi _and_ Audigy drivers in regards to some features, and for the time being, some of those features were cut because they were just too buggy . . .

wouldn't be an issue with temporarily removing features if A) you mention it in part of the driver release notes, and B) you release official drivers more than once a year . . .

then the issue with Daniel_k drivers re-enabling these features, that's fine and good, but any issues, and people (not thinking) run back to Creative for support.  That's fine though, they'll just turn them away like any other comany would for using unsupported drivers . . . but, admitting publicly to removing features, and not stating _why_ they were removed - pissed people off.  Coupled with the fact that Creative were griping over the enabled Dolby encoding X-Fi support (which broke trade agreements between Creative, Auzen and Dolby), and impaired the upcoming license agreements of the Titanium (which is Dolby encoding enabled), turned into a big hoozah of conspiracy.


I'm not sure if my take on it is right - it's been slowly pieced together from various tidbits of information from various reliable sites.  no one, though, has ever officially explained what all went on and for why.


Would it surprise me if Creative (at that point in time) had removed features from the X-Fi's to help sell the Titanium's for Vista . . . not in the least.

As of right now, though, the company seems to making a complete change of direction; they're opening their doors to other companies, starting to supply us with a more constant and consistent driver and software updates, including betas . . . and they seem to be actually listening to their customers again.

Here's hoping, though, that they continue along this path back towards the Creative I remember from 15+ years ago.  It's still too soon to say one way or the other.




-------------



Oh, and I agree with you as well with X-Fi drivers - although I tend to recommend updating to see if new drivers fix any issues you might run across . . . I also recommend that if everything is functioning perfectly fine - leave them alone! 

Only reason I upgrade my drivers every time is to keep up with new issues - see if anything crops up, how to tackle it and so forth.


----------



## kenkickr (Sep 17, 2008)

I tried the X-fi in my friends system(ECS KA3-MVP motherboard, Athlon 64 X2 6000+, 2Gb Crucial Balistix DDR2-800, XP MCE) and not an issue at all.  I've done some reading and have seen some still experience issues with 4Gb+ of memory, which I have, and/or lack of good drivers for Vista 64-bit, which I have.  I'm going to throw the card up on Ebay and get a Asus Xonar D2 since I also read quite a few people have had good luck with that card and Vista 64.


----------



## imperialreign (Sep 17, 2008)

kenkickr said:


> I tried the X-fi in my friends system(ECS KA3-MVP motherboard, Athlon 64 X2 6000+, 2Gb Crucial Balistix DDR2-800, XP MCE) and not an issue at all.  I've done some reading and have seen some still experience issues with 4Gb+ of memory, which I have, and/or lack of good drivers for Vista 64-bit, which I have.  I'm going to throw the card up on Ebay and get a Asus Xonar D2 since I also read quite a few people have had good luck with that card and Vista 64.



if the card is working fine on someone else's system - either bad PCI slot on the motherboard (very doubtful), or, as you just mentioned but I had completely forgotten (especially with 4GB on Vista), buggy drivers.

The way I understand it, Creative have significantly improved the 4GB/Vista issue, but some users still run into problems.  I wish I knew a bit better what caused it as well, cause then I might be able to offer a workaround.


Well, good luck with the Xonar, man!  They're great cards in their own right, and are on par with (and in the case of the lower end X-Fi's, better than) the X-Fi lineup.

If you happen to run into any issues with it, I'm more than willing to help there as well!


----------



## kenkickr (Sep 17, 2008)

Thanks for the help you have provided so far, and I'll keep you up to date when I get my Xonar.


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## ShadowFold (Sep 17, 2008)

Can I join? I have a Creative X-Fi Platinum.


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## imperialreign (Sep 17, 2008)

ShadowFold said:


> Can I join? I have a Creative X-Fi Platinum.



sure thing, man!


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 2, 2008)

Hi hi - as a few of you know I recently bought a set of Logitech Z-5500 speakers. now I have managed to get SPDIF working with my onboard sound but I cant for the love of Allah get it to work on my XFi Xtreme Music.

I have read online in various forums that I can connect up through the flexijack port using the Digital I/O module - but it still doesnt work. - I tried the EXACT same thing on my laptop & it worked. I cant get a signal up

this is what the website said



> Now that you know how to have a digital connection available on your sound card, you still need to buy a digital cable to connect your sound card to your home theater receiver or digital speakers, if you don’t have one yet. Here you have two options, to buy an inexpensive coaxial SPDIF cable (a.k.a. RCA mono cable) or an optical Toslink cable (i.e. optic fiber), which is more expensive but is the best way to connect your equipment. Keep in mind that X-Fi Titanium, X-Fi Xreme Audio PCI Express and X-Fi XtremeGamer only support optical connection.
> 
> The simply connect your sound card to your home theater receiver or digital speakers. You can learn how this is done thru our How To Connect Your PC to Your Home Stereo or Home Theater tutorial.
> 
> ...



help help


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 2, 2008)

Meh - I just had a look behind my pc & it appears that the redlight for the flexi jack has either burnt it self out or theres an issue with my drivers.

I can still use the onboard SPDIF for stuff so not much of a loss i suppose

might get myself a Xonar when i get the cash soon


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## imperialreign (Oct 3, 2008)

not completely sure I followed what all you mentioned, but try this:


along with the instructions above to enable Digital I/O from within the console launcher, go to Start\Control Panel\Sound and Audio devices\

under "device volume" click the 'advanced' button, on the left side, under "Play Control Volume," hit the 'advanced' button.  In the box labeled "other controls," ensure that Digital I/O is checked (again, for some reason, changes made in Creative's software doesn't carry over to WIN).

Let me know if that makes any difference or not.


----------



## btarunr (Oct 3, 2008)

An interesting find:

Audigy used to upsample everything to 24-bit and in a way faced flack from the audiophile community, remember? With X-Fi, they said this doesn't happen. I don't think so. 

You need: The latest Winamp, an .mp3 which you're damn sure was encoded for 16-bit / 44.1 kHz.

Go to Winamp preferences, set the output plugin as "Nullsoft WaveOut". (this creates a software pass between the audio and the driver, no DirectSound. Play your .mp3 file. Do you see such a screen?







^Look at the output format the sound card is receiving from the driver.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 3, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> not completely sure I followed what all you mentioned, but try this:
> 
> 
> along with the instructions above to enable Digital I/O from within the console launcher, go to Start\Control Panel\Sound and Audio devices\
> ...



yeah I tried that all ready - but if theres no red laser thing there then the signal aint being transferd.

do you guys still think its worth picking up an Xtreme Gamer???


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 3, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> yeah I tried that all ready - but if theres no red laser thing there then the signal aint being transferd.
> 
> do you guys still think its worth picking up an Xtreme Gamer???



so, are you running optical or coaxial SPDIF?

It's quite possible the I/O module is buggared as well.  

If you're looking to replace the card, though, I can't really recommend any brand over another, as they all playback digital equally well - but as far as connectivity goes, the only X-Fi's with SPDIF outputs are the Titaniums, which use TOSLINK.  I believe some of the Xonars have coaxial SPDIF connections, as well as some of the Auzens . . . some also use optical as well.




btarunr said:


> An interesting find:
> 
> Audigy used to upsample everything to 24-bit and in a way faced flack from the audiophile community, remember? With X-Fi, they said this doesn't happen. I don't think so.
> 
> ...




that's quite interesting . . . would explain why sometimes you might hear a little bit of a snap or crackle at the beginning of playback . . .


question: does it also do that for all 3 hardware modes?


----------



## btarunr (Oct 3, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> question: does it also do that for all 3 hardware modes?



Yes, all three modes.

@FreedomEclipse: Yes, it's absolutely worth it.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 3, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> so, are you running optical or coaxial SPDIF?
> 
> It's quite possible the I/O module is buggared as well.



TOSLINK through via flexijack - I/O Module - I use to see a little red light there on one of the audio ports but i cant see that anymore. seesssh everything in this house seems to be breaking

in these last few months alone ive had:

1 TV broke
1 Pc monitor broke
1 surround sound speaker set broke - but that was broken a long time ago but i only replaced it now
1 my practise guitar amp
1 cold cathode tube broke (inside my pc)
1 laptop broke

god must be punishing me for something.


----------



## zeKxa (Oct 5, 2008)

*:/*

Hey guys!

I just bought a Creative X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro. It works like a charm but i got few questions/problems:

1. How can i use my desktop speakers 2.0 when im not using my headset?
2. How can i use the output optical exit of my motherboard, it doesnt work anymore...

Thanks.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 5, 2008)

zeKxa said:


> Hey guys!
> 
> I just bought a Creative X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro. It works like a charm but i got few questions/problems:
> 
> ...



1. - how do you have your headset connected to the card?  If it's through the PCI bracket on the back, you're not in much luck . . . unless your speakers have a headphone jack on them, in which case, plug your speakers into the card, and your headset into the speaker jack . . .

otherwise, to enable front panel support, you'll have to modifiy the front panel connector to attach to the header on the X-Fi 

you'll still have to open the console launcher, though, and manually switch the speaker output configuration between headphones and 2/2.1 though


2.  - not sure I understand . . . are you talking about an optical jack from your motherboard's onboard audio?


----------



## zeKxa (Oct 5, 2008)

1. Well i would like to be able to plug my 2.0 speakers AND my headset on the card, but it seems its impossible 

2. On my mobo, i got an optical out connection. I got a cable plug to it to my Home Theater receiver. But now that i got my audio crad, this connector is not working anymore, probably because the onboard audio is disabled and Creative card enabled. I would like to be able to use this optical out conection on my mobo + using my creative X-Fi for my headset and my 2.0 desktop speakers.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 5, 2008)

zeKxa said:


> 1. Well i would like to be able to plug my 2.0 speakers AND my headset on the card, but it seems its impossible
> 
> 2. On my mobo, i got an optical out connection. I got a cable plug to it to my Home Theater receiver. But now that i got my audio crad, this connector is not working anymore, probably because the onboard audio is disabled and Creative card enabled. I would like to be able to use this optical out conection on my mobo + using my creative X-Fi for my headset and my 2.0 desktop speakers.





1)  Well, the only option to be able to have both plugged onto the car would be to enable a front panel connection, and leave the stereo plugged into the read of the card.  The headset would have to plug into the front panel.


2)  If probably could be done - if you check to make sure the onboard is enabled within the system BIOS.  You'll have to make sure there aren't any hardware or driver conflicts between the onboard and the X-Fi.

Then, you'll have to open what ever programs you have that you'd like to use the optical connection with, and see if there's a way to set the default device for it to use - which would be the onboard.  If the software doesn't have any option to set it, you might have to manually change the hardward device in WIN control panel every time you want to go from the X-Fi to your optical connection and back.

SPDIF might be an option, but you'd still need to obtain the mini Digital I/O module for the X-Fi as the card doesn't have SPDIF outputs


----------



## zeKxa (Oct 5, 2008)

1. If i plug my headset on front panel of my case it wont be linked to X-Fi card isnt it?

And what about this model? wich is the Creative X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion. I could plug my headset on the front, speakers 2.0 on the back of the card, and plus my home theater receiver on the optical back conector. Am i right?

Thanks for help by the way


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 5, 2008)

zeKxa said:


> 1. If i plug my headset on front panel of my case it wont be linked to X-Fi card isnt it?
> 
> And what about this model? wich is the Creative X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion. I could plug my headset on the front, speakers 2.0 on the back of the card, and plus my home theater receiver on the optical back conector. Am i right?
> 
> Thanks for help by the way



no, if you plugged in the front panel connector on the motherboard, it won't use the X-Fi.  If you have the card I'm thinking of, there isn't the standard 10-pin AC97 header on the card, which means you'd have to modify the connector to fit Creative's front panel style header.

but, if you exchanged the card for the Titanium Champion series (the ones that come with the front panel drive) . . . you're very much right - the card itself has a connector for the AC97 style header, meaning your front panel will plug directly to the card with no modification; the rear of the card has 5 mini-jack plugs for analouge connectors, and the read also has an optical (TOSLINK) connector as well . . . the front panel drive has headphone connectors as well, in case your PC case does not.

If you're looking for full connectivity like that, I'd recommend exchanging the card, if possible.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 18, 2008)

A new X-Fi beta driver is available for non-Titanium and non-Xtreme Audio models, from Creative at: Download Center


release notes:



> This download is a beta driver providing Microsoft® Windows Vista® and Windows® XP support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *Take note of the following:*
> 
> ...


----------



## eidairaman1 (Oct 19, 2008)

lmao, its been many years since they released a good Stable Driver 2006 driver is the one i use.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 23, 2008)

over the last few days ive been considering getting a X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro. - my Xtreme Music seems to be the cause of sudden random BSOD's & crashes during boot up as i found out earlier.

the question is - shall i get the Titanium or just another cheapo replacement Xtreme Music OEM??


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 24, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> over the last few days ive been considering getting a X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro. - my Xtreme Music seems to be the cause of sudden random BSOD's & crashes during boot up as i found out earlier.
> 
> the question is - shall i get the Titanium or just another cheapo replacement Xtreme Music OEM??




well, that all really depends on your needs -

if you intendto go vista soon, I'd recommend the Titanium; they have a lot more stable drivers in Vista than the rest of the lineup.

The Titanium is faster, overall, and using a PCIEx1 slot allows for better system configurability with multi-GPU setups; it has fewer stuttering issues due to system BUS overload, which results in less crackling, clipping, etc

But, is there an audio difference?  Not much, if at all.  The titanium uses the same PCB components that the other X-Fis use - DAC, ADC, OPAMPs, evn down to the capacitors . . . output quality is identicle.

But the XM might be hard to find - even if you can find one at a decent price, the titanium probably won't be much more expensive.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 24, 2008)

I can pick up an OEM X.M for roughly $31.68 (USD) - the Fata1ty Pro's cost almost double that.

with probably less consideration for vista (I will eventually but just not yet - I will wait till Dx.10 is a 'must' before jumping ship for vista)

I just want another solid soundcard to keep my Logitech 5500's kicking.

also the use of the whole optical out for DTS etc etc wouldnt go a miss since i like having less cables lying around,


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 24, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I can pick up an OEM X.M for roughly $31.68 (USD) - the Fata1ty Pro's cost almost double that.
> 
> with probably less consideration for vista (I will eventually but just not yet - I will wait till Dx.10 is a 'must' before jumping ship for vista)
> 
> ...



damn, dude - if you can get a Xm for $32, that's a deal hard to pass up.

I'll also mention, the Titanium has built in optical connection as well.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 24, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> damn, dude - if you can get a Xm for $32, that's a deal hard to pass up.
> 
> I'll also mention, the Titanium has built in optical connection as well.



Sorry my bad - I actually ment $80 not $32.

my local hardware shop has the OEMs going for $89.65 but im a little confused since there is a standard X.M then a 24bit X.M????


http://www.yoyotech.co.uk/creative-soundblaster-series-xtreme-music-sound-card-p-84111.html


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 24, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Sorry my bad - I actually ment $80 not $32.
> 
> my local hardware shop has the OEMs going for $89.65 but im a little confused since there is a standard X.M then a 24bit X.M????
> 
> ...



no - all XMs are 24b capable.

The only difference is the retail to the OEM version, and the actual differences between them is so insignificant - it usually amounts to different brands of caps, sometimes vrms, nothing major.  Both forms are identicle as far as capabilities are concerned.


----------



## kysg (Oct 25, 2008)

Wow this thread is huge, whew I didn't read a whole lot of posts but I do know this, to be frank I think my xtreme gamer is overheating.  No way am I replacing the card unless it dies which it hasn't sound cards are just not cheap...

but anyways um I need a good cooling solution for it, now I read that you can place a 40x40mm fan on top of the stock heatsink??? I'm also thinking of pulling mine off and just replacing not sure how to go about that though. 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835119048 is this something I should look into????

not only that there is no mounting holes for the fan so should I just try duck taping it on there???


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 25, 2008)

kysg said:


> Wow this thread is huge, whew I didn't read a whole lot of posts but I do know this, to be frank I think my xtreme gamer is overheating.  No way am I replacing the card unless it dies which it hasn't sound cards are just not cheap...
> 
> but anyways um I need a good cooling solution for it, now I read that you can place a 40x40mm fan on top of the stock heatsink??? I'm also thinking of pulling mine off and just replacing not sure how to go about that though.
> 
> ...




well - from your description, it sounds as if the card already has the stock cooler over the APU . . . if so, there's no way to remove it without destroying the APU itself.  The HS is bonded with thermal epoxy, which is damn near bullet-proof (believe me, I've tried!).


The best bet to bump up the cooling efficiency is indeed to install a fan over the cooler - but a 40mm unit is a bit big;  if you can figure out some way to jimmy-rig one on, though, it'll provide higher airflow than a smaller unit that would properly fit the cooler.  IIRC, the stock HS on the X-Fi is a 30mm unit, meaning you'd need a fan like this: http://www.cyberguys.com/templates/searchdetail.asp?sk=MC71419&productID=6706  - if you do purchase online, just make sure it's a 12v unit, and not 5v

The next best idea would be to make sure your case has good ventilation - if need be, clean the dust out of it (and off the card), and consider rearranging your expansion cards (if possible) . . . a good rule of thumb is to mount the X-Fi closest to the bottom of the motherboard, if possible.


----------



## kysg (Oct 25, 2008)

This is true I have to give it some thought.  Maybe tomorrow when I get up, right now I'm not sure.  Duct taping seems like a possibility but could mess with are flow, could try supergluing it but that may not work...darn its just there is no mounting holes anywhere...wonder if there is some type of metal bracket that can be placed over the fan...

Think a thermal pad would work if I stuck it directly on top of the heatsink even though the fins could possibly mess it up?


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 25, 2008)

are you talking a means for attaching a fan?

well, if you can get one small enough, the screws will simply wedge in between the fins.

a larger unit, though, would pose a bit more on an issue  Even using a thermal pad, that will effectively block the fans ability to pull air across the fins of the HS.

does your case have a fan on the side panel?  If you have a PCI slot available across from the side-fan, you could move it there.



Curious - what specifically has led you to believe the card might be overheating?


----------



## kysg (Oct 25, 2008)

Hmmm well I know the thing would get warm, its currently not in use will use it tomorrow I use to remember this thing getting warm, and I had my drivers updated and my onboard disabled, along with the ATI hdmi sound had that disabled too, and and it set to use the card in bios, hmmm Like I would play a game and all of a sudden I'd hear staticy sounds, then after a while I remember the thing would even play any more and I'd have to restart, I figured it was overheating, Mp3s where okay although occasionally when I played a sound I'd get static or a crackle sound... I'll give it a shot again tomorrow and see whats up,

and my case is this one, no fans on the sides, just 3 in the back, 1 in front.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133035


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 25, 2008)

just picked up a XFi Fatality Pro for $158.52 (hello European VAT)


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 25, 2008)

Problem now is i cant get the console to reconise the card even though the drivers installed correctly


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 25, 2008)

kysg said:


> Hmmm well I know the thing would get warm, its currently not in use will use it tomorrow I use to remember this thing getting warm, and I had my drivers updated and my onboard disabled, along with the ATI hdmi sound had that disabled too, and and it set to use the card in bios, hmmm Like I would play a game and all of a sudden I'd hear staticy sounds, then after a while I remember the thing would even play any more and I'd have to restart, I figured it was overheating, Mp3s where okay although occasionally when I played a sound I'd get static or a crackle sound... I'll give it a shot again tomorrow and see whats up,
> 
> and my case is this one, no fans on the sides, just 3 in the back, 1 in front.
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133035




hmmm . . . when gaming, do you have the card set to game mode?  Also, is hardware acceleration enabled within WIN?

The small crackle or static when playing mp3s, does that typically occur right at the very beginning of the sound?




FreedomEclipse said:


> Problem now is i cant get the console to reconise the card even though the drivers installed correctly




Part of the old drivers might still be installed.  Did your card come with an installation disk?

Use the setup software found in _C:\Program Files\Creative\Sound Blaster X-Fi\Program\setup.exe_ and have it completely remove all drivers and software (if you have problems getting it to run, it should also be on the installation disk, or manually remove stuff through WIN add/remove programs applet).  Then reboot the system, and run Driver Sweeper in safe mode.

If your card came with an installation disk, you _have_ to use that disk for installation.  For some odd reason, the disks are "keyed" to the hardware.  I've tried 4 or 5 different installation disks before, and the only one that would install correctly, or function correctly after installation is the disk that specifically came with that card. :shadedshu


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 25, 2008)

update: everything is cool - Dolby Digital Live is like the best thing ever. pairs well with my 5500's



imperialreign said:


> Part of the old drivers might still be installed.  Did your card come with an installation disk?
> 
> Use the setup software found in _C:\Program Files\Creative\Sound Blaster X-Fi\Program\setup.exe_ and have it completely remove all drivers and software (if you have problems getting it to run, it should also be on the installation disk, or manually remove stuff through WIN add/remove programs applet).  Then reboot the system, and run Driver Sweeper in safe mode.
> 
> If your card came with an installation disk, you _have_ to use that disk for installation.  For some odd reason, the disks are "keyed" to the hardware.  I've tried 4 or 5 different installation disks before, and the only one that would install correctly, or function correctly after installation is the disk that specifically came with that card. :shadedshu



Yeah long story - 

I uninstalled the original drivers & software - ran driver cleaner twice - restarted PC - Installed new drivers & software - restarted again - GUI wont detect my card - uninstalled everything & ran driver cleaner twice again - restarted pc & reinstalled again - still not working, then i checked out my hardware profiles & found out i had to install some M$ UAA Hi-Def Audio update for the PCI-E bus or something & for some reason it didnt auto update - anyhoo after the last comeplete uninstall & driver flush then reinstall & install with the new drivers which are dated august as the most recent one didnt pick it up & it started working perfectly...

so there you have it - my epic 1 hour battle to get my sound working complements of the bastards at creative.

honestly Creative are like a rampant rabbit - you have to grab it by the vibrating part then yank out the bottom part so its guts fall out


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 25, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> update: everything is cool - Dolby Digital Live is like the best thing ever. pairs well with my 5500's
> 
> 
> 
> ...




yeah, their software can be a little bit of a PITA at times - but once you know the "intricacies" it's really not so bad


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 29, 2008)

I know people say that "Digital: it either works or it doesnt", but im curious - 

right now i got a Digitial Optical Audio cable that plugs into my XFi straight to my 5500's - the cable itself works but I bought it years ago in some basement my questions are. Does the Optical signal deteriorate/degrade over time with prolonged use & also would buying a more expensive Digitial Op cable make any difference at all aside from being better shielded from interferance.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 30, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I know people say that "Digital: it either works or it doesnt", but im curious -
> 
> right now i got a Digitial Optical Audio cable that plugs into my XFi straight to my 5500's - the cable itself works but I bought it years ago in some basement my questions are. Does the Optical signal deteriorate/degrade over time with prolonged use & also would buying a more expensive Digitial Op cable make any difference at all aside from being better shielded from interferance.



well - digital coaxial cable is subject to the same degredation that standard cable is - the metal and fiberous material will degrade over time when subject to the elements.  It takes a lot longer if in a controlled environment (like your home).  Will this really hamper signal quality?  Some, but not to an extent that it'd really be noticeable.  But, being in the elements can cause the innards of the cable to become more brittle, and more prone to breaking internally if pinched, kinked, etc.

But, technologically, there could be a noticeable difference in quality.  Cables have improved a lot over the years, with the addition of shielding, better insulation . . . even down to the specific alloy used for the cable itself.  Older cable are more prone to environmental noise, and signal degredation over long distances, as compared to newer ones . . .


As to a difference versus optical - well, yes, there are some major differences . . . in 90% of cases, though, I doubt you'd hear them.  Optical cable isn't affected by the same signal loss over distance that coaxial is, you could almost consider the cable "loss-less."  It doesn't pick up interference as easily (actually, it's quite hard to introduce noise), either.  But, digital coaxial cables are still fully acceptable with short distances, like running through the home.  You won't have enough length to actually notice any signal loss, and if you're wise about where you route your cables, you won't pick up any interference, either.  Optical can also transmit more channel signals over one link, whereas any coaxial setup takes a number of cables, typically one per two channels.

but if you want the satisfaction of having "the absolute best of the best," optical is the only way to go.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 30, 2008)

Im currently running optical with some cable i bought from some stall in a  basement in Hong Kong years n years ago. since it was cheap im taking maybe its shittier quality then ones bought in an actual audio store


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 6, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Im currently running optical with some cable i bought from some stall in a  basement in Hong Kong years n years ago. since it was cheap im taking maybe its shittier quality then ones bought in an actual audio store



damn, dude - sorry it's taken me so long to get back to ya on this, I completely forgot about it 

anyhow, if you bought some optical for dirt cheap . . . well, optical is optical cable.  There's not too much of a variety in-so-far as what compromises it's build, at least, compared to coaxial cable . . . there are definitely differences in how well the cable can and will perform, but generally, even the most low-grade optical cables are considered to be superior to most mid-range coaxial.


now, if we're talking about coaxial, though, there are major differences in the dirt cheap variety compared to the upper-shelf counterparts.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 15, 2008)

Incase you haven't already heard, Creative have released an official driver source for Linux 32b/64b . . . it's no longer beta.


For those interested in more nitty-gritty stuffz, Creative seem to have posted up the technical specs of the CA20K2 APU on their business microsite:  http://www.creative.com/oem/products/chips/CA20K2.asp

what really caught my attention - this APU can support up to 384kHz sample rates . . . not all too surprising, though, considering the CA201K was originally designed by Creative's E-Mu branch, for audio creation purposes . . .


----------



## eidairaman1 (Nov 15, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> over the last few days ive been considering getting a X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro. - my Xtreme Music seems to be the cause of sudden random BSOD's & crashes during boot up as i found out earlier.
> 
> the question is - shall i get the Titanium or just another cheapo replacement Xtreme Music OEM??



I have the same card and it hasnt failed me yet, what are you Running as of OS?


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Nov 15, 2008)

For my co-axial digital cable,i am using the thick av cable that came with my 4850,seems to be working fine,and its not overly long as my amp is close to my pc.

I am still on my onboard sound,it seems fine using the digital out to my amp.Plus i just dont really have a clue what to replace the x-fail with.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Nov 15, 2008)

eidairaman1 said:


> I have the same card and it hasnt failed me yet, what are you Running as of OS?



it doesnt matter anymore as im running a Fata1ity Titainium pro 

the O/S was XP Pro SP2 as mentioned in my system specs

but i think it was partially down to the way i probably 'man handled' the card when i came to cleaning inside the case or when i was ripping & adding loads of other stuffs - so no suprise there.
ive had it since 2006 anyway i think -  back in the days when a Xtreme Music was still about $149.28

my case eats dust like bunnies under the bed


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 16, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> it doesnt matter anymore as im running a Fata1ity Titainium pro
> 
> the O/S was XP Pro SP2 as mentioned in my system specs
> 
> ...



I've had my first Fatal1ty for about as long . . . oddly enough, I blew a friggin OPAMP on it the other day (first time I've ever done so, and I still can't figure out WTF I did to cause that, either ).


Anyhow, recently haev upgraded to a Titanium Fatal1ty as well, for a couple of quirky reasons.  I'm preparing a review of the card (which will hopefully make it into our TPU review database), and comparing its performance to that of the PCI Fatal1ty.  ASIO latency is identicle between the two, but there's a noticeable difference in CPU usage - still wish I had someway of measuring the latency from a source file on the HDD to playback . . .

But, I've got all the info I need, now I just need to put it together and write the review.


----------



## kysg (Nov 16, 2008)

hmm blew an opamp I didn't think that was possible.

ah well picking up an X-FI prelude, should be pretty sweet move, solid caps.  I looked some info on the custom opamps that could be added, has anyone tried those at all?? I was gonna look into getting the one from TI.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 16, 2008)

kysg said:


> hmm blew an opamp I didn't think that was possible.
> 
> ah well picking up an X-FI prelude, should be pretty sweet move, solid caps.  I looked some info on the custom opamps that could be added, has anyone tried those at all?? I was gonna look into getting the one from TI.



I didn't think blowing an OPAMP was possible, either, especially with the volume via the control panel set at 45% . . .

I at first thought the headset I was using had taken a crap, so I swapped some stuff around, and they were alright . . . all the other channels on the card were fine, save for line 1 - what got me thinking it was the OPAMP, though, was that if you quickly swept the volume setting in the control panel, the output would cut in and out, crackle, pop, even produce a loud droning sound.  Recievers don't tend to get that erratic overnight (literally) . . . replaced the OPAMP and all works well.



The Prelude is a great card, high build quality, strong drivers - I'm not sure how cap replacements work out with those cards though . . . there are other users out there who've done such mods, but I don't know of any here at TPU.  Although, we do have a couple of really knowledgeable users in terms of caps and some other PCB components.


----------



## Wile E (Nov 16, 2008)

OPAMPs, and things of that nature, generally don't blow unless there's a dead short in the speaker leads. Must've been somewhat defective to start with.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 16, 2008)

Wile E said:


> OPAMPs, and things of that nature, generally don't blow unless there's a dead short in the speaker leads. Must've been somewhat defective to start with.



hard to say, as I still haven't had any issues with the headset on any other system I've plugged them into.  As for the card, though, 2.5-3 years of rigorous use can become taxing for PCB components.  I'm just glad it was merely and OPAMP and not a cap that decided to go bust, or at the worst, the DAC.

Blowing the OPAMP, though, came on the heels of doing some audio work in SoundForge.  I get the feeling it was just a combination of old-age, and me pushing some extremelly boosted frequencies through the output.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Nov 16, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> Anyhow, recently haev upgraded to a Titanium Fatal1ty as well



great - its good to have somebody whose looking at the same page when it comes to drivers!!!

speaking of which - are you still running 'August' drivers??


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 16, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> great - its good to have somebody whose looking at the same page when it comes to drivers!!!
> 
> speaking of which - are you still running 'August' drivers??



currently, ATM - just wanted to do a whole bunch of testing, make sure things are stable, etc, before installing the beta drivers.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Nov 16, 2008)

Did you have a look at this imperial?

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=76348

Its pretty cool,you can force the digital out to dts/ac3 mode.I tried it on my amp and it works great.Its great for watching film,even sounds good on games.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 16, 2008)

tigger said:


> Did you have a look at this imperial?
> 
> http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=76348
> 
> Its pretty cool,you can force the digital out to dts/ac3 mode.I tried it on my amp and it works great.Its great for watching film,even sounds good on games.



that's pretty interesting . . . using ASIO completely bypasses the drivers and the dolby encoding lock . . . we've known for some time now that all X-Fis have been capable of encoding, it's just the drivers have that feature locked up . . . that's a nice work-around.  So, I'm guessing then it uses a generic ASIO driver and not Creative's ASIO . . .




Just a sample from testing the Titanium vs. the Fatal1ty, CPU utilization in DirectSound3D mode + EAX:






X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro






X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro


the Titanium on average requires half the amount of CPU use as the PCI based Fatal1ty - IMO, this shows how well the native PCIE Titanium can capitalize off of the PCIE bandwidth . . . the more information it can move per clock cycle, the less it has to interupt the system BUS.

Although I don't have any software to really prove it, I'd believe this hints to lower audio processing latencies.  Although the CA20K2 is practically the same as the CA201K in terms of processing ability, the reduction in system wait times would lend itself to the notion that the APU is now capable of handling the per-clock work load that it was originally desinged to handle.


----------



## Jasper005 (Nov 18, 2008)

Hi,

I'm thinking of going optical with my X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Pro Series and Logitech Z-5500 using the Creative® Digital I/O Module "FlexiJack". 

Has anyone got a similar set up or use the flexijack? 

Oh I was going to splash out the $4 on the Dolby Digital Live Pack as well.

Good idea?

NB I'm on Vista 64bit now.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Nov 18, 2008)

The live pack sounds good,i am using the flexi jack on my audigy 4 to my amp via a coaxial cable.


----------



## SoundMan (Nov 28, 2008)

*X-Fi Titanium Fidel1ty - CD-IN ?*

Hi. Yesterday i buy X-Fi Titanium Fidel1ty Profess1onal Series and now have question - How i can connect cable from CD-ROM (internal CD-In) or from TV-tuner (internal AUX) to sound card? May be anybody know where  and how it's may connect?

P.S. Sorry for my English, i am from Russia.


----------



## eidairaman1 (Nov 28, 2008)

there should be manuals for your components, use them.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 28, 2008)

SoundMan said:


> Hi. Yesterday i buy X-Fi Titanium Fidel1ty Profess1onal Series and now have question - How i can connect cable from CD-ROM (internal CD-In) or from TV-tuner (internal AUX) to sound card? May be anybody know where  and how it's may connect?
> 
> P.S. Sorry for my English, i am from Russia.




Sorry, but with the Titanium cards, there isn't a 4-pin header for a CD-ROM interconnect.



If you're lucky, some models (SB0888) have a 3-pin HDMI interconnect that will allow you to connect the card to a video adapter - but all this does is allow the Titanium to output S/PDIF to the video card for passthrough to the HDMI connector.  Sadly, there aren't that many video cards with a S/PDIF-in header, and even fewer with a 3-pin.


----------



## SoundMan (Nov 29, 2008)

\\\\Hi. Yesterday i buy X-Fi Titanium Fidel1ty Profess1onal Series and now have question - How i can connect cable from CD-ROM (internal CD-In) or from TV-tuner (internal AUX) to sound card? May be anybody know where and how it's may connect?\\\\


There is 18(20)-pin connector on board X-fi Titanium, i think some of this pin is AUX-IN(CD-IN). May be anybody know about it?


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 29, 2008)

SoundMan said:


> \\\\Hi. Yesterday i buy X-Fi Titanium Fidel1ty Profess1onal Series and now have question - How i can connect cable from CD-ROM (internal CD-In) or from TV-tuner (internal AUX) to sound card? May be anybody know where and how it's may connect?\\\\
> 
> 
> There is 18(20)-pin connector on board X-fi Titanium, i think some of this pin is AUX-IN(CD-IN). May be anybody know about it?



that connector is for connecting the Titanium card to the X-Fi Titanium I/O drive that would sit in a 5.25" bay . . . IIRC, the last 10-pins, though, will interface with an AC97/Azalia connector from your case's front panel.

The other 10/12-pin connector is for a digital connection to the I/O drive.


----------



## SoundMan (Nov 29, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> that connector is for connecting the Titanium card to the X-Fi Titanium I/O drive that would sit in a 5.25" bay . . . IIRC, the last 10-pins, though, will interface with an AC97/Azalia connector from your case's front panel.
> 
> The other 10/12-pin connector is for a digital connection to the I/O drive.




I know that connector for Titanium I/O drive. But on panel of Titanium I/O drive situated AUX-IN that's why i think that some pin of connector is AUX-IN (CD-IN).


----------



## _jM (Dec 1, 2008)

> I, nor any other member of this forum, shall be held liable for any damage done to, or any loss of warranty to, any of your hardware, X-Fi or otherwise, by following any posted solutions or advice in this thread!!! If you don't feel comfortable using any resolution or workaround to a problem you encounter, please seek the *aide* of a professional!



Am I wrong, or isn't that supposed to be aid?


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 1, 2008)

SoundMan said:


> I know that connector for Titanium I/O drive. But on panel of Titanium I/O drive situated AUX-IN that's why i think that some pin of connector is AUX-IN (CD-IN).



TBH, I'm not 100% certain as to how things are hooked up on the I/O drive . . . I know there are 3 or 4 headers, but I don't have one to verify waht exactly each is for, and I have yet to see any pics of the rear of the drive.




_jM said:


> Am I wrong, or isn't that supposed to be aid?





You're right, it's supposed to be aid - I have a bad habit of slipping an 'e' onto the the end of some words


----------



## _jM (Dec 2, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> You're right, it's supposed to be aid - I have a bad habit of slipping an 'e' onto the the end of some words



No problem bro I tend to correct people too much anyways. Just glad I saw it, so it can be changed. Wasn't sure if anyone else saw that yet...


----------



## kysg (Dec 5, 2008)

hmm Wierd bought a headset a few days ago.  Tried using with x fi prelude can't get the mic to work.  I have their RC8 driver installed from auzentech's site.  When plugging in the usb dongle, I get audio, but mic fails to work.  Tried changing in CP to usb audio headset and setting everything to headset in vista Control panel but that doesn't work.  Disabled all audio except for x fi prelude and usb audio still get nothing.  disable the onboard sound in bios, left the front audio jack option on in bios.  Try plugging into front audio jack, same issue.  Try the actual sound card and I get nothing.  This is also when setting the device back to the x fi prelude.  Not sure what the heck I did wrong.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 5, 2008)

kysg said:


> hmm Wierd bought a headset a few days ago.  Tried using with x fi prelude can't get the mic to work.  I have their RC8 driver installed from auzentech's site.  When plugging in the usb dongle, I get audio, but mic fails to work.  Tried changing in CP to usb audio headset and setting everything to headset in vista Control panel but that doesn't work.  Disabled all audio except for x fi prelude and usb audio still get nothing.  disable the onboard sound in bios, left the front audio jack option on in bios.  Try plugging into front audio jack, same issue.  Try the actual sound card and I get nothing.  This is also when setting the device back to the x fi prelude.  Not sure what the heck I did wrong.



check in WIN audio control panel, under the "recording" tab, that 'line-in' is selected, or 'mic' - it can vary sometimes.


----------



## kysg (Dec 5, 2008)

yea I see when I have my USB plugged in both my headset mic, and the prelude mic.  I set everything to the USB in everything and set little audio panel to audio creation still get nothing. so annoying from the mic


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 5, 2008)

kysg said:


> yea I see when I have my USB plugged in both my headset mic, and the prelude mic.  I set everything to the USB in everything and set little audio panel to audio creation still get nothing. so annoying from the mic



well, I'm not 100% sure on Auzen's drivers, as they're further tweaked than Creative's . . .

but, a lot of times, Creative's control panel doesn't properly synch with WIN control panel.  Even though you may set the recording device within the console launcher to 'mic' or 'line-in,' WIN might still have the recording device set to WIN default, or 'digital-in' or otherwise.


----------



## kysg (Dec 5, 2008)

actually I think the mic is dead, tried another headset, mic came up fine gonna RMA the other pair.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 5, 2008)

kysg said:


> actually I think the mic is dead, tried another headset, mic came up fine gonna RMA the other pair.



sorry to hear that . . . actually, that's quite unusual - was it a new mic, or and older one?


----------



## kysg (Dec 5, 2008)

I dunno bought it off Ebay, description was as new, its less than 30 days old, ah well its only the 2nd piece of equipment that I have ever ordered that went was DOA.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 5, 2008)

kysg said:


> I dunno bought it off Ebay, description was as new, its less than 30 days old, ah well its only the 2nd piece of equipment that I have ever ordered that went was DOA.



well, if it's under warranty, then nothing off your back but the headache of the RMA . . .

still strange, though - do you haev another rig you could test it on?


----------



## kysg (Dec 5, 2008)

nah I wish I did, but they have the same 3.5mm jack on both headsets, its just the 1 in question has a USB dongle, that I can just plug in matter of fact I gotta test the other pair with the USB dongle just to be 100% sure.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 5, 2008)

kysg said:


> nah I wish I did, but they have the same 3.5mm jack on both headsets, its just the 1 in question has a USB dongle, that I can just plug in matter of fact I gotta test the other pair with the USB dongle just to be 100% sure.



does the USB power the headphones, or the mic?


----------



## kysg (Dec 5, 2008)

I don't think it powers it the USB is more like a converter.  left an attachment.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 5, 2008)

kysg said:


> I don't think it powers it the USB is more like a converter.  left an attachment.



that is odd - try using the mic without the USB dongle


----------



## Elementlmage (Dec 15, 2008)

The X-fi club eh? I would like to join and add my Elite Pro to the ranks. IMO, the EP is the best thing since sliced bread. It, and my Sennheiser HD 650s produce a flawless sound (well I am sure there are flaws, but none that I can tell.) that is as smooth and sexy as a soaking wet Halle Berry.

Very nice article though; it's nice to see all of the differences in the PCB layouts. Do you have any idea of when you will get material for the modding section?


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Dec 15, 2008)

Elementlmage said:


> *as smooth and sexy as a soaking wet Halle Berry.*




Shes so overated..... I can think of a few better.


----------



## Elementlmage (Dec 15, 2008)

You get the idea, just <insert woman of choice here>. But man, I don't know what I would do if that card ever went kaput; I'd probably go nuts.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Dec 15, 2008)

hey if anything at all went kaput in my rig id go nuts - one of the things im afraid of the most next to injections.....

feeling the shit run down your legs after a bad system failure & crossing your fingers n hoping it aint the worst case scenario...


----------



## kysg (Dec 15, 2008)

yea that is always a bad feeling,  or when the thing just shuts off completely and you can't get it to POST >.<


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 15, 2008)

Elementlmage said:


> The X-fi club eh? I would like to join and add my Elite Pro to the ranks. IMO, the EP is the best thing since sliced bread. It, and my Sennheiser HD 650s produce a flawless sound (well I am sure there are flaws, but none that I can tell.) that is as smooth and sexy as a soaking wet Halle Berry.
> 
> Very nice article though; it's nice to see all of the differences in the PCB layouts. Do you have any idea of when you will get material for the modding section?




Alrighty - I'll add ya up 


I have more material for the modding section - whenever I can get around to firing up the soldering iron for my current card . . . I had done some with my previous XGFP . . .

there's another user I need to get back in touch with as well over some more technical stuffs - he knows the caps a lot better than I do.

I'm also planning on attempting to swap the DAC at some point - I have a unit that will work, but there's one hurdle to get over, as well as having to solder all those tiny legs


----------



## Elementlmage (Dec 16, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> Alrighty - I'll add ya up
> 
> 
> I have more material for the modding section - whenever I can get around to firing up the soldering iron for my current card . . . I had done some with my previous XGFP . . .
> ...



Yeah, that would suck if you bridged two joints. So what kinda DAC are you gunna use? Have you heard nice things about it?


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 16, 2008)

Elementlmage said:


> Yeah, that would suck if you bridged two joints. So what kinda DAC are you gunna use? Have you heard nice things about it?



The DAC I have is a CS4385, which is hardware compatible with the CS4382.

It's still a 24b/192kHz, 114db SNR output device - from what I've read, though, it's much better in terms of accuracy and it's ability to convert sounds quickly compared to the CS4382 - haven't seen anything on it's overall tone, though . . .  Should really boost the overall subjective sound quality either way, and coupled with the new caps and OPAMPs should *hopefully* have a marked improvement.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 18, 2008)

New X-Fi driver set available - driver version 2.18.008

release notes:



> *This download supports the following audio devices only:*
> 
> 
> Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty® Professional Series
> ...


----------



## Elementlmage (Dec 19, 2008)

Ya, snagged me those last night. Had to do an emergency re-install and checked for new driver sets instead of using my back-ups. Haven't had a chance to test them out yet, but it looks like they added a few nice things for Vista users... even though it appears it doesn't  have true Bluray support for Vista yet. I wonder if they have any plans to make Media Source BD/HD-DVD compatible?


----------



## kenkickr (Dec 27, 2008)

I just picked up a X-fi Titanium Fatal1ty for a hell of a deal at Best Buy!! After everything I paid 96 bucks so I decided the card can't be that bad.  So far I'm very impressed and love the clarity over the onboard Soundmax.  No more popping so far and tomorrow I'll see how it does with movies.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Dec 27, 2008)

I think somebody should write to or email Creative & let them know that they 'DO' _Acutaly_ have a card called 'Titanium Fata1ty Professional' floating out on the deep blue market & _'Actualy'_ write some new drivers for us.... 

Last official drivers (unless im wrong - so i havent looked but i know the latest 2.18.008 pack wont have anything for me/us/idiots who bought a Titanium Fata1ity Professional) were last August. A few bugs have then since then appeard - such as FALLOUT 3 - breaking the console.

I set the thing in game mode & play some Fallout 3 but after i end the session the console jams up & i can no longer switch to Entertainment mode unless i restart my machine.


what the hell are those creative muppets doing??? dont tell me their gonna blame their 'inactivity' due to the laying off of much need programmers, which would be a bonus in creatives case because they are useless anyway who then will blame their sacking on the credit crunch????


there should be a regulatory body/council formed to monitor Creatives 'Customer Satisfaction' ratings to make sure they dont slack off & of course to higher the right sort of people to do their dirty work. - I dont mind slackers. dont get me wrong. Id rather they take forever to whip up a package that actually works rather then them taking forever & whipping up a package that thinks its an installer package for a f**king finger print scanner....

=====

& i know you dont tolerate bashing on this thread, please allow me to vent my frustration in this 1 post.


----------



## mamoose124 (Dec 27, 2008)

*Speaker/Subwoofer connection w/Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Audio card*

Just found this Forum.  Have been reviewing posts.  Looks as though you folks may be able to help.  This will be a long post as I want to be clear that there is no problem with my X-Fi but rather my problem is the proper way to hook my card up to an old set of speakers.  Hopefully the following will explain:

I have a problem.  Recently, my on board sound system quite working.  I decided to purchase a Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatality Pro.  So far so good.  However, my speaker system is about ten years old and although it still works flawlessly, its two audio inputs (analog & S/PDIF) don't jibe with my new sound card (I think?).  At least I am confused regarding how to hook things up.  

My speaker system is an Altec Lansing ADA880.  This is a multimedia amplified speaker system featuring Dolby Digital AC3 and Dolby Pr0-logic surround and stereo reproduction. The unit is comprised of a subwoofer and two satellite speakers.  This combination provides surround sound on a desktop by utilizing side firing speakers.  For enhanced surround sound the tip speaker portion of each satellite can be separated and placed on a provided stand with long speakers wires.  This enables the separated speakers to be placed for text surround sound performance.  All four speakers and plugged into the back of the subwoofer.  The amplifier inputs can simultaneously operate on analog and digital (S/PDIF) auido signals.  Still OK, but here is the problem.

The input lines to the Subwoofer are 1) an analog line w/mini-stereo plugs (green) and 2) an S/PDIF line with RCA plugs (black).  

The question is, how do I hook these two lines to the Sound Blaster card.  The sound plaster has five Jacks or Connectors: 

1)AD_Link connector; a 26 pin connector for an X-Fi I/O Console, 
2) Line out 3 Jack:  On 5.1 systems for the Front Center speakers and Subwoofer.  On 6.1 systems for Front Center, rear center speakers and Subwoofer.  On 7.1 systems: Front Center, Side left speakers and Subwoofer.
3)Line Out 2 Jack: On 4.15.1 and 6.1 systems for Rear Left and Rear Right speakers. On 7.1 systems for Rear Left and Rear Right speakers.
4)Line out 2 Jack:  Connect the Front Left and Front Right inputs on powered analog speakers or a home theater receiver to this jack.  You can also connect your stereo headphones with a 3.50 mm (1/8-inch) plug to this jack.
5)FlexiJack:  Connect one of the following to this jack:
1.Analog devices like cassette and other lin-in sources
2.a microphone
3.the digital I/O Module
4.external digital audio devices that accept stereo PCM or compressed Doldy Digital/DTS Bitstream from the S/PDIF output.d

What this suggests to me is that I only need to hook up my S/PDIF cord from the Subwoofer to the FlexiJack on the X-Fi audio card.  Right?  Or am I missing something?  It does make me nervous to leave unplugged the analog input.  

Any suggestions?


----------



## eidairaman1 (Dec 27, 2008)

Ask people over on the Creative Labs Forums for Assistance in hooking your system up.



On another note, i hope these latest stable drivers are better than the betas ive tried in the past, as they would cause lag spikes, i wound up goin with a driver from 2006.


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## mamoose124 (Dec 27, 2008)

Hey, I have already asked the Creative Labs Forum Tech's for help.  They responded but I was hopeful of getting a second opinion from others.  It looks to me like all I need to do is purchase a mini-stereo adapter for my RCA cord and plug it into the X-Fi's FlexiJack.  Should I also plug in the analog line to X-Fi's line out 2?   What do you think?


----------



## mikek75 (Dec 27, 2008)

A late joiner to the party, I've just upgraded my Audigy 4 to an X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fata1ity Pro. Definitely impressed with the sound quality so far, with the Crystalizer on in FarCry 2 the reports from the rifles are fantastic. Running the latest drivers without any issues so far, although I only have a 2.1 speaker set.  

I reckon I got a good deal, PC World (of all places) were selling it at £50, half the price of the current Xtreme Gamer which was £97. Sure, the X Ram will probably never be used but I feel the upgrade was still well worth it


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Dec 27, 2008)

mikek75 said:


> A late joiner to the party, I've just upgraded my Audigy 4 to an X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fata1ity Pro. Definitely impressed with the sound quality so far, with the Crystalizer on in FarCry 2 the reports from the rifles are fantastic. Running the latest drivers without any issues so far, although I only have a 2.1 speaker set.
> 
> I reckon I got a good deal, PC World (of all places) were selling it at £50, half the price of the current Xtreme Gamer which was £97. Sure, the X Ram will probably never be used but I feel the upgrade was still well worth it



for £50???? was it in their 'bargain' section?? even if it was wrapped in cling film i doubt they would sell it that cheaply - thats what happend with a set of Logitech V20 speakers - they were just sitting there - no box, no manual, no additional cables or accessories - & how much do u think they were selling it for???? £10 off the full retail price which made me ROFL in the assistants face for like 5mins before i was able to tell her i didnt want them.

Marketing like that is hilarious - like the time i was in a Sainsbury's supermarket & they had a sign above boxs of peeled shrimp that said something along the lines of this - *"Sainsbury's keeps tabs with all supermarket retailers to ensure they wont be beaten on price"*

THEY were selling the shrimp @ 1p less per box then Asda - a fact they also quoted on their little note thing.


I love people/retailers who think their curing cancer by lowing their prices by 1p.


----------



## Elementlmage (Dec 28, 2008)

Yes yes, I have worked retail, and I too know of such rofltacos. I have never understood the way management thinks. They honestly think they are going to sell an open box used item with half the crap missing for a mere 10 percent discount. For some reason they seem to think that if they take more off they are losing money. When in fact, they fail to realize that said item has already been bought and paid for... by the store. So, in fact, by not selling the item (which they definitely won't at that pathetic discount) they are losing more money than if they were to just put 30 percent off. Better to lose 30 percent than 100...


----------



## mikek75 (Dec 28, 2008)

FreedomEclipse said:


> for £50???? was it in their 'bargain' section?? even if it was wrapped in cling film i doubt they would sell it that cheaply - thats what happend with a set of Logitech V20 speakers - they were just sitting there - no box, no manual, no additional cables or accessories - & how much do u think they were selling it for???? £10 off the full retail price which made me ROFL in the assistants face for like 5mins before i was able to tell her i didnt want them.
> 
> Marketing like that is hilarious - like the time i was in a Sainsbury's supermarket & they had a sign above boxs of peeled shrimp that said something along the lines of this - *"Sainsbury's keeps tabs with all supermarket retailers to ensure they wont be beaten on price"*
> 
> ...


Straight up bud, no shit. Go to PC Worlds' site and have a look for yourself. Fully boxed and sealed too. I had to drive 35 miles to get it at the Gloucester store, but I'm glad I did. Just loaded up Quake 4 and with the X-FI, 4870 and 1920x1080 on Ultra Textures I nearly shat meself, LOL
http://www.pcworld.co.uk/martprd/st...null&sm=null&tm=null&sku=289718&category_oid=


----------



## Elementlmage (Dec 28, 2008)

Zgrats on an excellent purchase mon friar. I hope it brings you many years of beautiful music. And just to be witless... once you go black, you never go back.  *Holds up a Guinness* To another successful conversion!


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## imperialreign (Dec 28, 2008)

Elementlmage said:


> Ya, snagged me those last night. Had to do an emergency re-install and checked for new driver sets instead of using my back-ups. Haven't had a chance to test them out yet, but it looks like they added a few nice things for Vista users... even though it appears it doesn't  have true Bluray support for Vista yet. I wonder if they have any plans to make Media Source BD/HD-DVD compatible?



On BR support - not certain yet.  Technically, any audio card is capable of supporting HD-DVD audio quality playback (24b/192kHz), but only in 2-channel mode - this is the only mode this audio is encoded in.  But, not sure what features might be supported in the future, only time will tell . . . it's possible, seeing as how the Titaniums are the first X-Fis to fully support Dolby encoding.




FreedomEclipse said:


> I think somebody should write to or email Creative & let them know that they 'DO' _Acutaly_ have a card called 'Titanium Fata1ty Professional' floating out on the deep blue market & _'Actualy'_ write some new drivers for us....
> 
> Last official drivers (unless im wrong - so i havent looked but i know the latest 2.18.008 pack wont have anything for me/us/idiots who bought a Titanium Fata1ity Professional) were last August. A few bugs have then since then appeard - such as FALLOUT 3 - breaking the console.
> 
> & i know you dont tolerate bashing on this thread, please allow me to vent my frustration in this 1 post.




I don't have much of a problem with people airing their grievances with Creative on occasion, as long as they at least try to provide some reason aside from the "they just suck" excuse so common with the majority of bashers . . . and as long as negative comments don't get too out of control . . .

but, in regards to your issue - it might be possible it could be an issue with the game not backing out properly . . . doubtful, but possible.

Curious - were you using EAX (does FO3 even support EAX?)?



mamoose124 said:


> Just found this Forum.  Have been reviewing posts.  Looks as though you folks may be able to help.  This will be a long post as I want to be clear that there is no problem with my X-Fi but rather my problem is the proper way to hook my card up to an old set of speakers.  Hopefully the following will explain:
> 
> I have a problem.  Recently, my on board sound system quite working.  I decided to purchase a Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatality Pro.  So far so good.  However, my speaker system is about ten years old and although it still works flawlessly, its two audio inputs (analog & S/PDIF) don't jibe with my new sound card (I think?).  At least I am confused regarding how to hook things up.
> 
> ...




hmmm . . .

I get the feeling the one mini-jack connection coming from your speakers is for the left/right channel speakers.  If this is true, this connection with go into line_out 1.

The RCA cable sounds like it feeds the subwoofer seperately (although I can't be 100% certain), but if this is true, you'd need a mini-jack to RCA adapter that would plug into line_out 3 (center/sub channel).

Again, this is just kinda a guess - it sounds like you have a rather unconventional hook-up configuration for common computer speakers.


----------



## kysg (Dec 28, 2008)

hmmm I just thought about something how many games actually utilize EAX...I know there is a ton but there are some I question though, because for some reason they just advertise on the back of the box.  Like GRID....


Also what would be a good set of headphones for these.  I may go cheap and get Sennhd201's but if anyone has any other suggestions I'm open, Selling off my x540's because I'll be moving pretty soon here I hope.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 28, 2008)

kysg said:


> hmmm I just thought about something how many games actually utilize EAX...I know there is a ton but there are some I question though, because for some reason they just advertise on the back of the box.  Like GRID....
> 
> 
> Also what would be a good set of headphones for these.  I may go cheap and get Sennhd201's but if anyone has any other suggestions I'm open, Selling off my x540's because I'll be moving pretty soon here I hope.




As to EAX - it's become a little ambiguous . . . any game that uses OpenAL can technically claim to support EAX.  Although I'm sure to use the EAX image and all they must pay some kind of royalty for it . . .

OpenAL pretty much includes EAX 2.0 extensions, and the EAX 2.0 SDK is free, IIRC, and the OpenAL SKD is 100% free.  So, any developer that feels like using these audio extensions can get away with it, and technically support EAX (although it might no be EAX 5-HD).

Take STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl, for example, it supports EAX and Open AL . . . but only EAX 2.0.



Oh, and on the headphones . . . it's a little rough to recommend something.  Altec Lansing makes some good headsets, some of the 5.1 headsets are great (if you're willing to pay for them) . . . theres just so much on the market, though . . . just make sure to do some reading before making a purchase.  Look up reviews, look if other's have post their opinions, etc.  Take it all with a grain of salt, though, not all users who share their comments on a specific product might have the "ear" to really back up their statements - same goes for reviewers as well.  I see a lot of reviews for speakers, etc where they're reamed by users for stoopid reasons that have nothing to do with output quality nor build quality.


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## kysg (Dec 28, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> As to EAX - it's become a little ambiguous . . . any game that uses OpenAL can technically claim to support EAX.  Although I'm sure to use the EAX image and all they must pay some kind of royalty for it . . .
> 
> OpenAL pretty much includes EAX 2.0 extensions, and the EAX 2.0 SDK is free, IIRC, and the OpenAL SKD is 100% free.  So, any developer that feels like using these audio extensions can get away with it, and technically support EAX (although it might no be EAX 5-HD).
> 
> ...



Yea this is true. In audio land it's always tough trying to find that right piece of equipment, that goes for speakers, headphones, headsets, heck even the audiophile setup.  but I'll take a look though, sennhd201's were the first thing that came to my mind though.


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## Elementlmage (Dec 28, 2008)

I've heard that the Senn 280's are a nice set for the money. However, if you have the spare scratch I would suggest doling out $250 for the 580's or the full $380 for the 650's. Personally, I will never use anything other than Sennheiser ever again. There shear level of build and sound quality is amazing. I have dropped my 650's on solid concrete well over a dozen times and they sound just as good as the day I bought them.(They got a few scratches and dents, but nothing major). I have never listened to anything the same way after owning these. Which may or may not be a good thing, as I have now acquired champagne taste on a beer budget. 


Also, a slight caveat, almost all of the full sized headset from Sennheiser have around a 100 hour break in period. When you first get them they sound like crap. The best thing to do is gather up all of the unused pillows and blankets and bury the headset. Then leave it on for a while with the volume fully cranked. In about 12 hours you will have a great sound that will be more than tolerable until the break-in period has passed.


(Estimated prices from Newegg.com)


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## FreedomEclipse (Dec 28, 2008)

mikek75 said:


> Straight up bud, no shit. Go to PC Worlds' site and have a look for yourself. Fully boxed and sealed too. I had to drive 35 miles to get it at the Gloucester store, but I'm glad I did. Just loaded up Quake 4 and with the X-FI, 4870 and 1920x1080 on Ultra Textures I nearly shat meself, LOL
> http://www.pcworld.co.uk/martprd/st...null&sm=null&tm=null&sku=289718&category_oid=



thats a great offer!!! but its probably a lot easier for you to get to Glouchester from where you are  - obviously petrol didnt cost you too much otherwise you'd probably paying the equivalent for the other XFi cards that are bought localy/online.

shame they dont do home deliveries with that offer which makes pc world that bit much more gay


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## mikek75 (Dec 28, 2008)

Ah yes, but it was Boxing Day and at least it got me out of the house, LOL.

EDIT: Colin Mcrae DiRT uses Open AL and says EAX Advanced HD on the sound setup screen


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## FreedomEclipse (Dec 28, 2008)

Boxing day??? sorry i was lying in a gutter somewhere in london witha terrible headache - couldnt go anywhere


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## mikek75 (Dec 28, 2008)

LOL, I'm originally from London too bud, I vaguely remember Christmas there too. Quiet life in the country for me now. Its my age y'know! Too many squat parties when I was a dispatch rider...Anyone for K?


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## kenkickr (Dec 28, 2008)

Last night my daughter and I watched "Tinkerbell" for the 2nd time...what can I say, I like it!! J/K  I couldn't get over how much cleaner and crisp the sound is now.  I'm highly impressed with the X-Fi Titanium Pro.

What's up with the activation key on the CD Sleeve?  When I brought the card home I just downloaded the driver, Alchemey, DTS and Dolby packages, and the audio control center; and haven't had any issues.


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## imperialreign (Dec 28, 2008)

kenkickr said:


> Last night my daughter and I watched "Tinkerbell" for the 2nd time...what can I say, I like it!! J/K  I couldn't get over how much cleaner and crisp the sound is now.  I'm highly impressed with the X-Fi Titanium Pro.
> 
> What's up with the activation key on the CD Sleeve?  When I brought the card home I just downloaded the driver, Alchemey, DTS and Dolby packages, and the audio control center; and haven't had any issues.



Activation key? 

That's the first I heard of it . . . I honestly couldn't tell ya, man . . . maybe for a software demo or something, IDK . . .



@mamoose124 - it dawned on me after my last post . . . the RCA connection is probably for digital SPDIF . . .

if so, there's no digital connection to the back of the PCI-based X-Fi cards.  You would need either the Digital I/O module (~$20) or the external X-Fi I/O console to connect the RCA cable.

The external consle connects to the 26-pin D-Sub connector, and your RCA connection will attach to the console.

The I/O module connects to the line_in and line_out connections on the back of the card, and converts the analogue signal back to digital (IIRC).


----------



## human_error (Dec 28, 2008)

Thought i'd pop in here and register that i have a titanium championship edition (pci-e with front module).

It's in my system listed under my system spec (p6t deluxe, i7 920, 6gb ram, vista 64) and i'm getting serious crackling and popping with all versions of their drivers.

I've tried the card in all 3 of my spare pci-e slots (1 is in use for graphics card) and it doesn't seem to fix the issue, which looks to be driver related as if i run off vista's default drivers i get very little/no crackling but as soon as i install the creative drivers the crackling returns. I have had once when i had reseated the card in another pcie slot and re-installed all the drivers after a system restore that the card ran wonderfully (like my old xfi platinum on my old rig) with full accleration, but after the pc had been shutdown over night starting her up next day it had the crackling issues back  

One other issue i get it when i am having the crackling issue sometimes game or entertainment mode won't work (no sound comes out the speakers at all for anything) and switching round to audio creation and back sometimes fixes it, sometimes it requires a full restart. When it is able to output sound but when there is no sound to play i also get a lot of noise down the speakers as well which is some sort of electrical noise (happens in my headphones connected to the front port as well, so it isn't a connection issue). The crackling seems to be some sort of excessive bass (or sounds like what would happen if i pushed a lot of base through my speakers, though it isn't the speakers themselves as they can deal with more base than what is being outputted).

I've tried the drivers on the cd, the latest whql drivers from their site (17. something) and the 17. something beta drivers from their site, the 18.something ones recently released are not available for the card at the moment  I've also used the card in 3 different pci-e slots, disabled all overclocking, messed with all the settings in all the control panel options, enabled and disabled the digital output, reseated the card and nothing seems to be working, so any more ideas you guys have would be greatly appreciated.

I'm using a 5.1 philips surround sound kit which i've had for 3 years and worked brilliantly with my xfi platinum.


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## imperialreign (Dec 28, 2008)

human_error said:


> Thought i'd pop in here and register that i have a titanium championship edition (pci-e with front module).
> 
> It's in my system listed under my system spec (p6t deluxe, i7 920, 6gb ram, vista 64) and i'm getting serious crackling and popping with all versions of their drivers.
> 
> ...




All driver versions cause isues, right?

Do you have another system with a similar operating system you could try out?  There have been a few issues in the past with more than 4GB of RAM and Vista64 setups . . .


But, honestly, I get the feeling it might be due to the new hardware.  There hasn't been a driver release for the Titanium cards yet since the i7 platforms rolled out . . . what you're describing sounds like hardware related issues, like the device IRQ being given too low a priority for the system (the crackling and popping is typically a result of not having enough access to the system BUS).  Not being able to switch to entertainment mode sounds like a broken driver issue . . . but could still be hardware related.


For the moment, the only other recommendation I could make would be to try a clean-install of the drivers.  Use the setup utility found in the Creative folders on your HDD and remove all drivers and software.  Then use Driver Sweeper in Safe Mode to finish removing all Creative-related files and references.  Follow that up with a good registry cleaner for anything else.  Then install the drivers and software - start with the instalation CD first.  If that works out and you have no issues, my best advice is to leave it alone and not worry about any updated drivers - unless you're really willing to give them a shot.  In general, I've gotten to the point of recommending things be left alon once you have a driver set that works . . .

The only idea past that would require formating the HDD and re-installing the OS; once the OS is installed, install chipset drivers, then install the X-Fi drivers before any video drivers, if you can, put the card in the closest sot to the CPU - if your motherboard has onboard video, run off that first as well without any GPUs in the PCIE slots.  I'm not definite on Vista, but XP only passes out temporary, default IRQs to new devices until the drivers are installed.  Once the drivers are installed, it's permanent, and it's almost impossible to change a device's IRQ without some serious registry hacks.



Truthfully, though, I get the feeling it's that the drivers aren't fully compatible with the new hardware just yet - if you're not up for trying out the advice I posted just above, you might want to consider being patient until the next Titanium driver package is out . . . but, I have no idea when that would be (I'm hoping soon, the PCI cards and Xtreme Audio just recieved driver updates).


----------



## human_error (Dec 28, 2008)

Thanks, i'll try and do a full clean of all my drivers (using driver cleaner.net) in safe mode and see if that helps. I don't think it is a hardware conflict as it did work fine once, with full acceleration, if there was a hardware conflict i'd have thought that it would have prevented it working even once...

I do have a 2gb vista 64 rig in my house i can try and use, but it only has 1 pci-e slot so i need to remove the graphics card when i test (and use onboard) which takes a while, i'll try that later today/tomorrow if a full system clean doesn't do the trick. Unfortunately i dont have any onboard video on my rig's mobo, and i only have a couple of high end gpus spare in my house, all ATi.

One other issue i noticed since i installed the new sound card is when i do get issues with it the computer never shuts down correctly, it goes to the shutting down screen and then is happy to remain there forever (i just remembered as all my G15 lcd apps were reset when i started up, as i had to just hit the reset button to get the machine to shutdown and startup after removing the creative drivers earlier...). I never had any issues like that before I installed the new card.

UPDATE: Just installed the latest whql drivers on their website onto a clean system and i'm getting the issues still  I have noticed odd behaviour with it - when i hover over different things on my start menu it makes a odd noise each time i move over new ones, like a faint electrical hum, through the speakers. When scrolling through firefox pages with no sound embedded i get a faint noise that sounds like what you get if you blow onto a microphone (no my mic isn't plugged in) - this is looking a lot like a driver issue to me...


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## mamoose124 (Dec 28, 2008)

hmmm . . .

I get the feeling the one mini-jack connection coming from your speakers is for the left/right channel speakers.  If this is true, this connection with go into line_out 1.

The RCA cable sounds like it feeds the subwoofer seperately (although I can't be 100% certain), but if this is true, you'd need a mini-jack to RCA adapter that would plug into line_out 3 (center/sub channel).

Again, this is just kinda a guess - it sounds like you have a rather unconventional hook-up configuration for common computer speakers.[/QUOTE]

Yes, the mini-stereo cable is essentially the analog signals from the left & right speakers and should connect to Line_out 1.  I agree that the RCA cable needs a mini-stereo adapter on one end but since this cable transmits S/PDIF signals shouldn't it be connected to the X-Fi's FlexiJack which supports S/PDIf connections?  This is where I am confused.  Why hook this cable to Line_out 3 (center/Sub channel) which does not handle S/PDIF signals?


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 29, 2008)

mamoose124 said:


> Yes, the mini-stereo cable is essentially the analog signals from the left & right speakers and should connect to Line_out 1.  I agree that the RCA cable needs a mini-stereo adapter on one end but since this cable transmits S/PDIF signals shouldn't it be connected to the X-Fi's FlexiJack which supports S/PDIf connections?  This is where I am confused.  Why hook this cable to Line_out 3 (center/Sub channel) which does not handle S/PDIF signals?



Well - you're right, if the RCA cable is SPDIF, then it'd need a RCA<=>mini-jack adapter, which would connect to the flexi-jack (which is Mic_out).

If the RCA simply carries the bass signal to the subwoofer it'd connect to line_out3.





human_error said:


> Thanks, i'll try and do a full clean of all my drivers (using driver cleaner.net) in safe mode and see if that helps. I don't think it is a hardware conflict as it did work fine once, with full acceleration, if there was a hardware conflict i'd have thought that it would have prevented it working even once...
> 
> I do have a 2gb vista 64 rig in my house i can try and use, but it only has 1 pci-e slot so i need to remove the graphics card when i test (and use onboard) which takes a while, i'll try that later today/tomorrow if a full system clean doesn't do the trick. Unfortunately i dont have any onboard video on my rig's mobo, and i only have a couple of high end gpus spare in my house, all ATi.
> 
> ...




the sounds you claim when moving the mouse . . . sounds like it's picking up noise being induced by the USB on the BUS . . . this has become quite common with various audio cards, and can be tricky to eliminate.

First, though, I'd recommend trying to get to the bottom of the audio issues . . . the hanging shut-down sequence defi sounds like a driver related problem . . . perhaps try lowering your system RAM to 2GB or 3GB for testing purposes, and see how it acts overall.

also, what kind of USB devices do you have hooked up and operating ATM?  Some devices, or some USB chanels, can throw a wrench in the whole works and for some reason (that I still don't understand) cause features to not work, or other strange issues.


----------



## human_error (Dec 29, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> the sounds you claim when moving the mouse . . . sounds like it's picking up noise being induced by the USB on the BUS . . . this has become quite common with various audio cards, and can be tricky to eliminate.
> 
> First, though, I'd recommend trying to get to the bottom of the audio issues . . . the hanging shut-down sequence defi sounds like a driver related problem . . . perhaps try lowering your system RAM to 2GB or 3GB for testing purposes, and see how it acts overall.
> 
> also, what kind of USB devices do you have hooked up and operating ATM?  Some devices, or some USB chanels, can throw a wrench in the whole works and for some reason (that I still don't understand) cause features to not work, or other strange issues.



I've tried the system with a single 2Gb stick and the issue was still there. The hanging seems to be the sound drivers doing a LOT of work, it has resolved itself now as i left my pc for 35 mins when it eventually shut down correctly and was ok since shutdown wise.

USB devices i have a logitech G7 wireless mouse, the wireless receiver is a looong way from the tower and it didn't affect my xfi platinum card, my keyboard is a logitech G15 rev 1 with the lcd screen, those drivers are upto date and have no audio modifying applications installed. I also have a logitech joystick installed, but because the drivers for it are notorious for causing lag issues in some of my online games i am using the vista default drivers for it. I also have the USB overclocking palm device that came with my mobo, again on latest drivers.

I installed the card in another PC with vista 64 and 4gb ram but on an OEM motherboard and an AMD 4400+ in it and i still got the issues with the noise (and when moving the mouse). The usb devices in that are a logitech g11 (no lcd) keyboard and a logitech wireless mouse. I got the same issues with the different drivers available however im unsure on the stability on the oem board as after i finished testing on it i put a spare audoligy pci card into it and it isn't detecting it, although that is probably an unrelated issue. It may be that the card is faulty since it doesnt work in either rig, what do you think? (i'm gonna return it tomorrow, depending on what you think i may get a straight swap for a replacement or just get my money back).


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 30, 2008)

human_error said:


> I've tried the system with a single 2Gb stick and the issue was still there. The hanging seems to be the sound drivers doing a LOT of work, it has resolved itself now as i left my pc for 35 mins when it eventually shut down correctly and was ok since shutdown wise.
> 
> USB devices i have a logitech G7 wireless mouse, the wireless receiver is a looong way from the tower and it didn't affect my xfi platinum card, my keyboard is a logitech G15 rev 1 with the lcd screen, those drivers are upto date and have no audio modifying applications installed. I also have a logitech joystick installed, but because the drivers for it are notorious for causing lag issues in some of my online games i am using the vista default drivers for it. I also have the USB overclocking palm device that came with my mobo, again on latest drivers.
> 
> I installed the card in another PC with vista 64 and 4gb ram but on an OEM motherboard and an AMD 4400+ in it and i still got the issues with the noise (and when moving the mouse). The usb devices in that are a logitech g11 (no lcd) keyboard and a logitech wireless mouse. I got the same issues with the different drivers available however im unsure on the stability on the oem board as after i finished testing on it i put a spare audoligy pci card into it and it isn't detecting it, although that is probably an unrelated issue. It may be that the card is faulty since it doesnt work in either rig, what do you think? (i'm gonna return it tomorrow, depending on what you think i may get a straight swap for a replacement or just get my money back).



The Audigy, IIRC doesn't have supported Vista drivers.


The reason I mentioned the USB stuff - I've had one incident myself, and I've seen a few other incidents, where having a certain USB device will (for some unknown reason) disable some features . . . such as hardware acceleration (which includes all EAX, CMSS-3D, Crystalizer features), sometimes it's only one audio feature and not another, sometimes it prevents switching hardware mode . . .

I've seen where swapping around devices on the USB hubs can clear this issue up, other times (such as with my case), the device simply needs to be left disconnected.

It's strange, and I wish I had further knoweldge as to what causes it - whether it's and OS/chipset issue, hardware issue, or driver issue.


Hmmm . . . another thought, if you might be up for it - you could always attempt to clear out the Creative drivers again, and instead install 3rd-party drivers from over at YouP-PAX: http://hosted.filefront.com/robertmc814 . . . I believe there might be some X-Fi daniel_k drivers floating around as well, but many of those seem to be disappearing . . .

but, be aware installing 3rd party drivers is at your own risk . . . I've never gotten around to trying any of them out, so I have no idea how well they'll work.  Based on community response, they seem stable . . . 

TBH, I can't really think of much else aside from a possibly defective card . . . if you try 3rd party drivers, and it's acting *exactly* the same as it is now, it's quite possible something on the card is defective.


----------



## human_error (Dec 30, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> The Audigy, IIRC doesn't have supported Vista drivers.
> 
> 
> The reason I mentioned the USB stuff - I've had one incident myself, and I've seen a few other incidents, where having a certain USB device will (for some unknown reason) disable some features . . . such as hardware acceleration (which includes all EAX, CMSS-3D, Crystalizer features), sometimes it's only one audio feature and not another, sometimes it prevents switching hardware mode . . .
> ...



I have noticed that the card is picking up some usb signals from some of my usb devices (no matter what port they are in) but this only happens when running the card off of creative's drivers, when on the vista default drivers i don't get any of the noise at all, to add to the confusion when using the latest whql drivers now the card will sometimes vanish from device manager and only registry cleaning and re-installing the drivers does it return in all it's crappy noise glory. I have had a quick look and can't see any other devices with the same IRQ as the card when it is installed, however there are about a gajillion different devices under device manager so i can't manually check them all, is there an IRQ chacker that could do a check for me? (in case it has the same irq as say, a usb hub ).

I've tried fully emi shielding it with sealed water containers all around it (or as much as poss) and that doesn't affect the noise, plus when vista is set to mute i still get the noise and sounds through, almost as if the card is completely unaware it is sending the noise out, but this isn't a hardware defect as it doesn't happen when using the vista default drivers (well i don't think it is a hardware defect, but i'm more of a gpu man - sound cards are not my expertise).

I did try the PAX christmas drivers but they didnt seem to install properly, i'll give them a final attempt now - i made a thread on the creative forums where someone with a x38 is having similar problems and someone with a x58 based mobo gave some steps that made theirs work, though they had a different issue with the mic. I have also experimented with all the pci-e settings in my bios, i've tried ocing the pci-e frequency, boosting the voltage, changing the pcie-e spectrum settings (whatever they do  ) none of which helped...

I also emailed creative about the issue, but i doubt they will come back with anything constructive, i was a pre release adopter of the retail version of vista ultimate 64 and they denied they had any serious driver issues to me with vista just before vista was officially released, and we all know how stable they were back then 

Thanks for your thoughts with this problem, i've decided to keep the card a couple more days since it's a 2.5 hour trip to return it to see if creative - or more likely you guys can come up with a solution...

(oh and there are some vista 64 audology drivers available from creative, but i think it's a audology 2 or something, the drivers just lack 99.99% of all xp functionality).


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 30, 2008)

human_error said:


> I have noticed that the card is picking up some usb signals from some of my usb devices (no matter what port they are in) but this only happens when running the card off of creative's drivers, when on the vista default drivers i don't get any of the noise at all, to add to the confusion when using the latest whql drivers now the card will sometimes vanish from device manager and only registry cleaning and re-installing the drivers does it return in all it's crappy noise glory. I have had a quick look and can't see any other devices with the same IRQ as the card when it is installed, however there are about a gajillion different devices under device manager so i can't manually check them all, is there an IRQ chacker that could do a check for me? (in case it has the same irq as say, a usb hub ).
> 
> I've tried fully emi shielding it with sealed water containers all around it (or as much as poss) and that doesn't affect the noise, plus when vista is set to mute i still get the noise and sounds through, almost as if the card is completely unaware it is sending the noise out, but this isn't a hardware defect as it doesn't happen when using the vista default drivers (well i don't think it is a hardware defect, but i'm more of a gpu man - sound cards are not my expertise).
> 
> ...



Sorry I can't really be of much further help, man - 

TBh, what kinda leads me to believe the card might possibly be defective is how the issues mimic both hardware and driver issues - usually it's symptoms of one or the other.  Although, defective cards do happen, and quite frankly, it's more noticeable than should something be defective on a video card. 

Anyhow, if you do run across a solution that works, be sure to let me know!


As to asking Creative what to do - I can tell you their response without even thinking about it - clean and reinstall the drivers

Oh, and be careful fiddling with PCIE settings in BIOS - they'll affect your video cards, as well as any other devices that are piped into the PCIE BUS.

Good luck, man!


----------



## MrHydes (Dec 30, 2008)

have anyone notest that switching beetween modes [Game] to [entertainment] and vice-versa, the cpu utilization in the task bar manager, 
it jumps to almost 90% easily 

and how about X-FI processes?

volpanlu.exe uses 20,200k   
CTxfispi.exe       344,468k   
CTXfihlp.exe         4,668k    :shadedshu

not to mention...
CTsched.exe
CTaudsvc.exe

i have X-FI titanium & Z5500 in XP PRO 32 SP3







the PF usage is so high because this screen was taken after game play session
after reboot usally is under 300MB of mem usage. i have some win servces apps disabled
and wierd apps too.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 30, 2008)

CPU utilization will spike when changing hardware modes, but it typically won't stay that way.  The spike is due to changing the actual hardware configuration that the drivers will be accessing.  The change is somewhat similar to if you enable Crossfire or SLI to go from one GPU to two GPUs.  There's a very intense accessing of the system to make it happen . . .



As to the services - the volume panel typically runs lower, unless you run it at startup.  Personally, I prevent it from loading during startup, and just open it as needed - volume settings will stay the same, as it makes those changes within the WIN control panel.  Just for example - with my setup, Volpanelu.exe uses 11,212k

some of the others can be done away with:

ctsched.exe - I believe this is the service that will routinely check Creative's site for driver and application updates . . . TBH, it's not a major necessity; as well, it's not always 100% accurate.

ctaudsvc.exe - should leave this one, required for proper operation of the device drivers.

ctxfihlp.exe - not required - allows for acessing the X-fi installed manual, as well as the diagnostics and speaker-setup wizards (IIRC).

ctxfispi.exe - allows for proper operation of the flexi-jack and headphone detection.  Not needed if not used.  (although, I find the amount of resources this service is using on your system to be a cause for concern . . . I've never seen it use more than 15k, usually about 7k).


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## MrHydes (Dec 30, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> CPU utilization will spike when changing hardware modes, but it typically won't stay that way.  The spike is due to changing the actual hardware configuration that the drivers will be accessing.  The change is somewhat similar to if you enable Crossfire or SLI to go from one GPU to two GPUs.  There's a very intense accessing of the system to make it happen . . .
> 
> 
> 
> ...



thanks a lot mate 






yes that CTxfispi really worries me i'll reboot later and check it, could be a worm or some
conflict/bug whatever i'll pay attention to it

what about audioengine licensing service, can it be disabled in services?

the flexijack is needed when we are using analog, so i need it, even though i switch 
 DAC and analog


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## imperialreign (Dec 31, 2008)

As a general rule of thumb - most non-system realted services that are idle shouldn't require that much memory . . . if they do, they're either a running and busy application, or otherwise - and typically up to no good.

Not all sevices are like this, some do procure insane amounts of memory.

I'd defi double check the system with a couple of anti-malware apps, at the extreme, I'd cleanout then re-install the drivers.


I've also gotten into the habit of running a registry cleaner after any driver update, for any hardware - it's not always necessary, but tidies up loose ends and keeps everything runing smoothly.



The other services - I'm not 100% sure as to what the audio engine licensing service does.  It can probably safely be disabled - It's installed on my system as well, but it's set to manual start, and has been that way for a very long time - I've never needed it.  you could always try that with some of the services.  Go to Start>Run>services.msc - from there you can set a service to disabled, automatic or manual start, as well as either start or stop the service itself.

For most services, setting them to manual will prevent them from loading with WIN, but will start the service if you run an application that requires it.  Some, though, won't, and you'll need to manually start the service yourself (i.e. Windows Defender).


----------



## MrHydes (Dec 31, 2008)

imperialreign said:


> The other services - I'm not 100% sure as to what the audio engine licensing service does.  It can probably safely be disabled - It's installed on my system as well, but it's set to manual start, and has been that way for a very long time - I've never needed it.  you could always try that with some of the services.  Go to Start>Run>services.msc - from there you can set a service to disabled, automatic or manual start, as well as either start or stop the service itself.
> 
> For most services, setting them to manual will prevent them from loading with WIN, but will start the service if you run an application that requires it.  Some, though, won't, and you'll need to manually start the service yourself (i.e. Windows Defender).



the procedure of cleaning, and driver update you do as i do, probably we just use diferent tools, and i've checked services.msc and saw that mine allready is set to manual.

i'll provide further results on this issue later, thank you so mutch for your attention and wise support imperialreign


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## imperialreign (Dec 31, 2008)

MrHydes said:


> the procedure of cleaning, and driver update you do as i do, probably we just use diferent tools, and i've checked services.msc and saw that mine allready is set to manual.
> 
> i'll provide further results on this issue later, thank you so mutch for your attention and wise support imperialreign



ain't a problem, man! 

Let me know what you find out behind the ctxfispi.exe services - I'm curious as to what might be causing such resource usage.


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## Kursah (Jan 2, 2009)

Well, I am getting an X-Fi Platinum (card only) to replace my recently sold X-Fi Xtreme Music. I sold my card because my gaming buddy lost his onboard sound, and wanted an X-Fi, gave me the cash..I had spent all day looking, found an Xtreme Music on Ebay and Shadowfold just happened to be getting ready to sell his X-Fi and gave me dibs on it which I took up right away. Got it for a good deal, granted I'm broke and it was all the money I had left, lol I can't live too long w/onboard sound lol. Not after having my X-Fi for so long, and in my searching it seems to me that creative cards have gone up in price since I last looked a while back...that was kind of a bummer.

But I'm doing some researching on my "new" X-Fi, seems to be an Xtreme Music w/the front bay and remote junk, since I'm getting card only (which is great, I didn't want the rest!  ), is there anything else in difference between the Music and Platinum series? My Music had a heatsink on it, the Platinum doesn't, it's got the sticker, but I can fix that if need-be. My Xtreme Music heatsink never really got beyond luke-warm to the touch.

I'm just curious if it might use better op-amps or have slightly better sound quality, I'm not worried about it not having X-Ram. My Xtreme Music works great in Vista x64, and made my speakers and Turtle Beach HPA2 headset sound great for everything...just curious of your knowlege of this card imperial...I'm digging through google..but I'll check back. Also please add me to the list!


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## imperialreign (Jan 2, 2009)

Kursah said:


> Well, I am getting an X-Fi Platinum (card only) to replace my recently sold X-Fi Xtreme Music. I sold my card because my gaming buddy lost his onboard sound, and wanted an X-Fi, gave me the cash..I had spent all day looking, found an Xtreme Music on Ebay and Shadowfold just happened to be getting ready to sell his X-Fi and gave me dibs on it which I took up right away. Got it for a good deal, granted I'm broke and it was all the money I had left, lol I can't live too long w/onboard sound lol. Not after having my X-Fi for so long, and in my searching it seems to me that creative cards have gone up in price since I last looked a while back...that was kind of a bummer.
> 
> But I'm doing some researching on my "new" X-Fi, seems to be an Xtreme Music w/the front bay and remote junk, since I'm getting card only (which is great, I didn't want the rest!  ), is there anything else in difference between the Music and Platinum series? My Music had a heatsink on it, the Platinum doesn't, it's got the sticker, but I can fix that if need-be. My Xtreme Music heatsink never really got beyond luke-warm to the touch.
> 
> I'm just curious if it might use better op-amps or have slightly better sound quality, I'm not worried about it not having X-Ram. My Xtreme Music works great in Vista x64, and made my speakers and Turtle Beach HPA2 headset sound great for everything...just curious of your knowlege of this card imperial...I'm digging through google..but I'll check back. Also please add me to the list!




added 

as to your question - there's no difference between the Xtreme Music, and the card that was offered with the Platinum series.  Hardware is identicle.  OPAMPs, DAC, ADC, etc.  There might be a difference in caps, as Creative change brands of caps occasionally, but these only have a very marginal difference on output quality between the brands.  There might be a difference in the amount of RAM on the card - I've seen reports of some that have 32MB, some with 64MB.  32MB is the most common.  All XM cards do have DRAM on them, though.

Sad it's not used more frequently . . . y'know, I had come to find out about a month ago that it's not just the Creative's EAX instructions that can make use of the XRAM . . . the OpenAL API has an instruction set for accessing and using XRAM, or potentially other audio-onboard DRAM modules . . . I can't imagine how invaluable this would be in Vista; heck, even ASUS could start offering onboard DRAM with their cards - then everyone juse needs to push software developers to make use of it with the EAX/OpenAL API.

Anyhow, the Platinum was one of the earlier revision packages (hence why no HS on the APU), and was removed from the market once the Fatal1ty Champion series was released, and the stand-alone Xtreme Music was removed soon thereafter as well.  The only thing that the Platinum offered that stood out from the XM was the 5.25" bay Front Panel drive (which is an $80 value by itself).

Oh, and I'd recommend installing a HS on that APU!


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## Kursah (Jan 2, 2009)

Cool, well I can handle having the same sound ouput and quality. I'll have to find an HS and some AC cermaique or something similar lol. We'll see how it goes when I get the card, I'm still using my buddies' rig atm . But it'll be returned pretty soon and I'll be stuck with onboard till my next x-fi shows up.


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## imperialreign (Jan 2, 2009)

Creative have released a new version of the Console Launcher, version 2.60.35 for the *USB Surround Sound 5.1* and *USB X-Fi Xtreme Audio Karaoke*

release notes:




> This download contains the Creative Console Launcher application for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Surround 5.1 / USB Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio Karaoke. For more information, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following audio devices only:*
> 
> ...


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 2, 2009)

Kursah said:


> Cool, well I can handle having the same sound ouput and quality. I'll have to find an HS and some AC cermaique or something similar lol. We'll see how it goes when I get the card, I'm still using my buddies' rig atm . But it'll be returned pretty soon and I'll be stuck with onboard till my next x-fi shows up.



at least ya've got a replacement en-route! 


The HS doesn't have to be anything fancy . . . I've recommended before a good copper, stick-on style 40mm HS from CoolerMaster or something similar.  Preferably something not too extremelly heavy, though . . . the APU is mounted via a ball-grid array, too much stress could potentially rip if off the board.

Just make sure to thoroughly clean the APU surface before applying the HS.


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## Black Panther (Jan 4, 2009)

Hey guys I got a little problem.

I just recently went from XP x86 to Vista x64.

Now whereas in XP I used to play at good high volume on my X-Fi Xtreme Music sound card and Z-5500's using barely half the volume...
In Vista I have to even go into boost mode (ie full volume plus tweaking to get more) to get decent sound.

This is when I compare the same songs I used to play on XP and now on Vista, so it's not a problem with the song quality.
I've installed Vista Drivers for my x-fi.... they seem less... bloated then they were under XP but I'm sure I'm missing out something. I'm certainly missing out something because I have to up the volume a lot, and the Z5500's aren't exactly minuscule unpowered speakers either... so I think something is amiss?


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## Wile E (Jan 4, 2009)

My volume is lower in Vista with my Audigy2 ZS as well. I thought it was just me. lol.


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## DaMulta (Jan 4, 2009)

Black Panther said:


> Hey guys I got a little problem.
> 
> I just recently went from XP x86 to Vista x64.
> 
> ...


mess with the pci latency in bios

if you have that setting.

and or make your motherboard redo it's irq and swap pci slots


----------



## DaMulta (Jan 4, 2009)

also


control panel settings for vista


look there. it controls the x-fi differently


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## Alex Clarke (Jan 11, 2009)

It's been a while since I've checked this forum... and yes, my X-fi is still knackered!

I was just wondering if anyone has found a way to reset the firmware on an X-fi card yet? I know that imperialreign was looking in to this at one point.

The 2.15.0006 drivers (for Windows XP x64) updated my firmware and caused major issues to my card. 

Also, does anyone know the previous driver release (again for Windows XP x64) before 2.15.0006?

I'd like to try and rollback again, but can't find many old drivers online. I did contact Creative and asked for a copy, but they refused!


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## imperialreign (Jan 11, 2009)

Alex Clarke said:


> It's been a while since I've checked this forum... and yes, my X-fi is still knackered!
> 
> I was just wondering if anyone has found a way to reset the firmware on an X-fi card yet? I know that imperialreign was looking in to this at one point.
> 
> ...




Sorry to hear you're still having issues . . . and it doesn't surprise me that Creative wouldn't cough up an older driver pack - their tech support, last I checked, is still ridiculously poor :shadedshu

as to the firmware, I don't know of any means to re-instate an older version . . . possibly, an older driver pack that updates the firmware, but there's a good possiblity it'll ignore the update if it sees a newer version installed to the card.

Possibly an RMA - but that can't guarantee that it hasn't already been updated at some point . . .

there are older driver packs available from various sources on the i-net . . . Creative doesn't leave them up on their site, though . . .

2.07.0004
2.09.0007
2.14.0001 beta

IIRC - 2.09.007 was the last official driver release before 2.15.0006 . . . almost everything in-between (aside from 2.14.0001b) are Vista alpha and beta drivers.

I'm not sure if they'll be of any help, though.


Just curious - have you tried the most recent driver update 2.18.0008?  If you try to roll back to an earlier driver, and still have issues, it might be worth giving the most recent pack a shot.

Oh, and BTW, when rolling back, make sure you do a clean driver sweep, install and registry clean to drastically reduce any possibilities of driver version conflicts


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jan 11, 2009)

Alex Clarke said:


> It's been a while since I've checked this forum... and yes, my X-fi is still knackered!
> 
> I was just wondering if anyone has found a way to reset the firmware on an X-fi card yet? I know that imperialreign was looking in to this at one point.
> 
> ...





a huge 'archive' of drivers >Here< - pick your poison.

on the subject of Creative 'refusing' to give you a copy - you shoulda just make you position clear that you will send their card back to them in peices as well as discontinuing to recommend them to friends & family & also that you will be investing a huge amount of money into the top model Asus Xonar - a great product that actually works & is made even better by Asus's own drivers/support.

Obviously your not investing in a Xonar but you want them to call your bluff & see you as a potential 'valued' customer & not some guy thats fallen into their 'idiot' trap. 

if they they laugh in your face then, ask for the RMA address where you can send the broken card back to.

if they hang up on you - then do as you wish i suppose...Asus Xonars are nice cards.

If they are still on the phone, then just continue to rant on about their shoddy customer services & if possible that you will be launching some sorta online petition & sending the results to & getting some governing body or commitee involved to make sure to make them learn that Customers dont like to be treated like shit.

there are quite a few places where a consumer can write to & complain such as UK's own Office Of Fair Trading.

& if the governing body does pick the case up & launch an investigation into it, im sure with the amount of complaints they have already had or are still recieving. they maybe faced with Legal action which Id think they would wanna avoid.

there really should be some sorta board or comittee that monitors Creatives 'customer satisfaction' ratings.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jan 11, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> Sorry to hear you're still having issues . . . and it doesn't surprise me that Creative wouldn't cough up an older driver pack - their tech support, last I checked, is still ridiculously poor :shadedshu
> 
> as to the firmware, I don't know of any means to re-instate an older version . . . possibly, an older driver pack that updates the firmware, but there's a good possiblity it'll ignore the update if it sees a newer version installed to the card.
> 
> ...



damn you!!! I was ranting for so long u beat me to the crunch


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 11, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> a huge 'archive' of drivers >Here< - pick your poison.
> 
> on the subject of Creative 'refusing' to give you a copy - *you shoulda just make you position clear that you will send their card back to them in peices as well as discontinuing to recommend them to friends & family & also that you will be investing a huge amount of money into the top model Asus Xonar - a great product that actually works & is made even better by Asus's own drivers/support.*
> 
> ...





although I agree with your post, in general . . . the better idea, instead of sending it back in pieces, is to send the whole thing via RMA . . . if you get another, and it still acts up, RMA it again, and again, and again if needs be

If they refuse, explain to them that you're entitled to an RMA until the product works as intended - if it's something that could've been solved with an older driver, they should be more than willing to cough it up.  

I find it in extreme bad taste when every other MAJOR hardware manufacturer routinely keeps an ongoing archive of outdated drivers publicly available - but Creative doesn't.  One of my few "real" gripes with the company.  It's not that users are entitled to outdated drivers, as we're really not (besides, the companies in question don't fully support outdated drivers) . . . it's the fact that it's been standard industry practice for at least the last 10 years, from software companies to hardware companies.




FreedomEclipse said:


> damn you!!! I was ranting for so long u beat me to the crunch




s'all good


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jan 11, 2009)

it amazes me. With the amount of bad press that creative gets/recieves, dont they ever step back & wonder what their actually doing or why so many of their customers are pissed off?? even my main source for hardware are very very reluctant to sell creative products due to the amount of complaints & returns they get.


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## Alex Clarke (Jan 11, 2009)

Thanks for the information FreedomEclipse and imperialreign.

When I contacted Creative Support they basically told me that my card was out of warranty. They eventually offered me a discount on one of the new Titanium cards.

Quotes from some of their emails back to me...



> If the sound card is faulty we won't be able to replace it anymore as based on your first email, you purchased it on 02/23/2006. Sound card warranty is only 24 months from date of purchase.



So, I guess I can't simply RMA this again, and again and again... until it works. 



> We can offer you X-Fi Titanium - Fatal1ty Champ Series for only £143.99inc VAT and X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro Series for only £107.99 inc VAT.



At the time, this discount worked out to be around £12 or £20!

I've had around 3 or 4 of Creatives cards over the years, never experience problems and always recommended them to others. But since this little saga, I might have to change my mind! Yes, I've told Creative Support this, but they just don't care... :shadedshu

At the moment I'm testing out every single driver release I can get my hands on. Uninstallation and installation is being performed as detailed below.

*Uninstallation:*


Uninstall all Creative items from Add or Remove Programs
Reboot
Run the driver uninstall utility (on the X-Fi CD)
Reboot
Reboot into Safe Mode
Run Driver Sweeper
Reboot

*Installation:*


Run the driver setup (e.g. SBXF_PCDVRBETA_LB_2_14_0001.exe)
Reboot

Currently I'm finding that all the drivers I install work until I reboot my computer for a second time.

For example...

*Uninstall* (as per above) -> *Install* (as per above, inc. the reboot) -> *Drivers work great!*

Now, if I *reboot again*, I get the usual pop/cracks and broken sound in general. Some drivers give different results. For example, the SBXF_PCDVRBETA_LB_2_14_0001 drivers cause constant left channel static.

So, this pretty much confirms that the card itself (hardware wise) is fine... I guess!

What I don't understand is why the drivers fail after this second reboot.

Does anyone know of a way to monitor files (or maybe the registry) to see if anything major changes before/after this reboot?

Once again, thanks for everyones help.


----------



## Tatty_One (Jan 11, 2009)

Have just got the Elite pro so I am in, still tinkering with it at the moment but initial impressions are good, i read in many places that going from my old Audigy 4 (non pro) to this would give little or no audio improvement, i have gotta say thus far that i can hear the improvements already!


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 14, 2009)

Alex Clarke said:


> Thanks for the information FreedomEclipse and imperialreign.
> 
> When I contacted Creative Support they basically told me that my card was out of warranty. They eventually offered me a discount on one of the new Titanium cards.
> 
> ...



sorry to hear it's out of warranty - but Creative's response seems typical . . . pathetic.

From this point, I'd recommend that _*if*_ you were to get a new card, and _*if*_ you were to consider another X-Fi . . . go to a local Best Buy, or PC parts store, or somewhere that has a "no questions" return policy; purchase a card, try it out, if you have issues or aren't happy with it at all - take it back and get yourself a Xonar or Auzen.  Although they have their share of problems, their customer and tech support is far superior to Creative's . . . and if need be I'm always willing to help as I can as well. 

Curious, though - do you have another computer you can test your card in?



> At the moment I'm testing out every single driver release I can get my hands on. Uninstallation and installation is being performed as detailed below.
> 
> *Uninstallation:*
> 
> ...




hmmm . . . it sounds like there's still stuff left over after the uninstalls - which would be why the card seems to work fine until the next reboot when WIN digs some fluff out of the pantry.


My thoughts - use the setup utility to remove all driver files, then go into Add/Remove Programs, remove all Creative software still listed.  Open WIN explorer, expand Program Files, and manually delte the Creative\ folder.  If there's a file or two that won't delete, you might have to kick it in Safe Mode.

Reboot into safe mode - run driver sweeper and remove all Creative traces.  You might have to run the utility a few times to get everything.  As long as the only things it still sees are folders listings, you should be good.

Next - remove the card from the mobo.  Reboot into WIN, run a good registry cleaner (e.g. 
System Mechanic, RegistryFix, etc), and have it search for any errata (make sure to do a backup prior to cleaning) and clean it.  Reboot again, without the card - rerun the cleaner again, just to make sure there are no issues.

Power down, if you have another PCI slot, try installing the card there, if not re-install the card and boot up - install the drivers from your installation CD first.

Test it out - if everything seems fine, leave it at that.  If there are some issues, move to the next oldest driver update and install that, etc.


At the very worst, maybe a re-install of the OS on a freshly formatted drive . . . but I won't ask you to go that route unless you're willing to do so.  It's a PITA, no matter what.





Tatty_One said:


> Have just got the Elite pro so I am in, still tinkering with it at the moment but initial impressions are good, i read in many places that going from my old Audigy 4 (non pro) to this would give little or no audio improvement, i have gotta say thus far that i can hear the improvements already!



Nice to have you on-board, Tatty!  Not sure what reviews you were reading, though, but there's a *major* difference in hardware alone between an Au4 and the Elite Pro.  I'd be shocked if you _couldn't_ hear the difference!


----------



## Tatty_One (Jan 14, 2009)

Well thats why I got the Elite pro (at a 65% discount also ) because a lot of the reviews Iread said that there was no great leap forward between say an Audigy 4 and a Xtreme gamer.


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jan 14, 2009)

well i downloaded the latest driver set and also the latest console, i was wondering, the new driver put in 2 services

Creative Audio Engine Licensing Service
Creative Audio Service

are they needed for proper operation, if there is the Creative Audio Service do i even need Windows Audio (service) enabled anymore?

can i disable both the above services?\

also another question, is there anway of switching the channeling of my speakers because my Control Speaker is on the Left of my monitor and the console says that's my right speaker, i want to switch them for proper audio distribution in games (improper detection of enemies can cause a headache)

i have the Logitech X230 speaker set


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jan 14, 2009)

eidairaman1 said:


> is there anway of switching the channeling of my speakers because my Control Speaker is on the Left of my monitor and the console says that's my right speaker, i want to switch them for proper audio distribution in games (improper detection of enemies can cause a headache)
> 
> i have the Logitech X230 speaker set



make sure you have the 'right' & 'left' speakers plugged into the correct places on sub.


----------



## Alex Clarke (Jan 14, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> sorry to hear it's out of warranty - but Creative's response seems typical . . . pathetic.
> 
> From this point, I'd recommend that _*if*_ you were to get a new card, and _*if*_ you were to consider another X-Fi . . . go to a local Best Buy, or PC parts store, or somewhere that has a "no questions" return policy; purchase a card, try it out, if you have issues or aren't happy with it at all - take it back and get yourself a Xonar or Auzen.  Although they have their share of problems, their customer and tech support is far superior to Creative's . . . and if need be I'm always willing to help as I can as well.
> 
> ...



Thanks for the detailed response.

I plan on testing this over the weekend. Hopefully I can get it to work! 

I'll report back in a few days.


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 15, 2009)

Alex Clarke said:


> Thanks for the detailed response.
> 
> I plan on testing this over the weekend. Hopefully I can get it to work!
> 
> I'll report back in a few days.



hope you can too . ..  it'd be a shame otherwise.  Good luck!




eidairaman1 said:


> well i downloaded the latest driver set and also the latest console, i was wondering, the new driver put in 2 services
> 
> Creative Audio Engine Licensing Service
> Creative Audio Service
> ...



like any WIN service, be advised that enabling or disabling something could cause various effects.  That being said, if you disable a service, and something no longer works right, you can always re-enable it.

Creative audio engine licensing service, IIRC, can be disabled if need be - this is only used with Dolby encoding/decoding and some other 3rd party functions

creative audio sercvice - I'd leave this one alone . . . IIRC, it's needed for proper functioning of the different hardware modes and channel mixing.

As to WIN audio service, I believe that still needs to stick around - there are some kernel operations that WIN needs that service for.  Although, having both enabled, I'm fairly certain, is the cause of Creative's volume panel and WIN's volume panel not playing nice together . . . I might be wrong, though.


As to switching the speaker channels - aside from double checking your connections, first, as Freedom pointed out . . . IIRC, you can go into the console launcher, then click on the THX button to bring up the THX dialouge.  Here, you should be able to set channel assignment and output polarity.


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jan 15, 2009)

well, heres the deal i have a XFi Extreme Music (2006) my speakers are Logitech X230 (Sub hooks into Right Driver via Dsub Serial connector) which is currently on the left due to room setup), so they are hooked up properly, i just want to change the polarity of them if possible and there is no setting to do that i can see.


----------



## Kursah (Jan 15, 2009)

eidairaman1 said:


> well, heres the deal i have a XFi Extreme Music (2006) my speakers are Logitech X230, so they are hooked up properly, i just want to change the polarity of them if possible and there is no setting to do that i can see.



I have the same card, and the same speakers...and I do not have that issue...what version of drivers you using? I am using the most recent release w/o issues. Something's going awry on ya if the LH sound is coming out of the RH speaker and vice-versa. I just powered them up to verify...I primarily use my Turtle Beach HPA2's for gaming, movies, music, etc...but sometimes I fire up the 230's for some good n' loud tunes.

That is just an odd issue...but alas I have never found a reverse polarity for X-Fi's...I needed it back when I was using my LTB Magnum AC97 5.1 headset as the center/sub needed to be reversed...ended up giving those to the G/F where her onboard would reverse polarity on that channel.

I doubt you will find something for the primary output. I'd say mess with everything tho...set it to 5.1, then back to 2.1, etc. You sure you have the speakers in the right locations? The RH speaker should be the one with the power button/volume switch/headphone jack, you probably do and know that, but just checking.

Also, if it continues, just switch speaker locations, verify the jack connection (try onboard sound to verify, etc).


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jan 15, 2009)

No no, physically the speaker is on the left but the CL Driver (latest version) which has its own audio ctrl pnl and then i installed the latest CL Console, i did a test in the console and it states the driver that is physically on the left (Control speaker) is the right speaker and same with the speaker on the right is the left speaker< i just want to switch polarity is all because the cable for the sub is not long enough to be placed on the right side, and i cant find that setting in the  Audio Control Panel or the CL Console.

If im not mistaken the speaker that is on the left side of me is actually the right side speaker (labled that way i believe)




Kursah said:


> I have the same card, and the same speakers...and I do not have that issue...what version of drivers you using? I am using the most recent release w/o issues. Something's going awry on ya if the LH sound is coming out of the RH speaker and vice-versa. I just powered them up to verify...I primarily use my Turtle Beach HPA2's for gaming, movies, music, etc...but sometimes I fire up the 230's for some good n' loud tunes.
> 
> That is just an odd issue...but alas I have never found a reverse polarity for X-Fi's...I needed it back when I was using my LTB Magnum AC97 5.1 headset as the center/sub needed to be reversed...ended up giving those to the G/F where her onboard would reverse polarity on that channel.
> 
> ...


----------



## razvan_day (Jan 15, 2009)

today i have just bought a x-fi extreme music sound card from a friend. i have reinstall windows vista on my computer (64 bit) and install  the cd drivers and softwar. after that i have downloaded from creative the latest driver update for my x-fi . no problem with that . after a restart i wanted to change my 2.1 configuration to 5.1 because i have a z5400 logitech system . so here is the big problem i cannot select 5.1 speker setings . at the speker configuration it is set on 2.1 and cannot aplay any changes. sory for my poor english but i am romanian . hope you will undestand an replay back. have a good day . i have also send an e mail to imperialreign


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jan 15, 2009)

go thru the regular sound properties and make the change thru there, the Creative Labs Console ties in with the windows audio system.


----------



## razvan_day (Jan 16, 2009)

where can i find the regulator saund properties?


----------



## Kursah (Jan 16, 2009)

eidairaman1 said:


> No no, physically the speaker is on the left but the CL Driver (latest version) which has its own audio ctrl pnl and then i installed the latest CL Console, i did a test in the console and it states the driver that is physically on the left (Control speaker) is the right speaker and same with the speaker on the right is the left speaker< i just want to switch polarity is all because the cable for the sub is not long enough to be placed on the right side, and i cant find that setting in the  Audio Control Panel or the CL Console.
> 
> If im not mistaken the speaker that is on the left side of me is actually the right side speaker (labled that way i believe)



I've yet to see a CL driver for my X-fi that didn't have the standard panel which I despise using due to the lack of an EQ which is vital to tuning these cards to connected speakers/headphones imo.

So which speaker has the power/volume/headphone jack for you? Left or right? 

You're trying to swap the speaker placements for ease of connectivity is what I got out of what you said there, and assuming such, I have yet to see a solution in Creative's software to alleviate your situation...you'll have to arrange the speakers as intended for proper audio output. There might be a hack or reg-edit somewhere that you can do..I dunno because I've yet to need to swap polarity on the primary out channel...as I said before I wanted it for the Center/Sub which is common on many onboard sound devices...yet on X-Fi is also non-existant as an option..but I no longer need it at this point.

Unless Imperial has a solution or "fix" for ya, I'd say you'll have to set up your speakers as they were designed to be setup to get the sound output correct...maybe you could craft an extension cable of sorts to the sub/amp? Maybe contact logitech? If they have one I'm sure it'll be a pain to get or overpriced as I've never heard of one...but it might be possible and worth a shot.

Keep me posted if you find a solution, definately interesting issue you have here!


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jan 16, 2009)

This new Console does have a Equalizer, but i have 1 option with my setup, i noticed the SUB uses a RS232 9pin connector, i was going to buy a 3 foot Serial Cable and switch the speakers around properly.



Kursah said:


> I've yet to see a CL driver for my X-fi that didn't have the standard panel which I despise using due to the lack of an EQ which is vital to tuning these cards to connected speakers/headphones imo.
> 
> So which speaker has the power/volume/headphone jack for you? Left or right?
> 
> ...


----------



## razvan_day (Jan 16, 2009)

i have manage to select 5.1 but now i have another problem . my rear spekers work only when i select x-fi cmss 3d  / enable  x-fi cmss 3d then select surround and mark  stereo expand . this is the only way that i can make my rear spekesr work  and they sound like crap  is it any other setting to work with the rear speakers? sry for my english


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 16, 2009)

eidairaman1 said:


> No no, physically the speaker is on the left but the CL Driver (latest version) which has its own audio ctrl pnl and then i installed the latest CL Console, i did a test in the console and it states the driver that is physically on the left (Control speaker) is the right speaker and same with the speaker on the right is the left speaker< i just want to switch polarity is all because the cable for the sub is not long enough to be placed on the right side, and i cant find that setting in the  Audio Control Panel or the CL Console.
> 
> If im not mistaken the speaker that is on the left side of me is actually the right side speaker (labled that way i believe)



hmmm . . . sorry about that THX dialogue thing - I guess it's only the Vista drivers and the Titanium drivers that have the upgraded THX console. The older console doesn't allow for polarity changes.

Otherwise, I kinda agree with what Kursah has mentioned - it sounds that you've got the speakers setup for ease of installation . . . do you have another set you can try to verify that the outputs from the card are correct?  Perhaps the speakers themself are wired incorrectly . . . rather odd and unusual, though . . .





razvan_day said:


> i have manage to select 5.1 but now i have another problem . my rear spekers work only when i select x-fi cmss 3d  / enable  x-fi cmss 3d then select surround and mark  stereo expand . this is the only way that i can make my rear spekesr work  and they sound like crap  is it any other setting to work with the rear speakers? sry for my english



Hmmm . . . sounds as if WIN is not set to a 5.1 output.  If only your front channels work, without CMSS-3D, more than likely WIN thinks you're setup for 2-channel.  All CMSS-3D will do in such a case is upmix the channels from 2 to 5, giving you "surround" output.

Curious - what kind of audio are you trying to play?  Game, mp3, DVD?  Channel output issues can be caused by the type of audio as well, within Vista.


----------



## razvan_day (Jan 16, 2009)

i have send you another pm  i am playng music through winamp. she subwwofer volume is very low 

after a restore deafult the problems are solved . the subwoofer volume is good . what are the best settings for music ?


----------



## EastCoasthandle (Jan 16, 2009)

Anyone tried these drivers yet?


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 16, 2009)

razvan_day said:


> i have send you another pm  i am playng music through winamp. she subwwofer volume is very low
> 
> after a restore deafult the problems are solved . the subwoofer volume is good . what are the best settings for music ?



well - best settings is really up to personal taste.  I prefer to use Entertainment mode for listening to music and watching films . . . Audio Creation is really only for doing recording work, and Game Mode is best suited for games, when all of the APU and the cards abilities can be focused on one such task.

As to specific settings, such ass CMSS-3D, EAX, EQ, etc.  It's best to adjust for how you prefer things to sound.  First, you might want to take the time to adjust your subwoofer gain properly, and then spend the time to adjust your equalizer settings to accomodate your listening environment.  Then go over all the other stuff, like the positional audio, subwoofer crossover, etc.

Take a look here for some other good information: http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=64921 - the end of the 3rd section has some good tips for adjusting gain and equalizer 




EastCoasthandle said:


> Anyone tried these drivers yet?



interesting . . . I thought dan_k had stopped doing X-Fi drivers altogether . . . I also thought he was banned permanently from Creative's forums . . .

. . . I wonder if Creative had change their mind in their best interest? . . .


----------



## Black Panther (Jan 17, 2009)

Has anyone here been testing Windows 7? Any drivers you found which work?


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 17, 2009)

Black Panther said:


> Has anyone here been testing Windows 7? Any drivers you found which work?



I haven't gotten around to testing it, yet . . .

although, I do have some more system upgrades in the mail (including another HDD) . . . somewhat thankfully purchased before my trips to the ER . . .

I might do a WIN7 split partition with XP just for testing.

hopefully, Creative will be more on the ball with beta drivers *before* WIN7's release . . . to the best of my knowledge WIN7 is built off of the Vista OS, so . . . I would assume that Vista drivers _might_ work . . .


----------



## Black Panther (Jan 17, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> I would assume that Vista drivers _might_ work . . .



Apparently not however because this is what I get when I tried to install (it's asking me to 'upgrade to XP' which is funny in a way!  --







Thank you for helping imperial, and take care.


----------



## GREASEMONKEY (Jan 17, 2009)

Vista drivers will work with 7.Just have to force it to use them under compatability mode.


----------



## Black Panther (Jan 17, 2009)

GREASEMONKEY said:


> Vista drivers will work with 7.Just have to force it to use them under compatability mode.



Thanks that did the trick!


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jan 17, 2009)

Did you read my entire post?

As i was saying, Data is sent from the sound card to the control speaker and is then fed to the Slave speaker (internal Splitting in the main speaker) and then Data is also sent to the sub via a RS232 9Pin Serial Connection, with my setup on this desk, chair is on the left where the drawers are on the right, so the tower is on the right side and the control speaker is on the left of the monitor because the Sub Cable isnt long enough. i was thinking about getting a extension cable for the Sub (keep it as short as possible) and then switching the speakers around so i can have proper polarity.



imperialreign said:


> hmmm . . . sorry about that THX dialogue thing - I guess it's only the Vista drivers and the Titanium drivers that have the upgraded THX console. The older console doesn't allow for polarity changes.
> 
> Otherwise, I kinda agree with what Kursah has mentioned - it sounds that you've got the speakers setup for ease of installation . . . do you have another set you can try to verify that the outputs from the card are correct?  Perhaps the speakers themself are wired incorrectly . . . rather odd and unusual, though . . .
> 
> ...


----------



## Kursah (Jan 17, 2009)

I'm curious if that extension cable works...looking at that connection, it does look like it should.

I have a similar setup to you, but it must be a smaller desk...maybe 45" lengh, then I have the speakers mounted on the wall on each side of my 22" Acer (love the swiveling bases for this), and the sub is at the lower LH corner of the desk...I don't have any cable length issues, but like I said I must have a smaller desk, it is very basic..one small cabinet...but it's gotten the job done for quite a while. I do have to say the sound stage sound better with the speakers raised to about ear level on the wall. It's kinda rigged with thumb-tacks (one for the hanger, two at each lower corner for stability lol)...but the mounts are solid, and the speakers are light enough that it does the trick quite well.


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 24, 2009)

Creative have released a WIN7 beta driver for the *X-Fi Titanium series* cards - downloads can be found here: http://support.creative.com/downloads/welcome.aspx?nDriverType=11#type_11


(this is a good sign - beta drivers LONG before the OS official release )


----------



## Alex Clarke (Jan 25, 2009)

Ok, I've finally got to the bottom of my X-Fi issue!

For those of you that remember, I was able to install my X-Fi and it would work fine until I rebooted my computer.

After lots of trial and error (and hours spent surfing the web) I've found out the cause.

It's all to do with me running Windows XP x64 with 4GB of RAM, with memory hole enabled in my BIOS. Everything did run fine until the firmware update that was included with one of the driver releases.

The following thread explains a little more.

http://forums.creative.com/creative...aster&message.id=64297&query.id=177989#M64297

I've disabled the memory hole setting in my BIOS and everything works fine. However, I now only have 3.25GB of RAM registered with Windows (as oppose to 4GB).

I'm going to contact Creative about this and see if there are any plans to address this issue in a future driver release. According to the above thread, it should be a very easy fix.

Thanks again to everyone on this forum that helped me out.

I hope that the information I've posted is helpful to other.

All the best,

Alex


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 25, 2009)

Alex Clarke said:


> Ok, I've finally got to the bottom of my X-Fi issue!
> 
> For those of you that remember, I was able to install my X-Fi and it would work fine until I rebooted my computer.
> 
> ...



much thanks for that post 

I never would've guessed the 4GB issue was a problem with XP64, as the only OS they've had 4GB issues with has been Vista.

either way, I'll keep it in mind should someone else ever have an issue similar to yours.

Glad to hear that you've been able to get everything working, though!


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jan 25, 2009)

BTW Latest CL driver for my card works just like the one from 2006 (good) just wonder how it does in Vista with all that EAX disable BS (Never used EAX other than 2.0 on my SB PCI 512)
64bit shouldnt matter about these drivers, but i guess your situation it does, because 64bit was supposed to break beyond the 3.25GB barrier that 32bit hits (Despite apparently Win 98Se supporting 4GB Physical Ram)


It is possible to get 32bit to read and utilize 4GB ram properly but it takes alot of tweaking to the system code that its just easier to upgrade to the next version that does support more than 3.25Gigs of ram.


Alex Clarke said:


> Ok, I've finally got to the bottom of my X-Fi issue!
> 
> For those of you that remember, I was able to install my X-Fi and it would work fine until I rebooted my computer.
> 
> ...


----------



## imperialreign (Jan 28, 2009)

Creative have released the 2.18.0008 *WIN 7* beta driver for the *non-titanuium / non-Xtreme Audio * cards.

Can be downloaded here: http://support.creative.com/downloads/welcome.aspx?nDriverType=11#type_11


----------



## GlouGlou (Jan 31, 2009)

Hello,

I would like to know if some of you own a Creative HS-1200 Headset.
I am currently having problem with the microphone: the volume is too low.
In my recording options, i only have "Wave In" which is the mic. But, since it is recognized as a Wave In device, it seems that I can't access the +20db gain option.

I used the installation CD to install drivers.

Anyone having the same problem ?

Thanks in advance.

OS: WinXP64
Drivers version: 5.10.0.3622


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 1, 2009)

double check the slected recording device in WIN audio control panel.  Go to Start>Control Panel>Sounds & Audio Devices . . . click on the 'Audio' tab, under sound recording, click on the 'volume' button, and check that 'line-in' or 'microphone' is selected, and that the volume level is at least 50%.


----------



## GlouGlou (Feb 2, 2009)

I've done that before posting here 
I even tried to use my Headset with Windows 7 x64 beta. 

There my mic is recognized as a mic, but no +20db boost checkbox either.

I will try to install the drivers listed above and see if that can help.

Edit: The drivers listed above does not support my Headset. Anyone has solved this problem before ?


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 18, 2009)

GlouGlou said:


> I've done that before posting here
> I even tried to use my Headset with Windows 7 x64 beta.
> 
> There my mic is recognized as a mic, but no +20db boost checkbox either.
> ...




sorry I missed this post . . . 

how do you have the mic connection from your headset plugged into the card?  At the PCI plate, or at through a front panel connection?


----------



## imperialreign (Feb 18, 2009)

Creative have released a *WIN7 only* beta driver package for the PCI-Express X-Fi Extreme Audio, and X-Fi Extreme Audio notebook (currently no beta is yet available for the PCI Xtreme Audio) version *1.04.0000*: http://support.creative.com/downloads/?h=7



> This download is a beta driver providing Microsoft® Windows® 7 Beta support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Xtreme Audio series of audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> 
> *Take note of the following:*
> ...





Also of note, as of February 2, Creative have also recently released newer versions of the following applications:   http://support.creative.com/downloads/?h=7

*Creative MediaSource 5 Player / Organizer* version *5.25.02*

*Creative SoundFont Bank Manager* version *3.21.00*

*Creative Media Toolbox* version *6.02.09*

*Creative Diagnostics* version *5.11.00*

*Creative WaveStudio* version *7.11.00*

*Creative 3D MIDI Player* version *1.11.00*


----------



## GlouGlou (Feb 21, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> sorry I missed this post . . .
> 
> how do you have the mic connection from your headset plugged into the card?  At the PCI plate, or at through a front panel connection?



And i missed your reply .

Well, this wireless headset is using its own X-Fi soundcard. Thus, I can't be wrong about the mic connection.

Here is a picture of the product: http://images.europe.creative.com/iss/images/artwork/A4_RGB/HS1200_1.jpg

I don't think there is much I can do except praying for new drivers 

Thank you for helping me.


----------



## Polaris573 (Feb 27, 2009)

Have any of you used the Linux drivers for the X-Fi?  I'm glad after years they finally exist, but the sound quality is awful. I would still be better off with my integrated audio if I wasn't too lazy to switch in the inputs whenever I logged into linux.


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## btarunr (Feb 27, 2009)

Polaris573 said:


> Have any of you used the Linux drivers for the X-Fi?  I'm glad after years they finally exist, but the sound quality is awful. I would still be better off with my integrated audio if I wasn't too lazy to switch in the inputs whenever I logged into linux.



I am. Actually not _the_ drivers, but a manually installed OSS. Believe me the card sounds better than it does on Windows.

Will post the procedure in a while...


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## btarunr (Feb 27, 2009)

This procedure applies to FC9 and upward. I'm on FC10 x64. 

1. The OSS Fedora bundles doesn't detect X-Fi. OSS uses internal modules to detect and run sound cards. You need not install the Creative driver. Download the latest OSS from here. Download the RPM, it's the easiest to install.

2. Install the RPM in the way you like. Graphically, or "rpm -i <filename>" in the terminal as a SU. This will replace the existing OSS. Reboot.







3. Check if OSS detected your X-Fi. Navigate to /dev/oss/ .  You should see the X-Fi card mapped. 

4. "pcm0" is the device map for the front-out channel, the primary stereo line-out. Fedora's Sound Manager in some cases won't be able to detect the new OSS altogether, but you can specify each app, including KDE to use X-Fi, by manually pointing it to "/dev/oss/oss_sbxfi0/pcm0".  If the name looks too hard to remember, simply "copy" the device in Dolphin/Nautilus like you'd copy a file, and paste in in any application's setting that ask you to specify the output device (don't forget to remove "file://" if it also gets copied). I'm showing it for VLC and XMMS, but you can do the same for every app, including Control Center. 
















It is important to know that in cases where Sound Manager doesn't detect OSS yet it exists, Sound Manager has no control over the card's output volume. Without OS-level volume control, the card will give out full-blast 200% output. That's 100% signal + 100% amplification. In Windows, we would note that 50% volume is 100% signal, and 100% volume is 100% amplification (200% volume). That volume can damage your headphones. 






Here are some safe 100% signal volumes you can set manually in each app (when you can't using KMix / OS-level control): 50% for pre-amplified speakers (most of today's speakers), 15~20% (!) for headphones, even lower for earbuds. 



Now check the audio quality


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## Polaris573 (Feb 27, 2009)

Thanks bta I'll give that a try.  I'm using the drivers downloaded from the creative website and they have zero functionality besides volume control.  It sounds like I'm listening through a metal pipe.


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## iStink (Feb 27, 2009)

Great thread.  Lots of useful information.  Thank you.


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## 4PLaY (Mar 9, 2009)

Hi all,

I have an OEM Xtrememusic, on the board it says SB0460, but on the says something like MASB0467******  -  This thing came with a DELL Dimension, and I think it is a DELL OEM.  Now my problem lies in the fact that I could never for the life of me get the Decoder TAB to show up in audio console, plus the logos of Dolby and DTS, also does not show up in the main screen of the console launcher like in the picture below,  I already know that DELL oems are crap coz they say DTS and Dolby are supported via software only e.g. PowerDVD, but I also know some people have gotten it to work with some modded drivers or the like.  Now a few things I need to know that someone here might be able to answer.






1.  If there are modded drivers/software suite out there like YouP-PaX that does what I want, which ones do I get, and what is the order of things that I would install them?  I kinda need a guide to follow.

2.  I've also noticed that the X-FI Platinum and the Xtrememusic are essentially the same card,  I want to be able to Flash my card and turn it to a Platinum so I don't need modded drivers/software suite.  If this is too much to ask, I would just like to Flash my card with a RETAIL Xtrememusic BIOS/Firmware, for the same reason, so I don't need to use modded drivers/software suite.


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## btarunr (Mar 9, 2009)

Those features you see are present only with the Elite Pro/Titanium. Flashing the firmware might brick your card, since the Elite Pro and Xtreme Music use essentially different PCBs and DAC configurations. The CA20K1 on the Elite Pro is also programmed to access the EAX-RAM, which the Xtreme Music lacks.


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## rakoch04 (Mar 9, 2009)

*Problem with X-Fi Xtreme Gamer*

So the issue is I have a MSI K9A2 Platinum version 1.  I have updated the bios to 1.74 (when it was at version 1.3 my 8 GB ram wouldn't work (4 x 2GB)) and since haven't been able to get the card to even show up.  I have taken it out and put it in, made sure that the onboard audio is disabled, (can't figure out how to totally erase it).  I don't know why it won't recognize my board.  There are only 2 PCI slots and the other I have a 4 port USB installed.  I had issues before updating but briefly had it functioning.  I used to have the x-fi in the other slot but it wouldn't show up there and so moved it to the lower slot.  Is this possibly a problem with having both PCI slots filled?  It seems crazy that I wouldn't be able to fill both.  The only other thing I have on the system is a Powercolor 4870 graphics card.  Thanks for any help you can give.


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## 4PLaY (Mar 9, 2009)

btarunr said:


> Those features you see are present only with the Elite Pro/Titanium. Flashing the firmware might brick your card, since the Elite Pro and Xtreme Music use essentially different PCBs and DAC configurations. The CA20K1 on the Elite Pro is also programmed to access the EAX-RAM, which the Xtreme Music lacks.



1st of all I am not talking about DDL or DTS Connect.  I need driver decode for DTS and DOLBY, dont believe me?, check this link out http://support.creative.com/kb/ShowArticle.aspx?sid=54530  Xtrememusic is supposed to support Driver decode for both Dolby and DTS. Xtrememusic and Platinum even have the same model numbers SB0460. My only issue here is that DELL crippled the card through BIOS.

2nd of all I never mentioned your Elite Pro/Titanium in flashing. ofcourse it will brick the card, I'm not an idiot.  I said XFI Platinum or Xtrememusic RETAIL.  I need someone to be able to tell me how to do it, what software to use, I'm pretty sure I can figure it out even if you dont tell me how to do it.  ofcourse I need the bios files of either XFI Platinum or Xtrememusic RETAIL.


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## iStink (Mar 9, 2009)

4PLaY said:


> 1st of all I am not talking about DDL or DTS Connect.  I need driver decode for DTS and DOLBY, dont believe me?, check this link out http://support.creative.com/kb/ShowArticle.aspx?sid=54530  Xtrememusic is supposed to support Driver decode for both Dolby and DTS. Xtrememusic and Platinum even have the same model numbers SB0460. My only issue here is that DELL crippled the card through BIOS.
> 
> 2nd of all I never mentioned your Elite Pro/Titanium in flashing. ofcourse it will brick the card, I'm not an idiot.  I said XFI Platinum or Xtrememusic RETAIL.  I need someone to be able to tell me how to do it, what software to use, I'm pretty sure I can figure it out even if you dont tell me how to do it.  ofcourse I need the bios files of either XFI Platinum or Xtrememusic RETAIL.



Nobody is saying you're an idiot.  He was only trying to help.  Calm down.


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## imperialreign (Mar 9, 2009)

4PLaY said:


> 1.  If there are modded drivers/software suite out there like YouP-PaX that does what I want, which ones do I get, and what is the order of things that I would install them?  I kinda need a guide to follow.
> 
> 2.  I've also noticed that the X-FI Platinum and the Xtrememusic are essentially the same card,  I want to be able to Flash my card and turn it to a Platinum so I don't need modded drivers/software suite.  If this is too much to ask, I would just like to Flash my card with a RETAIL Xtrememusic BIOS/Firmware, for the same reason, so I don't need to use modded drivers/software suite.



. . .

1st of all I am not talking about DDL or DTS Connect.  I need driver decode for DTS and DOLBY, dont believe me?, check this link out http://support.creative.com/kb/ShowArticle.aspx?sid=54530  Xtrememusic is supposed to support Driver decode for both Dolby and DTS. Xtrememusic and Platinum even have the same model numbers SB0460. My only issue here is that DELL crippled the card through BIOS.

2nd of all I never mentioned your Elite Pro/Titanium in flashing. ofcourse it will brick the card, I'm not an idiot.  I said XFI Platinum or Xtrememusic RETAIL.  I need someone to be able to tell me how to do it, what software to use, I'm pretty sure I can figure it out even if you dont tell me how to do it.  ofcourse I need the bios files of either XFI Platinum or Xtrememusic RETAIL.[/QUOTE]


Well, for starters - I'd advise being a little more polite in how you phrase your responses . . . it works a lot better for everyone as a whole . . . when you come across brash and confrontational like that, other users aren't fully willing to dive right in and help out.  We're not payed to put up with crap . . . hell, we're not payed to do this at all.

Anyhow - you could attempt to try one of Creative's official driver packs.  OEM drivers, such as the one you're using, will sometimes have reduced features and functionality . . . it's all dependant on what the OEM is willing to license and pay for at the cheapest price to be able to install the hardware in the first place.  

The retail XM cards should have the decoding capabilities, and as far as I know, it's never been deactivated in any driver pack . . . except possibly OEM drivers.  Creative's can be found here: http://support.creative.com/Products/ProductDetails.aspx?catID=1&CatName=Sound+Blaster&subCatID=208&subCatName=X-Fi&prodID=14066&prodName=X-Fi+XtremeMusic


As to flashing the BIOS to turn an Xtreme Music into a Platinum . . . it'd be rather pointless.  The card that accompanies the non-Fatal1ty Platinum series is the Xtreme Music.  The cards are identicle in-so-far as capabilities, there might be some slight PCB differences (such as different DRAM modules, different capacitors and VRMs, etc.), but these differences are only due to card revisions and manufacturing changes.  The idea with the Platinum series were to be able to offer the X-Fi I/O bay drive, along with the sound card, for a price that is *somewhat* cheaper than if you were to purchase both components seperately.




rakoch04 said:


> So the issue is I have a MSI K9A2 Platinum version 1.  I have updated the bios to 1.74 (when it was at version 1.3 my 8 GB ram wouldn't work (4 x 2GB)) and since haven't been able to get the card to even show up.  I have taken it out and put it in, made sure that the onboard audio is disabled, (can't figure out how to totally erase it).  I don't know why it won't recognize my board.  There are only 2 PCI slots and the other I have a 4 port USB installed.  I had issues before updating but briefly had it functioning.  I used to have the x-fi in the other slot but it wouldn't show up there and so moved it to the lower slot.  Is this possibly a problem with having both PCI slots filled?  It seems crazy that I wouldn't be able to fill both.  The only other thing I have on the system is a Powercolor 4870 graphics card.  Thanks for any help you can give.




Are you running XP64 or Vista64?

So, unless I didn't understand you properly . . . your X-Fi works now, correct?  But when you had it installed in the other, it didn't?


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## KBD (Mar 9, 2009)

Can i offer a suggestion about this thread? Its very long and it would be nice to see some kind of a page index for the topics discussed. For instance, on the first page there are updates, why not put a page number next each so it would be easy to find that particular topic?


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## iStink (Mar 9, 2009)

KBD said:


> Can i offer a suggestion about this thread? Its very long and it would be nice to see some kind of a page index for the topics discussed. For instance, on the first page there are updates, why not put a page number next each so it would be easy to find that particular topic?



good suggestion.  I second this.


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## WhiteLotus (Mar 9, 2009)

iStink said:


> good suggestion.  I second this.



get to it then, as i understand Imperial is a very busy man


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## btarunr (Mar 9, 2009)

I can work on a thread sub-topic index in my spare time, that I can ask a senior mod to append to the first post.


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## 4PLaY (Mar 9, 2009)

@btarunr - I am extremely sorry if that came across as brash and confrontational, believe me I did not mean it to be so.  So I sincerely apologize.  Not only to you but to everyone who read and replied to my question.  I understand everyones position and consider me put in my place. 

@imperialreign - thank you also for replying, I've already tried installing the latest driver downloaded from the creative side, now i've downloaded an ISO for retail xtrememusic installer CD, which I doubt is going to work since I already know from others that it really is the case that OEM xtrememusic cards from DELL are limitted via bios.  be that as it may, you seem to also get where im coming from.  a couple of questions again for everyone... Is it possible to flash my xfi or not, regardless of what it will do to my card.  treat this as your disclaimer, I will not blame anyone here if I brick my card.  you can also consider this for all intents and purposes and purely educational.  Just sizing up my options.  what application/program do I need, to backup my soundcard bios and flash it with something else.


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## imperialreign (Mar 9, 2009)

4PLaY said:


> @imperialreign - thank you also for replying, I've already tried installing the latest driver downloaded from the creative side, now i've downloaded an ISO for retail xtrememusic installer CD, which I doubt is going to work since I already know from others that it really is the case that OEM xtrememusic cards from DELL are limitted via bios.  be that as it may, you seem to also get where im coming from.  a couple of questions again for everyone... Is it possible to flash my xfi or not, regardless of what it will do to my card.  treat this as your disclaimer, I will not blame anyone here if I brick my card.  you can also consider this for all intents and purposes and purely educational.  Just sizing up my options.  what application/program do I need, to backup my soundcard bios and flash it with something else.



TBH, I've heard that it's possible to flash the BIOS . . . but not with any software that I'm aware of.  IIRC, the process involves removing the MEM module from the card that stores the information, and having to hardware flash it with the proper equipment (or the card itself can be flashed with the proper equipment).

Either way, I don't yet know of a means of flashing the APU BIOS with any application like we could a GPU, for example.  If there is such an application, I'd love to know about it - I think the only aspect of the APU BIOS that would need to be changed would be the vendor ID to be able to use Creative's driver packs.

The youp-pax site probably has some of the best hard-modding threads about, which is where I remember seeing the discussions over flashing the BIOSes, and how it's accomplished.  I'd pull up some thread links for you, but youp-pax.org seems to be down, ATM. 




KBD said:


> Can i offer a suggestion about this thread? Its very long and it would be nice to see some kind of a page index for the topics discussed. For instance, on the first page there are updates, why not put a page number next each so it would be easy to find that particular topic?



that's actually a good idea - as WL pointed out, though, I've been rather busy recently, and have barely even had the time to be around TPU much . . . but I'll still make an effort to respond to this thread.

I've still be meaning as well to fully update the first post with some other issues, some more general info, and expand the modding sections a bit . . . a thread index would be a great start, especially if a specific subject has been discussed in-detail within this thread; it would allow for a brief explanation within the OP, and then a link to more info.




btarunr said:


> I can work on a thread sub-topic index in my spare time, that I can ask a senior mod to append to the first post.



that would be much appreciated!  If I can get some free time in the near future, I'm more than willing to help out as well.  If you happen to notice anything that would be relevant for posting in the OP, or anything you'd like to add - such as Linux issues/quirks, etc. - feel free to let me know.



For everyone else, consider it an open invite to volunteer information in regards to WIN7 betas (which will hopefully ease any headaches once the retail WIN7 is released next year); and other Vista issues that might not have been covered yet . . . I don't use Vista, personally, and I have a hard time remembering a lot of the mundane and rare issues that crop up.


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## imperialreign (Mar 9, 2009)

Creative have recently released a new WIN7 beta driver (as of Mar 04) for the *X-Fi Xtreme Audio PCI* cards (NOT the PCI-Express varieties!).  Beta version *1.04.0079*, available here: http://support.creative.com/downloads/?h=7


*Release Notes:*


> This download is a beta driver providing Microsoft® Windows® 7 Beta support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Xtreme Audio. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> 
> *Take note of the following:*
> ...






With that, there is now available a WIN7 beta driver for all X-Fi series of cards.  If you are currently trying out the WIN7 beta, and own an X-Fi, please download and try out the beta drivers if you're willing, and return feedback and error reports as needed.  Early feedback will more than likely greatly help in having stable drivers available once the official WIN7 OS is released.


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## 4PLaY (Mar 9, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> TBH, I've heard that it's possible to flash the BIOS . . . but not with any software that I'm aware of.  IIRC, the process involves removing the MEM module from the card that stores the information, and having to hardware flash it with the proper equipment (or the card itself can be flashed with the proper equipment).
> 
> Either way, I don't yet know of a means of flashing the APU BIOS with any application like we could a GPU, for example.  If there is such an application, I'd love to know about it - I think the only aspect of the APU BIOS that would need to be changed would be the vendor ID to be able to use Creative's driver packs.
> 
> The youp-pax site probably has some of the best hard-modding threads about, which is where I remember seeing the discussions over flashing the BIOSes, and how it's accomplished.  I'd pull up some thread links for you, but youp-pax.org seems to be down, ATM.



Yeah, Thanks they've been down for about 4 days now since I started messing with my x-fi.  Good information about that vendor ID.  I've come across something about using wpcredit to this effect, maybe you can confirm if it could be done this way. Vendor ID and all.


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## DRDNA (Mar 9, 2009)

Just received my 2nd HD4870X2 and now running CFX and loving it ...got go get the Misses and then benching!Fur did nice


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## rakoch04 (Mar 9, 2009)

@ imperialreign - In response to both questions, both times the system was vista64 (never changed that install).  I swapped the PCI slots again and for some reason it is now running.  Don't know why but I'm just going to let it be for now.  Otherwise nothing about the set-up changed, same bios settings, same OS settings, etc.  It works and that is all that matters.  Thanks for your help.


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## 4PLaY (Mar 11, 2009)

ok, forget about the hard modding.  I just need some software driver fix to make the decoder tab appear in audio console.. anyone else have any ideas? links to the drivers i need what versions and anything else special that I need to do?

Recap:
Dell OEM SB0460/SB0470 - Xtrememusic
Windows XP SP2
No Decoder TAB in Audio Console.
No Dolby or DTS logos in Main Screen of the Console Launcher.


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## Specsaver (Mar 11, 2009)

*realtek xfi mod*

OT, kind of
Have you guys seen the thread on realtek x-fi mod by ketxxx? Here.
All cool. But.
I don't get this guy... He modded the realtek driver to add x-fi features. (that he btw hates ) Everybody says how better their onboard sounds now with X-Fi. Free X-Fi sound so to say. Cool. The guy says he aint doing wrong or illegal cus he is not asking for money.
(going by this rationale - well, if someone burns your car or rapes your hamster whichever means more to you - just for kicks, not for money - is it allright with you? Is it?) 

He says he "just" copy-pastes bits into text files - that does not make it OK either. It is still someones intelectual property, isn't it? Not going to say this there cus this guy is insane and anyone saying else is labeled "a troll" (read my sig) But I feel he is actually taking what's not his. If I wrote this code and he grabbed it like that and gave it out to everyone I would not like it... I mean there is a difference between unlocking certain features and freely copying code written for device A into driver for device B. By doing that you effectively undercut A.

I have used several Creative products and still running X-Fi in my PC. It is a good product and I doubt it is all software only. (I remember reading a lot of the processing chip was dedicated to calculate resampling. I can't imagine soft modding can take care of that...)

Anyway, I just thought this should be said somewhere.


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## btarunr (Mar 11, 2009)

Ketxxx used the 30-day trial version of X-Fi MB. That's not illegal. There's nothing epic about that mod. Just that from being Gigabyte exclusive, it runs on any Realtek codec, which BTW, is what it was designed to be. When Ketxxx releases an X-Fi Realtek driver that is free and runs forever (no 30-trial), let us know.


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## imperialreign (Mar 11, 2009)

4PLaY said:


> ok, forget about the hard modding.  I just need some software driver fix to make the decoder tab appear in audio console.. anyone else have any ideas? links to the drivers i need what versions and anything else special that I need to do?
> 
> Recap:
> Dell OEM SB0460/SB0470 - Xtrememusic
> ...



In regards to your first statement, wpcredit, not sure if and/or how well it would work - or if would even work for XP.  It might be worth a shot, but without any real knowledge of the software, I have no idea if you'd run the possiblity of fubaring your card . . .

First, I would attempt to change the Vendor ID stored in XP's registry (make sure to properly backup your registry first!) [more info here: registry hardware values], Creative's Vendor ID is 0x1102- if Creative's driver packs only double check with the vendor ID stored in WIN, it might go ahead with the install.  If it actually queries the hardware . . . you might be out of luck, as (aside from possibly wpcredit) I've never heard of any software that can change a hardware components vendor ID without being able to flash the hardware's BIOS.

Well, if the official Creative drivers won't work . . . you could also try daniel_k's drivers (I believe these are the most recent): http://www.driversdown.com/drivers/Creative-X-Fi-Daniel_K-driver-2.20.0000.0-WinXP-2003-Vista-2008-Win7_87836.shtml




Specsaver said:


> OT, kind of
> Have you guys seen the thread on realtek x-fi mod by ketxxx? Here.
> All cool. But.
> I don't get this guy... He modded the realtek driver to add x-fi features. (that he btw hates ) Everybody says how better their onboard sounds now with X-Fi. Free X-Fi sound so to say. Cool. The guy says he aint doing wrong or illegal cus he is not asking for money.
> ...



I agree with btarunr's post . . . he's not doing anything "illegal" ATM - but were he to do the same to drivers that you have to pay for (i.e. after the 30-day trial is up), then there's an issue.  As to the Creative bashing - meh . . . I think the majority of it is unfounded, as many of the bigger issues people seem to have are starting to crop up with competing audio cards as well (mostly ASUS).

As to being able to better your audio quality with those drivers . . . that's 100% questionable, subjective and hard to discern (partly why I requested someone to test the output audio quality with RMAA before and after installation of the drivers - I'd do it myself, but I don't have a RealTek equipped motherboard).  Sure, the majority of Creative's "features" (such as EAX, CMSS-3D, Crystallizer, etc.) are software based and onboard chipsets (as well as chipsets on competing audio cards) are capable of executing these instructions, as far as full functionality and accuracy is concerned, X-Fi APU equipped cards will be able to execute those instructions many times better than competing hardware . . . the majority of the software effects, and how many can be rendered at a single instance, are dependant upon the number of hardware and software voices an audio processor is capable of - in effect, it's abilit to multi-task.

The only thing that the drivers actually do, is tell the audio hardware _how_ it's supposed to be processing the audio - you can easily fool people into thinking the audio quality is much better than it is by applying slight reverb and echos tweaks, amplifying certain frequency ranges, and normalizing channel volumes (for example, what the Crystallizer feature does, see this page for more info: http://ixbtlabs.com/articles2/multimedia/creative-x-fi-part2.html).  The *real* audio quality, though, is fully dependant on the capabilities of the hardware that's involved with the output stream processing . . . specifically the primary DSP, the DAC and output OPAMPs.

I'm very leary of any claims that state to increase real audio quality by applying a simple driver or software package - the stream itself might be cleaned up a little by processing it differently, but the actual audio quality dependant on the hardware will not change.

Anyhow, it's nice to see Creative starting to open up their software functionality to other hardware manufacturers, especially EAX.  I'm hoping this trend will continue.


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## imperialreign (Mar 11, 2009)

As of March 11, Creative have released a new driver pack for the *X-Fi Titanium series* for both XP and Vista x32/x64 OSes, version number *2.17.0006*: http://support.creative.com/downloads/?h=7


*Release Notes:*


> This download is a driver providing Microsoft® Windows Vista® and Windows® XP support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Titanium series of audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> 
> *This download supports the following audio devices only:*
> ...






Also released March 11, a new version of the *Creative Console Launcher* version *2.61.09* for XP and Vista x86/x64 OSes:

*Release Notes:*


> This download contains the Creative Console Launcher application for use with your Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices on Microsoft® Windows Vista® and Windows® XP. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following devices only:*
> 
> ...


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## hbkl (Mar 14, 2009)

Hi,  im new  on this of  sound cards...   i have byed  the sound blaster x-fi music  edition  and i have it   with  a  logitech x-530 sound sistem  i think the sound its very good  so  can i join to your team?  thanks


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## imperialreign (Mar 15, 2009)

hbkl said:


> Hi,  im new  on this of  sound cards...   i have byed  the sound blaster x-fi music  edition  and i have it   with  a  logitech x-530 sound sistem  i think the sound its very good  so  can i join to your team?  thanks



sure thing, and welcome aboard!


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## Nitro-Max (Mar 16, 2009)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-Fi

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_card


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## DaveK (Mar 16, 2009)

Sign me up, gots an X-Fi Platinum, cost me €20  Has a retail sticker of €229 on the box lol. Only problem is I broke the cable that connects the 5.25" drive to the sound card  I should also try get my front panel headphone jack working.


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## imperialreign (Mar 21, 2009)

DaveK said:


> Sign me up, gots an X-Fi Platinum, cost me €20  Has a retail sticker of €229 on the box lol. Only problem is I broke the cable that connects the 5.25" drive to the sound card  I should also try get my front panel headphone jack working.





welcome aboard ! 

As to the cable that connects the X-Fi to the I/O drive bay, IIRC, it uses a standard IDE cable.


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## imperialreign (Mar 21, 2009)

Creative have released an updated version of the *ALchemy* software for both X-Fi and Audigy series of cards under the Vista OS.  New version *1.25.10*, available here: http://support.creative.com/downloads/?h=7


*Release Notes:*


> Creative ALchemy restores 3D audio and EAX® effects for certain DirectSound®3D games in Windows Vista. With Creative ALchemy, you can:
> 
> •enable the DirectSound3D game audio to be processed by your Sound Blaster audio device to deliver EAX effects, 3D audio spatialization, sample rate conversion and hardware audio mixing. Without this, most DirectSound3D games will be reduced to stereo output without any EAX effects.
> •improve 3D audio processing for host-based Sound Blaster audio devices.
> ...


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## btarunr (Mar 22, 2009)

Method of OSS installation that lets Gnome/KDE list OSS and its detected cards:


> ctrl+alt+F3
> 
> login as root, change run-level to 3 (type "init 3") this will stop X.
> 
> ...


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## hv43082 (Mar 22, 2009)

Just skim through the section on crackling audio in certain games (BF2 for me), I still have no clue what could have caused this.  Too many variables to take into account.  Any thought?


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## btarunr (Mar 22, 2009)

Are you using a digital (SPDIF) connection to your speakers? If so, have you tried using a different output sample rate (provided your speakers support it)? Try 96 kHz.


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## hv43082 (Mar 22, 2009)

I am using the analog connection to my Logitech Z5500.  Not a single problem with mp3, movies, or other games, just BF2.  I will try 96Hz when I have time...gotta catch some sleep so I can study for my Ophthalmology-Dermatology exam on Monday...so much material!


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## btarunr (Mar 22, 2009)

W00t another medico.


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## eidairaman1 (Mar 22, 2009)

argh, i think the latest Stable Xfi Driver is causing lag spikes for me in games, gonna go back to old version, Unless if its SP3 causing it.


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## Hayder_Master (Mar 22, 2009)

what about new realtek x-fi mods is this belong here


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## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Mar 23, 2009)

maybe you guys can help me,  I purchased an x-fi fatal1y xtreme gamer on ebay.  When I try to install the drivers,  it wont detect it.  Just get multimedia audio device in device manager.  When I try to force the drivers manually I get a code 10 error and the card wont function.  Ive got the same issue in 2 different computers.  I tried formating and reinstalling vista 64 but still no luck.  I tried beta drivers,  daniel k drivers,  YouP-Pax drivers,  you name it I tried it.  Different pci slots and all.  The card did take 1 time,  mic worked but got a loud screech out of my head phones and upon restart the card wasnt detected again.  The lady I bought from on ebay said it was guarenteed to work and she would exchange it for me.  Should I exchange it or is there something special I need to do to get it to work.  My xtremeaudio works fine but I really want eax 5.0 for bf2.  That was the hole reason for me buying the card.


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## Tatty_One (Mar 23, 2009)

ShRoOmAlIsTiC said:


> maybe you guys can help me,  I purchased an x-fi fatal1y xtreme gamer on ebay.  When I try to install the drivers,  it wont detect it.  Just get multimedia audio device in device manager.  When I try to force the drivers manually I get a code 10 error and the card wont function.  Ive got the same issue in 2 different computers.  I tried formating and reinstalling vista 64 but still no luck.  I tried beta drivers,  daniel k drivers,  YouP-Pax drivers,  you name it I tried it.  Different pci slots and all.  The card did take 1 time,  mic worked but got a loud screech out of my head phones and upon restart the card wasnt detected again.  The lady I bought from on ebay said it was guarenteed to work and she would exchange it for me.  Should I exchange it or is there something special I need to do to get it to work.  My xtremeaudio works fine but I really want eax 5.0 for bf2.  That was the hole reason for me buying the card.



TBH.... sounds like a bad card to me sorry.


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## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Mar 23, 2009)

Yeah I agree,  seeing how easy the xtremeaudio works.  I think its bad too.


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## eidairaman1 (Mar 24, 2009)

Hmm i wonder how much all the CL cards run for in compare to the Likes of Auzentech, HT_Omega, and Blue Gears.


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## imperialreign (Mar 25, 2009)

eidairaman1 said:


> argh, i think the latest Stable Xfi Driver is causing lag spikes for me in games, gonna go back to old version, Unless if its SP3 causing it.



That'd be a little unusual . . . but I wouldn't entirelly rule it out, either.  You're using the official driver, and not a beta, correct?




hayder.master said:


> what about new realtek x-fi mods is this belong here



hmmm . . . TBH, I don't intend to offer "support" for these; I might make a link in the OP to Ket's thread, but, seeing as they're his deamon . . .

asides, it's still RealTek hardware, with an X-Fi "skin" over it, I guess you could say.  I'm still willing to help others with any audio related issues they might have, but I don't want to come across as fully supporting or condoning those modded drivers.




ShRoOmAlIsTiC said:


> maybe you guys can help me,  I purchased an x-fi fatal1y xtreme gamer on ebay.  When I try to install the drivers,  it wont detect it.  Just get multimedia audio device in device manager.  When I try to force the drivers manually I get a code 10 error and the card wont function.  Ive got the same issue in 2 different computers.  I tried formating and reinstalling vista 64 but still no luck.  I tried beta drivers,  daniel k drivers,  YouP-Pax drivers,  you name it I tried it.  Different pci slots and all.  The card did take 1 time,  mic worked but got a loud screech out of my head phones and upon restart the card wasnt detected again.  The lady I bought from on ebay said it was guarenteed to work and she would exchange it for me.  Should I exchange it or is there something special I need to do to get it to work.  My xtremeaudio works fine but I really want eax 5.0 for bf2.  That was the hole reason for me buying the card.



I agree with Tatty - it definitely sounds like a dead card -especially if WIN sees that new hardware is installed, but it can't even figure out what it is . . .  I'd go ahead and exchange it, if you can . . . 




eidairaman1 said:


> Hmm i wonder how much all the CL cards run for in compare to the Likes of Auzentech, HT_Omega, and Blue Gears.



It really depends on the type of card you're looking for . . . low-end, midrange or top-tier.

In the top-tier category, and if you're looking for the best audio quality possible, the Auzentech's, HT Omega's and ASUS cards offer better audio quality at a reasonable price (comparing to the audio quality of the Fatal1ty cards, and the price tag of the Elite Pro).  The Elite Pro's audio quality can run with the best of them, but it's not a cheap card.

As to the midrange segment, they're all in the same ballpark, both in price, and audio quality.  None of them are really further ahead in their capabilities as compared to their competition, it really ends up boiling down to what specifically you intend to do with the card . . . if you'll be spending more time playing games, watching films/DVD, or listening to audio tracks.  

Low-end, again, they're all pretty much on the same price scale and it really depends on what you'll be doing with the card.  There are some great values, though, targeted at the low-end segment . . . specifically from HT Omega and ASUS.


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## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Mar 25, 2009)

Well my xtreme music got mailed out to the seller today.  should have a different one in about a week so wish me luck.  for now im back on my audigy se(modded to x-fi xtreme audio)


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## eidairaman1 (Mar 26, 2009)

I used a beta along time ago, which then i used the newest stable driver and it was doing the same thing as that beta driver so i switched back


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## FreedomEclipse (Mar 30, 2009)

does anyone know where i can find a short 'guide' on XFi Alchemy???? I think a few of my games need a bit of tweaking but im not sure what everything does.

but if there aint then theres really one thing that i need to know......

what does 'buffers' do & how many can u have for a high end system???


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## imperialreign (Mar 30, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> does anyone know where i can find a short 'guide' on XFi Alchemy???? I think a few of my games need a bit of tweaking but im not sure what everything does.
> 
> but if there aint then theres really one thing that i need to know......
> 
> what does 'buffers' do & how many can u have for a high end system???





I don't know of any guide for ALchemy . . . it's fairly straight forward to use, and adding in a new game .exe is fairly simple (IIRC).  I don't personally use the software myself, as I'm still on XP, so I'm not sure if there are any "tweaks" that can be made . . .

TBH, though, I don't really think there are - all ALchemy does is capture EAX calls within a game, and translate them into their OpenAL counterparts . . . there can be the occasional issue if an EAX call is translated wrong, or if it doesn't have a corresponding OpenAL equivalent . . .

Have you made sure to update ALchemy recently?  A new version of the software was just released within the last few weeks.  Double check that you've also updated OpenAL, too.


As to audio buffers - there's no real "set" amount that your hardware will use.  Basically, what an audio buffer is in regards to computing audio hardware, is a means of using system memory to temporarily store a processed audio stream . . .

for example - if you're recording something - what's being recorded is stored into a buffer while the audio hardware is processing the input stream, which can include the conversion from analogue to digital, applying any filters, etc.  Same goes with output streams, the audio information is pulled from a file, and may be placed into a buffer while it's being processed . . . 

a buffer is also used for special effects, such as a delay echo or reverb - both are common effects with EAX/OpenAL.  

For the most part, there isn't any need to adjust the buffer size unless you start running into odd problems - crackling and popping during some EAX enabled games, choppy recordings, etc.  In general, the default buffer length allocated by WIN is typically more than enough.


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## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Mar 31, 2009)

guys I am freakin excited.  I sent back my bad x-fi xtremegamer fatal1ty to the lady on ebay I bought it from.  She also sells regular xtremegamers so I asked her if I could have that one instead.  Shes sending me one of each free of charge for my problems.  that is so freakin awesome I cant believe it.


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## imperialreign (Mar 31, 2009)

ShRoOmAlIsTiC said:


> guys I am freakin excited.  I sent back my bad x-fi xtremegamer fatal1ty to the lady on ebay I bought it from.  She also sells regular xtremegamers so I asked her if I could have that one instead.  Shes sending me one of each free of charge for my problems.  that is so freakin awesome I cant believe it.





that's effin' sweet, man!  Awesome as well that you've been able to have a good expierience with an honest seller!


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## DaMulta (Mar 31, 2009)

guys I STILL LOVE MY X-MOD







I have to say for a person that uses headphones....it has to be one of the best things I have ever bought


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## DaMulta (Mar 31, 2009)

I wonder if I could mod the xmod to work with the console.


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## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Apr 3, 2009)

got my x-fi's today.  so for just installed the xtreme music in my media pc.  it really is a xtremegamer fatal1ty pro.  x-ram and all.  It works flawlessly.  So the other had to be bad.  I plan on installing the normal xtremegamer that I got for free in my gaming rig later tonight.  the lady on ebay sold me the xtremegamer fatality but she thought it was an xtrememusic.  So I ended up getting the xtremegamer and the xtremegamer fatality for 50 bucks total.  OMG Im so freakin happy.

EDIT:

Installed the xtremegamer.  PLayed some BF2 and man does it make a difference. I would put the fatal1ty in my gamer but from what I read the x-ram doesnt make a difference and I need the low profile card cause its too close to my 4850 and restricts air flow.  the smaller xtremegamer only cuts off about 1/3 of the fan so less restriction.  both cards are rocking and it does make my movies and my music sound better on my media pc.


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 5, 2009)

ShRoOmAlIsTiC said:


> Installed the xtremegamer.  PLayed some BF2 and man does it make a difference. I would put the fatal1ty in my gamer but from what I read the x-ram doesnt make a difference



X-ram does make a moderate amount of difference but at the same time its a little bit sad that not many games even recent ones have X-ram support


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 5, 2009)

the whole thing was set up as a marketting gimmick. & thats the only way it will go on the shelf as, until Creative start working with game studios a bit more. the only games i really played which took advantage of the X-Ram was BF2 & U.T2003 im not sure about the other games. I highly doubt that Creative will pull their finger out of their ass now just to make X-ram support widely available since XFi cards have already benn out on the market for so long.


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## hbkl (Apr 7, 2009)

Hi  im new  here, i got the  sound blaster x-fi music edition... and  i want  to know how  to change sub/center   like  in the integrated  audio sistems  thanks


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## imperialreign (Apr 8, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> X-ram does make a moderate amount of difference but at the same time its a little bit sad that not many games even recent ones have X-ram support





FreedomEclipse said:


> the whole thing was set up as a marketting gimmick. & thats the only way it will go on the shelf as, until Creative start working with game studios a bit more. the only games i really played which took advantage of the X-Ram was BF2 & U.T2003 im not sure about the other games. I highly doubt that Creative will pull their finger out of their ass now just to make X-ram support widely available since XFi cards have already benn out on the market for so long.




Mostly correct . . . although it's been used heavily as a marketing gimmick - as has been pointed out, it does help somewhat.  The notion that the 64MB of "X-RAM" is only meant to be used with games and applications is incorrect.  Cards that are equipped with any amount of DRAM will use this available space for audio buffering and temporary storage, eliminating the need to re-access the SYS BUS to swap back and forth between MEM.  But, it's full benefit can't be seen unless running an application that has been coded for X-RAM support.

The thing is, though, if developers aren't willing to pay for the EAX5.0 licensing, then X-RAM can't be used, and it's abilities are somewhat rendered pointless.  Although some blame can be placed on Creative for their proprietary holdings of EAX 3, EAX 4, EAX 5HD, and the relatively high cost of EAX licensing (which can put a kink in struggling software developer's pockets) . . . I also put some blame on lazy software developers that don't spend nearly enough time on the audio aspect of their software . . . it's no longer an issue as to whether or not they feel like coughing up the funds for EAX5 licensing and usage . . . OpenAL supports X-RAM usage, and OpenAL SDK is freely available to developers at no charge.  OpenAL at it's very base is EAX 2.0, and the EAX 2.0 SDK is also available for free to the public.  I think a lot of it stems from the fact that many people (devs included) don't view audio as a strong selling point of a game, and that it's not worth the time and effort to do the audio well.

Even though we all know well done audio can aid immersion and over all "polish" of a game (look at the quality audio in Crysis, for example, which uses no EAX or OpenAL implimentations), it tends to be overlooked.  But compare games that were done with poor audio implimentation or had EAX added as an after thought (e.g. Doom3, STALKER: SoC) to games where the audio is highly developed and implimented well (Thief: Deadly Shadows, FEAR).




hbkl said:


> Hi  im new  here, i got the  sound blaster x-fi music edition... and  i want  to know how  to change sub/center   like  in the integrated  audio sistems  thanks



how exactly do you mean, change the sub/center channels?  You mean like swapping the channels?


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## hbkl (Apr 9, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> how exactly do you mean, change the sub/center channels?  You mean like swapping the channels?



yes , i mean   in the  integrated  audio card  when the center  is not working  you can select  change sub/center output   you know what  im saying now


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 16, 2009)

jobmaster said:


> Hi
> 
> Hi im new here, i got the sound blaster x-fi music edition... and i want to know how to change sub/center like in the integrated audio and i am thank u.....
> 
> ...



is being a member here not enough that you feel the need to spam??


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## imperialreign (Apr 16, 2009)

hbkl said:


> yes , i mean   in the  integrated  audio card  when the center  is not working  you can select  change sub/center output   you know what  im saying now




Hmmm . . . if you're running Vista, you could open the THX console and see if you can change the polarities of the channels . . . but I don't think that will do exactly what you're asking for.

Thing is - the output channels are preset, there's really no way to change them - not without re-wiring your speakers . . . or having access to some form of program that can change it at the driver level - which would still be a long shot.  It's a hardware issue, from the APU to the mini-jacks, the output channels are preset and can't be changed.




jobmaster said:


> Hi
> 
> Hi im new here, i got the sound blaster x-fi music edition... and i want to know how to change sub/center like in the integrated audio and i am thank u.....
> 
> ...





see my above response


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## Polaris573 (Apr 16, 2009)

Freedom eclipse please report members you suspect of spamming so we can deal with them.  This is a new trick they are up to.  They'll couch their advertisement in a legitimate question or ask a question and put their advertisement in their signature.  If you suspect a member of spamming let us know, don't just call him/her a spammer, and we'll decide if he/she actually is or not.

Thank You!


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 16, 2009)

Polaris573 said:


> Freedom eclipse please report members you suspect of spamming so we can deal with them.  This is a new trick they are up to.  They'll couch their advertisement in a legitimate question or ask a question and put their advertisement in their signature.  If you suspect a member of spamming let us know and we'll decide if he/she actually is or not.
> 
> Thank You!



apologies, this is my first encounter with a spammer of this sort, i will be more vigilant in the furture!


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 20, 2009)

Just a little heads up....Im just about to attempt a driver reinstall as my mic no longer works in 'game' mode for some reason. It works in entertainment mode though. I hope the Flexi-jack hasnt died on me again......

Ive had this XFi Fatality Plantinum for less then 6 months but my Xtreme Music had problems with the Flexi Jack also....anyway I'l be back in a sec. but i could be well on my way to getting a Xonar Dx2....

::EDIT::

the Reinstall fixed it. I dont have a clue why the mic just suddenly stopped/started functioning like that. :Confused: I dont touch the mic settings once i get them set up & the only time i noticed it wasnt working was when i was gettin butt raped by a hunter in L4D. I was screaming down the mic for help & my team were right in the next room. they coulda helped me but they didnt hear me LOL

& no its not as if my team hated me. 2 of the guys on the team were people (friends) i know personally & id burn their house down if they left me to die like that deliberately.


anyway - problem solved


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## WhiteLotus (Apr 22, 2009)

Hey, sorry no idea where to ask this question so came here.

Right it seems i am a little deaf in my right ear and i want to make it so more sound goes to the right ear via the headphones. Sure there was once a way to do this in XP but now on Vista and i have no idea what to search for in google. Any help?


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## imperialreign (Apr 22, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Just a little heads up....Im just about to attempt a driver reinstall as my mic no longer works in 'game' mode for some reason. It works in entertainment mode though. I hope the Flexi-jack hasnt died on me again......
> 
> Ive had this XFi Fatality Plantinum for less then 6 months but my Xtreme Music had problems with the Flexi Jack also....anyway I'l be back in a sec. but i could be well on my way to getting a Xonar Dx2....
> 
> ...




As of now - and my recent week and a half experiment with Vista x64 - I attribute the random, intermittent, unnatural channel loss to . . . .


you guessed it!!!

*VISTA*


I've already had a couple of instances of losing the center/sub channel - strange panning from the front channels, and other odds and ends . . .

<sigh>

Why can't we have DX10.1 on XP?!! 




WhiteLotus said:


> Hey, sorry no idea where to ask this question so came here.
> 
> Right it seems i am a little deaf in my right ear and i want to make it so more sound goes to the right ear via the headphones. Sure there was once a way to do this in XP but now on Vista and i have no idea what to search for in google. Any help?





Go to Start>Control Panel>Hardware and Sound>Sound>

select your primary output device (HDMI, speakers, SPDIF, etc.) - click 'properties' - click on the 'levels' tab, hit the 'balance' button next to the Play Control slider, and adjust the channel volumes as needed.


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 22, 2009)

well... win them all. the only reason why I moved to vista was: 

#1 - to get with the times, more & more friends had issues with new systems running vista & at the time i wouldnt touch Vista as far as i could through the disc (which is quite far as I came 2nd/3rd for my schools shotput/discus throwing on sports day)

#2 the sexy black 'Aero' layout which stole my heart..... which is the main reason. I dont care too much about DX-10 for games as none of the games i play make use of it.

vista is a headache in itself but im am quite happy with it.


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## grunt_408 (Apr 23, 2009)

Got a question for you guys.... I have a thermaltake m9 case sitting next to me that has a xfi xtreme music pci-e in it. The front panel audio has Hd and ac97 plug combined can i plug the hd in and have audio on the front jacks without frizzling the X-fi????


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 23, 2009)

Craigleberry said:


> Got a question for you guys.... I have a thermaltake m9 case sitting next to me that has a xfi xtreme music pci-e in it. The front panel audio has Hd and ac97 plug combined can i plug the hd in and have audio on the front jacks without frizzling the X-fi????



Looking at some of the reviews online - you have 2 USB port & a 1x audio & mic out on the front

& the answer is no - its either 1 or the other, but i dont understand why you would want to run a AC97 over a XFi


Or maybe you could plug your mic into it & use it as a 'recording' device instead of playback but that might cause a lot of conflicts so its best if you dont


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## grunt_408 (Apr 23, 2009)

I dont I just want to use have funcionality of the two front plugs. They are there and it sucks if they cant be used. So in short my x-fi cant be pluged in to support the front panel audio


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 23, 2009)

Craigleberry said:


> I dont I just want to use have funcionality of the two front plugs. They are there and it sucks if they cant be used. So in short my x-fi cant be pluged in to support the front panel audio



no - you'd need a break out box from Creative for that. - it might be possible a but im not the right person to ask. but i wouldnt do anything just yet as you risk shorting out your card if you do.


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## grunt_408 (Apr 23, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> no - you'd need a break out box from Creative for that. - it might be possible a but im not the right person to ask. but i wouldnt do anything just yet as you risk shorting out your card if you do.



I understand that.... I need the wiring diagram for the pin header on the x-fi so I can study the wiring setup on the case and change the configuration of the wires. I have done it before on motherboards but this is different and need a diagram.

I know all about what damage can be done I learn things the hard way and lets just say I had to get a soundcard to replace my onboard on my first ever build due to premature death


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 23, 2009)

hmmm Ive never hear of a short just shorting out the onboard sound. but your lucky i suppose.


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## grunt_408 (Apr 23, 2009)

Well luckily that is all it fried on me  I thought the pin header  on the x-fi xtrem audio was intel hd audio

Anyone who actually knows about this feel free to help me out 
The standard hd audio front panel plug is azailia I know that wont work but if I could get my hands on a diagram for the card itself then I may be able to re-pin the plug.


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## kenkickr (Apr 24, 2009)

I was checkin out creatives Win 7 support cause I cant decide if I want to get another X-fi or go with the Azuntech Forte(I traded my X-fi Titanium Pro for a 4850) and creative has release new beta drivers for Win 7.  

Beta Driver
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Series Beta Driver 2.18.0013
Filesize : 49.04 MB Download
	Hide Details
Release date : 24 Apr 09
This download is a beta driver providing Microsoft® Windows® 7 Beta support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
File Name : SBXF_W7DRVBTA_US_2_18_0013.exe

This download is a beta driver providing Microsoft® Windows® 7 Beta support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ series of audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.

Take note of the following:

    * THIS IS AN UNSUPPORTED BETA DRIVER. There is no technical support for this driver.
    * We recommend that only experienced users install this driver. Do not install this driver on a system used to perform critical tasks.
    * Users who are looking for stable drivers should wait for the final release. When this happens, user should install the latest Sound Blaster X-Fi series driver available.

This download supports the following audio devices only:

    * Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic
    * Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty® Professional Series
    * Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer
    * Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series 
    * Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum
    * Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty
    * Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro
    * Sound Blaster X-Fi

Added Features and Enhancements:

    * Enables Dolby® Digital Live and DTS® Connect features.

Requirements:

    * Microsoft Windows 7 Beta
    * Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi series audio devices listed above

Notes:

    * To install this driver
         1. Download the .exe file onto your local hard disk.
         2. Double-click the downloaded file.
         3. Follow the instructions on the screen.

http://support.creative.com/downloads/welcome.aspx?nDriverType=11#type_11


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## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Apr 25, 2009)

go with a forte,  thats what I really wanted.  but thanks for thetrade.  im still happy with the titanium.


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## EarlZ (Apr 25, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> *
> 
> To make use of the proprietary connector on the X-Fi without having to do some extensive soldering/modding, you'll need to purchase the following components from Digi-Key:
> 455-1127-1-ND  - crimp style female wire terminals to fit the proprietary 10-pin connector
> ...


*

Basically i just connect the proper azalia pins from 1 to 10 to get the front panel audio working ?*


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## kenkickr (Apr 25, 2009)

ShRoOmAlIsTiC said:


> go with a forte,  thats what I really wanted.  but thanks for thetrade.  im still happy with the titanium.



I think I'm just going to get a XtremeGamer since I can't find any Win 7 support from Azuentech or Asus and that X-fi Titanium Pro worked great on Win 7 w/ the beta drivers.  I really thought the card sounded great and can really notice the ugliness of my onboard sound now


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## Mussels (Apr 25, 2009)

the post above just got this thread to 1000 posts!

congrats guys.


[leaves thread again]


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## FreedomEclipse (Apr 25, 2009)

Mussels said:


> the post above just got this thread to 1000 posts!
> 
> congrats guys.
> 
> ...



It was 1000 & '1' posts actually.....


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## grunt_408 (Apr 25, 2009)

EarlZ said:


> Basically i just connect the proper azalia pins from 1 to 10 to get the front panel audio working ?



I guess it depends on which way you are looking @ the plug as well! Talk about confusing  Finally searching through Creative Website I found this: Hope it helps someone out as well... I am going to have a closer look at this later and if it all looks well I'll plug it in and see if it works.


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## EarlZ (Apr 26, 2009)

Oh crap i thought i had Azalia connectors on my Lianli PCP80, it would have made it easier since the pins all separated.


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## imperialreign (Apr 26, 2009)

damn - the email alert system here at TPU hasn't been sending me any messages of new posts to this thread . . . 



FreedomEclipse said:


> well... win them all. the only reason why I moved to vista was:
> 
> #1 - to get with the times, more & more friends had issues with new systems running vista & at the time i wouldnt touch Vista as far as i could through the disc (which is quite far as I came 2nd/3rd for my schools shotput/discus throwing on sports day)
> 
> ...



yeah - but, I'm 50-50 on Vista, ATM.

it's not too bad to use once you get used to where the put everything . . . but I swear, audio in-game sounds DRASTICALLY different than with XP, even with ALchemy enabled, OpenAL up-to-date and all that good mess . . . also can't figure out why the audio volume levels are about 15% louder in Vista than in XP . . . perhaps it's something with the drivers . . .




Craigleberry said:


> Got a question for you guys.... I have a thermaltake m9 case sitting next to me that has a xfi xtreme music pci-e in it. The front panel audio has Hd and ac97 plug combined can i plug the hd in and have audio on the front jacks without frizzling the X-fi????



if you can follow the instructions in post #1, it shoudl work just fine . . . unless, you happen to have one of the uber-rare XM cards that actually have the AC97 header on it - then just plug the case's front panel connector right in.

AC97 and Azalia are interchangeable . . . Intel was fiarly smart when designing this standard - both use the same grounds, and (+) and (-) feeds, so there's no need to worry about shorting something out . . . unless you have to do the mod, and potentially cross the wrong wires (of note: every case manufacturer uses different colored wires for their connectors, which means I can't give a set standard - you'll need your case's owners manual to verify what wire is for what function) . . . even if you do cross a wire, you'd end up shorting the headphone or mic jack, not the card itself (99% of the time).

the pin-out diagram is available on the front page of the thread, for both the AC97/Azalia pinouts, adn the X-Fi 10-pin proprietary pinout.




FreedomEclipse said:


> hmmm Ive never hear of a short just shorting out the onboard sound. but your lucky i suppose.



it can happen, but to the best of my knowledge, 99% of the time you'd short the output jacks on the case . . . even still, they shoudl function correctly once you change the wires again . . . it takes A LOT more voltage than what the card's header puts out to actually damage the jack.




EarlZ said:


> Basically i just connect the proper azalia pins from 1 to 10 to get the front panel audio working ?



basically - make sure to follow your case owner's manual closely as to what wire is for what function . . . not all manufacturer's label the wires the same way, nor use the same colors (but, the AC97/Azalia pinouts are universal - meaning that if you have the Intel pinout diagram, you know for sure which wire is what).



Mussels said:


> the post above just got this thread to 1000 posts!
> 
> congrats guys.
> 
> ...



thanks, man!

and still we have this thread has the second highest number of views amoungst the other TPU club threads . . . I hope this thread has definitely proven beneficial and helpful to others out there! 




Craigleberry said:


> I guess it depends on which way you are looking @ the plug as well! Talk about confusing  Finally searching through Creative Website I found this: Hope it helps someone out as well... I am going to have a closer look at this later and if it all looks well I'll plug it in and see if it works.
> http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd145/Craigleberry/x-fi.jpg




it's not too confusing, even if you're looking at the connector from a different angle - use the "key" slot for reference (pin-7 . . . no wire).


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 26, 2009)

kenkickr said:


> I think I'm just going to get a XtremeGamer since I can't find any Win 7 support from Azuentech or Asus and that X-fi Titanium Pro worked great on Win 7 w/ the beta drivers.  I really thought the card sounded great and can really notice the ugliness of my onboard sound now



didn't see this post 

TBH, I very much doubt Auzen will offer any WIN 7 X-Fi beta drivers, not until Creative's X-Fi WIN 7 beta drivers are more solid.  Auzen uses Creative's drivers as the foundation for theirs, and without the initial support . . . y'know?

But, if it's any consolation - at least Creative have been very DILIGENT about releasing new WIN 7 beta drivers for ALL X-Fi cards, since WIN 7's first beta release . . . TBH, it's a good omen, with any luck, Creative's official WIN 7 drivers will be ready and 100% solid when WIN 7 is officially released to store shelves . . . something that wasn't the case with Vista's release.


----------



## department76 (Apr 26, 2009)

*crosses fingers for a driver as stable as the current x-fi prelude vista driver for win7*

lol w/e though, i have about a year before i plan on going to win7 anywho


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 26, 2009)

department76 said:


> *crosses fingers for a driver as stable as the current x-fi prelude vista driver for win7*
> 
> lol w/e though, i have about a year before i plan on going to win7 anywho



same here - although, I do intend to make the leap soon as it's available . . .

and I'm hoping for re-implimentation of DirectSound . . . but I doubt that's going to happen


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 26, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> and still we have this thread has the second highest number of views amoungst the other TPU club threads . . . I hope this thread has definitely proven beneficial and helpful to others out there!




I take this statement back - after double-checking for myself . . . the XSS has overtaken as the most viewed TPU club thread! 

Much thanks to everyone who has helped contribute as they can, and to all those who've come here looking for help and advice . . . I'm sincerely appreciative of how far this thread has been able to come without any real Creative bashing or X-Fi bashing, a fine example of the attitude that abounds on the TPU forums!


----------



## EarlZ (Apr 27, 2009)

I have installed a huge heatsink on the X-Fi chip today, is there any synthetic / looping benchmarks i can run to put the card at max heat output ?


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 27, 2009)

EarlZ said:


> I have installed a huge heatsink on the X-Fi chip today, is there any synthetic / looping benchmarks i can run to put the card at max heat output ?





not exactly - audio strees benchmarks don't exactly exist . . .

the closest would be:  RightMark 3D Sound . . . you can use the CPU utilization test to stress the audio sub-system . . .

but, the only _best_ means of stressing the APU that I know of - would be to fire up an EAX 4.0/5.0 compliant game . . . 

check this site here for a full list of EAX compliant games:  http://www.soundblaster.com/technology/

click on the EAX icon on the bottom bar of the flash display, when it loads up the EAX window, click on "EAX Games List" on the top bar - look specifically for games that support EAX HD (which is either 4.0 or 5.0) . . . these will make use of the majority of the features the APU can handle.


----------



## Mussels (Apr 27, 2009)

now that i have a working REALTEK X-fi chip, can i make a home here?






I caved in and bought a key for it, so that i could enjoy its leetness


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 27, 2009)

Mussels said:


> now that i have a working REALTEK X-fi chip, can i make a home here?
> 
> . . .
> 
> I caved in and bought a key for it, so that i could enjoy its leetness





by all means, welcome aboard! 


that reminds me, too - I'll need to update the OP sometime this week with a reference to the RealTek "X-Fi" setup . . .


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 27, 2009)

I'm echoing this post - Creative have release a new *WIN7* beta driver for all X-Fi models, *except: X-Fi Titanium series; X-Fi Xtreme Audio series*. 



kenkickr said:


> Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Series Beta Driver *2.18.0013*
> Release date : 24 Apr 09
> 
> 
> ...



Available for download here: http://support.creative.com/downloads/?h=7



Also of note, Creative have also released a *WIN7*, *WIN Vista x64/x86 SP1*, *WIN XP x64/x86 SP3* beta driver for USB X-Fi, Live!, Audigy and various other external models:



> *Release Notes:*
> 
> This download is a beta driver providing Microsoft® Windows® 7 Beta, Windows Vista® and Windows XP support for Creative Sound Blaster® audio devices. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> ...



available here: http://support.creative.com/downloads/?h=7




over the last month, Creative have also released updates for the following applications/utilities:


SoundFont Bank Manager - *3.21.00*


----------



## FreedomEclipse (May 7, 2009)

I dont even use 80% of the crap they bundle on the CD. It keeps my system free from uneeded process's


----------



## silkstone (May 7, 2009)

Hi guys, i don;t suppose there is any way to do connector re-tasking on my card? I want to be able to use sepakers and headphones at the same time without going to the back of my pc every time i want to switch. thanks.

Edit - I might be going back to onboard after buying this card  No front panel support, and the sound quality has gone down in comparison to on-board for some reason


----------



## imperialreign (May 10, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I dont even use 80% of the crap they bundle on the CD. It keeps my system free from uneeded process's



True, there's a lot of crap that's bundled with the CD's . . . although, there's a few apps that aren't available for seperate download from their site, such as the taskbar volume control panel . . .

But, the majority of the apps aren't necessary - it's ultimately up to the end user to decide what's needed and not . . .




silkstone said:


> Hi guys, i don;t suppose there is any way to do connector re-tasking on my card? I want to be able to use sepakers and headphones at the same time without going to the back of my pc every time i want to switch. thanks.
> 
> Edit - I might be going back to onboard after buying this card  No front panel support, and the sound quality has gone down in comparison to on-board for some reason




Well . ..  yes and no . . . the X-Fi mode applications can switch between headphone and stereo use . . . but only if you have the X-Fi front panel drive.  Otherwise, the card's don't recognize when headphones are plugged into the front panel connector.

Although, you can manually go into the console launcher and switch between speakers and headphones, and then only have to unplug the headset from the front panel connection.

BW, which card did you purchase?  It's rather unusual for the audio quality to be better with onboard than with a stand-alone sound card.


----------



## imperialreign (May 10, 2009)

Creative have recently released a new WIN 7 beta driver for the *Titanium* series, version *2.17.0007*, available here: http://support.creative.com/downloads/?h=7


Release notes:



> *Take note of the following:*
> 
> •THIS IS AN UNSUPPORTED BETA DRIVER. There is no technical support for this driver.
> •We recommend that only experienced users install this driver. Do not install this driver on a system used to perform critical tasks.
> ...


----------



## Wile E (May 11, 2009)

Ok guys, I'm tossing up between 2 cards. X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro, or Auzen X-Fi Forte. Leaning towards the Forte, unless there is something I'm missing concerning possible missing features or shortcomings.


----------



## Mussels (May 11, 2009)

Wile E said:


> Ok guys, I'm tossing up between 2 cards. X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro, or Auzen X-Fi Forte. Leaning towards the Forte, unless there is something I'm missing concerning possible missing features or shortcomings.



god, go the forte. dont let anyone tell you otherwise. avoid creative and its shoddy drivers forever and ever.


----------



## Wile E (May 11, 2009)

Mussels said:


> god, go the forte. dont let anyone tell you otherwise. avoid creative and its shoddy drivers forever and ever.



Well, the Auzen drivers are based on Creative, iirc. Unless that changed, of course.


----------



## Mussels (May 11, 2009)

Wile E said:


> Well, the Auzen drivers are based on Creative, iirc. Unless that changed, of course.



but at least they get updated, and they dont suffer as many crippling bugs.


----------



## eidairaman1 (May 11, 2009)

I believe the Auzentech Driver support is better than CL anymore these days.


----------



## imperialreign (May 11, 2009)

Mussels said:


> but at least they get updated, and they dont suffer as many crippling bugs.



Creative have been a lot more vigilant about updating their drivers and applications the last 6 months - just reviewing the latter half of this thread will show that.  There have been more updates in the last 6 months, then there have been in the last 2 years . . . it seems Creative are actually trying to turn themselves around . . . hell, there's even been constant WIN 7 beta drivers released for all the cards, ensuring solid drivers for when WIN 7 hits retail shelves.

As well, I haven't seen as many driver issues pop up from users, either - even with the Vista drivers and the WIN 7 beta drivers . . .



That being sai, I'd still go the Forte - it has slightly better audio output quality, on top of the native PCI-E X-Fi APU (which, from my testing with the Titanium, reduces CPU usage down to 0%-0.5%, even with intensive EAX/DirectSound 3D/OpenAL calls).

Auzen get the basis for their drivers from Creative, and do their own tweaks and such.  Although, if you do have issues, Auzen's tech support is still better than Creative's ATM.


----------



## kenkickr (May 11, 2009)

I've been interested in the Forte but I can't find any Win 7 x64 support from them.  When I had my X-fi Titanium Pro the beta Win 7 driver worked really well.


----------



## silkstone (May 11, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> BW, which card did you purchase?  It's rather unusual for the audio quality to be better with onboard than with a stand-alone sound card.



I have an audigy value running with X-Fi Xtreme drivers. I know it's low end, but i still expected an improvement.


----------



## imperialreign (May 11, 2009)

kenkickr said:


> I've been interested in the Forte but I can't find any Win 7 x64 support from them.  When I had my X-fi Titanium Pro the beta Win 7 driver worked really well.



yeah - the beta WIN 7 drivers don't specify x64 or x86 support . . .

then again - seeing as how most of the official OS driver releases aren't specific to x64 or x86 (meaning, the driver package includes support for both), you could always attempt to install one of the WIN 7 beta drivers and see if it works . . .




silkstone said:


> I have an audigy value running with X-Fi Xtreme drivers. I know it's low end, but i still expected an improvement.



TBH, it doesn't surprise me too much . . . the Audigy Value uses a Creative chipset - not one of the EMU processors like the rest of the Audigy series.  Literally, the DSP on the Value is about on-par with 90% of modern onboard chipsets.

The card is simply showing it's age is all . . .


----------



## freaksavior (May 11, 2009)

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...tfish&lp=8&type=product&cp=1&id=1218047305021

hmmm


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## imperialreign (May 11, 2009)

freaksavior said:


> http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...tfish&lp=8&type=product&cp=1&id=1218047305021
> 
> hmmm



WTF, Batman?!


----------



## freaksavior (May 11, 2009)

yeah.. i wonder if its any good


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## Wile E (May 11, 2009)

freaksavior said:


> http://images.bestbuy.com/BestBuy_US/images/products/9180/9180414_sb.jpg
> http://images.bestbuy.com/BestBuy_US/images/products/9180/9180414_ra.jpg
> 
> yeah.. i wonder if its any good



It's just software based X-Fi, I'm willing to bet. Only goes up to EAX4.


----------



## kenkickr (May 11, 2009)

Looks alot like a X-Fi Xtreme Audio...CRAP!!

I'd go for this, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102028.  It's OEM but much better for the price.


----------



## freaksavior (May 11, 2009)

kenkickr said:


> Looks alot like a X-Fi Xtreme Audio...CRAP!!
> 
> I'd go for this, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102028.  It's OEM but much better for the price.



i'd go with 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132005&Tpk=xonar d2x

that what i have now, if the rocketfish was anygood i was going to get it for my htpc


----------



## Wile E (May 11, 2009)

Honestly, the SonarD2 was another option I was considering. It's a tough choice between it and the Forte.


----------



## freaksavior (May 11, 2009)

xonar you mean? or you mean a creative card?


----------



## Wile E (May 12, 2009)

freaksavior said:


> xonar you mean? or you mean a creative card?



Meant XonarD2X vs Forte. Tough choice. Forte is a little cheaper, and from a brand known to be audiophile quality, tho the Xonar has already proven it's worth.


----------



## imperialreign (May 12, 2009)

Wile E said:


> Meant XonarD2X vs Forte. Tough choice. Forte is a little cheaper, and from a brand known to be audiophile quality, tho the Xonar has already proven it's worth.



Hmmm . . .


well, TBH, considering how close the actual audio specs of those two cards are . . . if you do even a decent amount of gaming, or are more inclined to "max-audio-quality" entertainment playback (such as 5.1/7.1 DVD/BR/HD-DVD), the firepower of the Forte's CA20K2 APU is a pure beast . . .

it's native PCI-E, and from my testing of a Titanium, CPU load - even when running maximum voices in EAX/DirectSound 3D/OpenAL - are between 0%-0.5% . . . add in the amount of native bandwidth the card can use as well, compared to the PCI-E translated Xonar chipsets.  It can easily handle excessive amounts of audio processing without breaking a sweat, or putting any stress on the BUS (which the PCI CA20K1 APU were notorious for doing) - PCI-E audio cards which use a translator chip increase the overall audio propcessing latency . . . which, it's not normally an issue, unless you're stressing the card by forcing it to process it's maximum number of hardware voices, plus upsampling the output stream, plus doing any positional audio algorithms, plus forcing a higher output sample rate, etc.


----------



## _jM (May 12, 2009)

Can I join in with you ladies? Lookie at what I gotz today.... mmmm so sexy


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## FreedomEclipse (May 13, 2009)

_jM said:


> Can I join in with you ladies? Lookie at what I gotz today.... mmmm so sexy
> http://img.techpowerup.org/090511/1545.jpg



thats the exact same card i have. welcome to the club!!


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## imperialreign (May 15, 2009)

_jM said:


> Can I join in with you ladies? Lookie at what I gotz today.... mmmm so sexy
> . . .




sure thing, welcome aboard!


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## DaveK (May 15, 2009)

_jM said:


> Can I join in with you ladies? Lookie at what I gotz today.... mmmm so sexy
> http://img.techpowerup.org/090511/1545.jpg



Man, I love that one, I like it cos it has the sexy box cover and isn't just a plain card lol. I'll get a boxy one some day


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## FreedomEclipse (May 22, 2009)

DaveK said:


> Man, I love that one, I like it cos it has the sexy box cover and isn't just a plain card lol. I'll get a boxy one some day



well.....If you got the cash...I maybe willing to sell mine if the price is right. I think i still got the box around. I want to get rid of it in favour of a Xonar D2X (sorry imperial )


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## grunt_408 (May 23, 2009)

I am upgrading the old x-fi xtreme audio next week to a fatality are thos anygood? lol


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## kenkickr (May 23, 2009)

If it's the Xtreme Gamer Fatality PCI then no, I'm going off my experience.  I had random issues were it would just change the channel output from 5.1 to 2.1.  I tried to get creative to help me with it but that was a lost cause.  This could have been an issue caused by Vista but I couldn't take it anymore and I prefered my onboard sound since it didn't change channels on me.  I bought the card shortly after it came out and used it for about 4 months so possible a driver corrected this issue.  

If it's the Titanium Pro Fatality PCI-E then hell yes, again going off my experience.  I loved this card even though I traded for a 4850 I never used.  Never had issues with it and couldn't get over how well this card worked in Win 7 with beta drivers.  I've highly debated getting another one but that Azuntech X-fi Forte is only 10 bucks more right now on the egg(US) so I've really been eyeing that one.


----------



## grunt_408 (May 23, 2009)

It is this one http://au.creative.com/products/product.asp?category=1&subcategory=872&product=15854&listby=


----------



## kenkickr (May 23, 2009)

That would be the one I didn't like.  I would recommend the Asus D1 or D2 if you only have PCI available.  If you have PCI-E available the Titanium Fatality Pro, Azuntech X-fi Forte, and Asus DX and D2X are very nice options, depending on how much you want to spend.


----------



## pabloc74 (May 23, 2009)

can i join?...

old & new..


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## btarunr (May 23, 2009)

Sure, you're in.


----------



## grunt_408 (May 23, 2009)

pabloc74 said:


> can i join?...
> 
> old & new..
> 
> ...



Nice So do use yer Pc more for Games or music?


----------



## FreedomEclipse (May 23, 2009)

Craigleberry said:


> Nice So do use yer Pc more for Games or music?



Some how i dont think that GTX there is just there to look pretty.......


----------



## grunt_408 (May 24, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Some how i dont think that GTX there is just there to look pretty.......



If I didnt notice that I would not have asked him the question 
I have some goodies in my case too but I spend more time on tpu than i do gaming lol


----------



## pabloc74 (May 25, 2009)

Craigleberry said:


> Nice So do use yer Pc more for Games or music?



games 100%!!!


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## FreedomEclipse (May 26, 2009)

Craigleberry said:


> If I didnt notice that I would not have asked him the question
> I have some goodies in my case too but I spend more time on tpu than i do gaming lol



that said - he could just be one of those people who would morgage his house for a pc with enough power to fold 50 F@H units in the blink of an eye & bench it a few times, then do something insanely pedestrian with it & use it to only check email.


P.S

Im not delibrately  taking a stab at those kind of people, I just dont understand their way of thinking.


----------



## Wile E (May 28, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> that said - he could just be one of those people who would morgage his house for a pc with enough power to fold 50 F@H units in the blink of an eye & bench it a few times, then do something insanely pedestrian with it & use it to only check email.
> 
> 
> P.S
> ...



I'm one of those people. I don't game much, really.

It's like owning a really high horsepower/very fast car. You aren't going to be driving it flat-out everywhere you go, but it's there when you want or need it.


----------



## ShiBDiB (May 28, 2009)

just put the card listed in my specs in about a month ago. nice upgrade over onboard


----------



## FreedomEclipse (May 28, 2009)

Wile E said:


> I'm one of those people. I don't game much, really.
> 
> It's like owning a really high horsepower/very fast car. You aren't going to be driving it flat-out everywhere you go, but it's there when you want or need it.



Depends where you live - There are such places in the world where there are no speed limits on the roads so owning a stupidly fast car there might actually seem normal. the power might be there when you want it - but seriously, how long is it before you either sell/giveaway/demote it to backup machine before you actually able to use even 80% of its potential?? Because if you got money, your gonna hop on the next big thing that comes up no mattar what & it just goes to waste.

but obviously if you have a ton of money then you wont have to worry about 2moro,


----------



## Wile E (May 29, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Depends where you live - There are such places in the world where there are no speed limits on the roads so owning a stupidly fast car there might actually seem normal. the power might be there when you want it - but seriously, how long is it before you either sell/giveaway/demote it to backup machine before you actually able to use even 80% of its potential?? Because if you got money, your gonna hop on the next big thing that comes up no mattar what & it just goes to waste.
> 
> but obviously if you have a ton of money then you wont have to worry about 2moro,



I don't really have a ton of money either. I just save up for these things. I'd already have a 965XE i7 if I was rich. It's not about money, or practicality. It's about the pure desire of owning it. I like having a fast machine, even if it goes under utilized 95% of the time, it's there for the 5% I need the speed. 

I used to be the same with my cars as well, but I found the computer to be a little more manageable from a money perspective. If I made enough money, I'd have a 1000+HP daily driver for a car as well. Again, practicality be damned, it's a passion for speed and or power.


----------



## imperialreign (May 30, 2009)

Creative have recently released a new WIN 7 beta driver for the *Xtreme Audio PCI*series, version *1.04.0090*

Release Notes:



> This download is a beta driver providing Microsoft® Windows® 7 Beta support for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Xtreme Audio. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *Take note of the following:*
> 
> ...


----------



## imperialreign (May 30, 2009)

Wile E said:


> I don't really have a ton of money either. I just save up for these things. I'd already have a 965XE i7 if I was rich. It's not about money, or practicality. It's about the pure desire of owning it. I like having a fast machine, even if it goes under utilized 95% of the time, it's there for the 5% I need the speed.
> 
> I used to be the same with my cars as well, but I found the computer to be a little more manageable from a money perspective. If I made enough money, I'd have a 1000+HP daily driver for a car as well. Again, practicality be damned, it's a passion for speed and or power.





I agree, I'm about the same in both aspects - the full extent of my rig's power is rarely used . . . but, when I need it, it's nice to have that processing power there for any aspect - be it CPU intensive, GPU intensive, APU intensive, etc.

Same goes for my cars . . . although, I must say as well that _if_ I did have something more powerful, I'd probably be in trouble a lot more than I already am


----------



## grunt_408 (Jun 6, 2009)

I have been busy lately missed out on all of them interesting post's above this one. 

I have been realy busy "checking my email" on my gaming computer


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jun 10, 2009)

Ive lost my Creative DDL license key & I cant find it anywhere. does anyone know if its possible to back the key up or if theres a way to see the key in the license profiles or something?? I dred having to contact Creative CC about it. but when i get the money Im definitely gonna get a different sound card


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 10, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Ive lost my Creative DDL license key & I cant find it anywhere. does anyone know if its possible to back the key up or if theres a way to see the key in the license profiles or something?? I dred having to contact Creative CC about it. but when i get the money Im definitely gonna get a different sound card




I'm honestly not sure, man . . .


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jun 10, 2009)

XFi


----------



## grunt_408 (Jun 15, 2009)

I got me a xtreme gamer now yay


----------



## imperialreign (Jun 27, 2009)

Creative have released a new driver for the PCI X-Fi lineup (which excludes the Titanium series and the Xtreme Audio series) for *Win XP x86/x64, Vista x86/x64, WIN 7 x86/x64*.  New driver version *2.18.0013*.  

*NOTE:* This driver version is the first non-beta (read: official) WIN 7 supported driver release - as well as support for all current MS OSes, both 32-bit and 64-bit.  Creative's support download page can be found here: http://support.creative.com/Products/Products.aspx?catid=1


*Release notes:*


> *This download supports the following audio devices only:*
> 
> •Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty® Professional Series
> •Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series
> ...








*Also of note* . . . the OpenAL API has been updated to version *2.0.7.0* for both x86 and x64 installations.  The download is available here: http://connect.creativelabs.com/openal/Downloads/oalinst.zip


*Release Notes:*


> The OpenAL Installer for Windows will install the OpenAL 1.1 libraries, enabling support for core OpenAL operations as well as extensions such as EAX and EFX. The installer supports both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows.
> 
> 
> *DLL Version numbers:*
> ...



Make sure you update . . . especially Vista users!!


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jun 27, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> Creative have released a new driver for the PCI X-Fi lineup (which excludes the Titanium series and the Xtreme Audio series) for *Win XP x86/x64, Vista x86/x64, WIN 7 x86/x64*.  New driver version *2.18.0013*.
> 
> *NOTE:* This driver version is the first non-beta (read: official) WIN 7 supported driver release - as well as support for all current MS OSes, both 32-bit and 64-bit.  Creative's support download page can be found here: http://support.creative.com/Products/Products.aspx?catid=1
> 
> ...



all i can see are the Beta drivers so far, nothing about the 1.18.0013's

::EDIT::

Dont worry, i ran over to Guru3D to get it

::EDIT 2::

& I forgot to read that it 'Excludes' support for the titanium series... no wonder..... no love for me then i guess....


----------



## Ketxxx (Jun 27, 2009)

I have to ask.. does "X-Fi support syndicate" actually translate to: Support for Creative X-Fi users that are/being driven mentally insane by crap official support and drivers


----------



## btarunr (Jun 27, 2009)

Ketxxx said:


> I have to ask.. does "X-Fi support syndicate" actually translate to: Support for Creative X-Fi users that are/being driven mentally insane by crap official support and drivers



No. 

There would be no TechPowerUp forums if everything you buy works perfectly _or_ you know how to use everything perfectly.

Don't get into Creative bashing here.


----------



## Ketxxx (Jun 27, 2009)

Theres no Creative bashing, just common knowledge Creative support sucks, so in a comical way to make things more light hearted I asked what I did, in the way I did. Now go take that stick out your butt


----------



## btarunr (Jun 27, 2009)

Ketxxx said:


> Theres no Creative bashing, just common knowledge Creative support sucks, so in a comical way to make things more light hearted I asked what I did, in the way I did. Now go take that stick out your butt



Which is what I asked you not to post on. This thread is not about bitching at Creative. If you have the urge to bitch, find the nearest woman. Preferably over 50 years of age.


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## Ketxxx (Jun 27, 2009)

You have a sense of humor bypass or something? Nevermind.


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## imperialreign (Jun 27, 2009)

Ket, TBH, sarcasm doesn't really translate too well on the i-nets . . . and we know you've been overly vocal in your stance against Creative in the past - I can't blame bta for interpreting your post as the first step towards open bashing . . .

but, in all seriousness, I had started this thread (and mentioned numerous times in it) to offer support for issues because of how poor Creative's tech and customer support was.  Occasionally I'll fire a question at their tech support just to see what their answer will be, and I'm usually given a long response that begins a process of running in circles . . . and their forums are full of creative bashers, so legitimate problems become overlooked.

Biggest reason why Creative bashing goes untolerated here . . . this thread is meant to offer help to users who have legitimate issues and are trying to resolve them.


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## Ketxxx (Jun 27, 2009)

Like I said, just figured I would try to bring a smile to some poor sods otherwise probably dismal day fighting a Creative problem. We all know how it sucks troubleshooting something theres seemingly no answer for.


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## purezerg (Jun 27, 2009)

kenkickr said:


> If it's the Xtreme Gamer Fatality PCI then no, I'm going off my experience.  I had random issues were it would just change the channel output from 5.1 to 2.1.  I tried to get creative to help me with it but that was a lost cause.  This could have been an issue caused by Vista but I couldn't take it anymore and I prefered my onboard sound since it didn't change channels on me.  I bought the card shortly after it came out and used it for about 4 months so possible a driver corrected this issue.
> 
> If it's the Titanium Pro Fatality PCI-E then hell yes, again going off my experience.  I loved this card even though I traded for a 4850 I never used.  Never had issues with it and couldn't get over how well this card worked in Win 7 with beta drivers.  I've highly debated getting another one but that Azuntech X-fi Forte is only 10 bucks more right now on the egg(US) so I've really been eyeing that one.



yeah I'm also very pissed with mine from 5.1 to 2.1 not exactly 2.1. vista still says 5.1 but it's either centre sound will go the right side or rear would completely disappear or front left/right would go to centre. had to reboot just to temp fix the sound. but after installing danielK's support pack 2.0 it seems that it has gone away.. still need a few more days to confirm that.

connection to speakers are analog. I tried optical. same problems. optical as in "encoder DTS connect" rather than set SPDIF as default.

but i did realized that I had that problem when I am using CMSS. when i disabled everything. it doesnt occur cuz the rear and centre isnt used for music. 

the channel shift is during music and video.


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## imperialreign (Jun 27, 2009)

purezerg said:


> yeah I'm also very pissed with mine from 5.1 to 2.1 not exactly 2.1. vista still says 5.1 but it's either centre sound will go the right side or rear would completely disappear or front left/right would go to centre. had to reboot just to temp fix the sound. but after installing danielK's support pack 2.0 it seems that it has gone away.. still need a few more days to confirm that.
> 
> connection to speakers are analog. I tried optical. same problems. optical as in "encoder DTS connect" rather than set SPDIF as default.
> 
> ...



This is actually a problem with Vista itself, not the drivers.  daniel_k's driver packs only fix this issue about 50% of the time, but I have seen some instances where other problems have cropped up . . . as well, the problem isn't pinned down to simply Creative's hardware, but ASUS, Auzen and HT Omega have had the same issues with certain applications . . .

What happens - the audio processing in Vista is moved outside of the OS kernel, so the audio calls from the software are done at the application level . . . not the hardware level.  Which means that Vista technically "interprets" the calls for the hardware and then passes the call onto the driver, which can result in strange behaviour (intermediate loss of channels, changing from 5.1 to 2.1, etc.) - unlike in XP where applications had direct access to the audio system.

Strangely enough, applications that are integral to the OS once installed (i.e. Windows Media Player or Media Center) don't have these issues as often, it's actually very rare . . . and if you're using onboard audio instead of a card, the problem seems to never occur . . .


My best advice - make sure you keep Vista as updated as possible.  As well, make sure you've updated the OpenAL drivers.  If you can, try to research and use only multimedia software that supports OpenAL (you'll have much fewer issues), instead of having to rely on Vista's 3 primary audio APIs.


If you'd like to read some more of the nitty-gritty as to what Vista APIs do what, check out these links:

Vista Audio API overview

Windows Audio Session API
MultiMedia Device APU
Endpoint Volume API
Device Topology API


More info is available on Vista's audiostack on msdn - just browse around.


As of now, my best advice would be to patiently wait and see how the daniel_k drivers hold up . . . but if trouble starts brewing again, you might want to attempt to start experimenting with different official driver packs . . . some seem to work better than others 





Ketxxx said:


> Like I said, just figured I would try to bring a smile to some poor sods otherwise probably dismal day fighting a Creative problem. We all know how it sucks troubleshooting something theres seemingly no answer for.




Well - we have answers here!


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## purezerg (Jun 28, 2009)

when you say "If you can, try to research and use only multimedia software that supports OpenAL (you'll have much fewer issues), instead of having to rely on Vista's 3 primary audio APIs."


what do you suggest? I'm like using WMP and MCE almost exclusively. I gave up trying to get it to save as 5.1 i just reinstalled my whole vista and now it's working fine. now it stays as 5.1.


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## purezerg (Jun 28, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> I agree, I'm about the same in both aspects - the full extent of my rig's power is rarely used . . . but, when I need it, it's nice to have that processing power there for any aspect - be it CPU intensive, GPU intensive, APU intensive, etc.
> 
> Same goes for my cars . . . although, I must say as well that _if_ I did have something more powerful, I'd probably be in trouble a lot more than I already am




well I must admit my system is more powerful than my daily emails needs. but when i need it, i really need it. I'm a photographer and i do stuff like batching 500+ raw files to TIF16.

I've got Q6600@3.6Ghz and GTX295 with areca 2Gb cache raid5 8x500Gb and Prelude/z5500. but i must say that CS4 does seems to speed things up when there's a fast GPU.


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## imperialreign (Jun 28, 2009)

purezerg said:


> what do you suggest? I'm like using WMP and MCE almost exclusively. I gave up trying to get it to save as 5.1 i just reinstalled my whole vista and now it's working fine. now it stays as 5.1.



And sadly, those apps seem to be the most prone to the channel-changing problem . . . even as handy as they are (I use them as well).

Hmmm . . . I'm sure you've gone into Vista's audio control panel and manually set the speaker output there at 5.1, correct (there were some issues in XP between the WIN audio panel and the X-Fi audio panel not cooperating and working together)?  Also, any other audio capable devices are fully disabled (best to do so in Device Manager) . . . even if the hardware drivers are not installed, and the hardware is not set as the primary output device, it can still cause some headaches with Vista - again, some of the APIs don't "realize" the hardware is not in use, and try to use them anyhow.


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## Mussels (Jun 28, 2009)

i've never had these problems, ever. (non creative user, vista since it was RTM)

As long as you set 5.1 in the control panel and in the audio software, and you disable CMSS... you should have no issues.


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## purezerg (Jun 28, 2009)

Mussels said:


> i've never had these problems, ever. (non creative user, vista since it was RTM)
> 
> As long as you set 5.1 in the control panel and in the audio software, and you disable CMSS... you should have no issues.



yeah, that's the issue. it's CMSS causing the 5.1 to pseudo 2.1. as i said the speakers are still set @ 5.1 but the channels are screwed. and it changes only in the midst of the music/video. have to restart WMP/MCE to resolve it. that works most of the time. with some cases where only a reboot will fix it.


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## purezerg (Jun 28, 2009)

sigh. it just happened again.. i heard a channel change during WMP radio streaming, suddenly the woofer got a bass boost and centre became very loud. I then disabled CMSS-3D and now only sound coming out from centre and woofer. FL,FR,RL,RR no sound. enabled back CMSS all 5.1 came back but the RL and RR is louder than FR and FL.
restarted WMP and now is all hunky dory.

sound card prelude 7.1 stock opamps to z5500 via analog. X-fi in entertainment mode. it stays in entertainment mode even during games. i only play World in Conflict.


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## imperialreign (Jun 29, 2009)

and you do have Vista's sound panel set to 5.1 as well, right?


IIRC, someone else had this problem reported in this thread a long while back - can't remember if there was a fix or not . . .

Try running in Game Mode - that allows for full hardware functionality and upto 60k software voices . . . it could be that CMSS-3D is trying to surpass the max number of software voices Entertainment mode is capable of, and it's down-mixing the number of channels to compensate . . .

Just an idea for now - I'll see if I can dig anything else up.


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## purezerg (Jun 29, 2009)

yap. i have ensured that both are set to 5.1. actually when i set vista's sound panel to 5.1, the creative app also changes to 5.1. 

i'll try game mode. 

i dont see why CMSS has got to do with the voices. but i'll take your word for it. will try game mode for the time being.


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## Mussels (Jun 29, 2009)

CMSS is taking stereo and mixing to 5.1, its simply screwing up when doing so. im sure you can imagine what it would do to a working 5.1 stream, if it started throwing the front stereo channels into other speakers.


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## purezerg (Jun 29, 2009)

actually no you are wrong. I tried a DTS and DBDL surround check vob file. all channels work fine when CMSS was screwed with 2 channels.


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## Mussels (Jun 29, 2009)

purezerg said:


> actually no you are wrong. I tried a DTS and DBDL surround check vob file. all channels work fine when CMSS was screwed with 2 channels.



i'm not saying it is. i was giving an example of a situation where it could go wrong.


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## purezerg (Jun 29, 2009)

yeah i know what you mean hence i purposely waiting till CMSS screwed the channels then i played a 5.1 sound check. BUT i missed out a catch. i didnt play the 5.1 surrond check with WMP, i played with classic media player 6.4. 

I'm looking into winamp for the time being. 
first i'll try game mode. if it still creates problems, then i'll try winamp in entertainment mode. 
IF it still has problems, i'll try mplayerc.exe in game mode. if that still fails, both my hands will be in the air.


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## imperialreign (Jun 29, 2009)

purezerg said:


> i dont see why CMSS has got to do with the voices. but i'll take your word for it. will try game mode for the time being.



well, what happens is that there's only 128 hardware voices available (literally 128 hardware processes) - these are worked directly at the audio processor or DSP itself, on the hardware level . . . software voices are more-or-less "extra" audio streams that can be worked at the same time, but they're processed at the software/driver level . . . the number of software voices is entirelly dependant on the processing hardware available . . . what CMSS-3D does, to create the effect of sounds originating from positions where speakers don't physically exist (by spliting a processing stream between multuiple channels), it must make use of software voices (literally processing everything at the software level, not hardware).

That's where I was thinking that if CMSS-3D is trying to surpass the number of software voices it has available in Entertainment mode, the drivers might be defaulting the hardware back to 2.1 channel output to open up more software voices for the application . . .


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## joey_sfb (Jul 13, 2009)

*PCI Express X-Fi Titanium vs X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional*

Hi, like to seek guy's opinions on the PCI Express X-Fi Titanium. I am tempted to this over the Fatal1ty Pro due to the $$ saving. My main use for the card is to play games with my 5.1 setup at home. Will I miss out on the X-RAM features and compromise on my overall gaming experience.

Thanks.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 13, 2009)

the Fatality Pro is possibly one of the best XFi's to enter the market to date, I have one myself. however the usual thing stands in the cards way...

- Its made by creative - so expect little to non existant support & in some cases really really bad bugged out drivers.

It still has all the usual features. but now Creative have thrown in DDL which makes it a little worth while. its a great card but its really let down by Creatives support.


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## joey_sfb (Jul 13, 2009)

Creative has a bad rep on support. I have email them before and they do respond to email inquiry. I asking them for the remote replacement part for my fps2000 speakers. As expected they don't have the part. Those fps2000 are old but good sounding and usable after i open up the remote to clean the contact.

My audigy 1 is giving me intermittent crushes and distorted sound. Which become better after i disable and re-enable the audigy driver from Window Device Manager. Still work, but i am thinking of replacing them to either X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional or the non Fatal1ty version which is cheaper...

Thanks for your reply.



FreedomEclipse said:


> the Fatality Pro is possibly one of the best XFi's to enter the market to date, I have one myself. however the usual thing stands in the cards way...
> 
> - Its made by creative - so expect little to non existant support & in some cases really really bad bugged out drivers.
> 
> It still has all the usual features. but now Creative have thrown in DDL which makes it a little worth while. its a great card but its really let down by Creatives support.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 13, 2009)

If u want my opinion id say go with a Xonar D2X. Creative hardware just has too many 'anomalies' with Vista - one sec volume is quiet, next its really loud, Or it will randomly distort for no reason at all even though the audio Im listening to has been normalised/produced/mixed properly & I havent got the speakers cranked up even half way.

I cant explain why this happens, Creative cant explain why it happens. no one can.

thats why if i could afford it, id go with a Asus Xonar D2x. It might cost a little more then the XFi Titanium Fatality Pro but its a lot less stress in the long run & Ive heard no complaints about the card or Asus's support for it to date.

definitely highly recommended


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## joey_sfb (Jul 16, 2009)

Does your speakers system has any volume dial? Creative low end speaker or most budget speakers use very low quality potential meter that degrade over time. The common symptom will be varying from low to high, high to low output volume without you touching the volume dial.

Spray some contact spray over the potential meter expose knot could help it.



FreedomEclipse said:


> If u want my opinion id say go with a Xonar D2X. Creative hardware just has too many 'anomalies' with Vista - one sec volume is quiet, next its really loud, Or it will randomly distort for no reason at all even though the audio Im listening to has been normalised/produced/mixed properly & I havent got the speakers cranked up even half way.
> 
> I cant explain why this happens, Creative cant explain why it happens. no one can.
> 
> ...


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## Beebee (Jul 16, 2009)

*Problem with 5.1 sound*

I have an Xfe extreme audio sound card Boston Acoustics BA7500G sound system Win XP SP3 & I can't get the rear speakers to work . 

They were working fine on the audigy 1 card. The stereo setup sounds great windows is setup for 5.1 & so are the creative drivers but all I get from the rear speakers is background hiss. 
The speakers themselves are fine. I've got a green led at the interface of the back of the sub but no sound at all. any ideas would be greatfully received Beebee


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 16, 2009)

joey_sfb said:


> Does your speakers system has any volume dial? Creative low end speaker or most budget speakers use very low quality potential meter that degrade over time. The common symptom will be varying from low to high, high to low output volume without you touching the volume dial.
> 
> Spray some contact spray over the potential meter expose knot could help it.



haha Its a set of Logitech Z5500's which i paid almost £220 so i hope its not low quality.

----

trust me its the soundcard. you read up or ask ANYONE else here or have owned a Creative XFi & 8.5 out of 10 people would have had exactly the same problem reguardless of what speaker(s) kit they have, - its not just 1 or 2 unrelated incidents. its more of a daily/regular occurance among some of us XFi owners & thats why people such as Daniel K surfaced, to provide some support that Creative never offerd & therefore was so quick to stamp it out.

Unfortunately - thats just the way it is.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 16, 2009)

Beebee said:


> I have an Xfe extreme audio sound card Boston Acoustics BA7500G sound system Win XP SP3 & I can't get the rear speakers to work .
> 
> They were working fine on the audigy 1 card. The stereo setup sounds great windows is setup for 5.1 & so are the creative drivers but all I get from the rear speakers is background hiss.
> The speakers themselves are fine. I've got a green led at the interface of the back of the sub but no sound at all. any ideas would be greatfully received Beebee



have you tried setting up the channels as 5.1 in the windows audio console?


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## imperialreign (Jul 16, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> If u want my opinion id say go with a Xonar D2X. Creative hardware just has too many 'anomalies' with Vista - one sec volume is quiet, next its really loud, Or it will randomly distort for no reason at all even though the audio Im listening to has been normalised/produced/mixed properly & I havent got the speakers cranked up even half way.
> 
> I cant explain why this happens, Creative cant explain why it happens. no one can.
> 
> ...



TBH, it's not just Creative's hardware that has issues with Vista . . .

But, sadly, it's not really the problem of the _hardware_ in-so-much as it's a problem with the _OS_. 

Thing is, as many people as there are that report problems with Creative's hardware, there's just as many that report everything works fine (myself included) . . . honestly, I've come to the conclusion a long while back that it's not so much an issue with the drivers or hardware, as the majority of the time it's an issue of users who don't know any better - really, Creative's hardware are really the only audio cards available everywhere, from Wal-Mart to Best Buy, and to online retailers . . . at these kinds of stores, you don't see any kind of audio card more "top tier" than Creative . . . which means the vast majority of Creative owners fall into the same rung of people you see using the majority of OEM systems . . . that is, the vast majority of people using their computer don't know much other than where the power switch is . . .

When it comes to the ASUS and Auzen regulars, the majority of owners have at least a minimal amount of tech-awareness, and know that your onboard sound needs to be disabled - that you should remove all other manufacturer's drivers and software, that things need to stay updated, etc . . .

Look specifically at Auzen owners and their hardware, for comparision, to Creative owners and hardware . . . you'll find it rather strange that X-Fi equipped Auzen cards (which the base drivers for are written by Creative for Auzen) tend to not have the same repeat problems and issues as Creative's cards do . . . even though the base drivers and software are 95% the same . . .

. . . it's just a drastically different customer base.




joey_sfb said:


> Creative has a bad rep on support. I have email them before and they do respond to email inquiry. I asking them for the remote replacement part for my fps2000 speakers. As expected they don't have the part. Those fps2000 are old but good sounding and usable after i open up the remote to clean the contact.
> 
> My audigy 1 is giving me intermittent crushes and distorted sound. Which become better after i disable and re-enable the audigy driver from Window Device Manager. Still work, but i am thinking of replacing them to either X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional or the non Fatal1ty version which is cheaper...
> 
> Thanks for your reply.




Honestly . . . regarding the Titanium lineup . . . I'd opt for the Fatal1ty - it's a little beefier on the hardware side, and also sports a fully-functional EMI shield (which can make a big difference if you have some high-end GPUs or CPU, or if you use WiFi).



Beebee said:


> I have an Xfe extreme audio sound card Boston Acoustics BA7500G sound system Win XP SP3 & I can't get the rear speakers to work .
> 
> They were working fine on the audigy 1 card. The stereo setup sounds great windows is setup for 5.1 & so are the creative drivers but all I get from the rear speakers is background hiss.
> The speakers themselves are fine. I've got a green led at the interface of the back of the sub but no sound at all. any ideas would be greatfully received Beebee



double check WIN audio control panel - make sure WIN is set to 5.1 - as well as the Console Launcher . . .

CP has a nasty habit of not cooperating with Creative's software . . . even if you have the box "synch with control panel" checked, XP doesn't always update your speaker configuration, volume settings, hardware mode, or other stuff.




FreedomEclipse said:


> haha Its a set of Logitech Z5500's which i paid almost £220 so i hope its not low quality.
> 
> ----
> 
> ...





Like I mentioned just above, 90% of the time with XP specifically, the channel loss is due to the XP audio control panel not updating to whatever changes are made in Creative's console launcher . . .

and, sadly, X-Fi driver releases haven't been able to address it - the most recent drivers helped some, but only when changing from headphone to 2.1 - all other speaker configs still have the same issue of XP not following the updated settings . . .

not really sure if it's an OS issue, or a driver issue, as daniel_k's drivers never fixed this problem, either . . .


----------



## joey_sfb (Jul 17, 2009)

Another thing to check is the interrupt channel sharing that could be view by Device Manager->view under I/O resources. They will list what's device is using which interrupt. My audigy 1 used to have some clicks...pops..., i found out that its sharing interrupt 16 with one of the usb hub... and since i don't use it that usb hub, i disable it than uninstall the audigy 1 driver and reinstall it. The clicks and pops disappeared. 

If your sound card is sharing with a device that you need to use move your sound card or that device to other i/o slot. This normally solve my clicks..pops problem.
The reason is quite simple, audio continuous data stream can't be interrupt unlike other data stream. Dedicated interrupt is still the best for them.

X-Fi PCI-Express version claim to resolve that problem but i am not betting on it as this is not the first claim.



FreedomEclipse said:


> haha Its a set of Logitech Z5500's which i paid almost £220 so i hope its not low quality.
> 
> ----
> 
> ...


----------



## joey_sfb (Jul 17, 2009)

> Honestly . . . regarding the Titanium lineup . . . I'd opt for the Fatal1ty - it's a little beefier on the hardware side, and also sports a fully-functional EMI shield (which can make a big difference if you have some high-end GPUs or CPU, or if you use WiFi).



At SG, creative's home country their Titanium is $142 while their Fatal1ty is $229, quite a lot of different in price for a boost in x-ram from 16mb to 64mb and the EMI shield.

To you know whether there is a DAC upgrade for the Fatal1ty version?


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## imperialreign (Jul 17, 2009)

joey_sfb said:


> At SG, creative's home country their Titanium is $142 while their Fatal1ty is $229, quite a lot of different in price for a boost in x-ram from 16mb to 64mb and the EMI shield.
> 
> To you know whether there is a DAC upgrade for the Fatal1ty version?



that's an insane price difference . . . but, I'm not sure how it compares to the US . . .

Anyhow, there's no difference in the DAC.  Honestly, except for the Xtreme Gamer and the Elite Pro - all Creative X-Fi cards use the same DAC, ADC, OPAMPs, MOSFETs, capacitors, V regulators, etc.


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## Beebee (Jul 17, 2009)

*no 5.1 sound*



FreedomEclipse said:


> have you tried setting up the channels as 5.1 in the windows audio console?



Yes its setup as 5.1 in both. As is usual with Creative Drivers it might tell you that its setting things in Windows but you allways have to open up the volume control advanced settings & tick the digital output only box before you get any sound at all. Then advanced audio Properties/ speaker setup/ 5.1 surround speakers. I've also set it up as 5.1 in the creative Audio Console as well 

I've been looking at the rather limited manual that came with this card and  there is no mention of support for 5.1 audio anywhere in it.  I thought the Bostons would work through the Digital I/O link but so far no luck. 

I was thinking about the gamer version of the card but I supect the I might have the same problems with it. The use of a minijack to connect the soundcard to  5.1 speaker systems was I think, a Creative standard, all the way  back to the Live 5.1. 
The first version of the live card needed a breakout card for digital out, but sense then all Creative cards have more or less worked with 5.1  straight out of the box, sometimes with a little fiddling.

The drivers that came with my Audigy 1 card used to produce an allmighty roar from the speakers until I could update the drivers. 

I still have a folder full of Sound blaster & Audigy drivers that I collected from various parts of the world, but this is the first time iv'e been utterly defeated by a Creative product. 

The real bugger is that the sound that Iv'e got from the 2 speaker setup is so good. The chips themselves are so good, it's a pity that ther software is so crap Beebee


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 17, 2009)

are you using 1 digital cable plugged in or the standard 3 analogue cables??


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## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

he did mention digital.

Digital signals are only 2.0 sounds, without a card capable of real time encoding.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 17, 2009)

Mussels said:


> he did mention digital.
> 
> Digital signals are only 2.0 sounds, without a card capable of real time encoding.



how bout if his speakers have a built in encoder?


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## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> how bout if his speakers have a built in encoder?



... what?


software -> soundcard -> digital cable -> decoder -> speakers


by that point, you're already getting 2.0 sounds... so you cant have an encoder in a speaker. You can have an upmixer, which gives you 3x 2.0 sound - but no matter how you look at it, it aint 5.1


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## Beebee (Jul 17, 2009)

*JUst the 1*



FreedomEclipse said:


> are you using 1 digital cable plugged in or the standard 3 analogue cables??


Just the one plugged into the Digital I/O Blue Miniplug


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## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

Beebee said:


> Just the one plugged into the Digital I/O Blue Miniplug



what soundcard do you have again, and does it support Dolby digital live, or DTS connect?


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## Beebee (Jul 17, 2009)

Mussels said:


> he did mention digital.
> 
> Digital signals are only 2.0 sounds, without a card capable of real time encoding.


 The speakers do have a built in Dac Beebee


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## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

Beebee said:


> The speakers do have a built in Dac Beebee



thats a digital to analogue converter. All digital speakers have that, and its unrelated to the question i asked.


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## Beebee (Jul 17, 2009)

*Re 5.1*



Mussels said:


> ... what?
> 
> 
> software -> soundcard -> digital cable -> decoder -> speakers
> ...


----------



## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

yes, they have a decoder. that is not a DAC. They are different things.

Those speakers support dolby digital decoding. That REQUIRES a dolby digital signal from your soundcard, to your speakers.

Movies that come with this may give you 5.1, but i can guarantee you that without a soundcard capable of encoding dolby digital in real time - you have not been getting 5.1 audio.

In fact i can kinda guarnatee you havent had 5.1 audio, cause thats a 4.1 speaker set anyway.


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 17, 2009)

My pci-e x-fi extreme audio is hooked up to my denon av amp via a optical digital cable,and i'm sure its only a 2.1 output.Which sound card would i need that can output a 5.1 signal to the amp?

I am using the amp to upmix it with 5,1 stereo mode atm.

Thanks.


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## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

anything with dolby digital live - thats the name they give to real time DD encoding.

The latest X-fi cards do it, auzentech and asus xonar do it.


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 17, 2009)

Whats the cheapest xonar that does it?

Does this do it?

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SC-002-AS&groupid=701&catid=11&subcat=

Thanks mussels

tigger


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## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

tigger said:


> Whats the cheapest xonar that does it?
> 
> Does this does it?
> 
> ...



"Real-time DDL and DTS Connect encoders for amazing gaming and surround sounds over your Home Theater System"


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## Beebee (Jul 17, 2009)

Mussels said:


> yes, they have a decoder. that is not a DAC. They are different things.
> 
> Those speakers support dolby digital decoding. That REQUIRES a dolby digital signal from your soundcard, to your speakers.
> 
> ...


 yes I know it's only 4 speakers, but with both my earlier sound cars I was getting imput to my rear speakers & both the Live 5.1, & the audigy said they were outputing A 5.1 Digital stream, & it certainly sounded like they were in games like doom Beebee


----------



## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

live 5.1 and audigy cards do not support encoding, so they definately werent outputting your games in 5.1.

Your card has (and always has been) outputting a stereo signal over a digital connection - your speakers must have a feature such as what tigger mentioned a few posts above, an upmixing mode thats making the rear speakers clone the front speakers.


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## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 17, 2009)

I'm using my amp to upmix,i am going to buy one of these xonar dx card now i think.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 17, 2009)

tigger said:


> I'm using my amp to upmix,i am going to buy one of these xonar dx card now i think.



Tigger - you sexy beast. care to donate that Xonar to me??? In return you can have my PCI-E Titanium Fatality Pro


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 17, 2009)

Thanks but i'll give the xonar a try first.I need the ddl output for my sexy denon amp.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 17, 2009)

my X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro has DDL


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## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> my X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro has DDL



http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=1478770&postcount=1114

Yup, some of the latest X-fi cards do.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 17, 2009)

I know. I was asking if youd like to swap


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## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I know. I was asking if youd like to swap



me? nooooooo.


I get EAX 4.0 out of this thing thanks to alchemy universal, DDL and... well, it sounds good.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jul 17, 2009)

I was asking Tigger to swap for his Xonar.


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## Mussels (Jul 17, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I was asking Tigger to swap for his Xonar.



now we're just confusing each other.

Lets all sit back, relax, and be glad we arent on creative cards. Oh yeah, right, sorry 


I'll drop out of this thread again - i only popped in to help clarify the digital issue.


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## Wile E (Jul 18, 2009)

If you dig up the Daniel K drivers, I do believe that most any Creative card will do 5.1 sound thru optical.


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## Beebee (Jul 18, 2009)

*Now I'm really confused & mortified*

Ok Iv'e realized that the X-Fi Xtreme Audio isn't even an X_Fi, & is probably a step down from my much older Audigy EUX HD no SPDIF in or out so I was lucky to get it work even in 2 channel config. The more i read about SPDIF the more confused I get.

 If I use an SPDIF pass thru from the CD player to the Soundcard & then an SPDIF out to a  Sub with a built in Dolby Decoder where is the data being processed ? on the soundcard, well I know something is hapening there because if I play with the room settings I hear the changes in the speakers. I dont like any of them so don't  use them, i'd guess some processing is happening there, then the data still in a digital stream, is then being passed on to the sub. what I'm trying to understand is what part the each play. Then we come to other sound Sources, Sound files stored on your computer in various formats, & directional sound in games. 
It seems I was deluding myself about hearing any at all, well probably a little bit cause the Sterio Data was  there but anything I thought I was hearing from behind me was a delusion, As none of the soundcards I have owned to date are capable of this level of decoding. 

Are there any reasonably priced Soundcards out there capable of decoding The dolby data? Beebee
PS One more question is the any advantage in enabling EUX in game (Stalker) on a setup like this


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 18, 2009)

Freedom,i'll let ya know on the swap,i just wanna actually try the xonar first  I dont get it till mon/tues.

Will it be ok if i put the sound card into the bottom x16(x4) slot on my board? its too long to go into the top x1 slot.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 18, 2009)

tigger said:


> Freedom,i'll let ya know on the swap,i just wanna actually try the xonar first  I dont get it till mon/tues.
> 
> Will it be ok if i put the sound card into the bottom x16(x4) slot on my board? its too long to go into the top x1 slot.



haha take your time bud, no rush. I cant find the manual for my card (if it ever came with one) but i got the drivers disk & the box still so its just good as new, found my DDL activation key finally so its all there,


----------



## Mussels (Jul 18, 2009)

1x card will be fine in x4 slot.


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## imperialreign (Jul 18, 2009)

Beebee said:


> Ok Iv'e realized that the X-Fi Xtreme Audio isn't even an X_Fi, & is probably a step down from my much older Audigy EUX HD no SPDIF in or out so I was lucky to get it work even in 2 channel config. The more i read about SPDIF the more confused I get.



audio connections in general can become quite confusing - as well, manufacturers of cables and other hardware don't help, in the fact that there's no "set" standard for testing, so manufacturer's specs are somewhat bisased at times . . . 

Check out the guide I have linked in my sig, I've tried to break down the various specs, connections and other hardware in terms that easier for most people to understand 




> If I use an SPDIF pass thru from the CD player to the Soundcard & then an SPDIF out to a  Sub with a built in Dolby Decoder where is the data being processed ? on the soundcard, well I know something is hapening there because if I play with the room settings I hear the changes in the speakers. I dont like any of them so don't  use them, i'd guess some processing is happening there, then the data still in a digital stream, is then being passed on to the sub. what I'm trying to understand is what part the each play. Then we come to other sound Sources, Sound files stored on your computer in various formats, & directional sound in games.
> It seems I was deluding myself about hearing any at all, well probably a little bit cause the Sterio Data was  there but anything I thought I was hearing from behind me was a delusion, As none of the soundcards I have owned to date are capable of this level of decoding.



well, technically - the soundcard only in the above example only acts as a pass-through device . . . meaning that it's not actively processing the audio stream . . .

the reason you hear EAX changes, though, is that the input-output stream looks like this:

input => ADC => DAC => output

the inptu to the card is sent to the ADC, from there it's routed straight back to the DAC (which is where the EAX effects are applied), then sent to the output channels

The APU itself isn't getting involved with any processing effects, channel upmixing or down mixing . . . which, on cards that are capable, the DSP or APU typically handles the encoding. 




> Are there any reasonably priced Soundcards out there capable of decoding The dolby data? Beebee
> PS One more question is the any advantage in enabling EUX in game (Stalker) on a setup like this



ALmost all audio cards are capable of Dolby decoding . . . it's the encoding that you need.

90% of all upper-end audiophile cards have the capability (Auzen, ASUS) . . . in regards to Creative, only the Titanium series have encoding capability for free . . . the for all other cards, I believe you can download the drivers for a small fee.


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## Beebee (Jul 20, 2009)

Yes Iv'e got there by now & have been looking at the Auzen cards. The only problem is that if I go for one of the highend Auzen's, or a higher Spec X-Fi,  I'd then need to look at upgrading my speakers as well, so for the moment I think I'll just stay with Stereo sound Thanks Beebee


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jul 20, 2009)

Beebee said:


> Yes Iv'e got there by now & have been looking at the Auzen cards. The only problem is that if I go for one of the highend Auzen's, or a higher Spec X-Fi,  I'd then need to look at upgrading my speakers as well, so for the moment I think I'll just stay with Stereo sound Thanks Beebee



you dont 'need' to upgrade your speakers just because you splashed out on a £100 soundcard. you can still use them except you wont be getting the best out of the soundcard. but then again it also depends what speakers you have not all stereo or 2.1 speakers are bad.

It just gives me something to aim for. for a long time I ran a £35 set of 5.1 set of creative speakers through a Creative Audigy 2 ZS & later on a XFi Xtreme Music - but the new 5.1 speakers came at least 2years after i bought the XFi card, thats when i found out the I/O 'Flexijack' on my Xtreme Music was broken so I had no optical output. thats when I sold the Xtreme Music & bought a Titanium Fatality Pro.


----------



## Bjorn_Of_Iceland (Jul 20, 2009)

*Greetings fellow X-Fi users,*

Im having problems lately with my Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Ed. After using the card for a while in Media player or playing games, somehow, it does not "release" the audio usage from the previous application.

When playing an audio or running a game, there is no audio and some apps (like media player and Hawx) reports that the audio device is currently being used by another application (in which it is not since there are no other apps in the process which uses sound).

However, other sounds seem to be working like windows "ding" and shutdown sounds..

My current specs are:

E6850 @ 3.9Ghz
Striker II Formula with latest 2102 bios
GTX 260 216 (185.85)
Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Ed (Driver Date 2/19/2009 ver. 6.0.1.1346)
Windows XP SP3

Does anyone else experience this?


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jul 20, 2009)

try updating your volume control panel to the lastest version if you havent done it already. If that doesnt solve it then i dont know anything else. I use to have teh same problem with Fallout3. Id play a game but when i finish & try to switch to entertainment mode - it wont do it & the only way to get functionality back is to restart the pc.


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## magicius (Jul 20, 2009)

hello guys... 

can someone help me solve my problem?

when i connect Front Panel to XFI Titanium Pcie only microphone works 

front panel works when i connect it to MB... anyone knows how to solve this problem? 

heard something about pins but cant manage to fix it

Thanks in advance


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 20, 2009)

Beebee said:


> Yes Iv'e got there by now & have been looking at the Auzen cards. The only problem is that if I go for one of the highend Auzen's, or a higher Spec X-Fi,  I'd then need to look at upgrading my speakers as well, so for the moment I think I'll just stay with Stereo sound Thanks Beebee



Well, like Freedom pointed out, just cause you upgrade your audio card doesn't mean you "need" to upgrade your speakers . . .

As well, I've heard quite a few X-Fis (and other audio cards) sound pretty good with a quality 2.1 setup.

What really helps, though, is the "virtual speaker" capabilities of modern audio cards - it can create the impression of sounds coming from speakers where none are actually placed (it "emulates" full multi-channel surround).  TBH, trying to describe it is rather pointless, it needs to just be heard 

Creative still have the best speaker virtualization capability, with CMSS-3D . . . it's built off a lot of the tech that Aureal developed back in '96-'98, and has only been expanded upon since then.





Bjorn_Of_Iceland said:


> *Greetings fellow X-Fi users,*
> 
> Im having problems lately with my Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Ed. After using the card for a while in Media player or playing games, somehow, it does not "release" the audio usage from the previous application.
> 
> ...



Odd - it's been a long time since I've seen this kind of issue . . .

I'd recommend as well to make sure your drivers and audio software applications are up-to-date . . . as well, make sure OpenAL is up-to-date, and your DirectX drivers.

You might need to open Task Manager and make sure that when you exit a program, that the corresponding .exe closes out with it . . . if for some reason the application is not properly closing, it might not be giving up access to the hardware.




magicius said:


> hello guys...
> 
> can someone help me solve my problem?
> 
> ...




Have you made sure to select the "headphone" option in Creative Console Launcher?

The X-Fi cards will immediately associate _any_ line-in with the line-in channel (whether it's the line-in at the back of the card, the front panel connection).  Outputs, though, are a little picky.

When you connect your headset, do your rear channel outputs actually mute?


----------



## magicius (Jul 21, 2009)

no they doesnt mute... sound comes from X540 speakers


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## Bjorn_Of_Iceland (Jul 21, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> try updating your volume control panel to the lastest version if you havent done it already. If that doesnt solve it then i dont know anything else. I use to have teh same problem with Fallout3. Id play a game but when i finish & try to switch to entertainment mode - it wont do it & the only way to get functionality back is to restart the pc.



Ok, I'll try this one later.



imperialreign said:


> Odd - it's been a long time since I've seen this kind of issue . . .
> 
> I'd recommend as well to make sure your drivers and audio software applications are up-to-date . . . as well, make sure OpenAL is up-to-date, and your DirectX drivers.
> 
> You might need to open Task Manager and make sure that when you exit a program, that the corresponding .exe closes out with it . . . if for some reason the application is not properly closing, it might not be giving up access to the hardware.


Nope, no other notbale exes running on the process.. (ive very few processes on my xp to the point that there is no scrollbar when I open task manager. therefore I know which process are alien on the task manager). Ive also got latest device drivers and even uninstalled, driver cleaned, and reinstalled the driver, but still the issue perpetuates. This wasnt happening before, and a lot of stuff was installed recently, so i wasnt able to keep track what was the last crap that was injected on the rig hehe. In anycase, its not such a nuisance, all I do is just restart the PC... and when win7 arives, itll be a complete reformat for me.


----------



## yogi62 (Jul 21, 2009)

*X-Fi Fatality - How to turn off monitoring*

Hi guys,

I have an X-Fi Fatality Pro card installed in my system and due to the recording software I use I need to be able to turn of source monitoring. I've opened the 'Entertainment' console, gone to the mixer screen and clicked on the '?' for the help notes. Under the heading 'Monitoring Audio Source' the help file reads as follows: 

Quote:

Click the Mixer button.
The mixer settings are displayed.

Select the appropriate audio source checkbox.
OR
i. Click the Record drop-down arrow , and then select any audio source except What U Hear or Wave.
ii. *Select the Monitor check box.*

However I cannot see any Monitor box to check/uncheck?  anyone have any ideas?


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## imperialreign (Jul 22, 2009)

magicius said:


> no they doesnt mute... sound comes from X540 speakers



what about when you set the speaker configuration in Console launcher to headphones . . . _and_ set the speaker config in WIN to headphones?




Bjorn_Of_Iceland said:


> Nope, no other notbale exes running on the process.. (ive very few processes on my xp to the point that there is no scrollbar when I open task manager. therefore I know which process are alien on the task manager). Ive also got latest device drivers and even uninstalled, driver cleaned, and reinstalled the driver, but still the issue perpetuates. This wasnt happening before, and a lot of stuff was installed recently, so i wasnt able to keep track what was the last crap that was injected on the rig hehe. In anycase, its not such a nuisance, all I do is just restart the PC... and when win7 arives, itll be a complete reformat for me.



quite an odd issue, man . . . I've never really run across this kind of issue - my next recommendation you already covered (uninstalling drivers and using Driver Sweeper) . . .

How about - go into Control Panel>System>Device Manager . . . how many other audio devices does WIN see?

Try disabling all except for Creative devices.



yogi62 said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> I have an X-Fi Fatality Pro card installed in my system and due to the recording software I use I need to be able to turn of source monitoring. I've opened the 'Entertainment' console, gone to the mixer screen and clicked on the '?' for the help notes. Under the heading 'Monitoring Audio Source' the help file reads as follows:
> 
> ...




The monitoring box to select/unselect are the small boxes with a speaker emblem, directly underneath the sliders (highlted in red in this pic):








To select the record source, click on the arrow right next to the red 'REC' (highlighted in green in the pic).


----------



## yogi62 (Jul 22, 2009)

Thanks for the prompt feedback.

I have already made the 'mute' selection - I didn't realise they were the monitor boxes as there was a second reference after the check monitor box which said change the mute settings to suit which suggested that monitoring and mute were two seperate actions.

The problem is that I am trying to record a guitar and hear the effects using Guitar Rig 3 (software version) but the card appears to be bypassing the software hence why I want to turn off monitoring. Under 'Creation Mode' I can turn off monitoring but that doesn't seem to work. I have a second computer running an Audigy 2 Platinum and which I dont get the problem with but the the sample rate is fixed at 48Hz and not the 44.1Hz that I want.


----------



## Deleted member 24505 (Jul 22, 2009)

I got the asus xonar today,its very small.It has small relays on it that click too.I've not tried it with the digital out yet as i cant get my amp to see detect the signal.I'm having to us an old crappy optial cable though(which i think could be knackered) coz my good one is too short.It also needs power from a floppy connector,i read on the asus site though that this is so the card gets a cleaner power supply directly from the psu,whether or not that makes a differance,i dont know.


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 22, 2009)

yogi62 said:


> Thanks for the prompt feedback.
> 
> I have already made the 'mute' selection - I didn't realise they were the monitor boxes as there was a second reference after the check monitor box which said change the mute settings to suit which suggested that monitoring and mute were two seperate actions.
> 
> The problem is that I am trying to record a guitar and hear the effects using Guitar Rig 3 (software version) but the card appears to be bypassing the software hence why I want to turn off monitoring. Under 'Creation Mode' I can turn off monitoring but that doesn't seem to work. I have a second computer running an Audigy 2 Platinum and which I dont get the problem with but the the sample rate is fixed at 48Hz and not the 44.1Hz that I want.



Go into WIN control panel, and make sure you've selected the recording device you want to use there, too.

For some reason, WIN's control panel doesn't update the changes from the console launcher . . .


----------



## yogi62 (Jul 22, 2009)

Thanks,

To be honest I think I am wastinmg my time using teh X-Fi Pro for what I want to do. I should have bought the version with the breakout box from the start. I've decided to ditch my Audigy 2 from my other computer and install a M-Audio Delta 192 instead. It's a pity because I really wanted to stay with my prime computer and the X-Fi but I can't see any way to route the signal with teh X-Fi

thanks guys.


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## FreedomEclipse (Jul 22, 2009)

I think, if you live in the U.S (or anywhere else so long as its NOT Europe EL-O-EL) you should be able to order the break out box from creative which should be compatible with your pro.

as always they block additional accessories/addons from being sold in the UK.


----------



## yogi62 (Jul 22, 2009)

Nope - The card I have is the X-Fi Titanium Fatality Pro and that's the problem. There are no connectors on the rear of the card as there is with the 'Platinum' version. 

Sure I can attach the Audio Break out box that comes with the 'Champion' (Which is available here in the UK through the online stores) the trouble is there are no line in's or midi I/O on the box!!

Whilst I have the Audigy 2Z with breakout, the card only records at a sample rate of 48kHhz and not the industry standard 44.1kHz (the X-Fi does)

So basically I'm up the creek...! Hence the change to a different card.

It's my own fault, I should have checked the specs more closely before buying the card.


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 23, 2009)

Well, if your planning on getting into serious recording, I'd recommend an E-Mu over a Creative . . .

SO, the "break out" box that you have, is it the 5.25" bay drive that is installed into your rig, or the stand-alone console that attaches to the back of the card with a D-Sub connector?


----------



## magicius (Jul 23, 2009)

When i select in Creative console to headphones i hear Left Channel and Right Channel from my X540 L and R speaker  and if i select Headphone in Win i dont hear anything on that channel


----------



## eduardov (Jul 24, 2009)

Hey guys,  I'm not sure if has been answered yet in the thread.  I have a Creative X-fi titanium pci-e card.  And when i plug my HD audio cable from the frontpanel into the card, when i use my mic in the frontpanel then  I get a huge looping of sound when i use my mic.  But when i plug my mic into the soundcard in the back the problem is solved.  What can be causing this?


----------



## yogi62 (Jul 24, 2009)

At the moment I have the Guitar Rig 3 software version which  cannot run properly with the X-Fi (using line in the rear of the card) as the X-Fi is playing back in monitor mode which by passes the effects in the software - which I want to hear in real time.

In my second computer I have an Audigy 2 Platinum which works fine through the line in on the breakout box (full effects in Cubase and as standalone), however the sample rate is 48mHz.

As to Emu not Creative, Creative now own Emu. I have pretty much decided to dump Creative and go with an M-Audio Delta 1010LT card but still considering possible alternatives.


----------



## imperialreign (Jul 24, 2009)

magicius said:


> When i select in Creative console to headphones i hear Left Channel and Right Channel from my X540 L and R speaker  and if i select Headphone in Win i dont hear anything on that channel



double check your speaker connections . . . sounds like something might not be connected properly.

As well, when in "headphone" mode, volume settings are lowered - go into WIN and double check each channel's individual volume slider.




eduardov said:


> Hey guys,  I'm not sure if has been answered yet in the thread.  I have a Creative X-fi titanium pci-e card.  And when i plug my HD audio cable from the frontpanel into the card, when i use my mic in the frontpanel then  I get a huge looping of sound when i use my mic.  But when i plug my mic into the soundcard in the back the problem is solved.  What can be causing this?



double check your recording channel in WIN console and Creative's console launcher, make sure it's not "line-in" (line_in only works at the back of the card).

Check your microphone volume settings in console launcher and in XP.

As well, make sure that under 'settings' in Console Launcher that it's set to "auto detect headphone/mic"




yogi62 said:


> At the moment I have the Guitar Rig 3 software version which  cannot run properly with the X-Fi (using line in the rear of the card) as the X-Fi is playing back in monitor mode which by passes the effects in the software - which I want to hear in real time.
> 
> In my second computer I have an Audigy 2 Platinum which works fine through the line in on the breakout box (full effects in Cubase and as standalone), however the sample rate is 48mHz.
> 
> As to Emu not Creative, Creative now own Emu. I have pretty much decided to dump Creative and go with an M-Audio Delta 1010LT card but still considering possible alternatives.




Well, yes, Creative _do_ own E-Mu, but . . . E-Mu are allowed to operate independantly . . . (think like how ATI is to AMD).

TBH, it's E-Mu's technological advancements that have made the majority of Creative's new hardware possible.  The Audigy series DSP is actually an E-Mu DSP with Creative's label over it, same with the X-Fi APUs.


----------



## eduardov (Jul 25, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> double check your recording channel in WIN console and Creative's console launcher, make sure it's not "line-in" (line_in only works at the back of the card).
> 
> Check your microphone volume settings in console launcher and in XP.
> 
> As well, make sure that under 'settings' in Console Launcher that it's set to "auto detect headphone/mic"




Ya i did that and it still doesn't work, i would like to use my front panel with this card.  Any other suggestions?


----------



## Cold Storm (Jul 30, 2009)

Well, I'm back again guys. I just got a Auzen X-fi Forte card. I love the thing. Works like a charm besides this one thing.. It only has it listed as having 2/2.1 channel speakers... I have my Z500 hooked up to it..









Thanks for any help. IT is the org drivers from teh Cd..


Also, it only happens to me on 2.1 sound if I have my effect on my speakers on "6 ch Direct"


----------



## Kursah (Jul 30, 2009)

Did you change the Windows Sound in Control Panel to 5.1 yet? Are you using digital output? Also definately download the beta drivers and install those man, they're working great for me. I haven't updated the programs or anything yet, but I've read they're worth going to on Vista, and the beta's support 7 too. I might have to look up those speakers to better understand what your issue is though, as I primarily run sound to my JVC headphones, and I rarely use my cheap logitech x-230 2.1's lol. I think I recently read something about that issue on [H] forums not too long ago...I will go take a look and see if anything is there about that...but 6CH Direct does ring a bell...I'd say try the new drivers and goodies too to see if that helps out at all.


----------



## Cold Storm (Jul 30, 2009)

Kursah said:


> Did you change the Windows Sound in Control Panel to 5.1 yet? Are you using digital output? Also definately download the beta drivers and install those man, they're working great for me. I haven't updated the programs or anything yet, but I've read they're worth going to on Vista, and the beta's support 7 too. I might have to look up those speakers to better understand what your issue is though, as I primarily run sound to my JVC headphones, and I rarely use my cheap logitech x-230 2.1's lol. I think I recently read something about that issue on [H] forums not too long ago...I will go take a look and see if anything is there about that...but 6CH Direct does ring a bell...I'd say try the new drivers and goodies too to see if that helps out at all.





Yeah, I might have to try the beta drivers.. When I went to do it, it said that it didn't support this device... I'n using the dangle.. Plugged it into each cable I had..


----------



## Kursah (Jul 30, 2009)

Well call me dumb if you must, but what brand of Z500 are you talking about? I found models from Logitech, Creative, Sony and some other oddballs...or do you mean Z5000? Z5500? I don't know my PC speakers systems too well at this point...so that might help me to better understand your situation.

On the beta drivers, I had to go into: Auzentech_Forte_Beta1 > Audio > Drivers > Setup.exe iirc. I remember running into that issue also trying to run the main setup executable...so I just installed the drivers. And I think that's where I sourced the setup that would install the newer beta drivers.


----------



## Cold Storm (Jul 30, 2009)

Kursah said:


> Well call me dumb if you must, but what brand of Z500 are you talking about? I found models from Logitech, Creative, Sony and some other oddballs...or do you mean Z5000? Z5500? I don't know my PC speakers systems too well at this point...so that might help me to better understand your situation.
> 
> On the beta drivers, I had to go into: Auzentech_Forte_Beta1 > Audio > Drivers > Setup.exe iirc. I remember running into that issue also trying to run the main setup executable...so I just installed the drivers. And I think that's where I sourced the setup that would install the newer beta drivers.



oops I forgot my speaker numbers... lol.. Logitech Z5500.. Their fine for any other set up, my Stereo, Stereo X2, DD PLII Movie & Music... But, when I go to to the 6 channel direct it messes... I'll have to grab the beta's and do it tomorrow. If I'm not passed out after working that is.. lol


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Jul 31, 2009)

Hmm Imperialreign hasnt made it yet so I guess I'l fill in....

New driver update for people on the Titanium side of the fence (its about time they released so drivers with bug fixs) 2.17.0007

more info...



> *Software Description*
> 
> This download is a driver providing Microsoft Windows 7, Windows Vista® and Windows XP support for Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium series of audio devices.
> 
> ...



you can download it from >Here<

I think you owe me a drink Impy.


----------



## Cold Storm (Aug 1, 2009)

I looked for the beta drivers, no love to get them since the now have the new 1.1 drivers out.. Keeps sending me to a auzen site that says my browser didn't load the page right...

Downloading the 1.1 drivers now..


installed and working.. I now know, thanks Kursah, that when I went to set up the speakers, on Z5500's you have to have the effect set to "6 ch Direct".. lol..


Imp, add ne, I don't think I'll be leaving this card anytime soon!


----------



## imperialreign (Aug 13, 2009)

Cold Storm - added 


Freedom - thanks, man . . . been a little occupied with various crap, and just worn out from work+heat+humidity we've had here the last couple of weeks.  This drinks for you, man:


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 30, 2009)

I think I may need to reinstall my drivers - game mode has suddenly gotten all distorted for no reason :O windows volume is at 50% & my z5500's aint even cranked up above 10%


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## imperialreign (Aug 30, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I think I may need to reinstall my drivers - game mode has suddenly gotten all distorted for no reason :O windows volume is at 50% & my z5500's aint even cranked up above 10%





Hmmm . . .

have you installed any other system drivers, hardware, BIOS, or other non-software related updates?

If not, I'd recommend taking the card out and looking at the caps for any bulging and/or leaking . . . it's been a while since I've heard of this problem (as placing a cooler on the APU made the difference regarding PCB component strain) . . . but, I worry that the Titaniums might start running into this issue again, considering the EMI shielding and all . . .


----------



## Cold Storm (Aug 30, 2009)

Imp. thanks for the add finally!  Had my XtremeMusic in here so long ago.. lol.. But, I gotta say.. I love this sound card! I can keep my headphone cable in the Headphone jack, and be good to go, till I need it!! 

Great stuff, Great stuff!!


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## imperialreign (Aug 30, 2009)

Cold Storm said:


> Imp. thanks for the add finally!  Had my XtremeMusic in here so long ago.. lol.. But, I gotta say.. I love this sound card! I can keep my headphone cable in the Headphone jack, and be good to go, till I need it!!
> 
> Great stuff, Great stuff!!



Good to hear it's still serving faithfully!


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 30, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> Hmmm . . .
> 
> have you installed any other system drivers, hardware, BIOS, or other non-software related updates?
> 
> If not, I'd recommend taking the card out and looking at the caps for any bulging and/or leaking . . . it's been a while since I've heard of this problem (as placing a cooler on the APU made the difference regarding PCB component strain) . . . but, I worry that the Titaniums might start running into this issue again, considering the EMI shielding and all . . .



not to my knowledge, so I decided to do a small juggle between Microsoft update drivers & Creative drivers & that seems to have fixed it. I havent checked the caps yet cuz im too lazy to take the EMI shield off.

but another thing that has been bothering me with the last 007 driver update for Titanium series cards is every time I switch modes with a mic plugged it - the mic starts working since it dont have no 'off' switch. even when I disabled the mic in the volume launcher it still comes on. Ive resorted to unplugging the mic every time I finish using it so save opening up the interface everytime & double clicking to disable the mic/linein that was already disabled in the first place....

plus another thing ive noticed as well & its stupid its taken me this long to notice but it never occured to me.... the lack of MIC BOOST on Titanium series cards....


.:EDIT:.

I forgot to add - everything sounded fine when switched back to Entertainment mode - its like whatever i was listening wasnt masterd/produced properly so the sound was distorting. I cant explain it. as it was the intro sound/music when you put the CoD4 CD in & its at the menu screen where you select what game type you want to start up


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## imperialreign (Aug 31, 2009)

What OS?  XP, Vista or 7?


TBH, it might be an OS related issue . . . if you're running WIN 7, I can't verify that, yet.  With how much stuff I got going on, I haven't been arsed to install any of the RCs yet (although, I already have 7 Ultimate pre-ordered and pending - still got to get ahold of another Velociraptor and Systrin HDD cooler, too . . . 3x boot OS  ).

I remember, though, there were occasional issues with both XP and Vista where whatever configs you made in the Console Launcher were not always carried over to the WIN audio Control Panel . . . which meant many settings would "change" when going from one hardware mode to another, or even when switching speaker output configurations.

I've noticed with Vista x64 (not sure about x86, though), there's some occasional audio related mishaps . . . strange things, like changes in output bitrate and sample rate; weird volume settings that can't be adjusted (i.e. although all settings in WIN and CL are at 50%, some .mp3s are played back much LOUDer than other media, some vids are quiet - same goes for audio in-game . . . and it's not the media, either, as with XP the same media is at proper levels).

Anyhow, just some thoughts.


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 31, 2009)

yeah its win7 - I get this sudden 'loudness' in TF2 sometimes but its more to do with when im ingame more then anything else. I dunno, All i know is as soon as i can afford it - i'l be looking at possibly getting a Xonar D2X


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## imperialreign (Aug 31, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> yeah its win7 - I get this sudden 'loudness' in TF2 sometimes but its more to do with when im ingame more then anything else. I dunno, All i know is as soon as i can afford it - i'l be looking at possibly getting a Xonar D2X



S'all good . . . although, I'm truly, truly curious to learn whether some of these "issues" that seem more rampant in Vista (and potentialy 7) are also present with any of the Xonar series . . . TBH, I still firmly believe a lot of these annoyances are OS-bound, not so much the fault of the hardware/software/drivers, y'know?

If you do make that switch, defi keep me informed.


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 31, 2009)

well Ive not heard of anyone moaning about troubles with the Xonar on Win7 so im guessing its fine.


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## imperialreign (Aug 31, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> well Ive not heard of anyone moaning about troubles with the Xonar on Win7 so im guessing its fine.





I can't say either way . . . although, I haven't heard anything yet, either (and, quite frankly, very little from the Creative users, too).


Besides, I don't draw conclusions on repetitive OS issues until after the alpha release.  It's nice to see everyone forking out WIN 7 drivers (even Creative  ) before the OS is even on shelves . . . hopefully it means we'll have more solid drivers for *all* hardware once 7 has gone full-public.


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 31, 2009)

Is there any sort of tests that I could take & upload the results on here? just to see whats wrong. - Im still getting random distortion. it somehow 'improves' when I turn the crystalizer off - but you can still hear that its distorted.

I honestly dunno what to do


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## Mussels (Aug 31, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Is there any sort of tests that I could take & upload the results on here? just to see whats wrong. - Im still getting random distortion. it somehow 'improves' when I turn the crystalizer off - but you can still hear that its distorted.
> 
> I honestly dunno what to do



ooh ooh! *raises hand*

Go into the control panel, sound. try changing the bitrate to something else, and see if it fixes anything. change it back when done if you want.


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 31, 2009)

Mussels said:


> ooh ooh! *raises hand*
> 
> Go into the control panel, sound. try changing the bitrate to something else, and see if it fixes anything. change it back when done if you want.



no. nothing changes

Roll back the drivers & see if it still happens perhaps?


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## Mussels (Aug 31, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> no. nothing changes
> 
> Roll back the drivers & see if it still happens perhaps?



dunno. my audio went crap after waking from sleep mode with a movie paused, and changing the bitrate fixed it. it sounded similar to what you described (like the audio was compressed in a lossy manner, being played by a crap speaker)


anything beyond that... try older/generic drivers, see what happens.


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 31, 2009)

Ive rolled back to the drivers that M$ update was giving me which was released in July 2009. its working perfect now. LOL


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## imperialreign (Aug 31, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Ive rolled back to the drivers that M$ update was giving me which was released in July 2009. its working perfect now. LOL





i've had that happen a couple of times with Vista - but never with XP 


Strange - I sometimes wonder if the drivers available via MS update are different than those available from Creative . . .


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## FreedomEclipse (Aug 31, 2009)

whats confusing is - why did the 0007 drivers just suddenly mess up like that?


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## johnspack (Sep 2, 2009)

I've got a weird problem with my xtremegamer,  could be drivers..  I've used it for over a year under xp64,  works perfect.  I did a fresh install of xp64 and when I go to shutdown or restart,  it will sit there for 5mins at least,  and then slowly shut down.  I pulled the x-fi,  and it shutdown in 2 secs!  Problem gone!  Then I remembered that my old install was using much older modded drivers,  and now I'm using the latest.  Same drivers work perfect under win7 64.  I may try again with older drivers and see if that fixes it.  Has anyone heard of an issue this weird with the new drivers?


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## imperialreign (Sep 7, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> whats confusing is - why did the 0007 drivers just suddenly mess up like that?



No idea, man . . . I've noticed it with Vista x64 occasionally, too . . .

It's as if WIN gets confused when it's allowing an application to make use of an audio device (or interogatting one), and attempts to assign it to the wrong one (such as an onboard component, or an ATI GPU-based audio device, or external USB, etc.), which results in a typical driver conflict . . . the software is trying to use a device that's not available, while the audio card is interpeting all the audio calls that are being passed from the application through the OS to the hardware . . . (and the crap part being, there wouldn't be this layer of "confusion" if software could directly access the hardware as was possible with XP :shadedshu )

I've found that merely removing the drivers and disabling the hardware in *Device Manager* isn't enough - make sure that you completely remove all unused/un-needed devices from the WIN Audio Control Panel as well . . . this has been more effective, but I still occasionally have some issues with _new_ software.

TBH, man, this is just my best guess on the issue . . .





johnspack said:


> I've got a weird problem with my xtremegamer,  could be drivers..  I've used it for over a year under xp64,  works perfect.  I did a fresh install of xp64 and when I go to shutdown or restart,  it will sit there for 5mins at least,  and then slowly shut down.  I pulled the x-fi,  and it shutdown in 2 secs!  Problem gone!  Then I remembered that my old install was using much older modded drivers,  and now I'm using the latest.  Same drivers work perfect under win7 64.  I may try again with older drivers and see if that fixes it.  Has anyone heard of an issue this weird with the new drivers?



Can't say that I have . . .

Although, question . . . did you install the initial drivers and software from the Installation CD first, and then the update drivers?  

Also, can you provide a screenshot of the currently running WIN processes at shutdown?  It's possible one or two un-needed Creative services might be holding things up . . .


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## johnspack (Sep 7, 2009)

I have the card out right now, and I used drivercleaner.net to remove old traces.  I used an old daniel_k driver package before when it worked properly under xp64.  So I'm just going to try to reinstall that one.  Also found an updated version by youp-pax,  might try that as well.  And I'll bet your right about one of the creative apps hanging on shutdown.  Like I said,  only a problem under xp64,  win7 64 seems to like the newer drivers....


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## imperialreign (Sep 7, 2009)

johnspack said:


> I have the card out right now, and I used drivercleaner.net to remove old traces.  I used an old daniel_k driver package before when it worked properly under xp64.  So I'm just going to try to reinstall that one.  Also found an updated version by youp-pax,  might try that as well.  And I'll bet your right about one of the creative apps hanging on shutdown.  Like I said,  only a problem under xp64,  win7 64 seems to like the newer drivers....





Well, let me know if they work better or not . . .

As well, I think the fact that the newer driver packs are for all WIN OSes, it will inherently create some problems . . . XP is a completely different beast than either Vista or 7 . . . I still believe that XP drivers should continue to be seperate from the others . . .


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## Wrigleyvillain (Sep 8, 2009)

Hey I have an XtremeGamer am running Win 7 (7600) with Creative's beta driver (the latest afaik) and just noticed CMSS 3D doesn't work. Found some info via Google including a special modded driver by Daniel K but this was all from January so rather old. Do I want to use the Daniel K driver? Or perhaps Creative has fixed this 'officially' and I'm not aware?


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## johnspack (Sep 10, 2009)

Yep,  went back to the old daniel_k driver,  no more problems under xp64.  And the new drivers under win7 x64 7600 work perfect,  including cmss 3d.  I think it's the same driver,  but they updated the installer,  you might want to try this driver Wrigleyvillain:  http://support.creative.com/Product...e=X-Fi&prodID=15853&prodName=X-Fi+XtremeGamer
Maybe you'll get cmss back!


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## Wile E (Sep 10, 2009)

Am I the only one that turns all the effects off? I hate them. The only thing I ever use is tone controls when needed.


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## Wrigleyvillain (Sep 10, 2009)

johnspack said:


> Yep,  went back to the old daniel_k driver,  no more problems under xp64.  And the new drivers under win7 x64 7600 work perfect,  including cmss 3d.  I think it's the same driver,  but they updated the installer,  you might want to try this driver Wrigleyvillain:  http://support.creative.com/Product...e=X-Fi&prodID=15853&prodName=X-Fi+XtremeGamer
> Maybe you'll get cmss back!



All right, thanks. I had assumed the beta driver would be newer but in this case apparently not. I am presently using Daniel_K X-Fi Support Pack 2.0 and all is working fine. Only care aobut CMSS 3D as I have to use headphones for gaming...


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## johnspack (Sep 10, 2009)

Actually,  I don't care about the effects either,  just don't like waiting 5mins to shut down!  Plus this is a special package,  can't be found anymore....


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## imperialreign (Sep 11, 2009)

Wrigleyvillain said:


> Hey I have an XtremeGamer am running Win 7 (7600) with Creative's beta driver (the latest afaik) and just noticed CMSS 3D doesn't work. Found some info via Google including a special modded driver by Daniel K but this was all from January so rather old. Do I want to use the Daniel K driver? Or perhaps Creative has fixed this 'officially' and I'm not aware?



Well, technically, all WIN 7 support is still considered "beta" until the OS has actually gone retail . . . until then, everything (both drivers and the OS RC versions) are a bit hit or miss.

As well, I have no idea on the d_k drivers, as they were never designed for WIN 7, either . . . they may or may not work.  I believe WIN 7 follows a similar design structure as Vista did, so it's quite probable they will work without any issues.

I can't offer any advice yet regarding OS7, as I've been too busy to even try out any of the betas or RCs - I do have OS7 pre-ordered, though, and will be installing it on a fresh new HDD soon as it arrives in the mail.




Wile E said:


> Am I the only one that turns all the effects off? I hate them. The only thing I ever use is tone controls when needed.



I don't disable EAX - but I do lower the effects volume.  0.0db renders the effects too loud most times . . . I prefer -4.6db or round-abouts.

CMSS-3D, though, I leave enabled for gaming, but disable for multimedia.  Crystallizer stays off.


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## FreedomEclipse (Sep 18, 2009)

I think I have found the reason why my sound was technically f**ked up....I wired the card up to the FP on my pc case - that was one of the major changes i made but It didnt cross my mind that I might have wired it up incorrectly since I looked up diagrams on google & I followed the instructions where to plug the HDFP cable into.

so what happend after I wired it up was it totally wrecked the 'reception' of my microphones. volume either came in very very low & broken up or it would just be some unintelligible random amount of 'buzzing' where i would speak but it would just buzz instead of transfering my 'voice' across the channel....

after I uplugged the FP from my card Mic levels returned to normal. people could hear me clearly again. Im back on the 0007 drivers again. the distortion has improved a lot since I unplugged the FP but is still there which means i must have partially damaged or fried the card when I connected it up with the FP. 

I can still sell the card to some random guy so it has a value but original plan of switching to a Xonar still stands unfortunately.

if the distortion went away then i wouldnt of botherd getting a new card.


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## imperialreign (Sep 18, 2009)

Did you follow the wiring diagrams I had posted in the OP, or another?

Just curious, as I wnet to great lengths to test out that conncetion diagram, which should be fine with Azalia/AC97 - they both use the same common grounds - but if a power feed was crossed, that could lead to problems.

If my diagram _was_ incorrect, please let me know.

Otherwise, the card itself might still be salvagable - check the caps on the card.  If any are leaking or bulged, replacing them should fix the issue . . . but, that distortion you're hearing will typically be coming from failing OPAMPs (I've ran into this before from my own trial and error experiments).  If you're up for a little board soldering, the OPAMPs aren't too difficult to replace.


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## FreedomEclipse (Sep 18, 2009)

I followed someone elses diagram. I will have a look at the caps on the card later. op amps shouldnt be too hard to replace?? any idea what ones to go after just so i get some idea how much i can buy them & how much they are


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## FreedomEclipse (Sep 18, 2009)

these are currently the only opamps that are available to me within easy reach unless I go to more specialist places.

as for soldering - even though I did tech at school & college, most of my experience was when i was still at school...In college they wouldnt let us touch any electrical goods/components till our final exam. theory all the way & no practical - only 1 person out of about 15-20 of us passed. followed by lots of finger pointing between us (the students) the head of department who lied to us about the course being 80% practical & the tutors who never gave us a PCB & resistors & other crap to mess around with so that we might learn something. swiftly followed by the withdrawl of the £10,000 by the people who were supposed to be funding us....

I can repair my own guitar leads & bits n bobs. so I'l see about soldering opamps on lol


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## imperialreign (Sep 18, 2009)

Well, if you're willing to order OPAMPs online - I'd recommend these: AD8599; they're much better than the LM4562 that most users recommend.

Replacing the OPAMP isn't too entirelly difficult - I'd recommend getting ahold of a set of PCB side cutters to make it easy . . . snip the legs off of the OE OPAMPs, they use a 25W-35W soldering iron with some copper braid to remove the remaining solder and the legs.

Installing them, I found it easier to take a small piece of scotch tape and use that to hold the OPAMP on the seats, then solder them to the board.

I'd recommend a 15W, as there's less of a chance of heat damaging the board, but such a weak gun makes it very hard to remove the solder, too . . . I'd recommend against using a gun that's 45W or stronger, as it could seriously damage the PCB and/or the new OPAMP.



I mean, hell, if the card has about had it, and you're planning on getting a Xonar anyway, might as well see if you can't clean it up and get it functioning again - or hold on to it for future testing, y'know?


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## FreedomEclipse (Sep 18, 2009)

well ive seen pictures of the card with the EMI shield off & tbh it looks like a bit of a daunting task. secondly now that youve explained what i need exactly the only item ive got on hand at the moment is what i think is a 35watt solder iron. im not too sure. I could always try find a more specialised electonics store & see if their willing to do the work for me, for a small fee. otherwise im not quite sure. at the moment i really have to keep tight grip on all outgoing cash.

If i can flog the card off to a total idiot then thats what i'l probably try to do lol. 

Id rather sell the card off & use whatever i get & put it towards the Xonar.


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## Wile E (Sep 19, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> well ive seen pictures of the card with the EMI shield off & tbh it looks like a bit of a daunting task. secondly now that youve explained what i need exactly the only item ive got on hand at the moment is what i think is a 35watt solder iron. im not too sure. I could always try find a more specialised electonics store & see if their willing to do the work for me, for a small fee. otherwise im not quite sure. at the moment i really have to keep tight grip on all outgoing cash.
> 
> If i can flog the card off to a total idiot then thats what i'l probably try to do lol.
> 
> Id rather sell the card off & use whatever i get & put it towards the Xonar.



Don't sell it claiming it's OK. That's not even remotely right. If you plan to sell, tell the buyer up front you think it may be damaged.

And a 35W iron will work fine as long as you use the right solder and use a fine tip. I use a 35W iron on my vmods.

@imperialreign - How accurate are those opamps? I want low distortion, but high accuracy. I was thinking of throwing some new ones on my Audigy 2, just for some fun.


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## imperialreign (Sep 19, 2009)

Wile E said:


> Don't sell it claiming it's OK. That's not even remotely right. If you plan to sell, tell the buyer up front you think it may be damaged.
> 
> And a 35W iron will work fine as long as you use the right solder and use a fine tip. I use a 35W iron on my vmods.



Agreed.  35W is about the right recommendation for working on PCBs, anything lower tends to take too long to heat up the actual solder, and wick too much heat to the PCB and component.



> @imperialreign - How accurate are those opamps? I want low distortion, but high accuracy. I was thinking of throwing some new ones on my Audigy 2, just for some fun.



They're pretty good - I'd have to rate them up there in-so-far as the quality compared to other OPAMPs on the market that would fit that style seat.

Here's a comparison between the LM4562s (which is what just about everyone recommends) and the AD8599s (which is what I recommend): http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=884307&postcount=689

To summarize, the LM4562 is a major step _above_ the OE OPAMPs, the AD8599s are a major step above the LM4562.

They give a much cleaner output, reduced channel bleeding, better frequency range output, etc.

As well, they don't pick up much in the way of EMI/RFI from neighboring components, unlike the LM4562s - For comparison, I compared the LM4562s to the OE OPAMPs here, as well as comparing the 4562s before and after addition of copper heatsinks (which act as mini-EMI shields): http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=817967&postcount=568

Somewhere deep in this thread, too, I had compared the difference between the 8599 before and after adding heatsinks, but can't find it . . . anyhow, there's little of any change in reduction of noise with copper heatsinks installed.

Between their pricing (which is fairly dirt-cheap) and their quality, I haven't been able to find any others that compare.  There are some brands that have a little higher quality output, but they're expensive as crap (i.e. $80+ for 4-5 OPAMPs).


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## FreedomEclipse (Sep 19, 2009)

unfortunately - the AD8599 are pretty rare in the UK & if you DO find someone who sells them they will most likely be around £5-6 each.....

Ive lurked through forums where a guy orderd a few from the US - ended up costing him about £42

So lets put this in perspective....

AD8599 - Expensive for 4x opamps = £20 not including P&P which would most likely be another £5 (£25)

Soldering wire - £3-4

soldering tips £1-10 depending if i can get them seperately.

grand total - £45 at the most

secondly - I need to find a store here within a 30mile radius that sells the opamps (add another £5 for travel around london) since I cant order stuff online. the nearest retailer or at least what google is telling me is somewhere in Wakefield -an almost 2hr30mins & hefty £40-60 train ticket away from london.....

if the card was one in a million, fine. id spend that money but it aint. I paid £90-100 for the card & im unwilling to spend £45 on it when i can probably sell it for a lot more & put it towards a Xonar


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## Rat1sully (Sep 25, 2009)

*Optical SPDIF output*

Hi guys i was wondering if it would be possible to set the Optical SPDIF output on my X-fi Platinum Fatal1ty to be a separate output option in windows xp so that using directsound in music apps i could stream my music out of the optical connector to my stereo for background music and only have game noises coming through my headset?

tried asking the creative forum and got no replys what so ever hoping from looking at the knowledge available here you'll be able to help

thanks in advance


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## FreedomEclipse (Sep 25, 2009)

I dont think its possible. but why would you want to do that anyway?


----------



## Rat1sully (Sep 25, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I dont think its possible. but why would you want to do that anyway?



i like background music while i'm playing but also want to be able to hear when they're trying to stab me in the back, i know on the realtek onboard audio chips you can do this


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## FreedomEclipse (Sep 25, 2009)

you can have a music player running in the background. - it doesnt make any difference asside from EVERYONE ELSE can hear your music but only you can hear whats going inside the game because your wearing a headset.

just because your in 'game mode' doesnt mean music wont play when you open WMP


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## imperialreign (Sep 25, 2009)

Rat1sully said:


> Hi guys i was wondering if it would be possible to set the Optical SPDIF output on my X-fi Platinum Fatal1ty to be a separate output option in windows xp so that using directsound in music apps i could stream my music out of the optical connector to my stereo for background music and only have game noises coming through my headset?
> 
> tried asking the creative forum and got no replys what so ever hoping from looking at the knowledge available here you'll be able to help
> 
> thanks in advance



This could get a bit tricky and complicated, but, I believe it _should_ be possible - mostly depending on your software you have installed.


First off, you'd have to make sure that whatever connections you want to use are hooked up - WIN won't "recognize" output channels that don't have a jack installed.

From there, it will be dependant on your software - whether or not you can choose which audio output device to use - if you can, just set your software to use the specified output.

You might run into some odd issues, though, as everything must still pass through the DAC - it's possible you might have some channel bleeding . . . as well, it could potentially seriously hamper performance (you might start experiencing audio clipping on the analogue channels), mostly due to the fact that WIN has to literally "share" the device's IRQ channel between two "devices" - as well, some games are very taxing on the hardware and don't like to give up their priority for other applications running in the background.

TBH, I don't exactly recommend having one device juggling two different styles of output - programs might start getting crabby over their output priority.


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## Wile E (Sep 26, 2009)

Not to mention, I agree with FreedomEclipse on this. That's an awfully convoluted way to get background music. Just start your music player in the background, then fire up your game and run it all thru your headset. 

If you keep the music turned down in the background, it won't be any more distracting than having it play thru speakers outside but loud enough for you to hear with the headset on.

Short version = it makes absolutely no sense to do that.


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## Rat1sully (Sep 26, 2009)

thanks for your responses guys, this is only a temp solution until i get round to getting a new power supply for the laptop that usually does the music while gaming


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## Wile E (Sep 28, 2009)

Rat1sully said:


> thanks for your responses guys, this is only a temp solution until i get round to getting a new power supply for the laptop that usually does the music while gaming



It doesn't really make sense to do that either. Seriously, just run your music player thru the headset, but turned down, then start your game. It's kind of a waste to run music thru a second computer, when just one will accomplish both tasks.


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## Rat1sully (Sep 28, 2009)

it's not running for that alone, also open for msn web browsing etc.


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## Wile E (Sep 28, 2009)

Rat1sully said:


> it's not running for that alone, also open for msn web browsing etc.



Well, that make a little more sense for the second computer, but a second monitor would accomplish the task on the same computer. But, even if all you can do is run the second computer due to funding or whatever reason, it really does still make more sense to run the music thru the headset while gaming, instead of external speakers which will waste a lot more energy to complete the same task as background music.


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## imperialreign (Sep 28, 2009)

Wile E said:


> Well, that make a little more sense for the second computer, but a second monitor would accomplish the task on the same computer. But, even if all you can do is run the second computer due to funding or whatever reason, it really does still make more sense to run the music thru the headset while gaming, instead of external speakers which will waste a lot more energy to complete the same task as background music.



I would tend to agree - but it might also boil down to system specs.

Even with clocked quads and pretty uber setups, even a few selective programs running in the background can really but a kink in other program's performance.  Even mundane tasks such as defragging HDDs, running A/V scans, etc. can slow down i-net browsers . . . even video rendering/filtering apps (i.e. vdub), photo editors, audio editors, etc. can also have the same effect . . . the opposite holds true as well - even just browsing the i-net can slow down other apps from finishing their tasks . . .

It really boils down to the rig's specs, and what apps you're running.


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## Rat1sully (Sep 29, 2009)

yeah rig specs aren't up to much hence it's better to do it on a separate machine

skt478 prescott 3.2GHz clocked at 3.6
Abit A17
Corsair 2Gb twinx
HIS x1950Pro Iceq
X-fi platinum obviously
Hiper Tpye-R 650W
0.86TB assorted Hdd space


----------



## Mussels (Sep 29, 2009)

Rat1sully said:


> yeah rig specs aren't up to much hence it's better to do it on a separate machine
> 
> skt478 prescott 3.2GHz clocked at 3.6
> Abit A17
> ...



playing MP3's was a light task for my celeron 400. i'd hardly think it would bog down even your 'old' PC


----------



## Rat1sully (Sep 29, 2009)

while running games it makes a big hit on my frame rate


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## Mussels (Sep 29, 2009)

Rat1sully said:


> while running games it makes a big hit on my frame rate



what player are you using? i run winamp in the background all the time (and have for years) with no performance drops.


----------



## Rat1sully (Sep 29, 2009)

using winamp to but i have a tendency to run game a bit too new for my spec so i expect that doesn't help


----------



## Wile E (Sep 30, 2009)

Well, OK, I can kinda understand if it's a performance issue. I bet a good clean install would help a good bit in that area tho. As long as you don't run anything but the game and player, it should be able to handle music in the background while gaming. Not so much the second screen with apps running tho. lol.

That should at least get you some music while gaming to hold you off.


----------



## Mussels (Sep 30, 2009)

i'd also make sure to have nothing fancy running in winamp. no visualisations, no skins, nothing but the playlist and the pause/stop/next buttons


----------



## Rat1sully (Sep 30, 2009)

lol this thing gets a clean install every 3-6 months just to keep it ticking over in games ok, i've got mp3 player hoocked up to stereo for now, waiting on my DSA to fix the laptop


----------



## btarunr (Oct 1, 2009)

Quick tip for Windows Vista and Windows 7 users of Winamp:







Use Wumpus OpenAL output plugin. Get it from here. Disable the "Use X-RAM" option, it only adds latency/delay. Use Game Mode. Sounds really good.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Oct 6, 2009)

Hey guys just got my X Fi card. I've installed the latest driver but in Device manager it shows my X fi Card as using the Windows Driver. No matter how many times I install it. Everything seems to be working fine though.

X Fi Titanium 

Is this normal?


----------



## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Oct 6, 2009)

anyone know of a filter for media player home cinema that makes the x-fi do all the sound decoding?  So I can have my 4350 do the video and x-fi xtremegamer do the audio?


----------



## Wile E (Oct 6, 2009)

ShRoOmAlIsTiC said:


> anyone know of a filter for media player home cinema that makes the x-fi do all the sound decoding?  So I can have my 4350 do the video and x-fi xtremegamer do the audio?



Yep. Go to options, then under Playback, select Output. In the output properties, select your XFi under DirectShow Audio.


----------



## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Oct 6, 2009)

so i dont need any special filter,  cause under external filters there is a creative ac3 source filter,  should I use that or no.  I got PowerDVD8 doing the h264 decoding so I thought there might be something similar.


----------



## Wile E (Oct 6, 2009)

ShRoOmAlIsTiC said:


> so i dont need any special filter,  cause under external filters there is a creative ac3 source filter,  should I use that or no.  I got PowerDVD8 doing the h264 decoding so I thought there might be something similar.



Nope. Just set it to use the Xfi as output. If your system is already set to use the Xfi, you don't need to do anything. As for audio filters, it doesn't matter which one you use, as long as it's set up to output over the same number of speakers as your setup. I use ffdshow for most audio decoding. There's no benefit to using creative filters or anything like that as Vista nad Win 7 don't allow direct hardware access to the card anyway. Just use what works for you.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Oct 6, 2009)

Awww man how come no one helps me out.


----------



## eidairaman1 (Oct 6, 2009)

you made sure to get the proper driver right
as it seems that the low profile cards had a different driver at 1 time


----------



## AphexDreamer (Oct 6, 2009)

eidairaman1 said:


> you made sure to get the proper driver right
> as it seems that the low profile cards had a different driver at 1 time



I'm more then certain. Everything seems to be working fine but its bothering me and making me think its not perfect cause device manager shows It using a Windows Driver.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Oct 6, 2009)

Ok I need help. I'm sure everyone here has an Active Preset List for EAX right. 

WELL I don't. HELP?


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 7, 2009)

AphexDreamer said:


> Ok I need help. I'm sure everyone here has an Active Preset List for EAX right.
> 
> WELL I don't. HELP?



IDK, man . . . those are supposed to install with the console launcher.

You could try to download the most recent Console Launcher release and install it - just make sure to jot down all your current configs, etc. as the new install always resets all configs.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Oct 7, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> IDK, man . . . those are supposed to install with the console launcher.
> 
> You could try to download the most recent Console Launcher release and install it - just make sure to jot down all your current configs, etc. as the new install always resets all configs.



Thanks but lol. I reinstalled the drivers like ten times using custom and offical only to fingure out that is shows up only in Entertainment mode and Under game there is suppose to be no such option. 

I'm on offical and everything seems to be fine. I'm really like this card.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 8, 2009)

AphexDreamer said:


> Thanks but lol. I reinstalled the drivers like ten times using custom and offical only to fingure out that is shows up only in Entertainment mode and Under game there is suppose to be no such option.
> 
> I'm on offical and everything seems to be fine. I'm really like this card.




S'all good . . . Just realized I accidentally thought you were talking about the EQ presets


----------



## AphexDreamer (Oct 8, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> S'all good . . . Just realized I accidentally thought you were talking about the EQ presets



I'm such a Noob first actual real good sound card.

I've been reading the thread a bit but can you tell me of any tweaks or settings that could enhance my sound?


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 10, 2009)

AphexDreamer said:


> I'm such a Noob first actual real good sound card.
> 
> I've been reading the thread a bit but can you tell me of any tweaks or settings that could enhance my sound?




Really, it all boils down to the listener's preferences, and your speaker setup - as well, EQ adjustments can sound good with one style of music, but then sound horrible with another . . . it can also vary greatyl from one album to the next, depending on how the album is mastered.

There's some good info I had listed on adjustments towards the bottom of this post: http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=871135&postcount=3


When adjusting your EQ and all - do not have any of the EAX presets on, as those filters are applied towards the end of the output stream (after the audio has already been curved).

I recommend first to adjust your bass/treble settings, then to adjust your EQ from there.

For the most part, I don't recommend using the Crystallizer feature, unless you listen to a lot of higly compressed audio (.mp3, for example, or play a lot of games - which inherently compress the audio).  The feature actually hurts high-quality, uncompressed audio . . . If you do a lot of gaming, I do recommend CMSS-3D . . . same goes for general music playback . . . but if you're listening to something that's already sourced for higher channel playback (i.e. DVD audio), then it's not always needed.


----------



## Wile E (Oct 11, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> Really, it all boils down to the listener's preferences, and your speaker setup - as well, EQ adjustments can sound good with one style of music, but then sound horrible with another . . . it can also vary greatyl from one album to the next, depending on how the album is mastered.
> 
> There's some good info I had listed on adjustments towards the bottom of this post: http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=871135&postcount=3
> 
> ...


I'm such a purist nerd, I turn off absolutely all effects processing except EQing.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 11, 2009)

Wile E said:


> I'm such a purist nerd, I turn off absolutely all effects processing except EQing.




Same here - no EAX presets.  If I'm in 'game mode' I even set the EAX down a bit (about -4.6db) . . . it's alright for games, but I don't like it for everyday media.  Same goes for the Crystallizer and CMSS-3D . . . I use them for games, but not for anything else (now, if game devs would start pushing for better quality audio . . .).


----------



## CyberDruid (Oct 11, 2009)

Please add me to your club. I've been X-fi for ages. I use the Plat drivers on my Xtreme Music and run the Creative Console to drive my AKG701 and it sounds much better than from the backpanel mini.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 11, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> (now, if game devs would start pushing for better quality audio . . .).



that would be nice - 192Hz/24bit Audio....*dribbles*


----------



## hbkl (Oct 11, 2009)

.. i have heard for some modded drivers  to the x-fi cards  is that real?


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 14, 2009)

hbkl said:


> .. i have heard for some modded drivers  to the x-fi cards  is that real?



I have also heard, but it only really matters if your running an Audigy 2 card. (Misses my Audigy 2 ZS - I gave it to my dad )


----------



## Wile E (Oct 14, 2009)

FreedomEclipse said:


> I have also heard, but it only really matters if your running an Audigy 2 card. (Misses my Audigy 2 ZS - I gave it to my dad )



I love my Audigy 2 ZS. I won't be replacing it until I can afford to grab an Auzentech made X-Fi board.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 14, 2009)

CyberDruid said:


> Please add me to your club. I've been X-fi for ages. I use the Plat drivers on my Xtreme Music and run the Creative Console to drive my AKG701 and it sounds much better than from the backpanel mini.



Sure thing, man - sorry I hadn't gotten to your post sooner! 




hbkl said:


> .. i have heard for some modded drivers  to the x-fi cards  is that real?



Well, there are mod drivers for the X-Fis, but I typically only recommend them to users as a last resort.  For the most part, the official drivers are fairly solid, with some occasional minor issues.



Wile E said:


> I love my Audigy 2 ZS. I won't be replacing it until I can afford to grab an Auzentech made X-Fi board.



They are the shit, man!  High-performance and high-quality audio combined


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 14, 2009)

Wile E said:


> I love my Audigy 2 ZS. I won't be replacing it until I can afford to grab an Auzentech made X-Fi board.



When i first bought mine & started playing CoD1/Uo with it, I couldnt believe how good the sound was, the Audigy 2 ZS was officially the first soundcard I ever bought.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Oct 15, 2009)

Have a question. 

Would it be possible to connect my PS3 to my X fi sound card via optical and then have the x fi take that sound and put it out via my Aux cables to my speakers. So it kind of acts like an amplifier I guess?


----------



## hbkl (Oct 15, 2009)

Well talking about the audigy  i got in my hands  and  a sound blaster audigy  and  i want to know wich card is better  the x-fi xtreme music that i have   or the sound blaster audigy ..


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Oct 15, 2009)

hbkl said:


> Well talking about the audigy  i got in my hands  and  a sound blaster audigy  and  i want to know wich card is better  the x-fi xtreme music that i have   or the sound blaster audigy ..



the Xtreme Music without a doubt. you dont even need to ask.

however.....the Xtreme Audio card is just a XFi rebranded Audigy card (not sure which model)


----------



## Black Panther (Oct 22, 2009)

Hi guys, got a small issue here.. (been going on for some months thinking I'd eventually solve it myself)
Everything had been fine on XP but when I got Vista I just couldn't get my proper sound back.

I've got an X-Fi Xtreme Music hooked up to Z5500.

When I got Vista on the desktop, the sound was very low volume compared with the volume I used to set my speakers before on xp.

When I downloaded the Alchemy drivers, this got kinda half-solved.
Though I'm not worrying about it since there's still plenty of volume left to turn up.

The current problem is the bass volume vs the satellite volume.
If I disable bass redirection I get nice and good sub booming, but distortion on the satellites.
If I enable bass redirection the satellites play okay but the sub gets weak.

The problem's not with the speakers, they function fine on XP.

I tried playing around with the equalizer, but to no avail.

I'm pretty sure I'm missing out something... somewhere...

Pls help? It'd sound stupid for me reinstalling XP for dual boot just to listen to my music...


----------



## Reefer86 (Oct 22, 2009)

i know this sounds lame but did you download the drivers for vista and not the xp ones.


----------



## Black Panther (Oct 22, 2009)

Reefer86 said:


> i know this sounds lame but did you download the drivers for vista and not the xp ones.



Yes I updated the Vista drivers as soon as installing Vista.
Did the Alchemy drivers a couple of weeks later.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Oct 22, 2009)

Wait your having a bass problem? I had a problem where my Center Speaker was getting the bass sounds and my bass the center. If you don't have a Swap Center/Bass options then manually switching the cables will fix that too. If thats what your problem is.


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

control panel, sound. right click the sound device and hit "configure speakers"

go through the wizard, and untick the options for "full range" speakers - the z55's arent full range, as they need the bass to go to the sub


----------



## Black Panther (Oct 22, 2009)

AphexDreamer said:


> Wait your having a bass problem? I had a problem where my Center Speaker was getting the bass sounds and my bass the center. If you don't have a Swap Center/Bass options then manually switching the cables will fix that too. If thats what your problem is.



No it's not that serious..
My bass _is_ coming out of the bass box. But not totally...

If I can explain myself better - I wish I got 2 equalizers, one for the sub and another one for the satellites so that I can remove their low Hz and leave them for mid & treble only.

At the moment in time to do so I must enable bass redirection on my x-fi Creative Console Launcher. Which leaves the sub too weak, at least when compared to its output without bass redirection (which in turn puts too much bass through the satellites giving distorted sound).


----------



## AphexDreamer (Oct 22, 2009)

Mussels said:


> control panel, sound. right click the sound device and hit "configure speakers"
> 
> go through the wizard, and untick the options for "full range" speakers - the z55's arent full range, as they need the bass to go to the sub



You are absolutely right. Totally forgot about that and after reading his problem again that should fix it. Happened to me and some tinkering around led to that.


----------



## Black Panther (Oct 22, 2009)

Mussels said:


> control panel, sound. right click the sound device and hit "configure speakers"
> 
> go through the wizard, and untick the options for "full range" speakers - the z55's arent full range, as they need the bass to go to the sub



Just checked, they're already unticked.


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

AphexDreamer said:


> You are absolutely right. Totally forgot about that and after reading his problem again that should fix it. Happened to me and some tinkering around led to that.



her



Black Panther said:


> Just checked, they're already unticked.



damn. is there any advanced options in the properties for the sound device? i've seen bass redirect appear in there before... hell, even just a way to turn the bass down in there period, and then turn the subwoofer volume up via the speakers control pod


----------



## hv43082 (Oct 22, 2009)

I have the X-fi Titanium Fatality Pro.  What should the setting for stereo envelopment under mcss-3d option?  Thanks.


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 30, 2009)

First off - thanks a ton, guys, for helping out and keeping up with this thread! 

For some reason, I haven't been recieving any emails from TPU the last few weeks 

Anyhow . . .



AphexDreamer said:


> Have a question.
> 
> Would it be possible to connect my PS3 to my X fi sound card via optical and then have the x fi take that sound and put it out via my Aux cables to my speakers. So it kind of acts like an amplifier I guess?



I believe there's a way to do so - with the Titanium . . . otherwise, you'd need the I/O console.  There's an OP in on the back of the card, and an OP out - connect the OP cable from your PS3 to the X-Fi, then connect your speakers.  Go into the WIN console and change the Line In to 'Optical.'  Make sure you're in Entertainment mode, go to the driver settings in WIN control panel, and there should be some kind of setting for "SPDI/F bypass," IIRC - you want to set that.

I can't remember clearly off the top of my head, and the setup is different from XP to Vista (and I have no idea on WIN7 yet), but there _is_ a way to let the X-Fi simpyl pass-through an audio stream.




Black Panther said:


> Hi guys, got a small issue here.. (been going on for some months thinking I'd eventually solve it myself)
> Everything had been fine on XP but when I got Vista I just couldn't get my proper sound back.
> 
> I've got an X-Fi Xtreme Music hooked up to Z5500.
> ...



Yeah, this is a Vista issue, as I noticed the same thing (Vista sounds quieter than XP).

First, normalize everything.  Set the EQ and all that other good stuff back to default.

Alrighty - go into WIN control panel and open up the 'Sound' panel.  Click on the 'speakers' setting, then hit the 'configure' button - make sure the configuration matches your setup . . . then go back and hit the 'properties' button at the bottom.  Go to the 'tone' tab, and check to make sure bass/treble are equal (you can adjust them later).  Hit the 'levels' tab, then next to 'play control' hit the "balance" button - make sure your sub channel is set a bit higher than the others . . . for reference, with my setup, I have the sub channel set to 45, and all other channels to 34.  It will vary based on your subwoofer.

Under the Console Launcher, 'Bass' tab, you should be able to use redirection - I have the subwoofer gain selected, and crossover set to 80Hz . . . again, this'll kinda depend on your setup . . .

The Subwoofer gain option will boost output to the sub - the crossover will set what level that all frequencies _below_ that setting will be sent to the sub - if you have the crossover too low, that will force your satellites to play too low of frequencies.

From there - go back into the WIN panel and adjust the bass/treble setting (or you can do so if in entertainment mode).

Back to the X-Fi panel, adjust your EQ, then your CMSS-3D settings, then the crystallizer and/or whatever else.

Hope this helps! 




hv43082 said:


> I have the X-fi Titanium Fatality Pro.  What should the setting for stereo envelopment under mcss-3d option?  Thanks.



Technically . . . Stereo Expand.

It depends on the setup you have configured - the drivers change the CMSS-3D settings based on the speaker configuration.  For example, Stereo Expand is not available with 2.1 speakers . . .


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 7, 2009)

So - how have things been holding up with WIN 7 now being officially "alpha?"

Any strange, unusual or other detrimental behaviours with the X-Fi lineups?  No "re-enactments" of the Vista release?


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Nov 10, 2009)

Not heard of anything going wrong as yet - though since im back at work, getting a new soundcard is Priority since my XFi Titanium Pro is starting to deteriorate slowly..... & tbh when the card WAS working, it was working great. so with that in mind Im considering replacing it with the same card instead of the Asus Xonar i was originally planning to.

my titanium wouldnt have broke if i didnt connect it up to the FP of my case. & since the titanium is still a bit cheaper - that is what im thinking about getting.


----------



## Frizz (Nov 12, 2009)

Can I join? 

Auzentech x-fi forte 7.1 here, running in Win7 Ultimate 64-bit


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 12, 2009)

randomflip said:


> Can I join?
> 
> Auzentech x-fi forte 7.1 here, running in Win7 Ultimate 64-bit



yeah, sure thing! 



BTW, guys - if y'all start having any issues on WIN7, post 'em up, along with any fixes you might run across.

I still have yet to install WIN7 - I have my copy, just waiting to get another VR 300GB HDD . . .

It's looking good so far, I haven't heard of any issues yet - looks like Creative made a major turn around between Vista and WIN 7 in the driver department . . .


----------



## AphexDreamer (Nov 12, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> yeah, sure thing!
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Yeah its been fine with me. Its just that the more I use it the more I don't notice much of a change with my onboard. Unless the game has EAX its just the same thing.

I want to see some more EAX support to take advatage of these wonderful cards.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 12, 2009)

AphexDreamer said:


> Yeah its been fine with me. Its just that the more I use it the more I don't notice much of a change with my onboard. Unless the game has EAX its just the same thing.
> 
> I want to see some more EAX support to take advatage of these wonderful cards.





Yeah, it'd be nice . . . at least if devs would start supporting OpenAL a bit more - it's practically the same damn thing at this point.

But, leave it to game devs to not give a rat's ass about the quality of in-game audio.  I think the worst I played recently was CoD:WaW . . . the sample and bit-rate were absolutely atrocious.  It felt like I was listening to a freeking AM-radio station.


----------



## simi_id (Nov 20, 2009)

Hi,

I have a X-Fi Titanium PCI-E and Windows 7.

Should I install the drivers from the CD which came with the card and then apply the update from the web ?

Or should I install directly the drivers from the web, since the CD it's for Windows Vista and I may encounter issues in Windows 7 ?


----------



## AphexDreamer (Nov 20, 2009)

simi_id said:


> Hi,
> 
> I have a X-Fi Titanium PCI-E and Windows 7.
> 
> ...



I think this is what I ened up doing and I have everything you have.

Installed the driver from the cd then went on the web and download the latest driver and installed them, but that might now be necessary. Anyways its what I did and everything is A ok.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 20, 2009)

Well - I recommend using the drivers on the DVD, then upgrading from there . . . although, I'm not sure if the drivers on the Vista disk are fully compatible with 7.  But, with the updated drivers, it won't be a problem.

There's some software, though, that's only available on the disk, and not available for download from Creative's download site - like, the volume control panel (IIRC), and I believe the console changer . . . can't remember what else.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Nov 21, 2009)

It is with great sadness (somewhat) that I announce that I shall be departing the X-Fi club since my Xonar D2x has arrived.

It has been a great pleasure supporting & being supported by you guys throughout the unstableness of creatives manmade mess's & I wish everyone all the best. No doubt, I will be back again in a few years if Creative possibly release a new card but until then. 

Au Revoir!


----------



## Frizz (Nov 22, 2009)

*Issue with X-fi Forte and Win7*

Well if I connect my headphones into the socket on the card itself or through the FP, it has a consistent static that I can't get rid off and the noise is in sync with GPU and Wireless load, so if I connect to the internet or load a site i can hear the interferance from the wireless card lol... 

I heard this is a PCI Latency problem although i have noway of fixing it since if I try to open up the PCI Latency tool it just freezes.


My solution for now?

I've noticed my speakers did not have any static coming from it, so fortunately my speakers has headphones socket, I connect my headphones through there and there is no more static .


----------



## Wile E (Nov 22, 2009)

randomflip said:


> Well if I connect my headphones into the socket on the card itself or through the FP, it has a consistent static that I can't get rid off and the noise is in sync with GPU and Wireless load, so if I connect to the internet or load a site i can hear the interferance from the wireless card lol...
> 
> I heard this is a PCI Latency problem although i have noway of fixing it since if I try to open up the PCI Latency tool it just freezes.
> 
> ...



The best solution to this problem? Drop wireless and go wired.


----------



## Frizz (Nov 22, 2009)

Wile E said:


> The best solution to this problem? Drop wireless and go wired.



rofl I really wish I could but the router is 4 walls and a story away ;/.


----------



## Wile E (Nov 22, 2009)

randomflip said:


> rofl I really wish I could but the router is 4 walls and a story away ;/.



So is mine, actually. That's what drills are for.

I can't let a silly thing like the appearance of my home effect my Gb network speeds.


----------



## Mussels (Nov 22, 2009)

Wile E said:


> So is mine, actually. That's what drills are for.
> 
> I can't let a silly thing like the appearance of my home effect my Gb network speeds.



i know right.

what silly people they are, putting walls between me and my network.


----------



## imperialreign (Nov 22, 2009)

^^





randomflip said:


> Well if I connect my headphones into the socket on the card itself or through the FP, it has a consistent static that I can't get rid off and the noise is in sync with GPU and Wireless load, so if I connect to the internet or load a site i can hear the interferance from the wireless card lol...
> 
> I heard this is a PCI Latency problem although i have noway of fixing it since if I try to open up the PCI Latency tool it just freezes.
> 
> ...



In all seriousness - it's not a PCI latency issue . . . it's an EMI/RFI kinda thing.  The card is just picking up too much noise from it's environment.

There's some things you can do to try and alleviate the issue - one, if possible, move the audio card as far away from neighboring components as possible. 

Two, make an EMI shield for the card - this will take some creative license, but you can use anything from old HDD plates, to aluminum foil.  You'll have to figure some way to mount it to the card, without having it touch any of the exposed components.  Make sure the shield is in good contact with the PCI plate of the card, too.

You can also add small copper heatsinks to various PCB components on the card - it will cut down of some of the noise a bit . . . especially, target the DAC, ADC, OPAMPs and VRMs.

You could also attempt to ground your case - get ahold of some shielding wire, then route it up and down along the inside of your case panels - at the end of the wire, attatch it to one of the case screws to ground the cable.  It should help reduce any external noise.


----------



## johnspack (Nov 25, 2009)

I no longer hate my xtremegamer.  Under XP64 with special mod drivers,  and my new turtle beach hpa2s,  friggin awesome!!!!  Left4dead,  you can hear all around,  haven't even had time to test games yet.  Upmix from 2.0 to 5.1 for things like Winamp,  daaaam!  I want a higher end x-fi now...  a titanium pci-e is dam cheap now.  Now I have an idea what $200+ audiophile headphones might sound like.  And I said might...


----------



## Wile E (Nov 25, 2009)

johnspack said:


> I no longer hate my xtremegamer.  Under XP64 with special mod drivers,  and my new turtle beach hpa2s,  friggin awesome!!!!  Left4dead,  you can hear all around,  haven't even had time to test games yet.  Upmix from 2.0 to 5.1 for things like Winamp,  daaaam!  I want a higher end x-fi now...  a titanium pci-e is dam cheap now.  Now I have an idea what $200+ audiophile headphones might sound like.  And I said might...



No, those HPA's do not give even the slightest hint of what audiophile headphones might sound like.


----------



## johnspack (Nov 25, 2009)

They do however absolutely blow away any headset, headphone under $200.  This I guarantee.  Of course they are not meant to be audiophile,  they are positional gaming headsets.  So like comparing apples to oranges....


----------



## Wile E (Nov 25, 2009)

johnspack said:


> They do however absolutely blow away any headset, headphone under $200.  This I guarantee.  Of course they are not meant to be audiophile,  they are positional gaming headsets.  So like comparing apples to oranges....



Any surround headset, I'd tend to agree. But in terms of pure audio quality, regardless of number of channels, even my RE2's are superior, let alone my RE1's.

Killer surround phones tho. I was gonna buy them, but saw the Razer 5.1's on sale for cheap, and took the chance on them. Yeah, I regret that move. lol.


----------



## Frizz (Nov 25, 2009)

imperialreign said:


> ^^
> 
> 
> 
> ...





ooo I have some spare zalman gpu ramsinks, might try those, thanks for the help .


----------



## johnspack (Nov 26, 2009)

Heheh,  yeah,  the Razors,  I saw the reviews on them...  Checked all the reviews on gaming headsets probably for like 3 weeks straight before I bought.  Saw many on these hpa2s,  all good,  then saw I think Kursah's review,  and said what the hell.  So glad I got them,  nothing for this price will compare I'm sure of it.  Even the mic works perfect,  important to me for ts and vent.  Dam mic is metal!  Most of the headset is metal,  very sturdy,  but comfortable.  Best 111can after taxes and shipping I ever spent!


----------



## Jaffakeik (Nov 27, 2009)

are sound cards much better than integrated scards?OR they need better sound system to work fully?


----------



## Frizz (Nov 27, 2009)

Arciks said:


> are sound cards much better than integrated scards?OR they need better sound system to work fully?



Well for me I've been using logitech x530 5.1 surround system (Very old btw) and monitor headphones ... when I switched from realtek HD onboard to X-Fi Forte 7.1 I never expected such a change in quality. I was blown away tbh.

Its because of features like X-Fi 24bit Crystalizer, EAX Advanced HD, ASIO, DTS Interactive, CMSS 3D.. and the ability to manipulate the bass coming out of your headphones/speakers just affects quality so much.

My favourite infact are the headphone features, you get elevation and surround sound with whatever headphones you got. Elevation is when you see a helicopter in-game for example, it'll actually sound like its up there in the sky flying.


EDIT: Take note though, you have to buy a decent soundcard to get any improvements from onboard, else you could just be buying it purely for the extra features.

EDIT #2: Also take in consideration X-Ram with apparently improves FPS and smoothness with some games, http://xfi.blogspot.com/2006/01/x-ram.html


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## imperialreign (Nov 27, 2009)

randomflip said:


> Well for me I've been using logitech x530 5.1 surround system (Very old btw) and monitor headphones ... when I switched from realtek HD onboard to X-Fi Forte 7.1 I never expected such a change in quality. I was blown away tbh.
> 
> Its because of features like X-Fi 24bit Crystalizer, EAX Advanced HD, ASIO, DTS Interactive, CMSS 3D.. and the ability to manipulate the bass coming out of your headphones/speakers just affects quality so much.
> 
> ...



X-RAM still pisses me off . . . not because it's practically useless . . . but because software developers are too lazy to support it.  The freekin support code is available in OpenAL, as are the debugging features - it's not like you need to pay for EAX 5.0HD licensing!!  

CMSS-3D is great at times, though.  It's probably one of the best "virtual" speaker soultions I've heard . . . years of development based off of Aureal's technology, though . . . go figure 




Arciks said:


> are sound cards much better than integrated scards?OR they need better sound system to work fully?



Tons better.  Check this thread out: http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=64921

The first post, I compare an expansion audio card to a high-quality onboard setup.  

As to the subjectivity of the difference - I'll say this, even with very low end speakers or headphones . . . the average user will immediately hear a difference (not everyone does, though).  But, you won't be getting the full output quality of a soundcard with low-end speakers/headphones, though.

Now, I wish that I could promise you that you'd defi hear a difference, but I simply can't do that.  Everyone's ears are different.  Some of us can easily pick up something like slight differences in sampling rate between two versions of the same track, some can't . . . some of us can hear tones and sounds that are either too high or too low of pitch for others to hear . . . I can show the differences in the hardware, and show visual representation of the output, but the percieved quality is subjective.




johnspack said:


> Heheh,  yeah,  the Razors,  I saw the reviews on them...  Checked all the reviews on gaming headsets probably for like 3 weeks straight before I bought.  Saw many on these hpa2s,  all good,  then saw I think Kursah's review,  and said what the hell.  So glad I got them,  nothing for this price will compare I'm sure of it.  Even the mic works perfect,  important to me for ts and vent.  Dam mic is metal!  Most of the headset is metal,  very sturdy,  but comfortable.  Best 111can after taxes and shipping I ever spent!





My thoughts - the HPAs are good, but a bit overpriced, IMHO.

Compared to Razer's HP-1, though, they blow the HP-1 out of the water.

Now, that's not to say the HP-1s are a bad setup . . . quite the contrary, I use a pair - but only for gaming.  It's not so much that their frequency response is sub-par, each individual channel is quite decent . . . but, the impedance of the individual channels really gives away the construction . . . I mean, compared to the more "average" values of the HPAs, the HP-1 has some inherent design flaws.

1st, the sub channel has a much lower impedance than any of the other channels (8O compared to the next lowest 32O).  For average listening, it equates to a sub channel that's simply too strong, requiring one to spend a lot of time adjusting the sub channel (both in the audio drivers and with the in-line amplifier) to a more comfortable range.  As well, the sub performs rather poorly with steady low frequency tones.  It sounds good with quick, short bursts, though . . . which is more common in gaming.

The front channel has an insanely high impedance (64O compared to the lower 32O).  Again, this means you'll need to spend quite some time adjusting the channel to sound properly.  What really comes across as, well, dumb with the center channel is that 90% of games only support 2-channel stereo.  It's not like modern sound cards can't handle the upmixing, though, but upmixing to 5.1 has it's issues.  The center channel is usually either derived by inversing the L and R channels, then mixing them together is such a way that the extreme L/R portions are canceled (which leaves the predominant center between the two channels) - or by panning the L and R channel inward and mixing (both methods are more technical than I've described here, though).  Problem with this upmizing is that typically the center channel is lower in volume than the L or R . . . which means that for proper listening, you need to increase the volume going to this channel.  Back to gaming, it's alright as 90% of current game engines (especially FPS) it's not as major of a concern due to the numerous layers of effects that are applied to the output (occlusion, attenuation, reverb, echo, etc.).

Then there's the layout.  The HPA is similar, but more "audiophile" in the actual layout of the channels, and their angle.  On the HP-1, they all share the same plane, which can equate to certain frequencies and volume levels becoming muddied . . . and there's also the issue of the LEDs built into the ear pieces and the amplifier, as well as the amplifier (which I've had apart before . . . really cheesy), and the abundant possibility of introducing EMI into the output . . . there's literally nothing in the construction for EMI shielding (hell, even a couple of capacitors in the ear pieces would help), nor for noise reduction, etc.

Y'know . . . my set are out of warranty.  I should be helpful and just disect the buggars so I can give everyone a good idea what I'm talking about.

Again, the HP-1s are good for gaming . . . and that's it.  I wouldn't recommend them for high-quality audio listening, or watching DVDs or HD movies.


----------



## johnspack (Nov 27, 2009)

I would kill myself if I had to use onboard sound!  Most games use thx 5.1 sound,  only x-fis really support that. Nice expensive digital amps,  can't decode thx!  Digital out doesn't work unless you have higher end x-fi or auzentech expensive cards...  glad my analogue outs do it on my cheap xtremegamer!


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## Mussels (Nov 27, 2009)

johnspack said:


> I would kill myself if I had to use onboard sound!  Most games use thx 5.1 sound,  only x-fis really support that. Nice expensive digital amps,  can't decode thx!  Digital out doesn't work unless you have higher end x-fi or auzentech expensive cards...  glad my analogue outs do it on my cheap xtremegamer!



no games use THX.

THX is quality assurance, and has nothing to do with software at all.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/THX


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## johnspack (Nov 28, 2009)

Ouch,  semantics!  Must be fun to have nothing to do all day.... and I thought I was retired heheh!


----------



## johnspack (Nov 29, 2009)

Hmm,  not thx,  eax.  I'm still boning up on this,  but I'm not using dolby digital over my analogue outputs.  Only dvd movies ect can.  But EAX advanced HD can!  Sorry,  confused thx with eax.  First time I've had surround sound,  give me a break heheh!


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## imperialreign (Dec 3, 2009)

johnspack said:


> Hmm,  not thx,  eax.  I'm still boning up on this,  but I'm not using dolby digital over my analogue outputs.  Only dvd movies ect can.  But EAX advanced HD can!  Sorry,  confused thx with eax.  First time I've had surround sound,  give me a break heheh!





EAX, for entertainment purposes, is really just a reverb filter that is applied to give the impression of a much larger space than you're really in.  It's kinda cool, but I've never really liked it for general audio/movie purposes.

Now, if there was a way to adjust the EAX tables by hand, that'd be great . . . but, alas . . . 'tis not so.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Dec 4, 2009)

Ive just come off my Xonar D2x & back onto my part fried X-Fi Titanium Pro.

really baaaad experience with the Xonar....It was working this morning but when i came home & tried to boot up, the pc's power started tripping in the middle of boot/startup for no aparent reason at all....

so I unplugged the card & checked it over then plugged it back in again & only the front speakers would play any audio & it was so very very quiet when it did play audio, so after more messing around to make sure the card was really fubar'd unplugged it & threw it back in the box - this card is no good.

CTD in games, refused to have a constant signal for DDL/DTS, drivers that are still in the 'beta' stage for Windows 7 coupled with the fact that it would play music from all speakers just like Creatives CMSS3D.

- I had to cut part of the cooler off my Toxic. to fit this soundcard it because it was covering up the fan/hole & started to cook my 4870 till it was hitting 85'c when its usually 60-65'c under load.

So enough of this crap....If they offer to swap with another one, I might consider since It could have just been my luck that I picked up a duff one. Or I could get a refund & look for another X-Fi Titanium which served me well until i part fried the card when i made a mistake of trying to hook it up to my front panel


----------



## johnspack (Dec 8, 2009)

If your not going to spend the money on an m-audio card,  just get a titanium and call it a day....


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 13, 2009)

Freedom - sorry to hear about getting a borked card, man . . .  rather unusual for ASUS . . .

No matter what you go with next, another Xonar or back to the X-Fi, you're welcome around these parts 

Have you given any thought to some of Auzen's newest releases?


----------



## EarlZ (Jan 25, 2010)

I have a question about the CMSS-3D and Im wondering for example Im gaming and the game supports 5.1 audio or when Im watching movies with 5.1 sound does the CMSS-3D still take over ?

Also do you guys enable the SVM feature on your X-Fi ?


----------



## Polaris573 (Jan 25, 2010)

I don't enable the SVM feature.  It ruins the dynamic of the music, loud parts are supposed to be loud and quite parts quiet.  

It might be okay in gaming if you need to keep the volume even.  For example, if you still wanted to hear footsteps in an FPS but didn't want to wake up someone living with you when you fired your gun.


----------



## Wile E (Jan 25, 2010)

Polaris573 said:


> I don't enable the SVM feature.  It ruins the dynamic of the music, loud parts are supposed to be loud and quite parts quiet.
> 
> It might be okay in gaming if you need to keep the volume even.  For example, if you still wanted to hear footsteps in an FPS but didn't want to wake up someone living with you when you fired your gun.



Or movies late at night. The only processing I use on music at all while listening is sometimes a little EQ. Nothing else, ever.


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## Polaris573 (Jan 25, 2010)

That's a good use of it too.


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## Mussels (Jan 25, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> I have a question about the CMSS-3D and Im wondering for example Im gaming and the game supports 5.1 audio or when Im watching movies with 5.1 sound does the CMSS-3D still take over ?



yes, i believe it does take over. Its why i don't use it (my media PC has realtek X-fi)


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## Hayder_Master (Jan 25, 2010)

join in with my new Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional


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## imperialreign (Jan 25, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> I have a question about the CMSS-3D and Im wondering for example Im gaming and the game supports 5.1 audio or when Im watching movies with 5.1 sound does the CMSS-3D still take over ?
> 
> Also do you guys enable the SVM feature on your X-Fi ?



Technically - if you have CMSS enabled, then yes, it's used.  But, you can always disable the feature, no matter what hardware mode you're in.

Personally, I don't use SVM at all, and if I'm in Entertainment mode, I use no other hardware filters . . . no EAX, Crystallizer, etc.  Although, I do use my preferred EQ curve, and CMSS.  It can make nearly any kind of speaker setup sound like they have more spacial depth, but, to get the most out of it, you'll have to spend a lot of time properly adjusting your EQ settings, and the individual channel volumes, etc. - it can be quite a chore.

It also really depends on your listening environment as well - if you have your speakers in a relatively close environment, then there's actually not much need for CMSS, as the output from the speakers is properly overlapping each individual channel . . . but, if you have a much larger listening space, it can help to "fill in" some of the areas between each speaker enclosure.

Now, for gaming it's a different story, I leave EAX enabled (most of the time), EQ, Crystallizer, CMSS, etc.  Only due to the fact that most games have such horrible inherent audio . . . but, I'll save that soap box for another thread.





hayder.master said:


> join in with my new Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional



Sure thing!


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## EarlZ (Jan 26, 2010)

Thanks for the responses, For the CMSS-3D ive been trying to experiment with it with games and movies that have 5.1 audio and i really cant tell the difference if they are enabled or disabled but for movies and games w/o 5.1 audio support the difference is extremely noticable... ( Im led to believe that its an auto bypass feature )

Do you guys use something else to rapidly switch between audio modes/features because i find the creative UI clunky and slow.. Wish there was a way to bind all of this on my G15v2 keys 

As for the EQ i use the flat settings but i have the Crystalizer at 95%, it just makes my MP3's / FLAC's sound much better and more cleaner!


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## Hayder_Master (Jan 26, 2010)

imperialreign said:


> Sure thing!




thanx bro, your advices was one my reasons to got an X-FI


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## johnspack (Jan 26, 2010)

Yes,  for true 5.1 in games ect,  you have to turn off cmss.  And no,  I have to keep up my control panel,  thx panel ect,  and manually switch modes for what I want to do.  Kind of wish creative would set up profiles,  as I've got dozens of setups...


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## EarlZ (Jan 26, 2010)

After several testing, like setting the CMSS to full surround ( it almost nulls the front speakers ) for content with 5.1 it does automatically disable.


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## EarlZ (Feb 7, 2010)

This started happening when I got my 5.1 speaker system ( Logitech Z-5500 ) sometimes I would lose all sound from the right channel ( both front and rear and sometimes including center ) and sometimes the volume is at an extremely low level even if the sound card output is at 100% now fixing this is either a reboot or a change of audio mode Game to Ent ( vice versa ) Is creative working on a permanent fix for this one ? Im using X-Fi Extreme Music and Windows 7 64bit 8GB of ram


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## Mussels (Feb 7, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> This started happening when I got my 5.1 speaker system ( Logitech Z-5500 ) sometimes I would lose all sound from the right channel ( both front and rear and sometimes including center ) and sometimes the volume is at an extremely low level even if the sound card output is at 100% now fixing this is either a reboot or a change of audio mode Game to Ent ( vice versa ) Is creative working on a permanent fix for this one ? Im using X-Fi Extreme Music and Windows 7 64bit 8GB of ram



honestly, creative would just tell you its the speakers, go f**k yourself, buy our latest card.


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## EarlZ (Feb 7, 2010)

Well its clearly not the speakers since switching modes on the sound card fixes the issue, never had this problem when I was in 2.0 mode though.

Anyway for my previous post about the volume in gaming, is this an expected issue when your speaker setup is running in 5.1 mode , since I never had this volume problem back when I was using 2.1 I already reset all the volume levels and placed WMP/Winamp at 100% volume on their own settings, my sound card volume is at 25% while gaming i need to increase my Z-5500 volume to 75% to hear anything.. gonna try 2.0 mode later on and see if its just a 5.1 issue.


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## Mussels (Feb 7, 2010)

to be honest, the only times when volume appears 'low' in 5.1 over 2.0, is when you've missed a channel/wired it incorrectly.

You know, missing the center channel would sound normal most of the time, except voices would be quiet (as they appear somewhat on the front channels, it'd be quiet, not silent)


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## Reefer86 (Feb 7, 2010)

sounds like the same issues i used to have in the early drivers in vista, ive had no problems at all running under windows 7


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## imperialreign (Feb 8, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> Well its clearly not the speakers since switching modes on the sound card fixes the issue, never had this problem when I was in 2.0 mode though.
> 
> Anyway for my previous post about the volume in gaming, is this an expected issue when your speaker setup is running in 5.1 mode , since I never had this volume problem back when I was using 2.1 I already reset all the volume levels and placed WMP/Winamp at 100% volume on their own settings, my sound card volume is at 25% while gaming i need to increase my Z-5500 volume to 75% to hear anything.. gonna try 2.0 mode later on and see if its just a 5.1 issue.





Do you have the latest version of OpenAL installed?  It's a semi-"critical" API for both Vista and WIN7 - most games and apps support OpenAL (to an extent), and if they don't they can still make use of it (as the audio card drivers will can and will make use of it).  It allows for proper channel mixing from an application through the OS kernel . . . if the game or app is being forced to go through WIN's kernal APIs, channel downmixing _will_ occur, and possibly even be routed to the wrong output.  Usually, the downmixing will retain LF/RF, while cutting everything else.  The only apps that aren't affected by this "phenomena" are those that are "imbeded" into the OS - think apps like WIN Media Player.  If it's a MS app, you won't have to worry about it being a problem.  

Yeah, it sucks, and has been one of my only major gripes with Vista and WIN7, but nothing we can do about it . . . XP wasn't affected by this tripe, as applications could directly access the hardware.  They can't with Vista/WIN7, the audio calls must be passed through the OS kernel and "translated" by the API . . .


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## EarlZ (Feb 8, 2010)

Yes i have OpenAL installed, its just that the volume is extremely low when gaming no sound is dropped every thing is ultra crisp i just need to boost the volume from 25% to 75%-95%

So to avoid me constantly changing volumes I lowered Winamp and WMP's own volume, Winamp is now at about 15% software volume while WMP is between 50% to 100% coz some movies really have ultra low volumes that im aware of.


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## imperialreign (Feb 8, 2010)

Double check the individual channel settings in WIN's audio control panel.  It doesn't always synch to the X-Fi control panel properly . . . which can leave some channels quieter than others when you make adjustments.


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## EarlZ (Feb 9, 2010)

All channels are on the same sound level.. Probably Winamp just has a very loud software volume  ?


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## imperialreign (Feb 12, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> All channels are on the same sound level.. Probably Winamp just has a very loud software volume  ?



It's possible . . .

Vista as well is a bit louder than XP is, and I'm still not 100% sure why that is . . . it's quite annoying, as volume adjustments made in Vista are not exactly the same needed in XP.


----------



## T3kl0rd (Feb 12, 2010)

Love my X-Fi XtremeMusic Card and the clarity it brings to my PC's sound.  I can hear the difference when EAX is enabled for sure.  Takes cycles off my already overloaded P4, so this is a must have for me.  Creative has a monopoly with the EAX function, so you are really shoehorned into getting X-Fi if you want the best sound.


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## imperialreign (Feb 12, 2010)

T3kl0rd said:


> Love my X-Fi XtremeMusic Card and the clarity it brings to my PC's sound.  I can hear the difference when EAX is enabled for sure.  Takes cycles off my already overloaded P4, so this is a must have for me.  Creative has a monopoly with the EAX function, so you are really shoehorned into getting X-Fi if you want the best sound.





Well - thing is with EAX . . . everyone _could_ support it, to an extent.  The OpenAL API supports the majority of EAX calls through EAX 4.0HD, and even some from EAX 5.0HD . . . thing is, game devs are just too lazy to dig into OpenAL and make use of the features (even though it's absolutely free) . . .

meh . . . I'm not going to get back on my soap box


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## Mussels (Feb 13, 2010)

winamp at 50% volume = unboosted.

Past that, it amplifies the sound internally.


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## Wile E (Feb 13, 2010)

Mussels said:


> winamp at 50% volume = unboosted.
> 
> Past that, it amplifies the sound internally.



Actually, the last time I used Winamp, it's volume slider did nothing but change the Windows main volume. It's part of the reason I switched to Foobar2000. Open the Windows slider and change WinAmp's volume, and see if it still does it.


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## Mussels (Feb 13, 2010)

Wile E said:


> Actually, the last time I used Winamp, it's volume slider did nothing but change the Windows main volume. It's part of the reason I switched to Foobar2000. Open the Windows slider and change WinAmp's volume, and see if it still does it.



i've seen it do both - i think its related to what output mode its using (directsound/waveout?)


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## ToTTenTranz (Feb 13, 2010)

imperialreign said:


> Well - thing is with EAX . . . everyone _could_ support it, to an extent.  The OpenAL API supports the majority of EAX calls through EAX 4.0HD, and even some from EAX 5.0HD . . . thing is, game devs are just too lazy to dig into OpenAL and make use of the features (even though it's absolutely free) . . .
> 
> meh . . . I'm not going to get back on my soap box



Truth be told, game devs are too lazy with everything that's not console-related.


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## FreedomEclipse (Feb 13, 2010)

imperialreign said:


> Well - thing is with EAX . . . everyone _could_ support it, to an extent.  The OpenAL API supports the majority of EAX calls through EAX 4.0HD, and even some from EAX 5.0HD . . . thing is, game devs are just too lazy to dig into OpenAL and make use of the features (even though it's absolutely free) . . .
> 
> meh . . . I'm not going to get back on my soap box



everyone COULD support it - but they'd also need to play licensing fees to Creative & they probably charge depending on if they think the games going to be a winner or not.

----

Ive been with Asus Xonars since November or last year & honestly i have to say that I miss my creative Fata1ty becase Asus's DS3DGX engine thats similar to creative alchemy still needs a fair bit of work & i had a fair few CTD's while gaming because of it.

creative drivers did take a lot of time to mature though but Asus's drivers are a bit of a laugh - theyve only released 2-3 drivers since windows 7 was in beta & they probably wont release another update until the end of the year.


----------



## kenkickr (Feb 13, 2010)

FreedomEclipse said:


> everyone COULD support it - but they'd also need to play licensing fees to Creative & they probably charge depending on if they think the games going to be a winner or not.
> 
> ----
> 
> ...



I wish I would have seen this before I purchased a Xonar D2X a couple days ago


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## ToTTenTranz (Feb 13, 2010)

FreedomEclipse said:


> everyone COULD support it - but they'd also need to play licensing fees to Creative & they probably charge depending on if they think the games going to be a winner or not.




As imperialreign said, if you stick to OpenAL routines, no one has to pay anything to Creative.


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## brandonwh64 (Feb 13, 2010)

does a SupremeFX X-Fi count to be in the club?


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## Mussels (Feb 13, 2010)

brandonwh64 said:


> does a SupremeFX X-Fi count to be in the club?



having a realtek X-fi lets me talk in here


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## brandonwh64 (Feb 13, 2010)

so if its onboard then it doesnt count?


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## FreedomEclipse (Feb 13, 2010)

kenkickr said:


> I wish I would have seen this before I purchased a Xonar D2X a couple days ago



the Xonar is a great card! its just let down by driver support. games still work great on it. but a few games might have issues with the D3DGX engine - otherwise it works fine for most games


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## imperialreign (Feb 13, 2010)

ToTTenTranz said:


> Truth be told, game devs are too lazy with everything that's not console-related.



Agreed - to an extent . . . depends on the dev team.  Some go to amazing lengths with their work (ID, Raven, CryTech, etc.), others just seem to get by with very little . . .



FreedomEclipse said:


> everyone COULD support it - but they'd also need to play licensing fees to Creative & they probably charge depending on if they think the games going to be a winner or not.



As ToT pointed out, no one has to pay licensing fees for OpenAL.  It's completely open source and freely available, and whatever features it supports are free to impliment . . . think of it like the OpenGL of the audio world.



Mussels said:


> having a realtek X-fi lets me talk in here



I think the "mod" status might have something to do with it 

Seriously, though, any X-Fi is welcome . . . hell, any audio discussion is welcome, no matter what hardware you're running - so long as it's not Creative bashing (there are other forums for such antics) . . . we're even open to USB device users . . .




FreedomEclipse said:


> the Xonar is a great card! its just let down by driver support. games still work great on it. but a few games might have issues with the D3DGX engine - otherwise it works fine for most games




Agreed - I've only heard increasing complaints from ASUS' drivers, and it seems complaints about Creative's are dwindling.  The Xonar series are great cards, just hampered by poor support . . .

Especially regarding ASUS' driver issues, I refer back to an earlier statement of mine where I had said that the larger their customer base gets, the more issues we'll see come out of the wood-work.  Audio hardware is some of the pickiest and sensitive hardware in a PC, that fact hasn't changed at all over the last 20 years . . . instead, we've seen even more issues arise as other hardware has become faster and more powerful . . . 

Same goes for Auzentech and their non-XFi cards - if their customer base continues to grow, we'll see more issues crop up with their drivers as well.  Their X-Fi supported cards tend to follow the same route that Creative's go . . .


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Feb 13, 2010)

Im tempted to pick up another creative card in the future - just because it has less issues since the drivers have matured


----------



## Wile E (Feb 14, 2010)

Just got my auzentech X-Fi Forte installed. Holy fuckin balls the headphone amp is insane!! Sound quality is marginally better than my Audigy 2ZS at my normal volumes and thru the speakers (which is a testament to how good the Audigy 2ZS really was), but really shines when you push your cans.

I'm amazed the difference in the headphones. My RE0's never sounded this good. It would've easily taken a $200 headphone amp to match this.


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## Mussels (Feb 14, 2010)

speaking of USB devices, i have a live! 24 bit USB sound card. i wonder if theres an x-fi mod for it...


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## brandonwh64 (Feb 14, 2010)

I have a rampage II gene with onboard XFI sound card


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## eidairaman1 (Feb 14, 2010)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Im tempted to pick up another creative card in the future - just because it has less issues since the drivers have matured



only thing i dont like is the additional services it installs,


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## FreedomEclipse (Feb 14, 2010)

eidairaman1 said:


> only thing i dont like is the additional services it installs,



yeah - creative control panel & all that other bollocks is bloated as hell. Asus's control panel & other software is pretty light but my pc boots up a little slow cuz of that gay HP printer software


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## ToTTenTranz (Feb 14, 2010)

FreedomEclipse said:


> yeah - creative control panel & all that other bollocks is bloated as hell. Asus's control panel & other software is pretty light but my pc boots up a little slow cuz of that gay HP printer software




The creative audio control panel is actually very light and simple. 
Maybe you're talking about the console launcher (the one who let's you switch between gaming, productivity and music listening). The latest has more bells and whistles and it's heavier (but it's negligible for today's CPUS).

But you can do everything from the simple control panel, actually. You don't even need to install the console launcher.


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Feb 14, 2010)

blah, im just use to having the console launcher in the taskbar.


----------



## Glazierman (Feb 18, 2010)

*new build*

I'm almost thru got asus rampage II Extreme with X fi & second 5970 Black shows up Friday can't wait to see and hear this beast!!!


----------



## EarlZ (Feb 19, 2010)

Mussels said:


> winamp at 50% volume = unboosted.
> 
> Past that, it amplifies the sound internally.



Didnt know that, could you provide the source for that information.. Also for the OS volume in Windows 7 , whats the optimal unboosted value ?


----------



## Mussels (Feb 20, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> Didnt know that, could you provide the source for that information.. Also for the OS volume in Windows 7 , whats the optimal unboosted value ?



sorry, no source... its just something i've known about PC's for a ridonculously long time. 50% (windows volume) = unamplified, so use that and adjust the rest on your speakers.


----------



## EarlZ (Feb 20, 2010)

Been using 25% OS volume, I guess ill up it to 45%


----------



## J.M.D (Mar 1, 2010)

Me having an X-Fi Prelude.

I would love to join here ...


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 1, 2010)

J.M.D said:


> Me having an X-Fi Prelude.
> 
> I would love to join here ...



Not a problem, man 





EarlZ said:


> Been using 25% OS volume, I guess ill up it to 45%



Mussels is right - it kinda depends on hardware, drivers and OS, but typically, right around 46% is when is starts amplifying the hardware output channels.

I try to recommend to users to keep the WIN master volume setting(s) under 50% whenever possible, as it keeps the OPAMPs from constantly having to beef the output . . . like all PCB components, the harder they work, the quicker they degrade.


----------



## J.M.D (Mar 2, 2010)

EarlZ said:
			
		

> Didnt know that, could you provide the source for that information.. Also for the OS volume in Windows 7 , whats the optimal unboosted value ?



As for Win 7 as well as the XP, the decibal Values where almost accurate and its 50% (i.e 0.0 dB) on the Creative volume panel. However in Vista it was different case.
On X-Fi anything beyond 50% volume is a boost up volume in the X-Fi Mixer.



			
				imperialreign said:
			
		

> Mussels is right - it kinda depends on hardware, drivers and OS, but typically, right around 46% is when is starts amplifying the hardware output channels.



This is may be because, creative assumes that, as ppl are likely to turn on the X-Fi Crystalizer and as this feature digitally amplifies the signal by 3 dB, a total of 46~47% Main volume + Crystalizer 3% volume = 50% of total Volume i.e nothing but unharmed and clean 0.0 dB


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 3, 2010)

J.M.D said:


> This is may be because, creative assumes that, as ppl are likely to turn on the X-Fi Crystalizer and as this feature digitally amplifies the signal by 3 dB, a total of 46~47% Main volume + Crystalizer 3% volume = 50% of total Volume i.e nothing but unharmed and clean 0.0 dB



Very true - and wouldn't surprise me if such was their thinking . . . even more-so considering how "hyped" the Crystallizer feature is/was.

But, many of us purists here avoid the feature like the plague - there's a link in Post #1 to a really good, in-depth look at the Crystallizer feature, and what it's actually doing . . . needless to say, for audio that's already "high quality," (think: uncompressed .wav) it can actually hurt the quality of the output.


----------



## EarlZ (Mar 3, 2010)

I've read about the technology behind the 24bC and on a technical view on the feature it adds nothing but distortion, on the subjective view it does make a lot of my FLAC and CD-A sound significantly better but its all about personal preference.


----------



## J.M.D (Mar 3, 2010)

imperialreign said:


> But, many of us purists here avoid the feature like the plague - there's a link in Post #1 to a really good, in-depth look at the Crystallizer feature, and what it's actually doing . . . needless to say, for audio that's already "high quality," (think: uncompressed .wav) it can actually hurt the quality of the output.



True. Tbh i never turn on the over hyped Crystalizer. But even with out this gimmick feature, the X-Fi is just impressive. I hear evrything in Crystal Clarity.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 12, 2010)

Some small updates . . .

For those who've been wanting to backup their custom EQ presets (which comes in handy after driver updates - as custom settings are returned to default), I've finally run across where they're stored on your HDD.

In Vista (and probably OS7): *C:\ProgramData\Creative\CADI\Preset\*

On XP: *C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Creative\CADI\Preset\
*

Back up the *.DAT* file to a safe folder.  To re-instate your custom EQ settings, simply copy the backup .DAT into the aforementioned folders, and your EQ presets will be available.

I'm still looking for where the custom mixer, surround, THX, speaker/bass, EAX and other configs are stored . . . and will pass that info along once I find it.

It would be absolutely awesome if, once this info is found, that a programer could code a small GUI program to backup all the files, and re-install them as necessary. 


==========================

Also of note, Creative have recently announced an expansion to the X-Fi Titanium lineup, dubbed the *X-Fi Titanium HD*, and a new USB soultion named the *USB Sound Blaster X-Fi HD*.

The new card itself offers some respectable numbers, will be native PCI-E x1, and will also boast some "departures" from Creative's typical style:


•RCA Line Out for audio playback up to 122dB, 24-bit/96kHz Digital-to-Analog Converters (DAC)
•RCA Line Input for recording up to 118dB, 24-bit 96kHZ Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADC)
•0.001% Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise (THD+N)
•Headphone output for audio listening up to 115dB 33 Ohms, and 117dB, 330 Ohms, at 24bit/96kHz
•Replaceable Op-amps
•Hardware-accelerated 3D positional audio and EAX® 5.0 effects that provide a truly immersive experience with headphones and speakers
•Dolby Digital and DTS encoding enables one-step single-cable connection to home entertainment systems
•TOS-link optical-in/out
•1/8" microphone-in
•1/8" headphone jack
•Creative ALchemy to restore EAX and surround sound that is otherwise lost in DirectSound game titles running under Windows Vista and Windows 7
•ASIO recording support with latency as low as one millisecond with minimal CPU load
•Works with Windows Vista and Windows 7 operating systems


Of major note - replaceable OPAMPs.  This will be the first card offered by Creative to support user-replaceable OPAMPs.  Based on these claimed specs, this card will take the lead from the X-Fi Elite Pro in terms of audio output quality (remains to be seen from real-world testing, though). As well, the headphone specific output (seperate from the primary outputs) which leads me to believe there's a major departure from Creative's typical audio architecture design . . . It also appears that this card will support new THX features and capabilities, and is now brandishing the THX logo quite extensivelly.

Full press release can be read here: http://www.creative.com/corporate/pressroom/releases/welcome.asp?pid=13137

Press released image of the card:







I'm getting the impression this card will be a major step in the right direction for Creative - and I'm already itching to hear how these cards will sound.


----------



## Wile E (Mar 12, 2010)

Looks like they are taking cues from the Auzentech cards. Cna't be a bad thing. I love my Forte. It kicks major ass.


----------



## ToTTenTranz (Mar 12, 2010)

I always thought the next X-Fi cards would be powered by Zii processors.

I guess I was wrong.


----------



## Mussels (Mar 12, 2010)

ToTTenTranz said:


> I always thought the next X-Fi cards would be powered by Zii processors.
> 
> I guess I was wrong.



what? creative release new tech? they're the only company worse than Nvidia for rebranding


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 12, 2010)

Forgot to mention - I'm planning sometime *hopefully* before summer, of going through this thread and "cataloging" posts with important information . . . I intend to do some major updating to the OP, and include a lot of new information, and perhaps link to the respective post where that info is found in the thread.

So, if anyone has any other info or knowledge they want to share, or knows of any good utilities/apps that are helpful, feel free to post them up


----------



## ToTTenTranz (Mar 12, 2010)

Mussels said:


> what? creative release new tech? they're the only company worse than Nvidia for rebranding




In this case, hardware stagnation is clearly dictated by the lack of competition. 
Nonetheless, the new models appear to have improved DACs and ADCs.


----------



## J.M.D (Mar 12, 2010)

Wile E said:


> Looks like they are taking cues from the Auzentech cards. Cna't be a bad thing. I love my Forte. It kicks major ass.



@ Wile E..,

What speaker sets u make use of ???? 




			
				imperilareign said:
			
		

> Some small updates . . .
> 
> For those who've been wanting to backup their custom EQ presets (which comes in handy after driver updates - as custom settings are returned to default), I've finally run across where they're stored on your HDD.
> 
> ...



Great info mate.. Really Apreciated


----------



## Wile E (Mar 13, 2010)

J.M.D said:


> @ Wile E..,
> 
> What speaker sets u make use of ????
> 
> ...



No speakers right now. Using a Panasonic SA-PM39D mini system as my speakers right now. I used to have a pair of M-Audio monitors tho. I moved them to a friend's studio tho.

Most of my serious listening happens thru a pair HiFiMan RE0 IEMs.


----------



## EarlZ (Mar 14, 2010)

Its been a good 3 months or so since I moved to 5.1 and rarely on games I start to hear some slight popping of sound never had an issue with this on 2.1 though, I guess this is where all the moaning on the sound card begins ?


----------



## J.M.D (Mar 14, 2010)

Wile E said:


> No speakers right now. Using a Panasonic SA-PM39D mini system as my speakers right now. I used to have a pair of M-Audio monitors tho. I moved them to a friend's studio tho.
> 
> Most of my serious listening happens thru a pair HiFiMan RE0 IEMs.



ok So u r mostly a Head-Fi'er ...


----------



## J.M.D (Mar 14, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> Its been a good 3 months or so since I moved to 5.1 and rarely on games I start to hear some slight popping of sound never had an issue with this on 2.1 though, I guess this is where all the moaning on the sound card begins ?



Are all your hardware drivers up to date ?
And wat OS u use for gaming ????


----------



## EarlZ (Mar 14, 2010)

J.M.D said:


> Are all your hardware drivers up to date ?
> And wat OS u use for gaming ????



Yes they are, Windows 7 64bit.. setting it back to 2.1 totally removes all of the audio glitches even on dragon age.


----------



## Wile E (Mar 14, 2010)

J.M.D said:


> ok So u r mostly a Head-Fi'er ...



Yeah, pretty much. My preferred listening volume tends to be a bit distracting to the rest of the house, so I usually just stick to using my IEMs. lol.


----------



## J.M.D (Mar 16, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> Yes they are, Windows 7 64bit.. setting it back to 2.1 totally removes all of the audio glitches even on dragon age.



OK first things first :-
> Is your Sounds and Audio device of Win 7 Control panel configured accordingly ??? like full range speakers, no. of output channels, default devices  and stuffs ???

> Secondly i presume you used to switch to 'Game-mode' while you r gaming.

> Thirdly , try to figure out if the crackling and popping still occurs once the X-Fi CMSS-3D is disabled.

If u think the above things are perfect , then i recommend you to upgrade the OpenAL to the latest up-to-dated version and i hope ur X-Fi as well as ur mobo's PCI latencies are not messed up.

Now if the problem still persist , then next option of ur's is to try the Daneil_K's X-Fi Driver Pack 2.0 !!

Hope that helps


----------



## EarlZ (Mar 18, 2010)

J.M.D said:


> OK first things first :-
> > Is your Sounds and Audio device of Win 7 Control panel configured accordingly ??? like full range speakers, no. of output channels, default devices  and stuffs ???
> 
> > Secondly i presume you used to switch to 'Game-mode' while you r gaming.
> ...



>Yes all windows settings are in perfect order.
>I do switch to game mode, I have auto-Switcher running. My default mode is actually game mode and it switches to audio if I run Winamp or Media Player - Home Cinema.
>I dont use CMSS-3D in game mode, i think all of my games support 5.1
>I already have Daneil_K's driver.

Heres some update for what its worth, 5.1 + 24/96 = Random Crackling but 5.1 + 24/48 = No Crackling yet, Gonna try out Dawn of War II Chaos Rising since it occurs right before the mission ends.


----------



## rpsgc (Mar 18, 2010)

Hmm... I'm late to the club.

X-Fi XtremeMusic here.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 20, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> >Yes all windows settings are in perfect order.
> >I do switch to game mode, I have auto-Switcher running. My default mode is actually game mode and it switches to audio if I run Winamp or Media Player - Home Cinema.
> >I dont use CMSS-3D in game mode, i think all of my games support 5.1
> >I already have Daneil_K's driver.
> ...



Hmmm . . . sounds like too much buffering going on from not having enough access to the SYS BUS . . . it's defi more of a hardware issue than anything else.

Check your BIOS options for a setting for PCI latency - if you have such a setting available, increase that by one step.

Only other thing I could recommend would be to make sure all your hardware drivers are up to date - including your chipset drivers . . . possibly check into any BIOS updates as well . . .

Only other viable option might be to OC your system BUS just a bit.




rpsgc said:


> Hmm... I'm late to the club.
> 
> X-Fi XtremeMusic here.



Welcome aboard!


----------



## EarlZ (Mar 20, 2010)

imperialreign said:


> Hmmm . . . sounds like too much buffering going on from not having enough access to the SYS BUS . . . it's defi more of a hardware issue than anything else.
> 
> Check your BIOS options for a setting for PCI latency - if you have such a setting available, increase that by one step.
> 
> ...




No PCI clocks on my bios, I already have my bus at 426Mhz (8x426)


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## majestic12 (Mar 20, 2010)

I'll join too if it's not too late!  X-fi Elite Pro here.


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 23, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> No PCI clocks on my bios, I already have my bus at 426Mhz (8x426)



What kinda apps are experiencing audio clipping with 5.1(24b/96k)?




majestic12 said:


> I'll join too if it's not too late!  X-fi Elite Pro here.



Sure thing!





Alright, time for another slew of updates from the last few months (available here: http://support.creative.com/welcome.aspx):

For all *X-Fi* models:

*Creative ALchemy v1.41.02*


> This download is an application for use with Creative audio products. It restores 3D audio and EAX® effects for certain DirectSound®3D games in Microsoft® Windows® 7 and Windows Vista®. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following audio products only:*
> 
> ...



====================================================

For *non-Xtreme Audio X-Fi models* models:

*Product Identification Module v2.11.01* 



> This update resolves the hardware/device detection issue for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ and X-Fi Titanium series of audio devices in Microsoft® Windows® 7. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following audio devices only:*
> 
> ...




=========================================================

For the *X-Fi Titanium* models:

*DTS Connect Pack v1.03.08*


> This download is a software pack that enables DTS® Connect for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Titanium series of audio devices. It adds support for Microsoft® Windows® 7. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following audio devices only:*
> 
> ...




*Dolby Digital Live Pack v3.00.06*


> This download is a software pack that enables Dolby® Digital Live for Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Titanium series of audio devices. It adds support for Microsoft® Windows® 7. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *This download supports the following audio devices only:*
> 
> ...




======================================================

For the *USB X-Fi Surround 5.1*:

*X-Fi 5.1 Surround Driver Pack v1.01.0099*


> This suite of driver and application has been updated and combined for your convenience. It installs Creative Audio Console to control your audio device's settings. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.
> 
> *Added Features:*
> 
> ...



For the *X-Fi Surround 5.1*, there are also software updates for *Creative Console Launcer*, *Creative Entertainment Center*, and *Creative Karaoke Player* available.


----------



## EarlZ (Mar 23, 2010)

@imperialreign

Games, so far its only been with Dragon Age and Dawn of War 2 Chaos rising


----------



## imperialreign (Mar 23, 2010)

EarlZ said:


> @imperialreign
> 
> Games, so far its only been with Dragon Age and Dawn of War 2 Chaos rising



That doesn't surprise me . . .

Trying to run 24b/96k in games is hit or miss - there's a lot of various processing involved to begin with (between CPU and GPU processing), add in additional work for the APU and you can start experiencing issues.

Reason being is that the vast majority of games have used "CD quality" audio (2-channel 16b/44k) for years, and there's no sign of game devs really pushing better audio.  Now, you can get away with forcing 24b playback with games, and even 48k playback, but pushing the 96k can occasionally present some problems.  If you're playing with 5.1, the audio hardware has to upmix the number of channels . . . it's not too demanding, really . . . but when you mix in having to resample the tracks to 96k, it can lead to more processing than the APU is capable of handling within a short number of clock cycles - even more-so if the game is utilizing EAX/OAL, or throws a ton of audio tracks out at the same time.  Your audio hardware is also vying for BUS cycles with the SYS itself, and with the GPU (which can get quite BUS hungry, too).  The clipping tends to result from the audio having to spend too much time in the buffers, as the card is waiting to regain access to the BUS.

Aside from fiddling with the various hardware and SYS clocks, the only recommendations I could make would be to either invest into a PCIE X-Fi (they're native PCIE, no additional latency involved, unlike other PCIE audio cards) . . . the additional bandwidth and throughput offered by the PCIE channel is capable of feeding the APU as it wants to be fed . . .

Or, reduce audio output quality only for games - the other option would be to attempt to reduce in-game visuals, but that won't necessarily improve anything.

If you're up for it, you could attempt to try out some of the daniel_k or youp-pax drivers.  I'm not big on the 3rd party drivers myself (for various reasons), but others claim they do fix odd issues . . .


----------



## sNiPeRbOb (Mar 23, 2010)

well, I've come here because I am all out of ideas.  I cannot get my headset microphone to record at an acceptable level... Using a Creative Xfi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro with what I assume to be the latest drivers on W7 x64.  I have my windows update set to NEVER install drivers on it's own, after running into far too many problems with generic windows drivers for my sound card. Now I cannot get the microphone to pick up at a decent level.  The mic level is 100% but still barely registers a single bar on the soundscale...

oh and ya, I would like to join the club ( i wish it was on a happier note ... )


----------



## EarlZ (Mar 23, 2010)

I cant justify spending another $100-200 for a new PCIE sound card when reducing it to 24/48 can resolve the issue, as you have stated games only use upto 16/44, and i really doubt i can tell the difference with the z-5500 on 24/96 vs 24/48 even if the original source was made for 24/96.

I might even go down to 16/48 since games only use that kind of settings.. are there any known games that use above 16/48 ?


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Mar 23, 2010)

AFAIK there are only a few games that support 48000Hz let alone anything higher. I would be nice though. It would really bring games to life as you'd be even more immirsed with the game


----------



## EarlZ (Mar 24, 2010)

Alright, I'll be dropping to 16/48 then just to make sure  no audio glitches happen.


----------



## EarlZ (Mar 26, 2010)

No more crackling at 24/48 in DoW2 so far, for the speaker configuration w/c should I be using, the windows default or pro-logic , this is on the settings for DoW2


----------



## imperialreign (Apr 2, 2010)

sNiPeRbOb said:


> well, I've come here because I am all out of ideas.  I cannot get my headset microphone to record at an acceptable level... Using a Creative Xfi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro with what I assume to be the latest drivers on W7 x64.  I have my windows update set to NEVER install drivers on it's own, after running into far too many problems with generic windows drivers for my sound card. Now I cannot get the microphone to pick up at a decent level.  The mic level is 100% but still barely registers a single bar on the soundscale...
> 
> oh and ya, I would like to join the club ( i wish it was on a happier note ... )




Sorry about the delay in responding - I got a little wrapped up with RL things.

Anyhow, first, go into the WIN control panel and double check the WIN recording volume settings.  Also, make sure that the device is enabled, and that WIN registers that it's plugged in - and make sure to select the device, R-click and set as default.

Double check the volume settings in the X-Fi console launcher, and that the channel is enabled here as well.  If need be, also enable the mic boost (if available), and double-check the Flexi-jack settings.

In whatever software you're using, try different "recording source" selections.  Sometimes, having it set to "line_in" works better than setting it to "mic_in."

Hope this helps! 




EarlZ said:


> No more crackling at 24/48 in DoW2 so far, for the speaker configuration w/c should I be using, the windows default or pro-logic , this is on the settings for DoW2



It kinda depends on the game . . . I try to use whatever is listed as the hardware, but some games don't "interpret" the WIN devices available correctly, and can list them strangely (I've even had games in the past midi sound banks as being hardware :shadedshu ).

If you're not 100% sure, just set it to WIN default, and make sure in the WIN audio control panel you set your hardware as the default device.


----------



## mafia97 (Apr 6, 2010)

add me to the club 
i also have xfi sound card


----------



## Grim_Reaper (Jun 1, 2010)

Hello! Amazing article! Very compact, and contains all, what X-Fi user must know. Seems nothing new to me, except, I've seen first time, detailed front-panel pin connection info. But, anyway, thanks, good job. 

To be fair, I've never regretted of purchasing my SB0550. IMHO-worth every penny invested in it.  Once I had compatibility issue, with my second MB (M2R32-MVP/ RX3200), and It had hi-pitch solid noise, after some time. But then, I've changed a MB to my current, and all troubles gone. Sometimes, I have glitches, related to OpenAL libraries, in GRAW 1&2- sound is playing incredible fast, and all speech could be played-back in few seconds. But Seems, last 2 years, Creative make good enough drivers, so no problems have been spotted. And despite everything said about X-Fi, it's definitely better than onboard junk. At least, I don't hear any noise, on any volume level, and lossless music is running awesome, even with my cheap headphones/acoustic. 

P.S: you, probaly would be laugh, but I've found, that if run Crysis, and Crysis Warhead, through ALchemy, sound became incredible better, and more realistic . I was wondered by this, because, Crysis utilizes FMOD, but it became much better.
Also, I would be glad, to view compare info, of BC2, with/without X-Fi 

Oh, and sorry for my awful English


----------



## Grim_Reaper (Jun 1, 2010)

And I have few questions, to all who played Dawn Of War II: does the game uses hardware acceleration, and does anybody have crackling and choppy sound in this game? Like something cuе the sound on parts, and it's not solid anymore. 

Thanks!


----------



## Mussels (Jun 1, 2010)

Grim_Reaper said:


> And I have few questions, to all who played Dawn Of War II: does the game uses hardware acceleration, and does anybody have crackling and choppy sound in this game? Like something cuе the sound on parts, and it's not solid anymore.
> 
> Thanks!



no hardware accel that i know of, and no bad audio here either.


----------



## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Jul 29, 2010)

new drivers are out and a beta console launcher


----------



## hv43082 (Jul 30, 2010)

I hope the new driver fix the no sound issue on X-fi card and BFBC2.


----------



## eidairaman1 (Jul 30, 2010)

hv43082 said:


> I hope the new driver fix the no sound issue on X-fi card and BFBC2.



HV that could verywell be the game itself and not the hardware.


----------



## Wile E (Jul 30, 2010)

I have no issues in BFBC2 on my Forte.


----------



## ShRoOmAlIsTiC (Jul 30, 2010)

my x-fi titanium pro has no issues either in bfbc2.


----------



## hv43082 (Jul 30, 2010)

I don't know if it's the game or the sound card.  Initially I was able to play with sound.  Ever since the first update for BFBC2, sound would cut out during loading.  Switch to integrated sound and no problem since.  I read 100's of post over at EA BFBC2 forum and quite a few people have the same problem.  No one has a definite solution.  Kinda frustrating that you spend $80 on the sound card and not able to use it with a game.


----------



## majestic12 (Jul 30, 2010)

BFBC2=no issues with my Elite Pro whatsoever.

On different note, I got to check out the new X-fi Titanium HD a while back while shopping in downtown Osaka.  It looks like a pretty nice card -about on par with a Xonar Essence (either series), but I think with my current setup, I'd be best served getting the Audio-Technica AD-HA25D headphone amplifier/DAC that I've wanted for a while now if I make any compter/audio equipment purchases...  The headphone amp would go really well with a nice X-fi card I think.


----------



## hv43082 (Jul 31, 2010)

The new driver did not fix the issue.  Played half way through one map and the sound got cut off again.  I guess it's time to sell the sound card.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Jul 31, 2010)

X fi Titanium PCIe with no sound issues in BFBC2 or any game for that matter. Great sound card! Just need better speakers..


----------



## hv43082 (Jul 31, 2010)

Any idea what I can do to fix this problem?  I even reinstall the game and still the same problem.  And I am using the X-fi Titanium PCIe card here.  No sound problem with any application except for BFBC2.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Jul 31, 2010)

hv43082 said:


> Any idea what I can do to fix this problem?  I even reinstall the game and still the same problem.  And I am using the X-fi Titanium PCIe card here.  No sound problem with any application except for BFBC2.



You could try using Alchemy with it. See if that helps.


----------



## overclocking101 (Jul 31, 2010)

are the creative/win7 problems fixed?? I used to use a duaghter card from a MSI motherboard great sound from it but when I switched to win7 it got all screwed up and havenet used it since I really want to again I just found it and said man I miss the crisp sound from this card.

The card it's self looks almost exactly like the Soudblaster Xfi Xtreme PCI-EXPRESS card just wouthout one of the optical outputs, and mine has a few more capacitors and the pcb is black otherwise the cards are identical


----------



## hv43082 (Jul 31, 2010)

AphexDreamer said:


> You could try using Alchemy with it. See if that helps.



Alchemy did not fix the problem last time.  Any other idea.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Jul 31, 2010)

hv43082 said:


> Alchemy did not fix the problem last time.  Any other idea.



Did you try both registry and file path? 

Try installing daniel_k support pack 2.0 and use those drivers, see if they help.

Be sure when you uninstall the old driver to use Driver Sweeper to get rid of the old for sure.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Aug 1, 2010)

Hmmm I just noticed that my music I play in iTunes or Windows media players doesn't get played through any speakers but my Front Left, Right and Sub. I remember a few reformats ago that it would play using all speakers what happened? (5.1)


----------



## Mussels (Aug 1, 2010)

AphexDreamer said:


> Hmmm I just noticed that my music I play in iTunes or Windows media players doesn't get played through any speakers but my Front Left, Right and Sub. I remember a few reformats ago that it would play using all speakers what happened? (5.1)



thats how its supposed to play. you must have had CMSS enabled to upmix it (which while some swear by, i hate it since it fucks up true 5.1 audio at the same time as making 2.1 audio use all speakers)


----------



## FreedomEclipse (Aug 2, 2010)

AphexDreamer said:


> You could try using Alchemy with it. See if that helps.



I dont think Alchemy is the correct solution as the game isnt coded for EAX or OpenAL -EA use their own in-house HDR audio engine that doesnt require any specific brand of sound card to get the best out of it


----------



## erixx (Aug 7, 2010)

delete the games 'ini' files, reinstall it. good luck!!!


----------



## imperialreign (Oct 23, 2010)

Sorry for the "MIA" status, y'all . . . numerous issues that aren't worth going over.  Anyhow . . .




overclocking101 said:


> are the creative/win7 problems fixed?? I used to use a duaghter card from a MSI motherboard great sound from it but when I switched to win7 it got all screwed up and havenet used it since I really want to again I just found it and said man I miss the crisp sound from this card.
> 
> The card it's self looks almost exactly like the Soudblaster Xfi Xtreme PCI-EXPRESS card just wouthout one of the optical outputs, and mine has a few more capacitors and the pcb is black otherwise the cards are identical



What issues?

Literally, aside from the problems that are inherent to the Vista/OS7 kernel (of which, other audio brands are running into as well), there haven't been any major problems that I'm aware of.  The majority of problems arise with hardware and software conflicts.



*hv43082* - purchasing a different audio card will not 100% guarantee to address the issue.  It sounds like some form of hardware conflict going on.  Have you made sure to completely disable your onboard audio?  Make sure it's not only turned off in BIOS, but that you've also disabled the hardware in WIN Device Manager (if it's still present).  If you own newer ATI cards, also make sure their audio devices are disabled, too.  If there's a .cfg or .ini file that is generated by the game at first launch, make a backup of it then delete the original and let the game re-generate it.  Occasionally (depending on the game) you may have to un-install then re-install.  If the game queried WIN during installation or initial launch for your audio hardware, and WIN reported back or showed something different - the game will try to use that instead.  You might not have any sound at all, or you might go _x_ amount of time before it cuts out.  As well, if you have any drivers or software left over, nix it from WIN booted into Safe Mode (DriverSweeper works wonders for this).

As well - make sure you've installed the latest version of OpenAL.  At this point, with Vista/OS7, OAL is a nearly "critical" API to have installed.  Many games make use of it for conversing with WIN properly (as WIN's APIs are a little gestapo), even if they make use of their own audio implimentation (instead of OAL/EAX).  Also, if there are any patches available for a title, make sure to stay updated.  It's not unusual for a fault to actually be with the game itself instead of with your audio hardware/drivers (as much a many people like to make it out that it always is).


----------



## MadBoy89 (Nov 30, 2010)

Hi all.

I have an anoying problem with my I/O panel.

it does not work at all!!!!!

I connected power supply on sound card and on panel.
But i am using normal IDE cable. http://keizercomputerannex.com/store/images/IDE_cable2.jpg 

I am on Win7 64bit.
Using driver : Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi series driver 2.18.0013  .

Can anyone send picture how did he connect with normal IDE cable. 

Since i boght this card used. it had no original cable. 

Thx.

EDIT: PRoblem solved. it was power cable.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Nov 30, 2010)

I stopped using my X-fi Titanium and switched back to my integrated realtek sound from my motherboard and I'm liking it all the same. 

On the plus side my Graphics Card is using all 16x PCIe lanes. It couldn't before when my Xfi in its PCIe slot would force my card into x8.


----------



## johnspack (Dec 2, 2010)

I'm the other way around,  stopped using onboard,  and switched to my titanium.  My cpu usage dropped right away (I use xp64) and sound quality went way up.  It seriously helped my rise of flight sim run better.  On the other hand,  I will never buy creative again,  maybe an asus xonar next time.  This card was a huge pain in the butt,  rma'd it,  ncix couldn't figure it out,  sent it back.  I ended up using you-pax master suite 1.70,  which finally solved my issues.  Jeez.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Dec 2, 2010)

johnspack said:


> I'm the other way around,  stopped using onboard,  and switched to my titanium.  My cpu usage dropped right away (I use xp64) and sound quality went way up.  It seriously helped my rise of flight sim run better.  On the other hand,  I will never buy creative again,  maybe an asus xonar next time.  This card was a huge pain in the butt,  rma'd it,  ncix couldn't figure it out,  sent it back.  I ended up using you-pax master suite 1.70,  which finally solved my issues.  Jeez.



lol I didn't even pay attention to my CPU but now that you mention it. My CPU (with Xfi) used to idle 2-3% now its down to 0% and chrome is open


----------



## johnspack (Dec 2, 2010)

Well,  number one,  do you have soundmax onboard?  Horrible.  Very cpu taxing.  This x-fi is actually better,  pretty bad eh?


----------



## Wile E (Dec 2, 2010)

johnspack said:


> I'm the other way around,  stopped using onboard,  and switched to my titanium.  My cpu usage dropped right away (I use xp64) and sound quality went way up.  It seriously helped my rise of flight sim run better.  On the other hand,  I will never buy creative again,  maybe an asus xonar next time.  This card was a huge pain in the butt,  rma'd it,  ncix couldn't figure it out,  sent it back.  I ended up using you-pax master suite 1.70,  which finally solved my issues.  Jeez.



Asus will not drop cpu usage. And quit using XP x64. It's poorly supported, even by Asus. Most XP x64 drivers are inferior to Vista and Win7 or even 32bit XP.


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## AphexDreamer (Dec 2, 2010)

Its Realtek High Definition Audio. Has pretty much all the same features as my Xfi Titanium did (minus EAX of course), sounds the same too. I suppose if I had better speakers and if the games I played had EAX I would have thought twice about removing it.


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## Wile E (Dec 2, 2010)

AphexDreamer said:


> Its Realtek High Definition Audio. Has pretty much all the same features as my Xfi Titanium did (minus EAX of course), sounds the same too. I suppose if I had better speakers and if the games I played had EAX I would have thought twice about removing it.



You must have _REALLY_ shitty speakers. The Xfi absolutely embarrasses *ALL* on-board solutions. Hell, the old Audigy 2 cards are better than *ALL* on-board solutions.


----------



## johnspack (Dec 2, 2010)

Yep,  I so wish I had the Realtek audio,  much better.  I just tried an experiment,  my cpu usage was at 4% idle,  I fired up winamp,  still 4%.  Still like the audio acceleration I get under xp64 compared to vista or win7.  I have crap headphones,  still sounds better with the x-fi.....


----------



## Wile E (Dec 2, 2010)

johnspack said:


> Yep,  I so wish I had the Realtek audio,  much better.  I just tried an experiment,  my cpu usage was at 4% idle,  I fired up winamp,  still 4%.  Still like the audio acceleration I get under xp64 compared to vista or win7.



Yeah, but you also get more bugs, because you are using an outdated, and overlooked OS. Seriously, most of your problems are likely because of your choice to stick with that OS.


----------



## travva (Dec 2, 2010)

add me to the club. xfi titanium hd using my trusty hd-555's for now! more of a gamer than an audiophile


----------



## johnspack (Dec 2, 2010)

Figured out the issue with the titanium driver,  so no more problems.  Yes,  XP64 takes a bit more brainpower to tweak and get running perfectly,  but the 20-30% fps increase I get in games over win7 is worth it.  The os is mature,  and rock solid,  and miles better than the old and now unsupported xp32.  Shut down unneeded stuff so I could get 0% cpu usage on both cores,  ran an mp3 on winamp,  cores stayed at 0%.  That's real audio acceleration,  which doesn't exist in vista or win7.  Ran a video in winamp, stayed mostly at 0%,  with occasional jumps to 2%.  That's just extra fps for me!


----------



## AphexDreamer (Dec 2, 2010)

Wile E said:


> You must have _REALLY_ shitty speakers. The Xfi absolutely embarrasses *ALL* on-board solutions. Hell, the old Audigy 2 cards are better than *ALL* on-board solutions.



All with the exception of my two front speakers are good (5.1) can't recall the detail of them atm. I played songs back to back and the only thing missing was bass which I could do with out. Really though its the same. I have the ABS FX-7 Virtual 7.1 Surround Sound but since they use USB audio and never my Xfi I again had no need for it. I have it in my closest, if I ever get some good 7.1 headphones to make use of it I'll switch back.


----------



## imperialreign (Dec 24, 2010)

Time to dig out the dredge, lol 



AphexDreamer said:


> I stopped using my X-fi Titanium and switched back to my integrated realtek sound from my motherboard and I'm liking it all the same.
> 
> On the plus side my Graphics Card is using all 16x PCIe lanes. It couldn't before when my Xfi in its PCIe slot would force my card into x8.



Depends on how your motherboard splits the PCIE lanes . . . if some lanes are already being used for onboard features, simply tossing in a PCIEx1 card will force x16 down to x8 as there aren't other lanes available.  This was a big issue with a lot of older NSBs a few years back, before the advent of PCIE2.0.  Sometimes disabling some onboard stuff via BIOS will help, but not always - depends on the board and BIOS.




Wile E said:


> Asus will not drop cpu usage. And quit using XP x64. It's poorly supported, even by Asus. Most XP x64 drivers are inferior to Vista and Win7 or even 32bit XP.



Agreed.  If anything, ASUS' DSPs _add_ to CPU usage.  It's not too much of a problem with the higher bandwidth provided by more modern PCIE setups - but if you're still using a PCI card, expect some issues to crop up somewhere (especially if you're using nVidia graphics).  ASUS' PCIE cards add a ton of latency to the audio stream, too, as they make use of a translator chip . . . it leaves the SYS having to spend more time catering to the demands of the audio hardware, and latency in the audio stream is a bad thing . . .




johnspack said:


> Figured out the issue with the titanium driver,  so no more problems.  Yes,  XP64 takes a bit more brainpower to tweak and get running perfectly,  but the 20-30% fps increase I get in games over win7 is worth it.  The os is mature,  and rock solid,  and miles better than the old and now unsupported xp32.  Shut down unneeded stuff so I could get 0% cpu usage on both cores,  ran an mp3 on winamp,  cores stayed at 0%.  That's real audio acceleration,  which doesn't exist in vista or win7.  Ran a video in winamp, stayed mostly at 0%,  with occasional jumps to 2%.  That's just extra fps for me!




It's possible to obtain 0% CPU usage of the audio system on Vista/OS7 - with a native PCIE card.  Only Creative and Auzen offer these ATM.  The biggest caveat of Vista/OS7, though, is lack of DirectSound support, which means software cannot directly make use of your hardware (no hardware acceleration).  Instead, everything is passed through a translation layer between the software and your drivers via the OS kernel.  Using OpenAL API can get around some of the headaches involved with this process, but it still adds some latency to the whole deal . . . and WIN doesn't always handle hardware tasking properly.  unlike with XP, your audio driver software and the OS don't always work in symbiosis, and changes made via the audio software won't always affect the hardware settings in WIN's control panels - conversely, if WIN gets too "confused" it has a bad knack for chaning your audio hardware settings without making the changes to your driver software, which can lead to conflicting problems that crop up with certain types of playback (DVD, gaming, etc.).  The only hardware that doesn't have this problem is onboard, and simply because of how WIN can allow for interfacing compared to discrete cards.

IMHO, there have been more audio related issues since Vista and OS7 than there ever were with XP.  Problem being is that XP is very near EOL, and MS is slowly dropping all support of the OS . . . which means we all will simply have to learn to cope with the problems of Vista and OS7, or find work-arounds for it's quirks . . . or go back to on-board audio solutions (which many of us are simply not willing to do).  Hopefully in the future, MS might see the err of their ways and re-instate DS . . . but, doubtful.


. . . and for anyone not aware of how piss-poor on-board audio quality is compared to a dedicated card: http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=64921


----------



## Wile E (Dec 25, 2010)

Holy shit. Imperialreign is still alive. I thought you died or went to prison or some shit. lol.

Merry Christmas buddy. How's it going?


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## imperialreign (Dec 25, 2010)

Wile E said:


> Holy shit. Imperialreign is still alive. I thought you died or went to prison or some shit. lol.
> 
> Merry Christmas buddy. How's it going?



Merry Christmas, man. 


I've been around, mostly lurking . . . the last few times I started posting regularly, it resulted in some heated threads.  IDK, just kinda grew tired of a certain level of fasicsm that occasionally exists around here 

Otherwise, been alright - working too damn much.  Got some down time, though - laid up from some surgery earlier this week, and going a little stir-crazy being stuck 'round the house


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## TK-101 (Dec 27, 2010)

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/oct04/articles/pcnotes.htm

Has anyone come across this in their web-crawling?


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## imperialreign (Dec 27, 2010)

TK-101 said:


> http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/oct04/articles/pcnotes.htm
> 
> Has anyone come across this in their web-crawling?



The application recommended in that article?  No.  Can't say I've seen that program before . . . but, the use of adjusting PCI Latency to cure audio clipping?  Yes, that's been a known fix since audio cards first moved from ISA slots to PCI back in '96.  The problem wasn't too bad with most consumer level cards, and adjusting PCI latency as a fix practically fell to the way-side for a few years.  Around 2004 when the X-Fi was released, though, it came back with a vegenance as the APUs are extremelly BUS heavy.  It was even more of a problem depending on how many other devices you were using, what kind of motherboard you had, and what kind of video card you were using.

I'll look into that app - it might be worthy of recommendation for users with latency problems that have no means to adjust clock times via BIOS.


----------



## Swamp Monster (Dec 27, 2010)

Add me please to the club, I have X-FI platinum PCI + Sennheiser HD 280 pro, for 3-4 years already and not going to onboard ever again.


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## TK-101 (Dec 27, 2010)

imperialreign said:


> The application recommended in that article?  No.  Can't say I've seen that program before . . . but, the use of adjusting PCI Latency to cure audio clipping?  Yes, that's been a known fix since audio cards first moved from ISA slots to PCI back in '96.  The problem wasn't too bad with most consumer level cards, and adjusting PCI latency as a fix practically fell to the way-side for a few years.  Around 2004 when the X-Fi was released, though, it came back with a vegenance as the APUs are extremelly BUS heavy.  It was even more of a problem depending on how many other devices you were using, what kind of motherboard you had, and what kind of video card you were using.
> 
> I'll look into that app - it might be worthy of recommendation for users with latency problems that have no means to adjust clock times via BIOS.



This app appears to work under XP, nosomuch Windows 7.

On my machine, I can affect how bad the clipping is by how many PCI-E video cards I have installed.

I run three 4850's typically, and I was using the default Windows 7 drivers with this X-Fi Fatality.

Once I realized I was not getting sound out of my surround speakers, I installed the Creative Auto-Updater to get the entire suite of software.

Since thing, _everything_ skips and clips and chops.

Nothing I do, short of removing two video cards, affects the clipping any.

I have forced my PCI latency to 32 and 248, and everything in between.
Not sure what else I could attempt, besides overclocking the PCI bus.


----------



## Cratzky (Dec 27, 2010)

Anyone know why the MIC input on my X-Fi Xtreme Gamer does not work ? Additional information about my system in the system specs to the left


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## Swamp Monster (Dec 27, 2010)

Maybe you have flexijack selected to digital I/O rather than MiC, in Creative Audio Control Panel


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## Cratzky (Dec 27, 2010)

Swamp Monster said:


> Maybe you have flexijack selected to digital I/O rather than MiC, in Creative Audio Control Panel



What?could you provide a picture?


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## majestic12 (Dec 28, 2010)

Cratzky said:


> What?could you provide a picture?


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## Swamp Monster (Dec 28, 2010)

Yes, that is what I was talking about, thanks Majestic12. You are getting up earlier than me obviously


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## majestic12 (Dec 29, 2010)

^Different time zones!


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## Cratzky (Dec 29, 2010)

Swamp Monster said:


> Yes, that is what I was talking about, thanks Majestic12. You are getting up earlier than me obviously



I dont have flexijack


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## majestic12 (Dec 29, 2010)

If your soundcard is an Xtreme gamer, you've got a flexijack.  Change the settings in the creative control panel for each mode (entertainment, gaming, audio creation) and you should be fine.


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## Cratzky (Dec 29, 2010)

majestic12 said:


> If your soundcard is an Xtreme gamer, you've got a flexijack.  Change the settings in the creative control panel for each mode (entertainment, gaming, audio creation) and you should be fine.
> http://img.techpowerup.org/101229/x-fi xtremegamerflexi.jpg


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## Swamp Monster (Dec 29, 2010)

Cratzky said:


> Originally Posted by majestic12
> If your soundcard is an Xtreme gamer, you've got a flexijack. Change the settings in the creative control panel for each mode (entertainment, gaming, audio creation) and you should be fine.
> http://img.techpowerup.org/101229/x-...gamerflexi.jpg



Sorry, kinda noticed that Flexijack setting isn't showing in console mode for me too, but it shows on audio control panel. I guess it depends on ,hmm- something


----------



## Cratzky (Dec 29, 2010)

Swamp Monster said:


> Sorry, kinda noticed that Flexijack setting isn't showing in console mode for me too, but it shows on audio control panel. I guess it depends on ,hmm- something



Its not showing for me in audio panel either , it says the same there: unkown


----------



## MT Alex (Dec 29, 2010)

You could plug your font panel i/o cable into the sound card and use your mic that way.

EDIT:  Also check the SPDIF I/O tab in the Audio Control Panel, and see what your SPDIF Input Settings says.


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## Cratzky (Dec 29, 2010)

MT Alex said:


> You could plug your font panel i/o cable into the sound card and use your mic that way.
> 
> EDIT:  Also check the SPDIF I/O tab in the Audio Control Panel, and see what your SPDIF Input Settings says.



I already tried that, it didnt work, i already said that the control panel says the same same thing as the console


----------



## Swamp Monster (Dec 29, 2010)

I am out of ideas right now, except for plugging in/out/in mic then restarting PC, looking for changes in console, and if nothing works- reinstalling drivers, while mic is plugged in.


----------



## AsRock (Feb 2, 2011)

Mic issue here too using  X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional.  I know the mic works and it let me record but will not allow me to use it in programs like Teamspeak\Vent.

Any idea's ?, o BTW this is under XP X-64. Will try Vista ( seeing people with same issue's in that too ) later but wanted to see if i could get it working in XP x64 as it uses HW sound.

Seems like the same issue. All though i can record my self but not get it to work in Teamspeak\Vent.


----------



## Wile E (Feb 4, 2011)

Did you make sure to set it as your primary recording device in windows?

And, to be safe, in the options for TS and Vent, specifically select the mic from the options in the programs themselves, not leave it at default.


----------



## AsRock (Feb 4, 2011)

Wile E said:


> Did you make sure to set it as your primary recording device in windows?
> 
> And, to be safe, in the options for TS and Vent, specifically select the mic from the options in the programs themselves, not leave it at default.



Yes and yes,  The mic worked but had no way to disable the line in ( muting it did not work ) and it would just continually keep a active mic.

What solved it was to use drivers from MS for Vista as for XP i stopped bothering as what ever you did the flixijack  options would not show up.

Were as in Vista they show up in Creative Audio Control Panel and Creative Console Launcher.  Then used the updater and no issue's so far.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Apr 2, 2011)

Ok I don't know if you guys remember but I had gotten rid of my X-Fi Titanium card cause I had crappy speakers and didn't really have a need for it.

Well I just spent some hard earned cash on the TB PX5 and since my on board sound cards optical wasn't doing the trick I decided to put my X-Fi back in.

I'd like to mention the Headset's Input accepts Dolby 5.1/7.1 or can just up mix stereo or just play stereo all when it has a Digital input 

So the first time through I hadn't uninstalled the creative drivers from before and the headset would just play everything in Stereo. I tired to enable the Dolby 5.1 encoder but Creative Control panel would just crash. 

So I uninstalled everything and reinstalled everything creative related and boom the software wouldn't crash. I enabled the Dolby 5.1 Encoder (which btw can I get 7.1?) and the headphones input switched to Dolby mode and everything sounds great except for the fact I now hear lots of Crackling/poping noises with audio cut outs specifically in game. 

I know X-fi cards have had this issue this is just my first time experiencing it from them. Also disabling the Dolby encoder and switching the headphones to expanded stereo or standard stereo and I receive no audio whatsoever from my X-fi. (Unlike the first time in which I could at least hear stereo)

I tried disabling onbaord as suggested here. http://www.evga.com/forumsarchive/printable.asp?m=100511683

That actually seemed to make things worse cause now the audio cuts out. 

Any creative experts here know whats wrong? Could it be my bran new headset? 

Thanks.

I also tried Entertainment mode and then switching back to gaming mode and both did not work. I actually hear some crackle at the Desktop now.

EDIT:

Well I figured out how to get PL IIX (expanded stereo) and regular Stereo Working. I just had to switch from Creative Speakers to SPDIF OUT. 

Lowering bit rate just reduces the frequency and severity of the crackles but they still exist.
Nope no matter what the bit rate same crap. 

Sent creative an email.


----------



## Brandenburg (Apr 2, 2011)

sub'd


----------



## AphexDreamer (Apr 2, 2011)

I think alchemy kind of fixed it.

BF2 was ok for the most part, after getting alchemy to work in my Source Mod. I barely got crackling. 

I mean audio cut out like once but that was it.

IDK. Got a lot to figure out.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Apr 2, 2011)

Ok now my Windows Volume bar won't change the volume!

Moving it up down, or muting it has no effect on the sound. The sound is at one volume and I can't change it.

What is going on here?

Ok so If I mute the SPDIf OUT it mutes but changing either slider results in no effect on the volume.


----------



## erixx (Apr 2, 2011)

wrong device? maybe you installed nvidia/amd drivers that include HDMI sound? aaaahahahahahahha!!!!


----------



## AphexDreamer (Apr 2, 2011)

erixx said:


> wrong device? maybe you installed nvidia/amd drivers that include HDMI sound? aaaahahahahahahha!!!!



No this is so werid.

Volume works when I Disable Dolby Encoding in Creative Control Panel and set the SPDIF OUT as the default. Thats when volume works.

When I have Dolby Enocoding on. Windows volume just doesn't work. But I can mute the sound if I mute the SPDIF OUT.

I'm so confused, it was working, till I switched to SPDIF out and now windows and I are both confused.


----------



## Mussels (Apr 3, 2011)

its because you're running digital, probably via some kind of SPDIF passthrough. when that happens you get no volume control as it bypasses windows completely - its all about the speakers/receiver then.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Apr 3, 2011)

Mussels said:


> its because you're running digital, probably via some kind of SPDIF passthrough. when that happens you get no volume control as it bypasses windows completely - its all about the speakers/receiver then.



But I had volume control, till I switched to SPDIF OUT to test something out. After that Volume only works via that when its set to default but then I lose my Dobly 5.1. 

I also had my Speakers plugged in but I don't know if that changed anything cause I unplugged them and problem persists. 

Other explanations are welcomed as I try to remedy this.

Heck mute doesn't even work for speakers and its set to default. I've never encountered this.

Also.

http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1484094

You can adjust the volume using digital out if your soundcard is encoding the 5.1 with DTS, DD...
So if playing a DVD/Blu Ray with "pass through" digital audio, there is no processing of the audio in the PC and you will not be able to adjust the sound level.
However, if you use your PC to decode the 5.1 audio (ie dont use "pass through") and then use the soundcard to encode 5.1 for digital out (DTS, DD etc) or play analogue, you will be able to adjust the volume while playing 5.1.

I must decipher this.

I was able to do this now its not letting me...


----------



## AphexDreamer (Apr 4, 2011)

Ok Right now I'd just really like to fix the random crackling and audio issues I am having. 

At first installing ALchemy seemed to have fixed it, but now its back and it happens with any sound/audio that play on my PC. 

I never had this issue with it before, but before I wasn't using the Optical out. So that might be it.

I reinstalled drivers and reseated the card. 

Short of replacing it i'm not sure what to do.

Also on board Audio is disabled and I don't have an Nvidia Chipset.


----------



## Mussels (Apr 4, 2011)

audio crackling on x-fi's is usually due to overheating. glue on a heatsink or get a fan blowing on it.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Apr 4, 2011)

Mussels said:


> audio crackling on x-fi's is usually due to overheating. glue on a heatsink or get a fan blowing on it.



Thanks for that tip, but it actually has two fans blowing right on it. 

Also it happens right at boot up with the computer off for a long time. right at the start the intro windows song just stutters and cuts in and out with static.


----------



## Mussels (Apr 4, 2011)

AphexDreamer said:


> Thanks for that tip.
> 
> But it happens right at boot up with the computer off for a long time. right at the start the intro windows song just stutters and cuts in and out with static.



oooh, that sounds fun. i had that with my auzen when it was on beta drivers, but havent had it in months now. used to do it coming out of sleep as well.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Apr 4, 2011)

Mussels said:


> oooh, that sounds fun. i had that with my auzen when it was on beta drivers, but havent had it in months now. used to do it coming out of sleep as well.



So a driver issue perhaps. 

I'm not sure if I should just reinstall the latest Creative or go with the latest Custom. 

Perhaps I'll try both...

OMG THIS IS SO ANNOYING! EVERY SOUND THAT PLAYS JUST SOUNDS AWFUL!

Sorry I need rant. This is starting to get on my nerves. I went from shitty Onbaord/Heaphones, paid good money for good quality stuff and now this shit.

COME ON!

Well I completely removed drivers using Driver Sweeper in safe mode and CC leaner and then reinstalled them and still have the issue.

Tomorrow I'm going to clean the card super clean, reseat it and see what I can do to cool it down.

Goodnight TPU.


----------



## AphexDreamer (Apr 6, 2011)

Figured out my problem at last.

Since I bought the PX5 which is wireless and had my Wireless router right next to it heavy wireless internet use would cause an interfernce with the PX5. 

I have now moved my PX5 Wirless Amplifier to the left of my desk and further moved my Wireless router to the right. 

No more issues


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## Brandenburg (Apr 6, 2011)

kool


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## Wile E (Apr 6, 2011)

AphexDreamer said:


> Figured out my problem at last.
> 
> Since I bought the PX5 which is wireless and had my Wireless router right next to it heavy wireless internet use would cause an interfernce with the PX5.
> 
> ...



lol. Funny when it's something so simple.


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## AphexDreamer (Apr 7, 2011)

Wile E said:


> lol. Funny when it's something so simple.



Yup I'm just glad its fixed


----------



## windbag (Apr 7, 2011)

*X-Fi Elite Pro recognised then lost on reboot.*

I have an X-Fi Elite Pro with an ongoing problem, installed on an Asus P5N-E SLI mobo/Intel Core Duo 6700 processor (2.66 GHz) running Vista Business with all current updates.

The X-Fi was working fine since new (Sept 2006) until November 2010 when I had a big set of computer problems (RAID arrays died, USB board went down, X-Fi became unrecognised).
Most problems were down to SATA cables and Power Supply.  All now replaced & most issues rectified.
But I had concluded the X-Fi had somehow died.

Since all else was OK, I had one last try at putting back the X-Fi card back in.
It was unrecognised, but I had uninstalled all Creative software during the big fix.
So, I ran "Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi series driver 2.18.0013-SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_18_0013.exe", that I had downloaded from the Creative site in Feb 2011.

It recognised the X-Fi  as a soundcard, and showed up properly in Device Manager! 
Then spent ages downloading the full 245 MB installation suite, and installed (most?) of the suite, but didn't seem to finish properly.  
It just stopped after one install - no reboot notice etc.  Another issue called for a reboot, so I did that shortly after.

Vista then said the card was "unrecognised" and had been relegated back to a "Multimedia Controller". 
And the items connected to the extra USB board in the slot below the X-Fi stopped working (like before).
I tried doing a "Creative Software Autoupdate", but that did nothing, as it kept saying it "found no supported products".  But the above .exe had recognised it only an hour or so earlier!

One thing I *did* do was re-connect the break-out box after reboot (to see if I could actually hear a Youtube vid I was trying to play).  Bit hazy as to whether that was before it was "unrecognised" or not during bootup.

I've taken the X-Fi card back out to get my USB stuff back.

There MUST be some life in the X-Fi, else the above .exe wouldn't have seen it.  

Any ideas what I should try?


----------



## windbag (Apr 15, 2011)

Does no-one have any ideas?


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## Mussels (Apr 16, 2011)

its probably just a dead card. i wouldnt waste my time with it.


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## windbag (Apr 16, 2011)

Mussels said:


> its probably just a dead card. i wouldnt waste my time with it.



So why was it recognised when I ran "Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi series driver 2.18.0013-SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_18_0013.exe" ?


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## Mussels (Apr 16, 2011)

windbag said:


> So why was it recognised when I ran "Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi series driver 2.18.0013-SBXF_PCDRV_LB_2_18_0013.exe" ?



perhaps i should have said 'faulty' or 'bad' instead of 'dead' which implies total non functionality.


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## imperialreign (May 5, 2011)

Thanks for keeping up with this thread, guys!  y'all are sooooo teh awesum!1!





windbag said:


> Does no-one have any ideas?



As Mussels mentioned, it's very possible the card has failed - usually having something powerful enough to take down your PSU and SATA cables doesn't bode well for other hardware . . . 

BUT, it's quite possible the OS is simply borked, or there's a conflict that's not being shown.

Remove the card, then reboot and run driver sweeper - clear out all Creative drivers and software without the card being installed.  Make sure, too, that onboard audio is disabled, and that you've disabled any other audio hardware within WIN Hardware Manager (i.e. if you're running newer ATI cards, disable their audio output), and remove any associated drivers and software that may be installed.

Once that's done, re-boot to make sure everything has been cleaned, and that WIN isn't trying to recognize any newly "found hardware." Once that's a go, turn off, install the X-Fi and boot up.  From there, install the drivers and software that are on the X-Fi installation disk first, if everything works, go ahead with the updated drivers.

Some of the updated drivers build off of older ones it seems - I've had instances where the only driver pack that works correctly is off the disk, too.

Also - *DO NOT* let WIN detect and install updated drivers for the X-Fi, for some reason those kill functionality.  I'm not sure if WIN Update simply isn't detecting the right hardware or what, but it rarely if ever works correctly.  Creative's AutoUpdate tends to be sketchy, too, and will sometimes try and grab drivers that aren't compatible with hardware you're running.  Grab the updated drivers manually from Creative's site.

Good luck!  



===============================

Regarding everything else . . . *Mussels* - nice audio thread you've started!  Some good info there, too.  If I could make the recommendation, you might also want to give some thought to linking the guide thread I started as well into your post.  Especially the debate of expansion card vs. onboard, there are tangible "viewable" results of the differences clearly displayed.

As to my abscence - RL has been crazy the last few months.  Broke up with my gf of 8 years, so I'm sure you all know how that goes . . . especially when you've got a potential interest around too  

Been slam busy with mods for STALKER (somet things never change, eh?), and have become "enlisted" in helping with a few high-profile mods for the series . . . a lot of free time has been devouted to that work.

Everything else just falls into the realm of BS . . . y'know, work, work, work . . .

I ain't dead yet, though - I'll still be around


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## Mussels (May 5, 2011)

imperialreign: PM me the information (formatted as you want it), and i'll look it over and add it into the stickied thread.


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## windbag (May 5, 2011)

imperialreign said:


> ...it's quite possible the OS is simply borked, or there's a conflict that's not being shown.
> Remove the card, then reboot and run driver sweeper....



Thanks for picking this up with a positive suggestion, imperialreign.

I hadn't heard of drive sweeper, but my searches to download/use it have run into problems, with Guru's home pages not having links to it any more, others disowning new versions with ads etc - I didn't come up with a link to a Vista 32 bit version that anyone would let me have.

If you know a link, please point me at it & I'll have a bash at what you say, as it sounds like it MIGHT be a possible explanation for what I observed before - and it's worth a go, as X-Fi Elite Pro's ain't cheap!


----------



## imperialreign (May 6, 2011)

Mussels said:


> imperialreign: PM me the information (formatted as you want it), and i'll look it over and add it into the stickied thread.



Will do this weekend as time permits.

Regarding the 24-bit debate, I entirelly agree with that article . . . to an extent.  The consumer can easily have use for 24-bit audio - *if* they're ripping it straight from a CD or DVD-A . . . it will sound it's best in an uncompressed, raw format.  Compressed audio completely negates the broader range that 24b is capable of, for numerous reasons.  But, most consumers don't rip their audio in a raw format, and the amount of space a single disk would take up is hefty . . . 

But, I completely agree with the notion that 24b is going to turn into a major con - the whole audio industry is moving towards a massive con as it is, everything from the audio we purchase, to the hardware we run it with.

The Loudness War is destroying the quality of the musicians recordings, and it's fueling spec wars (specifically SNR) with the hardware manufacturers.  Sure, having a higher SNR is great and all, but past 115db the average consumer won't notice the difference unless they're pushing some semi-professional or extreme high-end playback equipment. We've seen Creative and ASUS starting to go full-steam with this conflict, where it seems the only real updates to their audio cards are the SNR ratings (via replacing the DAC).  ASUS has taken it a step further by using a specific DAC for the LF/RF channel output, and different ones for the remaining channels.  

With the labels and distributors now pushing compressed audio left and right, and consumers demanding higher quality mp3s - I've about come to the conclusion that they're still compressing these files available online in a lower bitrate, then bumping them up to "320 kbps" just to "make the sale."  

IDK - I guess it really boils down to what kind of music you specifically listen to.  Everything mainstream and pop has started to sound like utter shite over the last few years due to these practices.  Most underground labels haven't fallen prey to this BS yet, but it depends on who's doing the mixing.  Electronic acts, though, seem to be heavily against the Loudness War, and are one of the few remaining musical genres where audio still has a broad range cause it hasn't been boosted to hell and tarnation.

Buyer beware, right?

Of note - there's a small push being started in the industry to start moving recording to 32-bit.  The hardware is starting to make itself available . . . it'd give the recording industry a little more room with their insane loudness levels, but I don't think it's going to take off too soon yet . . . we'll see . . .




windbag said:


> Thanks for picking this up with a positive suggestion, imperialreign.
> 
> I hadn't heard of drive sweeper, but my searches to download/use it have run into problems, with Guru's home pages not having links to it any more, others disowning new versions with ads etc - I didn't come up with a link to a Vista 32 bit version that anyone would let me have.
> 
> If you know a link, please point me at it & I'll have a bash at what you say, as it sounds like it MIGHT be a possible explanation for what I observed before - and it's worth a go, as X-Fi Elite Pro's ain't cheap!



Try this one: http://download.cnet.com/Driver-Sweeper/3000-2094_4-75219868.html 

If need be, I'll get the latest version and upload it to my SkyDrive for ya.

Once you do have the app - when you run it, boot into WIN Safe Mode to run it.  There are some files and drivers that can't be removed when WIN is running normally.


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## windbag (May 6, 2011)

*Recognised by Vista but not by Creative!*

Thanks, imperialreign, that link worked & I downloaded drive sweeper V3 OK.

Then it was interesting. There was one Registry entry item Driver sweep couldn't clear out - and on manual inspection it wasn't there.
What was sad were the hundreds of Creative entries still in the registry after uninstallation and driver cleaning - and only a few "kosher" ones for an MP3 player.  Loads and loads of shared files areas, sharedDLLs, even driver Desc entries with "Creative X-Fi Audio Processor (WDM)" as their data, one saying the driver was version 6.0.1.1.1575 - when it had just been cleaned out.  Is Creative noted for leaving so many broken registry items after uninstallations?

So, nothing like installing for the first time.  

Anyway, I disabled the onboard Sound, reinstalled the card and, lo, the entry 
"Creative X-Fi Audio Processor (WDM)" was there in Device Manager.  Is that the right entry for an X-Fi Elite Pro?
Windows didn't try to install drivers , though, which I thought was odd.
Then the installation CD said it couldn't find a product to install to.  
Eh?  Vista can.

I aborted the registration thing, then the Software Autoupdate said it couldn't find any Creative product, either.

So, there it sits, showing in Vista Device manager, not being picked up by the original installation discs of the AutoUpdate process.

Any ideas what next?


----------



## imperialreign (May 7, 2011)

windbag said:


> Thanks, imperialreign, that link worked & I downloaded drive sweeper V3 OK.
> 
> Then it was interesting. There was one Registry entry item Driver sweep couldn't clear out - and on manual inspection it wasn't there.
> What was sad were the hundreds of Creative entries still in the registry after uninstallation and driver cleaning - and only a few "kosher" ones for an MP3 player.  Loads and loads of shared files areas, sharedDLLs, even driver Desc entries with "Creative X-Fi Audio Processor (WDM)" as their data, one saying the driver was version 6.0.1.1.1575 - when it had just been cleaned out.  Is Creative noted for leaving so many broken registry items after uninstallations?



Most manufacturer's are actually really bad about their installation packages not cleaning up old traces - the video manufacturer's are notorious for it as well.  WIN is also bad about not cleaning itself up, either.  Come to think of it, you might want to try running a reputable registry cleaner to remove anything DS might have missed.  Just make sure to make a system backup/restore point, and back up the registry first - just incase something gets borked.




> So, nothing like installing for the first time.
> 
> Anyway, I disabled the onboard Sound, reinstalled the card and, lo, the entry
> "Creative X-Fi Audio Processor (WDM)" was there in Device Manager.  Is that the right entry for an X-Fi Elite Pro?
> ...



If after cleaning everything up and removing all drivers/software - once you put the card back in, if WIN is actually recognizing it as a "Creative X-Fi" in Device Manager; something didn't get cleaned right . . . more than likely WIN still has it's drivers stashed away somewhere that weren't cleaned - it sees the hardware ID matches the driver, so it goes ahead and applies the driver to the hardware (which is why it doesn't pop up with the window "new hardware found").

If you can move the card to a different slot: try the process again - open WIN's control panel and remove all Creative software and drivers, turn off, remove the card, boot into safe mode, run Driver Sweeper, yadda yadda . . .

BUT, when you re-install the card, install it into a different slot.  This will force WIN to assign a new IRQ to the device, and a different DMA path.

The way it's starting to look, though, you might have to re-install WIN to attempt to clean up the problem.  It's starting to sounds like something within the OS kernel is borked.  If you do re-install win, after first boot, install the drivers for the chipset, then install the drivers for the audio device before installing drivers for any other hardware. WIN doesn't assign a "permanent" IRQ to a device until drivers have been installed for the first time, and the X-Fi's work best with higher priority IRQs.


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## AphexDreamer (Jun 7, 2011)

Guys does anyone know how I can use Dolby Pro Logic IIx?

Or get 7.1 channels off my X fi Titanium?

Currently I'm using Dolby 5.1 Encoding via Digital Out to my 7.1 capable Wireless Headset but I'm only getting 5.1 and can't enable 7.1 via windows? 

Any way of getting 7.1 channels up and running via digital out?

Also which is better? Dolby Pro Logic IIx or Dolby 5.1?

I think my Xfi Card can't do real time Encoding of Dolby 7.1 via Digital out. 

So I've concluded that I might get this HT | OMEGA CLARO Plus+ 7.1 Channels 24-bit 192KHz ...

I just want to be sure and get some "Ok's" before I buy it. So that will output 7.1 via Digital out, correct?


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## Wile E (Jun 8, 2011)

Dolby 5.1 is better than PLII. PLII is "fake" surround.

And optical and coax digital does not support 7.1 channel output. A new sound card won't do it. You need either HDMI or analog going to your 7.1 device.


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## imperialreign (Jun 8, 2011)

Wile E is right here - but to give you a little broader explanation . . . althougth the Titanium series support 7.1 output, you won't get that through optical or SPDIF; the medium itself doesn't support it.  Optical can *kinda* support 7.1, but not raw formating (not enough bandwidth); only HDMI is capable of that.

Here's where it gets muddy:  to date, the only type of media that directly supports 7.1 right out of the box are Blu-Ray players, and unless you're watching BR on your PC, the audio stream goes through countless hoops to being 7.1.  Your game, movies, or other media will need to be upmixed from their current source number of channels (with 90% of al media, this is standard 2-channel) to 7.1, encoded, set to your reciever, decoded and played back.  So, you're essentially getting 2-channel that has been upmixed and glorified to multi-channel output.  Even 5.1 will have to go through upmixing to 7.1.

Some games support 5.1 (not many, and the majority that do "support" 5.1 aren't natively 5.1 - Call of Duty I'm looking squarely at you :shadedshu  ), and only DVD-media is natively 5.1. so . . .

In regards to the Dolby thing, IIRC the only Dolby encoding that natively supports 7.1 is TrueHD. The rest will leave your hardware to downmix to 5.1, encode and send, and your reciever will end up doing the upmixing back to 7.1 (literally panning and expanding the rear side channels).

Aside from HDMI, the only other way to get proper 7.1 output is multi-jack analog connections - letting your hardware directly control the output . . . but this isn't always a viable option (nor does every audio card support this anymore).

Sorry for any rants - but this all kinda falls into the grey-area specification muddying that I've seen a lot of in the audio industry the last few years; as consumer knowledge remains low, manufacturers are stouting more and more BS cause customers simply don't know any better - misleading them into uninformed purchasing .


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## AphexDreamer (Jun 8, 2011)

I appreciate the information but I was talking about Dolby Pro Logic IIx not Dolby Pro Logic II. 

Dolby® Pro Logic® IIx is an extension of Dolby Pro Logic II matrixing technology that delivers enveloping 6.1 and 7.1 surround sound from both stereo and 5.1 content.

I know sound cards exist that can do that ^^^. So I just wanted to be sure that the sound card I posted would do that via Digital Out.

I know it must be possible unless my TB PX5 Manual is providing me with false information. It states the following. 

1. If the *digital input* source is Dolby Digital 5.1/*7.1* signal , the front DD LED turns on and Dolby Headphone processes the channels to create surround sound in the headset. 

2. If the *digital input* source is Dolby Pro Logic IIx signal , both Dolby LEDs will turn on and Dolby Headphone processes creates surround sound in the headset. 

3. If the Digital input source is stereo, the DPL IIx turns on and expands the stereo. 

Currently I'm doing 1. with 5.1 but want to do either 1. with 7.1 or get 2 working which I think I need new hardware for. 

You guys see where I'm coming from now?


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## Wile E (Jun 9, 2011)

AphexDreamer said:


> I appreciate the information but I was talking about Dolby Pro Logic IIx not Dolby Pro Logic II.
> 
> Dolby® Pro Logic® IIx is an extension of Dolby Pro Logic II matrixing technology that delivers enveloping 6.1 and 7.1 surround sound from both stereo and 5.1 content.
> 
> ...


We understood you just fine, but you seem to be misunderstanding how these things work.

Your headphones are mislabeling things (or just over simplifying), because PLIIx is not a digital signal like dolby digital, it's a processing effect that is done on the decoder itself. Read the entire link you gave. It does not happen at the computer level, it happens at the decoder level, which would be your headphones.

But that doesn't change the facts. No sound cards put out 7.1 channel sound over optical or coax. In fact, no consumer device exists on the market that does 7.1 over spdif. There is not enough bandwidth available in spdif (coax and optical both included) to do 7.1, period. 

HDMI or analog out are your options. The only other way you'll be able to get 7.1 is if there is a usb input option on your headphones, and they handle all decoding.


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## imperialreign (Jun 11, 2011)

^^ Agreed.

Be wary of headphones claiming 7.1 support, man.  I've yet to see any headsets that are true 7.1 (with multiple drivers in each ear piece).  They're all 2-channel that are using some form of positional audio to "simulate" a 7.1 experience.  Usually they come with their own little decoder box, and support one of the Dolby methods to do this, as the platform they're typically targeted at doesn't support positional audio effects.

Really, it's bad marketing - these headsets (typically labeled "gaming") are targeted more-or-less at console gamers than the PC community, where misinformation seems to abound.  

Here's a prime example of what I'm refering to: [URL="http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2132584&postcount=364"]http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2132584&postcount=364[/URL]

If you see anything labeled "matrixing," "expanding," "upmixing," etc. - it ends up meaning that it's a 2-channel setup that's using some IT to give the impression that it supports more channels than it natively does.

But, to get back to your question, the audio cards don't support "native" 7.1 output via optical.  The card will downmix the signal to 5.1 during encoding, and pass along an identifier for the decoder to expand it back to 7.1.

To do what you'd like, as natively as possible without breaking up the output signal - you'd need to run the analog 7.1 cables from the back of the card to a reciever that can run output directly to your headphones.


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## imperialreign (Nov 17, 2011)

Regarding my last statement (see above), I'm going to have to change that tune about the 7.1 headsets:

http://www.razerzone.com/tiamat/en

I'm defi looking forward to this item - hopefully I can convince some friends or relatives for a nice christmas present (as I won't be able to afford them for a while  ), _if_ the unit ships by the end of the year.

I guess only time will tell how they compare to 5.1 headsets.


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## velma41 (Nov 17, 2011)

hi windbag, I use dodownload.net for download creative sound card software. This software very handy.


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## windbag (Nov 17, 2011)

*My "Card not recognised" Saga Still Unresolved*

Since the thread has slipped away from my topic, but is still live, I thought I'd update it with where I am from my first post.

I eventually found it was the main PC power supply that had caused the failures (even though it's nominal power handling was comfortably in spec).  Since swapping it to a new one, no more problems.  But that took me months to work out, moving through all the quick/cheap changes to the more esoteric. 
In June, I started having a go at reinstalling the card, but got all the same old problems, even with the suggestions made here.



Mussels said:


> perhaps i should have said 'faulty' or 'bad' instead of 'dead' which implies total non functionality.



In a last ditch attempt, I paid for a local professional to take my existing card and build it into a new Vista machine.  It worked (works) perfectly.  No errors, fully functional.  So it is NOT a faulty card of any sort.

Accordingly, I started raising the issue with Creative support.  I kept dealing with someone called Arman.  I did a whole load of "runaround" tasks, none of which actually got the issue on any further, part from show that Creative driver upgrade programs are unable to recognise the card in my system as it is.

Then in August, Arman said he had checked the serial number of the card, and accused me of using an OEM version of the card and closed the support ticket.  This really infuriated me, as it was NOT OEM - but with Creative acting as judge and jury, I was somewhat stuck.
I did open another ticket to try and get out of Creative how to identify an OEM card from the serial numbers, which they kept avoiding answering.  I also managed to find my original PC supplier (who had nominally closed, but had retreated to another town), and they sent Creative an email saying it was not OEM (via yet another support ticket ref).

Eventually, in late August, Creative finally responded and admitted they had made a mistake and that it was not OEM - and immediately started to ask me to re-perform the same "runaround" jobs that I had done at the start in July!

I got fed up with this, and asked that the three existing support ticket numbers be merged and escalated to a senior support engineer to make some progress.
They acknowledged escalation request, then at the beginning of September said they wanted to confirm the card didn't install - which I told them it didn't, even though it did/does on a newly-built Vista machine.  I reminded them a week later that I'd not heard anything - it took another 9 days to get a terse reply to "be patient".  

So I waited another *7 weeks*, when I reminded them that I've not actually made any progress on this issue since the end of July.  Since then I have heard nothing - diddly squat. 

I'm thinking of writing to the national PC press on this one, as I am well brassed off.

There is nothing wrong with my card, it works on a new-build Vista machine, so it is a combination of the Creative update-driver procedure and/or their un-installation methodology that is causing the problem, and I don't feel it is unreasonable that Creative support should be able to provide a fix without a rebuild (a solution which is NOT acceptable to me).


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## Wile E (Nov 18, 2011)

imperialreign said:


> Regarding my last statement (see above), I'm going to have to change that tune about the 7.1 headsets:
> 
> http://www.razerzone.com/tiamat/en
> 
> ...



If they are anything like other Razer headphones, they are overpriced, low quality garbage.


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## imperialreign (Nov 18, 2011)

windbag said:


> Since the thread has slipped away from my topic, but is still live, I thought I'd update it with where I am from my first post.
> 
> . . . . . . . . .
> . . . . . . . . .
> ...



Sorry to hear of your troubles, man . . . but what you're describing is exactly one of the reasons I started this thread ages ago.  Creative's support is mental.

Thei un-installation rarely works correctly, also . . . many times I've found the only way to be certain is to boot in safe mode and use Driver Sweeper to clean up the residuals; then use a registry cleaner to clean WIN registry, and manually go through the HDD's folder tress to make sure all folders were nixxxed too.

Which is why I started pushing and heavily recommending properly installing the hardware in a specific fashion - to eliminate the possibilities of something go awry and having to re-install later down the road.

Glad to hear you've gotten your hardware working, but sorry to hear of your adventures in Creative land.





Wile E said:


> If they are anything like other Razer headphones, they are overpriced, low quality garbage.



Probably - the HP-1's were definitely . . . and what kicked me was that they were the only true 5.1 headsets at time of release, and audio quality was actually decent.  It was simply the construction materials were trash.  It felt like constantly fighting to keep the headset from falling apart.  All their other offerings I wouldn't touch even if paid.

I'm curious to hear how true 7.1 headset will sound, and if it offers a major upgrade in terms of both quality and that "edge" gamers like to have, once the headset is configured properly.  At the very least, a true 5.1 headset can prove to be a major tool for a serious gamer . . . in theory 7.1 should allow for even better positional accuracy and determination . . . I guess we'll see.

At the very least, this release might be what kick-starts the industry into developing more.  I'm getting sick of all these rubbish headsets that claim "5.1" or "7.1," even though they're only 2-channel being plumbed by a decoder box with a digital connection with the signal being upmixed by some Dolby standard or another.  multi-channel hints at multiple drivers . . . not two. :shadedshu


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## windbag (Nov 18, 2011)

velma41 said:


> hi windbag, I use dodownload.net for download creative sound card software. This software very handy.



Ha, you were posting this while I was writing my update.  Can't see how this helps - the drivers from Creative are the correct ones - they just won't install as the part of the executable that is supposed to recognise the card doesn't work!


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## imperialreign (Nov 18, 2011)

windbag said:


> Ha, you were posting this while I was writing my update.  Can't see how this helps - the drivers from Creative are the correct ones - they just won't install as the part of the executable that is supposed to recognise the card doesn't work!



There's another way to "hard" install the drivers . . . I'll look into it, as I can't remember how (it's been years since I've had to), but it might help if you run into headaches later on.


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## windbag (Nov 18, 2011)

imperialreign said:


> . . . what you're describing is exactly one of the reasons I started this thread ages ago.  Creative's support is mental.



Indeed.  That's why I came back with the update.  Creative make an awful lot of money out of punters - to then treat them like idiots, try to abandon them on invalid grounds (OEM unit my arse) or just abandon them completely without explanation/response is the mark of a corrupt/inept/incompetent company, and posting my experiences is the only way I can see to move the dot back the other way.



imperialreign said:


> Their un-installation rarely works correctly, also . . . many times I've found the only way to be certain is to boot in safe mode and use Driver Sweeper to clean up the residuals; then use a registry cleaner to clean WIN registry, and manually go through the HDD's folder tress to make sure all folders were nixxxed too.



I have tried Drive Sweeper, but it didn't get me there.  Registry Cleaning is so fraught with dire possibilities that I haven't gone there, except the special utility I was recommended - which also didn't get me there, nor did it eliminate all Creative entries.  But that's Creative Uninstaller's job!!!


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## imperialreign (Nov 18, 2011)

Yeah - from what I've seen over the years, their hardware is the only thing decent they offer . . . everything else isn't worth the bother.  It's a shame, really - Creative didn't used to be like this.

It's a big reason why I try to recommend Auzen's hardware more often now, they make use of the X-Fi APUs, their cards have better audio quality and customer service is much better . . . it's like the best of both worlds.  They just tend to be pricy.


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## windbag (Nov 18, 2011)

imperialreign said:


> There's another way to "hard" install the drivers . . . I'll look into it, as I can't remember how (it's been years since I've had to), but it might help if you run into headaches later on.



Thanks, imperialreign, if you can, that could be helpful.  

Not sure how I can use the latest drivers that are embedded into the faulty executable that won't recognise my card.  Perhaps you can enlighten me if you find how to do the "hard" install - I'll be all ears !


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## imperialreign (Nov 18, 2011)

IIRC, this is the way to go for both installing and uninstalling:

Go to _C:\program files\creative\sound blaster x-fi\program\setup.exe_  (if running x64, use _program files (x86)_)

That's the "back-door" installer.  you can use it to uninstall/install the drivers.  Select the box that reads "overwrite existing" or "delete all shared."  IIRC, this will repair the driver installation with the existing drivers, or remove them entirelly.

It won't handle any of the other software apps that are installed alongside the drivers - just the drivers themselves.  Other apps will have to be un-installed manually via the control panel and such.

I'd still recommend Driver Sweeper afterwards.  Sometimes you have to run DS, then after it's done cleaning, have it go through again.  Occasionally Creative's stuff wants to hold on for dear life.  Make sure to run it in WIN Safe Mode, too (hit F5 during boot time, right after the HDDs are read to get to the WIN boot options menu).


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## windbag (Nov 19, 2011)

Thanks, imperialreign, I'll try that when I next get the personal & PC-time to do it.
Does it matter whether the X-Fi card is in the system or not?  Currently removed as the only way to listen to Youtube is via soundcard on Mobo.


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## windbag (Nov 19, 2011)

*Oh... no I won't*



imperialreign said:


> IIRC, this is the way to go for both installing and uninstalling:
> 
> Go to _C:\program files\creative\sound blaster x-fi\program\setup.exe_  (if running x64, use _program files (x86)_)
> 
> That's the "back-door" installer.



...or rather, I would, but I just checked and the "soundblaster x-fi\" directory is absent under "Creative\"... 

For info, the sub-folders I have there are:
ALCHEMY
AUDIO DEVICE SELECTION UNICODE
AUDIOCS
CONSOLE LAUNCHER
MEDIASOURCE5
PRODUCT REGISTRATION
SBCONTROL
SHARED FILES
SHAREDLL
WAVESTUDIO 7

..there is no setup.exe under any of these (ie not in the the "Creative\" directory at all). 

Under Program files there is also a "Creative Installation Information\" folder with these sub-folders:
CREATIVE_MEDIASOURCE_U
E-CENTER_NET_CONTENT_U
E-CENTER_PLUGIN_MINIDISC_U
MEDIASOURCE_PLAYER_SKINPACK_U

There are setup.exe files in each of these, but they don't look like what you were referring to....


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## DEFEATEST (Nov 25, 2011)

Hey guys, I have a Maximus III Gene motherboard with onboard "xfi" but I cant find through the creative software that comes with it a mode changer of any kind. It's always on entertainment. I have an auzentech prelude in my other PC and the creative console for that has mode changer but not the on board console. Am I nuts? I dont really like gaming in entertainment mode if you know what I mean. Wondering if I should just throw in the Prelude in this machine.  Any ideas?


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## imperialreign (Nov 29, 2011)

windbag said:


> ...or rather, I would, but I just checked and the "soundblaster x-fi\" directory is absent under "Creative\"...
> 
> For info, the sub-folders I have there are:
> ALCHEMY
> ...



Hmmm . . . did you ever install the drivers off the installation CD?  Or did you only use the most recent version available via Creative's site?  If so, I'd recommend fully cleaning all the drivers and software off, running DS in safe mode and all that, then re-installing all drivers and software from the disk, first . . . then update the drivers.  There's some software and utilities that are only available via the disk, as they've never been incorporated into any of the driver packs . . .




DEFEATEST said:


> Hey guys, I have a Maximus III Gene motherboard with onboard "xfi" but I cant find through the creative software that comes with it a mode changer of any kind. It's always on entertainment. I have an auzentech prelude in my other PC and the creative console for that has mode changer but not the on board console. Am I nuts? I dont really like gaming in entertainment mode if you know what I mean. Wondering if I should just throw in the Prelude in this machine.  Any ideas?




Double check the mobo instalation disk - it might be there . . .

If not, you can probably grab the software from creative's site - the software for the Xtreme Gamer PCIE _should_ work, but I can't guarante that.  THe onboard setup is really a hacked-up version of an X-Fi (it's essentially a DSP that's been labeled something it's not, much like the Xtreme Gamer - true X-FI's all have an actual processing unit on them).


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## windbag (Nov 29, 2011)

imperialreign said:


> Hmmm . . . did you ever install the drivers off the installation CD?  Or did you only use the most recent version available via Creative's site?



I could ONLY install from the CD - that's the entire point of my post - it immediately invoked an update via the web, which downloaded an update utility which refused to recognise I had an X-Fi Elite Pro card in the system...  which is the state it was then left in.

So I *think* I've already done what you suggest...


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## Morgoth (Dec 11, 2011)

a long time ago since i posted here but i sold my sound card, stil have an eax some where


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## DEFEATEST (Dec 11, 2011)

Gave up on the onboard, put in my ol' prelude.....what was I thinking anyways???!!!

thanks for your help guys.


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## rpsgc (Dec 19, 2011)

I need your help.

I've encountered a problem today, the likes I've never seen before, and it's baffling to me.

I had to reinstall my drivers today because for the umpteenth time I booted to Windows only to find out (yet again) I had no sound.

But unlike all the other times, this time when I opened Console Launcher to change my settings I noticed I couldn't change the *speaker configuration*.







Why? That has *never* happened to me before and I can't fix it no matter what I do.


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## Mussels (Dec 19, 2011)

might be a button to lock it to the same as the windows settings, look for that.

otherwise, change it in windows?


are you running analogue or digital? any enhancements/DD/DTS encoding enabled?


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## rpsgc (Dec 19, 2011)

Analogue, no DD/DTS or anything of the sort enabled.

There's no button. I know I can change it in Windows but that's an unnecessary hassle. It always worked there's no reason for it to stop now.


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## Mussels (Dec 19, 2011)

rpsgc said:


> Analogue, no DD/DTS or anything of the sort enabled.
> 
> There's no button. I know I can change it in Windows but that's an unnecessary hassle. It always worked there's no reason for it to stop now.



all i can think of is some kind of upmixing faking 5.1 and its locked the setting, or general creative driver bullshit.


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## Prima.Vera (Dec 22, 2011)

Guys, I have am X-fi Titanium. I was looking forever now for a separate volume bay with remote control for it. Do you know where I can find this separate? tnks.


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## rpsgc (Jan 12, 2012)

Just FYI, I've managed to fix my problem.

It turns out that when I installed the PAX drivers/suite it changed a registry key.



> HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Creative Tech\Speaker Selection



I just had to change "NoShow" from 1 to 0.



That was a pretty stupid decision by the PAX creator I might add. There's countless reasons one would want to change the speaker configuration "on-the-fly".


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## Batou1986 (Jan 12, 2012)

rpsgc said:


> Just FYI, I've managed to fix my problem.
> 
> It turns out that when I installed the PAX drivers/suite it changed a registry key.
> 
> ...



Been wondering how to fix this myself more specific reg key and location plz.

Anyone know how to make the console launcher autostart in the tray on creatives latest drivers & CP?

More useful information for xfi/creative owners.


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## rpsgc (Jan 12, 2012)

Batou1986 said:


> Been wondering how to fix this myself more specific reg key and location plz.
> 
> Anyone know how to make the console launcher autostart in the tray on creatives latest drivers & CP?



You mean the Volume Panel? (double click opens Console Launcher)






Download here:
http://www.mediafire.com/file/ger7a0sddzct84f/VolPanel.rar



Extract Console Launcher installer to a folder.
Extract VolPanel folder (from archive) to above folder.
(Re)Install Console Launcher.


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## majestic12 (Jan 13, 2012)

^^I had one of those adapters for my X-fi elite pro a few years ago -while functional, the noise it picked up was unbearable.  

On different note, has anyone here tried out any of the new Creative sound cards yet?  I'm not in the market for one, but would like to read some impressions on how they sound versus the cards in the X-fi lineup.


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## kenkickr (Jan 13, 2012)

majestic12 said:


> On different note, has anyone here tried out any of the new Creative sound cards yet?  I'm not in the market for one, but would like to read some impressions on how they sound versus the cards in the X-fi lineup.



Are you talking about the Recon3D cards?  I myself have been wondering about them and cannot find a review for the PCI-E cards, just the usb one.


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## majestic12 (Jan 13, 2012)

kenkickr said:


> Are you talking about the Recon3D cards?  I myself have been wondering about them and cannot find a review for the PCI-E cards, just the usb one.



Yeah -They (the PCIe ones) don't even show up on Creative's site yet!  It's a really quiet product launch.

(I can see it on the Japanese Creative site -the US one is always slow to change.)


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## Batou1986 (Jan 14, 2012)

And this is why creative is fail.


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## uuuaaaaaa (Nov 1, 2015)

I recently bought a *Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro PCI + Front panel Bay *for a nostalgia build (I actually want to use this machine), but I don't have the CD so I don't have access to all the software. I have tried but I can't find the CD ISO online... Do you guys know where to find this file?

(Sorry about bringing this thread back)


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## Ferrum Master (Nov 1, 2015)

uuuaaaaaa said:


> I recently bought a *Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Fatal1ty Pro PCI + Front panel Bay *for a nostalgia build (I actually want to use this machine), but I don't have the CD so I don't have access to all the software. I have tried but I can't find the CD ISO online... Do you guys know where to find this file?
> 
> (Sorry about bringing this thread back)



Try these http://forums.creative.com/showthread.php?t=735112

Or the official

http://support.creative.com/Products/product_list.aspx?catID=1&CatName=Sound+Blaster#


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## uuuaaaaaa (Nov 1, 2015)

Ferrum Master said:


> Try these http://forums.creative.com/showthread.php?t=735112
> 
> Or the official
> 
> http://support.creative.com/Products/product_list.aspx?catID=1&CatName=Sound+Blaster#



Thank you! I'll check this out later on and will let you guys know how it gone!


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## FreedomEclipse (Nov 1, 2015)

Imperial has been gone for a long long time now. Had Microsoft not killed directsound then he probs still would of been around today


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## Ferrum Master (Nov 2, 2015)

FreedomEclipse said:


> Imperial has been gone for a long long time now. Had Microsoft not killed directsound then he probs still would of been around today



They could buy FMOD and then cook custom dll supporting their hardware... or even they can do it without buying it. They simply just don't wan't it anymore.


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