X-Fi Support Syndicate & Owner's Clubhouse

[btarunr]

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 (http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=57089).

[Cold Storm]

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]

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]

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

http://img.techpowerup.org/080420/hmmm.jpg

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]

are you 100% sure you have the OPAMP oriented correctly on the PCB?

[Cold Storm]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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 (http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=57089). Look out for posts by a user named Solaris17. He has the details with him. :)

[Cold Storm]

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]

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]

Hi,

You will find all DK drivers related info and additional help in this thread (http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=57089). 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]

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]

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]

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 :p

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]

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]

It it just me or do my mp3's sound better on entertainment mode ( same settings with game mode ) ???

[imperialreign]

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]

Hello. May I join? I have an X-Fi in my sig. Check it out.

[btarunr]

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]

Hello. May I join? I have an X-Fi in my sig. Check it out.

done! :toast:

[imperialreign]

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]

http://www.asus.com/999/images/public/asus_above_01.jpg

Say hello to the newest sound-card featuring X-Fi technology, the ASUS SupremeFX X-Fi

http://img.techpowerup.org/080509/bta12.jpg

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]

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]

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.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3102/2480064812_e2ee05d4a0_o.jpg

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

Ask them for a SupremeFX X-Fi :D

[imperialreign]

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 . . . :wtf:

[Cold Storm]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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.

[Black Panther]

I can't believe that I have the xtreme music and I just noticed this thread...
:o
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 :ohwell:

[bassmasta]

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.

[imperialreign]

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 (http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/download.asp?MainCategory=209&nRegionFK=&nCountryFK=&nLanguageFK=&sOSName=Windows+Vista+32-bit&region=1&Product_Name=Sound+Blaster+X-Fi+Fatal1ty&Product_ID=14000&modelnumber=&driverlang=1033&OS=26&drivertype=0&x=34&y=10)

[bassmasta]

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]

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]

thought I'd mention it here as well:

pics of the new X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Titanium Fatal1ty PCIEx1 card:

http://www.fareastgizmos.com/entry_images/0508/16/Creative_FiTFC.jpg

http://www.fareastgizmos.com/entry_images/0508/16/Creative_sb_xfi_Titanium.jpg

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]

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]

All I want to know is, does it have the DSP?

[imperialreign]

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 . . . :ohwell:

[Polaris573]

Give me a hand if you can guys.

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=60434

[EarlZ]

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]

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 ?



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]

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]

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]

http://global.msi.com.tw/images/logo.gif

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


http://img.techpowerup.org/080523/msi_k9a2-platinum_audio.jpg

Existing users of this card (who got it as part of the P7N series boards) can use the latest drivers (http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?func=driverfile&dno=5408&i=0) 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]

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 :wtf:



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]

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:

http://img.techpowerup.org/080526/x-fi_originalRMAA317.jpg


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 (http://audio.rightmark.org/downloads/Sound%20Blaster%20X-Fi%20Testing%20Methodology%20And%20Results%20For%2 0RMAA%20v5.5.pdf) .pdf from Creative:

http://img.techpowerup.org/080526/RMAA432.jpg


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]

ok have posted a thread in general software about this but no joy, maybe this is a better place :rolleyes: , does anyone know where to download the modded xfi drivers for vista from ?

[imperialreign]

ok have posted a thread in general software about this but no joy, maybe this is a better place :rolleyes: , 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]

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]

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]

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]

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 :wtf:

[btarunr]

Nice reading, Imp!

I'll make myself an end-to-end cable and try out myself.

[imperialreign]

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]

alright, done some more testing.

I'll repost the last testing results to make comparison easier:

http://img.techpowerup.org/080526/RMAA432.jpg



and this is after replacing the 4 OPAMPs and removing the 16 Jamicons in the output channels:

http://img.techpowerup.org/080531/RMAA_mod1.jpg


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):

http://img.techpowerup.org/080531/RMAA_mod15.jpg




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]

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]

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]

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]

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 (http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/download.asp?MainCategory=1&nRegionFK=&nCountryFK=&nLanguageFK=&sOSName=Windows+Vista+64-bit&region=1&Product_Name=Sound+Blaster+X-Fi+Fatal1ty&Product_ID=14000&modelnumber=&driverlang=1033&OS=27&drivertype=0&x=9&y=17)

sometimes you gotta poke around with their selection menu, they keep changing stuff; usually it's under Sound Blaster> X-Fi> Fatal1ty series

[dark2099]

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]

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]

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).

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 :laugh:

[Wile E]

So, anyone find a review on the Titanium yet?

[Davidelmo]

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]

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.

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]

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]

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 . . .

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.

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?


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 :p

[Davidelmo]

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]

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 . . .



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?




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 :p

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]

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]

@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:

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:

Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty® Professional Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi
Added Features:
To find out if your audio device supports the following features in Windows XP, click here.
For systems using Windows Vista

Dolby® Digital and DTS® driver decode re-established for sound cards that included decoding in their Windows XP drivers (Not applicable for products that included a 3rd party software DVD player license in the package).
DVD-Audio playback re-established for sound cards that included the application in their Windows XP software suite (For Windows Vista 32-bit only).
Requires the latest Creative MediaSource DVD-Audio Player Beta software. Click here to download.
Fixes:

Resolves issues of intermittent and random application/system crash when playing games or running applications that use EAX®, DirectSound®, OpenAL and/or ASIO features.
Resolves issue of volume mapping leading to very soft volume level in systems using Windows Vista with Service Pack 1.
Resolves issue with distortion and noise occuring in systems with 4 GB of RAM or greater.
Known Issues:

X-Fi CMSS®-3D feature is not available in Windows Vista 64-bit.
Requirements:

Windows Vista 64-bit, Windows Vista 32-bit, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE) 2005 or Window XP MCE 2004
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi audio devices listed above

[eidairaman1]

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]

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]

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.

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]

Here's something to wrap your noggins around... I've got an X-Fi Elite Pro:

http://forums.techpowerup.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=15105&stc=1&d=1212529983

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:

http://forums.techpowerup.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=15106&stc=1&d=1212529983

If i plug the card into my current mobo it simply fails to post :twitch: :cry:

[imperialreign]

hmm - that is rather odd . . . :wtf:

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]

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]

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]

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 :D

Anyone else mod the card?

[trodas]

I did... and still planing more to do :)

[imperialreign]

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 :D

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 :toast:

[eidairaman1]

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 :D

Anyone else mod the card?

Tell us about this modification you did, share the knowledge.

[imperialreign]

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 :ohwell:

[eidairaman1]

Now Only if BlueGears, HT_Omega, and Auzentech would get in gear.

[Apocalypsee]

I did... and still planing more to do :)Ah, trodas, you're here too :D Thanks for all the knowledge on Head-Fi my good friend ;)

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 :toast:Ah I see, cheers :toast:

Tell us about this modification you did, share the knowledge.I will post some picture plus some information on what I did

[FreedomEclipse]

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]

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 :ohwell:

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]

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 :ohwell:

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]

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]

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)

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 . . . :confused:

[MrHydes]

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 :confused:

[imperialreign]

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 :confused:

you could always get it off eBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/Creative-30SB000200003-Soundblaster-Digital-I-O-Module_W0QQitemZ300208716834QQcmdZViewItem

[FreedomEclipse]

I just installed the beta last night, and no issues with it so far . . . :confused:

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]

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.....



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 :confused:

too bad I don't know of anyway to revert the firmware :ohwell:

[FreedomEclipse]

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 :confused:

too bad I don't know of anyway to revert the firmware :ohwell:


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]

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]

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]

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]

Still no Xmod on the front of this thread:(

[DaMulta]

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 :ohwell:

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

Did it help?

[imperialreign]

Still no Xmod on the front of this thread:(

I'm still meaning to do so - I've just been lazy and forgetful :o

[FreedomEclipse]

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

[imperialreign]

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.

[FreedomEclipse]

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

[tigger]

Look at my post here-

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=832271&postcount=125

[MrHydes]

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?

[tigger]

Yes,its selectable on the x-fi.

[MrHydes]

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!

[FreedomEclipse]

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

[tigger]

I'm using it on vista and its fine,if that helps.

[Bluesman]

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??

[FreedomEclipse]

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.

[imperialreign]

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.

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.

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.

[Bluesman]

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. :banghead: 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.

[FreedomEclipse]

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 (http://downloads.guru3d.com/Creative-SoundBlaster-X-FI-2.09.0007-download-1507.html)

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.

[Bluesman]

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.

[Bluesman]

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....

[imperialreign]

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! :p

Drivers on my CD were dated 05 - and I bought my card Jan of last year . . .

[btarunr]

When did all this happen. :eek:

Ok trying to catch up...

[MrHydes]

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...

[eidairaman1]

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.

[btarunr]

http://images.americas.creative.com/images/products/logo17751.png

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.

http://images.americas.creative.com/images/products/large/17751.png

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.

[Nihil]

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

[imperialreign]

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

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

[Nihil]

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 :).

[Nihil]

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???

[imperialreign]

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?

[Nihil]

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 ;)!

[imperialreign]

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 ;)!


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.

[Nihil]

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.

[imperialreign]

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 :o - 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.

Take note of the following:

THIS IS AN UNSUPPORTED BETA APPLICATION. There is no technical support for this application.
We recommend that only experienced users install this application. Do not install this application on a system used to perform critical tasks.
Users who are looking for stable applications should wait for the final release. When this happens, user should install the latest application version available.
This download supports the following devices only:

Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty® Professional Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi
Added Features:


Supports Unicode Standard.
Fixes:
For Windows Vista

Resolves issue with WMA recording not working in Audio Creation Mode.
Resolves issue with application crashes when audio output devices are disabled.
For Windows XP

Resolves issue with loss of sound in the rear output channels when adjusting the Volume Control knob on the application.
Resolves issue with not able to delete user-saved snapshots in Audio Creation Mode.
Resolves issue with application crashes when switching between Modes.
Improves performance of application.
Requirements:

Windows Vista 64-bit, Windows Vista 32-bit, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows Media Center Edition (MCE) 2005.
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi audio devices listed above
Notes:

Do not install the application for Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio.
Before installing the application, download and install the latest web driver for your audio device.
To install the applications
Download the file onto your local hard disk.
Double-click the downloaded file.
Follow the instructions on the screen.


beta application can be downloaded here: http://support.creative.com/downloads/welcome.aspx?nDriverType=13

[tigger]

I'm running the beta one,and the beta driver with no probs.

[Bluesman]

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.

[imperialreign]

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 official sound card of the Championship Gaming Series, the PCI Express Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series leverages the power of the Creative X-Fi processor, optimized for PCI Express to deliver accelerated audio for improved game performance. Hardware-powered 3D positional audio and EAX 5.0 effects provide stunning positional audio realism over headphones and speakers, and Dolby Digital encoding enables one-step single-cable connection to home theater systems.

The world's first native PCI Express hardware accelerated sound card to hit the market, the PCI Express Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series sound card also features:
Creative X-Fi processor specifically designed for high-speed PCI Express slots in modern PCs
X-Fi Crystalizer® technology, which utilizes audio algorithms to intelligently and selectively determine how to restore the highs and lows from sound effects, instruments and vocals and voices that were damaged or diminished during the MP3, AAC, game audio or other compression processes
X-Fi CMSS®-3D technology, to create virtual surround sound through speakers or headphones in games or music. In games, you hear your opponents in their exact location. With music, the sound expands so it completely surrounds you
Dolby Digital support for compelling 5.1 surround sound through a home theater system
Creative ALchemy™ to restore EAX® and surround sound in DirectSound game titles running under Vista
Certified UAA compliance for maximum Windows Vista compatibility
X-RAM dedicated audio memory to boost performance in select games
THX-Certified surround sound for cinematic movie audio playback
PowerDVD software with DTS-ES and Dolby Digital-EX decoding
24-bit audio quality and 109db SNR audio clarity
ASIO recording support with latency as low as one millisecond with minimal CPU load


For more information about the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series sound card, visit soundblaster.com


The cards are retailing between for $149 at newegg.com (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102019), 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 . . .

[tigger]

The standard vanilla one is £119 in the uk from the creative website.

[FreedomEclipse]

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

[tigger]

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.

[Alex Clarke]

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! :)

[FreedomEclipse]

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

[mab1376]

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

[imperialreign]

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

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.

[mab1376]

you think its worth it to upgrade from my XtremeMusic to the Titanium?

[imperialreign]

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.

[Mistral]

...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"

[imperialreign]

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 :confused:)


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]

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. :cool:

[Wile E]

So, has anyone seen a shot of the Titanium naked yet? Should I consider getting one?

[imperialreign]

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]

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/

[MrHydes]

creative suck*s

[Ninkobwi]

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]

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.


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]

only thing about them is their driver support is very low.

[mab1376]

more info on the X=fi player

http://www.engadget.com/2008/06/30/zen-x-fi-more-details-with-a-touch-of-meh/

[btarunr]

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.

http://www.epizenter.net/e107_images/newspost_images/zenxfisp.jpg

[trodas]

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]

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]

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? :)

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]

Thanks to KBD in this post (http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=869828&postcount=5) for providing some images of the x-Fi Titanium sans EMI shield:

http://img.techpowerup.org/080704/DSCN5915.jpg


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:
http://ko-online.com.ua/files/X-Fi-board.jpg



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 :confused::
http://ko-online.com.ua/files/X-Fi-chip.jpg



Digital to Analogue Converter, the same Cirrus Logic CS4382 used on other X-Fi models (except the XA and EP):
http://ko-online.com.ua/files/X-Fi-CS.jpg



Analogue to Digital Converter, the same Wolfson WM8775SEDS used on other X-Fi models (except the XA and EP):
http://ko-online.com.ua/files/X-Fi-WM.jpg



STMicroelectronics 4558C OPAMPs, same used on the X-Fi Fatal1ty card:
http://ko-online.com.ua/files/X-Fi-OpAmps.jpg

[btarunr]

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]

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 :p




-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]

Just a heads-up on new X-Fi development:

http://www.vr-zone.com/articles/Creative_rolls_out_ZEN_X-Fi_Digital_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).

[tigger]

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]

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 (http://uk.europe.creative.com/products/product.asp?category=209&subcategory=669&product=17791)
"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)

[tigger]

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/creative-pci-express-sound-blaster-x-fi-titanium-fatal1ty-professional-series-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]

From here-http://nexus404.com/Blog/2008/06/06/creative-pci-express-sound-blaster-x-fi-titanium-fatal1ty-professional-series-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

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.

[tigger]

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]

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.



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 ENcoding (DDL)


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? :pimp:

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!

[tigger]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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.

[tigger]

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 :p

[imperialreign]

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 :p



It was part-and-partial between MS and Creative, IMO . . . Creative did get a :nutkick: 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]

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

http://img.techpowerup.org/080710/LM4562.jpg



here's the same card, but with AD8599 instead:

http://img.techpowerup.org/080710/AD8599.jpg



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 :toast:


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]

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.
http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/5739/xfije5.jpg
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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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 :toast:

[MiN_SAHC]

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 :toast:

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.

[Ninkobwi]

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

Good find thanks. Supposedly Auzentech will come out with official Prelude-Linux drivers in Q4.

[imperialreign]

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]

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]

New drivers available for Creative Audigy 2 series cards for windows XP/Vista found>Here< (http://downloads.guru3d.com/Creative-Sound-Blaster-Audigy-2.18.0001-download-2002.html)

its the 'Final' drivers so if they are messed up - dont be expecting a fix ;)

[Davidelmo]

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.

[Ninkobwi]

^^ 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]

^^ 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]

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:


Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty® Professional Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi



Added Features:

To find out the Product ID of your audio device and if it supports the following features in Windows XP, click here.

For systems using Windows Vista


Dolby® Digital and DTS® decode re-established for sound cards that included decoding in their Windows XP drivers (Not applicable for products that included a 3rd party software DVD player license in the package).
DVD-Audio playback re-established for sound cards that included the application in their Windows XP software suite (For Windows Vista 32-bit only).
Requires the latest Creative MediaSource DVD-Audio Player software. Click here to download.



Fixes:
Resolves issue of system crash when switching to an unsupported sampling rate in Audio Creation Mode while Dolby Digital Live is enabled.


Requirements:


Windows Vista 64-bit, Windows Vista 32-bit, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE) 2005 or Windows XP MCE 2004
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi audio devices listed above





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:


Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Titanium Fatal1ty® Champion Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Pro
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio Notebook
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Notebook
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Surround 5.1
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Go!
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Play!
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy® 4
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Notebook
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Video Editor
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS SE
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Platinum EX
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Platinum
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2
Creative USB Sound Blaster Audigy 2 NX
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Value
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy Platinum EX
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy Platinum
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy LS
Creative HS-1200 Headset
Creative USB Gaming Headset
Creative USB Speaker


Added Features or Enhancements:

Added support for the following games:


Beyond Good & Evil
City of Heroes
City of Villains
Peter Jackson's King Kong
Rayman Raving Rabbids
Star Wars® Empire at War: Forces of Corruption
The Witcher
Titan Quest: Immortal Throne
Universe at War: Earth Assault
Warhammer®: Mark of Chaos



Fixes:


Enables 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.
Improves 3D audio processing for host-based Sound Blaster audio devices.



Requirements:

Microsoft Windows Vista 64-bit or Windows Vista 32-bit
Creative audio product listed above





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:


Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty® Professional Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi



Added Features:


Supports Unicode Standard.


Fixes:
For Windows Vista


Resolves issue with WMA recording not working in Audio Creation Mode.
Resolves issue with application crashes when audio output devices are disabled.


For Windows XP


Resolves issue with loss of sound in the rear output channels when adjusting the Volume Control knob on the application.
Resolves issue with not able to delete user-saved snapshots in Audio Creation Mode.
Resolves issue with application crashes when switching between Modes.
Improves performance of application.



Requirements:


Windows Vista 64-bit, Windows Vista 32-bit, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows Media Center Edition (MCE) 2005.
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi audio devices listed above






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 :toast:





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:

For BioShock™


Resolves OpenAL issues when you turn on Creative EAX® Audio in the game's Audio Options page.



Requirements:


Microsoft® Windows Vista™ 64-bit, Windows Vista 32-bit, Windows® XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 or Windows XP Media Center Edition 2004
PCI Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Xtreme Audio



Notes:


This pack is only for the Creative Sound Blaster audio device listed above.

[FreedomEclipse]

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]

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]

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 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.

[imperialreign]

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]

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]

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 :toast::toast:

[FreedomEclipse]

Ive just installed them - I dont see a new volume control panel :confused: 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 :P


::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]

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?

http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee193/trodas_cr/X-FiDACDCcouplingcaps.jpg

[Craigleberry]

I can now be a member of this club i just got me a xfi extreme :p

[imperialreign]

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?
. . .

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.


I can now be a member of this club i just got me a xfi extreme :p


added - welcome aboard, man. Which card did you pick up?

[imperialreign]

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:


Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty® Champion Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Professional Audio
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium



This download contains the following driver and application:


Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium audio device driver
Creative Audio Control Panel
Previously known as Audio Console.
Adds support for DTS® Connect (for Windows Vista® only).



Added Features or Enhancements:


Supports Dolby® Digital Live and DTS Connect.
Requires the Dolby Digital Live and DTS Connect software pack. Click here to download.
Improves microphone volume level.



Fixes:
Resolves the following issues:


Changing speaker configuration in Console Launcher causes Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium to stop working.
Unable to install newer version of driver over older version.
Installer detects identical version of driver in system even though driver package contains a newer version.
Unable to launch Get PowerDVD® application.
Low speaker volume in Windows Vista with Service Pack 1.



Requirements:


Microsoft® Windows Vista 64-bit with Service Pack 1 (SP1), Windows Vista 32-bit with SP1, Windows® XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3), Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE) 2005 or Windows XP MCE 2004
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium series audio devices listed above




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]

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 :)

http://c1.neweggimages.com/NeweggImage/productimage/29-102-024-04.jpg

[Lescal]

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... :laugh: 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]

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 . . .

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 :ohwell:


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]

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 :laugh:

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]

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:


Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty® Champion Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Professional Audio
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Professional Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi




Added Features:



Supports Unicode Standard.



Fixes:

For Windows Vista


Resolves issue with WMA recording not working in Audio Creation Mode.
Resolves issue with application crashes when audio output devices are disabled.



For Windows XP


Resolves issue with loss of sound in the rear output channels when adjusting the Volume Control knob on the application.
Resolves issue with not able to delete user-saved snapshots in Audio Creation Mode.
Resolves issue with application crashes when switching between Modes.
Improves performance of application.




Requirements:


Windows Vista 64-bit, Windows Vista 32-bit, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows Media Center Edition (MCE) 2005.
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi audio devices listed above

[FreedomEclipse]

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]

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]

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]

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 (http://support.creative.com/downloads/download.aspx?nDownloadId=10585)), 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]

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....)

[Craigleberry]

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.





added - welcome aboard, man. Which card did you pick up?

PCI Xfi-xtreme music

I couldnt afford to lash out too much :rockout:

[FreedomEclipse]

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

[marsey99]

anybody which services i need to have running on v64 for my xfi to work?

[imperialreign]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

I will try that and keep you updated.

[kenkickr]

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.

[tigger]

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]

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]

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 . . .


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]

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]

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 :wtf:

[kenkickr]

I have a 790FX chipset motherboard. The Asus M3A32-MVP Deluxe.

[imperialreign]

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]

Why is it asking me to login to some guru3d thing when I go to the topic page?

[eidairaman1]

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.
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 . . .




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.

[Craigleberry]

I have hda no issues using my xfi with my 64-bit vista

[eidairaman1]

yet why does your machine say audigy 4?

[imperialreign]

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 . . .


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.




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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! :p

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]

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]

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! :toast:

[kenkickr]

Thanks for the help you have provided so far, and I'll keep you up to date when I get my Xonar.