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CreativeXFi:ANewWorldofSound
ByJeanPierreRoche ,AUGUST18,200511:05AM
1.Introduction
WehavebeenspendinglotsoftimewiththelatestsoundcardfromCreative,calledtheXFi.Whileitlookslikean
ordinaryPCIsoundcard,theinnardsarecompletelynewandimprovedandworthspendingsometimeon.Herewe
giveyouplentyofthestraightdope,basedonourtestsandlivingwithvariouspreproductionversionsforovera
yearnow.Youmightalsowanttoreviewourtwopreviousarticlesonthecardthatwepublishedearlierthis
summer:
Creative'sXFi:ANewAgeinSoundCardPower?
TheRiseToPower
Creative'ssoundcardshaveundergoneconsiderabledevelopment,startingwiththedaysofthefirstSoundBlaster
"PRO"cardin1991,whichoffered8bitsound.ThiswasfollowedbythefamousAWE32andLive!,andthenthe
Audigy,whichhasbeenthestandardforsoundcardsuntilnow.ButXFirepresentsanenormousleapforwardin
termsofpowerandcapabilityforhandlingandprocessingdigitalaudio.Inthetablebelow,theevolutioncanbe
clearlyseenComparePricesonXFiSoundCards!
Soundcard
Typical
RawData
Processor
PathMIPs
MIPs
Sound
?1
BlasterPro
AWE32
67
(EMU8000)
InternalAudio OverallAudioSampleRate&
Channels
EffectsProcessingMIPSvsLive!
No.ofSimultaneous No.of
RealtimeEffects
Transistors
3+
0.0001x
100K
200+
0.2x
500K
16
(toEffects
1x
1
2M
Engine)
64
Audigy
424
1,250+
(toEffects
4x
4
4.6M
(10k2)
Engine)
4096
CreativeX
(toall
10340
30,000+
67x
8
51.1M
Fi
Processing
Elements)
WeshouldstressthefactthatCreative,unlikemostofitscompetitors,hasalwaysincludedatrueaudioprocessoron
itscards,asopposedtosimplyusingacodecandputtingtheprocessingloadontheCPU.Thatapproachaccountsfor
theirsuperiorityingames,whereCreativeavoidshavingtodevotepartoftheavailableprocessingpowertosound,
butitalsocreatesafewproblemsinotherareas.TheprocessorsusedintheLive!andAudigycardsoperatednatively
at48kHz,creatingsomeproblemsat44.1kHzandsimplyrefusingtoprocesshighersamplingfrequenciesatall.
WithXFi,thoseproblemsarebehindus,andoperationisnowpossibleatallusablesamplingfrequencies.
Live!
(10k1)
335
1,000+
2.ANewArchitecture:AudioRing
XFiisnotjustanewcircuitthat'snobigdeal,asnewcircuitsappearregularly.Unliketraditionalsoundprocessing
circuits,whichhaveafixedsequentialarchitecture,XFi'sAudioRingarchitectureallowsprocessingsequencestobe
reconfiguredtosuitthetaskathand.XFihasanaturallymodulararchitecture,witheachmodulecommunicating
viatheAudioRingakindofbusthatacceptsupto4,096audiochannels.
TheAudioRingbusisnotreallycomparabletothatofaprofessionalmixingboard,either,becauseithandles
significantlymorefunctionssuchascommunicationwiththePC'smemoryusingawiderbandwidththanthePCI
interfacecanhandle.
ThenexttableshowsthedistributionofprocessingpoweramongthemainmodulesthatmakeuptheXFicircuit.
We'llcomebacktocertainonesindetail,suchastheSampleRateConverter(SRC),anewtechnologythat,asyou
cansee,takesupthelion'sshareoftheprocessingpower.
XFiRawDataPathMIPs
SRC
7310
Filter
200
Mixer
1210
Tank
440
DSP
1180
Total
10340
Inpractice,usersofanXFicardareofferedthreeconfigurations,correspondingtothethreemaintypesofuse:
Gaming,Entertainment,andCreation.Thetablebelowsumsupthebasiccapabilitiesofeachconfiguration,which
we'lldiscussindetailwhenwelookatdriversandsoftware.
AnotherpointtostressisthattheXFicircuitisnottiedtothePCIbus,soitcanbeusedinequipmentusingthe
USB,FireWire,orPCIExpressinterfaces.Specialversionswillprobablyalsobeemployedinconsumerelectronics
equipment.
3.TheXFiLine
FourXFicardsarebeinglaunchedsimultaneously,tosuittheneedsanddesiresofdifferentusers.TheXFi
XtremeMusiccouldbeconsideredthebasiccard,aimedmainlyatmusiclistening,generalentertainment(DVDand
games),andtheotherbasicusesofasoundcard.It'saPCIcardwithnoparticularextensions.Thedirectly
accessibleconnections(1/8thinchjacksonly)arelimitedtoa"FlexiJack"inputusableasamicrophone,line,or
digitalS/PDIFinputandspeakeroutputs.Thelatter,naturally,are7.1,spreadoverthreejacksasonprevious
Creative7.1cards.Notethatthestereooutput(thefirstoutputjack)isusableasaheadphonejack,unlessyouuse
anonstandardmodel.There'salsoanextensionconnectorforanexternalrackifyouwanttoupgrade.Internally,
there'sanauxiliaryinputusingaMolexconnector,andanotherextensionconnectorforanoptionalinternalrack.
There'salsoaproprietaryextensionconnector,thepurposeofwhichhasyettobedefined.
4.TheXFiLine,Continued
ThenextmodelupistheXFiPlatinum,whichhasallthecharacteristicsofthebasicmodelinfact,thePCIcard
looksidenticalbutaddsaninternalrackthatfitsintoa5"bay.Therackhasaline/micinputwithadjustablelevel
usinga1/4"(6.35mm)jack,alineinput,digitalopticalandcoaxialinputsandoutputs,andaheadphonejackwith
volumeadjustment.MIDIconnectionsusingminiDINconnectorsarealsoprovided,andadaptersforstandardMIDI
connectorsaresuppliedaswell.Aninfraredremotecontrolsallsoundfunctions.Allofthesefeaturesmakethis
modelagoodchoiceforamateurswhowantagoodrangeofconnectionsandeasyaccesstothem.
ThemorespecializedFatal1tyFPSisverysimilartothePlatinum,includingaPCIcardandinternalrack,butisaimed
athardcoregamers.Itadds64MBofinternalmemory(XRAM)toimproveperformanceingamessupportingthis
technology.
Finally,thetopoftheline,theXFiElitePro,comprisesaPCIcardandanexternalrack.Therackisfairlylargeand
canbeinstalledeitherflatorverticallyusingtheprovidedsupport,andobviouslyalsohasaremotecontrol.Thisis
themodelwemainlybasedourteston,andtheonewe'llgointodetailabout,becauseithashigherquality
convertersandthusprovidesthebestaudioperformance.
AremotecontrolcomeswithallmodelsexceptthebasicXtremeMusic.Itcontrolscertainfunctionslikethe
Crystalizer,EAX,CMSS3D,and3DMIDI,andalsoplayingyourfiles,andallowsessentialadjustmentssuchas
volume.OntherackoftheElitePro,youcanadjustthesamefunctionswithrotarycontrols,whichcanbepractical
thereareindicatorlightsshowingtheiroperationtoavoidanyambiguity.
CreativeLabsXFiElitePro
Interface
PCI
Circuitprincipal
CA20K1(XFi)
Max.samplingrate 192kHz
Quantification
24bits
ASIO
24bits/96kHz
Inputs
Card
Mike/line/digitalSP/DIFwithadaptator,Molexline(internal)
Rack
HiZline,mike/line,phono/line,S/PDIFopticalandcoaxial
Outputs
Card
8cinch(7.1),1S/PDIFopticalandcoaxial(jack3.5mm)
Rack
1S/PDIFopticalandcoaxial,1adjustableheadphone
DVDandcinema
Standards
DolbyDigitalEX,DTSES,S/PDIFoutput
Configuration
Upto7.1
DVDAudio
Yes
3Dgamesound
Standards
DS3D,A3D,OpenAL,EAX5.0
Configuration
2to7.1
MIDI
SoftwaresynthesizerCreativeSoundFounts24bits
I/O
PrisesStandard(DIN)
5.InputsAndOutputs
ThePCIcardhasasingle1/8thinch(3.5mm)inputjackcalleda"FlexiJack",whichcanbeconfiguredviathedriver
toserveasalineinput,micinput,ordigitalconnectionforinputandoutput.There'saplethoraofconnectionson
theEliteProrack.Thefrontfeaturestwo1/4"(6.35mm)inputjackswithadjustablelevel.Thefirst,dependingon
thepositionoftheadjustmentpotentiometer,iseitheralineinputorahighimpedance(HiZ)input,themost
commonuseofwhichisplugginginamusicalinstrumentsuchasanelectricguitar.Thesecondismorestandard,
andserveseitherasalineormicrophoneinput.
Onthebackisanotherinputusingcinchconnectorsasmallswitchletsyouconfigureitaseitheralineinputor
phonoinputwithRIAAcorrection.Thisisanexcellentidea,andwillletyoutakeadvantageofyourvinyldisks,either
todigitizethemorsimplytolistentothem.Notethatagroundconnectionisprovidedforhookingupaturntable,a
detailthat'ssometimesforgotten...AddedtoallthisareopticalandcoaxialdigitalS/PDIFinputsandapairofcinch
connectorsforMIDIinputandoutput.Finally,there'saspecialconnectorforCreativespeakers.
Ifyoulookatallthepossibleconnections,you'llseethatwhileCreativehasstayedwithconsumertypehookups
there'snosymmetricalinputitoffersacompleterange,withmicrophone,line,andphono,plustheadded
possibilityofconnectingamusicalinstrumentwithasimplestandardcable.Soit'sadesignthatcanmeettheneeds
ofallamateurs.
6.Inside
There'snothingparticularlyspectacularlookingabouttheXFiPCIcarditselfyoucouldalmostconfuseitwithan
ordinarysoundcard.TheXFi(CA20K1)circuitisalotmorecompactthantheoneontheAudigy,forexample.There
aretwomodelsofPCIcardsintheXFiline.TheElitePro'shasCirrusLogicCS4398D/Aconverters(192kHz,120
dB)andanAKMAK5394A/Dconverter(192kHz,123dB).ThePCIcardusedontheothermodelshasCirrusLogic
CS4382D/Aconverters(192kHz,114dB)andaWolfsonWM8775circuitthatincludesamixerforfouranalog
sourcesandanA/Dconverter(96kHz,102dB).
TheElitePro'srackusesTIBurrBrownPCM1804A/Dconverters(192kHz,111dB).Fortheheadphonejackthere's
aCirrusLogicCS4392D/Aconverter(192kHz,114dB).Theconclusionyoucandrawfromallofthisisthatthebest
inputistheoneonthePCIcardoftheElitePro.However,theinputsonitsrackprovideampleperformanceforits
intendeduses.
7.SRC:SoundInTime
AmongthevariousmodulescomprisingtheXFi,theSampleRateConverter(SRC)probablyseemsthemost
mysteriousandleastinterestingtomostpotentialusers.Yetit'stheonethatgetsthebiggestshareofthe
processingpower!Tounderstanditsimportance,youhavetoconsiderthenatureofdigitalsounditself.
Thesamplingfrequencyindicatesthenumberoftimespersecondthevalueofthesignalisread:44,100timesper
secondforstereoCDAudio,forexample.Today,numerousothervaluesarepossible,dependingonthesourceused
(e.g.DVDorDVDAudio).Inaddition,evensourcesthatusethesametheoreticalvaluecandifferslightly,since
clocksaren'tabsolutelyprecise.Whenyouwanttomixthesesources,forexample,thesedifferencescancause
errorsthatresultinveryaudibledefectsinthesound.Professionalequipmentlikethekindusedinrecording
studiosusessynchronizationsystemsthatconsumerequipmentdoesn'thave.Interconnectionsbetweenthe
variouspiecesofequipmentalsobecomemorecomplex.Conversionofsamplingfrequenciescansolveallthese
problems,butuntilnowit'sbeenconsideredaworkaroundanecessaryevil.Incertaincases,itresultsatleastin
principleinareductioninaudioquality,especiallyifthereisn'talotofprocessingpoweravailablefortheoperation.
ForitsSRC,though,Creativehasusedanewarchitecturethatresultsinatotallytransparentaudiosignal.
Convertinga997Hztestsignalfrom44.1to48kHzproducedadistortionof136dBanda0.00025dBpassband
ripple.That'slessdistortionandnoisethanisintroducedbyotheraudiocomponents,whichguaranteestheabsence
ofartifactsduetotheconversion.
ProcessingbytheSRCtoconvertadigitalsignalfrom44.1kHzto48kHz
THD+N(distortion+noise)resultingfromconversionfrom44.1to48kHz.There'snochanceyou'llbeabletohear
it!
8.SRC:SoundInTime,Continued
TheSRCisnotonlyatechnicalachievement,it'salsoatoolthatallowstheXFicardtodeliveritspromised
performanceinquiteafewareas.Thefirstisobviouslysynchronizationofdigitalsignals,butitcanalsocreate
effects,suchassoundambiencesormovementeffects,withmuchgreaterprecisionthananythingthat'sexisted
untilnowattheconsumerlevel.
TheDopplereffectofamovingobjectcanbecreatedmoreeasilyandpreciselywiththeSRC!
Theprincipleoftraditionaldigitalsynchronization
DigitalsynchronizationasperformedbyXFi,handledentirelybytheSRC.Muchsimplerfortheuser!
Finally,SRCisasourceofsavingsinareaslikesynthesizing,andmoregenerally,thestorageofsamples(wavetables)
intendedforreproducingmusic.Itallowsthetransparentconversionofasmallnumberofsamplestoproduceawide
rangeofnotes,byadjustingvariousparameterssuchaspitchandvibratoatwill.
9.ThreeCardsInOne
Aswe'vesaid,XFicardshavethreeoperatingmodes:Entertainment(foractivitieslikelisteningtomusicor
watchingaDVD),Games,andAudioCreation(soundandmusic).YouchooseoneofthethreeviaaModeSwitcher
andthecardisreconfiguredtoprovidethebestperformancefortheactivitychosen.Naturally,thepossibilitiesand
alsothecontrolpanelaredifferentdependingontheconfigurationyouchoose.Thetablebelowprovidesa
summary.
TheModeSwitcherletsyouchoosetheoperatingmodethatcorrespondstowhatyou'redoingatagivenmoment.
TheXFicardisreconfiguredinafewsecondstoprovidethebestpossibleperformance.
10.Entertainment
InEntertainmentmode,youseeascreenthatresemblesacompactstereowithaseriesoficonsthatletyouadjust
numerousfunctions.Someofthesearewellknownandnotgreatlydifferent(atleastinappearance)fromthoseon
previousCreativecards,suchasthetenbandequalizer,mixingboard,andloudspeakerconfigurationselection.
Othersaretotallynew,liketheCrystalizer,orentirelyreworkedandthereforecompletelydifferentfromearlierones
thathadthesamenames,likeCMSS.We'llgetbacktothesetwofunctionsindetailinamoment.
InEntertainmentmode,thecontrolpanellookslikeastereo
Themixingboardisquiteclassic
ThewellknownequalizerfromearlierCreativecardsisstillhere,withpossibilitiesthataresimilartoprevious
versions
Nosurprisesasfarasspeakerselectionisconcerned.Listeningtestsletyoucheckwhetherthey'recorrectlyplaced.
11.Game
Gamemodedisplaysaverycompactscreenwithmanyofthepreviousadjustments,butspecificfunctionsforgames
arealsopresent.OnthemixingboardyoucanenableEAXeffects,andadjustenvironmenteffectsforthe
microphoneifyou'reusingamic/headphone.Inaddition,yougetthemostpowerfulversionofEAX:5.0!
Forgaming,youcanactivatetheEAXeffectsandalteryourvoicebyprocessingthesignalfromthemicrophone
Creation
Creationmodewillusheryouintoanotherworld,ifyou'renotfamiliarwithprofessionalaudioequipmentor
equipmentmeantformusicians.Whatyou'llseeinfrontofyouisamixingboardwithextensivepossibilities.We
won'tgointodetailaboutthem,becausethey'reextremelywiderangingand,asofthiswriting,nostructured
informationseemstobeavailable.Thehelpthataccompaniesthesoftwareisfairlylimited,buttheexistenceof
busesanduserassignableinputsandoutputsclearlyopensupsomehighlyinterestingpossibilitiesfornumerous
users.Forexample,youcanassignaninputtoanyoutput,orsendthemixtooneorseveraloutputs.DJsandevent
organizersshouldfindalotheretohavefunwith...
Formusicians,asidefromabroadpaletteofeffects,thebignoveltyis3DMIDI,whichoffersthepossibilityof
positioningaMIDIsoundinspaceverysimplyit'sanewcreativeoptionaccessibletoamateurs!Naturally,Creation
modeopensthedoortoASIO2.0modeandletsyoufreelychooseyoursamplingfrequencyfromamongthe
standardvalues.Ifyouoptfor96kHz,youwon'tseetheeffectsmodulesdisappearaswithearlierCreativecards
withXFi,theyremainfunctionalregardlessofthefrequencychosen.Becareful,though,becausethefilesgetvery
big!
InCreationmode,it'spossibletosendstereosoundtotheeightchannelsofa7.1system.Aninterestingpossibility
forcertainusers...
YoucaninsertaparametricEQcorrectionontoaninputtocorrectafaultinthesource,orobtainaspecificeffect
12.Creation,Continued
Thereverberationmodulemightinspireyou,oritmightscareyou!Italsohassimplifiedadjustments...
MIDIsoundscanbepositionedinspacethanksto3DMIDI.Musicianswillbeabletoachievesomesurprising
effects...
Youcanchoosefromallstandardsamplingfrequencies!
Thisblockdiagramofthemixingboardisunfortunatelyonlypartialincoverage,butitgivesyouanideaofthe
possibilitiesforcontrolandinsertingeffects.
Creationmodeofferssomanypossibilitiesthatitwouldbeimpossibletomentionthemallindetail.Forexample,
therearethe24bitSoundFonts,andnaturallythepossibilityofworkingwithASIO2.0driversforverylowlatency
(2ms).EventhoughXFiisnotaimedspecificallyatmusicians,they'llfinditprovidessomeveryattractive
resources...
13.Crystalizer:TruerSound
AmongthemodulesofferedbyXFiistheCrystalizer,availableinallthreeoperatingmodes.Wedescribedthe
principlebehinditinapreviousarticleaboutXFi.
TheCrystalizerhasasingleadjustmentgraduatedinpercentage.WiththeElitePro,youcanadjustthelevelofthe
effecteitherwiththeremotecontrolordirectlyontherack.Wemighthavehopedformorecompletecontrols,but
thegoalisundoubtedlytogiveamateursatoolthat'seasytouse.
Inactuallistening,theCrystalizer'sprocessingtrulydoesresultinmorerealisticsound,closertowhatyouhearinan
actualperformance.Ingeneral,dynamicsaregreatlyimproved,andyougettheimpressionthatthefrequency
responsehasbeenextendedithasn'treally,buttheimpressioncomesfromthereliefaddedtothebassandthe
processingontheupperpartofthespectrum.Naturally,theeffectisverydependentonthetypeofsoundbeing
processed.Itcanbecomeimperceptiblewithsoundwhoseleveldoesn'tvarymuch.Butarecordingwithalotof
percussivesoundsandtransientswillbealteredmuchmoreaudibly.Withmanytypesofmusic,it'llbehardtogo
backtothewayitsoundedbeforeonceyou'veheardwhatitsoundslikewiththeCrystalizer.Withoutit,yougetthe
impressionthatyou'relisteningtoyourmusicfrombehindathickcurtain.
Naturally,togetthefullbenefitoftheCrystalizer,yourplaybacksystem(amplifierandspeakers)needstobeupto
thetask.Thespeakershavetohandletheincreaseddynamicrangewithouttiringorcreatingdistortion.Also,the
adjustmentoftheCrystalizer'slevelhastosuitthemusicyouwon'tusethesameadjustmentfortechnoasfor
opera!Andtheadjustmentdependsnotonlyonthetypeofmusicbutalsoonthecharacteristicsoftheoriginal
recording.
14.CMSS3D:FromStereoToSurround
Withsurroundsoundbecomingcommonforconsumerlistening,plainstereothoughstillthemostwidespread
soundformatformusicisbeginningtolookabitobsolete.Ifyou'reinthehabitoflisteningto5.1(orbetter)
surround,youprobablyoftenfindstereosomewhat"thin."Andit'salsoalittlefrustratingtouseonlytwochannels
whenyouhaveamultichannelsystem.
CMSS,whichCreativehasalreadyofferedforsometimenow,wasdesigned(likeothersimilartechnologies)tosolve
thisproblemby"upmixing"twochannelsto5.1or7.1surroundsound.Untilnow,theresultshavebeenonly
partiallysuccessful.ButthankstotheprocessingpowerofXFi,theoperationcalledCMSS3Dnowproduces
muchbetterresults.Wedescribeditsoperatingprincipleinourearlierarticle:
Inpractice,theXFiversionofCMSS3Dhasseveralmodes,dependingonyourequipmentandthetypeofsource
beingprocessed.Thefirstupmixesstereoto5.1or7.1,butitcanalsocreateavirtualsurroundexperienceifyou
haveonlytwospeakers.Finally,itconsiderablyimprovesheadphonelistening,aswe'llseelater.
CMSS3Disveryeffectivewhenupmixingastereosourcetomultichannel,becauseitbothrecreatestheambient
soundofarecording,andpreservesthecenterofthesoundimagethankstothecenterchannel.Inatypical
recording,thesingerwillbeperfectlycenteredinthesoundstageandwon't"wander"duetoimprecisioninthe
recordingorthereproduction.Ontheotherhand,obviouslyCMSS3D'supmixofastereosourceisnotcomparable
toatruemultichannelrecording.Effectscreatedbythesoundengineerwon'tappearbymagic.Thisisclearifyou
listentorecordingsthatexistinbothversionsliketheJeanMichelJarrealbumAero,orFeelsLikeHomebyNorah
Jones.Still,thereproductionofambienceinarecordingcanbespectacularitalldependsonwhatwasoriginally
recorded.Andinthatrespect,oldrecordingsyoumayhavethoughtyouknewwellcanrevealsomehidden
treasures.Sincetheytendnottohavebeenmadeintoday'stotallyasepticrecordingstudios,theycontainambience
informationthat'sparticularlyinterestingtohearwhenit'srenderedrealistically.Thiscanapplytoallliverecordings
suchasopera.
15.ForDivX
Upmixingamovieorvideoisevenmorespectacular.DoitwithaDivXstereomoviethatyou'refamiliarwithinDolby
Digitalandyou'llbeblownaway.Ofcoursehereagain,theCMSS3Dcan'tfigureoutthespatialoriginofasound,
butitcomesclose!
Forourtests,wemadeaDivXstereocopyofaDVDofToyStory2.Theintroductiontothismovieisanespecially
goodexampleofsoundpositioninginspace.CMSS3Dmanagedtocorrectlylocatemostoftheactionwithsoundsat
theleftandrightrear.MovingtoDolbyDigital,theoriginofthesoundismoreprecise,inparticularwithanaction
thatstartsintherear,andthemotioneffectfromrightreartoleftfrontcouldbeheardperfectly.ButtheCreative
upmixwasstillverygood,muchbetterthanDolbyProLogicII,whichsometimesdenaturesthesoundtrackand
nevermanagestomakeareallyprecisemovetoarearspeaker.IfyouoftenwatchDivXmovies,andespeciallyif
youuseyourPCasalivingroomvideoplayer,youwon'tgetbetterspatializationfromastereosoundtrackthanX
Fi's.
Naturally,Creative'sMediaSourcesoftwareisincluded.WeusedittoenjoyanoperarecordingwithCMSS3D.
Ofcourse,there'snoproblemwithanoriginalmultichannelrecording,likeamovieinDolbyDigitalorDTSatleast
solongasyoustaywithmultichannellistening.CMSS3Dpromises"surround"reproductionwithonlytwospeakers,
butnaturallywefounditalotlessimpressive.Itdidcreateasoundstagethatwasclearlybeyondstereo,but
obviouslyitwasn'tcomparabletowhata5.1or7.1systemcando.Sotheprocessingcapabilitywillbewelcomeif
youhaveonlytwospeakers,butmovingtoamultichannelkitisstillbyfarthebestsolutionforgettingthemostout
ofyourmovies.
16.Headphones:SpaceInsideYourHead
TheotherCMSS3Dmodeisdedicatedspecificallytoheadphonelistening.Thoughoftenindispensable,traditional
headphonelisteninghasmanydisadvantages,inparticular,theimpossibilityofcreatingacrediblesoundstage.The
soundseemstocomefromthecenterofyourhead,orsometimesfromthetop,butingeneralitremainsconfined
towithinyourskull.WithCMSS3DHeadphone,you'lldiscover3Dsoundwithheadphonesnotonlydifferentiation
inthepositioningofvarioussoundsources,butaboveallwhatCreativecalls"externalization,"thecreationofatrue
soundstage.
Let'sdiscusstheprinciplesbehindthepositioningofsoundsourcesusingheadphones.Threefactorscomeintoplay:
ITD(InterauralTimeDifference),ILD(InterauralLevelDifference),andHRTFfiltersthatreconstitutethesoundasit
reachesyou,withreflectionsanddiffractionscausedbyyourbody,head,andouterear.
Withastereosource,CMSS3Dcontinuesitsextractionofambienceinformationfromtherecordingtogivethe
listenerthesensationbeinginthemiddleoftheaction.Butnaturally,theeffectsaremostspectacularwith
multichannelsources(moviesinDolbyDigitalorDTS)andwithgames.Headphonesarenolongerthepunishment
theyoncewere,andbecomearealpleasureintheirownright.Someprogressstillneedstobemadeonthe
front/rearpositioning,basedonourexperience.Soundsourcesthataredirectlyinfrontofyouorbehindstilllacka
littlerealism.Wewon'tbecategoricalaboutthat,however,asindividualexperiencesofsounddovarywidely.Also(in
ourpersonalexperience)sourceswereplacedalittletoohigh,andanelevationadjustmentwouldbegood.
17.TestSystemAndAudioMeasurements
Ourtestconfigurationremainsthesame,andisplentypowerfulenoughforanXFicard.Note,however,thatyou
havetomakesureyourPC'spowersupplyissufficient:ifit'salittleweakorofpoorquality,itcancauseproblems
operatingcardsequippedwithracks,whichdrawextrapower.Weranintothisproblemduringatestonaconsumer
levelmachinethatalreadyhadvariousequipmentaddedthepowersupplywouldn'tallowanormalbootup.
Hardware
Processor
Pentium42.4GHz
Memory
1GBofDDR
Graphicscard NVIDIAGeForceTi4200
Harddisk
80GB,7200RPM
Opticaldrive DVDLG16/48X
OS
WindowsXPProSP2
DirectX
9.0c
version
Speakers
CreativeGigaworksS750,LogitechZ2200
Videoplayback PowerDVD,WinDVD
RightMarkAudioAnalyzer5.4,RightMark3DSound1.24,DAASaudiomeasurementsystem,Neutrik
Measurements
3337audiomeasurementsystem
AllofourmeasurementsweremadeontheXFiElitePromodel.Asmentionedpreviously,thedifferencesin
performancebetweenthismodelandtheothershavetodowiththequalityoftheAnalog/DigitalandDigital/Analog
converters.ThetablebelowshowsthetypicalperformancelevelsofthedifferentmodelsofXFicards.You'llnote
thatthemajordifferencewaswithrecord/playback,wherewejumpedfromasignaltonoiseratioof112dBforthe
EliteProto98dBfortheothercards.Withplayback,thedifferencewaslesssignificant,sinceonlyoneconverter
(D/A)isinvolved.Aswesaidearlier,theinputonthePCIcardistheonethatofferedthebestperformance,sothat's
theoneweused.
Model
XFiElitePro
Others
Lo1dB<10Hz Lo1dB<10Hz
DigitalPlayback
FrequencyResponse
Hi1dB46kHz Hi1dB45kHz
LR:112dB
LR:105dB
Crosstalk
RL:112dB
RL:105dB
SignaltoNoiseRatio(SNR)
116dB
109dB
TotalHarmonicDistortion+Noise(THD+N)0.00%
0.00%
LineIN/LineOUT
Lo1dB<10Hz Lo1dB~17Hz
FrequencyResponse
Record&Playback
Hi1dB45kHz Hi1dB42KHz
LR:106dB
LR:86dB
Crosstalk
RL:106dB
RL:86dB
SignaltoNoiseRatio(SNR)
112dB
98dB
TotalHarmonicDistortion+Noise(THD+N)0.00%
0.00%
18.BehaviorAt16Bits/44.1KHz
WemademeasurementsatthesesettingsbecausetheycorrespondtotheCDAudiodigitalformat,whichistheone
mostofyourmusicwillbein.Obviously,16bitquantificationlimitstheperformanceofamodernsoundcard,
especiallyhighperformancecardsliketheXFi.Theparametersthatsuffermostareobviouslysignaltonoiseratio
anddynamicrange.Ontheotherhand,withanXFi,theparasiticwavesthathurttheresponseofearlierCreative
modelsaregone.
Frequencyresponse(40Hz15kHz):+0.01,0.07dB
Weightedsignaltonoiseratio:94.6dB(A)
Distortion:0.0008%
Stereoseparation:94.9dB
Frequencyresponse:Responsewasperfectlylinearovertheentireaudiospectrum!
Noiselevel:Noiselevelwasverylowandperfectlyregular
Dynamicrange:Aperfectscoregiventhequantificationsettings!
Distortion:Distortionwasextremelylow(H3around110dB!)youcan'taskformuchbetter...
Intermodulation:Intermodulationdistortionwon'tcauseyouanyproblems!
Stereoseparation:Stereocrosstalkincreasesslightlyintheupperpartofthespectrumbutisstilllowenoughnot
tobeperceptible
19.BehaviorAt24Bits/48KHz
With24bitquantificationandasamplingrateof48kHz,thecardbeginstoshowwhatitcanreallydo.These
settingsareanespeciallygoodcompromisebetweenperformanceandreasonablefilesize.Asamatteroffact,
they'refrequentlyusedinprofessionalapplications.Dynamicsandsignaltonoiserationaturallyjumpmuchhigher.
Frequencyresponse(20Hz20kHz):+0.01,0.19dB
Weightedsignaltonoiseratio:112.6dB(A)
Distortion:0.0005%
Stereoseparation:101.2dB
Frequencyresponse:Thefrequencyresponsewidensveryslightlyatthetopandisobviouslystillperfectly
linear...
Noiselevel:24bitquantificationshowsthecard'slimits,withanextremelylownoiselevel
Dynamicrange:Dynamiccapacityreachedthemaximumvaluepossiblegiventheotherparameters!
Distortion:Distortionassuchisonthesameorderaswhatweobservedat44kHz.Thelowernoiseleveliswhat
explainsthedifferenceinthefigures(THD+N).
Intermodulationdistortion:Valuesarestillinfinitesimalandthere'snodangerofdistortionbeingaudible
Stereoseparation:Therewasa(relative)increaseinstereocrosstalkintheupperpartofthespectrum,butit'soff
thegraph,below1kHz...
20.BehaviorAt24Bits/96KHz
Thesesettingscorrespondtothebestpossibleperformance,butinrealitytheonlygainisinupwardextensionofthe
frequencyresponseto40kHz,withnegligibleattenuation(0.13dB!)Therestisidentical,withsimilarorveryslightly
lowerfigures,aclassicconsequenceofextensionoffrequencyrange.
Frequencyresponse(20Hz20kHz):+0.01,0.19dB
Weightedsignaltonoiseratio:112.4dB(A)
Distortion:0.0005%
Stereoseparation:100.3dB
Frequencyresponse:Perfectlylinearresponsebeyond40kHzwithoutsignificantattenuation!
Noiselevel:Noiseisidenticaltowhatwemeasuredat48kHz,buttheresponseisbroadenedupwardand
thereforeshowsafewmoreparasiticwavesatthatend.
Dynamicrange:Theresultisstilljustasexcellent!
Distortion:Distortionisabsolutelyidenticaltowhatwasmeasuredat48kHzextremelylow.
Intermodulation:Valuesremaininfinitesimal...
Stereoseparation:Stereocrosstalkisslightlyhigherthanat48kHz,undoubtedlyduetothebroadened
bandwidth.
Thefiguresspeakvolumes,sotospeak:withXFiyou'llhavenoworriesaboutperformance,sincetheunitiscapable
ofhigherqualitythananyavailableaudiosource.OurtestsshowedthesameresultsasthosepublishedbyCreative,
withveryslightvariationsattributabletonormalproductiondifferencesbetweenthetwounitstested,andthe
adjustmentchoiceswemade.Aswe'vesaidbefore,audioperformancedependsonmanycriteria,andthebalance
maytiptowardoneconsiderationoranother.
21.GamesAnd3D
GameshavealwaysbeenaspecialtyforCreative,andtheircardshavealwaysledthefieldinthatarea.Theyhave
themostadvancedversionsofEAX,andtheirprocessorensuresthattheytakeonlyasmallamountofpowerfrom
thePC'sCPU,savingamaximumamountforthegameitself.XFimarksanewstageingamingsound,thankstoits
processingpowerandextendedvirtualrealityfunctions.Topromoteitscapabilities,Creativehasassociatedwith
"cyberathlete"JonathanWendelknowninthegamingworldas"Fatal1ty"whohaslenthisnametotheXFicard
that'sspecificallydedicatedtogaming.
Fatal1tyandFrancoofBonis(Creative)attheXFirollout
ALANpartyorganizedfortheintroductionofXFi,withFatal1tyasthemantobeat...
Fatal1tytheconcentrationofachampion...
WiththeXFiline,CreativeintroducesEAX5.0,whichcanrender128sourcessimultaneouslyina3Dspacewith
multichannelrouting.ItalsohasMacroFXforcontrollingproximityandocclusioneffects.Allofthisiscurrentlyinits
earlystages,sincetheXFi'sprocessingcapacityhasnotyetbeenfullyputtouse,butmajordevelopmentsshould
beappearingsoon.EAXVoice,meanwhile,performsrealtimeprocessingofthevoicesofplayersastheytalkintoa
micsomethingcalledMicrophoneEnvironmentFXtorendertheminconformitywiththevirtualspacethey'rein.
It'sanewwaytoachieveevenmoretotalimmersioninthevirtualworld,whichwilltrulyshowitspotentialinmulti
playerenvironments.
22.GamesAnd3D,Continued
Foritscardsspecificallyaimedat"hardgamers"theFatal1tyFPSandEliteProCreativehaschosentouseatype
ofmemorycalledXRAM.Thisdedicatedmemoryavoidsdrawingonthecomputer'smainmemoryandalsoavoids
compressingsoundstostoretheminmemory.Thetechnologymakesitpossibleeithertoaddeffectswithout
sufferingaperformancehit,ortoincreaseperformancebyusingcompressedsounds,withdecompressiontaking
placeupstreamofthegameaction.CreativehasruntestswithamodifiedversionofUnrealTournament2004.The
graphbelow(source:Creative)givesyouanideaoftheeffectivenessofXRAM,whichincreaseswiththenumberof
voicesused.
Naturally,thisdemonstrationremainsfairlytheoreticalforthemomentwe'llhavetowaittoseewhatgame
developerswilldowiththisnewtechnology.We'llreportbacktoyouwhenthefirstoptimizedgamesbecome
available.
Testswemadewithourusualgamesshowedresultsthatarecomparabletothosewegotwiththemostrecent
Audigycards(Audigy2ZSandAudigy4).Naturallythesoundqualitywasbetter,particularlyforheadphone
listening,butthegaininCPUresourceswasn'tverysignificant.Tomakesure,wecomparedanAudigy2ZStoanX
FiinBattlefield2,whichisalreadyoptimized,andDoom3,forwhichCreativesupplieduswithapatch.
WeranthetestsonahighendPC(AMDAthlonFX51processor,1GBofDDRat400MHz,ATIX800XTPE3Dcard).
Atbest,wenotedanimprovementof1to2framespersecondinBattlefield2(1280x960,maximumdetail,high
qualitysound,EAXeffectsenabled),andonlyincertainphasesofthegameatcertaintimes.InDoom3(1024x768,
maximumdetail)theimprovementwasjustasslight.Wemightmentioninpassingthatthequalityoftheeffects
didn'tseemverydifferentbetweenthenormalandoptimizedversions.Ontheotherhand,withnolossof
performance,yougetthebenefitoftheCrystalizer,CMSS3D,andsurroundsoundwithaheadsetwhichisnotbad
forastart.SoundhastobeprogrammedinOpenALtogetthefullbenefitoftheXFi,andoptimizationof
programmingandofthedriversforthecardisonlyinitsearlystages.Again,we'llbekeepingupwiththelatest
developmentsforyou...
TheprocessorusetestwithDirect3Dproducedremarkableresults,withlessthan3.5%utilizationoftheCPU.
Inactualusewithcurrentgames,andcomparedtoanAudigy2,don'texpecttogainalotofframespersecondora
morespectacular5.1soundenvironment.Ifyourspeakersaregood,thesoundwillbenoticeablybetter,butitwon't
blowyouoffyourstool.Ontheotherhand,ifyouuseheadphones,thedifferenceislikenightandday.Infact,you
mayevenwanttoconsideralwaysusingheadphonesfromnowon.Thesensationofimmersioninthegameiseven
betterthanwithawellplaced5.1speakerkit.Yougetthebenefitoftheimmersivequalitiesofheadphones,without
losingthenotionofspatialityyougetwithspeakers.Untiloptimizedgamesbecomeavailable,thisisthereal
advantageofXFiasfarasgamingisconcerned.
23.InPractice
XFibringssomanyinnovationstothetablethatit'sdifficulttoexperiencethemcompletelyinjustafewdays.Many
pointsdeservetobedevelopedfurther,andwewilldothatastimegoeson,sincethenewcardshouldturnupin
quiteafewproductsinthefuture.Thebigquestioniswhetherit'sworthgettingridofyourcurrentsoundcardto
buyanXFi(whichshouldbeavailablebySeptember).
Foranyonewho'spassionateaboutsoundreproduction,theansweris"yes."Theresultsareclearlysuperior,inmost
areas,towhatmustfromnowonbecalledthe"oldgeneration"ofsoundcards.However,itremainstobeseen
wherethelineshouldbedrawnbetweenthetrulypassionateandthosewhoareinterestedinsoundreproduction
butforwhomit'snotanessentialissue.
Toacertaindegree,thebenefitauserwillgetoutofXFidependsonhisorherauditoryeducation.Thosewhohave
neverdevotedalotoftimetosoundmightnotbeallthatsensitivetotheprogressthatthisnewtechnology
represents.That'stheambiguityofasystemwhosepurelytechnicalcharacteristicsarepushedtothefore,andnot
thefinalresult.Since24bitquantificationandhighsamplingfrequenciesaren'tnewinandofthemselves,ifyou
lookonlyatthefiguresyoumightwonderwhatallthefussoverXFiisabout.Anditwouldbeashameforyouto
missoutonwhatitcanoffer.Sohere'sasummaryofwhatyoucanexpectfromitasofrightnow:
Music
AclearimprovementinthesoundofMP3files(evenin192kbps)
Overallmusicreproductionthat'smoreample,moreflattering,andmoreimmersiveifyouhavequalityspeakers
Amuchmoreenjoyableheadphonelisteningexperience
Goodspatializationonmultichannelequipment
Video
Impressivesurroundeffectswithstereosources(DivX)
Betterrenderingofmultichannelsources(DolbyDigital,DTS)ifyouhaveaquality5.1speakerkit
Exceptionalheadphonelistening
Games
Bettersoundrenderingifyouhaveaquality5.1speakerkit
Exceptionalheadphonelistening
24.InConclusion
WithXFi,Creativehasusheredintheaudioofthe21stcentury,andtheactuallisteningexperiencelikethe
measurableperformanceisveryconvincing.Ifsoundqualityisatallimportanttoyouandyouwanttotake
advantageofthemostrecentadvancesinsoundreproduction,it'sclearlythebestchoice,regardlessofwhatyour
mainactivityis.Andbestofall,thepriceisnotexorbitant:thebasiccard,pricedataround$130,issufficienttolet
yougetthebenefitofalltheadvantageswe'velistedwithoutleavingabigholeinyourwalletComparePriceson
XFiSoundCards.
Prices(notfinal) Europe()USA($)
XtremeMusic
130
130
XFiPlatinum
200
200
XFiFatal1tyFPS280
280
XFiElitePro
400
400