Creative xmod not working?

So I got my xmod yesterday...plugged it in..was able to hook up the speakers and whatnot...but the problem is I don't hear any discernible difference between having them in and having them out. Is there a way to test this? Cause every review I've read has said the xmod produces a HUGE difference.

 

i haven't got the xmod; but i'm thinking of getting one.

have you turn on the Xi-Fi Crystaliser? u might have the the switch turned off.

what source of music?eg. high/low bit rate mp3, loseless compression, RAW format, type of music? if u got good sounding source you might not hear much improvement in sound quality

what speaker r u using? maybe it is not able to produce the right sound?

try to use more than one type of music. maybe u hear a difference...

 

I know this won't be very helpful, but I found the claims for the Xmod a bit outrageous. If you are expecting vast improvements in the sound of your mp3s, I think you'll be disappointed. No amount of processing is going to get back what was removed when the mp3 was encoded. You might be able to get a slight improvement (compression, eq could help), but better than CD quality!?! I think whoever at Creative decided on that claim needs to have their position evaluated by the Bobs (sorry, I'm at work, Office Space reference).

I think in order to test it, you just need to find the most powerful sound system you can get your hands on. The more the sound is amplified the more noticeable the differences in sound quality will be.

 

may i suggest getting a pair of beolab4pc speaker. they are the best pc speaker currently available!

 

I've tried a variety of sound files. All are mp3, different bitrates. I've tried it with computer speakers (S96J, and another HP set). I've also tried it with some cyber accoustics 2.1 speakers. I'll have a Z-2300 next week to test it with.

But yea...I don't hear much of a difference. And the very small difference I'm hearing is probably due to the placebo effect.

 

the main problem with the Xmod, is that it is NOT a portable/external solution since you need external power adapter, which is not even included with it, LAME.

 

Uh...you only need a separate AC adapted if you're hooking it directly to an iPod for example. You don't need one when it's hooked up to the laptop.

But anyways, any suggestions to test my problem?

 

I can't speak for the xmod, but I have an xfi card, and it really is that good. mp3's sound amazingly better with the 24bit crystalizer turned on. It's really amazing, you really need to check it out for yourself.

edit: and I'm pretty sure it always needs to be plugged in, even with a laptop.

 

Well, I guess I can't make generalizations without actually hearing the product.

What exactly is this crystalizer? I would guess there is some compression and eqing goin on. Does Creative explicitly state what they are doing to the audio (I suppose not or other companies would be able to copy it)?

What kind of sound system are you playing this on? Is there a lot of amplification?

DJs who use a laptop to replace their turntables (Live, Traktor, etc) are able to use mp3s, but most complain about how they sound on a professional sound system. If this works on a really large system, then they truly are onto something.

 

It's an adaptive EQ and a 24-bit upsampler, simplistically speaking. I don't like it at all - and I use the X-Fi Eite Pro on all my desktops. I'm sure it's an improvement for the tin ear.