Should i get the Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi MB in my sxps 16

Hi,

Should i get the Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi MB in my sxps 16 for 30$ CAD more? Is it worth it and what will it really change?

Thank you

 

Do you get any other options when you assemble it? It's weird I tried both builds for the 1640 and 1645 and they didn't allow me to change that. If 30$ isn't much I would suggest getting it, it's always nifty to have better sound.

Plus, this laptop is designed for multimedia so you could say it would fit nicely for what it was built for that is.

 

I went for it. But that's because I thought it was an actual soundcard and not just a piece of software, I honestly thought it would improve performance in games. The cool thing about it is that it emulates actually having EAX capability and should enable some quality-enhancing options, depending on the program or media you're using.

When it came down to it, I took all of the $20 upgrades (Bluetooth, this, maybe one other) because I'd feel really silly not to.

 

So, you are saying that nothing "hardware" was added? If you look in the device manager (or whatever Windows 7 or Vista calls it depending on the OS you have) do you see any hardware additions?

 

No hardware is added. It's all software and it's a pile of sh*t. There's no difference in sound quality. If you want better sound that onboard nab yourself an X-Fi express card.

Biggest waste of $25 I ever spent.

 

Well ... you just saved me $25 then ... on board 2.0 it is. Thanks.

 

Forget Creative altogether... crappy drivers, only decent quality components - especially for the amount you pay.

 

I agree for the laptop. For my desktop it is a must and I've had no issues with their drivers. I use super high end audio gear though.

BTW Onboard is NOT 2.0. There are 3 jacks to support 5.1 surround. You change the jack settings in your IDT controll panel. Works great. Even has jack monitoring so if you set up some surround speakers it will detect it and change the settings! No add-in card needed.

Plus the ATI GPU has a sound chip on it that puts out 7.1 via the HDMI. This laptop actually has some pretty decent onboard audio. IDT did a good job on it. Plus the SRS effects are neat too. You can change all your settings via the IDT panel.

Oh another neat thing you can set up 2 headphones to be independent of each other. SO one person can listen to music while another uses VOIP or somthing at the same time.

 

Installing the latest IDT drivers made a huge difference to my Windows 7 standard drivers...the sound difference was so much better straight away...I think I used the 1645 drivers as they were newer at the time.

 

i didn't even know about the IDT panel. i never got a tray icon, so after reading this, i went into my control panel, and BAM, there are the controls i was missing. thx notebook review, lol.

 

Yes, the onboard IDT 92HD73C1 is spec'd quite well with support for 6 channel, 24-bit, 192kHz DACs.

I looked at the chip these come with (haven't received my 1645 yet) and it seems to support coax SPDIF out with Dolby Digital Live. Can anyone with the 1640/1645 check their IDT panel and see if DDL is supported with or without the Dell drivers? I wonder if you can use HDMI for video out only and use one of the IDT jacks for SPDIF with DDL on "older" receivers?

I also wonder if it is indeed the ATI chip providing HDMI audio or if its the IDT, as both technically support it.

Here is the spec sheet if anyone is interested:

http://www.idt.com/products/getDoc.cfm?docID=18459191