Creative SXFI Gamer Review - Battle Mode almost Feels Like Cheating

erek

erek

[H]F Junkie
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"Then there's the excellent CommanderMic microphone, one of the best microphones I have ever came across in my headset-testing career. It sounds great, does a good job with background noise suppression, and has an integrated pop filter. I wish there would be a way to turn off its built-in red LED as I found it slightly distracting during my late-night gaming sessions, though I did get used to it after a week or two and stopped noticing it as much.

The build quality is very good, and the SXFI Gamer is comfortable to wear over even extended periods of time. If you're sensitive to pressure on your head, the inner side of the headband may cause some discomfort as it has next to no padding. It didn't cause any issues for me personally, but you should be aware of this potential issue. What I did have issue with was the supplied USB-C cable. It's a custom-designed Kevlar-reinforced copper cable wrapped in an aluminium and copper shield for durability, as well as a nylon braid for the final layer to improve flexibility. While undoubtedly robust, it causes noise whenever it rubs against something, be it your clothes, arms, or furniture. I didn't find this troublesome while using the headset, and the supplied cable can be replaced with any aftermarket USB-C cable, which doesn't make it a major drawback after all.

As a whole, the Creative SXFI Gamer is a terrific gaming headset. If it fits into your budget, you should seriously consider getting it over pretty much anything else in its price bracket."

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https://www.techpowerup.com/review/creative-sxfi-gamer/
 
Looks like a really nice headset. The lack of a wireless model would be a deal breaker for me.
 
Creative superfi headphones that came bundled with the super xfi amp SUCK.

Fool me once...

I’ll stick with me vmod mic and X2HR headphones thank you very much.
 
Archaea said:
Creative superfi headphones that came bundled with the super xfi amp SUCK.

Fool me once...

I’ll stick with me vmod mic and X2HR headphones thank you very much.
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Your sxfi amp came with sxfi headphones?? What happens if you enabled sxfi on both the amp AND the headphones?! Is that possible? Does a black hole open up?
 
The USB-C cable is hilarious. Noise coming through from the cable rubbing on something is one of the biggest issues with wired headsets. Nylon braid is already noisy enough, but with the added kevlar I can imagine that sound becoming unbearable very quickly.
 
I use speakers, a 10" subwoofer, and a cardioid mic. Nobody ever complains of not being able to hear me, or hearing my game.
 
I picked up the SXFI Air over the holidays. They can do audio via the USB C cable, line in, Bluetooth, or a microSD card. I have been impressed so far with them. They are going to be great when I have to mow the lawn and can just use the microSD card to listen to music.
 
alxlwson said:
I use speakers, a 10" subwoofer, and a cardioid mic. Nobody ever complains of not being able to hear me, or hearing my game.
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Confused about the meaning or relevance of your comment, to be honest.
 
Whalter12 said:
I picked up the SXFI Air over the holidays. They can do audio via the USB C cable, line in, Bluetooth, or a microSD card. I have been impressed so far with them. They are going to be great when I have to mow the lawn and can just use the microSD card to listen to music.
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They don't have noise cancellation, though, do they? Not sure how you'd be able to hear stuff over a lawn mower!
 
I have Super XFi on my Sound Blaster X3...it works well for some headphones, not so well for others.
 
MavericK said:
I have Super XFi on my Sound Blaster X3...it works well for some headphones, not so well for others.
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Same about the SBX3. Which headphones have you tried it on? I've used Bose QC35, Phillips X2HR, AKG K701, and I also have Drop/Hifiman HE-5XX coming in early february, and also Hifiman 440i 2020 edition incoming tomorrow :) It works great with all 3 that I've tried so far. Opens up the sound stage TONS!

I found it effective for 80-90% of content. It does change the tonality of music so it's not appropriate for every track you'll listen to, but it does add a lot to the vast majority of music I've listened to. And definitely a must for movies and 90% of games. Oh, and 100% of YouTube content (caveat being music as I mentioned) - like for product reviews and the like, it really sounds lifelike as if the presenter is right in front of you IRL.

When I A/B compare with SXFI on and off on content, when I turn it off I'm like "ewww this sounds like such a downgrade" and want to turn it back on immediately, after having experienced it!

I can't vouche for how SXFI will sound on Creative's SXFI headphones, but SXFI itself with quality headphones is something you just *have* to experience to believe it. I'm honestly not sure I'll ever be able to upgrade my DAC/amp now since SXFI is not software, it is done via a special hardware chip.
I can't go without SXFI now... I'm hooked for life I'm afraid.... funny enough, it's because of erek himself when he posted a previous news article about SXFI a couple weeks ago. The tech sounded interesting enough to me that I decided to buy and try the X3... one of the best purchases I've made.
 
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Furious Nerd said:
Same about the SBX3. Which headphones have you tried it on? I've used Bose QC35, Phillips X2HR, AKG K701, and I also have Drop/Hifiman HE-5XX coming in early february, and also Hifiman 440i 2020 edition incoming tomorrow :) It works great with all 3 that I've tried so far. Opens up the sound stage TONS!

I found it effective for 80-90% of content. It does change the tonality of music so it's not appropriate for every track you'll listen to, but it does add a lot to the vast majority of music I've listened to. And definitely a must for movies and 90% of games. Oh, and 100% of YouTube content (caveat being music as I mentioned) - like for product reviews and the like, it really sounds lifelike as if the presenter is right in front of you IRL.

When I A/B compare with SXFI on and off on content, when I turn it off I'm like "ewww this sounds like such a downgrade" and want to turn it back on immediately, after having experienced it!

I can't vouche for how SXFI will sound on Creative's SXFI headphones, but SXFI itself with quality headphones is something you just *have* to experience to believe it. I'm honestly not sure I'll ever be able to upgrade my DAC/amp now since SXFI is not software, it is done via a special hardware chip.
I can't go without SXFI now... I'm hooked for life I'm afraid.... funny enough, it's because of erek himself when he posted a previous news article about SXFI a couple weeks ago. The tech sounded interesting enough to me that I decided to buy and try the X3... one of the best purchases I've made.
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Does the SBX3 have Battle Mode?
 
Stryker7314 said:
Does the SBX3 have Battle Mode?
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I don't know what battle mode is, googleing doesn't come up with anything but generic marketing speak, but it's definitely not on the SBX3 and the Sound Blaster Command program that's used to configure and control the device. It does have "scout mode" which is supposed to make footsteps more audible, but I haven't tried it since I'm only playing single player games, so can't speak for how it would work for multiplayer FPS in games like Overwatch and the like.
 
Furious Nerd said:
Same about the SBX3. Which headphones have you tried it on? I've used Bose QC35, Phillips X2HR, AKG K701, and I also have Drop/Hifiman HE-5XX coming in early february, and also Hifiman 440i 2020 edition incoming tomorrow :) It works great with all 3 that I've tried so far. Opens up the sound stage TONS!

I found it effective for 80-90% of content. It does change the tonality of music so it's not appropriate for every track you'll listen to, but it does add a lot to the vast majority of music I've listened to. And definitely a must for movies and 90% of games. Oh, and 100% of YouTube content (caveat being music as I mentioned) - like for product reviews and the like, it really sounds lifelike as if the presenter is right in front of you IRL.

When I A/B compare with SXFI on and off on content, when I turn it off I'm like "ewww this sounds like such a downgrade" and want to turn it back on immediately, after having experienced it!

I can't vouche for how SXFI will sound on Creative's SXFI headphones, but SXFI itself with quality headphones is something you just *have* to experience to believe it. I'm honestly not sure I'll ever be able to upgrade my DAC/amp now since SXFI is not software, it is done via a special hardware chip.
I can't go without SXFI now... I'm hooked for life I'm afraid.... funny enough, it's because of erek himself when he posted a previous news article about SXFI a couple weeks ago. The tech sounded interesting enough to me that I decided to buy and try the X3... one of the best purchases I've made.
Click to expand...

I've tried:

-Senn HD590
-Philips Fidelio X1
-Philips SHP-9000
-Drop HE4xx
-Shure SE215

It works pretty well on the Fidelios. Not as big of a fan on the HE4xx, and it sounds downright awful on the Shures for some reason. All of these have pre-built profiles as well (X1 is close-ish to the X2HR)
 
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