Asus Xonar D2X 7.1 or Creative X-Fi Titanium

py2006

Hi all,

I have decided up grade certain parts of my pc. I know some people may argue that I don't really need to but I do enjoy the buzz of researching the different components and the ease of mind knowing I have a decent setup! :P

Anyway, at the moment I am looking at soundcards:

Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium
Asus Xonar D2X 7.1 PCI-Express

I have been hearing/reading great things about the Xonar so I am leaning that way. However, some have said they aren't as good for gaming because they lack the EAX feature?

My current spec is in my sig.

Thanks in advance for any advice/experience you may have!

AlmightyCushion

I'm assuming you have sigs turned off. Would I be correct?

Creative drivers were lacking a lot of features in vista that were available in xp. I'm not sure if this is still the case but it's something that you should look up on or wait for someone more knowledgeable on the situation to give their input.

py2006

AlmightyCushion wrote: »

I'm assuming you have sigs turned off. Would I be correct?

Creative drivers were lacking a lot of features in vista that were available in xp. I'm not sure if this is still the case but it's something that you should look up on or wait for someone more knowledgeable on the situation to give their input.

Oops:

Motherboard:Asus P5Q
Graphics: HD4870
CPU: Q6600
Memory: OCZ PC6400 4GB
Harddrive: Samsung F1 1TB
Sound Card: X-Fi XtremeGamer
PSU: Corsair 620watt
Monitor: Samsung 22" 2026 CW
Speakers: Logitech Z-2300
OS: Vista 64bit
Case: P182 Limited Edition
Keyboard Saitek II

Well the driver issue is why I am considering the Xonar card plus all the positive reviews. Some people say because it lacks the EAX feature that Creative cards have it isn't as good for gaming.

Solitaire

The Xonar is all about raw fidelity, not bells and whistles *cough*Creative*cough* Both are good cards but the Xonar leans heavily toward the serious audiophile and the Titanium toward the enthusiast.

requiem1

The xonar can suffer from the same driver problems in vista 64 as its just an x-fi in diguise. I'm sorry to rain on your parade but you can get one that will have no issues or one that does so I think its a risk and with intel hd audio i barely notice the difference anyway except for volume.

ColonelCarnage

I believe the majority of problems with creative sound cards in vista were with the slightly older Audigy series which they pretty much left dead in the water with a bucket load of problems.

Anyways if you really must upgrade(i think that extreme gamer would probably do ya) then I believe that the X-fi might would be grand for gaming and stuff but if you mainly watch movies and music and really want that high-fideity sound for like blurays and stuff then maybe think about the Xonar. Mind it is 60 euros more but then again you are kind of splurging for a sound card anyways.

py2006

Solitaire wrote: »

The Xonar is all about raw fidelity, not bells and whistles *cough*Creative*cough* Both are good cards but the Xonar leans heavily toward the serious audiophile and the Titanium toward the enthusiast.

But would either see a significant improvement over the Xtreme Gamer I have already?

py2006

ColonelCarnage wrote: »

I believe the majority of problems with creative sound cards in vista were with the slightly older Audigy series which they pretty much left dead in the water with a bucket load of problems.

Anyways if you really must upgrade(i think that extreme gamer would probably do ya) then I believe that the X-fi might would be grand for gaming and stuff but if you mainly watch movies and music and really want that high-fideity sound for like blurays and stuff then maybe think about the Xonar. Mind it is 60 euros more but then again you are kind of splurging for a sound card anyways.

Ah I go through phazes where I want to splash out on upgrades! I don't watch movies at all on my pc (My eyes wont allow it for some reason). I listen to a bit of music and play a few games!

ColonelCarnage

py2006 wrote: »

Ah I go through phazes where I want to splash out on upgrades! I don't watch movies at all on my pc (My eyes wont allow it for some reason). I listen to a bit of music and play a few games!

Then I dont think you will notice a difference between the x-fi or the xonar

Wonda-Boy

That would be a pure waste of money mate, the card you have it totally fine. I have the X-fi Xtreme Music and power my Creative S750 7.1 surround speakers and it sounds SUPER. All the X-RAM on board crap is a gimmick, also if using VISTA once you download the Alchemy drivers ASWELL as the creative drivers you can use FULL EAX no probs. You will get both drivers on the Creative Labs website.

Save the money and invest in something that will actually give you a boost in performance mate.

alansweeney100

What about the Auzentech X-Fi Forte (very long review)
You can only get it through Ocuk or scan.co.uk, worth a look, I've been thinkin about it as I'm using onboard sound and I'm in the mood of a splurge

Solitaire

Irony - it took Auzentech to actually do the X-Fi justice. Creative phail. :P

And yeah, the Forte beats the stuffing out of anything Creative made for themselves (plus the drivers actually work! ) but now that some of the older Xonars (including the D2) are a fair bit cheaper you have to ask if having both high fidelity and full gaming support simultaneously are worth the extra cash.