Comparison Creative Sound Blaster Audigy Fx vs Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium

— Ordinary. This category includes all sound cards that do not have a pronounced specialization and do not belong to any of the types described below. Usually, they have a set of characteristics of an entry-level or intermediate level and are designed for simple everyday tasks: listening to music and game sound through ordinary speakers or headphones, communicating on the Web through a microphone, etc. Conventional sound cards are equipped with both digital-to-analogue and analogue-to-digital converters, they can be either internal or external.

— Audiophile (Hi-Fi). Sound cards designed for lovers of high-quality sound; they can also be useful for professionals who are engaged in professional audio processing and need the most accurate reproduction of the received signal. Accordingly, models of this type are distinguished by high build quality, advanced components, as well as the presence of additional equipment, an abundance of interfaces and advanced customization options (both software and hardware, including even the ability to replace individual circuit components). However, these cards cost accordingly.

— Gamer's. Sound cards originally designed as components for advanced gaming systems. Accordingly, the main purpose of such models is high-quality transmission of game sound, including three-dimensional and multichannel. Typically, gaming audio ca...rds are equipped with advanced DACs and support various special standards (see below); in addition, they may have additional equipment such as remote control modules (see below). The vast majority of models of this type are made internal, but they often have a rather original design (which is useful for modding enthusiasts who use transparent cases).

— CAP. Abbreviation for "Digital to Analogue Converter". Usually, this term refers to the constituent element of a sound card, but in this case it refers to a separate type of audio cards, the distinguishing feature of which is the absence of an analogue-to-digital converter (ADC). Accordingly, DACs are only capable of transmitting sound from a computer to headphones, speakers, etc., and cannot be used to digitize sound from a microphone or other external signal source. Note that this category includes a variety of models — from the simplest USB-headphone adapters, the size of a flash drive, to advanced audiophile-class solutions.

— Audio interface. A kind of opposite to the DAC described above: audio interfaces are designed primarily to digitize the sound coming to the input (for example, from a microphone or an electric guitar). Accordingly, they are not only necessarily equipped with analogue-to-digital converters — usually, these ADCs have very advanced characteristics and extensive sound tuning capabilities (and in some models even hardware switches are provided for this). At the same time, audio interfaces can also work in the digital-to-analogue audio conversion mode (in other words, to output sound to headphones/speakers). The cost of such devices is usually quite high, so it makes sense to purchase them only for those who plan to work a lot with sound recording.

The most advanced multi-channel audio format that a sound card is capable of outputting.

— 2. Standard stereo sound on two channels — left and right. This format allows you to provide a sense of surround sound (especially when using headphones), which is quite enough for most simple tasks. However, it noticeably loses to multi-channel sound in terms of the "immersion effect", which can be critical for demanding gamers and audiophiles.

— 5.1. The classic and most popular multi-channel surround sound format today: a centre channel, two front and two rear channels allow you to achieve a full-fledged “surround effect”, and a separate subwoofer channel provides rich bass sound.

— 7.1. The 7.1 format differs from 5.1 by the presence of two additional channels. There are several options for localizing these channels — for example, a pair of side speakers, a pair of additional speakers above the front ones, etc. Anyway, the 7.1 format provides a more reliable surround sound transmission than 5.1, but such cards are more expensive, and there is less specialized content for 7.1.

When choosing a sound card by the number of channels, it is worth considering such moments. Firstly, multi-channel options are capable of producing sound in simpler formats (for example, a 7.1 card can be used for 5.1 acoustics), and stereo sound output is support...ed by all models in general. Secondly, modern multimedia software (in particular, codecs) allows you to output multi-channel audio through a card with fewer channels — for example, play 5.1 sound through a two-channel card with stereo speakers without quality loss. Thirdly, for the full-fledged operation of multi-channel sound, you will need not only a card, but also appropriate acoustics; therefore, it makes no sense to specifically look for a multi-channel model if you plan to use exclusively stereo speakers.

Various standards and special digital audio technologies that the sound card is officially compatible with. For example, the Dolby and DTS standards in various variations are used primarily for multi-channel audio tracks in films, while DirectSound and EAX provide high-quality “surround” sound in games. In fact, the ability to work with one or another standard is largely determined by the software part of the system, and not by the characteristics of the sound card; however, official compatibility means at least the full compliance of the card with the requirements of the standard and the minimum risk of conflicts at the hardware level.

Sound card compatible with ASIO standard.

ASIO (an abbreviation for Audio Stream Input/Output, i.e. “audio stream input-output”) is a technology designed for professional work with sound in the Windows environment; in particular, it reduces latency and improves the accuracy of the audio stream. If you do not plan to seriously engage in recording, mixing tracks, etc., most likely you will not need this function, but for musicians, sound engineers and other similar professionals, it can be very useful. The ASIO standard provides both software and hardware requirements; therefore, to fully use it, you must have a compatible audio card.

The highest sampling rate provided by the digital-to-analogue converter (DAC) of the audio card. For more details on the role of the DAC, see paragraph "Bit depth" above. Here we note that the quality of its work directly depends on the sampling frequency: the higher it is, the less distortion occurs when converting sound.

Usually in sound cards there are standard values for the maximum sampling rate:

44.1 kHz — corresponds to the sound quality of Audio CD;
48 kHz — DVD;
96 kHz — DVD-Audio 5.1;
192 kHz — DVD-Audio 2.0 (two-channel audio has a higher sampling rate than multi-channel audio for a number of reasons), the highest value in modern consumer-grade sound cards.

Another specific point is that the quality of sound played on a computer cannot be higher than the capabilities of a sound card. In other words, if an audio file is recorded at a higher sampling rate than the audio card can provide, its sound quality will be reduced: for example, on a 44.1 kHz card, even DVD-Audio sound will sound like an Audio CD. Therefore, if you want to fully enjoy high-quality sound, you should choose a model with a high sampling rate.

This parameter determines the ratio of the "clean" sound produced by the DAC at the output to all extraneous noise. As such, it is a pretty strong indicator of sound purity. According to the signal-to-noise ratio, DACs in modern sound cards can be divided as follows:

up to 90 dB — initial level;
90-100 dB — average level, advanced "home" models;
more than 100 dB — professional level.

— Headphone Amplifier. The presence of a separate headphone amplifier in the design of the sound card. Such equipment allows at least to improve the overall sound of the “ears”, as well as to implement various additional settings for such sound (for example, a separate volume control). And some headphones — primarily high-impedance Hi-Fi models — in principle cannot be used without special amplifiers.

— External control module. The presence of an external control module in the design of the sound card. Such a module is actually a control panel with a wired connection; it doesn't give you the freedom of movement that a wireless remote control does (see below), but it's cheaper and often more convenient. So, the control module does not have to be in direct line of sight with respect to the audio card, and the length of the wire is often enough to place the device at the user's hand. However the set of adjustments placed on the external unit is usually limited to the most basic settings; however, even this, usually, is quite enough for comfortable use. In addition, the control unit often provides additional connectors for connecting headphones and a microphone. Among other things, this feature is especially convenient in games — it allows you to adjust the sound without distracting from the game itself. However, other types of sound cards can also be equipped with external modules (see "View").
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— Remote control. A remote control is included with the sound card. Do not confuse this function with the external control module described above: in this case, we mean a classic wireless IR remote control, like those used in TVs. Such a device does not necessarily cover all the capabilities of the audio adapter, however, the range of functions of the remote control can be quite extensive. On the other hand, the need to control a sound card from a distance is extremely rare, and in most cases, the mentioned external module is enough for this. So models with a remote control are not widely used.

— Exit to the front panel. Ability to connect an internal sound card (see "Type") to the connectors on the front panel of the PC. To do this, a special connector (or several connectors) is provided on the board, which is connected to the corresponding connector (s) using a wire. The convenience of this feature is obvious: in desktop computers, the front panel is located closest to the user, and it is to it that it is easiest to connect peripherals that involve frequent plugging and unplugging, such as headphones and microphones. Actually, connectors for such devices are most often displayed on the front panel.

The number of inputs in the design of the sound card using 3.5 mm mini-Jack connectors. This connector, usually used to transmit an analogue signal, is one of the most popular in modern audio technology. Speaking of inputs, it's worth noting that most computer microphones are designed to plug into the 3.5mm jack; this also applies to separate microphone plugs on headsets. At the same time, the specific purpose of the mini-jack sockets in different sound cards may be different; Moreover, in some models, the same socket can be reconfigured and even change its purpose (from input to output and vice versa). These points, usually, are specified in the characteristics.

Using a simple adapter, you can also connect a 6.35 mm plug (Jack) to the 3.5 mm jack.

The number of optical S/P-DIF inputs in the design of the sound card.

S / P-DIF is a digital audio transmission standard with a fairly high bandwidth: in particular, it allows you to work with most multi-channel formats up to 7.1 inclusive. It is widely used in modern audio equipment, in particular, disc players and AV receivers. At the hardware level, S / P-DIF has two versions — with a coaxial connection (described below) and with an optical connection via a TOSLINK cable. The main advantage of the second option is complete insensitivity to electrical interference, because. light pulses are used to transmit information. On the other hand, an optical cable is quite fragile to bend and has limitations in length.