SoundBlaster X-Fi Elite Pro

Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi Elite Pro £206

The X-Fi will be great for fans of games and movies, but if you want an interface solely for music making you're probably better off looking elsewhere.

The MusicRadar Team, Tue 23 Oct, 12:03 pm BST

Entertainment, not music-production, comes first.

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Manufacturer's description

Maximum power, maximum quality, maximum connectivity.

Creative's Sound Blaster® X-Fi Elite Pro delivers Xtreme Fidelity audio creation and entertainment to the PC. Its premium quality 116dB SNR DACs deliver unsurpassed audio quality, while the external I/O module includes guitar, microphone and headphone jacks with independent volume controls. Other features include a phono preamp for direct recording from vinyl, with audio clean-up, MIDI I/O, and optical and coaxial digital I/O. Front panel controls give direct access to EAX effects, 24-bit Crystalizer to restore ‘sparkle' to recordings, and CMSS-3D for stunning headphone surround and up-mix. Audio Creation Mode features bit-accurate ASIO at multiple sample rates with latency as low as 1ms. With 24-bit Effects, 24-bit SoundFont sampling and 3D MIDI, this is the ultimate in audio quality, connectivity and control for the PC.

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MusicRadar rating

3.5 of 5

Pros

Outstanding sound quality. Powerful hardware. Well designed interface. Perfect for games.

Cons

Very limited analogue audio connectivity. Many of the sonic features are inappropriate for music production.

The bottom line

If you like gaming, go for it. Otherwise, it's not the best option for a music maker.

Review Policy

All MusicRadar’s reviews are by independent product specialists, who are not aligned to any gear manufacturer or retailer. Our experts also write for renowned magazines such as Guitarist, Total Guitar, Computer Music, Future Music and Rhythm. All are part of Future PLC, the biggest publisher of music making magazines in the world.