Like most of you PC and along with it my office is almost like a living being, slowly evolving. Every year or two I’m changing out my video cards, my motherboard, even keyboards and mice. It’s weird though, looking back there are only a few things that seem to be very consistent, my desk and for the most part my speakers. Well when I was replacing my desk last fall I decided that I wanted to move from the Corsair SP2500’s to something new. Now keep in mind, the Corsairs sounded good as did the Klipsch’s that I have before that. So to continue to evolve I wanted to go a new direction. Well the timing was good as Creative Labs had just recently introduced their X7 and more recently their E-MU XM7 bookshelf speakers. I loved the X5 when I covered it and for a long time I even used it over the onboard on my PC but the X7 looked to be a much more fitting permanent option. Well I’ve been testing both the X7 and the XM7 speakers for a while now and we can finally sit down and go over what they are and how well they performed.

Product Name: Creative Labs X7 and E-MU XM7 bookshelf speakers

Review Samples Provided by: Creative Labs

Written by: Wes

Pictures by: Wes

Amazon Links: X7 HERE and E-MU XM7 HERE

 

X7 Specifications
Audio Processor SB-Axx1
SBX Pro Studio Yes
Amplifier Power Output

Maximum Power Output

38W + 38W (4 ohm, 1kHz, 10% THD)2

27W + 27W (8 ohm, 1kHz, 10% THD)2

Rated Power Output

35W + 35W (4 ohm, 1kHz, 1% THD)2

20W + 20W (8 ohm, 1kHz, 1% THD)2

Headphone Amp Output Impedance

2.2 ohm

Total Harmonic Distortion

0.05% (1kHz, 4 ohm, 30W)2

2 Using bundled AC-DC adapter (24V 2.91A)

Max. Playback Quality

Stereo Direct playback sampling rates:

24-bit / 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4, 192kHz

Surround playback sampling rates:

24-bit / 44.1, 48, 96, 192 kHz

Optical:

16/24-bit / 44.1, 48, 96kHz

USB Audio Streaming from Mobile Devices

iOS Playback/recording:

24-bit / 44.1, 48 kHz

Android Playback:

16-bit / 44.1 kHz

Max. Recording Quality 24-bit / 44.1, 48, 96, 192kHz
Output

5.1 Channels

Stereo Amplified

Max. Headphone Output 600Ω
Included Accessories Headphone Stand
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) 127dB (DAC)
Connectivity Options (Main)

microUSB

Microphone:

Built-in Stereo Mic

1 x 1/8" (3.5mm) Mic In

Line / Optical:

1 x RCA Aux/Line In

1 x TOSLINK Optical In

1 x TOSLINK Optical Out

Speaker:

2 x Binding Post Passive Speaker Out (L/R)

1 x RCA Line/Front Speaker Out

1 x 1/8" (3.5mm) Rear Speaker Out

1 x 1/8" (3.5mm) Center/Sub Speaker Out

Headphone:

1 x 1/8" (3.5mm) Headphone Out

1 x 1/4" (6.3mm) Headphone Out

USB HOST:

1 x Type A USB Host Port - Device Audio Stream & Charging

Frequency Response

Frequency Response @ 192KHz (Stereo-Direct):

20 Hz – 90 kHz

Audio Fidelity Up to 24-bit / 192kHz
Audio Codec

AAC

SBC

aptX Low Latency

Bluetooth Bluetooth 4.1 (Low Energy)
Bluetooth Multipoint Two Devices
Bluetooth Profiles

A2DP (Wireless stereo Bluetooth)

AVRCP (Bluetooth remote control)

HFP (Handsfree Profile)

Operating Range Up to 10m/33ft
Near Field Communication (NFC) Yes
Included / Downloadable Software

Sound Blaster X7 Control software

Sound Blaster X7 Control App

Supported Operating Systems

Mac OS X v10.6.8 and above

Windows® 10

Windows® 8.1

Windows® 8

Windows® 7

Windows Vista®

Supported Smart Devices

iOS:

iPhones/iPads running iOS 6.0 or higher for Bluetooth^

iPhones/iPads running iOS 6.0 or higher for USB Host Audio streaming via Lightning Port

^ Devices must support Bluetooth 4.1 (Low Energy) or higher

Android:

Phones/Tablets running Android 2.3 or higher for Bluetooth

Phones/Tablets running Android 4.1 or higher for USB Host Streaming*

*Devices must support AOA2 protocol for USB Host Streaming

Compatible Platform

USB 1.1

USB 2.0

USB 3.0

Bluetooth

Line-In

Supported Gaming Consoles

PlayStation® 3

PlayStation® 4

Xbox360®

Xbox One

Microphone Type Dual-array Noise Canceling Condenser
Dimensions 147.0 x 150.0 x 130.0 mm (5.8 x 5.9 x 5.1 inches)
System Requirements

Windows

Intel® Core™2 Duo or AMD® equivalent processor (2.8 GHz or faster recommended)

Intel, AMD or 100% compatible motherboard

Microsoft® Windows® 10 32/64-bit, Windows® 8.1/8.0 32/64-bit, Windows 7 32/64-bit, Windows Vista® 32/64-bit SP1 or higher

1GB RAM

>600 MB of free hard disk space

Available USB 2.0/3.0 port (High Speed recommended with driver)

Macintosh

Macintosh running Mac® OS X® 10.6.8 or higher

1GB RAM

>600 MB of free hard disk space

Available USB 2.0/3.0 port (High Speed recommended with software)

iOS

iPhones/iPads running iOS 6.0 or higher for Bluetooth^

iPhones/iPads running iOS 6.0 or higher for USB Host Audio streaming via Lightning Connector

^ Devices must support Bluetooth 4.1 (Low Energy) or higher

Android

Phones/Tablets running Android 2.3 or higher for Bluetooth

Phones/Tablets running Android 4.1 or higher for USB Host Streaming*

* Devices must support AOA2 USB Streaming

Package Contents

Sound Blaster X7 Device

Quick Start Leaflet

WW Warranty Leaflets

24V/2.91A AC-DC Power Adaptor and cable

RCA to 3.5mm Stereo Cable for Front Out

RCA to 3.5mm Stereo Cable (Female) for Line-In

microUSB Cable 1.5m

Headphone Stand

Warranty 1-year limited hardware warranty
E-MU XM7 Specifications
System Configuration 2-way
Power Output Max 60W per channel
Drivers

Woofer: 5” (132 mm) special combination diaphragm with oversized magnetic structure and shielding

Tweeter: 1” (25 mm) silk dome tweeter

Dimensions Each Speaker: 298 x 174 x 232 mm (11.7 x 6.85 x 9.14 inches)
Weight Each: Approx 4.35kg
Included Accessories 2 x Soft Grilles, 2 x Speaker Cable 2.4m, User Manual
Movies / Music Yes
Connector Type Gold-plated binding posts
Color Brown wood grain with metallic grey finish / Black wood grain finish
Design Passive
Package Contents

2 x E-MU XM7 Passive Speakers

2 x Soft Grilles

User Manual

2 x Speaker Cable 2.5m

Warranty 1-year limited hardware warranty

 

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garfi3ld's Avatar
garfi3ld replied the topic: #37313 22 Oct 2015 18:02
Today I finally take a look at the Sound Blaster X7 and XM7 speakers that I have been testing. Check it out!

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