Sound Blaster X3

Details: Category: Audio; Published: Friday, 02 October 2020 16:30

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I’ve been using the Creative Labs X7 DAC to power my desktop speakers and wired headphones for almost 6 years now and have consistently been impressed with the performance, especially when it comes to having it paired up with my speakers. But I rarely run wired headphones because switching between the devices is complicated and you can’t use both at the same time. Not to mention the X7 gets toasty warm on the front when I use it with headphones. All of these issues have had me thinking about adding a dedicated headphone DAC into the mix and given the performance I have seen from the X7 it only makes sense that I would give their Sound Blaster X3 a look. So today I’m going to see what the X3 has to offer and then test out its performance to see if it fits the bill. I’ve heard great things, so I have high expectations. Let’s go check it out!

Product Name: Sound Blaster X3

Review Sample Provided by: Sound Blaster/Creative

Written by: Wes Compton

Amazon Affiliate Link: HERE

Specifications
Weight	330g
Dimensions	129 mm x 129 mm x 40.6 mm
DAC	Dynamic Range (Stereo): 115 dB, THD+N (Stereo): 0.0004%
ADC	Dynamic Range: 104 dB, THD+N: 0.0017%
Dynamic Range (DNR)	115 dB
Max. Playback Quality	Sampling Rate (Playback) : Direct Mode: Playback Resolution (Stereo): PCM 16/24/32-bit / 48.0, 96.0, 192.0 kHz Playback Resolution (Optical Out): PCM 16/24-bit / 48.0, 96.0, 192.0 kHz Surround 7.1: PCM 16/24/32-bit / 48.0, 96.0, 192.0 kHz Dolby Digital Live: 16-bit, 48.0 kHz
Max. Recording Quality	Line-in: 16/24-bit, 48.0, 96.0, 192.0 kHz Mic-in: 16/24-bit / 48.0, 96.0, 192,0 kHz What-U-Hear 16/24-bit, 48.0, 96.0, 192.0 kHz
Connectivity Options (Main)	1 x TOSLINK Optical Out, 1 x ⅛″ Rear Out, 1 x ⅛″ Center / Sub Out, 1 x 1/8″ Headphone / Headset Jack, 1 x 1/8″ Ext. Mic-in Jack, 1 x ⅛″ Front-out, 1 x ⅛″ Side Out Jack, 1 x USB Type-C port for PC / Mac, 1 x ⅛″ Line-in Jack
Headphone Amp	Supported Headphone Impedance: 32–600Ω, Low Gain: 32–149Ω (1.2V RMS @ 32Ω, 1.5V RMS @ 150Ω), High Gain: 150–600Ω (2.3V RMS @ 150Ω, 2.9V RMS @ 600Ω)
Audio Technologies	CrystalVoice Scout Mode
Supported Operating Systems	Windows® 7, Windows® 8.1, Windows® 10
Power	USB Bus Powered, USB-C
Package Contents	Sound Blaster X3 USB Type-A to Type-C Cable Quick Start Guide and Leaflets Warranty Leaflets
System Requirements	Windows® OS Intel® Core™i3 or AMD® equivalent processor 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 1 GB RAM > 600 MB of free hard disk space USB 2.0 / USB 3.0 port Mac® OS Mac OS X® 10.12 or higher 1 GB RAM USB 2.0 / USB 3.0 port PS4 Firmware Ver 5.0 or later Available USB port Nintendo Switch Switch OS 5.0 or later Available USB port (in docking mode) External USB Power (not included) Voice communications is title dependent Android ^ Android OS Ver 7.0 or later Device must have built-in Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) support iOS ^ iOS Ver 11.0 or later Device must have built-in Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) support ^ Use as a remote controller for Sound Blaster X3 on PS4 / Nintendo Switch only, does not support Bluetooth audio streaming
Warranty	1-year Limited Hardware Warranty

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