Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer 7.1 Sound Card (70SB073A02007)

Reviewed by: Phil (Worcester UK)

OMG this is an a great soundcard but if your like me and goin from onboard to this its an insane change movie's and music are increadable the sound is so crisp its awsome with speakers or headphones and there are so many adaptable settings its fully customizable as for gaming a huge different but if u want a huge difference with gaming you do need a good headset also but yer deffinatly recoment :D

Reviewed by: NaWaZ (Middlesbrough)

Had this sound card for a few months now and I am still stunned at how clear sound actually is. I also bought Creative T7900 7.1 speakers which are just as stunning. Its literally a mini home cinema now :)

I would of prefered if this used the small PCI slot (1x) I might not have space for it if i consider going crossfire in the future :(

Reviewed by: mikeo

I've held off buying a new sound card since building a new PC round Vista 64 because of all the apparent driver problems. But Creative would finally appear to have sorted their Vista driver issues.

Music (both MP3 and CD's) are MUCH better than via the Realtek CODEC, by a long shot! Games so far have proved to work fine as well, I finally have 5.1 sound in Mass Effect.

Even a couple of older games (Directsound / EAX) work fine via Creative's Alchemy software.

Though having said the above ... hardware accelerated sound via a separate sound card, has it's days numbered. OpenAL and software rendered sound / effects is the way forward with todays fast processors. Though there's still a bit of life left yet in the old dog (as they say).

Reviewed by: stephen mcglade

just got this card and the sound is top class playing games and music

well done Creative labs.

Reviewed by: sam

bought cod 4 in jan 08 and quickly realised i needed to upgrade my pc ( i had sound from the motherboard and an 8600 GTS ). bought this sound card along with a leadtek 8800 GT. OMG! what an improvement. Playing css online i can hear enemies all over the map and overall everything is much much clearer and more crisp.
music wise it was just as good. listening to music you can hear all the cymbal crashes which are normally muffled by vocals. guitar riffs and bass are perfectly clear as well
overall id have to give this 5/5 without doubt. this is a perfect upgrade for a pc user and that coupled with the excellent value for money makes it a must have !"!!! get this card!!

Reviewed by: Colin

To start with some advice, I bought the OEM version of this product and for anyone running Vista - don't install anything from the CD. Grab the latest drivers and software from the Creative website. Saves a lot of hassle. Obviously can't comment on what comes with the retail package, but it will probably be the same, so be warned.

The sound from this card is excellent and a huge improvement over older Creative models (as well as any onboard sound). I'm very happy with it and would recommend to anyone on a budget who still demands high quality audio.

Reviewed by: DragoX

Bought these (not from OCUK) AND ITS INSAIN!!!!!! paired with my fatal1ty headset i can hear everything in games and all my movies are brill. the X-fi Crystallizer makes everything great and there is this cmss3d thing that turns my 2.1 headset into 9.1 surround sound (run the xfi control panel test and tell me thats not 9.1!!!). This card was 150% worth it!

Reviewed by: JB

was a bit sceptical about how much improvement this would really make but it really has to be heard to be believed. Playing stalker with headphones it really seems like sounds are coming from behind you and music with a 2.1 speaker system sounds fantastic! well worth the price

Reviewed by: Neil

Just bought the card today, went from OB to this its great i play cs. 1.6 before hand it was just one big sound no left or right threw my Sennheiser headset. NOW i have front - back - left - right! :P its great. 5/5 if you want better sound for your games get this!

Reviewed by: Martyn

Just installed this and WOW.
Its all been said before! Far superior to onboard sound. Hearing really is believing.
Just played Bioshock and there is so much more to hear, if you are still on onboard sound then it is your loss!!!

Reviewed by: remo

I've always been oblivious to sound cards, thought they were a waste of money. But after hearing how much better a sound card would be compared to onboard ac'97, thought i might give it a try.. as soon as i plugged up and installed the drivers, my speakers never sounded so good! CSS sounds good with headphones - much cleaner. you can even ajust the subwoofer for better explosions.....

Reviewed by: paul

I just installed the card today this is the first soundcard i have owned omg, what have i been missing the sound is so much better than my onboard 7.1.

Reviewed by: Colin

Just installed now and all i can say is wow. Music sounds so much better, i thought it wouldnt make much difference but omg, this is a must!

Reviewed by: Defsquad

i have just installed this awesome card paired with creative inspire 6100 superb sound made my audigy sound lame

Reviewed by: Sazz181

I can't eblieve just how amazing this Sound Card is!

With Creative Inspire T7900 7.1 surround, I couldn't quite believe how realistic it was. As said many times before, the Creative Crystalizer means you can change how clear sounds are, which just adds to the realism. I have used this with headphones too (while waiting for 7.1 speakers) and it sounds just as good.

Now, I would have sworn that guy was shooting me from behind my bed :-)

For price, features and performance, I give this a big 5/5.

NB: Despite the name XtremeGamer, I couldn't find anything to improve about music quality

Reviewed by: DG

This card is ace: I'm running it with a set of Creative Inspire T6100's (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SP-088-CL) and it is incredible to hear explosions going off around me.

By the way, it looks to me as if this is exactly the same card as the Music version, but I bought this in person and they didn't have the Music one in stock. For a £100 sound setup, look no further than this and a set of T6100's.

Reviewed by: Giggz

I bought this after going from onboard 7.1 and damn i wish i had before, i can hear anything on a game people sneaking up on bf2142 is no more. If you're after a card then this is the one for you

Reviewed by: BoomhaueR

I got this, not convinced it would make much difference compared to my realtek semi-onboard sound card. I was wrong!

The 24-bit crystallizer makes your music so much clearer...
Games sound amazing also, you can hear everything around you perfectly, its almost as good as headphones (good ones).

I had doubts about the software...but again was pleasantly surprised at how simple to use it is. You can customize different modes...gaming, music, mixer...and switch between them in a few clicks.
Installing drivers and software and updating was also very simple.

There is only one thing i would criticize...especially as its supposed to be a gamer card...is that i have to unplug a speaker channel to plug in my microphone and headphones.
This is annoying if you don't have front ports (or they don't work), as you have to change the jacks all the time.

I would suggest Creative make extra sockets for headset and microphone..and have a software "switch" to alternate between them and speakers.

Reviewed by: Andy

Just recv'd this excellent soundcard, ordered on sunday and arrived tuesday morning, great service.
Have been using my old Creative Audigy S/card for about 4 years now and thought i needed a change as am building a new system gradually.
Installation went smoothly, whacked in the driver CD and installed everything, loads of different bits and pieces to choose from.
Set it to Gaming Mode, and thought i would give it a go with a bit of music and WOW, I can't believe how crisp the sound is on my 7.1 Creative Inspire speakers.
If you're looking for a new card, then this is definitely the one for you.

Reviewed by: Jonny Tyson

I just bought this, and I have to say, my ears are now in a better place. I went from onboard audio, to this. Probably the best thing I have ever bought. My music has never sounded so awesome!

Reviewed by: lord kit

Very nice from onboard sound to this!

Plus i play a lot of 2142 - OMG - u can hear anyone comming up behind u trying to knife you!!

Reviewed by: Lloyd

I got this card not thinking it would make alot of difference from my standard Realtek onboard sound... OMG wasnt i wrong!!!

The sound is now sharp and crisp.
My Sony Headphones sound wicked and i got my first headache from listening to music... WOOT!!

Get this card! You will not regret it!

5/5*