Sound Blaster X4: New external sound card unveiled

Bild der externen Soundkarte Creative Sound Blaster X4

Creative Technology has announced the updated successor of the X3, which almost completely convinced in our test. The external USB DAC sound card Sound Blaster X4 focuses on discrete and virtual surround sound. Super X-Fi headphone holography and Dolby Digital Live are said to provide the best possible sound quality for movies, gaming and music listening.

Sound Blaster X4 with many improvements

Changing of the guard at Creative Technology: the approximately two-year-old Sound Blaster X3 is getting a successor, which is supposed to provide an even better sound experience with many detail improvements.

Visually, the manufacturer remains true to its own design language, but under the hood, the Sound Blaster X4 has changed quite a bit. For example, the sound card relies on a new SmartComms kit (for Windows), which is supposed to simplify online communication in the home office with features such as auto mute and two-way noise cancellation.

Image of the back of the Creative Sound Blaster X4 — Many connectivity options make the Sound Blaster X4 an all-in-one audio hub

A variety of connectivity options and convenient controls are said to make the X4 the ideal all-in-one audio solution for a wide range of compatible devices. These include PC, Mac, PS5, PS4 and Nintendo Switch.

Award-winning Super X-Fi on board again

Super X-Fi technology, which picked up a total of 23 “best of” awards at CES in 2019 and 2020, is also back in the Sound Blaster X4. It replicates the sound image of a high-quality multi-channel surround speaker system for headphones and personalizes it for a natural listening experience.

As a result, the manufacturer promises a larger surround environment, more depth, immersion and spatiality effects that are said to be equivalent to a movie theater, gaming arena or concert hall. The renowned Surround Virtualization technology is another highlight. It expands and enhances the spatial data of the incoming audio stream to provide listeners with a particularly immersive listening experience on up to 7.1 discrete channels.

Front panel image of the Creative Sound Blaster X4 — Revised front panel controls and knobs allow for precise operation.

Windows users will also enjoy Dolby Digital Live encoding to convert audio content to this multichannel surround sound standard in real time. The Sound Blaster X4 is also ideal for use in combination with studio headphones with up to 600 ohms at 114 dB and 24-bit/192 kHz high-resolution playback.

Price and Availability

The Sound Blaster X4 is available now for an MSRP of $149.99 on Creative.com. It is highly probable that the product will be delivered to retailers soon, but the manufacturer has not yet given a date.