Looks like it’s time to upgrade
If you’ve been hoping for a new Sound Blaster sound card, it’s been a long drought but your wait is finally over. The new X5 Hi-Res Dual DAC USB sound card is available, for a price of $280 directly from Sound Blaster. So you get two Cirrus Logic CS43198 DACs with TOSLINK Optical, RCA and USB A and C. In addition, your headphones can be connected to the Xamp headphone bi-amp with an unbalanced 3.5mm or balanced 4.4mm jack. The inputs match the output choices, with an additional 3.5mm microphone jack, making it an all-in-one audio solution.
As far as audio quality goes, Hardware Asylum was more than impressed with the comparison between the X5 Hi-Res Dual USB DAC and the Sound Blaster X7 they used previously. As with most Sound Blaster products, they’ll work right out of the box, but you’ll need to install some software if you want to get the most out of it. The Creative app will extend the options on your PC and is also available on Android and iOS to connect it to your gaming console.
