Product Guide

Sound Blaster X-Fi & 7.1 speaker systems

The purpose of this guide is to explain in detail how one can achieve outstanding 7.1 audio output with their X-Fi sound card using various speaker and home theatre systems.

Products used in this guide:

-Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Music (P/N 70SB046000007)

-Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum (P/N 70SB046000001)

-Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty (P/N 70SB046600002)

-Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro (P/N 70SB055000002)

-Gigaworks S750 (P/N 51MF7010AA000)

-Various home theatre systems that have a 7.1 digital receiver

Optional accessories:

-Home Theatre Cable (P/N 30SB000000006)

-Fiber Optic Toslink Cable (P/N CB20620200000)

-SPDIF Coaxial Cable (P/N CB20120200001)

NOTE: This guide works under the assumption that your sound card is properly installed and functioning correctly. If you need installation or troubleshooting assistance, please refer to the support notes at the end of this guide.

The X-Fi sound cards are designed primarily to interact with Creative speaker systems. However, this doesn’t mean that they won’t work with other brands of PC speakers or even home theatre systems. Depending on the model of X-Fi you have, there are several possible setups.

X-Fi (any model) with Gigaworks S750 7.1 speakers

This is by far the easiest setup. You will need any model of X-Fi card with the Gigaworks speakers (this also applies to any 7.1 speaker system we sell). There are a few important things to remember here:

-Make sure the audio cable running from the Gigaworks is properly connected to the X-Fi card.

-Make sure that your X-Fi speaker settings are configured for 7.1 output.

-If you want to listen to music or watch movies, make sure your X-Fi is set to Entertainment Mode.

-If your intent is to play games, set the X-Fi to Game Mode:

As mentioned before, this setup applies to any 7.1 speaker system we currently sell.

X-Fi (Platinum, Fatal1ty, or Elite Pro) with a home theatre system

This setup is a bit trickier. The idea is to use the X-Fi as the digital decoder. You will need the X-Fi Platinum, the X-Fi Fatal1ty, or the X-Fi Elite Pro. Also, you will need a home theatre that includes a 7.1 digital receiver.

To get the signal from the X-Fi to the receiver, you will need to run either an optical or a coaxial cable from your sound card’s I/O module to the 7.1 receiver.

-Make sure the receiver is set to accept a digital signal.

-Make sure the X-Fi is in the correct mode for what you want to do (Entertainment or Game Mode)

This connection will allow you to use your 7.1 home theatre as your PC speaker system for music, movies, and games.

One important thing to remember is that you need to set your sound card as a Digital Passthrough Device if you’re going to have your 7.1 receiver decode the digital signal for movies. This only applies if you are playing back Dolby Digital or DTS content, like on a DVD movie, on your PC.

X-Fi Extreme Music with a home theatre system

IF you don’t have the X-Fi Platinum, Fatal1ty or Elite Pro, you can still hook up your Extreme Music to your home theatre system. In some ways this is easier than going Digital, but there are more cables to worry about.

First off, you will need our Home Theatre Cable.

The three minijack plugs hook into the sound card in the exact same way as the diagram shows at the beginning of this guide. The difference is that you have eight RCA-style plugs on the speaker end of the cable. These plugs allow you to achieve an analog 7.1 connection with your home theatre.

-Make sure your 7.1 receiver has the RCA receptacles necessary to accommodate the analog 7.1 plugs.

-The sound card settings will be the same as if you were using a 7.1 PC speaker system.

Support Information

If you are experiencing difficulty with setting up your sound card for the above operations, or if you need help with other issues related to our hardware, our Support staff would be happy to assist you.

Phone support (M-F, 9:00-6:00 Central time) – 405.742.6655