Technical Details
Creative has started selling the Sound Blaster AE-X sound card in Europe, which connects to a computer via the PCIe bus. The Sound Blaster AE-X features a dual-channel ESS ES9039Q2M DAC. The manufacturer claims support for 32-bit audio playback at a sampling rate of 384 kHz; the signal-to-noise ratio is 130 dB. Direct decoding of the DSD256 format is supported, and headphones with an impedance of up to 600 ohms can be connected.
Features and Functions
The sound card has a discrete Creative X-amp headphone amplifier, supporting ASIO 2.3 API. It also features an optical S/PDIF input and output, and software functions include Scout mode, AutoEQ presets for headphone calibration, and customizable gaming profiles.
Industry Impact
The audience for dedicated sound cards is small today — most people are satisfied with the built-in sound on their motherboard. Sound cards are purchased when there are headphones with high impedance, audio systems with optics, or a need for audio devices with low latency.