External Sound: Creative Labs Extigy – THG.RU

For The PC Or For The Living Room?

The concept of an external sound card connected via the USB port isn’t a new one. Both Altec Lansing and Microsoft have already offered USB-based solutions that made it possible to do without a sound card. Abit’s solution was closer to that of Extigy, and the company had already developed USB Theater, a little box capable of decoding stereo sounds and Dolby Digital, though its functions were very limited.

For a price of $149.99, Extigy is now offering a great deal more. It is already producing the equivalent of a SoundBlaster Audigy Platinum in terms of connections. No other ports are suitable for use with sound cards, with the obvious exception of the SB1394 port, but that is of little interest since it has a limited bandwidth in the USB 1.1 version (1.5 MB per second).

Furthermore, this is a true Dolby Digital decoder that is independent of the CPU and can function as a standalone without being connected to a computer. It can be used as effectively on a PC as on a hi-fi system, a game console or even a full-sized DVD player. To summarize, the Extigy is much more than a mere deluxe USB card. It functions as if it is perfectly at home in environments that have nothing to do with computing.

The 24 Extra Bits

Before going any further, however, we’d like to make a couple of small things clear. In fact, ever since Creative Labs first rolled out the Audigy, they have been making claims about their communications card, which is questionable, to say the least. First of all, they claim that it is capable of 24-bit sound sampling at 96 kHz. The 24-bit logo appears all over the place – on the box, on the installation CD, even on the product itself. Yet it has been confirmed, even by Creative Labs’ own technicians, that neither the Audigy nor the Extigy are capable of recording or playing 24-bit sound at 96 kHz. There is actually entry-level support that the card automatically downmixes to 16 bits / 48 kHz to process the sound. So why is the 24-bit logo featured on packaging for products such as the Extigy or the Audigy cards? Then there is the fact that this same logo indicates a signal-to-noise ratio of 100 dB, where our tests have shown that neither the Audigy nor the Extigy are capable of levels above 90 dB — and even this is less than optimal, for both analog and digital.

In the computer world, it is currently accepted that the theoretical performances claimed are often better than the true figures, but this does not apply to the audio world. This means that a professional who buys a card that claims to have a 100dB SNR is entitled to expect a result that is within 1 or 2 dB more or less than that. Once again, this is not the case for either the Audigy or the Extigy. Finally, the Extigy also has an EAX Advanced HD logo. This is very strange because this product only supports EAX version 2.0, but no higher. Creative Labs explains this with the fact that the Extigy is delivered with Audio Clean Up, Time Scaling and Dream modules that are capable of handling music but not games. So it refers to a version of an EAX Advanced HD working at reduced capacity! Furthermore, these are software modules that are unable to take advantage of the Extigy hardware.

In conclusion, of the four logos on the box, only the Dolby Digital logo has been proven to be totally justified and relevant. It is a pity that Creative Labs seems to feel the need to “exaggerate” the characteristics of its products in this way. Certainly, both the Extigy and the Audigy are innovative sound cards that are technologically advanced when compared with the competition. Their real performance is perfectly sufficient to make them attractive and competitive. They have no need to make dishonest marketing claims that embellish their advantages.

Inputs And Outputs

The Extigy consists of a fairly wide, flattish, gray and black box. This rather conservative look gives it an air of quality. On the front, there is a power switch and all the main controls, as well as the sort of connections that are normally found at the back of the sound card (main input, mike input and headphone output). There is a potentiometer for adjusting the microphone input gain and another for the overall volume. On the far left, there are optical digital inputs and outputs protected by hoods. Between the power switch and the volume control there is a CMSS (Creative Multi-Speaker Surround) activation knob. This makes it possible to simulate a sound on six channels using only the front two analog inputs. Finally, there are four LED lights to indicate the status of playback, CMSS or Dolby Digital mode and transmission via the infrared remote control.

The loudspeaker connections are on the back of the Extigy. There are three mini-jack analog outputs for 5.1 sound and a digital mini-jack output for connecting loudspeakers such as the MegaWorks 510D, for example. Creative Labs has also considered people who have a full-sized DVD player with the addition of a coaxial digital input. The midi inputs and outputs are on the right, as are the USB port and the power socket. It is a pity that Creative did not think of completing the Extigy by adding a small USB hub, which would have come in very handy, but overall, this is a very complete set-up that is not lacking in any type of audio connection.

The Extigy is delivered with an infrared remote control similar to those supplied with the Audigy Platinum and Platinum eX. It not only incorporates the controls needed to operate the external rack, but is also associated with Remote Center software. The latter displays information on the screen in overlay form, regardless of what software is being used at the time. The Extigy is supplied with PlayCenter 3.0 software that can convert your PC into a virtual jukebox. This offers armchair listening for MP3 files or audio CDs, thanks to the remote control.

Characteristics

The Extigy is built around Creative’s DSP CA0181-DCT. This means that the chip is not wholly an Audigy creation, but a derivative thereof. The chip has been modified to operate via a USB connection and has been made lighter so that it can be supported by an IEEE1394. You can see that the size of the CA0181-DCT is less than half that of the chip in the Audigy. The equipment also contains another Creative Labs chip, the CA0180-IAG, as well as a Philips UDA 1328T chip, which is also found inside the Audigy.

The Extigy has a pretty wide range of capabilities. On the other hand, as has been explained above, support for 24-bit / 96 kHz sound is relative. The Extigy cannot actually read or record a sound file of that quality, or even work on it. The only task that can really be performed at 96 kHz is connecting to another peripheral via the S/PDIF input. All the components are, in fact, more or less compatible with 24 bits / 96 kHz, but in practice the Extigy is limited to 16 bits / 48 kHz. Recording and analog recovery are possible at 24 bits / 48 kHz, but in actual fact the processor downmixes to 16 bits and then upmixes back again.

On the MIDI side, the Extigy is much more limited than the Audigy. It does not officially support SoundFonts and is therefore not supplied with adequate software, but this system can still be used by means of the plugins available for CakeWalk and Cubase VST (these can be downloaded from www.livesynth.com or homepage.mac.com/bismark/, respectively). The same applies to ASIO drivers that are not supplied in the package, although various unofficial drivers can be found at ici. Of course, you don’t get great latency rates via the USB port. Creative has managed to reduce it to 40 ms, which isn’t bad for a USB sound card.

The 32-track DirectSound 3D hardware support and the EAX 1.0 and 2.0, as well as the A3D 1.0, are valuable features. Note that the Extigy, unlike the Audigy, does not support multi-environment management. As a reminder, here is a list of functions supported by the first two versions of the EAX:

EAX 1.0

Support for echo and reflected sound, depending on position, within a game

Incorporation of 26 pre-selected effects

Possibilities for adjusting effects

Automatic echo correction depending on distance between source and receiver

EAX 2.0

Support for obstruction and occlusion

Adjustable interface for regulating effects with the addition of such factors as room size and echo delay

Improvement of distance model for handling echo and initial reflex depending on the position of the user

Advanced model for simulation of sound waves emanating from their sources and adjustable air absorption model

Finally, Dolby Digital decoding is handled exclusively by the Zoran ZR38601 chip, whose older brother, the ZR38650, is found inside Creative Labs’ Inspire 5700 decoder. The decoding has the following characteristics:

• 50 MIPS multi-operation instructions
• Proven architecture and utility
• Built-in decoding for AC-3 & MPEG
• Hostless operation, no glue chips needed
• SiliconSoftware: Virtual 3D Surround, Music Modes
• Serial, parallel data and control I/O
• Built-in S/P-DIF Transmitter & Receiver
• Multiple sample rates from 32k to 96k
• 8-channel output capable

Test Configuration

The Extigy was tested both in a PC configuration and in stand-alone mode using a full-sized DVD player. The two sound cards serving as reference models were the Sound Blaster Audigy Platinum and Terratec’s DMX 6Fire 24/96.

Converter performance

We performed a series of tests using Right Mark Audio Analyser 3.1 and Penguin Audio Meter software. We then made analog to digital recordings, and ended with a subjective listening test to evaluate the quality of the converters. For the analog to digital recordings, we used Terratec’s DMX 6Fire 24/96. The pre-amplified mike input test produced similar results to those of the Audigy Platinum, which is to say that the quality was accurate, although not without a certain amount of hiss and distortion.

Bandwidth test

The frequency response curve for each card indicated whether it was capable of reproducing frequencies with balance for the whole sound spectrum. The test was measured from 20Hz through 20 kHz, these being the limits of normal human hearing. It can be seen that the Extigy did not produce perfect results, with performance ranging from -10.10 to +0.82 dB. There was a major peak at 1 kHz and very serious fluctuations from 5 kHz.

Noise and interference levels

The second test concerned the noise and interference levels. It measured the position of the card’s background noise and indicated the sensitivity to various forms of interference in the computer environment, such as power supply, transformers and computer screens. The result obtained from the Extigy was more than acceptable, with a figure of -84.6 dB.

Dynamic Range

The dynamic range test, which supplements the previous one, calculates the noise level generated in the presence of a sound signal, in this case a sine wave (1 kHz at -60 dB) at the card input point. This test provides as reliable a guide as possible to the dynamics of the card during recording. The peak observed at 1 kHz is therefore normal. The Extigy again acquitted itself very well with a score of 80.9 dB.

Total Harmonic Distortion (THD)

The next test was designed to measure the harmonic distortion, or THD. It tests the audio fidelity of the card, in which the harmonics are detected when a single but powerful sine wave (-3 dB) is sent. With an observed THD of 0.038%, the Extigy proved itself to have high fidelity and scored well on musical recording.

Diaphony

Finally, we examined intermodulation, or diaphony. This test measured the separation between the left and right audio channels on the card, in other words, the highest sound level that could be heard on one channel before it begins to be heard on the other as well. This is a test of particular interest in a multi-channel environment. The Extigy had no problem in this respect, and had an excellent score of 101.2 dB.

Gaming Results

DirectSound and DirectSound 3D Results

The level of use of processor capacity measured represents how much of the central processor’s capacity was used when the card was playing on 8, 16 and 32 DirectSound 3D tracks. The figures noted were unequivocal. The Extigy behaved like one of the worst sound cards we have ever tested. This is not the fault of the Extigy itself but of data transfer via the USB port, which monopolizes up to 20% of the Pentium 4 at 2 GHz! These figures have been extrapolated from a theoretical benchmark. It only remains to be seen if the performance drops as drastically in practice in a gaming environment.

Results in Quake III Arena

In Quake III, the Extigy again put in a poor performance. When compared to the Audigy, there is a loss that can be as much as 24 images per second, or an almost 20% reduction in performance.

Half Life Results

The same performance level was noted in Half Life using the Survive demo that uses EAX. The activation of the EAX with the Extigy did not produce a major deterioration in performance, but there was still a loss of around 20% of images per second in comparison to PCI cards.

In Use

Installation of the Extigy is a mere formality. All you need do is plug in the external power supply and the USB cable and insert the installation CD. The external card is recognized instantly, and all that remains is installation of the drivers. We first tried the Extigy on its own, and then added in turn the Audigy Player and a DMX 6 Fire 24/96 in the PC. There were no problems; no lack of compatibility between the cards was detected. So an Extigy can be installed on a PC that already has a sound card. All you then have to do is to decide which card will handle play-back and recording in order for everything to work perfectly.

Once installed, you can see that the Extigy’s controller is much simpler and more concise than that of the Audigy. The mixer makes it possible to adjust the sound level of each input and output and the various sound parameters. The Extigy automatically recognized the outputs connected to the back, so there is no need to specify the type of loudspeaker used. For anyone who is in doubt, however, there are three options for “forcing” the restitution mode. These are stereo, 4.1 or 5.1. The Settings button offers access to several additional adjustment features, such as the height of the housing and the central track or activation of redirection of the bass, a very useful feature for most multimedia loudspeakers.

In Use, Continued

The Extigy is at its best when decoding 5.1, thanks to its Zoran chip. Whether on a PC or accompanying a full-sized DVD player, it performs miracles and offers excellent positioning quality. When attached to loudspeakers such as MegaWorks 510D, the result is a feeling of total immersion in movies. Tests performed on the movies Saving Private Ryan and Matrix were very conclusive and show that the Extigy is not only a high-quality external sound card, but also an effective external decoder, which takes up little room. It can thus be used easily with a games console, a DVD player, or a PC. It should be noted, however, that unlike the Audigy cards, the Extigy only decodes Dolby Digital, and not DTS. This is mainly due to the fact that DTS works with variable flow that can exceed that of the USB port. Despite everything, the quality of the Extigy’s Dolby Digital decoding remains much better than that of any other card that performs this operation through the software, such as the Audigy.

Conclusion

At first glance, the Extigy does not appear to be of particular interest because it is marketed as primarily a PC product, so this type of usage is rather unspecific. It is unlikely that novice users who don’t want to open up their PC and install a new card would choose such a complete, top-of-the range product. It is more likely to be used with a laptop, because you cannot add a PCI card to one of these. But portability is not the Extigy’s greatest asset, especially as it requires power. Yet for a price of $149.99, you get an external decoder with the same functions and features as an Audigy Platinum, though without the SB1394, of course.

Anyone who wants to keep their PCI sound card for games, yet still have high quality 5.1 decoding and the possibility of extremely accurate recording, should consider buying the Extigy. But for games players who are serious about performance, it would be better to hang on to an internal sound card. The Extigy gobbles up too much of the processor’s resources for usage of this type.

To summarize, the Extigy could also prove to be a very advantageous solution in terms of value for money if you are looking for an external AC3 decoder to use with a DVD player or games console. The price of $149.99 is unbeatable in the home cinema market, where premium decoders cost more, and are often of lesser quality.