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Gadgets Auzentech Collaborates with Creative Labs
Anh Tuan Huynh (Blog) - April 18, 2007 4:05 PM

34 comment(s) - last by rexian96.. on Apr 19 at 7:41 PM

Auzentech's new Prelude 7.1 to feature Creative Labs X-Fi audio processor

Auzentech this week announced the first third-party sound card featuring Creative Labs’ X-Fi audio processor. The upcoming Auzentech Prelude 7.1 couples Creative Labs’ EAX 5.0 with Dolby Digital Live multi-channel audio encoding technologies. Auzentech promises Dolby Digital Live encoding under Windows Vista with the Prelude 7.1.

Details of the Prelude 7.1 remain scarce, as the product isn’t scheduled to launch until next month. Creative Labs’ X-Fi initially launched with hardware acceleration, however, the latest X-Fi XtremeAudio lacks hardware acceleration, even while carrying the X-Fi name. It is unknown which X-Fi audio processor the Prelude 7.1 integrates.

Creative Labs has had troubles enabling hardware acceleration for EAX audio technologies under Microsoft’s Universal Audio Architecture, or UAA, under Windows Vista. Creative Labs found a work around for UAA with its ALchemy OpenAL wrapper.

"We’re excited to provide Auzentech with our award-winning X-Fi audio chipset and technology to provide an outstanding audio experience for Auzentech’s customers,” Steve Erickson said, vice president, Creative Labs Audio Division.

Expect Auzentech to unleash the Prelude 7.1 at the end of next month.

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RE: Drivers?

By sotti on 4/18/2007 6:20:36 PM , Rating: 3

actually creative drivers have sucked for quite sometime.

I used to run dual CPUs back in the day (bp6 rest in peace), and creatives win2K driver would crap out on any EAX game, I used to have to change my hardware abstraction layer from ACPI multi to ACPI single just to play diablo2.

Their support for Vista has been horrible.

CL is really a bad company these days.

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RE: Drivers?

By sxr7171 on 4/18/2007 6:36:45 PM , Rating: 2

These days? It's been that way since the mid 90s. Nowadays with integrated sound getting so good, there is no reason to spend $100-200 on those cards. Multicore processing should take care of CPU hit without H/W acceleration.

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RE: Drivers?

By imaheadcase on 4/18/2007 6:44:12 PM , Rating: 3

You would think that, but sound tests still show hardware soundcard is still better than onboard. Esp since apps are USING both cores now..

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RE: Drivers?

By GlassHouse69 on 4/18/2007 9:08:05 PM , Rating: 2

exactly!

no longer can those claims of "running my virus scan while playing half life" be made.

play a game like stalker and all of your cores will be maxing out at times. 4 cores might be able to do it... but why?? last year alone, 3-10% reduction in cpu usage for using a creative vs other brands showing little or no % difference. that was during k8 testing too, not like they were slow machines.

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