As many consumers are furious about the lack of fully-functional SoundBlaster X-Fi drivers for Windows Vista from Creative Technology, the company is quietly preparing to roll-out its new SoundBlaster X-Fi 2, a new-generation audio solution for personal computers. Perhaps, the novelty will satisfy their needs?
There are no details about Creative Labs SoundBlaster X-Fi 2 available at the moment. The mention of the second-generation X-Fi audio card was noticed by some sharp eyes in the Windows Vista Hardware Compatibility List that does not list any details about unreleased hardware. However, the fact that on the 11th of March, 2008, Creative Technology received “Designed for Windows Vista” and “Vista Premium” logos for its SB X-Fi 2 may be an early indicator that the new sound-card is coming to the market.
Feature-set of Creative Labs SoundBlaster X-Fi 2 is unclear, though, it is more than likely that it will be more advanced compared to the original X-Fi. Still, the novelty should not be considered as something revolutionary: the company is known for unveiling “second edition” versions of certain products with serious, but not radical changes, e.g., the main difference between the original Audigy and Audigy 2 was slightly improved audio processing as well as better codecs.
Creative Technology has been under fire for many months due to the lack of drivers for Windows Vista that expose complete feature-set of SoundBlaster X-Fi cards.
The news about soon-to-be-announced SoundBlaster X-Fi 2 audio card can potentially further infuriate Creative Labs' anger customer after the company issued an open letter to a person who provided unofficial driver packages for Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi audio cards that enabled all the hardware capabilities of the sound processor. The world’s leading supplier of discrete audio cards for personal computers asked to cease development of unofficial drives and implied that this person or persons may run into legal action for. Creative Technology also stated that the lack of certain X-Fi capabilities in Windows Vista amid their availability in Windows XP was a business decision.
“We do have a problem when technology and IP owned by Creative or other companies that Creative has licensed from, are made to run on other products for which they are not intended. […] We own the rights to the materials that you are distributing. By enabling our technology and IP to run on sound cards for which it was not originally offered or intended, you are in effect, stealing our goods. […] If we choose to develop and provide host-based processing features with certain sound cards and not others, that is a business decision that only we have the right to make,” said Phil O’Shaughnessy, vice president of corporate communications at Creative Technology.
Creative Technology did not comment on the news-story.
Comments currently:
39
Discussion started: 04/02/08 06:31:20 AM
Latest comment: 04/21/08 04:34:49 PM
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1.
And guess which soon-to-be-announced soundcard I wont be buying...
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Posted by: Chris Bailey
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Date: 04/02/08 06:31:20 AM]
2.
if its PCI-E and fully working in Vista 64-bit then we shall see..
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Posted by: Silver
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Date: 04/02/08 06:46:54 AM]
3.
So this is what they are planing to do. Trying to sue someone who activated their so call 'unusable ' cards. They wanted to release new one. i will not be buying them. creative you had just lost another customer
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Posted by: this
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Date: 04/02/08 07:00:35 AM]
4.
I will never ever buy any Creative product. The worst thing about what they do is that the lack of driver/software support is a "business decision".
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Posted by: Shorman
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Date: 04/02/08 08:33:00 AM]
5.
I am a Senior Purchasing Agent for a major PC manufacturer.
I am currently taking steps to stop all further purchase of Creative components for our product lines.
Furthermore, I have instructed our legal department to investigate possible action against Creative for violating terms of our contract.
It is not in the best interest of our company and it violates our corporate policy to do business with companies who willfully violate consumer protection statutes in the United States and overseas.
Thanks for nothing Creative.
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Posted by: Computer God
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Date: 04/02/08 08:42:46 AM]
+ expand thread (1 answer)
- collapse thread
More power to you!
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Posted by: SCREW CREATIVE!!
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Date: 04/14/08 09:04:50 AM]
6.
Being an old Sound Blaster user all the way back to the Sound Blater Pro. I was sad to see what had happened to a company that made great Sound Card Hardware but their software has become more & more like a Virus then a tool to help use their cards. With that Letter to the programer who modded the drivers, they basicly say We are trunning of you sound card so you have to by a new one. It would be like having a Major Car company Trunning off your CD player,radio and A/C in your car and telling you if you want those to work you have to buy this NEW Car!
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Posted by: wolf74
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Date: 04/02/08 09:08:54 AM]
7.
Business decision my arse creative!!!!
Next time I won't let you take my money and deny proper functionality of the device I bought from you.
Roll over and ...
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Posted by: No Sheep
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Date: 04/02/08 09:40:02 AM]
8.
The Creative Labs kills the own old products (not make out drivers for them, or reducing the functionality declared at sale), and to sell again "new" products with the same functionality.
I will make every effort to avenge for this cheaters firm.
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Posted by: Eugeny Vedernicov
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Date: 04/02/08 09:44:51 AM]
9.
I'm very dissapointed with Creative Software support! I "was" a loyal customer.Was planning to buy a new card fom they, but I'm going for an Asus Xonar.
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Posted by: Maniac
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Date: 04/02/08 10:17:55 AM]
10.
Bleh. It's probably just the same X-Fi chip but with drivers that add more echo and reverb effects.
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Posted by: Rick
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Date: 04/02/08 12:07:55 PM]
+ expand thread (2 answers)
- collapse thread
I AGREE! The X-Fi is a super computer on a chip almost. It really doesn't need to be upgraded at all with all it's horsepower. I bet creative is releasing an X-Fi with a different bios key so the Vista-ready drivers only work on it and not the old X-Fi. Creative has totally lost my support after decades with them and I hope ASUS buys them up eventually....
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Posted by: Wingless
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Date: 04/02/08 12:29:02 PM]
Are you the Wingless from techreport? LOL small world.
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Posted by: Mr. BonBon
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Date: 04/02/08 07:26:42 PM]
11.
I own many creative products, but I don't think I'll be buying more of them in the future. I enjoy the sound of games on Audigy 2, and before that other creative sound cards, compared to onboard sound. Currently I use Windows XP and Linux but I'm gonna have to get at least one copy of Vista for games in the very near future. The whole reason I haven't bought a Xi-fi card yet is because of all the issues I've heard. It's bad enough they want me to pay for vista drivers for my audigy 2 card but they don't even have working vista drivers for their current card, and they want to release another one? It will probably be the same crap when windows 7 comes out.
Sure I primarily use Linux but I have to admit that I can't enjoy the full benefit of all the Audigy 2s features, at least not yet. Since I still use Windows for some of my games the fact that I Creative has such crappy drivers for Vista amazes me. Not only that but I'm also amazed that they are suing the guy who makes working vista drivers that enable features on their older cards, like my Audigy 2, that they disabled for Vista. What's next, sue Open Source developers for making a driver that works when Creative can't do the same for Windows Vista even though Creative designed the f'n card!!!????
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Posted by: Megamanx00
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Date: 04/02/08 12:11:44 PM]
12.
“We do have a problem ...
Yes, Creative certainly does. When corporate greed and incompetence cuses a company to "hate their customers", it is time for the customers to look elsewhere for products. A business decision that is anti-customer is a BAD decision. I will modify the product that I own to suit me and if Creative doesn't lilke it they can go out of business!
Those who can, do. Those who can't, sue.
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Posted by: No_longer_Creative_customer!
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Date: 04/02/08 12:35:57 PM]
13.
I've got 10 bucks that says that once these cards are released, Creative will stop even trying to make the X-Fi 1 work in Vista and instead tell people that they have to buy an X-Fi 2 to get full Vista support.
Any takers?
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Posted by: Cynic
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Date: 04/02/08 02:51:13 PM]
14.
It s boycott time
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Posted by: former creative customer
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Date: 04/02/08 05:37:03 PM]
15.
Are they kidding? They dropped support for the Audigy2, their X-Fi cards snap, crackle and pop, there is no more EAX so what incentive is there to get one of these?
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Posted by: Jon
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Date: 04/02/08 05:43:50 PM]
16.
I may be incorrect but if someone ( Guess who ? ) wrote there own driver completly from scratch, that would not be stealing any intelectual property and I do not think would violate any law and that person could charge a few bucks that is well deserved.
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Posted by: Frederick M Raposa
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Date: 04/02/08 05:44:27 PM]
17.
Planned obsolescence, pure and simple.
They are using the driver (or lack thereof) issue to force upgrades. They got caught by someone who made a perfectly working driver.
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Posted by: FXi
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Date: 04/02/08 06:26:48 PM]
18.
welcome auzentech from here out
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Posted by: len
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Date: 04/02/08 10:54:16 PM]
19.
yeah, this is plain ridiculous..
i bet they'll sell the same old audigy2 SE chip (i'm talking about xtreme audio, which i sadly own), which was rebranded with x-fi sticker and a bit buffed up software again under new x-fi 2 name. and the only thing will creative change, is software functionality.
and of cource now they are rising their voices, 'cause some young bloke activated already supportet features that were left out "for business purposes".
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Posted by: ehku
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Date: 04/02/08 11:49:06 PM]
20.
So if a company makes PC's for example, and you write your own OS, the manufacturer has the right to tell you you can't use your own OS?
Why do they care? What if I bought their soundcard, then set fire to it? Do they care about that? They already have my money, why the hell do they think they should be able to tell me what to do with their equipment once I bought it? I'm not reverse engineering the card and creating knock-off clones that work better and sell for less.
Next they'll have corporate lawyers standing around your computer telling you when its time to play games, when its time to work, and when you should eat and go to bed. Thanks, but I have a mother already, and I don't need a BIG BROTHER.
[
Posted by: Zoxar the Green
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Date: 04/03/08 01:33:48 AM]
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