SBX Mode also impresses – it feels like having a surround system between your ears. In Wolfenstein II, for instance, this helped tip us off when an enemy was moving closer without having to have eyes on them. Footsteps or voices come through a little clearer and louder, offering a tactical advantage when moving or hiding to avoid and ambush enemies – and all of that is done without also cranking up the volume.īut if you want, you can boost it by switching the gain from low to high, amplifying all audio coming through the headphones. You’ll notice an immediate audio boost once you fire up the G6 – thanks, especially, to a Creative technology called Scout Mode that enhances the ambient noises and not only add some character to a game, but also help determine a course of action. SBX Mode also impresses – it feels like having a surround sound system between your earsĪble to replicate any of the custom features when playing on a console.
#Sound blaster software review Pc#
It would’ve been nice to carry some of the settings from the PC to the console however, because the G6 doesn’t have internal memory to store settings like that, and you won’t be On a PC, it’s a little different because of the Sound Blaster Connect desktop app, which offers greater customisation. After plugging in a pair of headphones and starting up the console, we eventually got audio to come through. Optical cable to the port in the back and one of the USB ports in the front.
We tried it first on a games console, where we connected the You don’t have to be an audiophile to get the G6 up and running as there’s no calibration to speak of. There’s also no power supply for the USB-A side to plug into a wall. We would’ve liked a longer optical cable for console setups because, as is, it doesn’t cover that much ground. In the box, Creative includes a micro-USB cable and optical cable to facilitate the key connections. Along one edge you’ll find the Scout/Direct Mode button, an SBX button, a headphone gain switch and LEDs for the headphone indicators.
An optical input and output is on one side, with a headphone jack and microphone jack on the other, flanking a volume knob. The G6 needs a constant power source throughout, which comes via the micro-USB port on one end. Standard headphone amps do both channels at once, which is fine for music but not for games that have separate signals going to each ear. In effect, the G6 amplifies the left and right channels individually using discrete components that boost and clarify the audio output. There’s a lot of technical stuff going on to make this happen, and it’s not that important to recognise how it works – the fact it consistently does is good enough. The PC or console side is one thing, but because it’ll work with any pair of headphones you won’t need to buy a dedicated gaming headset. The chief advantage of a device like the G6 is compatibility on both ends. While small and simple, the G6 isn’t clutter-free. The device is only a little bigger than a deck of cards, so it doesn’t need a lot of space, although cables need to be plugged in at both ends.
#Sound blaster software review plus#
With a 130dB and 32-bit/384kHz DAC, plus support for Dolby Digital decoding and 5.1 and 7.1 virtual surround sound, there’s a lot under this small hood. The G6 is the successor to the G5, but also carries the legacy of the E5, a mini-amp that worked wonders with both PCs and mobile devices. Creative has made it versatile enough to work with Windows, the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and even the Nintendo Switch. Somewhere in between an external sound card, amplifier and an exceptional DAC, the G6 is anything but a one-trick pony.