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Product Description
Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus – Now with Dolby Digital Live and DTS Encoding for more surround sound delivery options!
Be one of the proud OPs showing off their gaming rigs on r/battlestations! The Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus is a perfect convergence between aesthetics and performance that features a SABRE32 ultra-class hi-res PCI-e gaming sound card and DAC with customizable RGB LEDs on its body, and comes with an included RGB LED strip. It also features our award-winning Xamp discrete headphone amp that utilizes a bi-amplification technology, as well as our full suite of industry-leading audio processing technologies including Surround Virtualization.
Xamp Discrete Headphone Bi-amp
Each audio channel is individually amplified, allowing the Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus to deliver pristine audio fidelity in an unaltered lossless model to each earcup regardless of demand.
r/battlestations Worthy
The Sound BlasterX AE-5 has customizable RGB LEDs on its body, and also features an included RGB LED strip. Program up to 16.8 million colors in different patterns with the free downloadable Sound Blaster Command software for PC.
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SABRE32 Ultra-class PCI-e DACThe Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus is a SABRE32 Ultra-class PCI-e DAC which is perfect for hi-resolution audio for games, music, and movies. It delivers up to 32-bit / 384 kHz playback* with a 122 dB DNR, ultra-low distortion and jitter. *32-bit playback only available in Windows 10 or higher |
Sound Blaster Acoustic EngineThe Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus rides on Sound Blaster’s long legacy of audio processing and enhancements, available through the Sound Blaster Command software. The Sound Blaster Acoustic Engine is a suite of fully customizable audio processing technologies deliver new levels of audio immersion and precision for the ultimate competitive advantage. These sound technologies create unprecedented levels of audio realism, including stunning 3D surround effects for your speakers and headsets. |
Incredible ProcessingActivate Scout Mode to give yourself a distinct tactical advantage! This tried and tested technology enhances important in-game audio cues—such as footsteps and weapon switching sounds—allowing you to quickly and accurately pinpoint your opponents' location before they pinpoint yours! Meanwhile, CrystalVoice technology enhances voice for clear recordings and in-game communications. |
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| Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus | Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus Pure Edition | Sound Blaster AE-7 | |
| Encoding | Dolby Digital Live / DTS | Dolby Digital Live / DTS | Dolby Digital Live / DTS |
| DNR / SNR | 122 dB | 122 dB | 127 dB |
| DAC | ESS SABRE32 Ultra | ESS SABRE32 Ultra | ESS SABRE-class 9018 |
| Max Playback Resolution | PCM: 32-bit / 384 kHz | PCM: 32-bit / 384 kHz | PCM: 32-bit / 384 kHz, DSD: DSD64 |
| THD + N | 0.00032% (DAC) | 0.00032% (DAC) | 0.0001% (DAC) |
| Xamp Discrete Headphone Bi-amp | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Swappable Op-amps | N/A | N/A | ✓ |
| RGB Aurora Lighting | ✓ | ✓ | N/A |
| ASIO Support | 2.3, Playback and Recording | 2.3, Playback and Recording | 2.3, Playback and Recording |
| Supported Operating System | Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 | Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 | Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 |
Compare with similar items
 | Creative Sound BlasterX AE-5 Black Hi-Resolution PCIe Gaming Sound Card and DAC (Renewed) | Creative Sound Blaster Audigy PCIe RX 7.1 Sound Card with High Performance Headphone Amp | Asus Xonar AE Sound Board | Creative Sound Blaster AE-9 (Metallic Gray) | Creative Sound Blaster Audigy FX PCIe 5.1 Sound Card with High Performance Headphone Amp | |
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| Customer Rating | (2421) | (22) | (2060) | (203) | (34) | (6066) |
| Price | $129.00 | $79.98 | $66.49 | $79.79 | $383.44 | $39.99 |
| Sold By | Creative Labs, Inc. | i-Tech Mall | Amazon.com | Amazon.com | Kaiser T | Creative Labs, Inc. |
| Item Dimensions | 5.71 x 0.79 x 5.04 inches | — | 5.71 x 4.72 x 0.71 inches | 2.52 x 0.71 x 6.69 inches | 8.27 x 4.41 x 7.56 inches | 5.43 x 4.76 x 0.71 inches |
| Item Weight | 1.00 lbs | 6.00 ounces | 4.23 ounces | 2.50 ounces | 2.73 lbs | 2.68 ounces |
Customer reviews
I'm coming from SBX-Z card paired with old Intel MOBO, back then the integrated sound quality was piece of horse crap, so after upgrading to X570 ASUS Gaming-F, the sound quality is decent, but felt like its just flat and not up to the standards.I got this card to see if there are any differences, first run, it felt like the same and i was like f*** this s*** and got extremely disappointed, but i said to myself, let me play with the settings and configure it properly, so that item in the software menu called Encoder is magical, its set to No Encoder by default , turned it on, set some other settings like crystalizer and smart volume and started to play with the built-in profiles the result is just OMG, the clarity, surround, everything is just awesome, you could even hear ant steps walking on instruments.only thing annoyed me is the length of the LED strip, its made for mid-tower cases, mine is super tower (COSMOS C700M) case, it barely covers half of the case, i would got another strip if i had known, anyway, its not a big of a deal.Saw some reviews bashing molex connecter as this card requires it for LED lighting, i have no problem with molex, not sure why people are crying over it, its just a connecter similar to any other.
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Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 16, 2022
Color: Option 1: Black with DDL and DTSVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 7, 2022
Color: Option 1: Black with DDL and DTSVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 9, 2020
Color: Option 3: 127dB SNR with Audio Control ModuleVerified Purchase
Top reviews from other countries
Antiriad
Was für eine Geldverschwendung
Reviewed in Germany 🇩🇪 on September 29, 2018Color: Option 3: Black with 1 RGB LED StripVerified Purchase
Jono
Fantastic!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on October 21, 2017Color: Option 3: Black with 1 RGB LED StripVerified Purchase
Fantastic!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on October 21, 2017
I purchased this card a few weeks ago to replace my Soundblaster Z (now in my old rig), and I couldn't be happier.Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on October 21, 2017
Setup (Win10 64-bit):
Installation was easy and very simple, I made sure all the previous audio drivers were uninstalled, on board audio was disabled etc.
Once the card was setup, I installed the latest Sound Blaster Connect 2 software direct from Creatives site...After this the card was up and running.
Sound Blaster Connect 2 (version: 3.1.22.0):
So far I have not run into any issues with the software, very straight forward. The Sound Blaster Connect is very similar to the Soundblaster Z software I had installed before, it has the same settings/options (with some new additions) but has a different layout. I used "David M's" Amazon review (12 October 2017) to help me ease into the software settings. I also made sure Windows was using the correct sample rate and bit depth set via windows playback devices (which it wasn't). After adjusting a few settings, which took about 5-10min, I was good to go.
The Sound Blaster Connect 2 comes with 14 presets which have all been tailored for different scenarios (music, movies, games), one of which is "Personal" (bottom of the list) which allows the customization all of the settings to your own liking, this includes custom EQ setting. However, unlike the Z Pro Studio software you cannot have multiple Personal saved settings, this also goes for EQ settings...so if you use different EQ setting for various activity you will have to manually change it each time...But if you use the "Direct" configuration then all of the EQ & BlasterX setting are bypassed/disabled anyway (true direct sound, no filters).
One major thing that needs to be mention is that when you change over from Speaker to Headset, the volume does not alter!!!...meaning if you swap to Headset from Speaker (speakers 95% volume example) and forget to lower the volume levels (especialy with 250 ohms headphones) you could potentially damage your hearing. Make sure to remeber that you alter the volume after selecting headset (I have mine around 25%), then put your headphones on. You have to do this each time you swap modes.
SOUND:
I use a pair of Beyerdynamic DT1990 pros which worked perfectly fine with the Soundblaste Z. So I was interested to see (or hear) if there was going to be any difference when it came to sound quality. There are two Headphone configurations to choose from via the Connect software. First: "Headphone 7.1" (16>32bit, 16000>96000 Hz) and the second: "Direct HP" (16>32bit, 16000>384000 Hz). Once I set the speaker configuration via the Connect 2 software to "Direct HP" while using my DT1990's...wow, the difference was noticeable straight from the get go, listening to music with this combo is a real delight. The AE-5's built in DAC and discrete dual-amp does a fantastic job of powering my headphones...more so than the Z.
I tested out various games using the Sound Blaster Connect 2's "BlasterX Acoustic Engine" setting (basically the Z's Pro Studio settings), I found the surround sound to be clear and accurate and the Scout 2.0 setting helped isolate footsteps from all directions. There are additional things you can tweak to your liking while using the presets/custom profile such as the Bass, Crystalizer, Smart Vol, and Dialog+. However, when using the "Direct HP" mode it makes certain games like Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (which has incredible sound to begin with) sound ridiculously good, I actually turned around on a few occasions thinking someone was behind me.
Its just a shame that others aren't having much luck when it comes to the stability of the software. Base on my own experience with the latest version of the driver/software, I would defiantly recommend this Soundcard. NOTE: I don't recommend using any of the BlasterX features for general audio use and definitely not for listening to music, use Direct HP if you have some decent cans.
EDIT 1 / Update - 09th Feb 2018:
There has been an update to the Sound Blaster Connect 2 software (Now Version: 3.2.22.0)...The software now allows you to save multiple presets along with multiple EQ settings just like the soundblaster z software. This card is now perfect for my setup (which i recent upgraded + did a fresh install of win 10), and I have still not had any issues with the card (owned for 4 months now).
EDIT 3 / Update - 28th May 2018:
Since the most recent Windows feature update rolled out, Windows has decided to not recognize the Blaster Connect 2 software as official software. As a result, every time Windows boots up I get stopped and asked to allow the software to run, twice in fact (1st for the software, 2nd for the update access). Because of this, the Sound Blaster Connect 2 software doesn't apply any of its setting on boot, even after you allow Windows to run software. Once allowed, I need to open Sound Blaster Connect which will show the EQ running (it's not) select a random profile on the dashboard then re-select my custom profile. Doing this correctly applies my custom profile with all my settings. NOTE: I tried temporarily disabling UAC as a test and it fixed this issue, all setting worked on boot without any problems.
EDIT 4 / Update - 10th Oct 2019:
The card is still going strong, not issues what so ever...I thought it was worth mentioning that Creative has recently released the Sound Blaster AE-9. Another amazing soundcard, but its the new software I wanted to highlight called "Sound Blaster Command" which got an update to work with the AE-5. Using Sound Blaster Command, windows has no issues asking for permission to run (Win 10 UAC issue) like Sound Blaster Connect 2. Command also has cleaner UI with the ability to change the audio quality straight from the software and more custom profiles can be saved. So if you are going to buy this card (or already have it) I would recommend skipping the "Sound Blaster Connect 2" and go download the new "Sound Blaster Command" directly from Creative's AE-5 Driver page (Creative Worldwide Support site).
Images in this review
Vincent Ng
Need a 4 pin molex to power the RGB strip
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 5, 2020Color: Option 3: Black with 1 RGB LED StripVerified Purchase
Takaharu
Excellent product... with a but
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on November 12, 2018Color: Option 3: Black with 1 RGB LED StripVerified Purchase
Cyberdonblue
Great - When it works
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 24, 2021Color: Option 3: Black with 1 RGB LED StripVerified Purchase
