Xmod is short for X-Fi Module and is Creative’s latest addition to the sound market for PCs. The unit is neither a sound card nor a speaker system but a unit that is connected in between these stations. Xmod is not an accessory for computers with Creative’s X-Fi sound cards but more of a tool for those without X-Fi to get better sound from compressed music. Xmod is connected to the computer or your portable MP3 player and in the other end of Xmod the speakers or headphones are connected. Xmod uses similar functions as the Creative X-Fi sound circuit to clean the audio of compressed signals and the goal with Xmod is to get a cleaner and better sound from your units.
“It connects between stereo speakers or headphones and either a PC, Mac, iPod, ZEN™ or any MP3 player, and it dramatically improves the listening experience by upconverting the music during playback to the X-Fi Xtreme Fidelity standard – very high-quality 24-bit surround audio.”
It’s basically an external model of Creative’s 24-bit Crystalizer which is baked into the X-Fi sound circuit. Those who wants to know more about 24-bit Crystalizer and its function can check out our review of Creative X-Fi. Creative simply hopes that users wants to improve the sound quality of their compressed music and with Xmod you will be able to do so with many types of sources. Creative has also added its CMSS-3D function to Xmod which makes it possible to transform MP3 songs and other stereo signals into surround sound.
We’ve earlier seen/heard that both of these functions can give very good results with Creative’s sound cards and if it has succeeded just as well with its external Xmod there is definitely room for a portable “audio cleaner”. Creative Xmod will appear on the market later this month and cost $79.99.
