Friday, March 12th 2010
Creative Announces Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD and USB Sound Blaster X-Fi HD Audio
Creative Technology Ltd. today announced the PCI-E Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD and USB Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD, setting the gold standard for PC audio with the first discrete audio card and USB digital audio system to include THX TruStudio PC audio technology.
"The Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD and Sound Blaster X-Fi HD provide the highest quality audio playback of any sound products we have ever introduced, over a period of time where we have sold more than 400 million Sound Blaster cards," said Steve Erickson, Vice President and General Manager of Audio and Video at Creative. "We are thrilled to announce that our newest additions to the Sound Blaster line include THX TruStudio PC audio technology, bringing together two of the most respected names in sound quality to provide an unparalleled audio experience on the PC."
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD
The Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD is powered by the second-generation Creative X-Fi Xtreme Fidelity audio processor for PCI Express slots. The Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD combines captivating industrial design with audiophile grade Digital to Analog Converters (DACs) and components to produce a 122dB signal-to-noise ratio, the highest SNR ever produced by a Creative sound card. A replaceable Op-amp is also a distinguishing feature allowing users to customise audio output with colouration that is refined to their personal tastes.
Additional product specifications include:
Designed as a high definition USB audio solution for notebooks and desktops, the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD USB digital audio system features audiophile-grade recording and playback. It is the only USB digital audio system that includes an analogue phono input, as well as standard audio inputs, enabling users to effortlessly convert analogue audio from their record albums or cassette tapes into MP3, AAC, FLAC and other digital formats. The systems comes with Media Toolbox, a comprehensive software package, including an advanced noise reduction programme that easily remove unwanted clicks, crackles, hums, pops, rumble and other sound imperfections from the tracks after they have been recorded, substantially improving the audio quality for playback.
The Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD USB digital audio system also features THX TruStudio PC, bringing the same great audio experience found in live performances, films, and recording studios to laptop and desktop PCs.
Additional product specifications include:
THX TruStudio PC is specially designed to bring the same great audio experience found in live performances, films, and recording studios to the PC. THX TruStudio PC provides groundbreaking PC audio technologies, the result of collaborative research and development from Creative and THX. Together, these technologies deliver the fullest audio experience for music, movies and games, while remaining true to the source and intention of the artistes who created it. THX TruStudio PC includes:
THX TruStudio PC Surround
THX TruStudio PC Surround provides immersion control to enhance the natural sense of audio depth and spaciousness by creating virtual surround sound channels. Stereo content or multichannel content played over stereo speakers and headphones will sound as if it is coming from all sides while voices remain centred in front and original balance and timbre is preserved.
THX TruStudio PC Crystalizer
THX TruStudio PC Crystalizer restores the natural dynamic range that is lost when iTunes and MP3 music get compressed. This makes the music sound as good as the artiste originally intended, and adds an enhanced level of realism for movies and games.
THX TruStudio PC Speaker
THX TruStudio PC Speaker fills in the missing low frequency tones and gives the extra impact for a better entertainment experience. Consumers no longer have to tolerate lack of bass in speakers built into notebook PCs, 2.0 speakers or headphones, as THX TruStudio PC Speaker technology dramatically improves the sound experience without a subwoofer.
THX TruStudio PC Dialog Plus
THX TruStudio PC Dialog Plus enhances the voices in movies for clearer dialogue, allowing the listener to hear the dialogue over the rest of the soundtrack and over ambient noise in the listening environment.
THX TruStudio PC Smart Volume
THX TruStudio PC Smart Volume addresses the problem of abrupt volume level changes during playback and between songs by automatically and continuously measuring volume, and intelligently applying gain and attenuation to compensate for those changes.
Pricing and Availability
The Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD and Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD will be available at The CREATIVE Stores at International Business Park and Marina Square, the online store at sg.store.creative.com and authorised dealers in Singapore from March 2010 onwards at the suggested retail prices of S$299.00 and S$149.00 respectively.
"The Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD and Sound Blaster X-Fi HD provide the highest quality audio playback of any sound products we have ever introduced, over a period of time where we have sold more than 400 million Sound Blaster cards," said Steve Erickson, Vice President and General Manager of Audio and Video at Creative. "We are thrilled to announce that our newest additions to the Sound Blaster line include THX TruStudio PC audio technology, bringing together two of the most respected names in sound quality to provide an unparalleled audio experience on the PC."
The Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD is powered by the second-generation Creative X-Fi Xtreme Fidelity audio processor for PCI Express slots. The Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD combines captivating industrial design with audiophile grade Digital to Analog Converters (DACs) and components to produce a 122dB signal-to-noise ratio, the highest SNR ever produced by a Creative sound card. A replaceable Op-amp is also a distinguishing feature allowing users to customise audio output with colouration that is refined to their personal tastes.
Additional product specifications include:
- RCA Line Out for audio playback up to 122dB, 24-bit/96kHz Digital-to-Analog Converters (DAC)
- RCA Line Input for recording up to 118dB, 24-bit 96kHZ Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADC)
- 0.001% Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise (THD+N)
- Headphone output for audio listening up to 115dB 33 Ohms, and 117dB, 330 Ohms, at 24bit/96kHz
- Replaceable Op-amps
- Hardware-accelerated 3D positional audio and EAX 5.0 effects that provide a truly immersive experience with headphones and speakers
- Dolby Digital and DTS encoding enables one-step single-cable connection to home entertainment systems
- TOS-link optical-in/out
- 1/8" microphone-in
- 1/8" headphone jack
- Creative ALchemy to restore EAX and surround sound that is otherwise lost in DirectSound game titles running under Windows Vista and Windows 7
- ASIO recording support with latency as low as one millisecond with minimal CPU load
- Works with Windows Vista and Windows 7 operating systems
Designed as a high definition USB audio solution for notebooks and desktops, the Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD USB digital audio system features audiophile-grade recording and playback. It is the only USB digital audio system that includes an analogue phono input, as well as standard audio inputs, enabling users to effortlessly convert analogue audio from their record albums or cassette tapes into MP3, AAC, FLAC and other digital formats. The systems comes with Media Toolbox, a comprehensive software package, including an advanced noise reduction programme that easily remove unwanted clicks, crackles, hums, pops, rumble and other sound imperfections from the tracks after they have been recorded, substantially improving the audio quality for playback.
The Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD USB digital audio system also features THX TruStudio PC, bringing the same great audio experience found in live performances, films, and recording studios to laptop and desktop PCs.
Additional product specifications include:
- RCA Line Out for audio playback up to 114dB, 24-bit/96kHz Digital-to-Analog Converters (DAC)
- RCA/Phono Line Input for recording up to 108dB, 24-bit 96kHZ Analog-to-Digital Converters
- TOS-link optical-in/out
- Gold-plated 1/4" microphone-in
- Gold-plated 1/4" headphone jack
- USB-bus powered, no external power supply required
- Creative ALchemy to restore EAX and surround sound that is otherwise lost in DirectSound game titles running under Windows Vista and Windows 7
- Works with Windows Vista and Windows 7 operating systems
THX TruStudio PC is specially designed to bring the same great audio experience found in live performances, films, and recording studios to the PC. THX TruStudio PC provides groundbreaking PC audio technologies, the result of collaborative research and development from Creative and THX. Together, these technologies deliver the fullest audio experience for music, movies and games, while remaining true to the source and intention of the artistes who created it. THX TruStudio PC includes:
THX TruStudio PC Surround
THX TruStudio PC Surround provides immersion control to enhance the natural sense of audio depth and spaciousness by creating virtual surround sound channels. Stereo content or multichannel content played over stereo speakers and headphones will sound as if it is coming from all sides while voices remain centred in front and original balance and timbre is preserved.
THX TruStudio PC Crystalizer
THX TruStudio PC Crystalizer restores the natural dynamic range that is lost when iTunes and MP3 music get compressed. This makes the music sound as good as the artiste originally intended, and adds an enhanced level of realism for movies and games.
THX TruStudio PC Speaker
THX TruStudio PC Speaker fills in the missing low frequency tones and gives the extra impact for a better entertainment experience. Consumers no longer have to tolerate lack of bass in speakers built into notebook PCs, 2.0 speakers or headphones, as THX TruStudio PC Speaker technology dramatically improves the sound experience without a subwoofer.
THX TruStudio PC Dialog Plus
THX TruStudio PC Dialog Plus enhances the voices in movies for clearer dialogue, allowing the listener to hear the dialogue over the rest of the soundtrack and over ambient noise in the listening environment.
THX TruStudio PC Smart Volume
THX TruStudio PC Smart Volume addresses the problem of abrupt volume level changes during playback and between songs by automatically and continuously measuring volume, and intelligently applying gain and attenuation to compensate for those changes.
Pricing and Availability
The Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD and Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD will be available at The CREATIVE Stores at International Business Park and Marina Square, the online store at sg.store.creative.com and authorised dealers in Singapore from March 2010 onwards at the suggested retail prices of S$299.00 and S$149.00 respectively.
124 Comments on Creative Announces Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD and USB Sound Blaster X-Fi HD Audio
Still wish they'd move to a more regular release schedule - but, hell, 3-4 driver packs and software updates a year is now better than the original once a year BS they were doing.I've brought this up so many countless times before . . . why do you feel they should support cards that are over 10 years old?
Seriously, the amount of bitching people did when they cut support for the Live! series . . . 10 years after the cards release . . . I mean, c'mon - the PC world had moved through WIN 2000/ME, through XP, and was already into Vista, and people were complaining about losing support for a card that was initially designed for WIN98.
Same goes with the Audigy series. People are still complaining about the cut-off on the driver support (although Creative have still released a couple more XP driver updates since), on cards that are nearing 10 years old.
What other form of PC hardware recieves support from the manufacturer for so long, and what other forms of hardware are still capable of handling the modern PC workload? Very few compared to those still using "out-dated" audio cards. I mean, you can't exactly get by anymore on a Pentium II, nor a VooDoo3 anymore . . . but yet, people that own these *antique* audio cards still seem to think "if it ain't broke don't fix it."
It gets to a point were a manufacturer doesn't have a choice but to cut driver support for the hardware. We don't see people complain about cut-offs for video cards or chipset drivers, as the vast majority of users have already moved on to new hardware. Give it about 10 years, and I'm sure we'll see the same bitching when ASUS starts cutting support for the first generation of Xonar cards.Didn't really read the listed specs, did you? . . . They're claiming TOSLINK I/O support, and based on the 4 RCA connections, and the Dolby digital support, I'd bet good money one pair of outputs is for digital via an adapter . . .
. . . and if so, that same pair of digital RCA outputs will support coaxial SPDIF . . .
If one is using a reciever unit, there's still digital connectivity available. Granted, it's not as 1337 as having native TOSLINK, but how many other "audiophile" cards support native TOSLINK (not having a need for an adapter)? The Forte doesn't, neither does the Bravura, nor the HomeTheater HD, nor the Prelude or the older Meridian - and only a couple of those support HDMI out. On ASUS' side, the Xonar D2X, Xonar DX, nor the Essence STX support a "native" TOSLINK connection. If you're that much in need of simply the best output quality, an adapter is not considered the "right" way to go about with I/O.The card is aimed at home theater use . . . as with other cars in this category, multi mini-jack connectivity isn't really needed. The majority of users who would be more interested in this level of card are more the likely going to be using either digital or analogue RCA-based connections.
As to the bracket, more than likely a "see-through" for the image. I'd be good money that will turn out to be a full-blown EMI shield . . . of which, there's heavy need for in the modern rig.Really? Where did you read that?Niot quite - it's on-par with other competing cards in it's category.And you're basing this on?
Granted, there have been a few issues here and there - as much as there has been with the Xonar series, or cards from other manufacturers.
90% of the time, though, the issue lies with that of the user - either their hardware configuration, or conflicting drivers/apps.
Audio cards are very sensitive pieces of equipment, and have been notorious for not playing well with other hardware - it's been the same for the last 20 years, no matter who the card manufacturer is. At the very least, we can say that in this modern age, setup is a helluva lot easier than it was when audio cards were still on the ISA standard, or just moving to PCI.<sigh>
I give up . . . ignorance is definitely bliss . . .
. . . and I'm suddenly getting the urge to start bleating like a sheep, too.
they make built in audio & network cards for almost every single damn peice of computer related hardware on the planet. they probably get millions in royalties everytime Asus or whoever ships a batch of motherboards or laptops etc etc that have one of their network cards or audio chipsets. they are comfortable & even though they could spare the cash & get their R&D teams on it they probably wont because they dont need to. im sure a top dog in RT has thought about that prospect & probably thinks there is no reason to go there as they are still making loads of money. if it aint broke dont fix it - the saying goes...
but one thing they could fix is their website, its so god damn slow & half the links they have for drivers dont even work. they sack their webadmin or something???
I always dred going to their site for drivers.
RT's webpage is rly fu slow, their server localization is in taiwan i guess. With their income they could rent any webserver on the world :?
Nowhere in my post, implied or otherwise, did I say they should support older cards. My problem is directly related to the complete and utter lack of support for the entire X-Fi line of sound cards which are WAY younger than 10 years old since they were released around 2006 which is when I payed $250+ for my Fatal1ty Pro. For example, the X-Fi STILL has the same frigging problems that it had when the card launched:
- Lack of proper 64-bit OS support (a bug that started under Vista 64-bit)
forums.creative.com/t5/Windows-7/Windows-7-64-bit-8GB-RAM-doesn-t-start-after-installing-X-Fi/td-p/538347
- STILL has issues where the audio intermittently pops and crackles
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_Blaster_X-Fi#Sound_issues_with_crackling_and_popping
- STILL has issues where, for no reason at all, you get a high-pitched squeal during various different games
And don't EVEN give me the bunk excuse of "well it's x years old" since they are essentially using just a re-spin of the same frigging EMU20K1 just with a new coat of paint. You are entitled to your "OMG!! I <3 Creative!!" opinion but until you've run a 64-bit OS and dealt with the myriad of problems a lot of us have been dealing with since the cards came out you either have no clue what you are talking about or work for Creative.
I thought these were instinct in 2008 or so.
Turns out all the ogres were just waiting for creative to launch new cards in order to come out and throw the same old bashing.
I got an XtremeMusic in my desktop for 4 years and I've had nearly zero problems with the card or its drivers.
Got a X-Fi 5.1 USB for the laptop when I went to study abroad, zero problems again.
Edit: As far as the crap talking about Creative, I have to agree with you ToTTenTranz. I got my first Creative card, an SB Live years ago and never had a problem with it. Went Audigy back in 07 and haven't looked back.
Huge plus to me:
-Dedicated headphone jack
-RCA in and out
I been using Creative cards from Pentium III era, never use onboard at all. So far there are no major problem that I can't fix
Well. I must say I really don't know yet. I have just a budget Audigy SE and it has served me quite well with modded drivers.
But I have been thinking of taking the PC audio to the next level... but then again I have quite a bunch of low/mid quality MP3's and I definitely can't get my hands on FLAC versions of any of those... since I mainly listen to electronic and dance. I've been thinking about going to some high quality product and to have some future-proofing on that side. I would definitely like it to have good DSP abilities... Then again, maybe I'm living in the old world. I havent even used HDMI yet (well once, some girl couldn't get his PS3 to show on his TV)...
"I'm too old for this sh*t"
And I haven't even started yet (the true guest to HiFi), because lack of funds.
The experiences I have from integrated audio... only one mobo had good enough SNR, so there wasn't any annoyance in the sound, that was Epox 8RDA3+.
I've been through some mobos and the two last ones were 790GP-DS4H and 790GP-UD4H. Both have "High quality 106dB SNR ALC889A HD audio" And of course, I tried the onboard on both just to determine if it's any good...
I put on my headphones and the second I plugged in my laser mouse, I was saluted by this annoying squeal... At least my ears are more than delicate to that kind of interference. The movement of mouse caused the squealing. I tried to drop the polling rate to lower Hz and it somewhat helped. But that was a deal breaker. And both mobos did just that.
Also I have tested some of the more generic computers (in classrooms and such). Once you plug a USB stick in, it all goes to hell. Plain interference.
[history part]
In fact my first own computer build started from a sound card. We had some Asrock based socket A rig back in the day as a family computer and I listened a lot of music with it. At some point I got a nervous brakedown because all that interference. So, I went to a PC store and bought whatever was cheap, a bulk Audigy SE. Back at home, I simply couldn't get it to work because the PCI slots on the asrock wouldn't work. After a little while I bought that Epox used from Germany and build my first own rig. That was around 2006-2007 (!!)
[/history part]
What complete and utter lack of support for the X-Fi line are you talking about?! :wtf:
You don't check for driver updates very often, do you? There've been countless driver (and software) updates within the last year alone.
I can't agree with your statement about the APU - reason being is that yes, the CA20K1 is a re-designation for the EMU20K1 . . . but neither of those APUs were ever installed into the Audigy line. The E-Mu was specific to the E-Mu cards, and the CA20K1 was simply re-designated for use on the Creative cards . . . and these were introduced with the X-Fi series - not before.
The current APU, the CA20K2, is based heavily off the CA20K1 architecture - with a few improvements. For the general user, it's biggest benefit is being a native PCIE chip, it doesn't require the use of a "translator" like competing PCIE cards do.
As to your complaints with the OS - I currently run 2 64bit OSes and have gone through quite a few different X-Fi models . . . and not once have I ever encountered any issue. As well, I've heard very few complaints from the general users running 64b OSes with issues, either. All of my older X-Fi models still operate perfectly fine . . . even the first gen Fatal1ty Pro PCI that I have laying around.
Again, many times it boils down to one's hardware and software configurations.
The 8GB error is something that originated with the Vista OS, and has been cropping up with OS7 . . . funny, as other audio manufacturers have run into similar problems with 64b installations with 8GB/DRAM. Xonars have their fair share of problems with similar setups, from crashing games to corrupt registry entries as well.
Intermittent crackling audio is not typically a fault of the card, nor is it typically a fault of the drivers. This noise is audio clipping, which occurs when the output stream is spending too much time in the buffers . . . the signal starts to break down. It's usually caused by hardware competing for the SYS BUS, or maintaining control of the BUS for too long. nVidia hardware has been NOTORIOUS for this problem, especially motherboards equipped with nVidia NSBs. The problem isn't pinned down to one specific brand of audio card, it can happen with any of them . . . the only reason its been more of an issue with X-Fi cards is due to their much higher bandwidth the APU requires, compared to the much slower C-Media DSPs.
Only real way to get away from the problem is to move up to a native PCIE interface - the translator chips on most PCIE audio cards add even more latency, which can quickly negate any benefit from moving the audio onto a PCIE channel.
If you hear high-pitched squealing intermitently, and especially from one or two specific channels, and tend to run with your overall average volume set over 50% (between the WIN control panel, the audio driver's control panel and the game), you've more than likely got a failing OPAMP . . . tends to happen over time, and especially if you've run with the volume above 50%. The higher the volume, the harder you're forcing that OPAMP to work; add in potential EMI that it's picked up from neighboring components, heat from neighboring components, and rapid volume fluctuations (typically found in games) - it leads a very hard life.
I can't recall but a very few rare instances where a card made this type of noise brand new, or even shortly after the owner purchased the unit. This noise is usually the result from user abuse, more-so than the fault of the card itself. Good news, though, the OPAMPs can be replaced with some moderate soldering skills, and the card will continue to serve quite well . . .
The sad part about this entire exchange between the two of us is if you had condenced the last two paragraphs of this post into your inital reply, instead of resorting to "Creative can do no wrong" speech, things never really would have gotten this far. Heck, I would have THANKED YOU for the information and we could have moved onwards.
I cut the rest of my replies to your comments since, in the grander scheme of things, it just would have made things worse. That and I never expected to get into some kind of argument with a fellow TPU person over something that really we both see differently.Again, I never said that other companies were innocent of the problem which is why I'm not using a C-Media sound card in my gaming system. I got fed up with the money grubbing over an issue that should have been fixed after it was first found under Vista. Onboard audio, while not ideal, at least works every single time I use it without a hiccup or complaint.That would most likely explain why the onboard Realtek audio, while not the best, tends to work more often than the $200+ dollar sound card I've got sitting in a box that I'm trying to get rid of since I'm tired of dealing with it.Very interesting and it would explain why the Auzentech we have for our media center stopped squealing after the OPAMP's were replaced by my husband by a friend of his.
For my part, if I came off in a way that you took offense to that was not my intention and was rather me just venting over what appeared to be yet another money grab IMHO by Creative. However, that said, you really need to dial back on your rhetoric where you give the impression that everyone should bow at the altar of Creative and that they can do no wrong since that is VERY far from the truth and you admitted as such yourself.
At this point, I think I've pretty much said my peace about all of this. This is going to be one of those situations where I'm just going to have to agree to disagree with you and leave it at that.
Peace?
- I have absolutely no problems with the drivers in Win7-64. None.
- The Alchemy works flawlessly for the older games
- The X-Fi Crystalizer works best and wilds the best results if it's set somewhere between 20 and 40%
- The Graphic equalizer, EAX effects, Surround Mode, etc, all works flawlessly
- Changing the mode from Entertainment to Gaming it's a little annoying (read VERY ANNOYING)
- You loose some of the presets when changing modes, and also every time you change the mode, the mic port opens giving you the extremely annoying fsssssss sound. Seems than the Creative Console Louncher is as buggy as the drivers used to be...
Regarding the USB X-Fi.
So it doesn't support HARDWARE EAX 5.0??????
:roll:
BTW thanks for chiming in on the side of Creative. They are not all that bad. I also had no problems with 64-bit X-Fi drivers on Vista/7, and that was on this Audigy SE.
Maybe I need to put up some alchemy entries for dragon age?
:D
I've had Xtreme Music and i was quite satisfied with it. No driver issues (i used only Console Launcher and drivers, no other crap) and it worked perfectly on all systems. So, if i decide for X-Fi HD gaming experience for some reason, i'd pick it up without much thinking. But since i don't play that much games anymore i'll stick with STX.
And I have to say, pci-e sound card in 32 bit vista = no popping, same card in 64 bit vista = equals situational popping... does not seem like user error to me. While we're on the topic, have you allowed yourself to realize that successive creative driver releases have decreased sound quality? The best sounding driver I had for my Fatality was from 3 years ago. It's been left to community members to restore the quality and fix the bugs with unofficial drivers. Then there's the response we've seen from creative, none. An issue is proven to exist in the user community, creative ignores it, ignores support tickets, and apparently bans naysayers. Creative's management isn't just incompetent, it's practically cannibalistic. If you've been lucky enough to not encounter these issues, then good for you, but as for the rest of us we're tired of their BS.
I love both for different reasons and have found that all my sound issues have been either simply compatibility issues or even crackling and slow down caused by my USB network adapter. I have the XFi Xtremegamer, Xtreme Music, Titanium and Platinum, and they are incredible and work flawlessly except for the fact that Alchemy needs work. Especially in Windows 7, Alchemy simply doesn't find the games and with Steam in general it is not user friendly to enable EAX in your games. I don't know about anybody else but I really like the Crystalizer function and as long as you don't overuse any other equalization it really makes certain speaker setups kick big time. Sometimes it needs tweaking but it is fully adjustable so you really can't complain.
I just recently bought 2 Asus Xonar DS sound cards and they are fabulous because they do offer a few things that Creative Labs doesn't. The buggy yet promising automatic EAX enabling GX 2.5for Vista and 7 is one. When it works it does well providing the proper reverb. When it doesn't such as in FEAR Perseus Mandate some sounds are missing so you can simply disable EAX to get all the sound effects back minus the reverb. DTS NEO PC is superior than Creative's CMSS for music and movies because it does a better job emphasizing the center channel vocals. The AV200/C-Media Oxygen HD driven Asus Xonar DS cards also support 7.1 24 bit 192khz audio which for me is very interesting. Maybe I would need dog ears to hear the difference though.
So it is great to have options in the marketplace especially on the cheap. I also like the (gasp) XFi Xtreme Audio and XFi Surround 5.1. I don't do the onboard thing.
In relation to the current new offerings from Creative Labs. I don't know why they wouldn't have native HDMI. It does seem to be the next logical step in audio advancement and convenience. I dropped the THX excitement years ago. I use amps designed for professional use in my home theater setups when appicable and they simply never clip or distort. Your head would explode before the amps so THX certification is not necessary for that application or any other. And the amps I use don't have much over a 100db noise floor so super uber high 120db range signal to noise ratio goes to waste. Remember your sound environment is only as good as the weakest link and the sum of the parts equals the whole. :D