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(Pocket-lint) - The Creative SXFI Air Gamer is simply a hybrid wired and wireless gaming headset that upgrades the erstwhile SXFI Gamer by adding Bluetooth convenience. With personalised tuned sound, impeccable spatial audio with SXFI Battle Mode, a high-quality microphone, positive much besides, does this headset present successful each areas?
All-round comfort
- Weight: 313.6g
- Over-ear plan with a breathable design
- Oversized macromolecule leather receptor cups with representation foam cushioning
- Kevlar-reinforced USB-C cable
- Touch controls for calls and media
Slipping connected the SXFI Air Gamer, the archetypal happening we were struck by was the comfort. This is simply a nicely flexible headset with a ample extendable headband rounded disconnected with cleverly designed earcup hinges. The effect of this plan is not lone a satisfying clamping force, but besides a large acceptable implicit the receptor - the earcups are besides bully and deep, meaning there's nary excess unit connected your ears from immoderate angle.
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The SXFI Air Gamer's earcups are oversized and macromolecule leather coated, with representation foam cushioning. Those earpads connection the champion of some worlds, with immoderate passive noise-cancellation, alongside bully breathability. More importantly, the padding is superbly comfy - which makes the headset casual to deterioration for hours connected end.
On the outside, the SXFI Air Gamer is absorbing for different reasons. There are immoderate RGB lighting rings astir the outer borderline of the earcup that tin beryllium tweaked successful the software. There's besides immoderate clever interaction controls alternatively of the accustomed buttons and dials. Swipe up and down connected the near earcup and you tin set the audio volume, near and close skips and rewinds tracks, and you tin pat to reply calls too.
Otherwise, determination are buttons to power betwixt sources, crook SXFI mode connected and off, and crook the headset off. There's besides a microSD larboard arsenic different enactment for euphony files, and a 3.5mm jack for wired connectivity too.
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There are 2 microphone options included successful the container - the ample CommanderMic, and the tiny NanoBoom if you similar thing much subtle. Both tin beryllium removed if you'd alternatively usage a dedicated mic.
You besides person a Kevlar coated USB-C transportation to link to PC, on with a USB-A adapter if you privation to usage the headset 1 PlayStation oregon different device.
That Creative dependable & Battle Mode
- 50mm Neodymium magnetic drivers
- 20–20,000 Hz frequence response
- Super X-Fi, SXFI Battle Mode
The SXFI Air Gamer benefits from Creative's years of acquisition with Sound Blaster technology. This results successful a headset that promises to present unthinkable sound, immoderate the source.
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Plugging successful the USB-C cablegram to your PC and you tin instrumentality vantage of the 32bit/96Khz illustration complaint for high-res audio. This, combined with the SXFI personalised sound, gives you perchance awesome audio that's besides casual connected the ears.
This headset is besides designed to beryllium a "hybrid" instrumentality - capable to link to your PC with the included cable, but besides to immoderate Bluetooth compatible instrumentality arsenic well. This dual connectivity means you tin perceive to euphony connected your phone, portion besides proceeding crippled audio from your gaming machine. Sadly the volumes aren't independently adjustable, but it's bully to beryllium capable to entree 2 audio sources astatine once.
With Bluetooth connected, you tin besides instrumentality vantage of GamerChat - a mode that lets you reply telephone calls without interrupting your gaming sessions. This mode besides lets you usage dependable chat connected platforms you usually can't - specified arsenic Nintendo Switch.
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The different item is Battle Mode. This is designed to assistance springiness you the borderline successful first-person shooters with close spatial audio that lets you perceive force footsteps and pinpoint their determination with ease. Alongside a virtual 7.1 situation sound, this Battle Mode offers a tuned dependable that helps heighten your absorption connected important in-game sounds. It takes immoderate getting utilized to and tin look rather hollow astatine archetypal - but it truly works to amended your gaming experience.
Super X-Fi personalised dependable profiles
- Rechargeable lithium-ion Battery, up to 11 hours
- Bluetooth 5.0 & USB-C transportation options
- SBC audio codec
Not contented with offering an already superb acceptable of features, the SXFI Air Gamer besides wants to basal retired by delivering a unsocial and personalised sound.
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With the accompanying Android oregon iPhone app you tin scan your caput and your ears to set the soundscape accordingly. The bundle (that's besides disposable connected Windows) allows you to past sync your idiosyncratic settings to your relationship and usage it wherever you are.
Creative says this technology uses computational audio to tune the output based connected the signifier of your caput and ears. Which luckily for the end-user simply involves snapping photos of your look from antithetic directions. We recovered this portion of the setup a spot fiddly, truthful it's worthy getting idiosyncratic other involved, but the results are satisfying.
You tin besides usage that bundle to power audio betwixt stereo, 5.1 and 7.1 situation sound. The item for us, however, is the Super X-Fi technology that creates a affluent and realistic sound, arsenic good arsenic personalising the audio. We recovered this resulted successful wide and awesome audio, particularly for gaming, that's akin to much costly hi-res headsets that we've tested.
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The Super X-Fi tech surely adds a warmth to the audio and makes it satisfying to perceive to music, movies oregon games successful adjacent measure. It's onboard too, truthful you get that audio connected your telephone and PC arsenic well.
Microphone options
- CommanderMic with 100–16,000 Hz frequence response
- NanoBoom Mic with 100–8000 Hz frequence response
- Noise suppression
One of the different highlights of this headset is the chunky looking 'Commander' microphone - which captures fantabulous audio portion blocking retired the bulk of outer noise. This is 1 of the champion microphones we've seen connected a gaming headset. It's a existent delight.
If you don't similar the signifier and size of it past you tin besides opt for the smaller NanoBoom mic instead, but the champion seizure prime surely comes from the full-sized roar mic.
Verdict
The Creative SXFI Air Gamer sounds large for gaming, euphony and movie viewing. It's besides rich-sounding and wonderfully susceptible successful presumption of spatial audio too.
Sadly it's missing the existent wireless enactment that galore gamers would appreciate, but different it surely does tick a batch of boxes.
Perhaps astir importantly is that it's comfy to deterioration for hours connected end. As such, it's a worthy acquisition for a precise just terms - and surely a headset we'd recommend.
Also consider
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Nuraphone + Nuraphone gaming microphone
This set-up turns Nura's quirky headphones into a gaming headset. If you privation personalised sound, there's thing similar it. But it's besides an unusual plan to get utilized to - combining some in-ear and over-ear headphones into a headset.
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Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless XT
If you similar the thought of a hybrid headset, past this 1 is much appealing successful our mind. It offers wired, wireless and Bluetooth options, positive it looks the concern arsenic well. It's not arsenic comfy arsenic the Creative headset, but it's feature-rich, large sounding and a superb flagship.
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Writing by Adrian Willings. Editing by Mike Lowe. Originally published connected 4 August 2021.
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