Specifications

Specifications of Game Theater XP, SB Live!, SB Live! X-Gamer 5.1
	Hercules Game Theater XP	Sound Blaster Live! X-Gamer 5.1	Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1
MSRP	$149	$99	$199
Audio Chip	Cirrus Logic CS4630	EMU 10K1	EMU 10K1
Max HW 2D streams as reported by Minerva, reported by Audio Winbench	124/32	64	64
Max HW 3D streams as reported by Minerva	124/32	64	64
Audio Channels	8 channel (5.1 + headphone)	6 channel (5.1)	6 channel (5.1)
Hardware MIDI Voices	64	64	64
Max Recording Accuracy	16-bit / 48kHz	16-bit / 48kHz	16-bit / 48kHz
4-Speaker HRTF?	Yes, Sensaura MultiDrive for DS3D and EAX 2.0	Yes, Creative proprietary model	Yes, Creative proprietary model
Dolby Digital 5.1 Decoding?	Yes, implemented through PowerDVD	Yes, implemented in the drivers	Yes, implemented in the drivers
Sound Fields for MP3 playback (i.e. Concert Hall, Chorus, etc.)	No	Yes	Yes

External Connectors on PCI Board
	Hercules Game Theater XP	Sound Blaster Live! X-Gamer 5.1	Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1
1/8" Line-In	Yes	Yes	Yes
1/8" Stereo-Out (Front)	No	Yes	Yes
1/8" Stereo-Out (Rear)	No	Yes	Yes
1/8" Center/Sub-Out	No	Yes	Yes
Microphone Input	No	Yes	Yes
game port	No	Yes	Yes
Other	No	S/PDIF out shared with Center / Sub Out	S/PDIF out shared with Center / Sub Out

Internal PCI Connectors
	Hercules Game Theater XP	Sound Blaster Live! X-Gamer 5.1	Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1
Analog CD-Input	Yes	Yes	Yes
Digital CD-Input	No	Yes	Yes
Aux-In	Yes	Yes	Yes
TAD-In	No	Yes	Yes
Support for 4-speaker S/PDIF out	No	Yes, with aftermarket upgrade from Hoontech	Yes, with aftermarket upgrade from Hoontech

External Connectors
	Hercules Game Theater XP	Sound Blaster Live! X-Gamer 5.1	Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1
1/8" Stereo Out (Front)	Yes	No	No
1/8" Stereo Out (Rear)	Yes	No	No
Line-Out RCA connectors for all 5.1 channels	Yes, gold plated	No	No
Coaxial S/PDIF In	Yes	No	Yes
Coaxial S/PDIF Out	Yes	No	Yes
Optical S/PDIF In	Yes	No	Yes
Optical S/PDIF Out	Yes	No	Yes
Dedicated 1/4" Headphone Jack	Yes	No	Yes
Shared ¼" Line-In/Mic Input with Mic Gain Control	Yes	No	Yes
Stereo RCA Input	Yes	No	Yes
MIDI I/O	Yes, standard DIN	No	Yes, Mini-DIN
game port	Yes	No	No
USB Port	4, two in front and two in the rear	0	0
Infrared Port	No	No	Yes

Software bundle

Full-version of CyberLink PowerDVD 3.0

MusicMatch Jukebox

Yamaha Soft Synthesizer S-YXG50

Sonic Foundry ACID Xpress and SIREN Jukebox

Koolkaraoke Lite

Magix playR jukebox

Notes

With the exception of a line-in jack for a TV tuner, all of the connectors on the Game Theater XP are found on the external rack. Compared to the SB Live! Platinum, the Game Theater XP has 4 extra USB ports, standard MIDI connectors, and independent gold-plated RCA outputs for all 5.1 channels as well as standard mini-jack outputs for a 4-speaker setup.

The independent RCA outputs for the 5.1 channels allow you to use 5.1 speakers and coaxial S/PDIF out simultaneously, something that cannot be done with the standard SB Live! 5.1 X-Gamer.

The external rack is connected to the sound card via a 44-pin DB-25 cable and requires an existing USB port on your PC.