Hands-on review: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Go!

The X-Fi Go! is specifically designed for those that are consistently switching machines yet want to have consistent sound and audio quality without having to install/uninstall a device. The Go! is Creative's solution, which is about one-and-a-half flash drives in size and features a line-out/headphone jack, microphone-in jack, 1GB of storage space, and X-Fi/EAX sound processing.

Once you plug the USB drive in, the sound card immediately goes to work. After a few seconds, you can simply begin using your newly found headphone jack and microphone jack, no software install necessary. However, to get the most out of the Go!, you can install the software that is located on the flash drive (no CD necessary), and after a reboot, you get all of the typical Creative tools and dashboards you're used to. 

In the Audio Control Panel, you have status reports on the device, speaker configuration (headphones versus speakers), EAX Effects for your audio (Amphitheater, Jazz Club, Opera Hall effects and more), X-Fi CMSS-3D headphone configuration (good for gaming), X-Fi Crystalizer settings, performance settings, and the best part, Microphone Effects.

The VoiceFX software allows you to change your voice in real time, which is perfect for talking smack while gaming online. Options include Alien Brute, Orc, Robot, Elf, and more. Let me tell you, this works as advertised and it's totally a ton of fun to use. (It even works with Skype/Yahoo Instant Messenger calling, so expect some definite hijinx to follow.)

The Go! is really great for those who frequent LAN parties/Internet cafes. Not only do you get great sound quality, you can use the 1GB of storage space to store your profiles, patches, maps, characters, or additional software that would be useful (no cheating software plz). Additionally, the voiceFX is a particularly fun to use while you're in the thick of a gaming arena. At $49, it's also a neat, fun stocking stuffer for gamer enthusiasts like myself.

P.S. - Creative, if you can somehow cram a mini-MP3 player in the next version, you've got yourself a winner.