Page 3 - Subjective Audio Analysis
Reviewing audio devices require extensively trained ears, lots of experience, and sufficient technical knowledge. Even for the experienced auditioner, it may prove challenging at times to obtain an accurate evaluation of a product without a thoroughly familiar product to use as a simultaneous reference. Furthermore, many self-proclaimed audiophiles are susceptible to biased write-ups due to placebo effects from false advertising. While I am not going to even try to claim that I am the only trustworthy or best evaluator for sound, it is fact that most computer review sites have editors who are insufficiently trained in reviewing audio equipment. Give them practically anything and all you will read about goes along the line of "good bass, nice midrange, awesome treble, really clear sound, 10/10". While there are many knowledgeable audio reviewers at various respected online media outlets, they are by far the minority.
As I have mentioned in my past audio reviews, there are really no true objective measurements for sound quality. As the evaluator, however, I will put it through a series of subjective tests to try to come up with the most objective rating possible. Yes, it sounds like a paradox. On the wired side, tests were conducted primarily on my computer via a USB connection. I used an Apple iPhone 12 Pro for the Bluetooth wireless tests.
After sufficient hours of break in time, I put the Creative Sound Blaster Katana V2X to the tests. All audio enhancements and effects were disabled to represent the natural acoustic tuning of this soundbar. All test tracks are high-quality CD-equivalent files.
I was fully prepared to write this section claiming the Katana V2X sounded exactly the same as the Katana V2 except with a smaller, less powerful subwoofer, but this was actually not the case. I listened to both of them side-by-side, and I was surprised they sounded slightly different even though I was more inclined to believe they were at least partially identical. While both soundbars looks exactly the same, the internal amplifier is different, as it can be seen in the specifications. The soundbar is lowered to 50W from 66W and the subwoofer to 40W from 60W compared to the Katana V2. As such, they seem to be tuned slightly differently even though the rest of the hardware is the same.
In short, the Creative Sound Blaster Katana V2 sounded a bit brighter than the Katana V2X, while the Katana V2X has slightly more lower midrange than the Katana V2. Clearly, this has nothing to do with the subwoofer. Also, the Katana V2X's subwoofer, even though the driver reduced from 6.5" to 5.25" and enclosed in a 40% smaller box, has a higher default volume than the Katana V2. Of course, you can adjust this in software.
The sound character of the Katana V2X, like the Katana V2, is what I would describe as "flat-ish". It comes with a boosted upper midrange courtesy of the 3/4” fabric dome tweeters and 2.5" up-firing midrange drivers. I cannot say there is a lot of power in the low frequencies even though a subwoofer is included out of the box, but the 90W RMS amplifier in the Katana V2X felt sufficient in powering the entire system even though it is down from the Katana V2's 126W RMS.
On the topic of the subwoofer, it delivered solid and round bass where present. I cannot say it is strong or deep, and it certainly will not shake your house, but it still felt sufficiently powerful even though this one is 40% smaller than the one that comes with the Katana V2. Like the rest of the lineup, it was not overdriven for a generally pleasant experience. The bass was mostly audible and reasonably smooth. Its definition and articulation were also acceptable in practice.
I found the Creative Sound Blaster Katana V2X's midrange to be generally forward-sounding. The midrange is boosted from neutral, but not as much as the original Katana. The Katana V2X, like the Katana V2, is much better controlled in this regard. It is of lower to moderate thickness, but vocals and instruments in this range was natural and clear. There was not much warmth though. There is a noticeable improvement in all measurable metrics compared to the first Katana, and the Katana V2X has slightly more lower midrange than the Katana V2, but it still sounded colder and hollower than I would have liked. There remains lots of room for improvement in its saturation and richness in my opinion.
The Sound Blaster Katana V2X's treble, as the Katana V2, is also much better compared to the Sound BlasterX Katana. I immediately noticed its increased sharpness, wetness, and brightness, making the performance decent overall. As aforementioned, it was not as bright as the Katana V2 though. That said, the treble in the Katana V2X had much more energy with much less attenuation on the upper end relative to the original Katana. There still was not much kick to it, but it was reasonably immediate and tight. Its clarity and crispness were reasonable as well. This made percussion-heavy instruments reasonably comfortable to listen to, which the first-generation Sound BlasterX Katana was often not.
The soundstage this soundbar created was exactly what it looks like in real life: Mid-width, little depth. In other words, there was not much depth but some width, although not a whole lot. Its imaging was centered, because it literally is. Like the Katana V2, it was slightly better than the original Katana.
Closing off with the auxiliary auditioning results, I would say the detail and precision of the Sound Blaster Katana V2X's sound reproduction was good. Its frequency separation was also good; there were no surprises here, but like the Katana V2, improved compared to the original Katana. Its overall cleanness was also improved, and I would consider it to be good. The sound was reasonably cohesive. Its sound distribution profile includes average bass, acceptable midrange, forward-sounding and boosted upper-midrange, and reasonable treble.
The Bluetooth range was good. I did not experience any hiccups in the audio stream during my testing. I even tried putting my Apple iPhone 12 Pro on my car's trunk in the garage -- representing a bad scenario, since the phone is placed on a metal surface for additional signal attenuation -- while streaming music to the Sound Blaster Katana V2X located in my basement with no noticeable issues. The Sound BlasterX Katana had problems even at close range, so it seems the issues were fixed in the Katana V2 and Katana V2X's design.
I have included a sample recording using the Creative Sound Blaster Katana V2X's built-in beamforming condenser microphones above. Although my voice came through sounding a bit nasally, it microphone worked well enough in capturing my voice and the quality was still reasonable. Overall, I found the microphone to be passable for audio conferencing.
All in all, the Creative Sound Blaster Katana V2X generally delivered generally reasonable sound quality for a soundbar. It was tuned slightly differently than the Katana V2 since the internal amplifier is different, but the sound quality remained mostly the same at regular listening volumes despite a significant reduction in power. As expected, there was nothing in its auditioning results today that will surprise you or blow your socks off.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Hardware
3. Subjective Audio Analysis
4. Conclusion
