Xitel HI-FI Link Review

 

I have come across many people in the past who have asked me how and if they could connect their home theatre/sound system to their computers. In the past you couldn’t really do that unless you had a sound card capable of that or you would have to split the audio to your sound system. Right now, where technology has evolved and sound cards are better, some still can’t do that.

We all know if you have a kickass powerful receiver with some great speakers, it will outperform the best of what PC Audio has to offer. They come in all sorts of sizes and power wattage.

Today we are going to look at a product that could very well change the way PC Audio will become. Something that obviously changes the way in which we connect our home theatre to our PC.

We are talking about the Xitel HI-FI Link.

About Xitel

Xitel Pty Ltd. has a 26-year history of developing and marketing technically advanced electronic products and solutions. Over the years, we have designed, developed, and manufactured more than 50 products and product lines and millions of units for an elite list of OEM marketing partners, including Sony, Siemens, HSBC, Telstra and many others.

The Xitel HI-FI Link comes in an attractive box, the size of a software boxes like Windows. It is colorful and very easy to read. In the back there are useful information on what the Xitel HI-FI Link is and what it offers.

The Xitel HI-FI Link is a small unit that allows the auxiliary-to-RCA composites to plug in the audio connectors of your stereo.

What is kickass about the bundle is that it comes with a free-shielded audio cable.

What’s in the box?

The package includes a 30” auxiliary-to-RCA composite cable that connects to your receiver/boom-box, etc. The unit is operated via USB cable. This ensures a clean source and requires fewer cables to plug in. When you think about it, everything is USB these days!

Another great benefit is that the Xitel HI-FI Link fully supports users who use Mac’s!

Technical Specifications

The HiFi-Link's total harmonic distortion plus noise to signal ratio is less than 0.005% with channel unbalance better than 0.05dB, and channel separation exceeding 90dB. It runs a 20-bit precision DAC that easily exceeds the necessary headroom for all compressed and standard audio formats including MP3, CD, and WAV running at nominal 16-bit resolution.

On top of this, the HiFi-Link supports all compression bit rates from 8 kbps through to 320 kbps across all formats including MP3, WMA, RealAudio, LiquidAudio, and even the emerging MP3Pro standard. It's output runs at 1vrms line-level and has been impedance matched with the included shielded studio audio cable ensuring full dynamic response with no high frequency roll off.

Installation

Installation takes very little time and effort. Just make sure you have your audio system in front or in a distance to you. Let’s see what we have to do…

1. Plug the auxiliary jack in the HI-FI Link unit.

2. Connect the audio ends to your receiver/speakers. Remember which line you connected them to if applicable.

3. Connect the USB cable to the unit and your computer. Xitel recommends not connecting the USB into a USB hub, as it may not have enough power to operate.

4. At this point, your computer will automatically detect something. The drivers will install and enjoy high-quality sound.  From here the HI-FI Link should automatically set the HI-FI Link as your preferred multimedia device.  It is recommended that you restart first too.  Enjoy music coming out of your stereo at full blast!

If for any reason you want to change or view that the HI-FI is selected, go into your control panel under Sounds, Speech and Audio Devices, then under the section that says Pick a Control Panel icon click on Sounds and Audio Devices, then go to Audio tab and under Sound Playback, you should see Studio HiFi Link. 

To control the sound you can either 1) change it by the standard volume control, will be either Wave Balance/Speaker Balance or 2) change it by your speakers.

Observations

Performance: As predicted, home theatre systems kickass. They are much better than the best offering PC audio rival. One thing I found when testing was that the sound was excellent but was kind of flat.  It needed a little more bass.  However, you can easily fix that in your sound control panel, and in your receiver.

Why It Sounds So Good - Update: Taken from Xitel

USB Digital Interface
Being a USB interface means that installing the HiFi-Link is as simple as plugging it in to any USB port on your computer. Digital data is then supplied to its on board 20-bit precision DAC for processing into an optimum audio signal. It's quick, easy and extremely effective.

Electromagnetic Isolation
By adopting a unique external design, the HiFi-Link remains totally isolated from any noise radiating inside your computer's case. Your home stereo receives the cleanest possible signal, something that only a dedicated audio engine can provide.

Superior Fidelity
All of the HiFi-Link's high-grade components have been carefully selected to work together in providing an exceptionally pure and dynamic signal. Their complementary integration is one of the reasons that the HiFi-Link does its job so well, and the reason we built it from the ground up for pure audio excellence.

Shielded Studio Audio Cable
Included with the HiFi-Link is a fully shielded, high definition inter-connection cable with gold plated RCA jacks for excellent conductivity and premium signal transmission. The 30 feet of cable has been specifically matched with the output characteristics of the HiFi-Link to offer a no-compromise solution in joining computers with stereo HiFi systems and components. Nothing sounds better!

Conclusion

The Xitel HI-FI Link changes the way we connect our stereo to our PC’s. Now we can hook our stereos to our PC’s with ease, flexibility and functionality.

I know most of my friends and colleagues who have cheap 2.1 speakers that were included with their systems. If you are in that position, do not settle for cheap sound, put your existing stereo set-up to use.

Or put it this way. Why spend $500 on PC speakers while you can use your own stereo and purchase a Xitel HI-FI Link for only $49.99? Think about it. ($49.99 is Xitel’s price)

And you thought your Logitech Z-540’s sounded good…Think again! 

I highly recommend the Xitel HI-FI Link to everybody looking for bloody good portable sound. They will not disappoint.

For all you audiophiles, Xitel offers the Xitel HI-FI Link PRO that houses many improvements and features than the Xitel HI-FI Link.

Here is one of the possibilities of the Xitel HI-FI Link...

Portable, clutter-less and CD-less.  Kickass sound quality.  Talk about instant gratification!

I rate the Xitel HI-FI Link a…

9/10!

Pros and Cons

+ Changes the way we connect our stereo to our PC
+ Easy Installation
+ Only two wires. 
+ USB
+ No CD’s to install
- Xitel HI-FI Link Pro has more features
- Sound was a little flat

Let me thank Xitel for making this review possible. Visit them for more information and pricing.

Alternative pricing: PROVANTAGE ($38.92 U.S.) - The lowest price found.

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