Creative Sound Blaster K3+ USB Audio Processor Review

Readers of Hardware Asylum, and NInjalane before that, will know that we have a monthly computer hardware Podcast.  The show focuses on the PC Hardware community with a touch of overclocking, casemodding and PC gaming.  Currently this is an audio only show and setting it up is a rather involved task including setting up a PC, hooking up the USB audio interface, headphones and microphones. 

While connecting everything goes pretty quick that wasn’t the case the first time the hardware was setup.  For instance drivers had to be installed to run the Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 and then it had to be tuned for handle the two R0de Procaster microphones we use.  As with any dynamic microphone the preamp needs to be set correctly to ensure that excess noise is removed and that you still have ample amplification in your recording.

That process took the better part of 4 hours and is still something we tune every time we sit down to record.

Of course there is always room to grow with any recording setup.  We could use different microphones or a different audio interface with the end result being either a faster setup, more control over the recording process and/or higher quality recordings.  The one thing we never added was a hardware based mixing system and sound effects. 

In this review I’ll be going over the Sound Blaster K3+.  This is a USB powered recording and streaming mixer with sound effects processing and a built in sound board.  In my Podcasting setup I have many purposely selected components.  For instance the microphones are studio quality and the audio interface has external power.  It is a hardware based interface but configured by software to be flexible and compact.  This is different from a hardware mixer where you may get a series of dials to control mix levels and tune your audio.

The Sound Blaster K3+ falls into the mixer category and can be used for a variety of different purposes.  Music professionals can setup a mix between microphone and instrument and have the output recoded via USB and monitored using headphones or external speakers.  Audio artists will enjoy many of the sound processing features such as hardware based Reverb and Auto Tune.

Streamers can use the K3+ in a similar manner.  The USB interface will hook into the streaming application and mix with the game audio.  This allows the streamer to use higher quality studio XLR microphones instead of lower quality USB mics.  One interesting feature is the hardware SoundBoard clips that can inject canned audio clips into your stream at the touch of a button.  Choices include, VIP Entrance, Cheers, Baby Laughter, Audience Laughter, Gunshots and Crow Caws. 

Sadly these sound clips cannot be replaced but are generic enough for use with almost anything.

The Sound Blaster K3+ does come with Bass and Treble controls and a handy Voice Over Effect that will suppress background audio when you speak so your voice is always clear.

One of the hidden features of the K3+ is the inclusion of a 4-pole Mobile input.  This allows you to play and record directly from a mobile device and do Karaoke style streaming on apps such as Smule, Belive and Loops.  The built in K3+ audio processor can also apply autotune and other effects to your recordings to make you sound completely different.