Managed to get the X-FI working with Windows 7, took a while to figure out the problem but heres how I managed to get it to work (without the horrible squeaks and tolloid screeching).
My system is: ASUS P6X58D-E with I7930, 6GB RAM, GEFORCE GTX280, X-FI Titanium Fatality Pro Champion. I have three GFX PCI-E slots (2x16 lane, 1x8 lane), one PCI and one 1xPCI-E slot.
Like me, you've probably installed the card and drivers already to find out that things weren't right, so from this stage so this:
1. Completely uninstall all of the creative drivers - go to START, right click MY COMPUTER, PROPERTIES, DEVICE MANAGER, and find SOUND VIDEO AND GAME CONTROLLERS. Click to open the devices and right click the X-FI (if it has been detected) and select UNINSTALL DRIVER - do this with all other sound devices except your webcam (which can appear here as well)
2. Go to START, CONTROL PANEL, UNINSTALL A PROGRAM and uninstall anything from Creative, make sure to delete everything including the program "X-FI INSTALLER" which is right at the bottom of the list.
3. Restart the PC, tap the "del" key to access your BIOS and make sure that your onboard sound chip is disabled - it'll be in somewhere like 'DEVICES','ONBOARD DEVICES','REALTEC HD SOUND' or similar - make sure it is changed to 'DISABLED', save and reboot (F10)
4. Once Windows has started up, run WINDOWS UPDATE. It'll find your X-FI and install its own drivers. Now SHUTDOWN the PC.
5. THIS BIT IS IMPORTANT: check that your X-FI card is not in the PCI-E slot directly above or below your graphics card - it can go a couple of slots away and you can definitely install in into a 8x or sometimes a 16x PCI-E slot - yes the card is shorter but it will work just fine and is designed to work is all slots from 1x to 16x with no problems. (there seems to be a bit of confusion on this on the net) - This is because the graphics card emits electrical noise that interferes with the X-FI, also can cause IRQ problems.
Some motherboards (like mine) have three graphics card slots, two of which are designated as only graphics - you can use the third one with no problems (usually a different colour from the other two) - or second one as long as you've checked your motherboard manual to find out if one or two slots are for the sole use of a graphics card.
6. Reboot the computer then go to Creatives website and navigate your way through to the SUPPORT, DRIVERS page relevant to your X-FI card : "http://support.creative.com/Products/Products.aspx?catid=1" - Download X-FI TI DRIVER (not beta), CONSOLE LAUNCHER (beta version), DOLBY DIGITAL LIVE PACK, DTS CONNECT PACK, PID CONNECT PATCH and ALCHEMY.
7. Reboot the computer again, as it reloads Windows will detect a newer audio driver (the one in the packs that you've just downloaded) - it will install in the background and will show a 'popup' saying that a device driver has been installed.
8. Reboot the computer (you'll get used to this by the time you're done)
9. THIS BIT IS IMPORTANT: You need to install the updates ONE AT A TIME AND REBOOT AFTER EVERY INSTALLATION. Install the software/drivers in this order:
(a) PID CONNECT PATCH (product ID connect patch)
(b) X-FI TI DRIVER
(c) DTS PACK
(d) DDL PACK
(e) ALCHEMY
(f) CONSOLE LAUNCHER
Make sure to reset the PC in between every software installation.
On rebooting the PC, DON'T USE THE CREATIVE AUTO-UPDATE TOOL!!
Register the products when asked.
10. Hopefully, ENJOY! - On some systems the front panel Mic input must be disabled, this is done in the Creative console launcher in the mixer tab and also using CONTROL PANEL, SOUNDS.
This worked for me - hopefully it will for you too.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram