CONCLUSION

   Soundbars were never my 1^st choice when it comes to PC and TV audio but I’ve always seen the obvious benefits of owning one. Also at least for me it’s not just about space limitations, it’s also about extra cables and so they do represent a solid choice for people who have these two issues. As for the Katana V2 I have mostly good things to say about it. Audio quality is very good (crisp and accurate, at least for the most part), volume levels are enough to fill a couple of rooms (and with almost no audible distortion even at max), 5.1 virtual surround works well (both in games and movies) and as for looks well both my pictures and my YouTube and TikTok videos should be enough for all of you to judge for yourselves. The dual beamforming microphones also work very well, especially if you take a bit of time to tweak their settings from within the Creative App. Still there are three things I didn’t like about the Sound Blaster Katana V2. First of all, it takes around 13 seconds to turn on (from the moment you turn it on until it actually produces audio) and since I’ve been using it for almost a month this did get a bit annoying over time. The second issue is the fact that Creative has made the PC version of their Super X-Fi app available only via the Microsoft Store and as mentioned already I was unable to download it (download would just time out whenever I tried). Now I don’t know why companies feel they need to do this (Creative is clearly not the only one) but I truly hope they keep providing their software as standalone too, for cases such as my own. Finally, the lack of a built-in USB MP3/FLAC player is something that I didn’t expect to see, not when the original Katana had one. It may not be the most useful feature I know but I do use it occasionally so I was hoping Creative would keep it for their Katana V2 model.

   Creative currently sells their Sound Blaster Katana V2 for USD329.99/329.99Euros directly from their online store, a price tag which is fine in my book for what you’re getting in return. At the same time however if you do have room and you care not about cables you could opt for a 5.1 surround sound system instead. Yes, it may cost slightly more but it would outperform the Katana V2 (of course you’d also need to pair it with a good sound card and that would further increase cost). Overall, the Sound Blaster Katana V2 may not be the best PC speaker solution available in the market today but it’s probably the best gaming soundbar available and for that it gets the Golden Award.

PROS

- Very Good Build Quality
- Audio Clarity & Crispness
- 126WRMS Output (252PMPO)
- Wired & Wireless Use
- 24bit/96KHz USB Audio Card
- Dual Beamforming Microphones
- RGB Lighting System
- General Connectivity
- Headphone Out with Super XFi
- Available Modes
- Wall Mount

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- No USB Audio Player
- Creative App (Microsoft Store Only)
- Startup Delay