A little portable headphone amplifier and DAC with built in features for audio recording or chat, the Sound Blaster E5 is a small device that attempts to be a Jack of most trades and masters a lot of them. Approximately the size of a portable difficult drive, the E5 can be used much like an external soundcard for PCs, notebooks, tablets and phones, delivering the highest possible quality sound from the foundation product. The machine has a stereo mic input in addition to three integrated mics for use in voice chat or recording. Sound Blaster has a legendary name in gaming circles and that legacy remains contained in the E5, with OpenAL and EAX 5.0 compatibility and a software suite which has CrystalVoice FX for genuine time chat effects and Scout Mode to highlight footsteps and in game directionality. It’s a great unit, however you definitely have to pay through the nose for it.