Cognitive Blaster Advantage BT242003

Advantages: modem on hold software
Disadvantages: not any faster than my previous modem; uninstallation was a disaster

...I bought the modem for 2 reasons: everything was supposed to be faster (making the connection, downloading, etc) and the modem-on-hold feature. Comparing it with my 7-year-old generic modem, the connection time with the Blaster modem is only about a second faster. Downloads are definitely not faster, and may be slower; phone line conditions vary, so it's impossible to say for sure. Definitely not enough speed advantage to make it worth the money! The modem-on-hold feature is interesting; I've not seen any other modem that advertised outgoing modem-on-hold. I had the opportunity to try both the outgoing and incoming only once each. They worked fine, but they're limited by the time limit the ISP imposes; in my case, 3.5 minutes per call. Caller ID worked also, on the incoming call. Here's the real problem: Because I felt the download... Read review

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Advantages: great sound, great midi possibilities
Disadvantages: none

...I bought the Soundblaster Live! player card about one year ago. When I bought my computer one of the components I wanted to pay special attention to was the sound card. I use the computer as a recording- and playback device for my synthesiser. I still don't regret my choice. The Soundblaster Live card has a very good sound and gives no problems using midi-in and midi-out. One of the great advantages of this card is it ability to use soundfonts. Soundfonts are samples from instruments or other stuff that can be used to reproduce. If you record the sound of a beautiful Steinway-piano a midi keyboard can reproduce it. If you have a nice set of loudspeakers you don't have to buy an expensive instrument at all, since there are many soundfonts to be collected on the Internet ! Besides instruments you can use soundfonds also to reproduce all... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Excellent sound - Great price
Disadvantages: Tripods are a bit flimsy

...The FPS1000 speaker system isn't the best setup in the world, it has to be said, but with the correct sound card, I own a Creative Sound Blaster Live 5.1 Player, the sound at even a quarter of the possible volume is plenty for everyday use. Crank the volume up for those dance tracks you've just downloaded and you get the impact of a full-blown stereo system. Friday nights allow you to annoy the neigbours when you take the decibels up to the max. The distortion is minimal and the sound is awesome. The four speakers are small in comparison to complete stereo or surround sound systems but they pack a hidden punch, this combined with the excellent sub-bass woffer which is placed centrally all give this sound system unstoppable, ear pounding volume. It is all very simple to set up and the only down side is that the cables are a little... Read review

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