A review by pumfster on Creative Sound Blaster Audigy Player June 8th, 2007
Author's product rating:
Stability
Very stable
Sound quality
Good
Ease of Installation
Excellent - very quick and easy
Speed
Fast
Value For Money
Excellent
Advantages:
Cheap, 5 . 1 - channel sound available . Good quality sound
Disadvantages:
Not for hardcore gamers,
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Having put up with mediocre sound delivered with one of these in fashion on-board motherboard sound devices, I decided it was time to harp back to the good old days of computing and purchase a sound card.
Now back in the day, Creative were the only brand of note in the sound card market. Although others have now joined in, the market for sound cards is nowhere near as competitive as other components. As a result, Creative still hold supremacy as a result of their previous reputation as much as anything else.
I didn't really want to spend mega bucks on this new sound card either, especially after recently paying to upgrade other aspects of my computer, so when I saw the Creative Sound Blaster Audigy in my local PC World on sale for £39.99 I thought this is the one for me!!! I will say it is also available in other computer hardware stores, and also from online retailers, where you could probably pick one up for a few pounds less than I did, which makes it even better value for money.
The card I bought is a PCi card, and as such you need to ensure that you have a free PCi slot in your computer before you rush out and buy one. It is very easy to install, with a very helpful (which is unusual in computing!!!) instruction manual to help you if you get stuck. To install you simply install your new driver from the CD-ROM provided, and then insert the card into the PCi slot. Then you are ready to go, as all that remains is to customise your personal settings. The settings themselves are modified using Creatives' own EAX Music Enhancement software, which at first can be a little fiddly to get to grips with, although the more you use it, the more you can fine tune all of those little things to get a perfect sound quality. The EAX program itself can either sit on top of your desktop as an extra task bar, or simply as an icon in the bottom right hand corner. Another little downside here is due to the fact it is loaded in every time you start the computer, it does add a little time to the start up procedure, and takes a little bit of extra memory if you are not using much RAM.
The card itself comes with the ability to connect a standard mic to it, as well as other useful things such as a CD player / MP3 player, headphones or even an electric guitar if you so wish. It is also able to provide 5.1-channel surround sound, meaning you can connect a subwoofer and 5 surround speakers to it for superb sound quality. One slight gripe here is that the identification symbols next to the jacks on the card are rather obscure and faint, meaning a little trial and error can be necessary before you get your wires in the correct hole, although this is a minor point as once it is done a few times you will become more familiar with it and remember (hopefully!!!).
Overall sound quality for a budget card in my opinion is very good. The quality for my digital music is very good, and I have it set up in a 4.1 configuration. Sound quality on games is also of the top notch, with good atmosphere created especially on shoot em up style games such as Call of Duty or Doom. On the down side, if you are a real techno-buff, hardcore gamer or really into music in a big way, I will say that this card cannot compare to some of the higher end ones available from Creative, but you want more, you will certainly have to pay for more.
Another plus point to mention briefly is that since installing this card I have had no problems with the card such as the computer seizing up when playing sound for instance. Therefore I believe this card to be very stable in association with the computer set-up of most people.
To sum up I would recommend this card for most PC users who wish to upgrade from the bog standard built in sound that most PC's come with these days. It is also perfect for people who wish to play the majority of games for enjoyment and also likes to listen to digital music on their computer. As I previously said, higher end cards are available if you need them, but this card is more than adequate for the majority of uses.
Advantages: Great value; Includes many professional features Disadvantages: Annoying symbols next to the jacks
Everyone remembers the old Creative Soundblaster sound cards, which became the benchmark for all other manufacturers to beat. Creative is continuing this trend of success with its (relatively) new range of Audigy cards, which bring features normally only found on professional cards into the mainstream desktop computer.
Despite the sound card market being much slower than say, the CPU or GPU markets, Creative did a good job in finding new ways to ... ...won't appreciate this.
~Software~
Creative supplies a lot of software to go with the card. Installation is straighforward and I had no difficulties with it, although I did have to download new drivers for Win XP from Creative's website. You'll be happy to know that Creative has recently started supplying their drivers in a unified form, a la Nvidia, which makes finding the right driver that bit easier.
The main program is Creative Playcenter, ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Stability
Sound quality
Ease of Installation
Speed
Value For Money
very helpful
28.01.2004
The Audigy Review ofCreative Sound Blaster Audigy Playerby
avensis004
Time began with the old creative soundcard, which I remember and at that point in time they where the best around.
This card has the original features with a hell of a lot of upgrades to it. The added feature with this card is that you have a firewire port on the main part of the card and the extra feature of the normal game port on a separate slot which can be attached to the card.
The card is excellent for any use. I have one of these and use ... ...I would reccomnd either:
Creative Labs Inspire 5.1 6pc 5700 Speakers
Creative Labs Inspire 5.1 6pc P580 5 speaker system
or
Creative Labs Megaworks 5.1 6pc THX 550
These are the best speaker and are excellent for gaming and music.
The software/feature from the old cards (ie 5.1, 1024, etc) to start with, the CD player/MediaSource is a hell of alot better, the speaker setting improved, the EAX better.
The recorder, mini disk centre, surround ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Compliant Standards: Sound Blaster, AC '97, General MIDI, Dolby Digital 5.1, A3D 1.0, DirectSound, DirectSound3D, AC '97, General MIDI, Dolby Digital 5.1, DirectSound, DirectSound3D, AC '97, Dolby Digital 5.1
Manufacturer's product description
With its breakthrough in processing power, the Sound Blaster Audigy Player sets a new standard in realistic audio for the PC enthusiast. It incorporates multi-channel, 24-bit digital/analogue conversion to give an incredible signal-to-noise ratio of some 100dB and crystal-clear, hiss-free audio… perfect for PC gaming and music. And with its EAX Advanced HD 3D technology, it also supports incredible multiple sound imaging and positioning effects and environments. Gaming will never be the same again! There's also SB1394 connectivity, which allows high bandwidth connection to external storage devices, digital video cameras and even other PCs. That's why the Sound Blaster Audigy Player delivers the ultimate PC audio and gaming experience.
Expansion / connectivity
Interfaces:
1 x audio - line-out - mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm - 1
1 x audio - 44 pin HD D-Sub (HD-44) - 1
1 x audio - line-In - mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm - 1
1 x microphone - input - mini-phone mono 3.5 mm - 1
1 x IEEE 1394 (FireWire) - 4 PIN FireWire - 1
1 x audio - SPDIF input - 2 PIN Digital Audio - 1
1 x headphones - output - mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm - 1, 1 x audio - SPDIF input - 2 PIN Digital Audio
1 x audio - line-out (centre/subwoofer)/SPDIF output - mini-phone 3.5mm
1 x audio - line-In - mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm
1 x microphone - input - mini-phone 3.5mm
1 x audio - line-out (rear) - mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm
1 x audio - line-out/headphones - mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm
1 x audio - TAD - 4 PIN MPC
1 x IEEE 1394 (FireWire) - 6 PIN FireWire
2 x audio - input - 4 PIN MPC, 1 x microphone - input - mini-phone mono 3.5 mm - 1
1 x audio - line-In - mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm - 1
1 x audio - line-out/headphones - mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm - 1
1 x audio - line-out (rear) - mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm - 1
1 x IEEE 1394 (FireWire) - 6 PIN FireWire - 1
1 x audio - SPDIF output - 2 PIN Digital Audio - 1
OS Required: Microsoft Windows 98, Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition, Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition, Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition / Windows ME, Microsoft Windows 2000 / XP, Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition, Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition, Microsoft Windows XP
Min Processor Type: Intel Pentium 266 MHz
Min RAM Size: 64 MB
Min Hard Drive Space: 600 MB
Peripheral / Interface Devices: Mouse or compatible device, CD-ROM
Manufacturer warranty
Service & Support: 2 years warranty
Service & Support Details: Limited warranty - parts and labour - 2 years - carry-in
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Listed on Ciao since : 05/01/2004
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