Is it live or is it "LIVE!"?
Written: Mar 31 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Sounds Incredible! Easy access to any input or output. Remote control
Cons: Requires alot of resorces and is very processor intensive
The Bottom Line: The cream-of-the-crop. I get better sound out of my computer now then I get out of the home system. So, where do you think I will spend all my time?
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| clbrunson's Full Review: Creative Sound Blaster Live! Platinum |
_I hate to be completely one sided on my opinions, but it will be hard to be anything less in this opinion. I am a serious gamer but have always used the "on board" sound for my games hooked to a decent speaker system. When I did decide to upgrade my speakers, I saw the new surround speaker systems but they required a sound card that had four or five channels. So, I decided to buy the best and got the Platinum system and new speakers.
_The hardware install was a breeze and they show you in a clear and easy way how to hook up the card and cableing (three to five cables, depending on your system. Also requires a PCI slot and an open 5.25" drive bay for the Live! drive).
_The software install was fairly easy but if you don't know computers, have a experienced friend help you. You could end up with a few install problems as the card requires alot of resorces. Also, the software, including games, will take up ALOT of hard drive space so be prepared. Speaking of which, the games are great. Most of the time, when you get bundled software, the games are poor. Not true here. Give "Unreal Tournament" a try. Awesome game!!
_OK, now for the performance. After it intalled the drivers and re-booted, it went through this "test"(?), desplayed the EAX logo, and made the most beautiful sound I had ever heard! All it said was "yes", but I could hear it start from the back of me and move forward in full 3D. It was trully awesome! Music was marginaly better, but in games and DVDs, it showed it's true colors. The sound was better then any home theater I had ever heard. In games, I could hear footsteps behind or beside me. I could hear a jet go over my head and rattle the walls in "Top Gun" (DVD). It is truly an event you should experience for yourself!
_"Live! Drive Ir". This has got to be one of the best inventions in sound card technology. It will alow you to hook up almost anything related to music though the front of your computer, includeing headphones (even the big home stereo ones!). It also mutes the speakers when the phones are pluged in. Also, "Live! Drive Ir" has a remote that will control almost any program on your computer including DVD and even shutting the computer down without even touching it! Awesome or what?! The only "con" with "Live! Drive" is that the game port is only on the card itself. A real hassle for those of us that have more then one type of joystick. It would have been nice if it would have been on the "Live! Drive" also.
_The "cons". As I have said, it requires ALOT of resources. So, to you hardware freaks out there, you may have to disable something to install the card. Also, the card and all of it's programs (5 or more?!) require a bit of cpu power. I have seen a noticable drop in performance in my games since the card install and I have a 1gig Athlon with 256megs or ram! One more thing, The Creative launcher is really irritating. It sits at the top of the screen (hidden) but pops open all the time when I accidently move the mouse too far up the screen. I wish there were a way to have it off the desktop but still have quick access to it (like it being in the tool-bar).
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 199.99
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Epinions.com ID:
clbrunson
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Location: Olive Branch (Memphis), Ms. USA
Reviews written: 16
Trusted by: 3 members
About Me:
I'm a serious cyclist and a real tech freak. Love me or hate me.
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