Best sound I've heard out of a computer.
Written: May 06 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Excellent sound quality, both digital and analog.
Cons: May require a fresh install of OS if upgrading from another SB card.
The Bottom Line: If your looking for a new sound card, the Audigy should be at the top of your list.
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| alakar's Full Review: Creative Labs Sound Blaster Audigy Gamer Sound Car... |
PURCHASE:
I bought an OEM version of the Sound Blaster Audigy after reading the great reviews and the specs (+100 db signal to noise ratio). The OEM version I bought is identical (same part number on the card) to the Gamer and MP3 versions except for two things; it was $36.00 cheaper and it doesn't come with the software included with the other two packages.
Installation:
First my system: Pentium III 600E Coppermine with a Abit BE6-II 440BX chipset motherboard, 256MB memory, Nvidia Geforce 2Ti video, Diamond Modem, Linksys Ethernet card, Windows XP Professional.
Physical installation was a snap. Simply remove the case cover and plug the card into an available PCI slot. To use the included MIDI/Joystick connector you will need a open slot to the right of the card (when looking at the connectors). This could cause a problem for some people if they have allot of addin cards.
Driver installation went smoothly but on reboot my system tried to load the old Sound Blaster Audio PCI driver and the card refused to work. I tried uninstalling the old sound drivers, but that didn't help. I was finally required to do a clean install of Windows XP Pro. After the clean install of WinXP, I installed the Audigy drivers and everything worked great.
Performance:
The sound performance of this card is spectacular! I've got it hooked up to both my desktop speakers (two speaker analog ) and to my Pioneer surround receiver (5.1 speaker digital). The card has settings for digital and analog output as well as different speaker configurations (head phones, 2 speaker, 4 speaker, 5.1). It sounds great whether playing an MP3, CD, DVD or Games. There is no hiss at all even when cranking the power up, analog or digital. The driver software includes multiple sound effects and equalizer settings that can really change the way the card sounds.
I would really recommend the Audigy to anyone looking to upgrade their sound. The driver installations problems, while annoying, were minor and the performance is so good it's worth the OS reinstall.
* A note of caution: From other reviews I've read, the Audigy has some compatibility problems with VIA chipsets. Check into this if you have a VIA chipset and are looking at this card
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 63
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Epinions.com ID:
alakar
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Reviews written: 2
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