Creative Labs Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Sound Card Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Let me start right off by saying that I am not an audiophile and maybe I can not discern between a good/bad quality audio stream, so the fact that I purchased this audio card would seem like a big waste of money.
I actually purchased this card after I started having a few resource problems between a fire wire card and my onboard audio that were getting to be very irritating.
When I read that this card had integrated fire wire connectivity in addition to the sound capabilities, plus two bundled high quality games (Soldier of Fortune II and Hit man 2) I told myself I couldn't go wrong by spending a few more bucks than the average sound card.
This card does make an extremely noticeable difference in the way we listen to any kind of audio. MP3s just sound better, period. A few of my MP3's that previously were almost unplayable now simply sound better, I don't know how it works, it just does.
My Unreal Tournament 2003 game is a totally different experience with this card. Boy, I was simply mesmerized with the positional EAX sound performance of the Audigy 2 card with this game. With my onboard sound, I had a lot of difficulty locating enemies by using positional sounds, but now it is so much clearer and crisp, it's unbelievable. Here's where I got totally convinced about the true difference between my onboard sound, which I thought was more than enough, and a truly remarkable work of technology.
I also tested the fire wire with my video camera and it works like a charm, plus now I do not suffer from system resource problems anymore.
Card installation is simple: With the PC off, insert the card, make sure to disable onboard sound (via the BIOS) if any, boot up, install the drivers from the CD, restart and done. Make sure to download the latest drivers afterwards.
Don't get intimidated by the price tag. This is one of the best investments you could make for your PC if you want to enjoy true quality audio.
5 stars

Click Here to see more reviews about: Creative Labs Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Sound Card

For the highest-quality audio experience, 16-bit is just not good enough. Step up to Sound Blaster Audigy 2 to hear the amazing difference that 24-bit Advanced HD makes. It delivers astonishing clarity and audio details that are inaudible on current 16-bit audio solutions, bringing your music, movies, and games to life.
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 offers Advanced Resolution DVD-audio playback up to an astonishing 24-bit/192 kHz in stereo, and delivers an ultraquiet 106 dB SNR that's far superior to ordinary CD and MP3 playback. With 6.1 speaker support, your games and Dolby Digital EX movies will sound more encompassing than ever before. The new Creative MediaSource music player will revolutionize your MP3 experience with its intuitive interface and rich feature set, while the Audigy 2 chip with EAX Advanced HD support delivers awesome power for gaming. Get Sound Blaster Audigy 2 for 24-bit/192 kHz audio fidelity--it delivers simply the best audio quality for music, movies, and games. Nothing else comes close.

Click here for more information about Creative Labs Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Sound Card

Creative Labs PCMCIA Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Notebook ( 70SB053000012 ) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This sound card is alright. I would recommend NOT buying this soundcard if your laptop is not high end, or is slow, low ram, or constantly using up a lot of CPU speed. I have the Gateway Tablet PC, and at first I had a lot of problems with this card, but after about 2 hours of configuring it, and my computer, it now runs with no problems in high end games. I also have a lot of experience with computers though. If you are going to be playing high end games then I would recommend getting this, if you are only going to be playing music, find an alternative.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Creative Labs PCMCIA Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Notebook ( 70SB053000012 )

AUDIGY 2 ZS NB PCCARD CLAMSHELL SND CARD

Click here for more information about Creative Labs PCMCIA Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Notebook ( 70SB053000012 )

Creative Labs Sound Blaster Wireless Audio Transmitter and Receiver Bundle Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Having used a myriad of devices from the squeezboox boom and the squeezebox duet system -- as well as a few other devices that are not worth mentioning, I'll say that this is by far the easiest to use, install and operate.
Let me walk you through my set-up ... which took about 10 minutes ...
1. Unpacked the box and did away with all the plastic detritus.
2. Installed and registered the software on my laptop.
3. Plugged in the transmitter to a USB port in the back.
4. Rebooted my laptop, turned on iTunes and played a U2 album.
5. Plugged in the receiver (using a nicer set of cables) to my Sony Stereo Receiver on Aux 3. Was tempted to go optical.
6. Hit the find button on the underside of the little device and walked away.
7. 15 seconds later -- music played.
8. Stuck the batteries in the remote and turned it up.
That simple and absolutely no stumbling blocks to speak of.
Sound Quality? -- Better than I expected for this, but I wasn't looking for Mark Levinson to come out of my office and sit down on the couch with a glass of wine. The sound quality is more than adequate for casual home listening and the better your system is, the better the device will sound to you.
Responsiveness? -- I'm constantly unplugging the transmitter from my laptop and taking off somewhere, only to come back replug it back in, and find it working almost instantly and flawlessly. Windows and iTunes are not always asking questions or looking for drivers. It seems that whatever iTunes needed to do to make this thing be compatible with itself, was worked out ahead of time by Creative Labs and Apple. That's a first.
The Software -- is quite good and quite simple. You can customize it to play in zones, if that's your thing or adjust the quality of the sound and other minor changes. The software, from what I saw, doesn't appear to be a resource hog, nor has it been the culprit of crashes or bluescreens. If you don't use iTunes , you don't like to, or don't want to, this may be the only *real* problem one could face. The good thing is that it doesn't require you to depend on it as a player like other companies, or other devices do.
I can find no fault with this and I'm happy with the success of this device. I use it everyday now and I'm thoroughly pleased.
Well done ... a great idea to give as a gift for young or old as the ease of use with this is simple and the learning curve low. How about that for innovation?
...

Click Here to see more reviews about: Creative Labs Sound Blaster Wireless Audio Transmitter and Receiver Bundle

This bundle includes the Creative Labs Sound Blaster wireless audio transmitter and receiver giving you everything you need to set up a premium wireless sound system.The Creative Labs Sound Blaster for iTunes upgrades your PC or Mac to a premium wireless sound system. Simply plug into any USB port, connect an optional Creative Wireless Receiver to your powered speakers or home stereo system, and play your iTunes or other digital music wirelessly ¿ no cables or networking required. You can add Sound Blaster Wireless Audio ready speakers with built-in wireless receiver and in the future wireless headphones to play music wirelessly in multiple rooms. Plus, Sound Blaster for iTunes features Creative¿s award-winning X-Fi audio enhancement technology that improves the quality of iTunes media, MP3s and movies. Package Contents: Sound Blaster for iTunes USB Audio Transmitter, Audio cable (1/8" to stereo RCA), Installation CD, Quick Start Leaflet.The Creative Wireless Receiver plays the songs from your Creative wireless audio products across the room or around the house. The wireless system is designed for music, so there are no delays, no dropouts and no home network needed. Setup is a breeze, just plug the Creative Wireless Receiver into any powered speakers or your home theater receiver, the wireless connection is automatic. The wireless remote control lets you navigate through the music on your Notebook, PC or iPod;playing, pausing and skiping from wherever you are. And it's expandable so you can add as many Creative Wireless Receivers as you like within the 100' range.

Get 60% OFF

Click here for more information about Creative Labs Sound Blaster Wireless Audio Transmitter and Receiver Bundle

Creative Labs Sound Blaster Wireless Audio Transmitter Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The Sound Blaster works great, is easy to use, and has a very good sound for this level of speaker hardware. The "Owners Handbook" and CD were something else. It's very limited, covers more than one non-related product which can lead to confusion and the instructions on the web site are little better. When I first set up the system(on a Mac running Snow Leopard) I couldn't get any sound although all hardware was installed per instructions and all working indicator light were properly lighted. I was on the verge of sending it back to Amazon, when I thought about checking one last setting which was NOT covered by any instructions from Creative. Under System Preferences/Sound a setting had to be manually changed. from "Internal Speakers" to "SB for itunes-usb". The usb setting appears under Sound when the usb transmitter is plugged in and MUST be manually selected each time the transmitter is plugged it. Other than this frustrating omission from the Instructions, the Sound Blaster works great and would have given it 5 stars.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Creative Labs Sound Blaster Wireless Audio Transmitter

The Creative Labs Sound Blaster for iTunes upgrades your PC or Mac to a premium wireless sound system. Simply plug into any USB port, connect an optional Creative Wireless Receiver to your powered speakers or home stereo system, and play your iTunes or other digital music wirelessly ¿ no cables or networking required. You can add Sound Blaster Wireless Audio ready speakers with built-in wireless receiver and in the future wireless headphones to play music wirelessly in multiple rooms. Plus, Sound Blaster for iTunes features Creative¿s award-winning X-Fi audio enhancement technology that improves the quality of iTunes media, MP3s and movies. Package Contents: Sound Blaster for iTunes USB Audio Transmitter, Audio cable (1/8" to stereo RCA), Installation CD, Quick Start Leaflet.

Get 13% OFF

Click here for more information about Creative Labs Sound Blaster Wireless Audio Transmitter

Creative Labs Xmod Wireless Music System with X-Fi Technology Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The Xmod Wireless comes in 2 parts, a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter connects very simply to your PC via USB and it functions as a USB soundcard, applying X-Fi sound enhancement to any sound or music that is passed through it. Compressed audio like AAC, WMA and MP3 files are upscaled to 24 bit quality and surround sound effects can be added.
You have to experience this to appreciate it. It really does make your music sound better. Sometimes the improvement is more subtle than at other times, but the quality X-Fi provides really shines when you connect the receiver end of the Xmod Wireless to a good set of speakers that you might have in your theater or family room.
So, on to part 2 of the package. The wireless receiver. This enables you to control and listen to your music anywhere you place the receiver in your house. Your PC music collection is streamed around the house with top notch quality and fidelity. I have my receiver connected to my theater setup and the sound is fantastic. You can purchase additional receivers if you'd like to play your music in multiple rooms.
Cool things about the package overall. The range is great and there is no lag. Plus, it just works. You don't need to have your own network or anything running already. Just turn on the receiver and transmitter and away you go, nothing to fuss with. If you do have a network running, this won't interfere with it at all. I think both units are stylish as well. They fit right in with high end equipment and they are pretty small.
You also get a remote for each side and there are inputs so that you can connect an MP3 player. With the remotes, you can skip tracks, pause tracks, turn on and off the X-Fi features, etc.
I don't really have any negatives other than the price, but I still think it's worth it. Sonos has products with similar features that cost up to $1000. Xmod Wireless gives you what you need with better audio technology for a lot less. It would also be nice to have a small display on the receiver unit so you can see what you are browsing.
Overall, Xmod Wireless is highly recommended. The unique combination of a driverless and simple to use USB soundcard with a high quality streaming device is an excellent way to introduce your PC to your home theater setup or to any room of your house.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Creative Labs Xmod Wireless Music System with X-Fi Technology

Play music from your PC wirelessly in any room, Make your MP3s sound better than CDs, Connect in seconds - no configuration needed.

Get 20% OFF

Click here for more information about Creative Labs Xmod Wireless Music System with X-Fi Technology