Sound blaster sound card. Creative Sound Blaster Z sound card review
We are accustomed to the fact that a sound card is a board that requires space on the motherboard. But if with desktop PCs the situation with built-in chips is improving, at the very least, laptop owners are most often forced to be content with what they have. The solution was to use portable solutions. Today we are the first to present a review of a new product on the market, a sound card Creative Sound Blaster Play! 2.
Laptop manufacturers very rarely pay attention to the quality of the built-in sound card; in my memory, based on numerous tests, the sound quality, despite the price category, was approximately the same level. This is partly not surprising, since the built-in speakers are not capable of producing rich sound, is it worth increasing production costs for this, but what should owners of headsets do or when using external acoustics? This is where the whole deplorability of the current situation emerges.
Availability
At the time of testing, official mass sales of Creative Sound Blaster Play! 2 have not started yet, according to the Yandex.Market service, there is only one offer for 1,590 rubles. Most likely, in the future the cost will be around 1000 rubles, this assumption is based on the cost of the first generation of this card.Equipment
Creative Sound Blaster Play! 2 comes in a compact, branded color box. On the edges of the box there is a photograph of the device and technical specifications.
The kit includes an adapter from a paired connector to a dual audio connector (splitter). As well as a warranty card and a software disc.
Appearance
In general, the principles laid down in the first Blaster Play! have remained preserved. The case is similar in size and shape to a regular flash drive. But in Creative Sound Blaster Play! Connector 2 is not routed directly to the housing, but through an external wire. I consider this approach to be successful; if the connectors are located closely on the laptop body, adjacent connectors will not overlap.
The main material of the case is glossy plastic; fingerprints remain, but are quickly erased.
There is only one connector here, it is a traditional 3.5 mm audio jack. It is to this that you need to connect headphones or acoustics.
Technologies
SBX Pro Studio - enhances the surround sound effect, allowing you to enjoy cinema-quality sound in your home. Improve the sound effects of all headsets or headphones. It feels like the sound quality changes noticeably even on cheap headsets.
Scout Mode - technology aimed at gamers, allowing you to hear enemies from afar, thereby giving a tactical advantage in battle.
USB Audio Recording - A USB connection allows you to record broadcasts and video conferences without interference.
Software
Control Creative Sound Blaster Play! 2 is carried out using a proprietary utility. As in previous models, the concept of a single control panel is applied here. Instead of several fragmented utilities, a stylish panel is offered that includes all the functionality. The only thing I would like to wish for developers is the ability to combine several utilities from different Creative products into a single control center.
The program window is divided into two main zones, the larger part is allocated to the settings window and the left part is allocated to tabs.
The SBX Pro Studio tab allows you to configure basic sound parameters, as well as activate proprietary surround sound technologies. The remaining tabs are responsible for setting the equalizer, checking the location of the speakers and activating the Scout Mode function.
In general, the set of options will be familiar to those who have previously used Creative products.
Video review of Creative Sound Blaster Play! 2
Summary of Creative Sound Blaster Play! 2
Creative Sound Blaster Play! 2, despite its compact body, demonstrated excellent sound. For a very reasonable price, this external sound card can significantly transform the sound of a laptop or ultrabook. Compact dimensions allow you to carry this solution with you without any difficulty. There have been noticeable changes compared to the first generation of Sound Blaster Play!, while maintaining the basic principles laid down in the series. No serious drawbacks were identified during the work; the sound card coped with its task perfectly. Creative Sound Blaster Play! 2 receives the award “Gold..
Comments and reviews Creative Sound Blaster Play
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Introduction
We are already accustomed to the fact that sound cards are built into motherboards. Their quality and functions are enough for most users, but manufacturers also produce discrete sound cards for demanding enthusiasts. Our laboratory received one of these cards: Creative Sound Blaster Z. It is also aimed at gamers. In our review, we will look at how the card turned out better than integrated solutions, and what benefits you will get.
| Creative Sound Blaster Z Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer's website | Official page of Creative Sound Blaster Z |
| Price | About 3.3 thousand rubles |
| Supported audio output modes |
|
| Audio Specifications | |
| Output Level (Full Scale) |
|
| Max. DAC resolution |
|
| Signal-to-noise ratio SNR (20kHz Low-pass filter, A-Wgt), @ 24 bit, 96 kHz |
|
| Frequency response @ 96 kHz |
|
| Frequency response @ 192 kHz (stereo only) |
|
| Interfaces | |
| Rear Connectors |
|
| Bus interface in PC | PCI Express x1 |
| Front panel audio connector | One 2x5-pin Intel HD Audio header |
The Sound Blaster Z card is the youngest in the “Z” line. It has worse characteristics than the ZxR, but is still superior in quality to conventional sound chips built into motherboards. The SoundBlaster Z card is no different from the SoundBlaster Zx, but the second one also comes with an external module for sound control with a built-in microphone (the SoundBlaster Z model only has a separate microphone. Both have beam-focusing microphones).
Appearance
The Creative Sound Blaster Z printed circuit board is made of black PCB and is covered with a red metal plate. The plate itself is quite thick and protects sensitive elements from external electromagnetic radiation. It features the Sound Blaster and SBX Pro Studio logos. The plate has a transparent insert through which the Sound Core 3D chip can be seen.
Creative Sound Blaster Z connects to the PCI Express x1 bus; no additional power is required. Creative Sound Blaster Z's analog interfaces are gold in color. There are five of them in total: one line input combined with a microphone, a headphone output and three two-channel outputs for a 5.1 system. There are optical output and TOSLINK input, as well as a connector (on the opposite side under the metal plate) for connecting audio ports on the front panel of the case.
The analog connectors are standard for a computer - 3.5 mm mini-jacks, not RCA "tulips". Still, the Creative Sound Blaster Z sound card is designed for gamers, and not for professional audio users.
Overall, the Creative Sound Blaster Z looks quite attractive. There are no backlashes, everything is made with high quality, the metal plate creates a feeling of security and reliability. The red LED is constantly lit during operation and illuminates the card from the inside. This solution should appeal to users with a transparent body.
Scope of delivery
In addition to the Sound Blaster Z itself, the package includes:
- Sound Blaster Beam Focusing Microphone
- Quick User Guide
- Installation CD including Windows drivers, Creative Software suite, user manual
It’s worth mentioning the microphone separately. Perhaps many people believe that it is unnecessary and only increases the cost of the Sound Blaster Z, so it is in vain that it is included in the package. But the microphone included with the Creative card is not quite ordinary: it has two membranes on the right and left, and thanks to special software it is able to focus the “recording beam” and effectively get rid of extraneous sounds.
We'll find out how well it works in our tests, but for now all we can say is that the microphone is comfortable - thanks to its shape, it can be mounted either on the monitor or under it - the microphone will be pointed towards your mouth.
Software installation
Windows automatically installs Sound Blaster Z drivers, but to get the full experience, we recommend installing dedicated software from Creative: install from the included disk (updates will install automatically) or download the latest driver from Creative's support site.
There you can also download additional applications such as Creative Smart Recorder and Creative WaveStudio, as well as download a user guide for getting started.
Pro Studio
The Sound Blaster Z control panel allows you to customize the sound for movies, games and conversations. Let's look at how flexible these settings are.
In the tab SBX PRO STUDIO You can enable various sound “enhancers”. Their action can be checked in real time on a test video right in the same window.
Surround– enable surround sound and control the “immersion level”.
Crystalizer– the function provides cleaner sound, the sound really becomes more pleasant to the ear. It’s just a pity that this is achieved simply by changing the equalizer settings, namely by highlighting high and low frequencies, while the “dirty” mid frequencies are drowned out.
Bass– highlighting low frequencies. When connecting a system with a separate subwoofer, you can set the crossover frequency for the front speakers, thereby avoiding sending low frequencies to the front speakers.
Smart Volume– allows you to avoid sudden changes in volume. For example, if in a film after dialogue there is a relatively loud explosion. You can choose to keep the volume at normal, loud, or quiet.
Dialog Plus– determines voice frequencies and improves their quality in the reproduced sound. Allows you to increase the intelligibility of dialogues.
Tab settings Crystal Voice is responsible for the quality of the sound recorded from the microphone.
- FX– giving the voice different shades and accents. The most plausible effects are “Demon”, “Elderly” and “Toddler”.
- Smart Volume– keeps the volume at the selected level, provides clear sound without the need to shout or whisper
- Noise Reduction– removal of noise in the recording.
- Acoustic Echo Cancellation– remove echo from recording.
- Focus– selection of sound capture angle
Scout Mode- technology for gamers, which should more clearly highlight the sounds of footsteps and other rustling sounds of the enemy, thereby providing you with an advantage.
Tab SPEAKERS/HEADPHONES speaks for itself and allows you to select the playback device. The latest version of the driver makes it possible to separately adjust the volume for headphones and speakers. Unfortunately, you can't output sound to both headphones and speakers at the same time, not to mention the sound output to them will be different. For example, music through speakers, and a conversation on Skype through headphones. This would be very convenient, for example, at a party.
In the tab CINEMATOGRAPHIC EFFECT You can choose an audio encoder: Dolby Digital or DTS Connect. There is a note that you can read in the picture below.
This mode will be useful if you have an external DTS/DD decoder with multi-channel acoustics connected to your computer. In this case, the sound card can encode sound (for example, in a game) and transmit it to an external decoder in encoded form.
MIXER allows you to adjust the volume separately for different speakers and the audio recording volume (separately for the right and left channels). It will help those whose speakers are asymmetrical.
At point EQUALIZER You can adjust the sound either manually separately by frequency, or select one of the preset settings.
In the tab ADVANCED SETTINGS You can only turn stereo sound mode on or off on the digital output.
On the menu PROFILE select one of the proposed profiles, load, save or export your profile.
From PRO STUDIO You can go to the Sound Blaster website or Sound Blaster Facebook page by clicking on the appropriate icon.
In general, the control panel turned out to be quite convenient and understandable. It will be quite easy for a beginner to figure it out. When you hover your cursor over a function or slider, a tooltip appears telling you what changes when you enable that function or move the slider.
Sound Blaster Z in action
Sound Blaster Z works stably and so does the driver. No crashes or freezes were detected during use.
Most of the announced features work well, but there are some from which we expected more.
For example, the Surround function. It, of course, works, but there is no big difference compared to the integrated sound card. The built-in sound card produces sound with a surround effect that is no worse - progress in this regard has been noticeable over the past few years. Still, surround sound simulation has ceased to be a “feature” of discrete sound cards; today any audio controller can handle it.
Boosting low frequencies using the Bass function works as expected, as does the Crossover function.
Scout Mode really highlights the steps and rustles in the game, but their direction is weak.
Otherwise, all functions work as stated.
What I was most pleased with was the elimination of noise. They disappear completely, rather than just being drowned out.
By the way, the stated gain for headphones with high impedance really helps. Any headphones connected to this sound card sound louder.
We do not use specialized equipment to measure sound quality, so all of our tests boil down to the subjective ratings listed above. You can listen to test recordings from the microphone yourself and evaluate the quality yourself.
We conducted microphone recording tests with functions turned off and on while recording
- General test (enabling all Crystal Voice features) - listen
- FX check - listen
- Checking Smart Volume - listen
- Noise Reduction check - listen
- Acoustic Echo Cancellation check - listen
- Checking the Focus function - listen
All functions fulfill their purpose, the difference is noticeable by ear, without the use of special tools: Noise Reduction eliminates noise, Acoustic Echo Cancellation eliminates echo, and Focus really attenuates sounds outside the “recording wedge”.
We may not have understood the true purpose of Smart Volume, but the difference when enabling the function is not noticeable. The quiet voice is not noticeably strengthened, and the loud voice is not weakened.
It is worth noting a feature of the Focus function. This function is aimed at working with the voice, so it does not always completely “cut out” the music that sounds from the outside.
Conclusion
Of course, the Creative Sound Blaster Z has much better performance than conventional sound chips built into motherboards. There are also many functions aimed at optimizing the sound. But due to the progress of integrated audio solutions, the sound quality does not differ as much as we would like. It is unlikely that ordinary users will notice the difference.
However, this sound card is aimed more at demanding users and gamers. And for them, everything is done well here: Crystal Voice for comfortable communication in audio chats, Scout Mode for gaining an advantage in the game, special sound settings for shooters, racing and strategies. There is support for Dolby Digital Live and DTS Connect, allowing you to play surround sound games on your home theater. Together with the SBX Pro Studio settings, you can get good sound when watching movies.
Don't forget about the design, which in this case is simply excellent. If your case is equipped with a window, you will probably like the style of the card itself and the lighting. The build quality is also not satisfactory.
The high-quality microphone with directional sound recording included in the package can be called an additional bonus; it will be appreciated by those users who want to record their voice as clearly as possible in conditions of external noise, for example, in games.
All this is, of course, good. But the price of Creative Sound Blaster Z is 3.3 thousand rubles. Audiophiles will probably pay more and buy a professional sound card, while those who are sorry for money will be content with the capabilities of built-in sound cards. Therefore, Creative should probably lower the price a little to expand the target audience of Sound Blaster Z users.
Benefits of Creative Sound Blaster Z:
- Convenient and intuitive control panel of Sound Blaster Z
- Variety of features (SBX Pro Studio, Crystal Voice, Scout Mode)
- Flexible settings
- Dolby Digital Live and DTS Connect support
- Amplification of high impedance headphones
- Additional programs such as Alchemy (hardware effects in old games) and Creative Wave Studio (program for recording and cutting sound)
- The latest driver version adds support for ASIO, a low-latency data transfer protocol
- Excellent quality of sound recorded from the microphone
Disadvantages of Creative Sound Blaster Z:
- High price
- The average user will not notice a difference in sound compared to the integrated solution
- There is no way to connect a 7.1 system
The newest sound card produced by Creative is called Sound Blaster Z. The model operates via the PCI Express x1 interface; it is characterized by a low level of bus load, which will be appreciated by fans of modding and those who need to install this card in a small system unit. Sound Blaster Z is packaged in a beautiful case, and it comes with a gadget that will be useful to every gamer - a very high-quality microphone with the function of focusing on the sound source and high noise reduction.
At a price of less than 3,000 rubles, Sound Blaster Z is the most optimal of Creative's new generation sound cards. In it you will not find many options that are key for hardened audiophiles. But you will have a fast sound card that looks attractive, is made in a convenient form factor and comes complete with a high-quality microphone.
The Sound Blaster Z family of cards is equipped with Creative's Sound Core 3D processor: it has four cores and removes the load of audio processing from the PC's central processor.
Packaging and accessories
The Creative Sound Blaster Z came into our hands in a cardboard box, which protects it quite well from external mechanical influences. This is the entry-level model in the Creative line, so, unlike the Zx, which comes with external modules for sound control, the Sound Blaster Z comes “just with a microphone.” For those of you who are looking high-quality sound card without unnecessary bells and whistles, the Z model is perfect, because in terms of its capabilities it is not inferior to the Zx, but at the same time costs an order of magnitude less. And even though the microphone in it is very simple, you will be pleasantly surprised by the quality of the sound recorded with it.
Let's take a closer look at the device
The appearance of the Creative Sound Blaster Z sound card immediately inspires confidence that it will not be lost among the components of a well-built gaming PC. Its dark red anodized aluminum body looks very attractive, and through a small window built into it you can see the Sound Core3D processor. To make the appearance of the Sound Blaster Z even more extravagant, the manufacturer equipped it with two red LEDs that light up when the card is working.
As soon as you have removed the insides of the card from its case (that is, unscrewed the red aluminum piece of hardware), what appears before your eyes is a board that is quite simple at first glance. It provides 5.1 audio and is also equipped with optical input and output.
The aluminum casing makes connecting the Sound Blaster Z a little more difficult via the Front Panel Audio Header (F_AUDIO) connector, but everything becomes much easier if you connect the cable first and then install the card.
The rear panel of this sound card is in many ways similar to other 5.1 devices: there are five mini-jacks and two TOSLINK S/P-DIFF outputs. The distance between two adjacent 3.5 mm jacks is enough to, if necessary, plug 1/4″-inch headphones with an adapter into one of them so that the latter does not cover any of the “jacks”. The card is equipped with a headphone audio amplifier - this allows you to connect a fairly serious headset to it without fear of losing sound quality or power.
A good microphone is an important thing for every gamer, since voice communication plays an important role in modern computer games. And Creative approached this issue quite simply: they equipped their sound card with a microphone with the ability to focus on the sound source. It can be placed wherever it is convenient for you: on a table, screen or any other flat surface. At the same time, this gadget provides much better sound quality than regular cheap desktop microphones.
All Sound Blaster Z series cards feature a new quad-core audio processor. This processor as a whole fully copes with all the signal processing functions that are assigned to it. Enabling real hardware acceleration is only expected when running games. But recently, the power of the PC’s central processor is more than enough for these purposes. The Sound Blaster Z uses fairly standard capacitors, a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) and all other chips. The main channel op amp is a 4556A (this is a JRC capacitive op amp). It was also used in other models of Creative sound cards, starting its history with the Sound Blaster Live! line.
Creative has made a lot of noise about its new Sound Core 3D: this concerns both the marketing support of the card and its appearance. We now have clear evidence that this work was not in vain.
Software for Sound Blaster Z
Remember how much trouble we had with software for x-fi generation sound cards? So, that's all in the past. No more fuss and eternal reinstallation of lost drivers. Everything is installed simply and clearly in a few clicks, and the sound card is ready to go.
The software for this particular card model works quite well on computers running 64-bit Windows 7 Pro. This software not only takes up a relatively large amount of disk space (160 MB), but also consumes a lot of operating memory (69 MB when the program is minimized). For those of you who monitor your PC's resource usage, you can simply exit this program every time changes have been made.
The Sound Blaster Z is equipped with SBX sound enhancement technologies. These effects affecting the sound quality of headphones clearly do not affect it in the best way. Although these improvements may be useful in some computer games, we would recommend using them with some caution. If you like bass, then these settings can also be useful, as they enhance the lower bass without affecting the midrange. However, the surround sound emulated using SBX leaves much to be desired.
Now it's time to look at what the real value to the user is called Crystal Voice: it's a pretty smart noise reduction and post-processing system for the microphone. Noise reduction algorithms work flawlessly, cutting out the vast majority of unwanted sounds. You won't have much freedom in terms of customizing Crystal Voice, but there are still some options that will help you achieve the best results in the quality of the sound recorded through the microphone. In addition, you can distort your own voice with a couple of fun effects that will help scare your opponents when communicating via TeamSpeak.
Scout Mode will help you better hear the footsteps of enemies in the game and from a greater distance. Essentially, its job is to adjust the equalizer to boost the highs and mids. It seems that the Scout Mode algorithm involves additional digital signal processing, but it still seems to us that 90 percent of the difference obtained is achieved through equalizer changes: perhaps the same can be achieved on a regular sound card (even an integrated one) through manual equalization.
The outgoing audio settings screen is quite simple and intuitive.
By opening the Cinematic Effect tab (Cinematix), you can select one of the proposed codecs.
The mixer is easy to set up and also allows you to adjust the microphone.
Among other things, we are offered a good eleven-band equalizer, with the help of which you can simply adjust your profile perfectly.
The last tab, Advanced Features, doesn't quite live up to its name, offering us only one modest option.
Performance
In order to fully explore the capabilities of this sound card, we tested it with different games, speakers and headphones.
In addition, we listened to a lot of music, because many people use their PC mainly as a music center or home theater.
Stereo sound
Even if none of the software-enabled bells and whistles are active, that doesn't stop the Sound Blaster Z from still producing very high-quality sound. This card is capable of providing high-quality sound even with a not very high-quality source, for example videos on YouTube. When listening to music on 5.1 acoustics, the card distributes the sound across all speakers, resulting in a virtual surround sound effect.
The sound to the headphones receives significant amplification, and this makes it possible to connect even such powerful headsets with high impedance up to 600 Ohms. Even for a headset like HiFiMAN HE6, it is quite enough. But if you wear simple eardrop headphones, the sound in them will be too loud. And for regular headphones like the Sennheiser PX-200 II, the gain provided by the card is sometimes too much.
At a price of 3,000 rubles, the Sound Blaster Z copes perfectly with the task of playing music or other two-channel sources. The Creative Sound Blaster Z will work well with high impedance headphones with low to medium acoustic efficiency values.
Multichannel audio
Sound Blaster Z will provide you with high quality sound in computer games. The large number of available settings gives you confidence that both the card itself and its software will satisfy even the most sophisticated needs. Of course, no software has ever been able to turn a bad headset into a good one, but they can definitely help you customize your headset to suit your preferences. For example, for SteelSeries Siberia v2, in order to clearly hear the characters’ steps and the sound of falling shell casings in Battlefield 3 and CS:GO, we lowered the bass and increased the midrange. And even though we had to tinker a little with the equalizer, in the end we achieved what we wanted, which is good news. Scout Mode could be used for these purposes, but the result obtained with its help sounds somewhat unnatural - in this case, manually adjusting the equalizer can get much closer to the ideal sound for games. In addition, we should also not forget that both the sound you get from Scout Mode and the one you achieve yourself directly depend on the headphones or headset you use. For standard headphones, it is better not to change anything in Scout Mode and the equalizer if you want to enjoy the sound when playing.
As we expected, the microphone performed well for most games. The microphone itself works excellently, and if you add to this the post-processing provided by the card itself, the result is very high-quality audio recording. The microphone noise reduction system works effectively, and in addition, it can be very precisely adjusted depending on the situation that currently exists around you. In comparison with the audio-technica at2020 microphone we constantly use, Creative demonstrated good results in terms of usability, although with a slight loss in the quality of the recorded sound. Thanks to the SBX on the Creative card, the noise reduction settings will work for any microphone: this is very beneficial if you need, for example, to record sound through your favorite microphone.
Conclusion
Advantages:
- Stable software
- Large set of functions
- Great for gaming
- Eleven band equalizer
- Headphone amplifier provides high-quality and loud sound when using premium headsets
- High quality microphone
- Easy to use and install control panel
Flaws:
- Scout Mode is a bit absurd
- You need headphones with an impedance greater than 32 ohms
- No surround sound support for full 7.1, 9.1 home theater
- Software for Sound Blaster Z seriously loads the system, consuming more than 60 MB of RAM in the background
Creative managed to create a very worthy sound card that perfectly performs all the tasks that such a device could face. And although the Sound Blaster Z is not endowed with any super-outstanding features, this card is an excellent “workhorse” that also satisfies the needs of most gamers. And although the special Scout Mode does not quite live up to the hopes placed on it, the built-in eleven-band equalizer, if necessary, allows you to achieve almost any sound. Sound Blaster Z provides high-quality sound not only in budget headsets, but also in top-class headsets.
In general, the new product from Creative will be a real find for gamers who want to upgrade their built-in sound card.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Vladimir K.
Pros: For the price, you're unlikely to find anything better with the CS4398 DAC. Which, by the way, was used in the former top-end sound card Creative X-Fi Elite Pro. And at one time it cost from 11 to 14 thousand rubles at the old rate - 35 rubles per dollar. I use entry-level studio monitors AXELVOX TR-88A with this sound card. Although these monitors cost only 11-12 thousand rubles per monitor (at the old dollar rate), for their price they produce amazing sound, with the Sound Blaster Z sound card. The sound is very detailed. In games, for example, I heard new sounds in detail. I really enjoy it. Previously, I had X-FI at home, the cheapest one, which does not have a processor. The difference between them is as expected - amazing. And I greatly unlocked the potential of my monitors. Editing, for example, the same sound tracks has become an order of magnitude more comfortable. Now, as before, I don’t strain my ears to hear the frequency that I need when working with an equalizer or when tracking the detail I need in the sound for editing. That is, everything has become clearer. I think there is nothing more to write about this sound card, since a lot has already been written before me. Yes... the sound is really rich and detailed. The bass is tight and deep at the same time. The bass doesn't boom. Excellent operating mode in the sound card. It's called Stereo Direct. As I understand it, this mode means direct sound output to the amplifier, bypassing the operating system filters. That is, this means minimal impact on the sound from the OS. Let me just remind you that I described my opinion with studio monitors. And this is completely different. Even Hi-Fi systems cannot be compared with them. Not to mention low-budget speaker systems. And by the way... at my work in the cinema there is a sound system for 700 thousand rubles (35 per dollar). You won't believe it. I have better sound at home than at work. The only thing better about the sound at work is the presence of infrasound due to the high-quality subwoofer, which is 2/3 of my height. But in terms of detail in the house, the sound is more gorgeous!
Disadvantages: Light bulb! The red sun started up in my system unit! Who came up with the idea to make it non-disabled?! There are trolls at Creative! 0_0
Comment: Previously, there were problems due to the drivers for this card - the “microphone level” dropped from 100% to 67% every time the computer was rebooted. In some sound editors, when using ASIO, the sound suddenly began to distort. With the latest drivers - August 2015, ALL THESE PROBLEMS ARE GONE! The drivers don't crash, no matter what you mess with in the settings in the driver panel. Everything has become VERY stable. Personally, I have ZERO problems! Switching from acoustics to headphones occurs automatically, without any errors. I stuck my ears in, the studio monitors went out - the sound was in the headphones. I pulled out the headphone plug, the studio monitors turned on - there was sound in them. I have been using the card since the summer of 2013. I highly recommend purchasing this sound card. The best, most likely, has not yet been given - in its stability and versatility! If you need excellent, detailed sound in games, music, movies, or working with sound - take this card. I worked professionally with sound on regional television for 7 years using this CS4398 DAC. He's wonderful! Especially with the latest drivers! My settings in the sound card driver panel: SBX PRO STUDIO - everything is turned off. CRYSTALVOICE - everything is turned off. SCOUT MODE - off (just boosts mids and mid-highs). SPEAKERS/HEADPHONES - Configuration... "Stereo Direct", full-range speakers enabled. Everything else is turned off. CINEMATOGRAPHIC EFFECT - “There is no encoder.” Everything is turned off. MIXER - well, here are your preferences. EQUALIZER - off. Since I have studio monitors. ADVANCED FEATURES - depending on your configuration. My settings in the OS control panel - sound>playback devices: ADVANCED tab... Default format. 24 bit, 48000 Hz. Exclusive mode, both checkboxes are enabled. All programs and players that reproduce sound must be configured in the same way - 24 bit, 48000 Hz. Thank you all for your attention. (:
Rating: 5 out of 5
Andrey U.
Pros: Excellent sound (see comment on how to turn it on). Not buggy software. Price.
Disadvantages: All sound converters distort the sound too much. For those who are not in the know, read the comments.
Comment: 1) It is very important to know that a good DAC only processes the Front Out output. This is the third 3.5mm output (in the middle among 3.5mm). This is where it is better to connect the front speakers or headphones. This is not written anywhere, and I only found out about it months later. 2) Together with the sound card, Softina is installed, in which you need to switch the operating mode ("Speakers\Headphones") to DIRECT STEREO. Otherwise there will be no good sound (read the disadvantages). This disables all SBX audio conversion functions and sends the sound directly to the speakers, giving you pure, original sound.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Pros: installed. works. doesn't ask for bread.
Disadvantages: the driver shell froze a couple of times.
Comment: I bought it in the spring of 2014. to replace X-Fi, which after 8 years of operation began to behave strangely - clicking and rustling. and there were already problems with drivers for X-Fi. In general, I bought this simple one, without additional devices, installed the Z blaster, and added the drivers. and that's all. Well, I did a little magic with the settings, turned off all the gadgets and additional processing. In the end I have a sound that I like. I like it in games, I like it in movies, I like it in music. I have never regretted the purchase.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Advantages: - Good sound - No interference - Abundance of inputs / outputs - Does not require additional. power supply - Build quality - Microphone availability - Price
Disadvantages: - Clicks in the columns when turning on/off/rebooting the computer - Card settings in the application software are poor
Comment: I suppose, like many others, when replacing a computer I was faced with the choice of a sound card, I would gladly leave my favorite SB X-Fi Xtreme Audio, but the new motherboard simply does not have PCI slots, and the pci-e version of Xtreme Audio is unfortunately not available contains an X-Fi chip and has a different sound. In general, I hesitated for a long time between Asus and Creative, among other things, it was necessary to have analog outputs for 5.1, without any adapters (like in the ZXR), but directly to the minijack, and of course, so that it would sound no worse than my previous one: ). Considering the large number of negative reviews about the background in cards from Asus, the choice fell on Sound Blaster Z. By the way, for those who do not need an external module, I recommend buying Z, since the ZX has an absolutely identical sound chip from CS and there is no point in overpaying. So, what can we say, the card is quite decent, it sounds very, very good, there is no noise, interference or other negative things observed (review about the RTL version), there are no problems with the drivers either, I installed the latest ones from the site, everything works correctly. When objectively compared with X-Fi, SBZ has better sound. Much better, especially in Surround mode, the channel layout is simply wonderful. But there is also a small minus, where without it. This card (by default) has too few highs, and as luck would have it, my front speakers also have problems with highs, so the sound turns out a little muddy, in the end everything has to be tweaked in software with an equalizer and crystallizer, it becomes quite bearable, but this has its own nuances. Also, the disadvantages include a clicking sound when starting up and shutting down the system, and no matter what anyone advises (reinstall drivers/OS/directX, set pci-e x1 to 2.0, etc.), nothing helps. In essence, this may not be considered a disadvantage, but if there is something to compare it with, then this is hardly possible :) In general, the Creative Sound Blaster Z sound card is a good purchase and meets all expectations, despite the small disadvantages.