Sound Blaster Audigy Player
The Audigy is the latest advancement in the technology of Creative's ubiquitous Sound Blaster series; taking over the role of flagship from Creative's 'Live!' range, which previously championed sound technology for gamers. Audigy appears to take on where 'Live!' left-off and as such Creative will be hoping for similar success. But has the new Audigy Player got what it takes to sweep gamers off their feet into a swoon of gaming-audio ecstasy? Creative Labs sent Ferrago a board so we could find out…
First things first, I was pleased to note that installation was relatively easy, and despite my usual technical incompetence it was pleasing to note the clarity of Creative's instructions. Location of the board into a free PCI slot having been completed as-per numerous upgrades, it was a huge relief to see that the hardware was detected successfully and installation went without a hitch.
Browsing around the software that came with the Audigy board I was impressed by the level of customisation offered by the Audigy software, which allowed me to perfect the balance and volume between my front and rear speakers, as well as whole host of more clever and technical stuff, which those of you who are inclined as a perfectionist will no doubt enjoy tweaking with.
The card is pleasingly feature heavy too; the addition of the SB1394 socket allowing for the easy connection of compatible devices such as cameras, as well as networking capabilities between compatible sockets on other PC's. Making home networking a lot easier, in a manner offering higher performance and better economy than USB networking; a feature clearly designed to appeal to the gaming audience Creative hopes to lure with this card.