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Sound, sound, sound we all want good sound for our games, DVD's and windows chime! We take a look at 'high end' products, and tell you just how far they go!
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Setup: SoundBlaster Live! Platinum
I formatted my hard drive when I purchased the
soundcard; therefore it was an easy install, popped in the new soundcard, booted
up in to Windows, ignored the "new hardware wizard." Then ran the installation
routine from the driver CD. In a word: this task was simple. And simple is
always GOOD!
The "free" stuff:
With the SoundBlaster Live Platinum, you are supposed to
receive a driver CD, a lot of free software (https://www.soundblaster.com/products/sbliveplatinum/software.asp ,) the actual soundcard, the live drive! front bay module, a
desktop microphone, as well as a ? to 1/8 mini jack converter. i'm going to be
honest with you, free software does NOTHING for me. However, the software bundle
comes with enough applications to please the novice DJ in you. The games are ok,
but I don't care for them much. Thief was the most appropriate game in the
bundle, simply because it does an admirable job of using EAX as the sound
effects are downright BELIEVABLE.
Setup: Desktop Theatre 2500
Setting up these speakers is simple, but time consuming task. There is a
plethora of cables to plow through, but the end result is quite satisfying. The
5 satellite speakers come with mini desktop stands, and Cambridge includes wall
mounts and stands for the rear satellites. Ideally you should use the stands,
but my tiny cubicle of a bedroom does not allow for that. In any case the wall
mounts for the rear speakers are invaluable in a tiny space such as mine. I
plugged the speakers into the control console that comes with the speakers
(works as the amp and Dolby Digital Decoder.)
Basic Connectivity:
With the SoundBlaster Live Platinum, you have three
methods in which you can plug speakers into it. The DTT 2500 can actually uses
all three. The SoundBlaster Live! Platinum has front and rear
analogue output jacks, as well as a DIN connector, and finally a RCA SPDIF
connector on the Live Drive bay. The DIN connection is the best way to enjoy
your day-to-day audio applications. It's basically a digital connection from the
soundcard to the control console. However the SoundBlaster Live! Platinum only
comes with a mini-DIN output, and the control console on the DTT 2500 comes with
the standard DIN input (similar to a PS/2 port.) Nonetheless, a quick phone call
to Creative Labs remedied the situation; I received my mini-DIN to DIN converter
cable in the mail a week later. I tried using the analogue connection to the
control console, and while the audio quality was great, the DIN connection
proved to be a step up in audio quality and fidelity.
Live Drive:
The RCA SPDIF connector was used for connecting the Live Drive to the control
console. The RCA SPDIF connection is used primarily for the Dolby Digital AC-3
stream. It basically sends digital data to the control console to be decoded as
a Dolby Digital AC-3 signal. Watching DVD's on your PC is an entirely new
experience with true Dolby Digital sound. Without a doubt, the Live Drive's most
useful feature is the RCA SPDIF out, however, the microphone in jack, and the
headphone out jack are also incredibly useful. The headphone jack allows me to
record to my portable mini disc player (analogue recording of course.) Most
importantly, the headphone jack provides a convenient way to connect my
headphones for some late night fragging. The microphone-in jack is useful for
voice over net communications and just to record your own voice J . The MIDI in and out ports on the Live Drive bay might
be useful to some musicians, but the vast majority of gamers will never use
them.
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