Creative Sound Blaster Zx PCIe Gaming Sound Card with High Performance Headphone Amp and Desktop Audio Control Module

I'm a long time gamer and PC builder back to shortly after Microsoft introduced Windows. I recently bought an Asus Z87 Sabertooth motherboard to go in my new system, which I built using the Win 7- 64 bit operating system. I also decided to try the onboard audio chip that uses Realtek technology. On-board sound is something I have never really tried before. Initially the sound seemed OK but that did not last and I will not dwell on it. Suffice it to say that after playing several games and music from several sources it was my determination that the Realtek sound was just not enough for my ear. In addition, neither was the Realtek control panel that gives the user somewhat less control over adjustments. As a result I bought the Creative SoundBlaster ZX SBX PCIE card with the audio control module. It was on sale on Amazon so I bought it even though it has some features I cannot use to the fullest with my old Logitech Z-680 speaker system. Someday I may replace those speakers so this card will be good for whatever I might buy to replace it. The net of all this is the card installed without a hitch, the software loaded perfectly, updated perfectly, and there have been no problems in games or music so far. I will say that I am familiar with the Creative software and also the Windows 7 settings for doing the installation based on having done this many times in the past. It is a somewhat more difficult task to install any sound card if you are not familiar with the Windows audio settings in the sound section of the control panel so have some experienced help available by phone if you are doing this for the first time. There are some instruction in the manual on the CD that comes with this SoundBlaster ZX SBX card but it deals mostly with the settings in their own controls and not so much with the required Windows settings. The software does it's best to install everything required, including configuring the Windows settings, but it doesn't always configure things 100% correctly, particularly if you have some older audio equipment in your computer system, like my Z-680 Logitech speaker system. In such cases you will need to go into the Windows Control Panel in the Hardware and Sound section and make some manual adjustments to those settings. You can do a Google search for how to configure those settings and you will undoubtedly find some help and perhaps a YouTube video that shows you how to do it step by step. The bottom line is you can't go wrong with this sound card as a very good sound card for every day gaming and music, unless you are a total audiophile. If you are a total audiophile then you need to look at one of the more expensive cards designed strictly for music and made by various manufacturers. All the best.

First I'll start this review by saying that I was very skeptical when i ordered this. I've been debating getting one for weeks... or has it been months? At any rate, I decided to buy it and here's what i think: - I wasn't sure if i would really appreciate the 116dB SNR, but I DEFINITELY DO. This card sounds awesome. I hooked it up and plugged in my headphones and cranked up the volume (without playing anything) and could detect absolutely not hissing, buzzing or any sort of noise on the line. Usually with these canal headphones i hear some sort of noise (with onboard or even with my previous X-Fi card). I find this clarity to be very appreciable in music playback especially. - I was really worried about the microphone not working so well, especially after a couple negative reviews I've seen out there. But it is awesome. It, along with the CrystalVoice settings/processing, does an AMAZING job of filtering out all unwanted noise and picking up only your voice. Toggling the Noise Reduction on and off lets you tell just how much ambient noise this filters out without having much impact on the tone of your voice, and it does very very well. The whole "beam forming cone" thing works very well too, it doesnt pick up my voice if im just a couple feet to one side or the other. At first i was leaning forward and talking towards the mic, like i would with any cheap desktop mic. But after testing I realized that i could be sitting many feet away, leaning back and it still picks up my voice with absolutely no problems. The smartvolume on the mic works just as well as the SVM does for the speaker output - whispers from 4-5ft away were nearly the same volume as talking loudly right up by the mic. The only feature that I dont really care for is the Acoustic Echo Cancellation. I find that enabling it makes my voice choppy and harder to understand. Since this feature was intended to eliminate feedback in open-mic settings, and i only ever us Push-to-talk, this was a non-issue for me. I was worried that the mic build into the ACM on this model wouldtn pick up as well as the monitor-top model of the cheaper model due to the angle, but i have no complaints whatsoever. This microphone has allowed me to FINALLY stop wearing headsets during game. Now i can wear my preferred headphones or even just use my speakers and still communicate reliably with my teammates. Definitely NOT a gimmicky thing like i feared. - The new software is MUCH better than anything creative has put out yet. Everything/anything that you need to do is right there, easy and convenient. The interface is a lot better laid out and very quick and responsive, unlike the X-Fi control panel. Smart Volume Management (which has always been one of my fav features of recent soundblaster cards) is not only present, but well upgraded, allowing you to set the levels with a slider. One thing that I've been very impressed and entertained with are the voice effects you can do with this card. My friends and i spent a lot of time just goofing around and laughing at the voices. The "Elderly" setting really makes you sound like an old man! The male>female one really made me sound like a woman lol. Prank calling ppl with these effects using Google Voice provides hours of entertainment :) My friends XFi titanium has most of , if not all of, these effects, but they dont sound as good on his... i dunno if its his mic or if the processing has been improved, but yeah, it sounds great. The 10-band EQ is always nice to have too. The only thing i cant really comment on are the digital outputs and settings, since i dont use them, and the Scout Mode, since i havent tried it yet. - Hardware and connection wise, this card is much much better than past creative products. The card itself feels very high quality. I love the shielding and the red glowing LEDs under it go with my red case lighting awesomely. The jacks on the back seem like better quality than on my last card, and LOVE how the there is a separate mic and speaker output jack. Along with the toggle in the cards control panel, this allows you to leave your headphones and speakers connected at the same time and switch back and forth at will! No more swapping wires! The audio control module is just as high quality as the rest, and while in the end its just a cable extender with built in potentiometer for controlling the volume to the headphones plugged into it, i really love it. the knob is very smooth, and having the jacks RIGHT there on my desk behind my keyboard is so great. I never find myself running out of cable length anymore, even when using shorter cabled canal headphones like my Klipsch S4s. The ACM has a single, sleeved cable coming out the back of it that splits off into the 2 plugs at the end, one plugs into headphone jack and one plugs into mic jack, on the back of the card. I kinda wish there was a little more length to it, but its enough for my setup, and if you really needed more length you could easily extend it with some femal>male 3.5mm cables. Speaking of cables, the card also comes with a really nice RCA>3.5mm cable, which i replaced my other cable with (for connecting card to stereo system). Another thing I really appreciate is that, unlike my X-Fi, this card has your traditional connector pins on it for connecting the front audio panel jacks of your case. From the feel of the ACM knob, to the clarity of the sound, to the nice packaging it comes in, you can tell that Creative was really aiming to please ppl who like high quality audio products, and IMO they hit the mark perfectly. The improvement in sound clarity over my X-Fi Xtrememusic is about as drastic of a difference as between my motherboards onboard and the X-Fi was, back when i first got it. The beam-forming microphone not only works, but it works INCREDIBLY well. I use Nvidia's 3DVision and wearing the 3D glasses and wearing over/on-ear headsets is very uncomfortable together. I've been searching for a solution for years, and finally found it with this product. Just sitting back and enjoying the amazing audio with voice chat in total comfort is worth the price alone imo. The ability to toggle back and forth between speakers/headphones on the fly is so convenient too, and eliminates the wear on the jacks from continually swapping cables. it also severely decreased the amount of cable clutter in my setup - now i have everything perfectly routed and clean. If youre considering it, GET THIS CARD.

I noticed the difference immediately when playing games like Overwatch and Apex Legends. Sounds are much more crisp. It takes some tinkering in the software, but that has to be expected. The red glow matches my theme, and despite other reviews it's not overpowering. The only con I can think of was the nervousness I had thinking I may have just purchased a VERY expensive 25-foot Ethernet cable and not a sound card. But yes, this is the sound card.

A way better then my on board sound card. I thought my realtek was good enough until I heard this sound card. I bought it mainly because of the S/PDIF output and this is a great add-on for PC games.

I wish it had some common-sense set-up descriptions,,, or maybe it does, and I just didn't find them... but overall, a good unit. Likewise, the two plugs from the volume control could be better-marked so it'd be easier to tell what jacks they plug-into on the unit. I underwent a 'bad' period with several full crashes and loud buzzings; doesn't seem to have affected the sound card in the least, it still works fine. Recommend.

Wish your headphones were louder? Music more clear? Better bass? Get this! Absolutely fantastic!

I love it. The mic node that sits on the front of my desk instead of running my headset from all the way in the back works wonders. Easy to install and it crystal clear. And the software is easy to install and use