Sound Blaster Z Gaming Pack
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Thought that I would share this. Creative Labs in the United States has a Sound Blaster Z Gaming Pack, which consists of their SOUND BLASTER Z sound card and INSPIRE T6300 speaker system for $109.99 The Sound Blaster Z is 5.1and supports Dolby Digital Live and dts Connect. I got this for a secondary PC and am quite happy with it so far. No idea how long the deal will last, but figured someone might be looking for a cheap audio upgrade. http://us.creative.com/p/bundled-offers/sound-blaster-z-t6300-gaming-pack (free shipping) [img]http://d287ku8w5owj51.cloudfront.net/images/products/hero/others/hero-sound-blaster-z-t6300-gaming-pack.jpg?width=800&height=800[/img]
Thought that I would share this.

Creative Labs in the United States has a Sound Blaster Z Gaming Pack, which consists of their SOUND BLASTER Z sound card and INSPIRE T6300 speaker system for $109.99

The Sound Blaster Z is 5.1and supports Dolby Digital Live and dts Connect.

I got this for a secondary PC and am quite happy with it so far. No idea how long the deal will last, but figured someone might be looking for a cheap audio upgrade.

http://us.creative.com/p/bundled-offers/sound-blaster-z-t6300-gaming-pack
(free shipping)

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#1
Posted 01/17/2017 04:27 PM   
Cool! Thanks for posting stuff like this. I think I will be upgrading to 7.1 someday since I already have a 5.1 system, but seems like a good deal.
Cool! Thanks for posting stuff like this. I think I will be upgrading to 7.1 someday since I already have a 5.1 system, but seems like a good deal.

|CPU: i7-2700k @ 4.5Ghz
|Cooler: Zalman 9900 Max
|MB: MSI Military Class II Z68 GD-80
|RAM: Corsair Vengence 16GB DDR3
|SSDs: Seagate 600 240GB; Crucial M4 128GB
|HDDs: Seagate Barracuda 1TB; Seagate Barracuda 500GB
|PS: OCZ ZX Series 1250watt
|Case: Antec 1200 V3
|Monitors: Asus 3D VG278HE; Asus 3D VG236H; Samsung 3D 51" Plasma;
|GPU:MSI 1080GTX "Duke"
|OS: Windows 10 Pro X64

#2
Posted 01/17/2017 11:31 PM   
FYI SnickerSnack, 6.1/7.1 etc are not supported by Creative Sound Blaster cards anymore.
FYI SnickerSnack, 6.1/7.1 etc are not supported by Creative Sound Blaster cards anymore.

Windows 10 64-bit, Intel 7700K @ 5.1GHz, 16GB 3600MHz CL15 DDR4 RAM, 2x GTX 1080 SLI, Asus Maximus IX Hero, Sound Blaster ZxR, PCIe Quad SSD, Oculus Rift CV1, DLP Link PGD-150 glasses, ViewSonic PJD6531w 3D DLP Projector @ 1280x800 120Hz native / 2560x1600 120Hz DSR 3D Gaming.

#3
Posted 01/17/2017 11:37 PM   
Whats the ambient noise like on this thing? I have moved away from internal sound cards because of this.
Whats the ambient noise like on this thing? I have moved away from internal sound cards because of this.

i7-4790K CPU 4.8Ghz stable overclock.
16 GB RAM Corsair
ASUS Turbo 2080TI
Samsung SSD 840Pro
ASUS Z97-WS3D
Surround ASUS Rog Swift PG278Q(R), 2x PG278Q (yes it works)
Obutto R3volution.
Windows 10 pro 64x (Windows 7 Dual boot)

#4
Posted 01/18/2017 12:42 AM   
If you have ambient noise coming through you are probably using powered (active) speakers. If it doesn't make the noise when you listen through headphones you have a ground loop. That's why I always buy soundcards and amps with balanced connectors.
If you have ambient noise coming through you are probably using powered (active) speakers.
If it doesn't make the noise when you listen through headphones you have a ground loop.
That's why I always buy soundcards and amps with balanced connectors.

#5
Posted 01/18/2017 01:10 AM   
My only complaint is that the front channel speaker wires and on/off control cable are fairly short. I'm not getting any background/ambient noise at all. The speakers are nothing heavy duty, but sound full. Much better than a Logitech z506 set that I have. I actually got the sound card to go in my main PC, so that I can have Dolby Digital, DTS Connect, SBX Pro Studio and Alchemy for gaming and movies on my monitor. Alchemy is an emulator for games that use EAX, the problem is that the HAL (Hardware Abstraction Layer) was available in Vista but dropped for W7. I was using a Sound Blaster Omni for this via USB, but it does not have DTS support. So the Omni is being moved to the secondary PC. I connect my main PC through a Yamaha 5.1 receiver. For movies, I use my Nvidia GPU to pass sound/video via HDMI to my AVR and then the projector. Using HDMI will pass lossless Audio to the AVR from Blu-rays. But for gaming I use the optical output so my Sound Card can process sound if need be without having the AVR virtualize it, as it does in most cases for games. The sound card sounds better when virtual surround needs to be used and is implemented. I thought about upgrading to a 4K AVR and 7.1, but I want to wait for one that can handle 4K@120Hz. edit: (FYI) They released new drivers that addressed the bugs on June 24, 2016. So the issues reported in previous bad reviews have been resolved from what I've read.
My only complaint is that the front channel speaker wires and on/off control cable are fairly short. I'm not getting any background/ambient noise at all. The speakers are nothing heavy duty, but sound full. Much better than a Logitech z506 set that I have.

I actually got the sound card to go in my main PC, so that I can have Dolby Digital, DTS Connect, SBX Pro Studio and Alchemy for gaming and movies on my monitor. Alchemy is an emulator for games that use EAX, the problem is that the HAL (Hardware Abstraction Layer) was available in Vista but dropped for W7. I was using a Sound Blaster Omni for this via USB, but it does not have DTS support. So the Omni is being moved to the secondary PC.

I connect my main PC through a Yamaha 5.1 receiver. For movies, I use my Nvidia GPU to pass sound/video via HDMI to my AVR and then the projector. Using HDMI will pass lossless Audio to the AVR from Blu-rays. But for gaming I use the optical output so my Sound Card can process sound if need be without having the AVR virtualize it, as it does in most cases for games. The sound card sounds better when virtual surround needs to be used and is implemented.

I thought about upgrading to a 4K AVR and 7.1, but I want to wait for one that can handle 4K@120Hz.

edit: (FYI) They released new drivers that addressed the bugs on June 24, 2016. So the issues reported in previous bad reviews have been resolved from what I've read.

#6
Posted 01/18/2017 04:02 AM   
There are other things to try to get better sound for free. Razer Surround offers good virtural surround. http://www.razerzone.com/au-en/surround If your RealTek chip does not have Dolby support, try adding it. I think it requires an optical output, which I think is why I could not get it to work since my Mobo does not have one. Also you do not need to disable UAC or go into test mode, just read through the Techpowerup thread in this link if any questions. http://alex.zheng-dynasty.com/2015/08/how-to-enable-dolby-digital-on-realtek-pc-optical-output/ You can try installing Dolby's PCEE drivers. This will give you game profiles that you can setup using the Equalizer and maybe other stuff? I didn't try it for very long. Here's a guy installing the DAA (Dolby Advanced Audio)version and his download link is legit. (at least it was when I used it) Or you can install the DHT (Dolby Home Theater) version from his download. Google for more info on the features of DHT. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIGN3-h-ojQ edit: when trying different drivers, it is sometimes necessary to remove drivers from the Driver Store on your hard drive, so that Windows does not automatically install the existing driver. https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc730875.aspx https://superuser.com/questions/597370/how-do-i-delete-folders-from-the-windows-7-driverstore
There are other things to try to get better sound for free.

Razer Surround offers good virtural surround.
http://www.razerzone.com/au-en/surround

If your RealTek chip does not have Dolby support, try adding it. I think it requires an optical output, which I think is why I could not get it to work since my Mobo does not have one. Also you do not need to disable UAC or go into test mode, just read through the Techpowerup thread in this link if any questions.

http://alex.zheng-dynasty.com/2015/08/how-to-enable-dolby-digital-on-realtek-pc-optical-output/

You can try installing Dolby's PCEE drivers. This will give you game profiles that you can setup using the Equalizer and maybe other stuff? I didn't try it for very long. Here's a guy installing the DAA (Dolby Advanced Audio)version and his download link is legit. (at least it was when I used it)

Or you can install the DHT (Dolby Home Theater) version from his download. Google for more info on the features of DHT.




edit: when trying different drivers, it is sometimes necessary to remove drivers from the Driver Store on your hard drive, so that Windows does not automatically install the existing driver.

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc730875.aspx

https://superuser.com/questions/597370/how-do-i-delete-folders-from-the-windows-7-driverstore

#7
Posted 01/18/2017 04:41 AM   
Just my two cents about razer surround, and virtual surround in general. I think it's actually pretty awful It murders the natural sound to achieve it's "surround" and in the case of razer seems to introduce significant distortion. For positional audio you are much better just investing in a good DAC and high quality stereo headphones. Once I did this I have never looked back, and actually find just standard stereo headphones to deliver superior positional audio. (don't get me started on gaming headsets.) It's really up to the developer of a game to implement sound correctly. As evidenced here. [url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUDTlvagjJA[/url]
Just my two cents about razer surround, and virtual surround in general. I think it's actually pretty awful It murders the natural sound to achieve it's "surround" and in the case of razer seems to introduce significant distortion. For positional audio you are much better just investing in a good DAC and high quality stereo headphones. Once I did this I have never looked back, and actually find just standard stereo headphones to deliver superior positional audio. (don't get me started on gaming headsets.) It's really up to the developer of a game to implement sound correctly.

As evidenced here.

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i7-4790K CPU 4.8Ghz stable overclock.
16 GB RAM Corsair
ASUS Turbo 2080TI
Samsung SSD 840Pro
ASUS Z97-WS3D
Surround ASUS Rog Swift PG278Q(R), 2x PG278Q (yes it works)
Obutto R3volution.
Windows 10 pro 64x (Windows 7 Dual boot)

#8
Posted 01/18/2017 05:31 AM   
I think it just a matter of what hardware a person has, as to what works best. I got great results from Razer Surround, but as you said, it's virtual surround. I quit using it because it searches your drives for games to add to it's list every time I reboot. Unfortunately, I have a big head/ears and have yet to find a decent pair of headphones that I can wear for more than an hour or two at most.
I think it just a matter of what hardware a person has, as to what works best.

I got great results from Razer Surround, but as you said, it's virtual surround. I quit using it because it searches your drives for games to add to it's list every time I reboot.

Unfortunately, I have a big head/ears and have yet to find a decent pair of headphones that I can wear for more than an hour or two at most.

#9
Posted 01/18/2017 06:06 AM   
FrekeOne is/was a poster on the forums and made a comparison video. But of course his results could be very different for someone with different hardware. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BxO9cd-sYA
FrekeOne is/was a poster on the forums and made a comparison video. But of course his results could be very different for someone with different hardware.

#10
Posted 01/18/2017 06:15 AM   
With all of them you can hear loss in audio quality, specially explosions. But SBX sounds better and Dolby HP is the worst. TBH I prefer Stereo with Headphones and real surround.
With all of them you can hear loss in audio quality, specially explosions. But SBX sounds better and Dolby HP is the worst.
TBH I prefer Stereo with Headphones and real surround.

Intel i7 8086K
Gigabyte GTX 1080Ti Aorus Extreme
DDR4 2x8gb 3200mhz Cl14
TV LG OLED65E6V
Avegant Glyph
Windows 10 64bits

#11
Posted 01/18/2017 06:35 AM   
Actually now that you guys mention it, I think my next audio upgrade will be stereo headphones rather than a new speaker system... that is, unless my current system breaks.
Actually now that you guys mention it, I think my next audio upgrade will be stereo headphones rather than a new speaker system... that is, unless my current system breaks.

|CPU: i7-2700k @ 4.5Ghz
|Cooler: Zalman 9900 Max
|MB: MSI Military Class II Z68 GD-80
|RAM: Corsair Vengence 16GB DDR3
|SSDs: Seagate 600 240GB; Crucial M4 128GB
|HDDs: Seagate Barracuda 1TB; Seagate Barracuda 500GB
|PS: OCZ ZX Series 1250watt
|Case: Antec 1200 V3
|Monitors: Asus 3D VG278HE; Asus 3D VG236H; Samsung 3D 51" Plasma;
|GPU:MSI 1080GTX "Duke"
|OS: Windows 10 Pro X64

#12
Posted 01/18/2017 01:23 PM   
I got a pair of Kingston HyperX Cloud for Christmas, these are easily the best headphones I ever had !! Try these in Battlefield 1 in the tank missions, I was litterally blown away by the 53 mm drivers, wich really delivers in the sub range :) What also impresses is the ambience, there's lots of air between every little detail in the sound.. Lastly they comes with 2 different earpads with memory foam, wich eases the pressure on my 3D glasses temples ! Prices arround 80€ and 100€ for the Cloud II with artificial sourround (wich I don't like, stereo is preferable, it still has a distinct positioning ) D-Man11@ I am 190 cm high, and my head is NOT among the smallest, so they are extended max and fits perfect :P https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8qk0VEt2r8
I got a pair of Kingston HyperX Cloud for Christmas, these are easily the best headphones I ever had !!

Try these in Battlefield 1 in the tank missions, I was litterally blown away by the 53 mm drivers, wich really delivers in the sub range :) What also impresses is the ambience, there's lots of air between every little detail in the sound..

Lastly they comes with 2 different earpads with memory foam, wich eases the pressure on my 3D glasses temples !

Prices arround 80€ and 100€ for the Cloud II with artificial sourround (wich I don't like, stereo is preferable, it still has a distinct positioning )

D-Man11@ I am 190 cm high, and my head is NOT among the smallest, so they are extended max and fits perfect :P

Win7 64bit Pro
CPU: 4790K 4.8 GHZ
GPU: Asus Geforce RTX 2080 TI Rog Strix OC
Monitor: Asus PG278QR
And lots of ram and HD's ;)

#13
Posted 01/18/2017 05:40 PM   
^^^ Thanks that's one of the sets that has been on my radar.
^^^ Thanks that's one of the sets that has been on my radar.

|CPU: i7-2700k @ 4.5Ghz
|Cooler: Zalman 9900 Max
|MB: MSI Military Class II Z68 GD-80
|RAM: Corsair Vengence 16GB DDR3
|SSDs: Seagate 600 240GB; Crucial M4 128GB
|HDDs: Seagate Barracuda 1TB; Seagate Barracuda 500GB
|PS: OCZ ZX Series 1250watt
|Case: Antec 1200 V3
|Monitors: Asus 3D VG278HE; Asus 3D VG236H; Samsung 3D 51" Plasma;
|GPU:MSI 1080GTX "Duke"
|OS: Windows 10 Pro X64

#14
Posted 01/18/2017 10:51 PM   
Fuck those shitty headphones. Get some real ones like AKG or sennheisers. You will never go back to 'gaming' toy headphones. You might as well buy some Mickey Mouse ones if you are buying them from an audio perspective. The next windows update will have Dolby atmos pass through embedded into windows and probably DTSX headphone/Dolby atmos headphone which work with stereo headphones. The AKG's I have had lasted years and I've worn them for over 8 hour recording sessions with no discomfort. I also have some ultimate ear tri if 10's with custom ACS ear molds and they sound awesome. Real bitch to get on and off though. Have a look at the AKG K701's Use the headphones that they use in real recording studios. Not some gaming bollocks.
Fuck those shitty headphones. Get some real ones like AKG or sennheisers.
You will never go back to 'gaming' toy headphones.
You might as well buy some Mickey Mouse ones if you are buying them from an audio perspective.
The next windows update will have Dolby atmos pass through embedded into windows and probably DTSX headphone/Dolby atmos headphone which work with stereo headphones.

The AKG's I have had lasted years and I've worn them for over 8 hour recording sessions with no discomfort.
I also have some ultimate ear tri if 10's with custom ACS ear molds and they sound awesome. Real bitch to get on and off though.

Have a look at the AKG K701's
Use the headphones that they use in real recording studios. Not some gaming bollocks.

#15
Posted 01/19/2017 12:17 AM   
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