So I installed my sound blaster Z and to put it short and sweet. if you have non audiophile headphones this sound card won't make it sound amazing. I must say my sound improved quite a bit on my Z-5500 connected via analog. A few things that I like a bout this card is:
1. Virtual surround (in games it works amazing, much better than dolby headphones in my opinion. I've Tested this in Battlefield 3. Any other games I should test it?)
2. Headphone jack independent to the 5.1 jacks
3. Can just press a button in the software to change from headphones to 5.1 speakers.
4. SBX pro studio like Crystalizer, surround and bass enhancement. There is a slider to tweak it to your liking.
5. Scout mode actually works. I can hear footsteps much cleared with it enabled but it's not a mode that you want to use permanently in a game. At least you can set hotkeys for on and off.
6. Able to connect console or other devices to the sound card such as PS3, Xbox, media players etc etc. Haven't tested this yet
7. Beamforming microphone is pretty nice
So was it worth? Yes definitely. Sound is more crisp and clear. I listened to some music and it was much better than my Xonar DG and Xonar U1. The ability to set every settings to your liking is a BIG plus. for R1K I think it's a steal.
also check out this video.
[video=youtube;NrdXJQW443w]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrdXJQW443w[/video]
Hope this will help people wanting to buy this card. If you need questions regarding this sound card then just pop me a message here or send me a PM.
1. Virtual surround (in games it works amazing, much better than dolby headphones in my opinion. I've Tested this in Battlefield 3. Any other games I should test it?)
2. Headphone jack independent to the 5.1 jacks
3. Can just press a button in the software to change from headphones to 5.1 speakers.
4. SBX pro studio like Crystalizer, surround and bass enhancement. There is a slider to tweak it to your liking.
5. Scout mode actually works. I can hear footsteps much cleared with it enabled but it's not a mode that you want to use permanently in a game. At least you can set hotkeys for on and off.
6. Able to connect console or other devices to the sound card such as PS3, Xbox, media players etc etc. Haven't tested this yet
7. Beamforming microphone is pretty nice
So was it worth? Yes definitely. Sound is more crisp and clear. I listened to some music and it was much better than my Xonar DG and Xonar U1. The ability to set every settings to your liking is a BIG plus. for R1K I think it's a steal.
also check out this video.
[video=youtube;NrdXJQW443w]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrdXJQW443w[/video]
Hope this will help people wanting to buy this card. If you need questions regarding this sound card then just pop me a message here or send me a PM.
