Creative Labs Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1 Sound Card

Pros: Extremely good 5.1 sound output and fantastic EAX effect quality.
Cons: No cannon or XLR microphone inputs on the breakout box. 1/4" only.

I purchased Creative Labs SoundBlaster live Platinum 5.1, as with most things I purchase, for a specific reason. Two specific reasons actually. One, because I knew from prior experiences with Creative labs products that the quality was high and...

Pros: Outstanding sound, extremely convenient Live Drive, effects, software
Cons: Installation can be tricky, price, need 5.1 speakers to fully appreciate

While buying components for the computer system I was building, I was very impressed with the Soundblaster Live! 5.1 Platinum kit. I have used Creative products for some time in the systems I have built and repaired over the years. While...

Pros: Great sound, lots of inputs, decodes 5.1 AC3 formats, comes with remote
Cons: Remote only works with Creative Software (limited), IR detector sensitive

This sound card has just about every type of input and output you can imagine. Digital interfaces are supported through both SPDIF and optical connections. The Live!Drive allows for all of these inputs to go in from the front. The actual card, back, and...

Pros: Good sound. Great features. Ability to connect other electronic gear to your computer.
Cons: Software could be better.

I've used several sound cards in my career as a Network Administrator and no one, absolutely no one, makes better sound cards than Creative Labs. The Soundblaster Live! 5.1 Platinum is no exception.

This sound card comes with a PCI mounted...

Pros: Good sound quality and compatibility. I/O board is nice.
Cons: Customer support is TERRIBLE. Creative has limited the capabilities of the EMU chip.

I installed this card in a brand new custom PC. I was very excited to have such a device, as I am into music creation and recording. The installation went fairly well. However, there was a problem with the joystick port which I only managed to fix...

Pros: Great for gaming, 5.1 channel surround, EAX addon for UT from website
Cons: Long installation, includes some programs never used, limited Linux support.

First off let me say, if you dont do any gaming, or if you dont have a _good_ 5.1 speaker system, do ...

Pros: Good quality sound, LiveDrive
Cons: Connectors, Conflicts, Drivers

This card just isn't worth the money!

Cons:
-Causes hardware conflicts with VIA chipsets; you need the v4.32 or newer version of the 4-in-1 drivers; else it crashes your computer every 10 minutes, you get crackling sound, and data...