Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum

CNET editors' rating: 4.0 stars Excellent
Detailed editors' rating
Overall score: 8.2 (4.0 stars)
• Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 12 reviews
• See all user reviews

Product summary

CNET editors' review

• Reviewed by:
  Nathaniel Wilkins
  and
  Rich Brown
• Reviewed on: 03/17/2004
• Released on: 09/03/2003

The Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum isn't quite as versatile as Creative's top-level card, the Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro, but it's enough sound card for most. (For more in-depth coverage of the Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS line, please see our full review of the aforementioned Platinum Pro.) With 7.1-channel speaker support, high-resolution 24-bit/96kHz output, and a PC-drive-bay accessory that brings almost all of the audio inputs and outputs you could ever want right to the front of your system, the Audigy 2 ZS Platinum is perfect for computer-savvy users who demand high-quality sound in their games and movies and who also desire the convenience of front-panel audio ports.

The Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum features the same audio-processing technology as the Platinum Pro; the only differences between them, other than the price (the Platinum card costs $200, the Platinum $250), are their form factors and their selection of inputs and outputs. Where the Platinum Pro includes an external I/O hub that connects to the sound card's FireWire port, the Platinum uses an internal I/O hub that resides in one of your system's 5.25-inch drive bays, involves a more complicated installation process, and serves up fewer connections.

The backplane of the card itself is the same across the Audigy 2 ZS line and features outputs for up to 7.1-channel speakers, coaxial digital-out, line-out, and microphone-in jacks. The Platinum card's internal I/O hub has a 0.25-inch stereo headphone jack with a minijack adapter; only one line-in (that doubles as the 0.25-inch microphone in) with gain control, compared to the Platinum Pro's three line-in jacks; two RCA audio-in jacks; both optical and coaxial digital input and output ports; a 5.1-channel digital-audio out; a single FireWire port (the Platinum Pro has two); MIDI in and out jacks; and an IR receiver for the remote control. While none of the Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS line is on a par with professional audio production hardware, the more serious hobbyist will prefer the Platinum Pro card to the Platinum version for the more extensive array of ports found on the former.

See more CNET content tagged:

Sound Blaster,

hub,

I/O,

FireWire,

audio card

User reviews

• Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 12 reviews
• My rating: 0 stars Write review

• Showing 3 of 12 user reviewsSee all 12 user reviews

• 1.5 stars

  3 out of 4 people found this review helpful

  "It Works, BUT...... Keep yer money 'fer now"

  by MtnFishMan on October 23, 2005

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• 1.0 stars

  2 out of 3 people found this review helpful

  "Good card lack of support"

  by Wizard9212 on August 2, 2005

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• 4.5 stars

  1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

  "One the best sound cards money can buy."

  by ddg4005 on November 19, 2005

  read more

• See all 12 user reviews Write review

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