Home > Consumer Reviews > Creative Labs SB0570 PCI Sound Blaster Audigy SE Sound Card

There have been a few interesting reviews for this product here on Amazon. Some are evidently due to lack of experience with computers. I will just list a few things you might want to know.

1. The card was very easy to install and update. As stated in the instructions.. Install the card, then boot up. When it detects the card and wants to search for drivers.. hit cancel. Then when your desktop loads, insert the installation cd and install the software. This gets you the bonus material on the cd as well as the drivers. This includes an automated update system for driver and software updates. You can schedule it to check for (I recommend) once a month, but run it once when you first install. This automatically updates your drivers for you. Very easily done. No searching the net, no messing with anything. Just click the options you want.

2. Sound cards in general. Most computers packaged these days come with onboard (chipped directly to the motherboard) sound cards. This is a terrible idea. The onboard sound card
a. is using your system resources and will could be causing conflicts or bottlenecks that lessen gaming and other intensive cpu usage and
b. not a real sound card and therefore generally a real pain (usually impossible) to upgrade the drivers on.

I am a gamer from ancient history of computer gaming and can tell you this.. sound card drivers not being updated are the cause of just as many, if not more problems crashing other programs than anything else on your computer save the video drivers.

Finally.. as for the sound. The digital 7.1 is awesome. I really notice a difference and have enjoyed the performance of this card very much.

I just bought this sound card at Bestbuy to replace my Realtek HD onboard audio that was having problems. Playing BF2 with EAX sounds amazing, vibrant sound and amazing clarity. I was going to buy a Soundblaster X-Fi, but why pay $122 when you can get amazing sound for only $22! Overall no problems, except the volume is drastically louder than my last sound card (have to turn the volume down to 1/8 what it used to be). Your music, video, and games will sound great with this budget sound card!

I purchased the Creative Sound blaster Audigy about 4 weeks ago. The day I receieved it in the mail I installed it. Here are my findings;
1) I received it very quickly in the mail with no dents and in great condition.
2) I installed it (PS- I have my CompTIA A+ Hardware Installers Certification) with a great deal of ease and no issues whatsoever. Most anyone who has any knowledge of the inner workings of a PC can install this card.
3) I am pleased with Amazon's service and the product as a whole. It recreates very accurate and clean sound on my 5.1 surround system. And it does not tax the system resources in order to do what it is made to do. (Less than 2% CPU usage at best)
4) As a side note, Creative labs products usually require some sort of software upgrade after you purchase them so if you have an internet connection, go to the MFG's homepage and download the latest version of soundcard drivers. I noticed certain sounds in my gaming worked better after the latest drivers were downloaded.

My Summary
5/5 on this product. Buy it if you are in need of a simple, high quality sound card. I would recommend it for gamers and music enthusiasts alike. I would not recommend it for MIDI inputs and extremely high end audio workstations as there are most likely better soundcards designed for that purpose.

I upgraded my computer's video card to the ATI all in wonder 9600XT last week, and realized the on board soundcard did not have an extra input for the video card due to my 5.1 sound speakers. I went out, bought this at 10pm at night at a chain retailer, and slapped it in, and in 10 minutes my computer was up and running with new sound that is better than the on board soundcard, plus descent recording software and other sound software that my onboard card did not have. This card does not have any fancy digital inputs or outputs, nor a joystick port, but it gets the job done cheap and efficiently, and is from a brand I have trusted in at least 4 of my last computers. Worth a look at.

this card is a lot better then i expected. i suppose if you're an audiophile, hardcore gamer, or professional of some sort who works with audio, this isn't the card for you. but for the rest of us with modest speaker set ups who also want some quality, this is a fantastic buy. i bought this for music, as i'm an avid listener and use my computer as a jukebox, basically. this card has not disappointed. its pretty darn good with all kinds of music. i thought i was going to want a 5.1 system to go with this, but after hearing what it has done for my years old Altec Lansing 2.1's, i'm in no hurry to change. the difference from onboard audio is loud and clear.

if you buy it for games and movies it does a good job there, too. your speakers will have a lot to do with it, but this card does its job well, delivering the sound where its supposed to go and at the level you want. i downloaded the drivers straight from the Creative website. no bloatware included, just the driver and Creative Audio Console, which features the most basic and essential controls. its all the casual home user really needs. if you want or need more, use the disc. i opted not to, and i'm glad.

if you play games you should know EAX and 3D Surround, etc...will not work with most if not all games with Vista. MS removed a feature from Vista which enabled this, so you will need a program called ALchemy to do it. strangely, its not a free program, as Creative is selling it at $10 a pop. i guess if you have Vista sound for games isn't part of the deal. but even still, the card is well worth it. and if you need those effects for games thats worth it, too. also, a program called "Open AL" is available for free that will allow EAX to work in games as it does on your computer, although not adjustable in game.

install was easy, pretty much plug and play. besides replacing RAM, easiest thing i ever changed out in my computer. just powered back up, clicked cancel when the Windows "New Hardware Found" box came up, and opened the folder with the previously downloaded driver package from Creative. Vista did the rest, no issues whatsoever. very easy, very nice.