Sound BlasterX AE-5 Hi-Resolution PCIe Gaming Soundcard, DAC/Headphone amp (up to 600 OHM) with RGB-LED lighting strip for Computer / Gaming PC

I purchased this card a few weeks ago to replace my Soundblaster Z (now in my old rig), and I couldn't be happier.Setup (Win10 64-bit):Installation was easy and very simple, I made sure all the previous audio drivers were uninstalled, on board audio was disabled etc.Once the card was setup, I installed the latest Sound Blaster Connect 2 software direct from Creatives site...After this the card was up and running.Sound Blaster Connect 2 (version: 3.1.22.0):So far I have not run into any issues with the software, very straight forward. The Sound Blaster Connect is very similar to the Soundblaster Z software I had installed before, it has the same settings/options (with some new additions) but has a different layout. I used "David M's" Amazon review (12 October 2017) to help me ease into the software settings. I also made sure Windows was using the correct sample rate and bit depth set via windows playback devices (which it wasn't). After adjusting a few settings, which took about 5-10min, I was good to go.The Sound Blaster Connect 2 comes with 14 presets which have all been tailored for different scenarios (music, movies, games), one of which is "Personal" (bottom of the list) which allows the customization all of the settings to your own liking, this includes custom EQ setting. However, unlike the Z Pro Studio software you cannot have multiple Personal saved settings, this also goes for EQ settings...so if you use different EQ setting for various activity you will have to manually change it each time...But if you use the "Direct" configuration then all of the EQ & BlasterX setting are bypassed/disabled anyway (true direct sound, no filters).One major thing that needs to be mention is that when you change over from Speaker to Headset, the volume does not alter!!!...meaning if you swap to Headset from Speaker (speakers 95% volume example) and forget to lower the volume levels (especialy with 250 ohms headphones) you could potentially damage your hearing. Make sure to remeber that you alter the volume after selecting headset (I have mine around 25%), then put your headphones on. You have to do this each time you swap modes.SOUND:I use a pair of Beyerdynamic DT1990 pros which worked perfectly fine with the Soundblaste Z. So I was interested to see (or hear) if there was going to be any difference when it came to sound quality. There are two Headphone configurations to choose from via the Connect software. First: "Headphone 7.1" (16>32bit, 16000>96000 Hz) and the second: "Direct HP" (16>32bit, 16000>384000 Hz). Once I set the speaker configuration via the Connect 2 software to "Direct HP" while using my DT1990's...wow, the difference was noticeable straight from the get go, listening to music with this combo is a real delight. The AE-5's built in DAC and discrete dual-amp does a fantastic job of powering my headphones...more so than the Z.I tested out various games using the Sound Blaster Connect 2's "BlasterX Acoustic Engine" setting (basically the Z's Pro Studio settings), I found the surround sound to be clear and accurate and the Scout 2.0 setting helped isolate footsteps from all directions. There are additional things you can tweak to your liking while using the presets/custom profile such as the Bass, Crystalizer, Smart Vol, and Dialog+. However, when using the "Direct HP" mode it makes certain games like Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (which has incredible sound to begin with) sound ridiculously good, I actually turned around on a few occasions thinking someone was behind me.Its just a shame that others aren't having much luck when it comes to the stability of the software. Base on my own experience with the latest version of the driver/software, I would defiantly recommend this Soundcard. NOTE: I don't recommend using any of the BlasterX features for general audio use and definitely not for listening to music, use Direct HP if you have some decent cans.EDIT 1 / Update - 09th Feb 2018:There has been an update to the Sound Blaster Connect 2 software (Now Version: 3.2.22.0)...The software now allows you to save multiple presets along with multiple EQ settings just like the soundblaster z software. This card is now perfect for my setup (which i recent upgraded + did a fresh install of win 10), and I have still not had any issues with the card (owned for 4 months now).EDIT 3 / Update - 28th May 2018:Since the most recent Windows feature update rolled out, Windows has decided to not recognize the Blaster Connect 2 software as official software. As a result, every time Windows boots up I get stopped and asked to allow the software to run, twice in fact (1st for the software, 2nd for the update access). Because of this, the Sound Blaster Connect 2 software doesn't apply any of its setting on boot, even after you allow Windows to run software. Once allowed, I need to open Sound Blaster Connect which will show the EQ running (it's not) select a random profile on the dashboard then re-select my custom profile. Doing this correctly applies my custom profile with all my settings. NOTE: I tried temporarily disabling UAC as a test and it fixed this issue, all setting worked on boot without any problems.EDIT 4 / Update - 10th Oct 2019:The card is still going strong, not issues what so ever...I thought it was worth mentioning that Creative has recently released the Sound Blaster AE-9. Another amazing soundcard, but its the new software I wanted to highlight called "Sound Blaster Command" which got an update to work with the AE-5. Using Sound Blaster Command, windows has no issues asking for permission to run (Win 10 UAC issue) like Sound Blaster Connect 2. Command also has cleaner UI with the ability to change the audio quality straight from the software and more custom profiles can be saved. So if you are going to buy this card (or already have it) I would recommend skipping the "Sound Blaster Connect 2" and go download the new "Sound Blaster Command" directly from Creative's AE-5 Driver page (Creative Worldwide Support site).

I purchased this to replace a Sound Blaster Z card in my PC and have been very impressed with it. I only really use my computer for gaming these days and for this purpose the card works absolutely perfectly. Most recently I have played Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Assassin's Creed Odyssey with this card and Logitech Z906 5.1 speakers and it sounds fantastic.One of my main gripes with the Sound Blaster Z was that it had a bright red LED that was always on and could not be adjusted and it kinda made the card look cheap, especially when the side of my case is clear tempered glass. This card looks much nicer aesthetically and has a much cleaner finish than the Sound Blaster Z. This card has quite flexible RGB capability and can be controlled from the Connect 2 driver software. The RGB lighting requires a molex power connection to the rear of the card to work at all (which could be considered a negative). It definitely won't be to everyone's taste (especially if you can't see inside your case) and it will almost certainly bulk the cost of the card up. Perhaps it would have been nice for Creative Labs to release a cheaper card without the RGB support.Software-wise I've had absolutely no issues at all with this card and Windows 10 (I downloaded the latest drivers from Creative's website). It looks like early reviewers had various driver/software issues but it looks like these bugs must have been ironed out by the time I purchased my card, back in June 2018. The software allows you to tinker with all sorts of different sound parameters depending if you are playing games, listening to music or watching movies etc. There's a number of different profiles you can choose from, but to be honest I've pretty much set everything to default as that is normally how it's intended to be heard.Some users have tried to compare this card to the Sound Blaster ZXR, which is Creative's flagship card. This isn't really a fair comparison as this card is designed solely for gamers and the ZXR is designed more for the audiophile audience, having RCA phono connections etc. I do wonder if Creative will release a new flagship card based on this model though as this definitely seems like a mid range card to me.Connectivity wise this card is similar to the Sound Blaster Z, with 3x 3.5mm jacks for analogue 5.1 audio, 1 x Microphone 3.5mm jack and 1 x headphone 3.5mm jack. There is also an optical out, however, unlike the Sound Blaster Z, there is no optical input which I'm sure will be a deal breaker for some users.Overall I am really impressed with this card. I think it is quite expensive for a gaming sound card but I have a feeling this may be down to the RGB lighting which really isn't necessary for a sound card. I do think it's better than on-board audio though and in my book it's worth the investment.Pros:- Improvement on the Sound Blaster Z, certainly aesthetically- Simple to use driver software, which seems very stable to me- Configurable RGB lighting (if that's your thing!)- Up to 32 bit and 384 KHz playback support- Lots of options for tweaking sound output (surround, crystalization, bass etc.)Cons:- Requires 4 pin molex power to the rear of the card if you want to use RGB lightning- No optical input- RGB should be an option opposed to standard feature- Quite expensive for a sound card