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Introduction
Ever since Creative
Labs merged with Henry Kloss' Cambridge Sound System to manufacture
PC speakers, they have since been releasing more powerful speakers
for the PC. Their initial releases (e.g. SBS 20) were never the type
of speakers that games and music enthusiasts wanted. When PC works
first came out, people generally compared it with Altec Lansing ACS45/44
series. Many would agree the Bass was pretty good but sound was too
low and the ACS45 was still the preferred choice to many. The Four
Point Surround Sound System was generally a cheap gimmick, which many
never actually fell for and Creative probably felt the pinch and seriously
needed something to kick off their four-speaker configuration. The
other 2 speaker the MicroWorks and SoundWorks were only 2 speaker
1 Subwoofer configuration, both were excellent speakers, especially
the MicroWorks but never really found a niche in the gaming/home user
world. The Desktop Theater 5.1 had some pretty good features like
AC3 support but most of its speaker/sub came from the PC works family
and therefore was not in a class of its own even though the price
was otherwise.
This time round
Creative came out with something pretty outstanding if I should say
so myself. THE Four Point Surround Sound 2000 Digital. I would generally
say this is THE set of speaker to pair up with the Sound Blaster Live.
It is a digital speaker that accepts signals from a 9 pin digital
DIN (not AC3 SPDIF cable) from the digital I/O card. (Finally got
to use the Digital card from my SBLive ... whew no waste). However,
if you are using the SBLive Value, Monster Sound MX300 or even a 16Bit
sound card, you may still use the analog inputs on the FPS 2000. If
your sound card supports 4 speaker configuration, that's great, but
however if it does not, well not to worry as the FPS 2000 will split
the signal from the front to rear, meaning you'll have 2 left and
2 right speakers.
The satellite
speaker from the FPS2000 are fantastic, they are the same type of
speakers the Desktop Theater 5.1 used for the front. The PC Works
, FPS 1000 and the Desktop Theater 5.1 uses even smaller satellite
speaker. As for the Subwoofer, the FPS 2000 comes with a pretty big
Subwoofer at 14" driving at 25 watts compared to the others driving
at only 8 - 10 watts. Obviously the FPS 2000 is technically more powerful
than the others (with exception to the MicroWorks). Another cool thing
about it is that it's Black in color and not the Plain-Jane white
we see so often. Anyway so much for its physical appearance. Let's
see how this baby rocks.
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The
Good
Features &
Benefits
FourPointSurround
FPS2000 Digital consists of four 3"-wide satellite speaker cubes,
plus a compact, floor-standing subwoofer cabinet. The four compact
satellites create realistic four-channel positional audio while the
subwoofer can be positioned on the floor -- behind your TV, under
your desk, or behind furnitures, out of the way, for best bass response.
Possible
placement solutions would be
A - Placing the
rear speakers on the left and right side of the wall.
B - Placing the
rear speakers behind the user
C - Placing the
rear speaker at the edge of a wide table while front speaker next
to the monitor
D - Place the
rear speaker below the table top at each side
Note: The satellite
speakers are magnetically shielded so it will not cause any interference
with other electronic device e.g. monitor. However, the Sub Woofer
is not and it is advisable to place it further away from other electronic
devices, to prevent magnetic interference.
The FourPointSurround
FPS2000 Digital system delivers a carefully fine-tuned stereo sound
system, usually produced by expensive home surround stereo systems.
It is best suited for the computer PC environment with a small surrounding.
2 top areas where these speakers really impressed me were in the games
and movie testing. They not only sounded good, they actually sound
life like.
I ran up a few
movies to check out the quality of the speaker. Running the take off
scene from Top Gun sounded superb. I jack the volume all the way to
100% and there was simply no distortion and the quality of the sound
was still sharp, clear and crisp. (Note the max volume out of my DVD/VCD
encoder card was set at 86% though). Explosions and other sound effects
were just as good. The sound driven out from the satellite speaker
was very impressive. The Sub Woofer was pretty strong too; anyone
within a 5m radius can probably feel the impact coming from the woofer.
The sound got even better when I ran my DVD movies. It was exceptionally
clear, crisp and sharp.
Many would say
that AC3 support should be added in, but to me it is quite redundant.
AC3/THX sound system are great when played for a large audience in
a large theater, but when you are in a room by yourself or with a
couple of friends, such a system is unnoticeable. Since the FPS200
was meant for a small enclosed area, it need not provide such feature.
Allowing the SBLive Liveware 2.0 to set the environment will be more
than adequate.
I tested the FPS2000
playing Unreal with EAX enable. Unreal is probably one of the best
games for testing out your speakers as it sports a lot of features.
While playing the game, I deliberately lower the background music
to concentrate more on the movement sound. The life likeness of the
sound was probably due to my SBLive but the fact that the FPS2000
was able to deliver top clarity audio really impressed me. Each footstep
and movement felt like they were coming from different directions
and one could easily know where it is coming from. The rear speaker
actually added more atmosphere to the game than ever before. Previously,
I was using a Pioneer Dolby Digital Home Entertainment Sound System
with a 5 set Philip speaker system along with a Yamaha 25-Watt Sub
Woofer. Even though this setup costs more than $800, it was unable
to deliver such realism to the game ambience which the FPS200 could.
In Need For Speed 3, the engines and screeching sound from the tires
were easily heard and the direction of the sound was easily identifiable.
The FPS 2000 with a SBLive card and a game that supports EAX is truly
wonderful.
Aureal could probably
gang up with Altec Lansing to give Creative a run for its money but
for now I can certainly say that this is the best 3D Sound Solution
currently available.
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Installation
Take advantage of the
clear, distortion-free audio by connecting the Digital DIN output
of your FourPointSurround FPS2000 Digital speakers to the Sound
Blaster Live! Digital I/O card.
Just follow these simple
steps to unleash the full effect of your digital speakers:
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1.
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Insert
one end of the SPDIF cable into the DIGITAL DIN output jack
on the Sound Blaster Live! Digital I/O card. The Digital
DIN connector is the only connector with the 9-pin configuration.
Note:
The actual position of the Digital I/O card may differ slightly
from this diagram
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2.
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Insert
the other end of the SPDIF cable into the DIGITAL DIN input
on the subwoofer.
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3.
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Complete
the following steps:
- Position
your mouse at the top of your screen to activate Creative's
Sound Blaster Live!
- Launcher
Select "Audio HQ"
On the Configuration tabbed page, select the option "4
Speakers"
- A
sofa icon (representing you) appears in the center of
the "Preview Box", with four speakers at the corners of
the box.
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That's
it! You are now ready to experience 3D digital audio like never
before.
Note:
FourPointSurround
FPS2000 Digital will detect the presence of a plug connected to
the DIGITAL DIN input and give the DIGITAL DIN input priority.
Any signal present at the AUDIO INPUT will be ignored. Be sure
to remove the plug from the DIGITAL DIN INPUT if you wish to listen
to a sound source through the analog AUDIO INPUT.
 
The
Sub woofer is pretty big compared to other sub-woofers from Creative.
It is made of Solid wood. This is great as the resonance that
the wood produces is very warm and one actually feels it rather
than hears it. Plastic generally generates vibration, which sound
very cheap. If you'd notice the yellow label on the sub woofer,
it is a heat hazard warning. There are heat sinks for the speakers
but running them at about 85% - 75% loud for more than 4 hours
playing Star Wars the heat generated was so low that I did not
even notice. (Note: The room was Air Conditioned at 23 degree
Celsius)
The
position of the sub woofer was below my table just behind a wall.
It is important to note where to position the sub woofer so as
to achieve optimal sound. In fact, incorrect placement can lead
to annoying sound. I once saw a joker place the sub woofer of
his ACS45 on the top shelf of his Sitoca computer table, he kept
complaining of headaches. Thank God Sitoca builds solid table
or his table would be shaking every time there is sound. Anyway,
I quickly placed it on the floor for him and he immediately heard
the difference. A good position to place the sub woofer is on
the floor with nothing beneath it and its behind facing a solid
wall. The wall will provide a reflecting effect that really enhances
the feel of the bass. Do not crowd anything around the speaker,
as this would affect the sound.
Above
is the external volume controller where you can adjust the balance
for the Front and Rear speakers. This is pretty useful if your
speakers are situated too far apart. Many people will face the
problem of not being able to place the rear speakers closer than
they want to. Now, all you have to do is adjust the balance more
to the rear to accommodate for the lost sound.
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The Bad
Well I can't think
of many bad things about this set of speaker. It's Good ... real good
in fact. However there are a couple of things I'd like to mention
is that the speakers are meant for PCs inside a room. They don't sound
that great in a large open area. When I was at A-Zone and heard the
display set I was not that impressed with it, as the surrounding area
was pretty huge. However, after bringing it home, man, did my impression
change. However, I'd like to note that the even though the Sub Woofer
was about 1.5 times more powerful than the PC Works, FPS 1000 and
the Desktop 5.1, it could have been better. I feel that at times the
feeling is not strong enough unless you adjust the Sub-Woofer volume.
Ah yes, not to mention the volume control for the sub woofer volume
control is located at the side of the Woofer where all the cables
are connected too. It is a real pain in the butt (actually pain in
the head) as I kept hitting my head on the table top to reach the
control. They should have place the volume control on the remote volume
control stick too. Overall, most would find that the sub woofer would
be more than sufficient.
Another thing
that disappointed me was the lack of an equalizer control. The Desktop
5.1 had some pretty nifty external box controls while the FPS 2000
had only a volume and Front/Rear balance control. It would be great
if Creative could add a Treble, Bass and other controls to the external
controller.
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Conclusion
This is really
a good set of speakers for the PC, if not one of the finest. It carries
good sound and provide good warm bass while still maintaining the
quality and clarity of the output. It's fantastic for games and watching
movies off your PC in a room. For the price of slightly over $300,
it is well worth every cent spent. If you have the budget for it then
go for it especially if you own the Sound Blaster Live.
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Overall
Rating (Out of a maximum of 5 Star)
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| Installation |
**** |
| Performance |
****½ |
| Price
(OEM Value) |
***** |
| Price
(Retail Full) |
**** |
| Innovation |
***** |
| Life
Span |
***** |
| Software
Bundle |
****½ |
| Material
Quality |
****½ |
| Overall
Rating |
****½ |
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