Table of Contents
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Table of Contents
Related Manuals for Creative SB1500
Summary of Contents for Creative SB1500
- Page 1 SB1500 / SB1502 SB1506 User’s Guide...
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Page 2: System Requirements
Introduction Congratulations on your purchase of Creative's latest audio revolution, Sound Blaster Z-Series! With cutting edge technology from the leaders in PC audio, Sound Blaster Z-Series will give you years of reliable entertainment on your PCI Express (PCIe ® ) enabled personal computer. -
Page 3: Using Creative Software Autoupdate
Using Creative Software AutoUpdate Locating, downloading, and installing updates for your Creative products is now simpler and faster with the web-based Creative Software AutoUpdate system. When you connect to Creative Software AutoUpdate via the Internet, the web site will analyze your computer system to determine what operating system (OS), language, and Creative products are installed in your system. -
Page 4: About Your Hardware
Actual products may differ slightly from those shown in this chapter. Your Sound Blaster Z-Series Audio card Your Sound Blaster Z-Series audio card has the jacks and connectors below to enable the attachment of a wide variety of devices. SB1502 SB1500 / SB1506 About Your Hardware 3... - Page 5 Jack or Connector Description Line In/Microphone In Connects to line-level sources (for example, MP3 jack players) or microphones with a 3.5mm (1/8-inch) plug. Headphone jack Connects to stereo headphones with a 3.5mm (1/8- inch) plug. Line Out 1 jack Connects to the Front Left and Front Right inputs on (Front L/R) powered analog speakers or an A/V receiver.
- Page 6 Audio Control Module An external ACM (Audio Control Module) provides a built-in beamforming microphone and microphone/headphone I/O connections. Note: The ACM accessory is bundled with Sound Blaster Zx only. Jack, Connector or Component Description Volume Control Knob Controls the playback volume of the sound card.
- Page 7 The Volume Control knob on the ACM controls the volume output to your headphones, giving you quick control over the audio level from your games or music. Note: The ACM Volume Control Knob allows you to adjust headphone levels conveniently based on the maximum level set by your computer's master volume control.
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Page 8: Connecting Speakers And Headphones
Connecting Headphones and Headsets Connecting Audio Control Module For tips on how to arrange your speakers, consult Positioning Your Speakers. For a list of supported Creative speaker systems or interactive help on speaker connectivity, visit www.soundblaster.com. Note Actual products may differ slightly from those shown in this chapter. -
Page 9: Positioning Your Speakers
Positioning Your Speakers Good speaker placement is crucial to getting optimal performance from your audio system and achieving an enhanced listening experience. Below are our recommendation for 5.1 channel speakers. For detailed speaker placement tips, consult the documentation of your speaker system. For 5.1 channel speakers: Speaker Component Subwoofer... -
Page 10: Connecting Analog Speaker Systems
Connecting Analog Speaker Systems Your audio card supports analog speaker systems of up to 5.1 channels. To learn more about connecting different channel speaker systems, consult the following sections: 2.1 channel analog speakers 5.1 channel analog speakers 2.1 channel analog speakers audio inputs audio... - Page 11 5.1 channel analog speakers audio inputs front rear center/ subwoofer front speakers audio center inputs speaker front rear center/ subwoofer rear speakers Jack, Connector or Cable Line Out 1 jack (Front L/R) Line Out 2 jack (Rear L/R) Line Out 3 jack (Center/Subwoofer) 5.1 channel audio cable (available separately) Front (Audio Input) jack Rear (Audio Input) jack...
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Page 12: Connecting Digital Speaker Systems
Connecting Digital Speaker Systems Your Sound Blaster Z-Series comes with an Optical S/PDIF Out jack which allows you to connect your digital speaker system. Most digital speakers systems connect the audio card to the subwoofer or an external unit. For more information on your digital speaker connections, consult the documentation of your digital speaker system. - Page 13 Connecting Home Theater Systems Your Sound Blaster Z-Series comes with an Optical S/PDIF jack which allows you to connect your home theatre system. Most home theater systems connect the audio card to an A/V receiver. For more information on your A/V receiver's speaker connections, consult the documentation of your A/V receiver.
- Page 14 Connecting your A/V Receiver using Line Level inputs If your A/V receiver supports multi-channel line-level inputs, you can connect them directly to your audio card's Line Out jacks instead of the Optical S/PDIF Out jack as shown below. Connect to Line Out 1 (Front L/R) Jack, Connector or Cable Description Line Out 1 jack (Front L/R)
- Page 15 Connect Line Out 2 (Rear L/R) Jack, Connector or Cable Description Line Out 2 jack (Rear L/R) Connects to the Rear Left and Rear Right jacks on your A/V receiver, using a 3.5mm (1/8-inch) stereo-to-RCA cable (available separately 3.5mm (1/8-inch) stereo-to- Connects your audio card and A/V receiver.
- Page 16 Connect Line Out 3 (Center/Subwoofer) Jack, Connector or Cable Description Line Out 3 jack (Center/Subwoofer) Connects to the Center and Subwoofer jacks on your A/V receiver, using a 3.5mm (1/8-inch) stereo-to-RCA cable (available separately 3.5mm (1/8-inch) stereo-to- Connects your audio card and A/V receiver. RCA cable (available separately) Subwoofer jack Connects to the Line Out 3 jack on your...
- Page 17 Connecting Headphones and Headsets Do not listen to audio on your headphones or headsets at high volumes for prolonged periods of time as hearing loss may result. Connecting your headphones and headsets to the Sound Blaster Z-Series For headphones: Jack, Connector or Cable Description Headphone jack Connects to stereo headphones with a...
- Page 18 Connecting Audio Control Module The ACM accessory is bundled with Sound Blaster Zx only. Connecting your ACM to the Sound Blaster Z-Series Jack, Connector or Cable Description Line In/Microphone In jack Connects to the 3.5mm (1/8-inch) microphone plug of your ACM. Headphone jack Connects to your ACM with a 3.5mm (1/8-inch) plug.
- Page 19 Connecting your headphones and headsets to the ACM Jack, Connector or Cable Description 3.5mm Headphone jack Connects to stereo headphones or headsets with a 3.5mm (1/8-inch) plug. 3.5mm Microphone In jack Connects to line-level sources (for example, MP3 players) or microphones with a 3.5mm (1/8-inch) plug.
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Page 20: Installing And Uninstalling Software
DTS Connect To remove Dolby Digital Live: Note Carry out the following steps ONLY IF there are no other Creative applications on your system that requires the Dolby Digital Live encoder. For Windows 7: 1. Click Start > Control Panel > Uninstall a Program. - Page 21 To remove DTS Connect: Note Carry out the following steps ONLY IF there are no other Creative applications on your system that requires the DTS Connect encoder. For Windows 7: 1. Return to the Start > Control Panel > Uninstall a Program window. 2. Select the DTS Connect entry.
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Page 22: Installing Drivers And Applications
Installing Drivers and Applications Ensure that your audio card is installed before proceeding. For instructions on installing your audio card, consult your Quick Start leaflet. After you have installed your audio card, turn on your computer. Windows automatically detects your audio card and searches for device drivers. - Page 23 Creative ALchemy Creative ALchemy is a powerful tool that restores the audio for a DirectSound ® 3D game running on Windows 7 or Windows 8 to its former glory - in full surround sound with hardware accelerated audio mixing, sampling rate conversion and EAX effects.
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Page 24: Dts Connect
DTS Connect DTS Connect is a real-time encoding technology from DTS, Inc. for interactive media and is only available on the PC platform. It converts any audio signal on the computer into 5.1 channel DTS format and transports it via a single digital cable. With Dolby Digital Live or DTS Connect, a single digital cable is all that is needed to connect your computer to your home theatre system, simplifying the setup and eliminating the confusion of multiple cables. -
Page 25: Playing / Recording Music
Playing / Recording Music You can play music from, and/or record music to external devices (for example, Digital Audio Tape player/recorder) by connecting them to your Sound Blaster Z-Series. Connecting your external device to the Sound Blaster Z-Series Jack, Connector or Cable Description Optical S/PDIF Out jack Connects to recording devices with... -
Page 26: Creating Music
Creating Music You can set up a home music studio using your Sound Blaster Z-Series. Put together your own productions consisting of multiple music tracks from a MIDI synthesizer or an electric guitar. Alternatively, connect your electric guitar using a pre-amp box to the Line In/Microphone In jack. -
Page 27: Using The Creative Software Suite
Creative Product Registration Creative Diagnostics Dolby Digital Live encoder DTS Connect encoder Sound Blaster Speaker Setup Various other bonus Creative applications are also compatible for your audio card. Visit www.creative.com/support and navigate to the relevant product page to view and download these applications. Note The applications included with your audio card may differ from those described here. - Page 28 You can customize the avatar for each profile. Double-click the current avatar to open the selection window. You can either select an avatar from the list or click to select your own image file to be used as the avatar. Using the Creative Software Suite 27...
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Page 29: Configuring Your Software Settings
Restore default settings. Select the audio playback device Select the supported software languages available for your system. Manually check for and update the software General information regarding your Sound Blaster Z-Series Control Panel software. Using the Creative Software Suite 28... -
Page 30: Enhancing Your Listening Experience
SBX Pro Studio Dialog Plus enhances the voices in movies for clearer dialog, allowing the listener to hear the dialog over the rest of the soundtrack and over ambient noise in the listening environment. Using the Creative Software Suite 29... - Page 31 CrystalVoice Focus creates a zone and suppresses noise outside it to enable the speaker within to be heard with amazing clarity. Multiple microphones are used to focus, enhance the speaker's voice, and eliminate sounds outside the zone. Using the Creative Software Suite 30...
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Page 32: Scout Mode
Scout mode transforms your hearing and enables you to hear your opponents from further away, giving you a distinct tactical advantage in combat. 1. Scout mode Select to turn on or off Scout mode. Click to configure hotkeys for turning on and turning off Scout mode. Using the Creative Software Suite 31... -
Page 33: Speakers/Headphones Settings
SBX Pro Studio suite of audio enhancements DTS Connect Dolby Digital Live Equalizer Testing Your Audio Playback Select the appropriate configuration based on your setup, then click to hear a sample audio clip being played back through your setup. Using the Creative Software Suite 32... - Page 34 Setting up DTS Connect Under DTS Connect, select or unselect the option "DTS Neo:PC" and configure its various settings according to your audio playback needs. To learn more about DTS Connect, please visit www.dts.com. Using the Creative Software Suite 33...
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Page 35: Mixer Settings
Adjusting Your Mixer Settings Slide the volume level sliders right to increase and left to decrease. Click the icon to mute/unmute the input/output. You can click the icon to adjust the settings for your input/output. Using the Creative Software Suite 34... - Page 36 Step 3: Click the Input Device button and select the appropriate input source. For example, if you would like to record from a microphone connected to the Intel HD Front Panel, select "Front Microphone" as shown in the figure below. Using the Creative Software Suite 35...
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Page 37: Equalizer Settings
Click to save the new configuration as a new preset. Note The list of default EQ presets cannot be deleted or overwritten. Using the Creative Software Suite 36... -
Page 38: Advanced Features Settings
Select the checkbox to down mix the audio with its effects to a stereo PCM stream to be channeled to digital output. Note You must first select "Speaker" as the playback device to use this feature. Using the Creative Software Suite 37... -
Page 39: Using Your Audio Device
1. Navigate to the folder where you have installed the game. 2. Right-click on the game's launcher and select Run as administrator. 3. Exit the application and launch Creative ALchemy again. The game should now appear in the left column. - Page 40 Ventrilo® and TeamSpeak®. Hear and be heard clearly by teammates during multi- player games to get the tactical edge. You can enhance such voice communications using CrystalVoice enhancements. For more details, please refer to CrystalVoice Settings. Using the Creative Software Suite 39...
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Page 41: Speaker Configuration
Direct bass audio to your subwoofer using the various configuration options found in this tab. You can perform a base test to monitor for frequencies that drop as the tone sweeps from your front speakers to your subwoofer. Adjust as desired. Using the Creative Software Suite 40... -
Page 42: Polarity Selection
Front Center Channel (if available), to compensate for its actual position either above or below the monitor. Using the Creative Software Suite 41... -
Page 43: Speaker Level
This set of configurations enables you to achieve a balanced level for each speaker. Speaker level is affected mainly by the distance between the speaker and the listener. Click the Level Test button and adjust the speaker level for each speaker accordingly. Using the Creative Software Suite 42... -
Page 44: General Specifications
General Specifications This section details the specifications of your Sound Blaster Z-Series audio card. PCI Bus Mastering PCI Express Specification Version 1.1 compliant Bus mastering reduces latency and speeds up system performance Sound Blaster Sound Core3D Audio Processor Advanced hardware accelerated digital effects processing Dedicated DSP capable of both time and frequency domain audio processing Professional Digital Audio Processing 24-bit Analog-to-Digital conversion of analog inputs at up to 96 kHz sample rate... - Page 45 Connectivity This section details the connectivity of your Sound Blaster Z-Series audio card. Sound Blaster Z-Series Audio Card Audio Inputs One 3.5mm (1/8-inch) Line In jack for Analog Line In or Microphone In One Optical S/PDIF jack for Digital In Audio Outputs One 3.5mm (1/8-inch) Headphone jack Three 3.5mm (1/8-inch) Line Out jacks for six channel analog audio output: Front Left, Front Right, Front Center, Subwoofer, Rear Left and Rear Right channels...
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Page 46: Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting This section provides solutions to problems you may encounter during installation or normal use. This includes: Problems with Digital Audio Devices Problems with Dolby Digital Live or DTS Connect Problems with Multiple Audio Devices Problems with Sound If you have any other technical problems with this product, you can also consult our self-help tool "Knowledge Base"... -
Page 47: Problems With Multiple Audio Devices
Note If Dolby Digital Live or DTS Connect is enabled, only PCM audio and certain compressed audio (for example, MP3) can be played, which will be encoded by Dolby Digital Live or DTS Connect through your selected output device. Problems with Multiple Audio Devices If there are other audio cards on the system. -
Page 48: Safety Information
Safety Information Refer to the following information to use your product safely, and to reduce the chance of electric shock, short-circuiting, damage, fire, hearing impairment or other hazards. Improper handling may void the warranty for your product. For more information, read the warranty available with your product. -
Page 49: License And Copyright
Information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Creative Technology Ltd. No part of this manual may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, for any purpose without written permission of Creative Technology Ltd.