Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS - Product Specification Guide

A. Product Information

Audio Performance

• Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise at 1kHz (A-Weighted) = 0.004 %
• Frequency Response at -3 dBr = <10 Hz to 22 kHz

Signal-to-Noise Ratio with AES17 filter (A-Weighted)
	2V Rated Output 1V Rated Output
Stereo Output	108dB	102dB
Front and Rear Channels	108dB	102dB
Center, Subwoofer, and Rear Center	108dB	~102dB

Technical Specifications

High Definition Audio Quality for Playback and Recording


• 24-bit Digital-to-Analog conversion during playback with sampling rates of 8, 11.025, 16, 22.05, 24, 32, 44.1, 48 and 96kHz in 7.1 mode and up to 192kHz in stereo mode
• 24-bit Analog-to-Digital conversion during recording in 8, 16 or 24-bit at sampling rates of 8, 11.025, 16, 22.05, 24, 32, 44.1, 48 and 96kHz
• 24-bit Digital-to-Analog conversion of digital sources at 96kHz to analog 5.1 speaker output
• 16-bit recording with sampling rates of 8, 11.025, 16, 22.05, 24, 32, 44.1 and 48kHz
• SPDIF output up to 24-bit resolution at 48 or 96kHz
• ASIO 2.0 drivers for low latency (as low as 2ms) multi-track playback and recording at 16bit/48kHz*

*(Latency performance may vary based on system configuration)

Wave-Table Synthesis and Midi Features


• Creative Hardware synthesizer (2x16 channels) with 64-voice polyphony featuring E-MU®'s patented 8-point interpolation technology for accurate sample reproduction
• Creative Software synthesizer - multi timbral wave-table (16 channels)
• 2 MIDI I/O ports (2x16 channels) (gameport adapter required for MIDI I/O 2)

FireWire® (IEEE® 1394) Connectivity


• FireWire® (IEEE® 1394) / i-Link® compatible interface with up to 400Mbps transfer rate

Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS On-Board Connectors


• Line level out (Front / Side / Rear / Center / Subwoofer)
• Digital Out for 5.1 support (6-channel SPDIF output to Creative digital speakers
• Line in
• Microphone in
• FireWire® (IEEE® 1394)
• Telephone Answering Device in
• Analog / Digital CD Audio in
• 15-pin MIDI / Joystick port extension header
• Internal IEEE® 1394 header to Audigy 2 ZS Internal I/O Drive
• AD_EXT extension header to Audigy 2 ZS Internal I/O Drive

Works with the Following Standards


• Windows® 98SE, 2000, ME and XP
• Supports Windows XP SP2
• Sound Blaster MIDI and General MIDI
• Plug and Play Sound Blaster PCI
• EAX, EAX ADVANCED HD*
• THX®
• Microsoft® DirectSound®, DirectSound 3D & derivatives
• Plug and Play Sound Blaster PCI
• OpenAL™
• PCI 2.2 compliant
• AC97 compliant
• Dolby Digital® and Dolby Digital EX
• DTS Digital Surround® and DTS-ES Extended Surround™
• Meridian Lossless Packing
• ASIO 2.0
• Dolby Digital® and Dolby Digital EX
• SoundFont 2.1
• DVD-Audio and Advanced Resolution™ DVD-Audio
• Windows Media® Audio 9

Retail Box Contents

• Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS PCI card
• Joystick/MIDI bracket
• Quick Start Guide Leaflet
• User Guide Manual on CD
• 3.5mm to 1/4” jack adapter
• Lara Croft Tomb Raider™ : The Angel Of Darkness (Full EAX ADVANCED HD version)
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six™: Raven Shield™ (Full EAX ADVANCED HD version)
• Drivers for Windows® 98SE, Windows® ME, Windows® 2000 SP3 and Windows® XP® SP1
• Creative Software Pack with Creative Applications: Creative Media Source® Go!
• Creative Media Source® Organizer
• Creative Media Source® Player
• Creative Audio Stream Recorder 2
• Creative Audio HQ
• Creative Diagnostics
• Creative MiniDisc Center
• Creative WaveStudio®
• Creative Restore Default
• Creative Speaker Calibrator
• Creative SoundFont Bank Manager
• Creative Surround Mixer
• Creative Speaker Settings
• Creative MediaSource DVD-Audio Player
• Creative EAX Music Console
• Creative Graphic Equalizer
• THX Setup Console

Creative DVD-Audio Sampler Disc

• Feature Showcase Demonstration CD for: DVD-Audio
• EAX ADVANCED HD
• Dolby Digital® EX
• DTS-ES Extended Surround™
• THX®
• SoundFont Sample Banks
• Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Getting Started Demonstration
• Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Music Creation Guide

Bundled Software

• Creative MediaSource™ (Version 2.0)
• Lara Croft Tomb Raider™ : The Angel Of Darkness
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six™: Raven Shield™
• Creative Software Pack - Creative Applications
• Creative Media Source® Go!
• Creative Media Source® Organizer
• Creative Media Source® Player
• Creative Audio Stream Recorder 2
• Creative Audio HQ
• Creative Diagnostics
• Creative MiniDisc Center
• Creative WaveStudio®
• Creative Restore Default
• Creative Speaker Calibrator
• Creative SoundFont Bank Manager
• Creative Surround Mixer
• Creative Speaker Settings
• Creative MediaSource DVD-Audio Player
• Creative EAX Music Console
• Creative Graphic Equalizer
• THX Setup Console
• Creative DVD-Audio Sampler Disc
• Feature Showcase Demonstration CD for:
• DVD-Audio
• EAX ADVANCED HD
• Dolby Digital® EX
• DTS-ES Extended Surround™
• THX®
• SoundFont Sample Banks
  
• Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Getting Started Demonstration
• Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS Music Creation Guide

B. Installing the Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS

1. Turn off your computer and all peripheral devices.
2. Touch a metal plate on your computer to ground yourself and to discharge any static electricity, and then unplug the power cord from the wall outlet.
3. Remove the computer casing.
4. Remove a metal bracket from an unused PCI slot. If you are installing the Joystick/MIDI bracket (optional), also remove an adjacent metal bracket. Turn off the main power supply and disconnect your computer's power cord. Systems using an ATX power supply unit with soft power off may still be powering the PCI slot. This can damage your audio card when it is inserted into the slot.
5. Remove any existing audio card or disable the onboard audio chipset.
6. Align the Audigy 2 ZS audio card with the PCI slot and press the card gently but firmly into the slot
7. Secure the card to your computer. Depending on your computer's configuration, you may need a screw to secure your Audigy 2 ZS audio card to the computer.
8. If you are installing a joystick or MIDI device (optional), secure the Joystick/MIDI bracket to the slot next to the Audigy 2 ZS audio card. Depending on your computer's configuration, you may need a screw to secure your Audigy 2 ZS audio card to the computer.
9. Connect the Joystick/MIDI cable to the Joystick/MIDI connector on the Audigy 2 ZS audio card

Installing the Software

1. After you have installed your audio card, turn on your computer. Windows automatically detects your audio card and searches for device drivers.
2. When prompted for the audio drivers, click the Cancel button.
3. Insert the Audigy 2 ZS Installation and Applications CD into your CD/DVD-ROM drive.
4. If Windows AutoPlay mode is enabled for your CD/DVD-ROM drive, the CD starts running automatically. If not, you need to enable your CD/DVD-ROM drive's auto-insert notification feature. Alternatively, from your Windows desktop, click Start - Run and type d:\ctrun\ctrun.exe (replace d:\ with the drive letter of your CD/DVD-ROM drive).
5. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the installation.
6. When prompted, restart your computer.

Note:

During the installation process, Windows 98 SE users will be prompted to insert the Windows 98 SE installation CD into the CD/DVD-ROM drive. Insert the installation CD into the CD/DVD-ROM drive and then click the OK button.

If you did not receive a Windows 98 SE installation CD with your system, but received a Recovery Disk, the necessary Windows files may be located at c:\WINDOWS\Options\Cabs (replace c:\ with the drive letter of your hard disk drive).