Apart from the fact that it is so powerful, arguably the best feature of the Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1 is the front-of-computer "Live!Drive IR", which allows connectivity and infrared control where you want it: out front! It's shown enlarged below left.

Most of the sound cards thesedays advertise one particular feature: "Sound Blaster Compatible". If they’re all trying to emulate a Sound Blaster, doesn’t that mean that the genuine Sound Blaster must be the yardstick by which all cards are judged?

It might be possible to buy sound cards which have more (or should that be different?) features. But then again, the Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1 we are looking at here doesn’t lack anything, at least anything that we would find important. And as Creative Technology (the manufacturers) state, over one hundred million satisfied users worldwide can hardly be wrong.

Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1 is, as its name suggests, a 5.1 channel surround sound system. What the name doesn’t say is that it is Dolby Digital 5.1 – there is no need to buy a Dolby Digital decoder to experience Dolby surround sound because it’s already in your system.

So if you want to get into home theatre, this could be a very good way to do so. The system will handle both CD-ROM and DVD-ROM so you will have the audio side well and truly taken care of. You even get remote control – but we’re getting ahead of ourselves.