So what else has changed since the original days of the Sound Blaster Live! oh so long ago? Lets take a look at the technical specifications first.
Wave-Table Synthesis
E-mu® Systems EMU10K1™ music synthesis engine
64-voice polyphony with E-mu's patented 8-point interpolation technology
48 MIDI channels with 128 GM & GS-compatible instruments and 10 drum kits
Uses SoundFont® technology for user-definable wave-table sample sets; includes 2MB, 4MB and 8MB sets
Load up to 32MB of samples into host memory for professional music reproduction
Effects Engine
E-mu Systems EMU10K1 patented effects processor
Supports real-time digital effects like reverb, chorus, flange, pitch shifter or distortion across any audio source
Capable of processing, mixing and positioning audio streams using up to 131 available hardware channels
Customizable effects architecture allows audio effects and channel control
Full digital mixer maintains all sound mixing in the digital domain, eliminating noise from the signal
Full bass, treble, and effects controls available for all audio sources
Environmental 3D Positional Audio Technology
User-selectable settings are optimized for headphones and two or four speakers
Accelerates Microsoft® DirectSound® and DirectSound3D
Support for Environmental Audio™ property set extensions
Creative Multi Speaker Surround™ technology places any mono or stereo sound source in a 360° audio space
Creative Environments - user-selectable DSP modes that simulate acoustic environments like Hall, Theater, Club, etc. on any sound source
Hollywood-Quality, 32-Bit Digital Audio Engine
User-selectable bit rates from 8- to 16-bit
User-selectable sample rates from 8kHz to 48kHz
All sound sources are handled with 32-bit precision for highest quality output
Analog and Digital I/O modes supported
Hardware full-duplex support enables simultaneous record and playback at 8 standard sample rates
Utilizes AC97 audio codec
MIDI Interface / Joystick Port
Supports MPU-401 UART mode
IBM® compatible 15-pin joystick port with analog support
Support for digital and DirectInput™ game devices
On-Board Connectors
Microphone in
Line in
Line level out (front)
Line level out (rear)
Mic input
Digital Out
Joystick port
MPC-3
CD Audio in
Auxiliary in
Digital CD in
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