Creative MegaWorks 510D 5.1 system review

Posted by Thomas McGuire on October 29, 2002
Manufacturer: Creative     Product: Creative MegaWorks 510D 5.1 Sound System

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Specifications

Listed beneath are the specifications for the MegaWorks 510D, as according to Cambridge SoundWorks;

• 500 Watts Dynamic Power

• 70 Watts (RMS) per surround satellite (x5)

• 150 Watts (RMS) digitally amplified subwoofer

• Satellite Frequency Response: 150Hz - 18kHz +/- 3dB

• Subwoofer Frequency Response: 32Hz - 150Hz +/- 3dB

• Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR): 95dB

• MegaWorks 510D's 3-channel digital input requires any Sound Blaster 5.1 sound card.

Here’s a shot of the system itself.

Connectivity

Connectivity wise the MegaWorks offers both digital & analog inputs. The digital input is limited to the Live!/Audigy range of Soundcards however using Creative’s proprietary digital input which allows multi-channel digital input (Note that the Klipsch Promedia 5.1 doesn’t even feature a S/PDIF Input either). For other Soundcards this acts as a standard S/PDIF input as well, though you won’t find that mentioned anywhere in the Manual. To test this functionality I connected my Game Theater XP to the digital input & it worked just fine.

4 analog inputs are also available, 1 being an Auxiliary input, e.g. for connecting your TV to & the other 3 (Front, Rear & Center/Subwoofer) for multi-channel analog input, e.g. when connected to a PC Soundcard. As mentioned previously I connected both the Audigy Soundcard & nForce to the MegaWorks in this way – with the Audigy using the proprietary digital input & the nForce using the provide triple stereo line-in cable. The analog inputs shouldn’t be of any problem for those with 4 channel Soundcards, e.g. Hercules Gamesurround Fortissimo 2, though for some 6 channel Soundcards the single Centre/Subwoofer input might require an adapter or 2, as would be the case with the Game Theater XP, whose rack features separate Centre & Subwoofer outputs & as such requires a single mini-jack to dual RCA cable to connect from the Center & Subwoofer outputs of the rack (though it does provide 2 mini-jack outputs for Front left/right & Rear left/right channels). Those of you using a SoundBlaster Live! 5.1, Audigy, Extigy, nForce (with motherboards that come with the add-on bracket with the Rear & Centre/Subwoofer analog outputs, e.g. Abit NV7-133R as I used), Philips Acoustic Edge or Seismic Edge 5.1 soundcards do not need to worry about this though. For a high-end (multimedia) system the only connection that might be considered missing for some would be a headphone output, though for me at least this was by no means an issue.

Test System

The MegaWorks 510D was tested on a PC using the following components;

• Windows XP Professional Service Pack 1

• 256MB DDR RAM

• GeForce 4 Ti 4400

• Abit NV7-133R nForce (Connected using the analog outputs of the CA-20 backplate)

• SoundBlaster Audigy (Digital output)

• Sigma Designs REALmagic Xcard

I also tested the Speakers with my DVD system which comprised the following components;

• SoundBlaster Extigy (Dolby Digital decoder, connected to 510D using analog outputs)

• Philips 32” Widescreen TV

• Sony DVP-NS305 (Connected to Extigy using Coaxial S/PDIF Output)

Select The MegaWorks 510D - In the box Specifications, Connectivity & Test System Subwoofer, Amplifier & Satellites Music and DVD Playback Gaming Performance Gaming Continued & Final Conclusion

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