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Creative Labs Audigy
2 Zs Platinum Pro
As low as  
How good does your PC sound? Most likely it sounds OK…and OK simply isn’t good enough, particularly if you use it to play games, listen to music, or watch DVDs.

Without having to clean out your pocketbook, you can turn your PC into the ultimate sound machine. Not only will you get incredibly realistic 3D sound, you’ll even be able to use your computer as your own sound studio, recording and mixing music like the pros. And you’ll be able to stream music throughout your house from your PC and more

How to do it all? Keep on reading and you’ll find everything you need.

The quickest way to a better-sounding PC is to get a new sound card. The sound card that came with your PC is most likely adequate, but probably not much more.

If you want to record music as well as listen to it, then get the ultimate card, the Creative Labs Audigy 2 Zs Platinum Pro Sound Blaster PCI Sound Card SB0360 for as low as . Hook up one or more guitars, a microphone or a MIDI keyboard, and then let loose — you’ll be able to record straight to your PC. You can also record to or from a MiniDisc or a Digital Audio Tape (DAT), and connect to external amps and decoders. With its two high-speed FireWire connectors, you can also transfer data with external devices, including not just sound devices, but also DV camcorders and external hard disks. It even includes a remote control so that you can control playing back music and movies when you’re at a distance from your PC. As for sound quality, it can’t be beat — 24-bit audio quality with support for DVD-Audio at 24-bit/192kHz in stereo or 24-bit/96kHz in 5.1 surround sound. It also provides 7.1 surround sound for Dolby Digital® EX and plays DTS-ES supported DVD movies, any DirectSound 3D games, and CMSS 3D virtualized 7.1 stereo music.

With all that sound power, do you want to be forced to listen to a measly, underpowered pair of speakers? Of course not. Once again, Creative Labs has topped the field with its Creative Gigaworks S750 7 Piece Dolby 7.1 Speaker System for as low as . It’s a THX-certified 7.1 speaker system, ideally suited for both gamers and music lovers. It offers two-way satellite speakers with titanium supertweeters for high-end frequency response up to 40kHz, sports a whopping 700 total watts of power including a 210 watt subwoofer. And it comes with a wireless remote and audio control pod.

Prefer headphones to speakers — or want them in addition to speakers? Then get the superb Sennheiser Audio Visual Accessory HD 600 Headphone for as low as $379.99. The specs will make your head spin, but the bottom line is this: They’re built to be high enough quality for professional sound engineers, so they’re certainly good enough for you.

If you want your headphones to do double-duty, and connect to your MP3 player or other portable music device when you travel, you can’t do better than the Bose Quiet Comfort 2 Noise-Canceling Headset for as low as . Not only do they offer amazing sound on their own, but they include electronic sound-cancellation technology — microphones in the earcups actively monitor the sounds you hear, then electronically process sound to cancel out external noise.

You’ve probably built up a sizable digital music collection, which is good news and bad news. Good news because you have a huge music selection when seated at your PC. Bad news because you can’t listen to it when you’re near your home stereo.

With the NetGear MP101 Wireless 802.11b Digital Music Player for as low as you’ll be able to listen to all of your digital music on your home stereo. It streams MP3s and Windows Media format digital files from your networked PCs and Internet radio directly to your home stereo. (You’ll need a home wireless network to use it.) With a remote control and LCD interface, you’ll be able to easily browse your PC’s music collection from your home stereo.

If you own a laptop, you’re not out of luck — there’s sound help for you as well. Get the Creative Labs 2 Piece Travelsound Speakers Portable Folding Laptop Speakers for as low as . It’s a one-piece amplified speaker that folds into a small carrying case, and lets you listen to music wherever you go. The sound quality on this system is surprisingly high — so high, in fact, that my daughter uses it for her primary speakers on her laptop at college.

Finally, don’t forget the microphone, and a great one for the PC is the Mace Group Mini USB Microphone for as low as . Hook it up to a USB port; you’ll be surprised at its high fidelity. It includes a stereo line-in jack so you can digitize analog audio from cassette tape player, CD player and other external devices. And if you want a combo headset/microphone perfectly suited for gaming (and taunting your opponents), try the Plantronics Digitally Enhance USB Gaming/Multimedia headset for as low as .