Creative Gigaworks S750

While 7.1 audio cards were being introduced, not to say Sound Blaster Audigy2 ZS, the need for a speaker system with a 7.1 configuration was born. The little bit cheaper series Inspire was adapted quickly and the result was Inspire T7700 which was delivered with seven satellites and one subwoofer. Though, my self and other enthusiasts which sat with a Megaworks 5.1 was waiting with excitement for a sequel to that system to come. Megaworks had before been the flagship in the fleet of speaker systems and there are two versions, 510D and 550 THX…

While 7.1 audio cards were being introduced, not
to say Sound Blaster Audigy2 ZS, the need for a speaker system with a 7.1 configuration
was born. The little bit cheaper series Inspire was adapted quickly and the
result was Inspire T7700 which was delivered with seven satellites and one subwoofer.
Though, my self and other enthusiasts which sat with a Megaworks 5.1 was waiting
with excitement for a sequel to that system to come. Megaworks had before been
the flagship in the fleet of speaker systems and there are two versions, 510D
and 550 THX.

After many rumors and speculations, we were

finally told that the new system was going to be called Gigaworks, quite a

good name if you ask me. The first look revealed some very interesting

observations. The satellites are totally remade and are now two-way and a

lot larger, and heavier than earlier. A new controller unit has been

developed which together with a wireless remote control shall let the user

have a maximum level of comfort while using the product. More about the

product and its improvements follow in the review here next.

The new Gigaworks not only has impressive specifications,
it also weighs the most of all the speaker packages I’ve ever tested. A vehicle
with lots of room and a friend to help you carry is recommended as two important
things to bring to the post office’s outlet. This is because the package weighs
over 35 kilograms and the box itself is ungainly and lacks holes to carry
it with

The package is delivered with the following
components:

7 satellite speakers
1 subwoofer
1 controller unit, with cord
1 remote, cordless
6 speaker feet
1 monitor foot, pointed downwards
7 speaker cables at 3, 5 and 7 metres
1 line-in cable for 7.1-sound, analogue
1 manual
1 power cable

Speaking of the price, GigaWorks is far below
the recommended retail price at 570 euros.

All speaker systems have their
specifications and functions and sometimes you want to add things and sometimes
there are so many things you’ll never be able to use them all. The consumer
has to look to their specific needs when choosing product chose pick an
appropriate level.

Personally I have wanted the
first function for quite some time, and that is nothing less then a remote
to control system regular functions. Earlier the consumer has had to use
the wire reconnected control unit, which according to me doesn’t fit today’s
comfortable lifestyle very well.

On the remote you can find the on/off button and a mute button, which is
convenient of someone calls or something similar. Further you can raise
or lower the levels on each speaker or area should also be told. With areas
I mean front speakers, side speakers or rear speakers with the same button(left
or right). You can adjust treble and bass as well, something I do quite
often depending on the music or the sound source I choose to play from.

A wire
connected remote is also a part of the package of course. Its primary area
of use is of course in the vicinity of the source, or the computer as it
often is, since the length of the cable is limited.

On the front of the main unit is a row of LEDs that each represents a setting. These settings are the same settings you can do via the remote and when the

LED is lit you can use the function buttons to adjust it. On the main unit’s front there is also a receiver for the remote which in this case uses IR.

The main unit is very user
friendly, even if it may look complicated at a first glance. You simply
choose function with the button labeled select and then raise or lower the
level of the chosen function with the plus and minus buttons. A button to
the far left turns the system on and off, just as the remote.

The button called upmix has just that function, in other words you can use all speakers with your old equipment, even though it may not be fit for 7.1-sound. Simply explained it takes 5.1- or 6.1-sound and creates 7.1-sound by upmixing it to the right amount channels. It can for example be an external DVD-player that outputs 5.1-sound where you use all speakers and the upmix function to get the full listening experience.

On the front of the main unit there is a regular
line in-connection for a 3,6 millimeter stereo plug here you can connect
your portable cd-player, mp3-player or any other equipment you want to play
from. you can also plug in headphones into the contact on the far right.

Except these two contacts you have a M-PORT for connecting you MuVo NX,
MP3-player. this is connected directly into the main unit to play the content
pf the player, without battery or anything else. This is the same type of
M-PORT that can be found on other popular speaker systems from Creative,
for example Inspire T7700 and I-Trigue L3500.

Just as with earlier systems
in the same series, Megaworks 510D and Megaworks 550 they use an amplifier
with the BASH-technology. BASH stands for Bridged Amplifier / Switching
Hybrid and you can say that it is a mix out of amplifiers from class A,
B and D and a PSU. Amplifiers in class A and B stands for high sound quality
while amplifiers in class D has a worse quality but higher output. BASH
is a combination of these two so high output can be achieved without quality
loss.

The output is achieved by the digital converter analyzes the signal and in realtime adjusts the PSU so that just the right amount of voltage is sent to the speakers, and summarizing you can say it’s a combination of a digital power amplifier and a digital PSU.

On the back of the amplifier
or subwoofer as might as well call it, since it is the same box, the connections
for all the speakers are located. The cables that comes along should be
more than enough for most people. The connections are of regular kind, RCA-plug,
and you can extend them with a regular extension card or by simply adding
in the other end where the cable is naked.

Connecting a sound source is done with analogue
cables, four to be exact, if you want to use all eight channels or 7.1-sound.
The cables and connections are colormarked, just as many audio cards are
today which simplifies the connection procedure. If you want to use a source
with only stereo signal you plug into green connection, I.e. the one called
front. The main unit is connected with two different cables, one who looks
like a mini-DIN-contact (but with more poles) and a regular 3,5 millimeter
stereo plug.