New SBLive & Audigy drivers from Compaq - 377MB!!

[SteveC]

This just takes the biscuit - how the hell can drivers for a sound card, which should fit on a single floppy be Three HUNDRED and seventy seven bloody Megs?!?!?!

Anyway, found on [H], see ftp://ftp.compaq.com/pub/softpaq/sp2...00/SP20920.exe

Downloading now - even at 106Kb/s it's still gonna take an hour!

[Gurm]

These were released in April.



Many of us have had them since then. They are excellent, except on some VIA chipsets... where they suck, and only the drivers from the CD (patched with latest updates from Creative's website) should be used.

If you DO intend to use these, you will have to delete Compaq's .inf file, otherwise it will bitch you out for not having a Presario.

- Gurm

[Kruzin]

Well, it's obviously more than just drivers.
Probably a whole new software suite. Wouldn't be the first time I've had to d/l hundreds of megs to update my live! drivers and software...

[Lucid]

The package contains the full Creative Sound Blaster Audigy/Live! CD, with quite a few progs as well as some media files and documents in various languages.. There's an option to install only the drivers..

I think you need to delete the CToem.cfg file from one of the folders after extracting the package..

[Heed]

http://forums.murc.ws/showthread.php?s=&threadid=34363

If you look at the linked article it says something about an "update only" package that will be about 50 megs (EDIT: also a 25 meg option for core components only). I agree though, Creative driver pakages are ridiculous-- I just end up disabling a bunch of stuff anyway. Would be nice to get just the drivers without all the bloat.

[103er-Fan]

Though I am on DSL I think that is wy too stupid!
Even 25mb just for drivers would be crazy, take a look at graphic drivers, they only rarely reach 20mb.

Anyways, can somebody of you recommend me a new soundcard? I wanted to step away from Creative anyways, and I found someone who would pay good money for my SB Live!
Oh, I unfortunatly can't buy a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz.... they aren't available in germany

[Lucid]

FYI:

How to get rid of the startup EAX splash screen?

a) If you have all the creative shortcuts on the start menu:

Click on the EAX icon and you will see a EAX application running on the
lower right corner, press the little "letter" icon and uncheck "load on
startup", done.

b) If you deleted all the creative shortcuts on the start menu:

Go to "C:\Program Files\Creative\SBAudigy\Program" and run "demo32.exe",
load "CTEax.dbd" and you will see a EAX application running on the lower
right corner, press the little "letter" icon and uncheck "load on startup",
done.

[dZeus]

Originally posted by 103er-Fan
Though I am on DSL I think that is wy too stupid!
Even 25mb just for drivers would be crazy, take a look at graphic drivers, they only rarely reach 20mb.

Anyways, can somebody of you recommend me a new soundcard? I wanted to step away from Creative anyways, and I found someone who would pay good money for my SB Live!
Oh, I unfortunatly can't buy a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz.... they aren't available in germany

Sure you can... get a 'Video Logic Sonic Fury' from, say, www.alternate.de , and install the Santa Cruz drivers on them immediately (no need for the CD that came with it ).

Heck, on the board itself it even says 'Turtle Beach Santa Cruz'... Video Logic only distributes them over Europe.

[Gurm]

Although if you like games from Bioware (Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale, Fallout, Planescape: Torment, Neverwinter Nights, Icewind Dale 2, Baldur's Gate 2) then you can't use ANY card based on the Crystal chipset, which includes the Sonic Fury as well as the Santa Cruz, and everything Hercules makes.

- Gurm

[SteveC]

Sorry these are old guys - I just assumed they were new. BTW: I've been told 2 weeks and creative are releasing a whole new set.

[High_Jumbllama]

Will they be for the original Lives and for Win9X as well? Trying to download the drivers from Compaq, but the connection reset. I'd rather not have to download any of the Download helping spyware.

[az]

103er: Try the Terratec DMX 6Fire 24/96, it's got great sound quality, and a 5.25" bay module (and supports EAX 2). You can get the 6Fire LT for less if you don't need the drive bay module - that's the only difference AFAIK.

If you've got more questions, I'm sure Indiana can help - he's got it (I would if I could )

Oh and report back here when/if you've got it, to tell me (and maybe Buddman) how it behaves

AZ

[Indiana]

Originally posted by 103er-Fan
Though I am on DSL I think that is wy too stupid!
Even 25mb just for drivers would be crazy, take a look at graphic drivers, they only rarely reach 20mb.

Anyways, can somebody of you recommend me a new soundcard? I wanted to step away from Creative anyways, and I found someone who would pay good money for my SB Live!
Oh, I unfortunatly can't buy a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz.... they aren't available in germany

Get a DMX6Fire24/96. If you don't need/want the front module (although it's really great, everything what the Creative module should probably have been), you can get the quite a bit cheaper LT version. The LT has the same exceptionally high soundquality (as opposed to the Creative offerings) as the expensive version, has ASIO drivers, working digital out (including AC3 out from DVD players in Win2k and XP, something Creative still struggles with). Great quality ADC converters and Phono PreAMP included for those who like to digitze old analog recordings.
Oh and as an extra plus it doesn't have LiveWare!... It's drivers are 2-3 MB for Win2k.

The Creative might be better for gaming (didn't really try that feature much other than "it works in general"), but for every serious sound-application the 6Fire24/96 easily beats any Creative offering.



EDIT: Damn, az was faster by a few minutes...

[az]

...but I included you in the credits

Oh, and NEVER get any CHEAP Terratec card! My old Maestro 24/96 was great (and cost 450,- DM back in '97, anyone interested? ), but my 523i Digital is "bleh"

AZ

[Indiana]

Did you try emailing them?