Designed around the powerful Sound Core3D™ audio processor, the Sound Blaster Z series once again raises the bar for the industry standard of PCIe sound cards. Sound Blaster Z has been designed to meet the standards of those who want a vastly superior experience over motherboard audio. With external DACs delivering 116dB SNR, a 600 ohm audiophile-grade headphone amp, and massively customizable SBX Pro Studio technologies, Sound Blaster Z packs a serious audio punch.
![]() |
"The Sound Blaster Z offers crystal clear sound that allows me to
"The Sound Blaster Z is prefect for all gamers. It allows us to focus on what's most important. Winning."
"With SBX Pro Studio, the Sound Blaster Z has everything a gamer needs."
"Gaming with the Sound Blaster Z is truly a spectacular experience."
"The Sound Blaster Z has great sound quality and is ideal for casual |
![]() |
-
116dB SNR OF SUPERIOR EXPERIENCE Sound Blaster Z has been designed to meet the expectations of those who want a vastly superior experience over motherboard audio. With external DAC’s delivering 116dB SNR, a 600 ohm audiophile-grade headphone amp, and customizable SBX Pro Studio™ enhancements, this sound card packs a serious audio punch.
-
3D Surround Sound SBX Pro Studio technologies allow you to control the level of audio immersion in music, movies, and games. Go beyond ordinary 5.1 and 7.1 solutions with an enhanced sense of audio depth and spaciousness by creating virtual surround sound channels via SBX Surround.
-
Crystal clear communication The CrystalVoice™ suite of technologies ensures you’ll experience crystal clear communications while using VOIP services, chatting or gaming, as well as providing a set of enhancements to ensure that recordings are of studio quality.
-
Sound Blaster Beamforming Microphone The bundled beamforming microphone is optimized for use with CrystalVoice technologies. The dual microphone array enables implementation of advanced noise cancellation, creating superior recordings, and provides a voice transmission platform over a standard single mic solution.
-
Sound Core3D audio processor The quad-core Sound Core3D audio processor was designed to offload SBX Pro Studio and CrystalVoice effects processing from your primary CPU, improving your overall PC performance, resulting in drastically superior audio and voice quality.
-
High fidelity surround sound Connect to your home theatre system through a single digital cable and enjoy cinematic DVD movies by transforming any stereo or multi-channel streams into high fidelity immersive surround sound.
-
Never unplug your headphones again With the Sound Blaster Z-series Control Panel, just toggle between your headphone and speaker system with a flip of a switch.
Product Name | Sound Blaster ZxR | Sound Blaster Zx | Sound Blaster Z |
Newegg Part No. | 29-102-050 | 29-102-049 | 29-102-048 |
General | |||
Audio Processor | Sound Core3D | Sound Core3D | Sound Core3D |
Audio Resolution | 24-Bit | 24-Bit | 24-Bit |
Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) (20kHz Low-pass filter, A-Wgt), @ 24-bit, 96kHz |
124dB | 116dB | 116dB |
Maximum Playback Quality |
5.1 Mode : Up to 96kHz Stereo Direct Mode : Up to 192kHz |
5.1 Mode : Up to 96kHz Stereo Direct Mode : Up to 192kHz |
5.1 Mode : Up to 96kHz Stereo Direct Mode : Up to 192kHz |
Frequency Response @96kHz |
Front Channel Out : 10Hz to 45kHz Rear Channel Out : 15Hz to 45kHz Center Out : 10Hz to 45kHz Headphone (33 ohms) : 10Hz to 45kHz |
Front Channel Out : 10Hz to 45kHz Rear Channel Out : 15Hz to 45kHz Center Out : 10Hz to 45kHz Headphone (33 ohms) : 10Hz to 45kHz |
Front Channel Out : 10Hz to 45kHz Rear Channel Out : 15Hz to 45kHz Center Out : 10Hz to 45kHz Headphone (33 ohms) : 10Hz to 45kHz |
Frequency Response @192kHz (Stereo Direct Only) | Front Channel Out : 10Hz to 88kHz | Front Channel Out : 10Hz to 88kHz | Front Channel Out : 10Hz to 88kHz |
Maximum Recording Quality | Up to 96kHz | Up to 96kHz | Up to 96kHz |
I/O Ports (Main Card) |
Headphone : 1 x Amplified 1/4" jack Speaker Out : 2x RCA (L / R) 2x 3.5mm jacks (Rear, C/Sub) Microphone In: 1x 1/4" jack |
Headphone : 1 x Amplified 3.5mm jack Speaker Out : 3 x 3.5mm jacks(F/R/C-Sub) Line / Mic In : 1x shared 3.5mm jack Optical Out : 1x TOSLINK Optical In : 1x TOSLINK |
Headphone : 1 x Amplified 3.5mm jack Speaker Out : 3 x 3.5mm jacks(F/R/C-Sub) Line / Mic In : 1x shared 3.5mm jack Optical Out : 1x TOSLINK Optical In : 1x TOSLINK |
I/O Ports (DBPro card) |
Line In : 2x RCA (L / R) Optical Out : 1x TOSLINK Optical In : 1x TOSLINK |
Not Applicable | Not Applicable |
Connection | PCI-Express | PCI-Express | PCI-Express |
600ohm Amplified Headphone Output | Y - 80mw TI TPA6120 | Y - Maxim MAX97220A | Y - Maxim MAX97220A |
Swappable OP-AMPs | Y | N | N |
Included Acesssories | Audio Control Module (with Beamforming Microphone Built-in) | Audio Control Module (with Beamforming Microphone Built-in) | Beamforming Microphone |
Audio Technology | |||
SBX Pro Studio - Surround™ - Crystalizer™ - Bass™ - Smart Volume™ - Dialog Plus™ |
Y | Y | Y |
CrystalVoice™ - Noise Reduction - Smart Volume - Acoustic Echo Cancellation - FX - Focus |
Y | Y | Y |
Speaker/Headphone Switch | Y | Y | Y |
Music & Movies | |||
Dolby Digital Live | Encoding | Encoding | Encoding |
DTS Connect | Encoding | Encoding | Encoding |
Upmixing of Stereo to Multi-Channels | SBX Surround | SBX Surround | SBX Surround |
Gaming | |||
Scout Mode™ | Y | Y | Y |
EAX | EAX 5.0 HD | EAX 5.0 HD | EAX 5.0 HD |
Max. No. of 3D Voices | 128 | 128 | 128 |
Creative ALchemy | Y | Y | Y |