Labs Sound Blaster Play 4 HI-RES External USB-C DAC and Sound Adapter FT. V

Originally I bought this tiny DAC to improve PS4 sound output and IT DID significantly!! **BEWARE**, you need PC (Windows 10/11 only, Mac is not supported) to install creative app and update its firmware to get full benefits it offers. Here is my story, when I received the product I immediately plug it into my PS4 to test it following instruction. The actual sound coming from my headset was REALLY LOW, actually lower than original. So I unplugged it and then went to my PC to update its firmware. I downloaded the firmware and installed it accordingly. I thought this should do the trick, NOOO it did not. When I plugged it back to PS4, it was acting weird by disconnecting itself and blinking. I surely thought I BRICKED it. I wend back to PC again and this time, I downloaded & installed "Creative App for Windows". The creative app immediately recognized my device after unplugging/plugging and there was a setting for update its firmware. I did the update process again through app and I tested it on my PC for sounds and noise cancelling features. I did end up NOT using noise cancelling features since it seems these settings distort sound output on my headset, but overall sound quality was better than the original. Then finally I went back in to test with PS4, it WORKED!! New volume control, EQ, muting button, and everything worked well. The new volume control which comes with a new firmware is A MUST HAVE for making PS4's ouput as loud as possible. I'm pretty sure it will work on PS5 as well when I finally get ONE!

I have a Creative sound blaster connected to my computer for about a year. Still works well. It really boosts the sound of my headphones. So I bought another one for my phone to use with my IEMs work great. Could definitely tell the difference. Fits good connection is good. I do recommend.

This little unit provides a clean and clear sound. Overall I'm very pleased with this unit. I can't say how durable it is as I'm using this on my PC so it's stationary. With this being said I have a tablet that sits below my monitor and the sound of my tablet runs through the "Line In" plug in the back of my PC so it's also converting that sound as well simultaneously with my PC sound. While converting 2 sound sources at once it still functions perfectly creating a great quality sound. For the price point I'm very pleased with this product. It was "Plug and Play" on my Windows 11 PC so the compatibility was great. Thank You Creative

I purchased this USB sound card as my motherboard's front audio header is not working. I think the sound card does a pretty good job in terms of sound quality, as I can feel the amp on my headphones. However, the Software Suite does not seem to function as intended; it cannot update the USB sound card drivers. The product is also a bit too big; it looks silly, so see it dangling around.

Going from an older computer with a top end ASUS sound card, I was disappointed with the sound quality on my new computer. My audio listening habits have changed, and a real expensive sound card didn't seem worthwhile, so after a couple of hours researching on-line and reading Amazon reviews, decided to give the Play 4 a try, mostly because of the amazing specs and low price (I should know better, but...). At first, the sound improvement over the '5.1/7.1' outputs and built in sound on the new computer was dramatic - the Play 4 DAC really brought the speakers to life. But then it died - lost connection with the usb C port. Unplugged and tried again, and after as longer period, did the same thing. Used a different C port, with the same failures. Researched some more, checked all my computer sound settings, switched the Play 4 between mode 2 to mode 1 and back, installed the creative software which supposedly wasn't needed - nothing made a difference. Strike one. While all this was happening, the computer kept displaying a message from Creative that firmware and software needed updating. This was annoying, because that was the first thing tried after loading the Creative software and getting the message . Annoying, because the firmware uploaded OK, but the software kept popping up "can't upload at this time, try later". This message would pop up every time I started or re-started the computer. Strike two. So I decided this was a defective device, and I would exchange it for another Play 4. Having read the instructions, I knew that the Play 4 would need to be in the computer to uninstall the software, so I followed the manufacturer's instructions. A 3 step process for Windows 11, unlike most software packages: First, with the Play 4 plugged into the computer, right click start, go to device manager>sound, and click on "Attempt to uninstall software". After that was done, go to Control panel>Creative, and click on uninstall software. Then, with the Play 4 still plugged in, turn off the computer, and unplug the Play 4 after the computer shuts down and before starting again. Strike three. Instead of an exchange, I am returning the Play 4, just too needy for a long term relationship, and my time is worth more than the Play 4 is worth. The one good thing out of this 6 hour struggle is that the device confirmed what my ears suspected - I need a decent (but reliable) DAC.

Very good DAC dongle, pairs great with HD599 on a Iphone(will not handle well HD600’s series). The bass boost is well balance. Works straight from the box, there is a firmware update available for some features.

I've bought this 3 times now, none of which were cause by issues with the device but because it's just that good. My dog teethed on the first one so I bought a second (and was careful to not leave it plugged into my Mac) and I bought the third for my WFH setup. Audio quality is great with this USB C DAC. First of all, its plug n play on every OS I've tried it on (which is Ubuntu 22.04, Ubuntu 24.04, MacOS, and Windows 11 Pro) and I haven't had any issues using it on those platforms. The optional Creative software adds some cool features and a control panel for the DAC, but it's optional and isn't required if you don't want yet another background process running. I've used this with a variety of headsets and headphones (namely, Audio Technics over ear headphones and Apple EarPods) and the audio quality is a noticeable improvement over the onboard audio for my PCs. I like the DAC has an on device mute button too. Overall, not too much to say other than I recommend this DAC if you need an affordable option that also sounds good. 5/5!

I have a microphone which gets a humming sound when I plug it to my pc's headphone jack so I knew I needed a DAC. but this one is so inconsistent and garbage. 80% of the time it doesn't work(tested with multiple devices). and in the other 20% my mic sounds terrible and the sound quality of the headphones is garbage, i ended up plugging my splitter into the hyperX DAC of my headphones and splitting it that way.

Lo compré para tener mejor sonido en el ordenador del trabajo, cuya tarjeta de sonido integrada es muy pobre. La diferencia se nota desde el primer momento: el sonido es mucho más detallado, con menos ruido de fondo y mayor volumen en unos auriculares de 32 ohmios (unos Samson SR850). Donde de verdad se nota una gran mejora es en la entrada de micrófono, que se escucha mucho más alto y con menos ruido de fondo que con la tarjeta integrada. Además trae funciones para reducir el ruido de fondo, tanto el que entra por el micrófono como el que se recibe por los auriculares, aunque esta opción reduce algo la calidad del sonido y, a menos que estés en un entorno ruidoso, no creo necesario utilizarla. También se nota la diferencia al conectarlo a unos altavoces y, aunque no soy partidario de utilizar efectos, la función Crystalizer mejora mucho el sonido en este caso. Respecto a la función DAC para teléfono móvil, he probado a conectarlos a un Xiaomi Mi A3 y no he notado demasiada diferencia en la calidad de sonido respecto a la salida normal de auriculares. Además, el volumen es más bajo que al utilizarlo en PC, no se si esta limitación es a causa de Android o del voltaje del USB del móvil, por lo que si queremos utilizarlo como amplificador, creo que es mejor buscar otra alternativa. Por el precio que tiene, es una estupenda tarjeta para escuchar música con calidad y tener un buen sonido en las videoconferencias.

Now I can easily use any 3.5 mm mic for the Teams call. Crisp and clear sound quality. Use creative desktop app for customisation. Performing very well , good quality product. Hope it will last longer.

Tut was es soll (hatte Probleme mit Sound an Mainboard - kein Sound unter Win 11(Treiber-Problemm)) Diese an USB A angeschlossen (USB C auf USB A Adapter war dabei) und es funktioniert nach dem PC-neustart sofort und ohne Probleme. (musste nichts installieren). Preis-Leistung - Top!

Ottimo prodotto e prezzo contenuto. Il suono è buono, migliore di quello della scheda del mio computer. Certo non è quello di un DAC professionale, ma per le cuffie è più che sufficiente. L'ho provata con le mie Sennheiser HD 595 e HD 660S e il suono è chiaro e potente. Con un po' di sforzo sono riuscito a farla funzionare sul mio vecchio Asus N56VM (che ha ormai 10 anni) con ancora Windows 7, nonostante venga dichiarata solo per Windows 10/11. La scheda può funzionare in due modalità, facilmente selezionabili schiacciando i pulsanti: il default è 'mode 2', che richiede i nuovi driver Windows10/11. Invece selezionando 'mode 1' (quello compatibile con Playstation), usa i driver USB-audio di Windows 7 e funziona perfettamente. Non ho scaricato il programma di configurazione, perché quello richiede Windows 10/11 e quindi non so se i settaggi possibili migliorino veramente il suono oppure no. Naturalmente funziona anche con Linux (la mia prima prova), perché si mette in 'mode 1' in automatico e driver USB-audio di Linux funzionano senza nessuna configurazione necessaria. [Edit] L'ho appena provata con un tablet Samsung S7 (Android 13, se può fare la differenza). Inserita nella porta USB-C, messe le cuffie e voilà... suona perfettamente!

I got this to see if i can get more out of my Logitech z313 system off my desktop,as i felt the onboard audio from my asus z590 prime a wasnt the best,mahor difference in bass, clarity,easy to install the software and use. I did uninstall the Realtek audio and dtsx drivers, restarted the system, installed the creative sound app and drivers, updated the firmware and restarted the system again,i could not feel the subwoofer or any bass before but now i can, footsteps are alot clearer in games like fallout series,cs2, cyberpunk, games like nfs even had better clarify. watching YouTube or playing music even sounded better then my sony headphones. I also did change the frequency in yhe app to the 24bit 192khz frequency, adjusted the mixer to my liking which the app is very easy to use. Highly recommend for anyone wanting better audio