Creative GigaWorks ProGamer G500

9 out of 10 - Spectacular
DAMN good for games & movies; decent for music, too
I'm an audiophile; I design my own speakers and have ability to measure speakers, etc. For $225 incl. shipping ...
I'm an audiophile; I design my own speakers and have ability to measure speakers, etc. For $225 incl. shipping this system is damn good for games & movies in a home office, and decent sounding for nearfield music listening. Not really a monitor speaker for semi-pro or home recording studio, but nice for listening to CDs or streams. Subwoofer capable of decent low-distortion fundamental bass down to 30 Hz, with output falling off below that. You won't get 30 Hz at acceptable levels of distortion from ANY 6.5 or 5 inch sub. So, set up properly, the bass is as it should be- clean, accurate, powerful. And, aside from room modes, the sub is not "tubby" or "bloomy" in the ~80 Hz region, either. A well designed sub.

The electronics - the amplifiers driving the satellites- need to be quieter. It's a shame they don't have maybe 6 or 10 dB better s/n ratio for the amps, 'cause otherwise this would get a little better rating. Come on, Creative! Use a better design for the amps! It's not a LOT of hiss, but if you have a DEAD SILENT PC like I do, you can hear a slight hiss at all times from the speakers if you are quiet. The hiss level is just above "quiet room ambience" and DOES vary with volume control setting. You can minimize it by judicious setting of levels from your sound card (sound card should be WFO!) but there's still a little hiss. By comparison, for example, my other PC speakers: Cambridge Megaworks and also the venerable Cambridge DTT 2250- there's NO hiss.

Sound from the satelites is good, with an ability to sound warm on things like banjo or oud that many smaller sat's lack. Highs are OK but not super detailed; but they're not harsh or shrill either. HF extension sounds OK, but transient response isn't optimal from 4000 Hz and up; this is a full-range single driver satelite, after all, so you can't expect it to compare with designs using separate tweeters. Don't get me wrong, there's highs to be had; they just don't have the "sweetness" or "air' you'd associated with good home audio systems - but then this whole shebang costs less than a pair of small Polk RT-series speakers, and it's 5 channels plus suyb plus amplifiers, so you gotta keep that in perspective.

CONCLUSION: Good overall sound with REAL bass that's impossible to beat at this price. Read more
by milosz (see profile) - May 26, 2005

7 out of 7 users found this user opinion helpful.
1 comment posted to this opinion

3 out of 10 - Poor
Do not waste your time on Creative Speakers
I have had 3 Gigaworks speaker systems, I bought the G500 direct from Creative, arrived on time, I was amazed ...
I have had 3 Gigaworks speaker systems, I bought the G500 direct from Creative, arrived on time, I was amazed at the lack of quality of these speakers. The cables on a radio shack set of no names is of higher quality...assumed that the bare cables were to give you that "audiophile' feeling, you know like hooking up that home stereo...anyway, get the thing setup and it was impressive...for 30 mins, then it just turned itself off...did the troubleshooting, worked for another 30 mins and shut itself off...emailed customer support, they send me a link to a FAQ that has nothing to do with the problem...i email them again...same thing, no solution, this goes on for 4 or 5 more emails then i ask for an RMA to send back...3 weeks later I get the system back, no explination, hook it up, 30 mins later it goes out, request another RMA and my money back...then I get stupid and use the money to buy a Gigaworks G550W because it is supposed to be better and the rear speakers are wireless...I get it, same low quality product and guess what, after the first two hours of gameplay the rear speakers quit, then it shuts itself off...now i have a speaker system that the wirless doesn't work and it wont stay on for more than 30 mins and only the center and left front and subwoofer work when it does come on...what do I get from Customer service? links to websites that have nothing to do with my problem...do not buy any speaker system from Creative labs if you know what is good for you...i now have another 3 week wait for repair... Read more
by chf3 (see profile) - August 19, 2008

10 out of 10 - Perfect
Sonido espectacular y claro
Perfecto para musica (con Creative Media source), perfecto para juegos y peliculas. Volumen mas que suficiente para una sala mediana
Perfecto para musica (con Creative Media source), perfecto para juegos y peliculas. Volumen mas que suficiente para una sala mediana Read more
by bombar (see profile) - September 4, 2007

5 out of 10 - Average
Sounds good while it works.
For details of power failure, check here:
http://forums.creative.com/creativelabs/board/message?board.id=speakers&message.id=
...
For details of power failure, check here:
http://forums.creative.com/creativelabs/board/message?board.id=speakers&message.id=11090 Read more
by TerryX0 (see profile) - June 12, 2007

8 out of 10 - Excellent
Good Quality for the price.
These are great speakers for your computer, i bought these though as a cheap soulution to have both computer and ...
These are great speakers for your computer, i bought these though as a cheap soulution to have both computer and tv speakers as my tv audio is hooked through my computer, sounds great. Read more
by ANTONIODOWNS (see profile) - October 12, 2006

9 out of 10 - Spectacular
impressive sound and kickin bass
i live in the country and i still managed to get the call from my neighbors saying the sound was ...
i live in the country and i still managed to get the call from my neighbors saying the sound was to loud. the bass litterally shakes my walls when i play fear and halo. although the sound quality could be improved a little, this is still an a** kicking bunch of speakers Read more
by martrmachine (see profile) - July 4, 2006