Inside

Except for a few cosmetic details, the external hub is identical to the one used for the Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro; most of the changes here involve the PCI board. The main circuit is now stamped Audigy 4, but the changes there seem minor compared to the preceding version. On the other hand, the digital/analog converters have been changed, and that's the main difference between the Audigy 2 and the Audigy 4. Creative has replaced the Cirrus Logic 4382 (8 channels, 114 dB dynamic range) with four CS4398s (2 channels, 120 dB dynamic range). Their design is more professional, and performance has been improved. Naturally, all the capabilities of the Audigy 2 are here too, including the ones supplied by the DSP.