Creative has been producing compact 5.1 systems for many years in conjunction with Cambridge Soundworks. The top-of-the-range Inspire 5700 is not only more powerful than its lowlier counterparts, but also features an integrated Dolby Digital/DTS decoder, eliminating the need for 5.1 decoder software and allowing direct connection to a consumer DVD player as well as a computer sound card.

As you'd expect for a £300 system, the six speakers have the power to make a lot of noise. The subwoofer, rated at 30w, is a Symmetrically Loaded Acoustic Module. What this means is a mystery, but it lives up to Creative's claim of fast, tight and punchy bass.

There is also a special centre speaker rated at 21w RMS (usually, the same speakers are used for all five satellite channels). As the centre speaker carries all the dialogue and a great deal of the action in DVD movies, the uprated quality pays dividends.

Full 5.1 audio can only be transmitted to the decoder unit via coaxial or optical S/PDIF, so you'll need a DVD software/sound card set up capable of this, such as Power DVD 3.0 and Soundblaster Audigy. Alternatively, you can simply connect the digital output from a consumer DVD player to the decoder. There are also analogue inputs, front and rear, for connection to any four-channel sound card.

The decoder can handle Dolby Prologic, Dolby Digital or DTS; we tested all with 100 per cent success and the DTS in particular sounded fantastic.

LEDs show which audio standard has been recognised. Algorithms will also produce a 5.1 up-mix from a stereo source to good effect.

The sound is punchy and up-front, both in movies and games, and the system is just about meaty enough to use for watching DVD movies on TV, although it excels as the ultimate surround-sound set up for your computer. At this price, there is no real competition save Videologic's Digitheatre DTS, which offers better performance, but at a higher cost.

Contact: Creative www.europe.creative.com