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VideoLogic’s latest addition to the ZXR range is the all new ZXR-750. These speakers are essentially the same specification as the ZXR-550 but this most recent offering is as Videologic claims, “the world’s first integrated 7.1 speaker system”.

The kit contains everything you need to set-up 7.1-channel sound, six satellite speakers dressed up in a silver finish and one subwoofer unit, which also contains the amplifier and controls. Also included of course are all the cables required to connect all these speakers to the mother ship subwoofer and those required to get the sound out of your soundcard.

It’s important to realise at this point that your standard sound card will not work with these speakers since most do not have the requisite number of output connections. Those with an S/PIDIF output also suffer, as the ZXR-750 does not have any form of digital input and relies solely on multiple patch cables to receive its input. The reason for this is of course that the ZXR-750 does not contain its own Dolby Digital/DTS decoder.

Although reading the manual is not normally something I do, a quick look at the supplied documentation proved that although there are many connections to be made, set-up is indeed straight forward. Lovely pictures highlight what needs to go where and even information on optimal speaker placement, but more on that later.

Even though the connections to and from the subwoofer/amplifier are easy, one has to think very carefully about placement. After plugging what seems like an endless array of patch cables, the first thought that came to me was, where do I put all these speakers? The manual tries to help answer this dilemma but of course it shows a common image for systems of this type, with a person sitting on a couch with a TV at the front of the living space and multiple speakers on 3 foot stands strewn around the room.

How do I do this with my PC? Since, like most computer users, I sit within a foot or two of my monitor, speaker placement becomes a bigger challenge. VideoLogic includes small stands for the satellites, which are perfect for the front channels (provided your monitor is raised off your desk) but for the rear channels, I was still left wondering what to do. In the end, nothing worked and I was left wanting, desperate to get the perfect layout.

What really counts when choosing a speaker set has got to be how they sound. With the ZXR-750’s the sound from the satellites is clear and crisp if just a little bright. As is typical of systems like these, the mid-range response falls short especially when listening to music. During a brief session watching a DVD, in this case Star Wars Episode II, the subwoofer’s 28W amplifier shined, offering the low response necessary for Sci-Fi effects. All in all a great performance and far better than I had expected.

The controls offered on the front panel include overall volume, rear and centre volume and subwoofer level. As mentioned before, setting up these speakers requires a lot of thought as to location and as such the lack of delay control for the rear and side channels was a bit of a disappointment. Depending on the software included with your multi channel sound card, you will have more control. The Terratec Aureon 7.1 sound card that I tested the speakers with included software controls for all the individual channels but still no delay control.

Videologic has employed what it calls, ConnX.1, which “enables you to configure your ZXR-750 optimally for any multi-channel source”. This is simply a switch on the back panel for selecting between 5.1, 6.1 and 7.1 sources. After that VideoLogic’s “Surround Field Enhancement (SurFETM)” technology performs the filtering which matrixes the sound from the rear channels in 5.1 sources to the extra 2 side channels of 7.1. Remember of course that what were called rear channels in 5.1 are now called the side channels in 6.1 and 7.1. However, the Dolby Digital EX and DTS ES systems were developed for cinemas rather than the home. It’s therefore unlikely that you’ll find a flat spot to justify the extra channels unless you have a room the size of a warehouse.

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