Rating: 
Summary: Great!
Review: These are pretty decent speakers. They don't quite beat out the Logitech Z-680s, however they do beat out the Crossfires and the Klipsch 5.1s. The 6.1 setup of this system is even better with the addition of a back center channel, but let's focus on the 5.1.This 5.1 speaker system pumps great bass, but not exagerated. This is THE BEST speaker system, in my opinion, for music, since there is a lot of bass, but not TOO MUCH to be boomy such as how the Klipsch's and Logitechs are. However, with the Logitechs, you can change that. The Klipsch's 500watt power rating is rated in BURSTS, not overall power, so you will find unballanced bass sometimes. This is not an issue with the Logitech Z-680s OR the 550 MegaWorks. Now, as the MegaWorks are great for music, they are still great for games. The only problem is that here, you need good random bursts of power, and the 550s don't always have this power. In games, the sound of the game is more exciting when you EMPHASIZE the sound with boomy bass, but not here. These speakers stay at the same steady rate, which takes away from games. They are still good and to most online gamers thist won't matter anyway. For invovling single player games, however, you will notice a difference. The same here goes for movies. You need a great ammount of emphasized bass to make the movies that much more exciting, thusly making the speakers stand out THAT MUCH MORE. These speakers don't always pack that punch. But then again, if you are into music, these are great speakers! You can tell taht they did not spend time on the center channel addition, but if you only want to use the center channel occasionally (if you are a more "occasional" movie watcher or gamer) then this is the perfect setup for you. if you love music, then these are great. And with the addition of the center channel, this speaker system can suit anyone's needs, even if they don't use that center channel a lot. This is on the list of the top three major 5.1 systems: The Logitech Z-680 is the best, overall, because of its great customization access (such as the digital encoding - something not found on these speakers, the NICE volume control unit, the tone, bass, etc. - much more flexible control than the 550 MegaWorks) The MegaWorks 550 THX speakers are great for the avid music listener and casual gamer/movie goer. If you are a steady gamer here (like yours truly) you will want the speakers I listed above. I don't see any point anymore in getting the Klipsch 5.1 setup. They USED to be the supreme and BEST speakers available - but now two other competetors are just making better products. But don't let this surprise you - Klipsch is developing the 6.1 system as I type this review! ;) Now, the Logitechs may be the best speakers, but for the price, you can't really go WRONG, it's just that hardcore gamers and movie watchers will want something a little more "advanced" - this is because the 550s are a PLAIN system - no digital, not fancy customization controlls, etc. - this is the best ALL ANALOG system on the market right now, in my opinion.
Rating: 
Summary: Awesome
Review: These speakers are in my top 3 5.1 speakers in third place. I am a young gamer and an action movie fanatic, these speakers are a good answer crisp sound and a bash subwoofer, also plugged to the SB Extigy delivers good Dolby Digital 5.1. It lacks a Decoder, and it is beat out by Logitech and Klipsch, but the price is reasonable for a good 5.1. I recommend these for PC, or buy them with an SB Extigy as a decoder and you will have awesome,unmatched,better sound than a
home theater in a box. I recommend these
Rating: 
Summary: Good Quality, High Price
Review: These speakers are probably the best that have come out under the Creative label in a long time. The sound is both clear and precise and the THX certification should tell anyone that there is enough power in these to fill nearly any room. However, the price of these speakers is very high for a 4.1 system, especially one that does not offer included onboard decoding for Dolby II and DTS. It would be worthwhile to look at Logitech's New z680 system or something from Klipsch if you're willing to spend this much. Logitech even throws in a few hardware decoders and a wireless remote! besides the fact that it's a 5.1 system with much more power. Creative also has had problems in the past with customer service and shipping heavy speakers back to the manufacturer is not cheap. Klipsch and Logitech have much better track records in the service dept.
Rating:
Summary: Heaps of Power and Great Overall Sound.
Review: Well before buying these speakers I was caught in an obvious situation where I had to choose between the Logitech THX Z-680's or the Creative Megaworks THX 5.1's. Klipsch would have been an option, however here in New Zealand the 5.1 set (not the Ultras) was selling around $950 dollars and I simply was not willing to fork out that much for a computer speaker system. Also I realised I needed to buying an Audigy (I was previously using a SB Live!) and ended up with an Audigy 2 ZS. So basically I had to watch my spending. However in the end (or as you can see) I ended up with the Creative Megaworks 5.1. Why did I choose this over Logitech? Well for starters this hissing issue didn't sound promising what so ever (apparently even the updated control pods still have hiss), and since previously owning the Logitech Z-560's I was looking for something different. Since owning the Z-560's I was a very proud owner of this particular product. Mids and Highs were decent, and the Bass? Absolutely awesome! Fortunately I managed to stay on 1 set, and didn't blow any amps or subs like 50 thousand people around the world. However there comes a time when you crave for the 5.1 setup, and that was the main reason why the Z-560's made it's departure. Well in reference to the Creative Megaworks THX 5.1's (the whole reason why I'm writing my opinion) I can honestly say that I'm a happy consumer. Upon opening the box (which was well packaged) everything seemed larger then expected. Out came 5 well designed satelites and 1 decent sized subwoofer (but not as big as the Z-560's) and installtion was in progress. Upon powering up these babies, I kept in mind the "Burn In" process as I didn't want to expereince any funny smells of burnt out amps or subwoofers, so being cautious was the key. However I couldn't help but max the volume out, though this why only for a few seconds :P So in my opinion how do they sound? Well for me they took a bit of "getting use to". My previous set was famously known for it's "boomy" subwoofer and in a sense I expected my Creatives to sound a little along the same line. However I was required to increase subwoofer levels to about 70% (on Audigy settings) which was quite a big increase from 40% (Z-560's). I was a little disappointed at first as I wasn't exactly feeling the 'rush' of power throughout the system. However please don't get me wrong, these speakers can pump once you get the volume level cranking. In terms of quality, the reviews were absolutely right. Mids and Highs were clearly and well produced, and the subwoofer pumped out that 'punchy' bass many reviews noted. Without a doubt this a great sounding system, and does well in all departments such as Mp3's, games and DVD movies. Did I pick up any cons? Well for starters the center channel stand is quite interesting. The center channel on the Megaworks includes a stand which seems to collapse on it's own weight. Angling the stand at about 90 Degrees will maybe sustain the angel for a while however a small force (bumping the table) will course it to collapse. However it doesn't effect my situation as the center speaker is placed on top of my monitor and is angled down towards my position, but it just bothers me as it's not exactly adjustable. The control center is a fairly simple unit which in a sense can be a good and bad thing. The increasing of the volume may feel a little strange at first, but you get use to it. But genereally the control center is fairly decent, with controls over the center, rear, sub, treble and of course the master volume and not to mention the headphone jack. But as implied in the above, I'm a fairly happy consumer of one of Creative's finest products. 500 Watts (Burst) Power is obviously enough for any general computer user, though in my opinion it's the quality that makes the Megaworks stand out from the crowd. From assumption, I don't think the Megaworks could out perform the Z-680's in terms of volume, though seriously does any see themselves needing to go that loud? I don't ever see myself at 100% for more then 10 Seconds. But all in all, for cosumers looking for a speaker set I believe the Megaworks will not disappoint you.
Rating: 
Summary: They are ok - I would not purchase again for all purpose
Review: Well im going to keep the review short and only list what i found deficient in the product since everyone is raving about how good it is. The sound system did a good job for a 5.1 speaker set however the sound seemed very hollow and overdriven in the low end. I had to turn the bass down completely so the neighbors(apartment) would stop comming over to pester me. Furthe,r my sound card didn't allow preprocessing of the trebble therefore the only adjustment availiable was on the the megaworks and it wasn't sufficient. For music the sound was muddy and no adjustment could make it sound better. After messing with the system for a couple of months I feel that it is a great game and movie system but just doesn't cut it for music. Make you own choice however i feel that the 2 way sets (gigaworks) that they have come out with will probably give the spaciousness and the extension of the high end that is needed. I hope this helps you in making your decision.
Rating:
Summary: They are ok - I would not purchase again for all purpose
Review: Well im going to keep the review short and only list what i found deficient in the product since everyone is raving about how good it is. The sound system did a good job for a 5.1 speaker set however the sound seemed very hollow and overdriven in the low end. I had to turn the bass down completely so the neighbors(apartment) would stop comming over to pester me. Furthe,r my sound card didn't allow preprocessing of the trebble therefore the only adjustment availiable was on the the megaworks and it wasn't sufficient. For music the sound was muddy and no adjustment could make it sound better. After messing with the system for a couple of months I feel that it is a great game and movie system but just doesn't cut it for music. Make you own choice however i feel that the 2 way sets (gigaworks) that they have come out with will probably give the spaciousness and the extension of the high end that is needed. I hope this helps you in making your decision.
Rating:
Summary: awsome speakers, great all around
Review: wow these speakers are amazing, creative also has awsome tech support, these speakers perform flawlessly in lows, highs, mids. the bass is incridiable, u cannot notice where its comming from, really smooth, and the controller is nifty, gives you options for rear, master, center, bass, trible, and mute. at 80% the speakers are unbarable, saying its really clean and undistorted at 80% but its way tooo loud for me. 60% is sometimes pushing it, 40% is my usual casual listen level, these speakers sure do have a lot of power. the package it came with was quite well done. a lot bigger then i expected for the size of the satillites and the sub but thats a good thing:), setup is quite easy to do, but do make sure you do have a compatiable 5.1 sound card. the rear speakers cables are quite long, long enough to get to the rear for my room. hear things i never heard on my old logitech z 640 speakers, awsome job creative!:)! defently a good buy! no tweeter who cares if its able to produce such good sound, and if you have issues with any parts u can call creative and they will replace it (like i think my remote is messed up), i asked them if i need to send in the product or pay anything they said no to both, awsome tech support! go creative!
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