Verdict: Gargantuan, with crystal-clear sound, but it's expensive.

The S750 has been available for four years but it's still Creative's biggest and best speaker system. It includes seven smart-looking matching satellites that provide 7.1 surround sound. All the connections are on the back of the monolithic subwoofer, with the exception of an auxiliary input, headphone out and proprietary M-Port on a break-out box. The latter is a USB socket that allows music to be played from compatible MuVo MP3 players. With no digital decoding or processing except for a basic 5.1 to 7.1 upmixing feature, the controls are simple and straightforward, although we'd prefer to have a master volume knob rather than the supplied up and down buttons.

One of the satellite tweeters on our set was dead on arrival, so check your kit carefully when you get it home. We've managed to destroy a couple of S750 sets in the past - arguably through over-enthusiastic use though - so keep the box and paperwork in case you need to claim on the two-year warranty.

The two-way satellites have a stated frequency response that stretches up to 40KHz, which is twice that of the human hearing limit. Frequency response specs require additional information before they're worth taking seriously, but after testing we can vouch for the S750's excellent high-frequency detail.

At the other end of the scale, bass is reported to go down to 20Hz. Sure enough, the enormous subwoofer produces the kind of bass that will make your neighbours weep. When we listened to dance tracks at full volume, it sounded as though it was trying to pummel its way through the floorboards.

Such a wide frequency response gives an immediate impression of high quality, but the S750's charm is more than skin deep. Music sounded focused, detailed and classy, sometimes making the Logitech Z-5500 set seem a little rough around the edges. We had to crank up the volume to appreciate the subwoofer's capabilities, but this resulted in games and DVDs sounding thunderous and thoroughly seductive.

The S750 set lacks a digital decoder, but the stunning sound quality makes it worth splashing out the cash on it.

• Media PC components - 22nd August 2008
• PSUs - 14th July 2008
• Multi-GPU graphics - 20th June 2008
• CPU water cooling - 17th June 2008
• Hard disks - 20th March 2008
• Audio hardware - 29th February 2008
• Graphics cards - 24th January 2008

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