Creative Sound Blaster ROAR SR20 User manual

Brand: Creative

Model: Sound Blaster ROAR SR20

Category: Portable speakers

Type: User manual

USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE

CONTENTS

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR:

AN OVERVIEW

Get acquainted with the Sound Blaster Roar’s controls, connectors,

and connectivity options. We’ve also included a brief description of

the speaker’s architecture and the technologies found within it.

EXPERIENCING

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR

Find out how the Sound Blaster Roar brings your audio

experience to a whole new level.

APPENDIX:

ENHANCING AUDIO PLAYBACK

Learn how to easily enhance your audio with the Sound Blaster

Control Panel.

page 6

page 15

page 20

Introducing the Sound Blaster Roar:

the new concept booklet-size, portable

5-driver home stereo system that combines

multiple advanced audio technologies to

deliver powerful, spacious, precise audio

and other features – way beyond the

capabilities of portable wireless speakers.

THE AUDIOPHILE

SOUND BOOKLET

THE AUDIOPHILE SOUND BOOKLET

Mind-Shattering Performance • Precision-Tuned Fidelity • ROAR Audio

™

Power

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 6

ARCHITECTURE, CONTROLS & CONNECTORS

Controls

• Largesiliconetactilebuttonsforeasycontrol

Battery level indicator

• Quickbatterylevelcheck

NFC sensor

• JusttapandplaywithanyNFC-enabled

device for wireless playback

Opposing passive radiators

• Side-ringfrombothsides

• Enhancebasslevels

• Widensthesoundstage

Active high excursion driver

• Pumpsoutimpressivebass

• Directsaudioupwards

• Stabilizesthespeaker

• Widenssoundstage

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR: AN OVERVIEW

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 7

Dual 1.5” premium drivers

• Compact,powerfulhighfrequency

drivers

• Provideforfar-eldhigh-frequency

dispersion

Acoustically optimized design

• Rigidmonocoqueendoskeletalchassis

• Fewerinternalcomponentsreduces

vibrations

• Lessenergywastageforbetteraudio

Mic On / Mute

• Fliptheswitchtoturnonormutethemic

Micro-USB port

• ConnecttoaPC/Macforenhancedaudiolistening

• PlayaudioandchargeyourSoundBlasterRoar

atthesametime

MicroSD card slot

• Built-inWMA/MP3player

• Storesyourvoicerecordingstoo

USB port

• Chargeyourmobilephonesanddevices!

Previous track/folder

Next track/folder

• Pressduringplaybacktoskiptracks

• Pressandholdduringplaybackto

skip folders

Siren button

• Pressandholdtoactivatethesiren

DC input

• ChargeyourSoundBlasterRoar

Aux-in jack

• Playbackmusicfromaportabledevicevia

audio cable

Voice recording

• Simpleaccuratevoicerecordingontothe

microSDcard

Voice playback

• Immediateplaybackofvoicerecordings

Bedtime Mode

• Audioplaybackthatgraduallyfadesout

Loud Sounds Switch

• Stayalertwithrandom

loud sound bites

Play / Pause

• Fuss-freemusicplaybackcontrol

Shufﬂe / Repeat All

• Toggletheswitchtoplaytracksonthe

microSDcardinrandomorderorto

repeat all tracks in continuous order

Siren On/Off

• Armyourselfwithan

insanely loud siren to

grab attention

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR: AN OVERVIEW

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 8

Multifunction button

• Pressandholdtoenter

Bluetooth

pairingmode

• Pressoncetoanswerincomingcallsorendcalls

Bi-Ampliﬁed Design: Two Amps, Not One

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 9

SPEAKER TECHNOLOGY

TheSoundBlasterRoarisasoundsystemdesignedforPERFORMANCE and PORTABILITY.Thoughbantam-sized,

theSoundBlasterRoarpromisestodeliverapowerful,mind-blowingaudioexperience,andprecision-tunedaudio

delity.The5-driversystemispackedintoonesleekstructure,andwillredenethehomestereospacewithitsability

topowerfullyreproducetheentireaudiospectrumwithaccurateimaging,allfromasmallbookletsize.Beyondits

impressiveaudioperformance,itstillhasawholelotmoretooffer–suchas

Bluetooth

andNFCwirelesstechnology,

anintegratedWMA/MP3player,arecorder,alargedual-purposebatterythatalsochargesyoursmartphoneanda

built-inmicrophoneforcallsandrecording!

NFC sensor

• JusttaptoconnectwithanyNFC-enableddevice

Battery level indicator

• Letsyouknowthebatterylevelofyour

Sound Blaster Roar

Recording indicator

• Lightsupwhenrecordingisongoing

Volume Up/Down

• Adjustthevolumeofyouraudio

button

• Increasesoverallloudnessand

spaciousnessformaximum

audio output

• Pressoncetoexperiencethe

ROARPower

Power button

• Pressoncetoswitchonorgo

intostandbymode

Internal microphone

• Forcrystalclearvoice

communications

ARCHITECTURE, CONTROLS & CONNECTORS (cont.)

Mostportablespeakersutilizeasingleampliertoreproducetheentireaudiospectrum.Withasingleamplier

design,mostofthedemandgoesintoproducingthelowsandmids,whichcompromisesthedeliveryofthehighs.

Ontheotherhand,theSoundBlasterRoarutilizestwoampliers–onededicatedtodrivinglowsandmids,andanother

whichissolelydedicatedfordeliveringthehighfrequencies.Thisallowsthespeakertoproduceuncompromisingly

clear,highdenition,wellbalancedmusic.

Oneamplier driving high,

lowandmidfrequencies

PASSIVE SYSTEM

High

Frequency

Low/Mid

Frequency

Twoampliers, one dedicated to high

frequency,theothertolowandmidfrequencies

forimprovedfrequencydistribution

ACTIVE SYSTEM

High

Frequency

Low/Mid

Frequency

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR: AN OVERVIEW

TheSoundBlasterRoarisdesignedtoproducebalanced,highdelityaudiobydefault.Ontopofthat,inscenarios

where sheer audio power is needed – such as in large parties and social gatherings – simply pressing the

button will instantly boost the loudness, depth and spaciousness of your audio.

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 10 THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 11

CONNECTIVITY

4 Simple Ways to Connect

Mids/ Bass

Bass

Highs

Bass

Space-Filling Dispersion

Thefar-eldhighfrequencydriversintheSound

Blaster Roar are designed to project audio

further than most other speakers in its class.

Complementedbythe top-ring bassand mid-

level driver, the Sound Blaster Roar delivers

a room-lling, non-sweet spot-specic audio

experience. The top-ring bass and mid-level

driver is also laid horizontally, reducing the

speaker’scenterofgravity,thusstabilizingit.

FindouthowtoenhanceyourPC/Macaudioand

personalizeit.Go to page 20.

SPEAKER TECHNOLOGY (cont.)

: Instant Additional Audio Power

Connect to

Bluetooth

devices with

robusthigh-qualityaptX

andAAC

musicstreaming.

WIRELESS

Connect a portable audio device

viaanaudiocabletotheAux-in

jacktoexperiencepowerful

analog audio playback via

the Sound Blaster Roar.

ANALOG

DIGITAL USB

Play all your favorite songs

continuouslyfromamicroSDcard

withthestandaloneWMA/MP3

player.Avoidthehorrorofaat

phone battery after draining it to

playmusic,ortheawkward

silence after that.

STANDALONE

MODE

Connect to a laptop or desktop for a

fully digital USB audio experience.

TogetintoUSBAudiomode,

press and hold until you

hear a tone.

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 12

CONNECTIVITY (cont.)

Advanced Wireless Connectivity

Theadvanced

Bluetooth

wirelessfeaturesontheSoundBlasterRoarmakeconnectingeveneasier!

NFC Technologyallowsforone-touchpairing.SimplytapyourNFC-enableddeviceontheSoundBlasterRoartoinstantly

pair and connect.

Creative Multipointtechnologyontheotherhand,letsyousimultaneouslyconnectTWO

Bluetooth

devices and easily

togglebetweenthem!Thisisespeciallyusefulforuserswithtwo

Bluetooth

devices (phones and tablets) in their kit.

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 13

MOBILITY

Integrated WMA/MP3 Player

TheSoundBlasterRoarcomeswithabuilt-inmediaplayertogive

youdirectseamlessaudioplaybackwiththeconvenienceofwireless

portability. Play up to 32GB of MP3/WMA/WAV les on microSD/

microSDHCcard*.There’saShufeorRepeatAlloptiontoplayyour

songs randomly or continuously. For quick playlist navigation, you

canevensort yoursongsaccording toalbums byorganizingthem

in folders.

Dual-Purpose Internal Battery

The Sound Blaster Roar is designed to the keep the audio alive

whereveryougo.Thebuilt-in6000mAhlithium-ionbatterydelivers

up to 8 hours^ of playback per charge.

Plus,itcanalsochargeyoursmartdeviceorotherUSBdeviceviathe

USB port on the rear of the unit.

^Actualbatterylifemayvarywithuse,settingsandenvironmentalconditions.

Ever-Ready Audio Entertainment

Withitsbuilt-inbatteryandbookletsize,theSoundBlasterRoaris

abletodeliverawesomeaudiowhereveryoudecidetomakecamp.

Thesiliconecontrolpanelandmetallicgrillearenotonlysolidand

durable; they protect the drivers and other components against

bumpsandknocks.

*

EachfolderonthemicroSDcardshouldonly

containamaximumof999lesandfolders.

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR: AN OVERVIEW

8hrs

SINGLE / DUAL

BLUETOOTH

CONNECTIONS

NFC TECHNOLOGY

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 15

Asthesayinggoes,don’tjudgeabookbyitscover.TheSoundBlasterRoarmaybeabooklet-sizedspeakersystem,

buttheaudiopoweritcangeneratebeliesitssize.

EXPERIENCING THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR

MIND-SHATTERING PERFORMANCE

Dual Ampliﬁcation

Mostportablespeakersutilizeasingleampliertoreproducetheentireaudio

spectrum–thiscompromisesdeliveryofthehighsasmostofthefocusgoesinto

producingthelowsandmids.Ontheotherhand,theSoundBlasterRoarhastwo

ampliersthatallowittoproduceaudiothat’spowerfulonalllevels.You’llnotice

howuncompromisinglyclearyouraudioisatallpartsoftheaudiospectrum–

youcanevendistinctlypickoutthebassatlowvolumes!Theadditionalamplier

dedicatedforhighfrequenciesandaseparatedriversolelyforlowsandmids

worktogethertodeliverawell-balancedaudiothatisaccurateandfaithfulto

the original source.

Space-Filling Dispersion

AnoutstandingaspectoftheSoundBlasterRoarisitswidesoundscape.While

manyotherportablespeakersstruggletoproduceaconvincing“stereo”sound,

theboxer-stylelayout of theSound Blaster Roar produces space-lling audio

easily.Thepowerfulfrontleftandrightdriversdoanamazingjobofdispersing

high-frequenciesforwardwhiledeepbassisredupwardsfromtheactivebass

driver in the middle and two side passive radiators. Sounds are delivered so

thatanentireroomistrulylled–younolongerhavetomovearoundtond

thatelusivesweetspot.Feelfreetowalkaroundtheroomandstillexperience

optimalaudiowithaccurateimaging.

Extremely Stable at High Volumes

Unliketop-heavy,front/rear-designedspeakersthatvibrateandmovepositions

athighvolumes,theSoundBlasterRoarisstableasarockevenwhileblasting

atmaximumvolume.Designedforacousticperformance,thetop-ringbassand

mid-leveldriveroftheSoundBlasterRoarislaidhorizontallywhichincreases

stability while its rigid monocoque endoskeletal chassis reduces internal

componentsthatcanvibrateindividually.Sowhatyouhearispuremusic,freeof

annoying vibrations and rattling.

Notice how

uncompromisingly

clear your audio is

at all parts of the

audio spectrum.

Walk around the

speaker and still

experience optimal

audio with accurate

imaging.

When you pump

up the volume,

your speaker

stays in place

and doesn’t rattle.

PURPOSEBUILT PERFECTION

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 16

Connecting the Sound Blaster Roar to

the power adapter gives your music

addedvolumeboost.

ROARs above the Noise

Isn’titdisappointingwhenyourmusicgetsdrownedoutjustasthepartygetsgoing?

NowwiththeSoundBlasterRoar,allyouhavetodoissimplypressthebutton

andyourmusicgetsampliedabovethenoiseinstantly!Thebuttonbooststhe

loudness,depthandspaciousnessofyouraudio–givingyouthemuchneededsheer

audio power when you need it. So when the party gets loud, press the button

sothatyourmusicdoesn’tdrownout.

Independent WMA/MP3 Player

Oneofthemainconcernswith

Bluetooth

-poweredspeakersisthebatterydrainthey

causeonpairedsmartphones.There’salsothelimitationofdistanceandinterference

betweenyoursmartphoneandthespeaker.Withthebuilt-inWMA/MP3playeronthe

SoundBlasterRoar,youcanplaymusicdirectlyfromthespeakerwithouthavingto

dependonyoursmartphone–savingyouthehorrorofaatbattery.Simplyinserta

microSDcardlledwithyourfavoriteMP3/WMA/WAVlesintothespeaker.Unless

you’re planning a music marathon, 32GB of songs should keep you entertained

for days.

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 17

Performanceaside,theSoundBlasterRoaralsohasmanyaddedfeatures.

PLUS A WHOLE ARRAY OF MIND-SHATTERING FEATURES!

One-Touch Siren

IfyouthinktheSoundBlasterRoar

is loud, you haven’t heard it at its

loudestyet!TheSoundBlasterRoar

comes with a built-in one-touch

siren that lets you instantly grab

attentionwhenyouneedto–likeat

acamporinanemergency.

Bedtime Mode*

InBedtime Mode, the Sound Blaster Roar plays audio

lesfromthemicroSDcardandgraduallyreducesits

volume before automatically shutting down. This is

a useful feature for you to record yourself reading a

bedtimestoryandplayitbacktoyourchildrenasthey

are about to sleep.

EXPERIENCING THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR

Hear your music

above the noise

instantly.

Play music

directly from

the speaker.

*Patentpending

1 Armthesiren.

2 Press and hold ALARMfor3secondstotriggerthesiren*.

3 Switch off the siren.

Press ALARM again.

Slide the switch to OFF.

*Thesirencanbetriggeredevenwhenthespeakerisswitchedoff.

Here’showyoudoit!

Thesirenfeaturewasnotdesigned,

manufactured,orsoldforusein

emergencies.Creativeisnotliablefor

anylossofordamagetolife,healthor

property as a result of the use of this

product feature.

1 InsertamicroSDcard.

2 Start audio playback.

To play music ﬁles:

Press .

To play voice recordings:

Press(REC).

3 ActivateBedtimeMode.

For 15 minutes:

Press and hold (REC)untilyouhear a beep.

For 30 minutes:

Press and hold (REC)untilyouhear two beeps.

To deactivate Bedtime Mode:

Press .

REC

Here’showyoudoit!

MIND-SHATTERING PERFORMANCE (cont.)

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 19THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 18

EXPERIENCING THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR

Loud Sounds Mode*

TheuniqueLoudSoundsfeatureisahandylittlefeature

thatisdesignedtokeepyoualert.Remember the times

when you were losing focus studying and you wished you

hadabuddytowakeyouup?Well,theSoundBlasterRoar

can’t guarantee it will help you ace your history test, but it

doespromisetohelpkeepyoualertthroughtheagonizing

times.Loudsoundbiteswillbeplayedatrandomtimesto

keep you on your toes.

Here’showyoudoit!

1 SwitchontheLoudSoundsMode.

Loud sound bites will be played

at¾ofmaximumvolume.

Loud sound bites will be played

atmaximumvolume.

Sudden,loudandunexpectedsoundsmaykeeppeopleawake.However,theLoudSounds

featurewasnotdesigned,manufacturedorsoldtobeusedinsituationsthatrequires

absolutealertness;forexample,drivingandoperatingmachinery.Creativeisnotliablefor

anylossofordamagetolife,healthorpropertyasaresultoftheuseofthisproductfeature.

*Patentpending

Speakerphone

Breakawayfromansweringcallswithyourphone!

With Sound Blaster Roar, you can now have your

callsonthespeakerwithitsbuilt-inmicrophone

foranabsolutelyhands-freeexperience.Youcan

evenrecordyourcalls!

1 Connectyoursmartdevice.

(Ensurethemicrophoneison)

2 Presstoansweranincomingcall.

3 Press again to end a call.

Here’showyoudoit!

To reject a call:

Pressandholdformorethan2seconds.

Voice Prompts

TheSoundBlasterRoarfeaturesanintuitivevoice

promptsystemthathelpsyousetupa

Bluetooth

connectionwithyourdevice.Onceyou’refamiliar

enough with the speaker, you have the option to

disablethevoiceprompts.

To disable voice prompts:

When the speaker is powered on, press

and

– together.

Here’showyoudoit!

To enable voice prompts:

When the speaker is powered on, press

and

+ together.

MicroSD Card Reader

Easily modify contents of any microSD on your

computerviatheSoundBlasterRoar.Itfunctions

asamicroSDcardreaderwheneveryouconnectit

toacomputer.

Audio Recorder

Youcanuse the Sound BlasterRoartorecord a phone conversation,adiscussion,orevena songplaying via

Bluetooth

.Afolderlabeled“VOICE”willbeautomaticallycreatedonyourmicroSDcardbytheSoundBlasterRoar

to store all your audio recordings.

To skip recorded tracks:

Press or during playback.

microSD

Card

1 InsertamicroSDcard.

2 Select source.

Here’showyoudoit!

Press (REC)againtostoprecording.

From built-in microphone

Switchonthemicrophone.

–Recordsvoiceandsounds

pickedupbythemicrophone.

From Aux-in /

Bluetooth

source

Mutethemicrophone.

–RecordsAux-inaudio

directlyfromyourmedia

player or

Bluetooth

device.

3 Press (REC)tostartrecording.

4 Press (REC)toplaybackrecordings.

REC

PLUS A WHOLE ARRAY OF MIND-SHATTERING FEATURES! (cont.)

APPENDIX: ENHANCING AUDIO PLAYBACK

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 20

The Sound Blaster Control Panel software works in tandem with the Sound Blaster Roar to give you real-time

enhancedcontroloveryourPC/Macaudio.Visithttp://www.soundblaster.com/downloads/SBCP to download the

Sound Blaster Control Panel.

SOUND BLASTER CONTROL PANEL FOR PC/MAC

Switch the Sound Blaster to USB Audiomode before

you install and run the Sound Blaster Control Panel.

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 21

SBX audio settings

• Showsthecurrentaudioproleloaded

• Selectanotherproleormodifysettings

PRE-DEFINED AUDIO PROFILES

Aselectionofpre-conguredSBXProStudio-enhancedaudioproleshavebeenoptimizedformostofyour

playback needs.

Click the SBX Proﬁle menutoviewandselectanSBXProlethatmatchesyourplaybacktype.

Resources link

• TolearnmoreaboutCreativeproducts

THE SOUND BLASTER ROAR USER EXPERIENCE GUIDE 22

IntheSBX Proﬁlescreen,clickthe[Edit]buttononthetoprightcornerandmodifytheoptionsasdesired.

SBX Surround–Movethesliderhigherto“open”upalargersoundeldandsimulateasurroundspeakersetup.A

lowerpercentagegivesamore“centered”audio.

SBX Crystalizer–Ahigherpercentagemeansalargeramountofaudiodetailsrestored.

SBX Bass–Slidetheslidertoadjusttheenhancementofbasssounds.Moreharmonictoneswillbeaddedthe

higheryougo.YoucanalsoadjusttheCrossoverFrequencytosetthetransitionofbass.

SBX Smart Volume–ActivateSmartVolumetonormalizevolumelevels(Normal),pumpupthevolume(Loud),or

reduceloudburstofsoundsforthoselatenightsessions(Night).Movetheslidertoadjusttheintensityaccordingly.

SBX Dialog Plus–Toheardramaticallyclearerdialog,slidethesliderhigherformorevoiceenhancement.

CUSTOMIzING PRE-DEFINED AUDIO PROFILES

TO SUIT YOUR NEEDS

Youcanalsoconﬁgure EqualizersettingsoftheactiveSBXProle.

IntheSBXProlescreen,click[Edit]andthenclick[Equalizer].

APPENDIX: ENHANCING AUDIO PLAYBACK

CorporateHeadquarters

CreativeTechnologyLtd,31InternationalBusinessPark#03-01CreativeResourceSingapore609921

Tel:+(65)68954000Fax:+(65)68954999CreativeWebsite:www.creative.com

FormoredetailsonSoundBlasterproducts,visitwww.soundblaster.com

©2014CreativeTechnologyLtd.Allrightsreserved.Creative,theCreativelogo,SoundBlaster,SoundBlasterRoarandSBXProStudioaretrademarksorregisteredtrademarksofCreativeTechnologyLtdinthe

UnitedStatesand/orothercountries.iPod,iPadandiPhonearetrademarksofAppleInc.,registeredintheU.S.andothercountries.AndroidisatrademarkofGoogleInc.Windowsisaregisteredtrademarkof

MicrosoftCorporationintheUnitedStatesandothercountries.The

Bluetooth

wordmarkandlogoareownedbytheBluetoothSIG,Inc.andanyuseofsuchmarksbyCreativeTechnologyLtdisunderlicense.

aptXisatrademarkofCSRplc.Allothertrademarksarethepropertyoftheirrespectiveownersandareherebyrecognizedassuch.Allspecicationsaresubjecttochangewithoutnotice.Actualproductmay

differslightlyfromimagesshown.

Rev B