ASUS, Auzentech, HTOmega, and now Creative all have sound cards with "audiophile grade components" that users can customize by themselves. This is achieved by changing the Op Amps located on the sound card. Op Amps is short for operational amplifier and these are what give sound cards and other amplifiers or audio devices their different sound characters.
Auzentech lists a more technical definition for what an OPAMP does for its sound cards: "The quality of the Operational Amplifier (OPAMP) influences analog sound quality, because OPAMPs amplify the analog signal in your soundcard. With a higher quality OPAMP, the signal is transferred with less loss and distortion." On the Titanium HD product box, Creative states that users can "personalize the sound field experience."
Opinions on which OPAMP users should upgrade and possible choices for their replacement vary greatly depending on which audio forum or online purchase site you visit. Some audiophiles claim that one type of OPAMP will give more of a "warm, tube-like" sound to the audio being reproduced while another will make it sound very metallic and sterile.
Over time, they tend to "burn in" and give a better sound but the wait is worth it. Since these can easily be changed, you can change one of the four on the Creative card, or all four of them without issue. We used a simple bios chip puller or PLCC extraction tool that Radio Shack and others usually have if you look for it in stores or online sites. The only caution needed is that a user must match the pins and direction of the replacement exactly as the original, not upside down or forced.
The cost of replacement Op Amps varies, but the ones we found in various web searches ranged from 10 to 60 dollars each. We highlighted the Op Amps on the card to show that they are not in a daunting or impossible location to change. If Creative wishes to offer the swappable Op Amps as a selling point of its card, it should offer documentation and upgrade pricing from a trusted third party seller of suitable Op Amps for its card. Proper documentation for how to change these should be on a flyer enclosed with the sound card or easily available on the web.
