The Revolution comes in a nice silver box.  There is a meager software bundle, including a full version of Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 for the PC, VJ Lite, InterVideo WinDVD, 100 ProSessions samples, and a CD of music produced by M-Audio.

The Revolution 7.1 is a small PCI card, about the size of a SB Live.  It also comes in a swanky cobalt blue colored PCB, which is easy on the eye.

The PCI card itself is neatly laid out, with not a lot of components on it.  The business end is in the backplane, with 6 1/8" output jacks and one coaxial digital output connector.  The labels are pretty easy to read, being printed in ink rather than stamped on the metal.  I keep a little LED light around just so I can read the stamped printing on the backs of PCI cards, but I didn't need the flashlight for the Revolution 7.1.  The port order was very intuitive and took a few tries to commit it to memory.  I never could remember what the order was for the Audigy.

There are a few features missing on the Revolution 7.1.  There are no optical digital inputs or outputs.  Even the relatively lowly nForce2 SoundStorm has optical.  But the coaxial should do just fine.  Also missing are the CD audio input jacks on the card.  I rather missed having them, but I suppose one must give up a few things for the Revolution.