PS3: Do most games support 5.1 now?

[TheVoice]

I'm considering getting a home theatre system soon - got my eye on the Samsung HT-TZ225 for £200 - but before I even contemplate spending that much money on one, do PS3 games support proper 5.1 surround sound? Is the effect any good? I had 5.1 for my PC some years back and it was quite cool in FPS games. Just wondered if it was something that had finally become mainstream on console games too.

Thanks.

 

[TheVoice]

I've never had surround sound, not even on my PC. I could never afford the ideal route of separate amp and speakers, at least new anyway.

Anyone reccomend an out of the box system with optical in?

Quite a few of them have optical in now, even the £150 ones from Samsung, LG etc. I was hoping to find a good one I liked for about £150 myself, but I really like the fact that the one I linked to above has tall speakers so I'm thinking it's perhaps worth spending the extra.

It's hard to find reviews of the cheaper home cinema systems really because there's so many different models around, and I'm sure the audiophiles don't rate them very highly, but for the average person who's used to their standard TV speakers I imagine they make an impressive difference.

Thanks for the info everyone, has certainly made it a bit more tempting!

 

[TheVoice]

I have something similar, but from JVC.

And I must say playing games on a 5.1 surround system is soo much nicer than 2x10W LCD speakers, playing Killzone 2 or Wiepout HD with the sound crancked up is epic, the GF doesn't like it so much though

Yes there are better sets around with separate amps and better speakers but the difference between normal LCD speakers and a cheapish 5.1 set is already huge

That's pretty-much what I was thinking. In my previous flat my housemate had a Sony hi-fi system we'd connected up to my TV, it was only 2.0 but even that made a fantastic difference to games, especially atmospheric stuff like Dead Space. Playing it with 5.1 would be awesome.

Shopping time.

 

[TheVoice]

Z-5500s are a bit pricey for me, and wouldn't really fit in with the rest of my stuff either.

 

[TheVoice]

Right, just went to a couple of big electrical retailers to see the units in the flesh, and I'm somewhat disappointed. They look a bit tacky and plasticy in the flesh, which is disappointing for something costing £200. Granted, that's not big money really, and it might just be because they were display units, but it's put me off now.

Maybe I'll wait for a price drop.

 

[TheVoice]

Because they're more than £200.

As I said anyway, they wouldn't really fit in with my TV unit, and I'd need to get speaker stands which is even more expense.

 

[TheVoice]

Would love to stretch that far, but that's way out of what I can consider spending unfortunately. I was only intending to look at £150 systems when I started, so £200 is already a bit of a jump.

 

[TheVoice]

Well, bit the proverbial bullet and got myself a 5.1 system today. Went with the Samsung HT-TZ325, very similar really to the one in the OP but supposedly a bit more powerful and has a few other pointless features. Same price though so can't complain.

Rather nice so far, it's not the classiest looking thing ever and I'd have expected a £200 set to have a somewhat better finish, but it sounds good. Bit of effort to set-up and get working properly, and the manual isn't quite clear about what audio formats it supports via optical. I've selected Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 on the PS3 and having given GTA4 a go just now, I'm getting proper surround sound effect so it's obviously working, it'd just be nice if the receiver itself would acknowledge or display something to verify.

Going to give Uncharted another play-through now just to tide me over until the sequel arrives, so it should be quite a cool experience with some decent speakers now!

 

[TheVoice]

Certainly do, will have to give that a go!