Review: Sony Surround Sound System for PS3


With its Surround Sound System for PS3, a soundbar designed specifically for use with Sony's game console, Sony is trying to bridge that gap and raise the audio consciousness of gamers. A basic soundbar with left- and right-channel speakers and a 30-watt subwoofer built into the bar itself, the Surround Sound System for PS3 will set gamers back a mere $180.

Sony's soundbar has a very simple, basic design. With only an optical digital and an analog stereo input, it's meant specifically for set-ups comprising a PS3 and a cable box: You run an optical cable from the PS3 for games, Blu-ray Discs, and Netflix streaming, and stereo cables from your cable box for TV-watching.

The sound options are similarly basic. It has Dynamic, Vivid, Standard, and Stereo audio modes, and a small handful of other tweaks. The Dynamic and Vivid modes make the sound seem louder and fuller. (Vivid also purportedly enhances the simulated surround channels, but I found little difference between the two modes.) Stereo disables any simulated surround processing, while Standard is a basic mode that ultimately has little effect on audio passing through the soundbar.

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