Anyone using surround sound with their PS2?

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vat_man

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My PS2 sits up in the 'games room' upstairs at home, separate from the living area and the system I'm setting up there (that's going to be sweet!).

I'm considering a cheap little set-up for the PS2 (since I play in a fairly confined area and sit fairly close to the TV, I don't need much grunt soundwise), and was wondering if anyone here was using surround sound with their PS2 and how they'd found it.
 
I use the digital (Fibre optic) cable for both my PS2 and Xbox. You can't beat the clarity on either machine. The PS2 is good with Pro Logic, but the Xbox games are awsome in DD 5.1 :D (Some PS2 games have DD5.1, but only in the movies :( )
 
Originally posted by Tom McDonnell
I use the digital (Fibre optic) cable for both my PS2 and Xbox. You can't beat the clarity on either machine. The PS2 is good with Pro Logic, but the Xbox games are awsome in DD 5.1 :D (Some PS2 games have DD5.1, but only in the movies :( )
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You gotta hear Moto GP in DD 5.1 It's freakin awsome! Pass inbetween two other racers and you'll know what I'm talkin about, or you could just do a race with thunderstorm weather. When you hear the thunderclap. You'll wonder how you ever gamed without 5.1
 
My Tosh' widescreen telly has surround sound and it does kick in at times. It works well enough and that's just through a standard Sony PS2 scart lead.

I'd reckon that for a dedicated "games room" (great idea got to say) it'd be worth the effort and expense.

Great idea, must think about that myself.....
 
Oh, I'm not spending a LOT of money - when I refer to it as a games room, it's more a spare bedroom with the PS2 and the PC (3 bedrooms no kids!!)
 
Oh yeah, that's still way cool. Poor old Bird gets sick of me thrashing it up on the PS2 when she's trying to listen to music or read.

We've got a lodger in our spare room though, i wonder if i could do something with the loft? Maybe line it out and fit a floor... There's already power in there.... hmmmm.

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Added this bit 7/7/02

Went up in the loft at the weekend. It's a no no, too much work before it would be even half useable. Oh well.
 
Originally posted by Genocide


You gotta hear Moto GP in DD 5.1 It's freakin awsome! Pass inbetween two other racers and you'll know what I'm talkin about, or you could just do a race with thunderstorm weather. When you hear the thunderclap. You'll wonder how you ever gamed without 5.1
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Yeah, I have Moto GP, and it would be Awsome even without the 5.1, but the effects on that make it all the sweeter. :D Project Gotham, Halo, and Hunter the Reckoning sound awsome too.

On the PS2 the games that sound the best are Medal of Honor, Devil May Cry, Ico, and FFX. Medal of Honor takes the priz though because the sounds are so realistic at times (all the times ;) )
 
i have a good sound setup on my PC, so with the Live!drive on my puter i hook up the PS2 sound to it and run it through my computers surround speakers (cambridge). its really awesome stuff, and makes gaming oh so sweet. i even thought about hooking up the PS2 to my 21" hitachi monitor, but when i tried it i got scanlines and i didn't like that. so back to the big boob tube!
 
Jeeze! How much did you guys spend on your receivers? We still only have 2 receivers, one from around 1990 and one from the 70's, which both still have really nice sound(the one from the 70's is hooked up to our CD Player, Record Player, tape player(which I don't use), Equilizer, and use to be hooked up to our reel-to-reel.

That one's in our basement, not hooked up to our TV(we ran out of inputs, I think)
The other one is hooked up to our DVD Player, TV, and our SVHS player. Oh well, at least we didn't spend too much these past few years...
 
for my tv, i am using an old emerson stereo. it may be old, but they built a high quality stereo with 5 band EQ etc..etc.. i have 2 RVC speakers hooked up (10" sub 5" mid and 2" tweeter) and 2 sanyo (a bit smaller). it sounds awesome and the majority of the time i use that instead of my PC sound system as the big speakers are much louder and have a different sound to them. but when i want to be real immersed in the game i make the switch to pc :D i have a DVD-rom in my computer so i never watch dvd's on the computer with the ps2. usually if i am too lazy to switch on the puter i will just watch dvd's on the big screen. but i do miss that 1600x1200 ;)
 
I have my PS2 hooked up via S-video to a 25" RCA, and the audio runs through my Sony stereo reciever, and out to a Boston 3-peice speaker set, and also to an auxiliary Altec Lancing 3-peice set, so that's 4 speakers, and 2 subs.

Sounds great, looks great, it's great.
 
I have a little TV in my room and I bought some speakers for it. I like it, it sound nice when I'm playing GT3 sound like I'm in the car
 
It helps to have an A/V receiver. The older ones are only going to be doing your audio.

I've got a 2 year old Yamaha 500watt receiver that does all the current standards except HDTV (which is fine with me because HD Televisions are hella expensive). I run my PS2 through there with S-Video and optical audio. The image is very sharp on my Trinitron television, and the sound is great coming through 5 speakers and a sub in Pro-Logic.

There are a few games for PS2 that play DD 5.1. I believe SSX Tricky is one of them, and the sound is unreal. If I were to look at the price / performance of really nice soround sound for gaming, I'd say it's not worth it unless you're getting multiple use out of the hardware. Mine is on the main television so I can watch movies with it as well. That's how I justify the cost.

~LoudMusic
 
I don't, but I should. Perhaps when I get to a different place. :)

FWIW, I tried Silent Hill 2's soundtrack in surround (Logic 7, Cinema mode) and it was awesome...there were a couple of tracks that featured a heartbeat. With surround, it sounds like the walls themselves were pulsating (very cool).

Of course...that effect was largely a product of the sub... :D
 
can u still get surround sound with ur ps2 without using the optical port? because my dvd reciever doesnt have one, dunno why...its a new pioneer one too...BUT when i play gt3 it sorta sounds like surround when i pass ppl on my left or right... NOT SURE? anyone can help?
 
Originally posted by farkkk
can u still get surround sound with ur ps2 without using the optical port? because my dvd reciever doesnt have one, dunno why...its a new pioneer one too...BUT when i play gt3 it sorta sounds like surround when i pass ppl on my left or right... NOT SURE? anyone can help?
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The PS2 only uses Dolby Pro Logic inside the games, which is available from the Optical or the RCA cables. The optical does clean up the sound quite a bit, and gives you access to the DD5.1 Video that 2 or 3 games have (Bouncer, and Wipeout is all I can think of) But inside the games there is no difference. When watching a DVD however...
 
Yeah, it will give you DTS for movies with DTS support. Very cool. It's pretty much a basic Sony DVD player. I do recommend the Sony PS2 remote if you are looking for such a device. It's competatively priced and works quite well. You can even use it as a controller. Try Complex String with THAT! HA!

~LoudMusic
 
LOL, Complex string is not to cohesive with the DVD remote :D. I was also using the PS2 with Dolby Digital 5.1, which you have to use the optical output on the PS2 to carry the digital audio signal. It does not support S/PDIF digital coax connections, just lightpipe/fiberoptics. I apologize in advance if someone already posted that, but I've not the time to read the entire post...:(

Ok, back to work now....

:cheers:
 
I'm getting closer to setting up the living area system - I'm lining up a Harmon Kardon amp and JBL subbie, with Dali stereo speakers (had them for years, big suckers) and Wharfdale rears and centre speaker. This thing's going to kick major arse.

I've got a big tax return coming in, and then the centrepiece will arrive, a nice Metz tv. I can not wait....
 
Have you tried any Paradigm speakers yet, vat? If not, I urge you to at least give them a shot. I have many customers that spend significantly less for their Paradigm setups than their friends did for their "____" brand setup - and both owner and friend agree that the Paradigm setup walks all over "Brand X". Of course, I don't know if Paradigm exports its product to Australia or how much it would cost over there...but I thought I'd put that out anyway. :) :thumbsup: :thumbsup: on the HK receiver. I don't think anyone makes a better sounding receiver out there today. Do you know which model yet?

As far as surround on the PS2...some companies are starting to use Dolby Pro Logic II. Dolby claims five full range channels of separation from any stereo source with this process. I doubt it's as good as truly discrete 5.1 (haven't had a chance to test it yet) but if a developer knows what audio cue to use you could get a pretty good effect anyway.
 
Well, I've had the Dalis for years, and I got the Wharfdales at auction, so they're in a box waiting for Mr Amp.

As to the HK - either a 4000 or a 5000. There's an auction site here I've got bids at, and the price differential isn't much so I figured go the bigger model - if the prices separate much I'll go back to the 4000. I was looking at an NAD but with the auction the prices are pretty keen.

I hadn't come across Paradigm - I really only need a subbie, and I'm a bit of a fan of JBL's stuff so there's not the room. I'll have a sniff around.
 
Vatman! Listen to risingson77, he knows his audiophile stuff! :D

And yes, still saving up for that HK reviever and additional Klipsch speakers....:)
 
I don't doubt it for a moment. There's a shop in Sydney sells their stuff, if I miss out on the subbie I'll check it out.
 
The PDR-12 0wnz all...superclean, and good to upper 20 cycle range. :thumbsup: Only $419 USD (which probably translates to $1000 AUS :P ). Here's the US site, anyway: http://www.paradigm.com/

I'm not familiar with the H/K you're buying...they must have a regional model scheme.

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Thanks Pako! :blush: Have you had a chance to hear the Klipsch/H-K combo yet?
 
Originally posted by risingson77

Thanks Pako! :blush: Have you had a chance to hear the Klipsch/H-K combo yet?
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Not quite yet, I've been busy buying gear for my recording studio.... Just got a couple more 10k SCSI drives which set me back another $700 or so..., plus all the aditional gear, mic pre's A/D converters and such....

Soon though, very soon. :)
 

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