In terms of how you experience gaming audio, Sony's DR-GA500 PC Gaming Headset System performs like a Lamborghini and feels like a Rolls-Royce. With this headset, you get the Rolls-Royce comfort of a triple-enfolded design that features earpads, support pads for around your ears, and a padded head-band. Beyond comfort, you also get the Lamborghini-like performance in terms of sound from a variety of different features. The headset is equipped with 40mm driver units for stellar audio and a compact, noise-canceling boom microphone for communicating clearly to teammates. To connect between your headset and computer -and here's the real kicker- you will also have a Dolby Surround Sound Processor.
With the processor, you have a few different options for experiencing your headset audio. You can choose a 7.1-channel surround sound mode that's perfect for multi-channel surround games or movies. You'll perceive the sound from your movie or game as an immersive, enveloping whole. In contrast, and as a second option perfect for gaming, you can choose the First-Person-Shooter mode for more directional sound. This mode's best for experiencing sounds as they come at you from different directions while you're playing within a game. If you're serious about gaming, hearing the slightest footstep, branch-crackle, or gun-cock and knowing the direction of that sound can be the difference between you winning or losing on the battlefield. Aside from those two options, if you set the processor's "effect" knob to "off", your sound will be mixed down to 2.0 channel audio, standard to most computers. The processor also features a "compression" button so that, if in use, the volume of very soft sounds, like footsteps, is elevated and that of very loud sounds, like explosions, is lowered.
In terms of hooking everything up, you'll need to first connect the headset's 3.5 mm headphone and mic plugs into the processor. Thereafter, you can choose between connecting a 7.1 channel, 5.1 channel, 2.0 channel, or USB cable from the processor to your computer or sound device. Also, to note, included are both a USB cable and an audio cable that supports 7.1, 5.1, and 2.0 channel hookups.