PS3 General Discussion

[the Interceptor]

The ingame sounds come through the speakers of your TV, like you said. But isn't it possible to that the ingame chat will also come throught the speakers of your TV?

As it seems, chat and ingame sounds are separated automatically. The only solution I see at the moment is this:

- get a small USB soundcard and plug it into the PS3
- put the headset mic into the soundcard (seems to work)
- combine the output of the soundcard (voice chat) and the AV out (game sounds) in a small mixer
- connect the headphone to the mixer

But hey ... this can't be it. I mean Sony can not seriously ask people to do this, can they?

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

Not sure if you saw my response Interceptor, as we posted near the same time, and as mine was on the last page, you may not have noticed it, but I think it may help answer your questions.

 

[Robin]

Why is everybody laughing with my very beautiful invention?

You didn't say it was for 3 PS3's..... now it makes sense!👍 If it was for one it would be slightly overkill...

That pic looks awesome.

Robin

 

[Jeremy Ricci]

As it seems, chat and ingame sounds are separated automatically. The only solution I see at the moment is this:

- get a small USB soundcard and plug it into the PS3
- put the headset mic into the soundcard (seems to work)
- combine the output of the soundcard (voice chat) and the AV out (game sounds) in a small mixer
- connect the headphone to the mixer

But hey ... this can't be it. I mean Sony can not seriously ask people to do this, can they?

What is it exactly that you are trying to do again?

 

[the Interceptor]

Not sure if you saw my response Interceptor, as we posted near the same time, and as mine was on the last page, you may not have noticed it, but I think it may help answer your questions.

I actually just found it, thanks for pointing it out again!

This does look promising then. As I don't have my PS3 here right now, I just can't try it. But maybe you can tell me if you can set the output to the AV-output for voice chat and game sounds at the same time?

What is it exactly that you are trying to do again?

I am trying to find a solution to use a headset for the PS3 that can record my talk, play game sounds and voice chat and does not use bluetooth (unless there is a full scale, good-sounding headset that does just these things and uses bluetooth of course).

 

[Joey D]

I'm sure it's because they talk to about 30 people a day just like you, who treat them just like they treat you.

My PS3 broke, and I had a new one within 2 weeks.

The big difference is you, not them, trust me. They're answering the phone because they know you're going to be a dick to them, and it's very likely that you were. "Look, I just want to speak to a manager, I dont' need to speak to you".

I worked tech support for a short while when I was in college, and I know exactly the type of crap they have to deal with.

No I'm sure they just hate their job, or have no experience doing anything other then answering a phone and going "duhhhhh". When I called Sony to report my problem with the PS3 I did not treat the tech support person any differently then I would treat anyone I was calling. I wasn't overly cheery but I wasn't short or angry with them either.

They asked me moronic questions like "Was the system on when you got this error?"...yes you idiot how else could I get the error on the screen? They didn't ask me many questions and concluded that I needed to send my PS3 in for repairs. When I stated that I would just take it back to Best Buy since I had bought the service plan, the tech person informed me that it was a bad idea and that my warranty would be voided. This made me irritated because the tech person obviously had no idea what he was talking about what-so-ever. If I traded in the PS3 with X serial number on it and got a new one with Y on it, why would I care if X was voided or not?

I ended up taking it back to Best Buy where they traded me a PS3 and all was good. The whole process took about 40 minutes and that included my drive over there.

I have very little respect for tech support from most companies, not just Sony, because they are manned by idiots or Indians that can barely speak the language. I hate having to push 23 buttons to get to speak to someone, I hate having to listen to someone talk down to me and ask if "my system is turned on", and I really hate they not helping me and getting mad when I question something they say.

The only tech support I've ever had good experiences with is AT&T, when my internet acts up and I call them they walk me through all sorts of steps in order to rule everything out. Then, only after everything has been exhausted they schedule a tech, who typically comes within 24 hours and they credit my bill for the down time.

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

I hate having to push 23 buttons to get to speak to someone

Amen to that!

What's even far worse is when you are forced to go through menu after menu with no "0" option to talk to a real person, only to find they don't even have an option that deals with your problem... and instead of going back to the beginning, it just hangs up on you!

In fact, I ran into several of these issues you are complaining about when I was trying to get info on Flash 9 through both Adobe's Customer and Technical Support lines... neither of which even had an option for questions about FlashPlayer.

BTW: I still have not received an email response, so I suspect it won't be until Monday.


These days, I find I get much better "tech support" by bypassing the phone numbers and emailing companies instead. The added benefit is that you also have a clear electornic paper trail for everything that is discussed and promised. 👍

 

[Joey D]

Didn't think about e-mail, I assume Sony has some sort of feature in case of future problems? I don't expect any other issues out of the PS3 again, although I am a bit curious why it locked up on all the games I played.

 

[LaBounti]

Sony is charging Hong Kong players to download themes from the PS Store

http://www.ps3fanboy.com/2008/05/16/sony-charging-hong-kong-ps3-owners-to-download-themes/

Possibly because they are a very popular download and some are very nice in quality. But lets not forget you can create your own.

 

[slackbladder]

I have a feeling Beerz has a different opinion. Hes been waiting for months for his replacement.

I do feel for him as I can't understnad what the problem is. Mine came the next day as promised. I can only assume policy varies territory to territory.
As for Customer Support quality that varies between the reps at any one Support centre, let alone region to region. As in all things there is good and bad and it's not a great stretch of the imagination to accept that some countries Support is worse than others.

 

[nick09]

Why is everybody laughing with my very beautiful invention?

I was just joking around, no hard feelings.

 

[the Interceptor]

After looking deeper into by headset problem, it boils down to this:

If I can set the output of the general sound and of the voice chat in the PS3 menus to a specific device, I can use a USB soundcard. That way, I can use the soundcards mic input (which has been proven to work with the PS3) as well as the headphone output (which needs to be proven to work, but there is a possibility). Then, I can connect a high quality headset with two 3.5 mm jacks to that soundcard, and I'm good to go.

The only question is: can the PS3 handle that soundcard as an output device for both kinds of sounds?

 

[Jeremy Ricci]

No I'm sure they just hate their job, or have no experience doing anything other then answering a phone and going "duhhhhh". When I called Sony to report my problem with the PS3 I did not treat the tech support person any differently then I would treat anyone I was calling. I wasn't overly cheery but I wasn't short or angry with them either.

They asked me moronic questions like "Was the system on when you got this error?"...yes you idiot how else could I get the error on the screen? They didn't ask me many questions and concluded that I needed to send my PS3 in for repairs. When I stated that I would just take it back to Best Buy since I had bought the service plan, the tech person informed me that it was a bad idea and that my warranty would be voided. This made me irritated because the tech person obviously had no idea what he was talking about what-so-ever. If I traded in the PS3 with X serial number on it and got a new one with Y on it, why would I care if X was voided or not?

I ended up taking it back to Best Buy where they traded me a PS3 and all was good. The whole process took about 40 minutes and that included my drive over there.

I have very little respect for tech support from most companies, not just Sony, because they are manned by idiots or Indians that can barely speak the language. I hate having to push 23 buttons to get to speak to someone, I hate having to listen to someone talk down to me and ask if "my system is turned on", and I really hate they not helping me and getting mad when I question something they say.

The only tech support I've ever had good experiences with is AT&T, when my internet acts up and I call them they walk me through all sorts of steps in order to rule everything out. Then, only after everything has been exhausted they schedule a tech, who typically comes within 24 hours and they credit my bill for the down time.

I'm 100% positive you're an idiot.

Indian people who barely speak the language? Here's a note: They speak TWO languages, you probably know English, and even then, your use of it is poor.

If I had to talk to a jerk like you, I'd be rude too. I'm quite positive you're exaggerating the situation. GG man.

Edit: Furthermore, you don't understand how Tech Support works.

If Sony takes 5 thousand calls a day from people who don't know there is a power switch in the back of the console, and 100 calls a day about an error message, which problem do you think they are going to address in questions to the consumer? Certainly the one they hear most about.

Also, who is really the idiot? You, the guy who has an extended warranty from a retailer, and can voluntarily get the console serviced for free (but for some reason decides to call up the manufacturer anyway) or the guy on the phone?

 

[V1P3R]

Why is everybody laughing with my very beautiful invention?

Sorry gotta join in. btw, you should patent that.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

Here's a note: They speak TWO languages, you probably know English, and even then, you're use of it is poor.

irony

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

irony

👍


Ironic, and uncalled for... I'm not exactly a fan of Joey based on past personal experiences on this forum, but I've seen a very welcome change in his posting style and his, or anyone's personal opinions don't deserve that kind of a personal attack. 👎

If you have an issue with him portraying Indian people in a bad way, I suggest you report it. Although I suspect his choice in words had more to do with his understandable frustrations rather than any deep hatred for the people of India.

 

[Joey D]

I'm 100% positive you're an idiot.

I'm 100% positive you are in violation of the AUP and you will be reported as such for it. This was uncalled for and makes the forum itself look poor.

Indian people who barely speak the language? Here's a note: They speak TWO languages, you probably know English, and even then, your use of it is poor.

Yes they do, but they don't speak English very well. I have had numerous Indians on the phone with me, mostly from HP, that I could not understand what-so-ever. If you are going to be dealing with a population of people that speaks X language then you better know it and be able to communicate it. I know German but that doesn't mean I should go off and do tech support for a German demographic.

If I had to talk to a jerk like you, I'd be rude too. I'm quite positive you're exaggerating the situation. GG man.

Nope, not at all. If you think so then so be it, but I was not.

Also, who is really the idiot? You, the guy who has an extended warranty from a retailer, and can voluntarily get the console serviced for free (but for some reason decides to call up the manufacturer anyway) or the guy on the phone?

I got my console fixed in 40 minutes and was back in enjoying the awesomeness of the PS3 instead of waiting 2 weeks. That was worth the extra $50 I paid at the time I got my console. I really enjoy my PS3 and Blu-Ray movies are probably my favourite thing to watch, I really wouldn't want to go 2 weeks without them. I say that is being a smart consumer.

Also what if I would have had an issue after Sony's warranty expired? Then what? I'm protected for four years through Best Buy, which is fine.

Basically, while I will admit Sony makes some excellent electronic devices, often they are either over priced, or lack features I want.

I meant to address this from the last page, I pretty much only buy Sony products due to their reliability. My TV, notebook, 2 previous computer, my nicer camera (broken), the VCR I had and the DVD players I had. The just make good quality stuff, which is really what surprised the hell out of me when the PS3 crapped out. I figured the 360 would have died before the PS3. With the exception for my camera (which was 5 years old and had taken 10's of thousands of photos) everything pretty much worked perfectly...well there was an incident with the PS2 but I don't know if I caused that or not.

👍

Ironic, and uncalled for... I'm not exactly a fan of Joey based on past personal experiences on this forum, but I've seen a very welcome change in his posting style and his, or anyone's personal opinions don't deserve that kind of a personal attack. 👎

If you have an issue with him portraying Indian people in a bad way, I suggest you report it. Although I suspect his choice in words had more to do with his understandable frustrations rather than any deep hatred for the people of India.

I know we've had our throws, but for whatever it's worth, I would like to public say I am sorry for it, and I do realise that sort of crap brings the forum down to level that is unneeded much like Jeremy Ricci previous post did. As a long term member I should strive to make things better, not make them go to hell.

 

[Appie]

irony

 

[Solid Lifters]

irony

No, don't tell him he's wrong! He'll just blame you for it, like he does with me!

JR, is that all you can do? Troll for fights? Want to get banned from this place again, huh?

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

I meant to address this from the last page, I pretty much only buy Sony products due to their reliability. My TV, notebook, 2 previous computer, my nicer camera (broken), the VCR I had and the DVD players I had. The just make good quality stuff, which is really what surprised the hell out of me when the PS3 crapped out. I figured the 360 would have died before the PS3. With the exception for my camera (which was 5 years old and had taken 10's of thousands of photos) everything pretty much worked perfectly...well there was an incident with the PS2 but I don't know if I caused that or not.

While it may seem unfair, even a product with an excellent reliability record, like the PS3, if only 1% fail, that still means over 100,000 consumers are going to have a faulty PS3.

The same can be said for the 360 which has had a very rocky history in regards to reliability, but even if 30% have problems, that means over 10 million 360 owners, like yourself have been fortunate enough not to have any problems. 👍

Last year we got a new fancy blender that after just one month, the motor completely crapped out. The replacement has worked flawlessly since. If I had judged that model based only on the first one I got, I would not be enjoying it today.

This is also why anecdotal evidence can often be misleading, although it's still worth sharing. 👍

BTW: I'm sorry to hear about your faulty PS3, as well as the problems you had with customer service, but glad to see you were able to get a replacement through Best Buy. 👍

Were you able to find an external drive to backup your PS3 HDD?

 

[peeweegary]

Whoa guys check this out...

http://gizmodo.com/391327/sony-quietly-introduces-playstation-3-youtube-uploading

uploading clips from games directly from your PS3 onto youtube....pretty useful feature...cant wait for this!

 

[superwally]

After looking deeper into by headset problem, it boils down to this:

If I can set the output of the general sound and of the voice chat in the PS3 menus to a specific device, I can use a USB soundcard. That way, I can use the soundcards mic input (which has been proven to work with the PS3) as well as the headphone output (which needs to be proven to work, but there is a possibility). Then, I can connect a high quality headset with two 3.5 mm jacks to that soundcard, and I'm good to go.

The only question is: can the PS3 handle that soundcard as an output device for both kinds of sounds?

I'm working on a similar problem, I have a set of Zalman 5.1 surround headphones, designed for PC/laptop sound cards, 3 input jacks. I'm running sound from the optical out to my amp (harman/kardon avr340), and using the center input for the headphones to connect to the amp so I can race without waking up my GF. It's usable, but missing the full surround effect.

I'm looking into a Zalman USB sound card to correct the problem (it has the 3 inputs for the headphones), I'll update you if I have any luck.

 

[the Interceptor]

I'm working on a similar problem, I have a set of Zalman 5.1 surround headphones, designed for PC/laptop sound cards, 3 input jacks. I'm running sound from the optical out to my amp (harman/kardon avr340), and using the center input for the headphones to connect to the amp so I can race without waking up my GF. It's usable, but missing the full surround effect.

That's a bad one as well buddy! You'd probably be best off with a good stereo headphone and the headphone jack of your H/K, as it supports Dolby Headphone. Did you try that?

And it seems I have found confirmation that what I am planning to do is not possible. The problem is that the PS3 does recognize and work with USB soundcards, but there is no option intended by Sony to put out game sounds through it. The only thing you can do is set it up for voice chat, the menu does not offer USB devices for general audio output though. Bugger!

 

[kikie]

As it seems, chat and ingame sounds are separated automatically. The only solution I see at the moment is this:

- get a small USB soundcard and plug it into the PS3
- put the headset mic into the soundcard (seems to work)
- combine the output of the soundcard (voice chat) and the AV out (game sounds) in a small mixer
- connect the headphone to the mixer

But hey ... this can't be it. I mean Sony can not seriously ask people to do this, can they?

Maybe this will help and maybe it's what you're looking for. I don't have a mic or headphone, so I can't test it.

Hardware settings




Translation.

• Randappartuurinstellingen = hardware settings

Settings audio device

Translations.

• Instellingen audioapparatuur = settings audio devices
• Bepaalt de in - en uitvoerapparatuur voor het chatten en voor andere communicatiefuncties = determines the in and output devices for chatting and other communication functions

Settings audio device



Translations.

• Microfoon niveau = microphone level
• Invoerapparaat = input device
• Niet gebruiken = don't use
• Uitvoerapparaat = output device
• Verbinden (bluethoot) = connection (bluethoot)
• Bevestigen = confirm

You can also choose the TV or amp/receiver connector

HDMI



OPTICAL



RCA/SCART/AV MULTI

 

[the Interceptor]

Yeah, this pretty much describes the problem in pictures. "Instellingen audioapparatuur = settings audio devices" even says that it only affects voice chat. If you have a USB sound device that was recognized by the PS3, you can set it up here.

In the settings for "audio uitvoer = audio output" however, there is no option of a USB or bluetooth device to choose. That means that there is no way to put out the sound though an external device, you can only choose which of the PS3s outputs to use. One could argue that there is no other option here because on your system, you don't have such devices registered as you said. But I found people reporting that while they have USB and bluetooth headsets registered with the PS3 and working fine for voice chat, they did not find any option to use them for audio output.

Thanks for your help anyway, I appreciate it! 👍

 

[Joey D]

While it may seem unfair, even a product with an excellent reliability record, like the PS3, if only 1% fail, that still means over 100,000 consumers are going to have a faulty PS3.

The same can be said for the 360 which has had a very rocky history in regards to reliability, but even if 30% have problems, that means over 10 million 360 owners, like yourself have been fortunate enough not to have any problems. 👍

You know that's a good point, when you put it that way there are a lot of people still out there enjoying their product problem free. Like I said, I understand things have issues and fail, I don't expect it to be problem free. I just hope this isn't going to become a wide spread problem among the PS3's.

BTW: I'm sorry to hear about your faulty PS3, as well as the problems you had with customer service, but glad to see you were able to get a replacement through Best Buy. 👍

I needed to get back to playing GTAIV so I could finish off the game and move on to something else...mainly the upcoming Indiana Jones Lego game that is due out next week I believe. I have Lego Star Wars for the PS3 and I feel that it looks better on the PS3 over the 360 while having a better control layout so I'm going to assume that the Indy game will be similar.

I mostly missed watching Blu-Rays though, I honestly don't know how I lived without those for this long.

Were you able to find an external drive to backup your PS3 HDD?

A buddy of mine brought one over for me so everything got backed up and I was able to put everything back on the hard drive. I was surprised how much stuff has accumulated on there.

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

You know that's a good point, when you put it that way there are a lot of people still out there enjoying their product problem free. Like I said, I understand things have issues and fail, I don't expect it to be problem free. I just hope this isn't going to become a wide spread problem among the PS3's.

Quite true. Ever since GTA4 came out I have all of a sudden seen several posts about their drives freezing up. Very odd, and I hope what ever is causing the problem is not widespread, and that someone is able to properly identify the cause. I may not be a good example as I have logged several hours playing GTA4 on my launch 60GB without a freeze, but I've heard many people have not had the same kind of trouble free experience, and it's not just with PS3, it's apparently causing similar problems with the 360.

I was really put off by Take Two blaming the consoles for a problem that wasn’t happening until playing their game. 👎

I needed to get back to playing GTAIV so I could finish off the game and move on to something else...mainly the upcoming Indiana Jones Lego game that is due out next week I believe. I have Lego Star Wars for the PS3 and I feel that it looks better on the PS3 over the 360 while having a better control layout so I'm going to assume that the Indy game will be similar.

The Lego games are a great tribute to fans, and very fun indeed. I'm also looking forward to the Lego Batman game. However the game I am really holding out hope for is Lucas Art's new Indiana Jones game that will use the same Euphoria physics engine used in GTA4 and Star Wars: Force Unleashed... should be amazing! 👍

I mostly missed watching Blu-Rays though, I honestly don't know how I lived without those for this long.

HD DVD as well... both can be such a remarkable improvement over SD DVD and even broadcast HD! We consumers though still have to put pressure on the studios to be sure they take every reasonable effort into making pristine HD transfers, other wise, we are left with sub-par HD releases that look no better than a well done DVD transfer.

A buddy of mine brought one over for me so everything got backed up and I was able to put everything back on the hard drive. I was surprised how much stuff has accumulated on there.

Good to hear, as it would take a long time to have to download each file from each of the PSN stores, as well as having to install and update all your games and game data.

 

[kikie]

The PS3 (mine ) has one annoying thing. It seems that it can't remember the date and time. I regularly have to reset the date and time. Stupid thing!

 

[Robin]

The PS3 (mine ) has one annoying thing. It seems that it can't remember the date and time. I regularly have to reset the date and time. Stupid thing!

Maybe the CMOS battery inside has fallen out or died...?

 

[FoolKiller]

The PS3 (mine ) has one annoying thing. It seems that it can't remember the date and time. I regularly have to reset the date and time. Stupid thing!

Try setting up your date and time to auto-set from the Internet.