Guides & Editorial

Building the ultimate PS5 gaming set-up

From the best TVs and sound systems for gaming to handy additional extras, create a home gaming set up to the leave the competition in the dust.

Televisions & sound systems

Part I: Sight and sound

The key to a top-tier gaming set-up is the core ingredients: the eye-popping visuals, and the spine-tingling sound. Get these two elements right and everything else will benefit as well.

Television sets

Take a look at your gaming room. You’ll want to pick a TV that fits the space well. The greater your viewing distance, the bigger the screen you can accommodate. Start by grabbing a tape measure and figuring out what size will suit you – there’s a great guide here to get you started.

Gorgeous visuals

Sony Bravia X95K Series

Witness the evolution of TV technology on a precisely controlled Mini LED display, powered by the intelligent Cognitive Processor XR™. With thousands of Mini LEDs, game content bursts to life with unbelievable contrast and brightness. Detect unseen enemies in even dark scene, so you can anticipate surprises and get ready for the play.

Available sizes: 65, 75, 85 inches 

Realistic soundscape

Sony Bravia A80K Series

Step up to an immersive viewing experience with vision and sound in perfect harmony, powered by the intelligent Cognitive Processor XR™. As the screen is the speaker, the sound come directly from the screen with Acoustic Surface Audio+™, making action scenes more powerful, monsters’ voices scarier, and car chases even more intense.

Available sizes: 55, 65, 77 inches 

Exclusive features

Sony Bravia X90K Series

Make games come to life with the immersive detail and contrast of Full Array LED, powered by the intelligent Cognitive Processor XR™.  Like the two models above, take your gaming to the next level with BRAVIA XR exclusive features for the PlayStation® 5. Let’s get BRAVIA XR TVs in your hands easily.

Available sizes: 55, 65, 75, 85 inches 

Audio systems

As with your TV selection, consider the space you’re working with. Full surround systems deliver incredible sound but require additional space and set-up; sound bars don’t have the same versatility but deliver great results in a smaller, self-contained form factor. Headsets, meanwhile, are perfect for a more intimate experience in shared spaces.

Ultimate audio immersion

Sony HT-A7000

The HT-A7000 envelops you in authentic 7.1.2 channel surround sound with up-firing speakers, side beam tweeters, and a built-in dual subwoofer. And with optional rear speakers it supports 360 Spatial Sound Mapping, enabling you to discover a whole new level of game experience. 

*Product availability varies by countries / regions. 

An all-in-one solution

Sony HT-A3000

The HT-A3000 immerses you in authentic surround sound with a centre speaker for clear dialogue and a built-in dual subwoofer for impressive power. With optional rear speakers it supports 360 Spatial Sound Mapping too, so you can lose yourself in your favourite game titles.

*Product availability varies by countries / regions. 

3D immersion

PULSE 3D wireless headset

Enjoy a seamless, wireless experience with a headset fine-tuned for 3D Audio on both PS4 and PS5 consoles1. The PULSE 3D wireless headset features a refined design with dual noise-cancelling microphones, USB Type-C® charging, and an array of easy-access controls.

1. Available when feature is supported by game.

Amazing value

Sony HT-S400

With 330W total output, this soundbar with powerful wireless subwoofer brings immersive gaming sound to your living room. With deeper bass and clearer dialogue, your gaming time becomes a richer, more engaging experience.

*Product availability varies by countries / regions. 

Projectors

If you have the space, budget and ambition, then you can always take things a step further. Why not invest in a home projector system and turn your next gaming session into a mind-blowing, theatre-scale experience?

A true HDR experience

VPL-XW7000ES

The compact, beautifully styled VPL-XW7000ES blends effortlessly into today’s living spaces. The native 4K HDR laser projector features a long-lasting laser light source that delivers an impressive 3,200 lumens brightness – plenty for vibrant, punchy pictures even in brightly lit living rooms, home cinemas and media rooms. 

4K Entertainment

VPL-XW5000ES

Featuring true 4K HDR entertainment to your home with the VPL-XW5000ES, a native 4K laser projector with 2,000 lumens of high brightness and a compact, cost-effective design. Our newly developed technologies, including the all-new Native 4K SXRD panel, deliver wide dynamic range, high resolution and vivid colours, even if you’re watching in a well-lit space. 

FAQs

TV size is measured between between the two opposite corners of a display panel, which excludes the plastic outer frame or 'bezzle' of the device. For example, a 65" display measures exactly 65" (165cm) between the top-left and bottom right-hand corners of the display panel.

Cognitive Processing XR is a special technology used in Bravia televisions to analyse the content of an image and perfectly attune it to the perceptions of the viewer. Algorithmically driven, television is able to analyse focal points, color and motion within the image and and create greater emphasis and contrast to make the image on the screen appear to the human viewer as it would in reality.  

Spatial Sound Mapping is a special technology used to simulate directional sound in an interior space. It can be implemented in a whole variety of ways, but in principle, it uses internal microphones and spatial sound data to create the impression of 'phantom' sound sources within a room, making it feel like sound is coming from many different directions, even if it's only coming from a small number of speakers.

Traditional flat-screen televisions have a limited display range of colours and brightness levels, meaning that they cannot always recreate the exact vibrance or hue of the real world. High-dynamic range is a special technology that creates a much broader range of colours and light levels within a picture, improving the contrast between colours, and areas of light and dark, to create a more true-to-life image.

Though this is a highly complex question to answer, the shortest and simplest way to understand it is that pixels on an OLED screen emit their own light, while pixels on an LCD display (which include LED displays) are either backlit, or lit from the edge and not emissive in their own right.

The difference from a user perspective is that OLEDs tend to enjoy better contrast and improved viewing angles, whilst LCD displays are brighter overall, meaning they're easier to read in brightly lit rooms and display color better at higher brightness levels. 

This is a very generalised overview - manufacturers have all kinds of bespoke technologies which greatly vary the performance their displays, so it's always worth reading the specs for any TV closely before you buy.

Mini LEDs are used as a form of backlighting in LCD displays, using much smaller LEDs to more accurately control light levels of a display. This improves image contrast, making bright highlights stand out more clearly and shadows appear much darker.

Controllers & peripherals

Part II: Taking control

Once you’ve got the perfect audio-visual experience dialled in, the next step is to consider how you - the player – connect yourself with what’s happening on screen.

Wireless Controllers

Built for performance and comfort, the DualSense and DualSense Edge wireless controllers are at the very heart of the PlayStation 5’s innovative design and no gaming set up is complete without one.

Heighten Your Senses™

DualSense wireless controller

If you own a PlayStation 5 then you already have a DualSense controller, but nothing will bring your gaming space alive like a little couch co-op. Grab a few additional controllers (in a few different colors – why not?) to team up or throw down with your nearest and dearest.

Perfect Your Play

DualSense Edge™ wireless controller

If you’re looking to get an edge in gameplay than equip your ultimate gaming set-up with the DualSense Edge controller:

  • Tailor your experience with remappable buttons, tunable triggers and sticks, changeable stick caps, and more.
  • Configure your stick sensitivity, stick dead zones, and trigger dead zones for finely tuned inputs.
  • Enjoy haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, and our signature controller comfort.*

*Haptic feedback and adaptive trigger features available when supported by game.

Specialist controllers

For ultimate immersion, some games require a controller custom-built for the experience. From setting unbeatable times on world-renowned racing circuits, to the old-school intensity of an arcade showdown, you may need to go one step further to create the ultimate home-gaming experience.

Racing finesse

T300RS GT Edition

Looking to immerse yourself in the heat of the race? The Thrustmaster T300RS GT Force Feedback racing wheel allows you to hone your skills and improve your performance thanks to a fast, powerful and extremely smooth dual belt system.

Unbeatable flexibility

Backbone One

If the TV is occasionally out of action, or otherwise engaged, it might be worth adding a Backbone One controller to your dream set up. 

This special iPhone controller pairs with PlayStation's Remote Play feature allowing you to carry on gaming from a smaller screen. Compact, intuitive controls, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and pass-through charging make this a perfect addition to a shared gaming space.

True simulation

T.Flight Hotas 4

Take to the skies and fly with total control on PS4 or PS5 thanks to the life-sized, super-responsive throttle, dual-rudder joystick and fully mappable buttons contained in this officially licensed flight stick from Thrustmaster.

FAQs

In the context of the DualSense wireless controller, haptic feedback is the cutting edge technology that allows the controllers to a produce huge, nuaced and wildly varied array of effects that can be felt while holding the device. 

These effects add to immersion, simulating everything from the gritty rumble of car tyres skidding through gravel, to the gentle patter of rain on a space suit. 

Four. You can sync up to four DualSense controllers with a single PlayStation 5 console and, in games that support local multplayer, you and up to three others can play at the same time.

At the time of writing, there are seven official color variants of the DualSense wireless controller: Classic White, Midnight Black, Cosmic Red, Starlight Blue, Nova Pink, Galactic Purple and, most recently, Camoflage Grey. 

Some people would certainly argue as much. One factor in their favour is that a steering wheel has a much larger distance of travel than a controller thumbstick, meaning small refinements are generally easier to make. 

That said, larger changes will take slightly more effort to execute as you'll have to move your hands further. One thing is for sure though: playing a driving game with a steering wheel controller is certainly more true-to-life!

Games & extras

Part III: Optimising your build

Okay, you’re plugged in to your system and it’s looking and sounding great. Next up: it’s time to eliminate distractions and optimise for ease and convenience.

An expansive library

The world’s greatest gaming set up won’t mean a whole lot without games to play. For that top-tier experience you’ll want a huge library at your fingertips with as little friction as possible between you and your favourite games.

PlayStation Plus Extra

Join the Extra tier of PlayStation Plus and you'll get immediate access to a catalogue of over 400 games, including massive blockbusters like Ghost of Tsushima and Marvel's Avengers, and critically acclaimed indie hits like Hollow Knight and Dead Cells. Yours to browse, download and play, the second you sign up.

PlayStation Plus Premium

If you want to go one step further, join the Premium tier of PlayStation Plus and get access to all the great games in the PlayStation Plus Extra catalogue, along with a collection of iconic classics stretching back through PlayStation's 25 year history, including hits like Tekken 2, Jak & Daxter, Fallout New Vegas and more.

Along with somewhere to store all your favourites...

A home for all your PS4 favourites

Seagate Game Drive

With all those games to download, you'll need somewhere to store them. Seagate's special Game Drives offer a sleek, plug-and-play solution that boast a whopping 2TB of storage (enough for several dozen major games) and can easily be swapped between your PS4 and PS5. 

Not only can you store and play games directly from the game drive, you can even store PS5 games on them if you need to free up space on your internal hard drive .

Extra space for PS5 blockbusters

WD_BLACK SN850 NVMe SSD

If you're looking to add more super-fast storage space to your PS5, then Western Digital's SN850 range is perfect. 

Guaranteed to meet the lightning-fast loading demands of PS5, the SN850s can add between 500GB and 2TB* to additional internal storage and feature a built-in heatsink that makes them an absolute breeze to install. 

*Availability varies by region.

Finishing touches

In order to focus wholly on the pleasure of gaming, you might want to add a few special extras to perfectly finesse your new gaming space.

Locked and loaded

DualSense charging station

Not a just a stylish cradle to store you DualSense controller between play sessions, the DualSense charging station will also keep your controllers charged and ready for play. 

It has room for two controllers, either DualSense of DualSense Edge controllers, meaning you'll always have a spare charged if a friend drops by. Lastly, it plugs straight into the mains, freeing up USB ports on your PS5 console.

Set the scene

HD Camera

If you've ever had a mind to share gaming sessions with your friends, or even stream your gaming exploits online, then a HD Camera is a perfect addition to your set up. 

This stylish, plug-and-play camera can be mounted above or below your TV, captures in full-HD and even has in-built cut-out features to remove backgrounds and place you in the centre of your gaming experience.

Winding down

Media Remote

On PlayStation 5 you can stream a whole bunch of great entertainment from a whole different range of services, depending on where you are in the world.

The media remote for PS5 is the perfect companion for winding down after a heavy gaming session and includes volume controls that integrate with compatible TV, traditional fast-forward, pause and play buttons for effortless playback and dedicated buttons for popular services like Spotify and Netflix. 

Toning in

PS5 console covers

Lastly, a question of style. Take a look around you, what colour would best complement the overall ambience your room?

You can easily complement your interior decor with one of six stylish PS5 console covers to replace the classic white tone. They're straightforward to swap out, come in one of six colours and are available for both the PS5 and PS5 Digital Edtion - a final aesthetic flourish! 

Connect and control

PlayStation App

Keep in touch with your home gaming set up, even when you're not in the house. With the PlayStation App for Android and iOS, you can:

  • Connect with friends on PlayStation Network, message, start or join chat parties and set-up gaming sessions.
  • Browse the PlayStation Store and add new purchases to your download list, so they're ready the moment you are. 
  • Sign-in, launch games and manage your internal console storage remotely*, all via your smartphone.

*Feature supported when the console is in rest mode.

FAQs

An SSD or 'Solid State Drive' a modern digital storage solution that is considerably faster and more sophisicated that a traditional hard-disc drive (HDD).

While HDDs rely on layers of spinning 'platters' to store data, an SSD drive uses a type of solid-state flash memory to store data. The key advantage is the lack of moving parts, meaning that SSDs are faster, quiter and generally more reliable than their mechanical forerunners.  

The PS5 console cover - the white outer shell of the PS5 - is designed for easy home removal, requiring just a few simple steps to remove it and replace it, with a color variant of your choice. There's a full step-by-step guide, right here.

The maximum storage capacity for external harddrives on PS5 is 8TB - enough space to store literally hundreds of games. You can find more details on external USB storage right here.