With its incredible adaptive triggers, rumble, and innovative touchpad, the PS5’s DualSense controller is undeniably one of, if not the best controller out there. However, it certainly has its flaws. Second only to stick drift, the PS5 controller’s built-in speakers have always been rather lacking. Well, a new PS5 update is set to solve just that by offering controller speaker and microphone enhancements.
This new PS5 software update improves the DualSense wireless controller’s built-in mic and speaker audio by boosting the volume of the internal remote and enhancing noise cancelation. This will allow you to “hear in-game sounds and voice chat audio more clearly”, the official update notes explain in regard to the speakers. On the other hand, improved noise cancelation “courtesy of a new AI machine learning model” will remove background noise like button presses and game audio for cleaner, crisper microphone audio.
Kicking off in beta on Tuesday, February 6, 2024, invited participants can test these new features using their DualSense controllers. While we wouldn’t recommend using the integrated controller microphone if you have one of the best PS5 headsets or anything on our list of gaming headsets with the best mic, this will surely be helpful for many players. After all, it’s hard to enjoy the best multiplayer games with friends when the mic picks up all the sharp button presses.
As for the controller speaker updates, this is not quite the improvement many were hoping for. Although most games don’t take advantage of this unique DualSense feature, when games like Stray, Demon’s Souls, Deathloop, and Cyberpunk 2077 do, its quality is immediately apparent. In fact, we often turn the integrated speaker off. Sure, increasing the volume of the speaker will help with clarity, but the audio generally lacks punch and doesn’t work as hard as other features (such as haptic feedback) to immerse you in your favorite games.
Alongside these controller enhancements are a number of other great changes. The underused Share Screen is seeing a handful of new features, including the use of pointers and emoji reactions to interact with the host’s gameplay. At long last, you will also be able to adjust the brightness of the console’s power indicator light. So, if the orange stand-by glow keeps you up at night, you can now dim it to get some shut-eye.
Once these updates have been tested and are eventually made available to everyone, you’ll be able to experience all the new PS5 games and the best PS5 games like never before. However, there’s even more exciting news for PlayStation players, with new rumors suggesting these epic Xbox exclusives are coming to PS5, and Head of Xbox Phil Spencer has also broken his silence on the subject. Buckle up, because chances are you’ll be able to play the likes of Starfield, Halo Infinite, and more very soon.