The great news is that the design works very well, although we had to turn the volume up quite a bit for things to come through clearly, despite how the mini speakers look like they're bigger than what one might normally expect on a headset. The headset plugs into a powered amp which in turn is connected to the computer's four audio jacks. This amp controls the overall volume and bass in addition to having a small light grid indicating the direction from which sound is coming from. With it, you can get real-time visual feedback regarding what games take full advantage of surround sound. However, there's no balance control outside of whatever the game or operating system offers. Big sounds like explosions and gunshots come through well but more subtle sounds like game character dialogue has a tendency to get lost.

Its design also makes the Psyko 5.1 one of the bulkiest, heaviest and most rigid headsets we've ever used. The ear cups are well cushioned for long gaming sessions, but they only slide up and down. Although the headset isn't as uncomfortable as it might look, but we were very aware of its weight the whole time it was worn. At the same time, the removable microphone is a solid plastic stick that can only be moved left and right, not up or down. Additionally, the headset lacks manual controls to mute the microphone. However the noise cancellation works decently and we got no complaints about being heard.

One unique feature includes panels on the ear cups that pop open to let in outside sound. This saves the effort of having to take off the headphones in order to have a conversation. However, these headphones don't do a great job of keeping in all the sound either. There's a significant amount of noise leakage, to the point where nearby people could clearly hear what we were listening to, which contradicts the point of wearing them.

It's also worth mentioning that the Psyko headset is designed specifically for PC gaming and is not necessarily suited for music or movies. While it works functionally for those purposes, sound generally comes off flat. This makes the headset a one trick pony, and with an MSRP of $299.99, a fairly expensive one. With all things taken into consideration: The bulky hard plastic design, rigid boom microphone, and powered amplifier pod - and you have a headset that's difficult to carry around and store.

While the technology behind the Psyko 5.1 PC Gaming Headset is promising, its design and implementation leaves a lot to be desired. Considering how there are plenty of competing headsets with more features, better flexibility (both literally and figuratively) and lower price, it's difficult to recommend this headset based solely on the fact that it delivers true positional audio.