Sound Experience Question

[GhostLine06]

Hello all,

 

I have searched the forums and I have read about the sound issues that (some) players have in game. I have recently added to my gaming rig and while testing in BoS (a game that I haven't been able to play as often as I would like to) I noticed a sound issue that I haven't found specifically mentioned on these forums (maybe I missed it though).

 

So, basically I added an new monitor to my setup giving me access to (a new) 27in 2560 x 1440 monitor with (my older) two 23in 1080 monitors on either side. I went to play BoS to soak in the new 2560 x 1440 goodness (and yeah it is damn good), but I noticed I couldn't run in the settings that I used to when I was playing on a 1080 monitor with the other used for pit-at-a-glance guides.

 

So I had been searching for a way to reduce the lag I was experiencing (unplugging one of the 1080 monitors helped).

 

I started to check out my ASUS Xonar STX II Essence sound-card to see if it was working as best as it could be. I installed new drivers (uni-drivers) and it has been working great with my (high end) stereo headphones. And here is where I noticed something strange in BoS.

 

QMB -> 190 A3 -> Ground Attack. Sounds while flying around are great, feels like I am right there behind the engine etc... So I dive in on some trucks, fire, hit, and as I fly over the truck that I shot/destroyed all engine and in-plane sounds dropped out and all I could hear was the sound of bullets hitting and explosions. I tested using multiple settings on my Xonar card and this issue occurred on each test exactly the same way. Even when just flying low and firing into the empty ground as soon as my A3 flew over/past where I shot all plane sounds would again disappear and I would only hear "explosions" (I am guessing it was the HE rounds).

 

So where might I be going wrong? I have the in game Bit Rate set to high (What does that actually equate to number wise by the way? 24 bit / 96 khz? Does anyone know?). Game and Windows volumes are set as suggested on these forums. So I don't know what is happening?

 

Any thoughts? It isn't a deal breaker but it is definitely a hardcore immersion breaker.

[coconut]

Maybe there are too many sound samples supposed to play at the same time. I've noticed an entry in startup.cfg that might help you:

 

[KEY = sound]

count = 128

 

I think it's set to 32 by default. I increased it because I had been having random crashes, and my logs mentioned sound playback errors. It did not fix my problem, but did not make it worse either. Maybe it helps with your issue.

[KoN_]

Thank you ill try that too .

[GhostLine06]

 

Maybe there are too many sound samples supposed to play at the same time. I've noticed an entry in startup.cfg that might help you:

 

[KEY = sound]

count = 128

 

I think it's set to 32 by default. I increased it because I had been having random crashes, and my logs mentioned sound playback errors. It did not fix my problem, but did not make it worse either. Maybe it helps with your issue.

 

 

Awesome, I will give that a try tonight.

 

EDIT:

 

Darn it, I couldn't wait so I decided to remote into my rig at home and I saw the following has been already set in my startup.cfg.

 

[KEY = sound]

    count = 128

    debug_radio = 0

    interface = 1

    quality = 2

    speedenable = true

    volume = 1.00000

[END]

 

Does anyone know if I can go up to "quality = 3"? I am guessing "debug_radio" won't provide me with any actual debug info related to my issue.

 

 

Edited May 18, 2015 by GhostLine06

[LLv24_Zami]

QMB -> 190 A3 -> Ground Attack. Sounds while flying around are great, feels like I am right there behind the engine etc... So I dive in on some trucks, fire, hit, and as I fly over the truck that I shot/destroyed all engine and in-plane sounds dropped out and all I could hear was the sound of bullets hitting and explosions. I tested using multiple settings on my Xonar card and this issue occurred on each test exactly the same way. Even when just flying low and firing into the empty ground as soon as my A3 flew over/past where I shot all plane sounds would again disappear and I would only hear "explosions" (I am guessing it was the HE rounds).

 

 

 

I have a same thing with Soundblaster Z. Tried to edit startup.cfg but no change. Everything is ok with my system. I think there`s a bug in the sound engine.

Edited May 19, 2015 by Zami

[GhostLine06]

I have a same thing with Soundblaster Z. Tried to edit startup.cfg but no change. Everything is ok with my system. I think there`s a bug in the sound engine.

 

Well good to know I am not the only one experiencing this and that it appears to be something specifically wrong with my hardware. I have known that my sound card has been considered as an "odd" or rare one when it comes to gaming rigs, but I decided on it years ago after reviewing many different options that were available for my needs at the time, and it has never failed me in any game up to this point (and it sounds so damn sweet in combination with good headphones).

 

I know people have spoken of "sound bubbles" being used in this game, and unfortunately I have yet to research the sound engine being used (FMod EX I believe it is called), but it seems like pretty odd behavior if the "sound bubble" created by the destruction of these ground vehicles overpowers and removes the "sound bubble" that my plane is traveling in instead of augmenting/adding to it.

 

Other then this issue (and the whole known issue of not hearing enemy hits on my plane but hearing my hits on enemy planes "far" ahead of me) I have thought that the sound design was pretty damn awesome, especially when observing (after an all to common instance of me having to bail out) my plane crashing and exploding on the ground and then hearing the boom of the explosion after a short delay based on distance.

 

But the issue I came here to discuss is just annoying enough to have prompted me to ask in this general discussion area if others are experiencing this before I make an attempt at creating a bug report (I have yet to do so in any game and I have to look up the steps required). I was hoping I could find a log of some sort that would show what sounds were being send to my sound-card in order to see if all the sounds were being sent and my system was just dropping them or if the game itself was not sending the whole "sound picture" at the time of my fly-over.