13 replies to this topic

[CriticallyDamaged]

EDIT: Problem solved! See post #14 for the fix.

This is directed to the people responsible for the sound desing of MWO:

The soundscape of this game is generally decent. However there is one major issue with the sound system. This issue is that when more than one autocannon type weapon is fired the loudness of the sound effect multiplies. Actualy this probably applies to all weapons but since the autocannon sound effects are loud and square waved to begin with the effect is most noticeable.

For instance spectating someone with 4x AC2 firing is absolutely horrible and reguires the person to lower the volume of his/her speakers to avoid ear damage. Now after lowering the speaker volume the autocannon noise becomes bearable but then all the other sounds in the game are too quiet.

Basicaly equipping your mech with one autocannon is fine but equipping it with two or more autocannons of the same type results in excessive loudness. The worst offenders are AC2 and AC5 since those already have horribly square waved and ear shattering sound effects.

For me personaly this means I can not use more than one autocannon in my mech builds and if I die and spectate someone with autocannons I must lower my speaker volume.

Would it be possible to introduce an option for the user to disable this loudness multiplier?

Edited by CriticallyDamaged, 01 April 2015 - 06:31 AM.

[Christopher Hamilton]

i second that. AC`s and the Intro really hurt if you are playing with HEADPHONES.
please allow for maximum sound limiter somewhere in settings. Folks, i aint deaf YET.... please...

[Durant Carlyle]

I have never noticed such, and I wear over-ear headphones.

If it happens at all, it likely won't happen soon.

In the meantime, lower the effects volume in the settings and/or your master volume so the multiple-AC sounds are tolerable. Your ears will soon adjust to the 'too quiet' and then it won't be.

[CriticallyDamaged]

Quote

In the meantime, lower the effects volume in the settings and/or your master volume so the multiple-AC sounds are tolerable. Your ears will soon adjust to the 'too quiet' and then it won't be.

Lowered the sound effects and increased the voice volume so I can hear Betty and VOIP. I guess it is more realistic to have the sound effects lower. You probably could not hear too well what is going on outside your mech anyway. It does reduce battlefield awareness quite a bit and I find it more difficult to notice things like laser fire hitting my mech now.

I still think the sound system is flawed. Weapon sounds should not increase in volume like that when more than one is fired at the same time. I mean even after lowering the sound effects so low that I can not hear the reactor hum or my own mechs footsteps someone blasting away with 4xAC5 is loud and clear. Perhaps soundcard hardware affects it too. I have just a basic integrated one but maybe the more fancy ones can playback the sounds better with some kind of automatic volume normalization. Oh well...

Edited by CriticallyDamaged, 29 March 2015 - 12:43 PM.

[Nightmare1]

I play with headphones and do not have this problem.

Of course, I also do not have my volume cranked up past the recommended auditory safety levels...

[Kalimaster]

Suggestion. Use Lasers.

[Jaeger Gonzo]

ACs are too laud that is fact.

[WonderSparks]

I personally think the SFX for Autocannons is tolerable. And I use ear-buds most often.

The trick is that not everyone perceives a particular thing the same way. Some people have a higher tolerance for, say, loud noises or white noise, than others. _{(Or so I find, no science homework done on that one)}
Me, in particular, as long as I am in control of the volume of said sounds, I can generally tolerate any level of sound or noise, whereas the same volume of sound is extremely unsettling for my mother and several other people I know.

[9erRed]

Greetings all,

Having been on the firing end of similar sized real weapons, the sound is probably still 'not there yet'.

- A battlefield is a deafening place, but it's not just the sounds, but pressure waves also.
(5:30Am firing that first round from a tank could be enough to make you 'woof your cookies'.!! If it wasn't for the adrenalin rush.)
- This is something no game or sim. can correctly model. (even with 'kicker' sub speakers)

Now how PGI renders the sound channels, or separates them could be something that needs to be 'looked into'.
- Many other games offer volume scales for some of the different types of sounds offered when in-game.
- Separating weapon and voice from environmental channels. And sub separation after that.

There was some issues earlier with different sound devices rendering the games sounds wrong. Positional sounds would not be played or overlap ones in-play. (weapons and Betty's voice were in conflict) PGI addressed some of this for the majority of players, and did offer some new sound control options. Perhaps there is a need to further enhance these levels again.

- Without detailed knowledge of how many channels are in use in the game and what restrictions PGI may have or face to render additional sounds, all we can do is ask for a 'look' into altering some specific sounds.
- Are the ballistics balanced in there sound levels? Should they be? Do the larger weapons need that 'kick in the face' type of sound when used? (I do know the difference between IS and Clan mgs is quite dynamic, with Clan guns sounding much nicer in my opinion.) Can the sound engineers and designers tweak the smaller AC's to sound different when multiple barrels are firing, as different to singles?

Sound is one of the key elements to 'bringing the Pilot into the game' and any effects that 'break that emersion' need to be addressed immediately. There's already some missing reverb and sound delay problems now, positional sound and direction is a difficult feature to get right.

Considering that these BattleMechs are sealed units and all sounds transmitted to the Pilot are through sensors and the 'Mechs computers, we technically could have muted almost any effect the Pilot wanted. (or enhance any, for scout duties.)
- If it's a single setting in the weapons game code, say from 0 to 100 volume with falloff and reverb possible options it could be a simple solution. But will everyone be happy? Probably not, as some are indeed looking for that 'rock the house' bang when these virtual guns are blasting away.
- Could PGI offer options for different systems and weapons, probably. And they are working on the next and newest MechLab right now. Sounds settings being a menu somewhere within that code block, so just the right time to 'look at what can be done' for the future.

Just some thoughts,
9erRed

Edited by 9erRed, 30 March 2015 - 03:57 PM.

[CriticallyDamaged]

I wonder if it is just a limitation of the Cryengine sound system. On games like Crysis and pretty much any other FPS game you would never get a situation where you have two or more identical guns in your hands fireing at the exact same time. So it might not be such a simple thing to fix for MWO.

Just to clarify here the issue is how the game engine handles the fireing of multiple weapons of the same type. There is no issue with a single autocannon fireing. It is only when more than one is fired at the same time that things get way too loud.

And in terms of real life vs. computer games I would argue that one of the benefits of playing a computer game is that you are not exposed to the elements. Meaning that I would rather not simulate the loudnes of real weapons fireing in a game. Perhaps in a military training simulator the ear shattering loudness serves it's purpose but in a computer game it just serves the purpose of the user lowering the volume of his speakers.

Edited by CriticallyDamaged, 31 March 2015 - 03:57 AM.

[Vellron2005]

Personally, I find the autocannon sounds superbly true to what big-ass cannons should sound like. I think anyone who has ever fired a howitzer will attest to this (I have not, but I imagine it beeing very similar). Cannons are LOUD, and fireing more than one is REALLY LOUD, and the game reflects that beautifully... For me, the Autocannon sounds are one of THE BEST fluff features of the whole game.. I love to hear that boom boom boom boom - target destroyed.

I wouldn't change a thing.. If you can't stand the boom, use ear muffs :-) (Talk about realism!)

Note:

For those who would think I turn it down or don't use the sound so much.. I use a high-end 5:1 logitech speaker system.. when the autocannons fire, the door to my room shakes. Yeah.. realism.

Edited by Vellron2005, 31 March 2015 - 04:01 AM.

[Rushin Roulette]

SORRY. I CANT HEAR YOU DUE TO ALL THIS DAKKKAAAAAAAA!!!

But seriously... I have Over-ear headphones and I cant say that the Autocannons are seriously louder than the other weapons (Obviously they are louder... but not painfully so. Have you tried adjusting the volume sliders in the options?

[9erRed]

Greetings all,

With the replies and mentions of 5.1 sound, there are various settings within the devices options that my assist some here.

- For me I run an X-Fi card, and there are 8 tabs for different 'effects' and qualities that can be 'altered'.
Just with in the normal Speakers properties there's 'Tone' levels, and basic individual speaker levels. Once I open the 'SoundBlaster' tab I have game and entertainment sound selections. Each giving a different quality and 'footprint' to what's delivered in the game.
The item I like the best is the 'SVM' setting, which limits dynamic range between the loudest and softest sound volume. This will avoid large fluctuations during playback. And having the 3D surround or expand options with a slider for front to surround.

For some MWO users, they be running default onboard sound, now this is not bad, and in some cases 'excellent' chips and divers. But it needs to be set for the type of sound range your environment/music/game is in. One setting will not do for everything.
- I would suggest those with 'issues' or 'problems' with only some of the games sound look here first. Adjust or set what you can, and see if you have improvement. Some players may have 'Never' looked or set these perimeters and are running default settings. It can't hurt, and may solve your problems.
- For some headsets, Stereo is the only option, others have a more dynamic range. But the sound quality can still be altered or modified for these devices.

As I stated earlier, we don't really know what MWO is using for codex, channels, or compression perimeters. And how all the different users components handle 'whatever' they are using. Would be a good time for a Dev., that knows, to chime in and possibly explain what MWO sound specifications are. And if there is a sure method to get the best out of the games sounds.
( it would be a violation to crack open the actual sound files and just look at what MWO has, so I'm not recommending that to anyone.)

Lets see if we can get some impute from PGI about this specific issue.
- it's not effecting everyone, so it's limited to Clients machines and how there sound is handled.

Just some thoughts,
9erRed

[CriticallyDamaged]

Despite being written by a fool on April 1st this is no joke. My integrated Realtek sound configuration had no useful options but I did find a build-in option in Windows itself. In the "Speaker Properties" / "Enhancements" Tab there is the option "Loudness Equalization". I turned that on and it actualy fixed all my problems with the sound in MWO. The next thing I will do is to buy myself a good dedicated soundcard to use instead of this integrated junk.