42 replies to this topic

[Saved By The Bell]

15 years ago, I had 4 channels Yamaha and 4.1 altec lansing. It was real 4 channels sound. Todays 5.1 its just 2 channels in reality Well.

[KW Driver]

yes.. I use one of my HDMI ports on my video card to plug into my Onkyo 7.1 Home theater system and it works flawlessly...

[w0qj]

Suggestion: Why don't you also renovate your home theater into a MWO mech cockpit to enjoy the ambient atmosphere while you play MWO?

KW Driver, on 09 February 2021 - 07:19 AM, said:

yes.. I use one of my HDMI ports on my video card to plug into my Onkyo 7.1 Home theater system and it works flawlessly...

[KW Driver]

w0qj, on 09 February 2021 - 07:27 AM, said:

Suggestion: Why don't you also renovate your home theater into a MWO mech cockpit to enjoy the ambient atmosphere while you play MWO?

lol... been thinking about it tbh.. but have to figure out if there's a way to undock all the pieces of the HUD to display on separate screens (aka old cellphones or tablets) already use a 42 inch 4k monitor for the primary display, so just need 2 more of those as well

Edited by KW Driver, 09 February 2021 - 07:35 AM.

[w0qj]

Or: procure a (super-expensive) 7-monitor "laptop" computer,
that looks like it's straight out of the MechWarrior era!

www.notebookcheck.net/The-Expanscape-Aurora-7-laptop-prototype-packs-seven-screens-into-one-laptop-body.519395.0.html

Eat your heart out

Edited by w0qj, 07 May 2022 - 11:44 PM.

[Slion]

Fetherator, on 02 January 2021 - 12:17 PM, said:

Found the answer myself.
All digital output u get from game is just Stereo, there is no Dolby Digital or DTS output that way. U can only output 5.1 or even 7.1 when u use analog out on your soundcard.
So what u need is to setup your soundcard in windows for 5.1 or 7.1 output, then u have to use at least 3 outputjacks to get front stereo, rear/side Stereo and center subwoofer. Also u will need an adequate soundsystem of course or a Receiver that is capable of 5.1 or 7.1 with analog inputs. If u wanna use optical output u can only get stereo support or u need a transcoding software to do the stereo to 5.1 conversion wich is NO real surround.

Thanks great tip. You can also use the cinematic encoder if you have a sound card that can do that. Here is what it looks like on my Sound Blaster Z.


When using the SPDIF-Out directly all you get is Stereo PCM. Audio seems way better when using Speakers with cinematic encoding but so far I'm not very impressed with the surround quality either.

Edited by Slion, 07 May 2022 - 11:45 AM.

[Slion]

The surround speakers are giving you your own engine and steps noise which is ok I guess but not a game changer.
Just had a messy battle and surround seems to be ok there. I could actually hear the stuff happening behind me pretty cool.

Edited by Slion, 07 May 2022 - 12:07 PM.

[Xmith]

Seismic Sensors are far better than trying to listen for someone sneaking up on you.

[Meep Meep]

VonBruinwald, on 14 October 2020 - 07:03 AM, said:

Considering this first came out mid-90's I again must ask.

Is there anything you can do with 5.1 headphones that you can't do with stereo?

Since no one has really answered it the answer is no. All '5.1' headsets use two drivers just like any normal stereo headphone but they have a dedicated sound chip which simulates the surround effect. Thats why that barber video works on a normal stereo set. I don't think anyone has ever made a true surround sound headset where there are multiple drivers in the earpad most likely because it would be f'ing huge and probably weigh too much to be comfortable over long sessions.

[Nightbird]

You only have two ears, surround sound isn't necessary for 3D sound effects. It's all about timing and volume differences between the left and right ears receiving sounds for your brain to interpret the positioning. You can just use a normal headset with 2 audio drivers. My two studio monitors are also fine for the effect.

Watch this video to test:

[w0qj]

I would have thought that the freeborns must have evolved four or six ears by the time of the Clan Invasion!

Freeborns, these are (barely) still considered as humans

Nightbird, on 09 May 2022 - 01:33 AM, said:

You only have two ears, surround sound isn't necessary for 3D sound effects. It's all about timing and volume differences between the left and right ears receiving sounds for your brain to interpret the positioning. You can just use a normal headset with 2 audio drivers. My two studio monitors are also fine for the effect. ...

Edited by w0qj, 09 May 2022 - 07:53 AM.

[memorandum]

i'm just using my 5.1 surround logitech speakers with a soundblaster card, sitting in my obutto chair.....works fine

Edited by memorandum, 09 May 2022 - 07:16 AM.

[Sjorpha]

I use my monitor headphones, the Beyerdynamic dt 880 pros I got for for editing videos, and an external soundcard with good preamps for gaming and imo they give much better positioning than any "7.1" or "5.1" gaming gear I've ever tried.

Obviously I wouldn't have bought that kind of gear only for gaming, but basically the truth of the matter is that you only have two ears, and the key to a good soundstage and sense of direction is just to have really good sound quality in your headphones. It's the same with speakers really, a pair of high end stereo speakers positioned correctly gives an excellent soundstage where you hear the postioning as recorded and if you close your eyes you can't tell where the speakers are.

There is no problems hearing directions in MWO with good headphones or speakers but the sound quality of the sounds themselves isn't all that great unfortunately, many of the sound mods are an upgrade I think.

Anyways my recommendation is to look for good headphones in general rather than gaming gear with hyped up features. There's obviously gaming headsets that are also just excellent headphones, but the point is to primarily look at reviews from music/sound enthusiasts that focus on sound quality rather than other stuff.

Especially if you're into music/movies as well I would definitely look at a good DAC/soundcard and nice high impedance headphones rather than gaming gear.

[Seelenlos]

Meep Meep, on 09 May 2022 - 01:08 AM, said:

Since no one has really answered it the answer is no. All '5.1' headsets use two drivers just like any normal stereo headphone but they have a dedicated sound chip which simulates the surround effect. Thats why that barber video works on a normal stereo set. I don't think anyone has ever made a true surround sound headset where there are multiple drivers in the earpad most likely because it would be f'ing huge and probably weigh too much to be comfortable over long sessions.

Hi MEEP MEEP,

I HAVE a Sennheiser with 6x REAL Drivers I think.
But It is old and those days the Audio was not that far as today.

Things are always upside down!

NOW that we have this real "excellent" USB-Soundboards (without the noise) we could have Headphones with 6 Drivers, but no, only one is on LinusTech for 1000 Dollars I think. Old video too.

And on that Baber-Video, I can not hear the "front".

I think MS did something horrible to the sound-System, but I can not tell how, but The fronst sounds are not that of the Win7.

Regards

Edited by Seelenlos, 10 May 2022 - 04:02 PM.

[LordNothing]

memorandum, on 09 May 2022 - 07:16 AM, said:

i'm just using my 5.1 surround logitech speakers with a soundblaster card, sitting in my obutto chair.....works fine

they still make soundblasters? seems like its been eons since i had a dedicated sound card. i usually just digital out to a receiver. get a cleaner signal that way as its not sitting in a chassis full of noisy high frequency components.

Edited by LordNothing, 10 May 2022 - 06:43 PM.

[Meep Meep]

LordNothing, on 10 May 2022 - 06:41 PM, said:

they still make soundblasters? seems like its been eons since i had a dedicated sound card. i usually just digital out to a receiver. get a cleaner signal that way as its not sitting in a chassis full of noisy high frequency components.

Yep, soundblasters are still a thing and they are super sweet nowadays sporting audiophile quality sound and a high powered dedicated headphone amp. You can still pick up soundblaster z for cheapish nowadays and they are just as good as the newest stuff creative labs is putting out. It's like night and day over even a supposedly good onboard audio setup.

[Curccu]

Meep Meep, on 09 May 2022 - 01:08 AM, said:

I don't think anyone has ever made a true surround sound headset where there are multiple drivers ....

https://www2.razer.c...er-tiamat-71-v2

[Meep Meep]

Curccu, on 11 May 2022 - 12:17 AM, said:

https://www2.razer.c...er-tiamat-71-v2

Pretty cool for $65 but it it requires a mobo or sound card with dedicated 7.1 outputs and some decent headphone amps to drive everything at a good volume. Reviews of using it on some of the cheaper 7.1 mobo audio has disappointing sound quality and volume but if you have the proper hardware its apparently better than a true surround speaker setup.

[Curccu]

Meep Meep, on 11 May 2022 - 01:04 AM, said:

Pretty cool for $65 but it it requires a mobo or sound card with dedicated 7.1 outputs and some decent headphone amps to drive everything at a good volume. Reviews of using it on some of the cheaper 7.1 mobo audio has disappointing sound quality and volume but if you have the proper hardware its apparently better than a true surround speaker setup.

Yeah no idea how good those are I have never tried one, but I remembered that those had some hype back in the day when razer published those and I did consider getting them but never did.
Because those are still only ones (with multiple drivers, that I have heard of) out there I don't think there is nothing super special about them compared to virtual surround.

[Meep Meep]

Curccu, on 11 May 2022 - 04:26 AM, said:

Yeah no idea how good those are I have never tried one, but I remembered that those had some hype back in the day when razer published those and I did consider getting them but never did.
Because those are still only ones (with multiple drivers, that I have heard of) out there I don't think there is nothing super special about them compared to virtual surround.

I would imagine if you have the right hardware its going to be more precise than virtualization simply because of the driver placement. You can close your eyes and visualize the placement of real life sounds because a given sound will have a different profile depending on how it reaches your ears. Sounds to the right or left can easily be visualized but the difference between front and back tends to be the higher frequency sounds.

So a buzzing bee in front of you has nearly the full spectrum of sound due to the shape of your ears focusing forward sounds into the ear canal. Sounds from the rear are blocked by the ear itself and only the mid to lower frequencies make it to the ear canal in useful amounts.

This is how virtualization works by muting or boosting the frequencies depending on where in the sound stage it wants to place it. Multi driver surrounds don't have to do this since the rear drivers are behind your ear so they can output full range and sound more natural.

Eh think I might give it a try. The older sound blaster audigy rx supports 7.1 and has high quality amps and its pretty cheap on ebay. Can get both for about a hundred and thats still cheaper than a decent quality stereo set.

edit; nope. The 7.1 connector is proprietary and needs an expensive snakes nest of cables. Damn you creative...

Edited by Meep Meep, 11 May 2022 - 01:23 PM.