I have an audio setting question...

[TQ1]

I'm running an X-Fi Elite Pro and Windows XP SP2. I use headphones and utilize the X-Fi's CMSS 3D spatial audio headphone upmix.
My outboard speakers are a 2.1 setup, though I use headphones exclusively and route them through the Elite Pro's breakout box. The 2.1's are powered by a Denon amp, which connects to the X-Fi. This setup allows me to mute the main speakers and still enjoy the sub's output while wearing headphones.

My question is this: If I choose the "stereo" in-game audio setting will it negate my CMSS headphone upmix?

I just bought the game today and haven't had a chance to play it yet - though I will remedy that situation this evening.

[speon]

I'm having this trouble with this as well. I'm using a Creative X-Fi card and would like to play with headphones while utilizing the CMSS 3D upmixing to experience 3D positional audio in game.

Currently, there isn't an in-game headphone sound option, so there's no way (that I can tell) to have 3D audio while using headphones. Using the next closest option, stereo, causes me to have to manually set the sound card to be in 2/2.1 mode, where at that piont the maximum angle the speakers can be configured away from center is 60° - as you can imagine, this sounds quite odd when spinning around a 3D positional sound source.

I really hope that it's possible to patch in a headphone sound mode option, as the audio for BioShock is amazing.

[kamm]

My post from other audio topic:

My USB-based 7.1 soundcard/headphone worked fine until crematory then it went completely muted except when I go and hack a gambling/whatever machine but even there I only here the machine noises, nothing else. Saved and exited, enough from bad news for today.

I'm playing in 5.1 mode.

[kamm]

I only here = I only heAR

[Makou107]

I registered and searched around just for this answer and almost thought "I'm sure I'll be the only one wondering this as well" Glad to be wrong!

I tested Stereo, Surround, and Pro Logic. Surround and Pro Logic sound great but the audio direction is off. Stereo is fine but no "3D sound" or surround sound when using it. Until then I guess I'm stuck with Stereo unless someone has a fix or an idea.

ps ADD IT IN A PATCH PLEASE!

[Caillin]

Hi guys, just registered to give you some info. Have spent the last day playing with settings and have come up with the best combo for good positional audio with headphones on an X-Fi.

Make sure that your EAX and CMSS3D are turned on in the creative console in windows.
In Bioshock, set the speaker setting to (Quad). This is also the setting that worked the best with HL2 when it came out, by sending the X-Fi the correct positional coords and letting it do the HRTF functions.
Turn the reverb off, and make sure that EAX is enabled.

These settings are the best I can get after playing around with many different combos. The developers (from a sound perspective) have made it obvious by settings such as these that it was developed from a console point of view.

I think this is the best we are going to get out of the FMOD sound processing for this game.

[GlasWolf]

I have a Creative Audigy 2 and Creative 5.1 speaker system, but don't get any output to the front speaker whether I'm on 5.1 or surround. On 5.1 this means that there's a "hole" at the front of the audio placement, which affects weapon and plasmid sounds. I don't have any Creative apps installed, just the driver. Can anyone confirm that they're getting sound from their front speaker so I know whether it's worth starting to mess around with my PC.

[bcwang]

I tried QUAD last night, it does do better 3d now with headphones. However it seems like some of the sounds come from the wrong side. Now, when the radio calls out for you to grab it, I hear it from the back right where before it was from the left.

In Bioshock, set the speaker setting to (Quad). This is also the setting that worked the best with HL2 when it came out, by sending the X-Fi the correct positional coords and letting it do the HRTF functions.
Turn the reverb off, and make sure that EAX is enabled.

[bcwang]

I registered and searched around just for this answer and almost thought "I'm sure I'll be the only one wondering this as well" Glad to be wrong!

I tested Stereo, Surround, and Pro Logic. Surround and Pro Logic sound great but the audio direction is off. Stereo is fine but no "3D sound" or surround sound when using it. Until then I guess I'm stuck with Stereo unless someone has a fix or an idea.

ps ADD IT IN A PATCH PLEASE!

I've tested QUAD and it also sounds like some sounds are coming from the wrong direction.

[Caillin]

Yes, after playing last night, I can only come to the concolusion that the sound systems if just plain buggered for headphones. The quad setting is by far the best, but annoyingly, there are two many parts where a sound source is coming from the wrong direction. What makes this really annoying, is that about 70% of the sounds are perfectly sourced, and the rest are just complete messed up.

What is the go with this game? My only thought was the sound engine testing was done on 5.1 speakers, and problems like these weren't picked up, because honestly, a good pair of headphones is going to crap all over 5.1 for sound immersion, but hey, who uses headphones on a console?

[Caillin]

Just a bump for this thread so one of the tech support staff could clue us in.

What exactly is the recommended setting for headphones using an X-Fi (CMSS3d)?

[Tahnit]

id like to know as well.

[Pablosb]

What exactly is the recommended setting for headphones using an X-Fi (CMSS3d)?

Can someone from 2K answer this PLEASE?

Thanks in advance.

[Blah72]

I dont understand why you want a headphone setting? I have tested it extensivley with my fairly expensive pair of headphones, and i can honestly using the headphone setting makes it sound like utter ☺☺☺☺ in all games i have tested, as well as music in winamp. do not use it. I have my settings all set to 2.1 speaker config in the windows control panel and the creative one and in all in game settings.

Setting all the options to headphone makes the sound sound all boxed in and crappy imo. Setting to 2.1 speakers gives amazing sound. Just leave the Bioshock sound set to Stereo.

[Pablosb]

I dont understand why you want a headphone setting? I have tested it extensivley with my fairly expensive pair of headphones, and i can honestly using the headphone setting makes it sound like utter ☺☺☺☺ in all games i have tested, as well as music in winamp. do not use it. I have my settings all set to 2.1 speaker config in the windows control panel and the creative one and in all in game settings.

Setting all the options to headphone makes the sound sound all boxed in and crappy imo. Setting to 2.1 speakers gives amazing sound. Just leave the Bioshock sound set to Stereo.

Which soundcard are you using? Games with SoundBlaster X-Fi support and CMSS3D sounds great with headphones

Best regards

[Caillin]

I dont understand why you want a headphone setting? I have tested it extensivley with my fairly expensive pair of headphones, and i can honestly using the headphone setting makes it sound like utter ☺☺☺☺ in all games i have tested, as well as music in winamp. do not use it. I have my settings all set to 2.1 speaker config in the windows control panel and the creative one and in all in game settings.

Setting all the options to headphone makes the sound sound all boxed in and crappy imo. Setting to 2.1 speakers gives amazing sound. Just leave the Bioshock sound set to Stereo.

Mate, you truly don't know much about HRTF clearly. Read http://forums.overclockers.com.au/sh...highlight=hrtf and download the Binaural files I hosted and then tell me you don't see the benefits of game companies spending time to code for headphones properly.

The ability to do it properly has been around for many years. Developers just don't give a ☺☺☺☺, or they just don't even know about the possibilities. BF2 with an XFi is the closest thing we've had in the last few years to good positional audio in a game. Seems a shame that games like Bioshock come so close, but fark up enough source positioning to ruin the experience.

[Caillin]

Oh, and after looking through the FMOD forums, who are the developers of the Audio engine that Bioshock uses (and games like world of warcraft), it seems there not even interested in doing a proper HRTF implementation with their audio engines.

[bcwang]

Guys, have you experimented with disabling "sync with control panel" for the speaker type? Then setting the windows audio speaker type to 5.1 or 7.1, leaving the x-fi control panel on headphone, and setting the game to 5.1 or 7.1.

I've tried that with 6ch movies and it does positioning correctly, but then again with furthur experimenting I don't know if the windows audio speaker type does anything really. I set it to laptop mono and played a stereo file and it was still in stereo.

I have a feeling that when the 3d headphone is on, it is supposed to virtualize 5.1 sources like movie soundtracks into a surround setup. However, with games that might take direct control of the sound card using openal, none of the windows settings might matter.

I feel that 5.1 mode sounds different from headphone mode in the windows audio speaker settings when playing a movie, but they both do sound 3d. So that's why I'm pretty confused about the whole thing. But definitely, if Bioshock had a headphone setting in the future it would eliminate the confusion with the best audio setting. Right now Quad sounds the most 3d, but it's also the most confused sounding, with pretty much all back sounds coming from the back right no matter what.

[bioshocksound]

I used to love using cmss3D heaphones, the immersion it creates is just phenomenal. For some reason I stopped using it. I guess wearing my uncomfortable hi-fi headphones while gaming gets a bit annoying after a while.

When I got Bioshock It hit me how great the pairing of X-fi's 3D headphone technology would be with this game. It's like they were made together ! This games creepy sound track is the perfect pair for cmss3D. Then I find out about these issues... go figure.

PATCH THIS PLEASE !!!!!!

[shockbio1]

I sent an email to FMOD, (the system which bioshock's sound is based). Here is his reply to my questions about why the sound sources do not come from the right direction.

"The FMOD engine has a software mixed engine that developers use to get more flexibility and features out of audio than hardware can provide. The fmod software engine does have some basic hrtf type functionality but it has to be turned on by the developer.

Because it does not use hardware , it is probably not going to work with your cmss3d functionality. It is not an issue to be fixed, it’s a feature that hasn’t been added yet."

It makes me wonder if this is a feature they need to add to 2K games needs to add.