Arma 2 Sound Modding 101.

[Goeth]

Hi there fellas.

I would like to drop something here also, iv´e noticed that db values don´t work anymore, example

begin1[] = {"\HiFi_GAU8_Auto\GAU8_s1", 1.77828, 1, 3000};

The first value in this case 1.77828 don´t work anymore, no matter what you put there, 1.77828 or db+20 etc it doesn´t change the volume level ingame anymore.

Or maybe im just doing it wrong?

[.kju [PvPscene]]

It was never about volume, was it?
It was how far the sound traveled before no longer being possible to hear.

No?

[andersson]

Yes.

That is the "strenght" it has ingame, not the volume. So it affects how far the sound travels. If you put the soundsource close to you you shouldnt notice any difference tweaking that value. Try to put your soundsource 1 km away from you and tweak. If you want to change the dB change your sample.

edit:
Ofcourse the distance to the soundsource depends on what you are tweaking When I was tweaking the reloads for HiFi I had the soldier reloading his gun next to me, 5 m away and 20 m away. Then I tweaked until I could here it good next to me, could hear it 5 m away and couldnt 20 m away.

[TangoRomeo]

Hi there fellas.

I would like to drop something here also, iv´e noticed that db values don´t work anymore, example

The first value in this case 1.77828 don´t work anymore, no matter what you put there, 1.77828 or db+20 etc it doesn´t change the volume level ingame anymore.

Or maybe im just doing it wrong?

Don't quote me on it, but i think it sets the volume in relation to other sounds playing at the same time. This way you could set a dominant sound within a set of samples being played.

[andersson]

Don't quote me on it, but i think it sets the volume in relation to other sounds playing at the same time. This way you could set a dominant sound within a set of samples being played.

Also right, forgot that If two sounds are being played at the same time close to you the one with higher dB is heard more even if they have the same sample dB. So an explosion with high dB should make other sounds less audible or even silent. Another example is when you shoot or a tank rolls by the insects get silent as they have a very low dB.

edit: the use of dB shouldnt be used to tweak the volume itself, soundmodders should do that through the wss files. dB value is for the soundengine only. Else strange things can happen, for example hearing crickets while flying a chopper..

[TangoRomeo]

When lets say missile launch is heard all over the terrain (like 10km away) like it was right on top of you, what sound config value is wrong (too high?) in this situation?

Is there some guidelines of sound volumes on the config, or does it relate too much for the actual wss sound level and only can be tweaked by trial and error?

Try decreasing the coloured values.
i.e. sound[] = {"\TRSM_Tracked_Vehicles\SFX\Fuel_Explosion.ogg ", 31.6228, 1, 1000};

[Mark XIII]

Excellent input so far guys...Really happy to see so many people exchanging infomation

[vo.2]

edit: the use of dB shouldnt be used to tweak the volume itself, soundmodders should do that through the wss files. dB value is for the soundengine only. Else strange things can happen, for example hearing crickets while flying a chopper..

The crickets are audible because theres no occlusion sound entry anymore and the inside sound entry is set quite high.
Did not try if its still functional yet, but might be worth a try for RH i.e.

This is an example of my latest ArmA1 config for the UH60 which worked out best.

    		insideSoundCoef = 0.001;
    		occludeSoundsWhenIn = 0.02;
		obstructSoundsWhenIn = 0.02;

[andersson]

When I tweaked the environment dB for HiFi I got rid of the crickets while flying without making them more silent when alone with them.
Occlude blocks the sounds yes, but if the dB is big enough between the sounds the lower will disapear.

(If Im not totally making a fool out of me now..?)

[Mark XIII]

Sorry Tango I had to

Don't quote me on it, but i think it sets the volume in relation to other sounds playing at the same time. This way you could set a dominant sound within a set of samples being played.

Unless this feature has change drastically, I'm sure that the dominate volume wins out over those set lower. If I recall, any tiny change to things like footsteps, enviroment etc would make for extreme changes ingame.

I'd say we all need to play with these settings simply because the default sound configs don't seem to have had much ingame testing. I'd say thats why we have in birds hiding in your choppers and general wierdness in certain situations (sound cut outs / extreme distortion).

I suggest that if you find something that works well, post it here. If we're all going to making addons in the future some sort of volume 'standard' would be a good idea too. From my own personal point of view, I can relay info on aircraft volumes, because thats what I'm working on.

For now my maxium volume over distance settings are as follows:

Av8b= 4500m
A10= 4000m
C130=6000m

Su25=4000m
Su34=5000m

These settings are for the main engine sound. the other 2 sounds engine_high & engine_low I'm currently playing with. I can share the A10 setting's as I'm happy with them right now:

EngineLowOut {"\HiFi_BIS_A10\A10_Ext_Engine_Low", 45.2387, 1.0, 700}
^^This sound you should hear last, its the rumble or 'jet wash' you get when an aircraft makes as it gets closer to your position.

EngineHighOut {"\HiFi_BIS_A10\A10_Ext_Engine_High", 25.2387, 1.0, 1100}
^^This is the 'throttle' sound, the sound activates when you apply acceleration as well as sounding at other (from what I can tell) drastic stick movements ? Had to define when you start to hear it but somewhere between the two others gives me the best results during a flyby.

ForsageOut {"\HiFi_BIS_A10\A10_Ext_Engine_Idle", 40.2387, 1.0, 4000}
^^This is the main engine sound, this kicks in as the the engine_start sound is fading out and plays a constant loop until you stop the engine or it gets destroyed.
Hope someone finds that helpful