descenterace on 25/3/2006 at 10:23
Which is why we have stuff like EAX and Aureal3D (or whatever it's called). In Headphone mode, sound behind you is dampened.
Fig455 on 25/3/2006 at 11:08
Sony Studio headphones FTW!
Zerker on 25/3/2006 at 18:03
Thanks for explaining my point in better detail, theBlackMan, you're the best :) But yes, as descenterance states, headphones mode for most 3D sound cards attempts to take this into account. I personally have never had trouble distingushing things in front or behind me when playing thief, so it must be working fairly well, or maybe your example of a muffled guard behind some machinery is uncommon enough that it never makes a difference.
theBlackman on 26/3/2006 at 03:54
EAX and other "enhanced" systems don't do too bad a job. But I've noticed in some shoot 'em ups, that if your opponents are across the street and there is a truck driving between you, another guy can easily sneak up behind you.
The new BOSE 123 systems are fantastic and give full surround sound without multiple speakers, but having a pair (or three) in front and the same behind really puts earphones to shame even with the enhanced "effects" for surround sound.
I don't knock anyone or any set of earphones, I just get more real-life "feel" from a full set of speakers.
This is particularly noticeable with things like a door opening behind you, or the scuff of footprints on sand etc. Things just below the game ambient.
descenterace on 26/3/2006 at 12:16
/me makes mental note to get some better speakers upon leaving Uni.
This Creative P580 set is OK usually, but not very powerful. The sub is much beefier than the satellites (when I turn up the volume, the satellite speakers begin to distort long before the sub does) but really can't compete with most modern budget systems.
Two years ago I wouldn't've cared much about speaker quality. Now that I actually understand something about how power relates to quality, I'm thinking I should upgrade.
Para?noid on 26/3/2006 at 13:19
Personally, I'd advise one of those studio models turned home audio headphones like the Beyerdynamic DT-250. A flat, neutral response is what you faggots need even if you think you don't.
Also, headphones are like sonic magnifying glasses. They present to you all the detail in horrifically obvious stereo- speakers are much more comfortable for extended listening and a more 'organic' listening experience plus the obvious benefits, but there are also issues like room acoustics to bear in mind.
krummi on 26/3/2006 at 14:01
Quote Posted by descenterace
This Creative P580 set is OK usually, but not very powerful. The sub is much beefier than the satellites (when I turn up the volume, the satellite speakers begin to distort
long before the sub does) but really can't compete with most modern budget systems.
The whole problem with these out of the box 5.1 speaker sets is that there usually isnt a speaker element for middle range. Theres a sub and tiny tweeters, this sucks for music listening. And this is why one spends money on a proper amp and speakers.
About the thread topic, Ive never got used to headphones. Havent found ones that can be used for long perioids of time with comfort.
Soldier! on 26/3/2006 at 14:13
When something explodes nearby in game, or if I'm using shotgun or whatever else would realistically create alot of noise and concussion, I like the the effect a bass woofer has in emulating that concussion.
It gives the game experience a lot more depth for me.
So I only use headphones if I don't want to disturb the neighbours!:cheeky:
"This week I will be mostly playin' FPS's....":ebil:
Live on 26/3/2006 at 14:39
For any game where positional sound is a factor (ie: any kind of first person POV), then I can only sum up my feelings as,
headphones! headphones! headphones! headphones! headphones!
Sometimes, in a game, I like to pause for a while and close my eyes, and then spin the mouse and guess which direction a sound is coming from. I'd say I'm right about 90% of the time, which just shows how good headphones are.
And yes, for games like Thief they really add to the ambience. Not just in immersiveness, but for practical things like hearing when a guard has walked past a door and stuff...
oudeis on 26/3/2006 at 22:43
l prefer speakers, though l can't say l've ever used any of the higher-quality headphones, or one of the '5.1' surround models. l'm very picky about sound quality, both in music and in games- l didn't like 'age of mythology' because the sound design was so piss-poor- so when l upgraded my sound card and speakers from my current turtle beach santa cruz/logitech thx z5300e setup l went tall and got an x-fi music and the klipsch promedia ultra 5.1s. full-range drivers just can't compete with a tweeter/mid-range setup. fortunately for me my apartment is just over the boiler room, otherwise l would have a lot of problems with any downstairs neighbors :p .
