Hi guys, I'm in the process of revamping the rig and I'm trying to make things as immersive as possible with a fairly modest budget. Sound is going to be a huge part of the experience, so the question is, what is the absolute pinnacle of what is possible in regards to sound? For example are we able to make sounds from the rear tires or a rear engined car have sound come out of the rear speakers etc? If not, is there any benefit whatsoever in surround sound over a good set of headphones (especially taking price into consideration)? Not that there is a heck of a lot of bass in rF2, but I was also planning to put a very beefy subwoofer I own hard up against the seat to possibly get a slight amount of vibration (probably won't do much but worth a try). Thanks.
As this thread, I've personally never found proper surround support in rF2. I have a 4.0 setup only but I've had it working nicely in other games, rF2 has given me reverb (off close walls) in the rear speakers but nothing else. No positional audio for close cars, nothing on trackside cams, no difference between rear and front engine cars. If rF2 is your main thing, go the headphones. Let's take the punt that by the time rF2 does it properly, you'll be happy to stump up again for the speakers.
I agree with Lazza but would add a buttkicker powered by simhub. I think it's one of the most cost effective and simple things to really add to the experience. In some sense it makes sounds which are physics generated - the vibrations through the rig give off that familiar rumbly resonance you get in a real car when you hit bumps. When they're dialled in properly they're not noticeable, just subtle and hugely immersive. You can do some really cool things like add multiple RPM channels at different frequencies and rpm band which overlap to simulate the resonant effects of different engine types and that 'honing' feeling you get as an engine gets into the power band. There are 3 basic sizes which Buttkicker make: Mini / gamer - Perfectly good and well worth the money. AdvanceBK4 - somewhere in between Then the LFE - which is kinda like a DD equivalent in that it has a huge dynamic range. You'll also need a second sound card like the Xonar DGX.
Thanks, I think that will have to be somewhere on the cards in the future, sounds like what I need. I tried last night to turn the bass gain and frequency way higher than I would usually have it, and it didn't quite sound right because it wasn't really actual bass, more like mid tones forced to come through the subwoofer. I turned it down a little, and it was better compared to normal bass level, but still not that deep rumble. Buttkicker bight be the only way to get that resonance.
