[lukeman3000]

Hello head-fi -

I have a fairly nice computer and a decent set of headphones (DT-990 pro).

Previously, I was using a Sound Blaster Z and the included SBX Pro Studio virtual surround sound software for use in games. However, for some unknown reason, my Sound Blaster Z stopped working yesterday, and I went back into the bios to enable the realtek onboard audio (shudder).

1. Is there anything wrong with using my onboard audio over the Sound Blaster Z? Does the SBZ in some way give me superior sound?

2. If I decide to stick with onboard audio, what virtual surround sound solution do you recommend? I am aware of Windows Sonic, Dolby Atmos, Creative MB3, Razer Surround, and also "out of your head" by Fong Audio (though I have no experience with this).

There are so many options and I just have no clue whatsoever as to which I should be using. Or is it deemed better to keep everything stereo? Are games using their own HRTFs at this point? Would it be clearly stated somewhere if this was the case for x, y, or z game? I know that CS:GO now has built-in HRTF but I remember thinking they weren't that great, so I kept them turned off and continued to use SBX instead.

Anyways, despite what knowledge I possess on this subject (more than your normal PC gamer), I find it very mystifying and not really "laid out" with any good authority. Seems to be something that is not discussed very much, as if no one really cares about it. I've done a lot of google searches, reddit searches, etc. and everything I find is extremely anecdotal (e.g., "Windows Sonic sucks, Atmos is better" or "Atmos makes everything sound muddy, Sonic is better") - like seriously, it's crazy.

And then there's the issue of not knowing exactly how to set up my realtek audio options when using a virtual surround software. Do I want it set to headphone, 5.1, or 7.1? Even if realtek is set to headphone, will the game still output 5.1 and thus the virtual surround sound software will get the information it needs to downmix the 5.1 into 2-channel with appropriate HRTF?

This stuff just isn't really discussed very much from what I can see, and it's really frustrating. Sound in gaming is an area that seems to be very lacking, for whatever reason.

 

[MagnetMadness]

I spent the last few days pouring over the same thing you are, and tried the following trials / sound cards / virtual sound cards.

Razer Surround
Dolby Atmos for headphones
Windows Sonic
3D Sound One
Spatial Sound Card (from New Audio Technologies) (link)
Sounblaster x-fi with CMSS-3D

Personally I've ended up using Spatial Sound Card (its on steam, or a trial here).

Why I like spatial sound card:

Its a virtual surround card that tries to mimic real life studious. So, it is supposed to sound like you are in a room with 7.1 or 5.1. You can jump between different studios in different areas and pick which you like best. It's kind of like going through HRTF options. Anyway, it does a great job of processing 5.1 or 7.1 and is very customizable and I don't have to worry much about how well the game programmers did their job on the audio. However, if the game has great headphone support, I might turn it off. I usually don't, since most games don't have great headphone modes. I also like how the spacial sound card can output to any device.

My chain is <Spacial Sound Card , output set to Schiit Fulla USB dac/amp> then my headphones plugged into my Schiit Fulla. I use the schiit fulla volume knob.

The spacial sound card is set up as 7.1 or 5.1 as you like, and windows will see it as a real 7.1 system. You can verify this by going to 'configure speakers' and doing the 7.1 test tone.
The Schiit Fulla is set to stereo as it is ignorant to the fact SSC is doing a 7.1 to headphone simulation).

Battlefield 1, for example, sounds best if I set speakers to surround. For me switching off all surround sound software and using the game's headphone mode is a less enjoyable experience. Now I do turn spacial sound card off if I'm messing with VR or Steam Audio's custom HRTF.

Steam Audio running on UE4. It's audio recorded from a demonstration but it is STILL awesome. But it is up to developers to start implementing it. I can play around with it in Unity and it is great.


I'd be happy to do some video capture if there is interest.