[SoFGR]

I've always been a fan of this x-fi feature (STRICTLY for gaming) but as my headphone collection expands i find my self keep switching it off and on, i even tried playing CSS with the "right" settings ( 5.1 in windows control panel, headphone cmss3d in creative panel, snd_surround speakers 5, snd_digital_surround 1 ) but i just can't stand the distortion, i mean c'mon i didn't pay 160$ for my headphones ( A700,DT770/80 and AKG 601 by the time my compass arrives ) to make them sound like 20$ ones, in some games like cs 1.6 and cod2 i've discovered that my beyers help me hear footsteps and pinpoint enemy locations without any fancy settings, just headphones and cmss3d off.

On the other hand when i tried cryostasis demo/bioshock/cod4 i was dissapointed, be it stereo and cmss3d off or 5.1 and cmss3d on i still find it difficult to get good RELIABLE 3d sound, the only trick i've discovered with the help of google in order to make cmss3d sound decent was setting 2.1/2.0 speaker instead of headphones in creative panel + a tweaked 90 degree thxconsole ini and 5.1 ingame, but then the elevation filter stops working

Am i missing something ? should i ditch cmss altogether and keep using the x-fi for its hardware openAL and EAX support ?

 

[Toby M]

What sort of distortion do you mean exactly?

I've found the X-fi's 3D headphone feature works pretty well in most games, including source engine games, on my D2000s. If you don't like the sound I don't think theres much you can do about it other than turn it off. Presumably the quality of the 3D sound depends largely on its implementation in the game to start with, which will vary from game to game.

If anyone does know of a way to improve it though I'd be keen to give it a try too.

 

[SoFGR]

bass loses impact(you hear it but you can no longer "feel" it ), shotgun blasts and rifle bursts in L4D sound like crap, positioning is much more reliable though ( 5.1 ingame + cmss3d headphone enabled VS left4dead headphones setting + cmss3d headphone off ) maybe my phones need more juice ( dt770/80 pro amped by pa2v2 ) btw which is the "correct" windows mixer main volume setting when using an amp ? 100% or 50% ?

Here's a practical test for everyone that has a copy of good old ut2004 handy, install tactical ops crossfire 1.93 mod and run the sound test map, it features 3 rooms, in the first one footsteps play on center channel all the time, in the second the sound of footsteps is costantly looping and keeps moving around your head, and in the third one you can hear what footsteps sound like when they are lower/higher than your position.

I still think that cmss3d is a very helpful feature, it can even provide me surround sound in console ports like GTAIV and bioshock if i set their ingame audio to multichannel instead of stereo, how cool is that ?

maybe it will have a weaker negative impact on SQ when i move on to compass + akg601 who knows

 

[Toby M]

Hmm I just tried it in L4D, I didn't notice much bass loss in game. I certainly heard a volume difference, but turning the volume up a couple of notches with CMSS 3D on yielded the same amount of bass for me. I thought the positioning was a lot clearer with CMSS 3D headphone mode on. I do agree L4D doesn't have particularly punchy gun sounds to start with however.

I did hear more of a difference out of game. Try this - go to your steamapps/common/left 4 dead/left4dead/sound/weapons folder and play some of the wav files for the gun sounds. They do sound punchier with it off. In game I didn't notice this - perhaps because the game is applying surround effects to it even with CMSS 3D off.

I didn't find the bass boost very helpful here. It just makes it sound boomy not impactful. However I did try the Crystalizer, which seemed to help substantially. It also seemed to improve the effect of some conservative bass boost when used in conjunction. For me this made the guns in L4D sound quite a bit punchier in game while maintaining clear 3D positioning. Obviously this isn't a setup you'd contemplate for music but it sounded a bit more fun in-game.

Try it out if you haven't already and lemme know what you think. On mine its certainly a general volume difference not a bass difference.

 

[iriverdude]

Sounds best with both disabled CMSS and Crystalizer.

 

[Toby M]

Quote:

Originally Posted by iriverdude /img/forum/go_quote.gif Sounds best with both disabled CMSS and Crystalizer.

Except for the pissweak bass impact in L4D. Obviously it will sound best in the objective sense with less processing but if you want punchy guns and good positioning I see no reason not to use both. I don't think anyone is too worried about achieving the ultimate in audiophile clarity in FPS games. Even if you turn all this stuff off the game is still processing the sound. CMSS 3D certainly confers a significant gameplay advantage in FPS-world, plus it's just more fun.

 

[43st]

CMSS Headphone virtualizes 5.1 at a much higher quality than either L4D's 2 channel or headphone mode. But you're right about the bass drop out. You can try compensating for it with the bass boost or perhaps EQ in the control panel.

I have no idea why one would be distortion with CMSS on, something is clipping in the DSP or is broken in some other fashion. Maybe a botched driver install or fried hardware, I have no idea.

 

[necropimp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SoFGR /img/forum/go_quote.gif i even tried playing CSS with the "right" settings ( 5.1 in windows control panel, headphone cmss3d in creative panel

you realize the windows control panel and the x-fi control panel are linked... when you change it to 5.1ch in the windows control panel it changes to 5.1 in the x-fi panel then then you switch to headphones in the x-fi panel it switches to headphones in the windows control panel

 

[Netherwind]

Quote:

Originally Posted by necropimp /img/forum/go_quote.gif you realize the windows control panel and the x-fi control panel are linked... when you change it to 5.1ch in the windows control panel it changes to 5.1 in the x-fi panel then then you switch to headphones in the x-fi panel it switches to headphones in the windows control panel

theres a check box 'sync with windows control panel' you can untick for the right settings in xp

 

[Toby M]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Netherwind /img/forum/go_quote.gif theres a check box 'sync with windows control panel' you can untick for the right settings in xp

They two aren't necessarily linked in Vista either. I have my X-fi set to 5.1 in Windows sound settings and headphone in the X-fi control panel. The headphone mode won't work unless the game and windows are sending a 5.1 signal to the soundcard, which then downmixes it to the two channel simulated 3d headphone mode.

 

[SoFGR]

i've tried adjusting sound mixer and amp volume in cs 1.6 while keeping everything else at 100% and cmss3d on, it seems that 75-80% is the sweet spot for main master volume, anything higher and my usp&shotgun will sound like ass no matter the other volume settings( haven't tried adjusting wave volume though, that's supposed to be constantly at 100% )

Hope this fixes some really annoying clipping in heard in L4D and goldeneye source, try the second part in no mercy campaign, it's really noticeable in that room where you man that gattling gun while zombies keep coming from the window and that hole behind you

 

[spacemanspliff]

Um, try this, skip the cmss, crystalizer, turn volume to 100% if u have a headphone amp, set speakers to 7.1 in vista sound and to headphones in x-fi. Try it. Even with digital output being stereo, I think I get better directional sound w/ headphones. Maybe I am off but it sure seems to work with my setup.

 

[SoFGR]

no dice, i guess it's a problem with source's sound engine because even with every x-fi feature turned off i get distortion in that particular level, nice tip though, i've used that config on CSS a few weeks ago, 5.1 ingame snd_digital_surround 0 and cmss3d off, i'm on xp tho, snd_Digital_surround 0/snd_legacy_surround 1 gives you problems in vista according to creative unless you use ALchemy

One last question, do you think open cans with like akg 601s have good synergy with headphone cmss3d or does it make them sound worse?(gaming wise) one thing that i hate on cmss3d when using it with my beyers is that it makes everything sound more distant, yes airplanes flying over my head in bf2 sound awesome that way, and sounds in front and behind me are more defined but still footsteps sound distant even when someone is very close to me

 

[SoFGR]

update: tried akg601 + compass, same problem, KF7 soviet shotguns and dt44 in goldensource won't stop sounding like fartcannons unless I drop my master volume down to 75% regardless of compass's volume knob position, no problems to report in audio-creation mode since i use it only with bitmatched playback and ASIO so adjusting wave and master volume output does nothing.

 

[43st]

Thanks for the update SoFGR.. it's a shame you're still having issues.

May I suggest a clean driver install for your X-fi (either Creative or Auzentech). The trick to this is to use the OEM CD to remove the old Creative drivers. The application path is Drivers/Setup.exe. When run this program it will give you an option to delete all old drivers, be sure to do this. Then reboot and install the latest drivers.