System of the Year

[Tracer]

we'd be fronttalkin' instead of sidetalkin' *gasp*

[FirstBlood]

I hope dhowerter front-talks a shotgun blast into his face.

Hell, he could side-talk it for all I care... as long as there is a shotgun and dhowerter's head involved, I'm happy.

[Damian79]

Yeah, I also put all my speakers right around my head and I make sure that I can hear everything.

The way sound comes to our ear is not direct. Sound is just like light in a sense, the further away it is the less you hear and our ears are shaped to hear the most from the front half rather than the back half. Though that is not to say it isn't more realistic to have sound from a game comind from behind you be aslo from behind the character in the game. Just not as clear.

[Tracer]

I voted Xbox btw... but PC was a remarkably close consideration.

[dhowerter]

Oh brother OK firstly sound is heard clearer when it travels straight from the source (say a speaker) right in front of you. It is true sounds are heard from sources not directly in front of you (obviously) BUT there is no earhole on the BACK of your ear

The sound from behind you, for example, has to bounce on walls and other objects before it gets to your ear and of course since the sound directly in front of you gets to your ear first and without bouncing around it IS clearer and less muffled/distinct than sound that has to bounce around the room before it enters your ear.

Geez youd think you "experts" on Surround sound would know the basics of how the ear works (cough hack Firstblood hack)

Firstblood - Congratulations on looking like a complete moron for trying to deny the laws of physics (ie. Sound waves degrade and are less distinct and more muffled/less clear sounding the longer the time it takes to get from the speaker to your ear canal. Obviously it takes longer to get to your ear bouncing around the room before it goes into your ear as opposed to the sound right in front of you going straight from speaker to ear

Cripe anyway all that was just to support the statement that Dolby 5.1 is not ALL that

diffusionX - oh yeah and I know most of the sound is from the center channel in 5.1 but I was talknig about the sound that comes from the rear speakers

[Sl1p]

This kid is HILARIOUS!

BEST. GIMMICK. ACCOUNT. EVER.

[Mamoscott]

I also want to add that you're NOT telling the truth, you're telling us a biased, fanboyish, completely-wrong version of the truth in your eyes.

You're not telling the truth either, so what's the difference? All online games have immature assholes. It's a fact, and Xbox Live is no exception.

See, because people with Xbox Live are mature people.

http://www.gamertagpics.com/profile....ag=Bomberdaddy
http://www.gamertagpics.com/profile....TWC%20SqUaTiNg
http://www.gamertagpics.com/profile....g=SpiffyMarlin

I rest my case.

[dhowerter]

slip - if you're talking about me, then I have just one thing to say:
Try and have at least some understanding of how audio physics works before making stupid comments that show how little you know.

Same goes for all of you "THERE is no way anything could sound better than 5.1 even with lots of sound coming from the rear speakers" fanboys Sigh...

I know people will probably flame me for stating these things ,but its nice to know that Xbox and 5.1 fanboys cant change the laws of physics

[dog$]

Correct.

In dhowerter's world, a videogame which wants to simulate audio coming from an area that's not directly in front of the player's face will sound better bouncing from behind the player as opposed to actually having speakers there.

Crazy physics, I know, but it works. Because it's fun. His planet's physics also affect gravity, you should see the crazy amount of weight this motherfugger can bench.

[MarkRyan]

Real life would be better if all sound was directed at me from the front. Then I'd have no fucking clue that there's a car behind me that's about to run me over, or that a bird is flying over head and about to drop a load in my direction.

There's a reason why you can hear stuff behind you and you can tell that it's behind you.

Most games don't take advantage of surround sound, even if they support it, but no game ever sounds worse in surround sound than if it were from just a couple of speakers in front of you. Having an orchestral score surround you while you explore can completely immerse you in a game, unlike a regular one or two speaker set-up. Any sound effects that surround you will immerse you tons more than if they're just in front of you.

And then of course some games do take full advantage of surround sound (not every game needs to). Games like SOCOM, where you can hear where enemy gun fire is coming from...even if it's behind you. Surround sound support is an awesome feature, and why anyone would argue against it is beyond me.