Improved Engine Sound

[RacingFreak2k3]

I think both are important when it comes to game audio. A realistic tire sound with crappy engine sound will ruin a game more than a crappy tire sound with genuine engine sound but it'll still ruin the overall sound quality of the game. Another one would be car crashes. Remember GT3 when the crashes sounded like someone from PD just took 2 metal blocks and slapped them together and recorded the sound? I guess I'm a lot more picky than most people when it comes to the little details but, to me, the little details are what seperate a good game from a great game.






This is the reason why I'm not going to make any final judgement on engine sounds until I hear/see some high quality audio/video of the gameplay without all the stupid music drowning out the game audio. Volume is very important in determining this, in my opinion. A real life F430 is loud at WOT so in order to judge how accurate the F430 in GT5 sounds compared to it's real life counterpart, the volume would have to be turned up to match that of it's real life counterpart at WOT.

Forza 2 has pretty accurate engine sounds compared to any other console racing games but only when I turned the volume up. When I play at night with the volume turned down, the engine sounds are just weak and doesn't sound very realistic. Best engine sound so far in Forza 2, in my opinion, is that of the Porsche Carrera GT. 👍

Yes I agree Forza 2 has some great sounds overall, as well as the NFS series. Yes GT is improving, but as you said, until I can turn up the volume and hear it first hand, I'm not completely convinced.

 

[Laorin]

You can buy a good 5.1 system for $400?? That's redicioules!

I digress.

"good" is subjective, but I've found Logitech's z5500 has been absolutely fantastic for gaming. I don't need to spend $839020000 in order to get a bit-perfect surround sound setup.

 

[buickgnx88]

You just gotta love how when you add a custom exhaust on your cars, they suddenly sound exactly the same! I'm sure that adding say a Flowmaster racing muffler on a Chevelle 454 would make it sound more different than say a Mustang 429 rather then making it sound the exact same. Of course there's the excuse about being too much to record, but all they need to do (this was mentioned before) is record stock and racing exhaust sounds on a real car, then use a computer to adjust the sound between the two for the other exhausts.

 

[Quiet_Storm]

I just saw a couple of videos of the gameplay demonstration and I'm a little worried about the American car sounds for GT5. I'm hoping my ears are just playing trick on me but I could've sworn I heard a Viper V10 Vacuum cleaner racing side with an F430. The volume was low but the Ferrari still sounded like a Ferrari should, just not with the grunt if the volume was louder. The Viper just reminded me of how the Viper sounded in GT4. I'm hoping my ears heard wrong but if it didn't, then boy is this going to be a huge disappointment.

I also watched the other video and it seems like Kazunori is more worried about the realistic stitching on the leather interiors how the game LOOKS than he is about the sounds or how the game will play. Please, don't let this be a prettier GT4 game!

 

[buickgnx88]

I agree with Quiet_Storm, we need better sounding American cars! If they want them all to sound like vacuum cleaners, then why not just include motherfudging vacuum cleaners!
And of course the leather stitching must be accurate because otherwise the game would be a disaster and Kaz wouldn't have the will to live anymore!

 

[BigdaddyGT]

I agree with Quiet_Storm, we need better sounding American cars! If they want them all to sound like vacuum cleaners, then why not just include motherfudging vacuum cleaners!

So far there is only one car that should sound like a vacuum cleaner:


Anyway, I agree.

 

[greenlightning]

I am sure this has been mentioned before. However might as well say it again. It would be really cool to be able to hear your car start up and idle while in garage menu or during testing etc. Perhaps while in garage mode if you hover over car for say 10 secs or something like that it starts up and the motor revs a little.

 

[Steeda]

^that what they do in Saints Row when scrolling down the garage

 

[PAPPACLART]

Allot of the more typicial car sounds have been recorded on the revious GT's. You must remember tho, if you record the sound of a car from the cockpit it will sound allot different then if you was standing behind the car, and with GT I think they have mixed this up a bit. The best way for them to record the sound of the cars would be to stick them all on a dyno and record them under load etc. from in the car and from behind the car.

A geek programmer could write a simple code that plugs into a PC and interacts with the Dynojet software from the dyno while the car is being run through the gears to collect all the sounds at different RPM's ready to be fed into a ps3.

With ''Next Gen'' gaming, the sound should be stunning, I remember World Superbike CHampionship 2001, made by EA on the PC, the sound was GREAT!!! Things have come along way sinse then so we should not even be having this discussion but sadly we are. PD should get there asses into gear as after all the game is ''the driving simulator'' so what happened to the sounds!!!!!!!!!

 

[sxy rider 39]

I've taken a ride in my uncle's NSX, and I can say that its sound in GT is pretty accurate. The V8 sound effects IMO have always been terrrrrrible in GT though. They've never had that real life deep growl which lets you know from a distance that they have twice the displacement of the ricers. The shifting sounds could stand to be improvemed too IMO, Toca3 had way better shifting SE than GT4.

 

[saint_dracula]

But I have to say that rFactor sounds better. How come GT series is quite so deficient sound-wise? What do they do?

 

[Kryz11]

I have rFactor, I don't think it sounds THAT good over new GT5P

 

[Patrik]

GT5P has much better sound than previous GT's but I think it's far from realistic..

 

[dark_ruffo]

rFactor and some other sims have more layers of sounds, that make them better sound-wise than GT IMHO.

GT is made basically out of 3 sounds: Wind, tyre screech and engine, in that order.

Then you here some turbo noise here, some ripple strips noise there (I don't know how you call those red and whites strips on the road), and that's about it.

GT lacks engine vibration sounds, it is just a neutral noise gradually increasing from 0 to 10k rpm, it also lacks gearbox sounds, suspension sounds, chasis sounds, brake paddles noise, road noise, backfire noise, and so on, don't you think?

 

[RedBaron]

Now GT5p has better sound than ever, but still no fully open throttle sounds, no distinctive sound component for 1000-1500 rpm where V8's has so fantastic growl growing from idle and no distinctive sound component for highest rpm under redline, so M3 sounds so synthetic in upper rev range. And another bad thing is that in air stream behind car at high speed, wind noise is too silent and no separated wheelspin noise sound component is present. But it's long time till final GT5 and we all hope this time they nail it exactly.

 

[saint_dracula]

I mean I saw a video of the Corvette C6 on rfactor and have also seen the Z06 in action in GT5; I mean, there is no comparison. Plus the corvette actually has hud.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atbz5dlN0AQ see what i mean?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFywnHIuTtQ&feature=related (a GT5 vid)

There's no 'throbbing' of the engine; it sounds too linear.
But, without an iota of doubt, GT5 rapes this game graphics-wise.

 

[shawtyoner]

I mean I saw a video of the Corvette C6 on rfactor and have also seen the Z06 in action in GT5; I mean, there is no comparison. Plus the corvette actually has hud.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atbz5dlN0AQ see what i mean?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFywnHIuTtQ&feature=related (a GT5 vid)

There's no 'throbbing' of the engine; it sounds too linear.
But, without an iota of doubt, GT5 rapes this game graphics-wise.

Do you know what I love more about that vid than the sound, the fact that you drive up to and through the toll booth to get onto the Ring, thats great.

 

[saint_dracula]

Exactly how does PD make their engine sounds?

 

[ChadSpeed]

Exactly how does PD make their engine sounds?

I believe they record all the cars in neutral. Also since they have sooooo many cars they are reusing recordings from past games and recycling them. I think they mainly focus on engine, not exhaust sound also.

Other recent games have used a dyno and microphones in the rear by the exhaust, as well as in the engine and cockpit.

 

[Patrik]

they must take this car back in GT5!!!!!! the best sound EVER!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Jay]

I believe they record all the cars in neutral. Also since they have sooooo many cars they are reusing recordings from past games and recycling them. I think they mainly focus on engine, not exhaust sound also.

Other recent games have used a dyno and microphones in the rear by the exhaust, as well as in the engine and cockpit.

PD do take sound recordings from all around the car, engine, exhaust, interior etc. It has been seen in a few screenshots and videos. Yet to have seen them recording under load though.

 

[shawtyoner]

they must take this car back in GT5!!!!!! the best sound EVER!!!!!!!!!!

One of if not THE COOLEST skyline out there, this car NEEDS to be in GT5 for sure, i've seen that BM video over and over just for that segment.

 

[Daz555]

Exactly how does PD make their engine sounds?

I think they visit children's playgroups and ask them to make car noises.

 

[Mr. Boy]

I really hope PD change the methods they use to record engind sounds. We don't want our F2007s sounding like overpowered lawnmowers.

 

[Spec M]

You gotta give it some credit, PS2 vs. 360. Microsoft better be on top when it comes to sound. GT4 has ok sound for its time nothing that really stands out tho.

Shawtyoner: Yes it is, I have that in my collection its the Fuji Fast issue.

 

[kinigitt]

One of if not THE COOLEST skyline out there, this car NEEDS to be in GT5 for sure, i've seen that BM video over and over just for that segment.

hell yes. sounds nice.

cars need some THROAT.

 

[slackbladder]

I am going to be utterly amazed if the cars sound as good as they look. GT5 will/has given us a taste but there is still vast room for improvement.

 

[nobuffalo]

Some YouTube clips I made and have posted elsewhere...

Mustang GT


Corvette Z06


BMW M3


The engines are much throatier than GT4, and are very distinct between different car makes, but the tires are still way too loud and tend to overtake the engine noise. Bumper cam gives the best engine audio, but the "airflow" sound kicks in too much at medium/high speed. My observations and clips are based on default settings for audio, so I may need to fiddle a bit with those and report back.

Sorry but I can't recall how the last two vids sounded. I'm on a school computer and it doesn't have speakers. If I remember correctly the video of the mustang sounded pretty amazing. When listened to on a good sound system with nice amounts of bass I think it's kinda hard to deny that the engine, or car, sounds have been improved upon greatly.

 

[raymagnu]

The main problem with sounds on big games like GT and Forza is that the gameplaycontent and graphicmapping and car-detail and so on take so much space of the Disc, witch mean they comprimise with compressing the sounds, this is also common on DVD films. This is a specialy noticable on enginesound because there is alot of "breathing" and "crancking" and "tiking" witch the human ear can't realy hear. The problem really is that the human ear can hear when this non-audible sounds aren't around, the sound, in this case engine sound will sound flat, un-dynamic, lack of body and not real.

To see my point you could listen to your favoritt song on your MP3-player, sounds okey, now take that MP3 and play on a real HIFI stereo, you can proboply tell somethng is missing without being able to put your finger on what, then try listening to the same song from a CD (WAV) on the same stereo. A lot more body, dynamic and so on.

 

[Laorin]

raymagnu, you'r right about the types of sounds that they're missing - but I don't agree with you on the data restrictions.

With the PS3's data capacity per disk (and HDD) there's no more excuses. We all need to face the music: PD's focused on pretty and not on grunt. That's the way it has always been and although it's getting better, it's like the AI. Never good enough.

They need to hire some audio engineers that know what the hell they're doing and introduce the sound that really makes the "punch" in muscle cars (or any car with sufficient engine)..

Subsonic bass.

That is what you feel in your body and soul when you hear any kind of decent car rev. It's what pierces your body and makes you aware of just how much power an engine has. You get a subwoofer that is capable of hitting those lows and I guarantee you it will sound a hell of a lot more realistic. Neighbors would be pissed but that's half the fun! Granted there's a billion more things to improve in sound like many of the things raymagnu listed but the super low frequencies have been mostly ignored in the GT games. Hell, a lot of the frequencies that are too low or high to hear by the human ear DO influence how we percieve things because we feel it directly. Common 5.1 surround sound systems and sound cards can carry higher than 44100hz sound. They just seriously need to take a look at the audio guys they've got over there because they aren't doing their jobs in terms of implementation.

I've got GTR2 and while overall I feel it is a much more awkward game to race (though I do play it on full simulation, so that's likely why), but they hit all the noises spot on. The creaks of the car as you go down the track and hit bumps, the whine from straight-cut gears in the transmission, everything is accurately represented about as good as you could get for when the game was released. Polyphony Digital and its fanboys have no more excuses. The PS3 is powerful enough. The discs hold enough. They have the fanbase, they have Sony backing them, they have a hell of a lot of employees.

No excuses. Period. They don't make the sounds right because they don't focus on it as much.