J.S.R.S. 1.5

[froggyluv 2135]

Hey jarhead have you changed the sound of the miniguns on the helicopters? I love doing escort missions with the blackhawk but the sounds are very displeasing.

Uh oh -I smell a storm coming...:p

Thanks to the guys who mentioned the option gun sound files -I love them! Not complaining about the standard sounds at all I just find many of the optional ones have a little more punch :)

[PTV-Jobo 820]

I was arguing for Jarheads sake all along lel xD

Well now...

http://i.imgur.com/wOQvc.gif

<hides in a corner> lol

[MAVEN 1]

Hi Jarhead.

Great mod there. In fact not even Frostbite engine stands a chance compared to it (technically)

I'm professional (Soon to become expert) graphic designer and software developer, however I've been doing audio design for ~3-4 years as well.

So I would like to know. What tools do you use to design sound effects for your mod? or is it just several recordings and scripts/effects being applied?

I use Fruity Loops, Sonar and Audacity for audio design :)

Also, I've been planning to and slowly working on a sound patch for a game called SWAT 4 where I would design all sound effects from scratch (not even recorded) digitally and then apply EAX and OpenAL, this proved to be such a big challenge because I can hardly find any useful information on projectile sound behavior (shots, cracks, etc) which is essential knowledge if I'm going to code a sound formula for end-result 32bit audio output that I could later apply to the patch. Do you maybe happen to know, or have any documents on research or maybe some books on sound behavior for shots, cracks, metal jarring, material reflection, etc? If yes, please share and I will be more than thankful :D

Guesing you are an audiophile and audio designer, I compiled a series of sound effects I recently designed for my two missions USMC Sweepers (Released today) and MVD Barricaded Suspects. So if you are interested, take a listen to it (1.30 min and 5 min audio files)

USMC Sweepers and MVD Barricaded Suspects demo (Original sound effects, medium quality in demonstration, all effects are 100% digitally made, even speech)

https://www.dropbox.com/s/cjxnm1hjmbhfuu4/DEMO.mp3

Timeline of this file, each 3 seconds new demo, bundle [spoilerS!] - 1st is Reaper 61's report-in followed by a reply from HQ (USMC Sweepers) 2nd is insurgent vehicle comm radio demo, Russian language (USMC Sweepers) 3rd is C130 being shot down (USMC Sweepers) 4th is MVD Bravo radio-in reporting a signal they are ready for attack (MVD Barricaded Suspects) 5th is MVD Helicopter audible suppression and propaganda (MVD Barricaded Suspects)

MVD Barricaded Suspects Snippet (MVD Officer Helmetcam Rip) (Warning: Violence) - https://www.dropbox.com/s/lu20tjxywuw0nhh/MVD%20Barricaded%20Suspects%20Snippet%20%28MVD%20Officer%20Helmetcam%20Rip%29.mp3

Those are just for demonstration purpose and for the sake of fun/sharing. Feel free to share your opinion or suggestions :)

As for your mod, I have no big suggestions there, it's great as it is, perhaps you could use some newer audio samples within the mod and add audio dither (when echoing, cracking, random volume change of the echo, to simulate building mass and fly-by, ArmA 2 already does this but weakly)

Cheers!

Edited December 5, 2012 by MAVEN

[LordJarhead 1721]

Hi Jarhead.

Great mod there. In fact not even Frostbite engine stands a chance compared to it (technically)

I'm professional (Soon to become expert) graphic designer and software developer, however I've been doing audio design for ~3-4 years as well.

So I would like to know. What tools do you use to design sound effects for your mod? or is it just several recordings and scripts/effects being applied?

I use Fruity Loops, Sonar and Audacity for audio design :)

Also, I've been planning to and slowly working on a sound patch for a game called SWAT 4 where I would design all sound effects from scratch (not even recorded) digitally and then apply EAX and OpenAL, this proved to be such a big challenge because I can hardly find any useful information on projectile sound behavior (shots, cracks, etc) which is essential knowledge if I'm going to code a sound formula for end-result 32bit audio output that I could later apply to the patch. Do you maybe happen to know, or have any documents on research or maybe some books on sound behavior for shots, cracks, metal jarring, material reflection, etc? If yes, please share and I will be more than thankful :D

Guesing you are an audiophile and audio designer, I compiled a series of sound effects I recently designed for my two missions USMC Sweepers (Released today) and MVD Barricaded Suspects. So if you are interested, take a listen to it (1.30 min and 5 min audio files)

USMC Sweepers and MVD Barricaded Suspects demo (Original sound effects, medium quality in demonstration, all effects are 100% digitally made, even speech)

https://www.dropbox.com/s/cjxnm1hjmbhfuu4/DEMO.mp3

Timeline of this file, each 3 seconds new demo, bundle [spoilerS!] - 1st is Reaper 61's report-in followed by a reply from HQ (USMC Sweepers) 2nd is insurgent vehicle comm radio demo, Russian language (USMC Sweepers) 3rd is C130 being shot down (USMC Sweepers) 4th is MVD Bravo radio-in reporting a signal they are ready for attack (MVD Barricaded Suspects) 5th is MVD Helicopter audible suppression and propaganda (MVD Barricaded Suspects)

MVD Barricaded Suspects Snippet (MVD Officer Helmetcam Rip) (Warning: Violence) - https://www.dropbox.com/s/lu20tjxywuw0nhh/MVD%20Barricaded%20Suspects%20Snippet%20%28MVD%20Officer%20Helmetcam%20Rip%29.mp3

Those are just for demonstration purpose and for the sake of fun/sharing. Feel free to share your opinion or suggestions :)

As for your mod, I have no big suggestions there, it's great as it is, perhaps you could use some newer audio samples within the mod and add audio dither (when echoing, cracking, random volume change of the echo, to simulate building mass and fly-by, ArmA 2 already does this but weakly)

Cheers!

Hey MAVEN,

actually I use Sony Sound Forge Pro 10.0.

I used Adobe Audition also a while ago, but it doesn't suite my taste so well and I stayed with Sony for now. Actually thinking of updating to something else, but there's not much alternative programs I would like. Call me an idiot, but the look of the tools makes me want it, since the functions are almost the same (Sony vs. Adobe I mean). I need a clear overview, not just a fully packed screen.

32Bit Audio-output is really nice. In fact, you really must have the certain type of game/engine to go with that. Since Arma is kinda weak when it comes to sound, you can only use 16Bit outputs, fairly raped down to 22 kHz. Which is kinda sad but necessary to give the game time to breath. The game, and that shows the weak sound capability, can only play 128 samples the same time, in a giant game like Arma with maybe hundreds of soldiers, weapons, explosions, vehicles and stuff, this will fast kill the fun. So to give the game the room to work, I'm kinda forced to decrease the quality. Actually as I started editing on Arma I tried making sounds in Stereo, 44,5 kHz in 16bit. The game was hardly able to handle Stereo sounds at all, plus the sound sample were, theoretically, four times bigger than usual. Made the game to kill itself pretty fast and was no fun at all. So I needed to step down further, mono sounds, stayed with 16bit but got down to 22khz for all non-important sounds. Sounds like Environment, or sounds you hear really rare, really fast or just really quiet. Sounds like soniccracks on far distances, little snaps, the distance and fps sounds (really, I had to do it to gave the script even more handling which worked out pretty nice, concerning functionality). But sounds like Vehicles or Weapons, I needed to stay with 44,5 kHz to safe some quality somewhere. Most people cant hear that difference, but its pretty penetrate in my opinion. All the highs and lows getting cut to pieces. Same goes for WAV to MP3. Why is MP3 smaller than WAV files? Because some frequencies just getting cut out...

I knew nothing about Snaps, Bullet-hitting-sounds, distance noises. All I know today I got from people who know what they are talking about. There are so many kind people here who PM'ed me to tell me their real life experience while serving over sea. In Iraq OR Afghanistan. And I was really grateful for these informations, since they opened a completely new (sound-) world for me. So all I know today, concerning bullet hits, snaps, noise behavior in different areas, inside or outside, different noises on different angles around a certain weapon, all that I just learned over the last couple of years working on JSRS. Started with POP POP sounds, learned about "reverbs", echo's, tail-offs, mechanic noises, and so on and since then I was trying to work this out. Its kinda hard to explain, but I kinda feel a sound, safe it in my mind and trying to redo it, all night long till its completely the same as in my mind. Not working all the time but mostly I get the result I like (which is the most important part when you modding, DO IT FOR YOURSELF!).

So sry, no books I read, not websites I visited, no videos. All of what I know I got from first hand experience or real serving people.

For your suggestion in the end: As said, the Engine is kinda weak when it comes to that. All of that IS actually possible, no problem. I can address all kind of stuff, buildings, vehicles and so on, asking for the distance to that object and then give this certain distance to an certain object a certain sound. I can ask how big a room is I'm in, if I'm in a town, forest, desert and what not. BUT: All this would need massive scripting and will totally slow down the whole gameplay. Kinda makes it to an Audio simulation, but playability would be something else then. Also this EAX feature whit makes sounds quieter when behind an object does not work for my scripted sounds obviously which is kinda sad too.

I'm kinda afraid Arma 3 wont be that good at all. But I hope for a nice foundation to work with. Building up something completely new again, not just porting but using all the new abilities to really create what I have in mind. IF I'm going to port to A3, which is unclear still. Probably not as it looks atm.

Thanks for the samples. Actually I find the radio-background noises a bit to heavy/distorted in the first sample. The C130 was kinda nice, but the explosion was to scratchy in the low pass. You could fix that by reducing around 3dB and giving a nice Resonant Filter Muffler, like around 200 Hz frequency and 100% Dry. Same for the first Radio noises like around 2000 Hz frequency. The last Noise for Propaganda could use some Multi-Tap Echoing for a more stereo like feeling plus an bigger room echo so it feels like being in an open area if its that what you want.

I hope you have success with your SWAT4 project. Thanks for dropping in!

LJ

Edited December 5, 2012 by LordJarhead

[NeuroFunker 11]

yeah, i was curious my self about LJ's setup, i'm making music on pc as hobby, interesting what studio monitors, soundcard, DAW, plugins etc lord is using?

[LordJarhead 1721]

Nothing serious to be honest. Just the Sony Sound Forge Pro 10.0 software, my System, my Sound-card Asus Xonar DG, my Edifier HCS5640 5.1 System plus Studio setup and my Beyerdynamic MX300 Gaming Headset for playing/TS and Skype (since the day before yesterday^^). Plus some sets of microphones for recording. Actually it would need much more than that to realize an Arma3 port in my opinion. Since starting from the scratch would need be better prepared, hehe.

LJ

[NeuroFunker 11]

well, if u ask me, get yamahas hs50-80m, they are quite cheap and have crystal clear sound, of course u need yamaha hs10w sub for it, 500€, but it's worth any penny imo. U can controll bass with ur 5.1 and headphones just in case u can't get the sub for now :p So did i for a year.^^

Also u need professional soundcard, since hifi branch cards, will never offer natural, non "make up" sound. I have wavetherminal L, old but yet good card. ;)

Edited December 5, 2012 by NeuroFunker

[MAVEN 1]

Hey MAVEN,

Thanks for your reply.

Clarified many things about A2's sound handling.

If you need more bang for your buck I strongly recommend Fruity Loops (The most expensive bundle stand at ~80USD and comes with many tools and even many addons and VSTi plugin packs which are top notch such as Sytrus or Toxic, and 100% "vector") a studio tool that can speed up audio design process but lacks some features though. One of the most useful FL features imho is the Formula bar where you enter code and get sound output based on real life data, the other one is the effects control panel, better than any other solution I saw out there, can switch so many things with simple buttons and give immediate results for preview.

If you want clear interface and high level of audio design options for a trade-off with ease of use, try Sonar, it's like Audacity and even Sony's bundle, except on steroids. Only true experts can use it's true power, and many big industries use it. I find myself somewhat struggling with it, that's why I use FL primarily.

Another very useful tool you can try is Mix 'n' Play, it's experimental and one of a kind. It can open any sound file, dissect its part and separate speech, environment, talk and other parts, make them selectable and either deletable or replaceable. Something you could use to refurbish sound files and get better sound clarity at lower Hz and bit depth, for example a gun shot where you can hear people talk in the back or some static noise, or warm noise produced by wind, etc.

Also useful is LADSPA v2's plugin pack filter called Decimator, it has live Hz and Bit depth tuning which can help you see the difference between how certain sound files behave under certain frequencies and bit depths, perfect for determining the final output and saving on memory.

As for demos, well, I'm a newbie with ArmA 2's editor, so I don't know it good enough yet. I purposely made some sound effects sharper and loud because ArmA 2 engine dims all sound files no matter how well designed they are or what's their frequency or bit depth, sort of muffles them. I agree about the stereo in-game, found it surprisingly bad, so much that there's nearly no difference seen between mono-stereo in-game for majority of options (3D mostly) except playMusic/playSound options which use direct audio input and it still has flaws. ArmA 2's engine kills off lower frequencies (Deep bass mostly) and renders them useless. I found a workaround about the stereo in ArmA 2, sadly it can be applied only to certain things. I added experimental and artificial sound effect and called it damping, which surprisingly creates life-like surround sound effect and works only with mono sounds that are lower quality (ArmA 2's engine logic lol) Maybe I can create an example mission when I have some free time and provide a simple tut, then you can apply it to your mod. Or you can try my USMC Sweepers mission, the ending HQ song uses this effect, and creates artificial echo, reverb, bass, dimming, sound travel and even 3D object collision without even having those effects added in sound files used and played in-game. I don't know why BI didn't use this little trick for their games since the engine supports it, makes things sound much better.

Swat 4 was built on Unreal Engine, and it uses direct system drivers and hardware for sound rendering which ends up in good results, so it can handle 16, 24 and 32 bit sound files, but lacks capability of playing good number of sounds at once, so I downsample sound effects but never go bellow 48kHz and 16/24 bit audio in a .wav file. File output isn't problem about it, knowledge base is, can't design if I don't know how some things sound lol.

It's amazing how you managed to recreate such effects just from people's suggestions and snippets of information, takes lots of imagination and skill, maybe you should write a book on that stuff since it's a rare thing to find ;)

[lordprimate 159]

Hello all.. I have been away for quite a while and im please to see such progress on one of the BEST MODS EVER!!!

I swear my JSRS rash is getting bigger...

LJ, is there any way i can get some of your v1.5 ointment for my itchens??

I would love to provide any feedback I can to help!!!

Can i be involved in beta testing? or is the closed beta completely closed for now... Gosh i just cannot wait ... damn this rash!!

[LordJarhead 1721]

Thanks for your reply.

Now, WHO of us should write a book :) Seriously, many thanks for these tips! Tried that Hit'n'Mix which is kinda nice looking, but I will test it out further more. Tried to find that Sonar, but wasnt unsure if I may find it, do you maybe have a link to the Software Homepage? Did you mean: Sonar Producer Edition X1b Build 8?

Many thanks for your tips and the "damping" idea. Maybe you could explain it further, I would be really interested to see this effect in Arma and even maybe use it for my self. Any help is always heavily welcome here ;) Thanks alot again!

Hello all.. I have been away for quite a while and im please to see such progress on one of the BEST MODS EVER!!!

I swear my JSRS rash is getting bigger...

LJ, is there any way i can get some of your v1.5 ointment for my itchens??

I would love to provide any feedback I can to help!!!

Can i be involved in beta testing? or is the closed beta completely closed for now... Gosh i just cannot wait ... damn this rash!!

Hey Thanks for the kind words matey!

Really appreciate it, but the closed beta is almost done and we expect to concentrate on the found errors for now. A release date will be posted soon I believe...

LJ

Edited December 6, 2012 by LordJarhead

[MAVEN 1]

Now, WHO of us should write a book :)

Maybe all of us :P

That's actually a good idea, maybe someone should start a thread and let people submit their knowledge for all to see/use.

Anyway, Sonar is made by Cakewalk, a subbrand/substudio of Roland.

Free Trial - http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/Web-Trial.aspx

Find a dealer store (ZIP Code needed) - http://www.cakewalk.com/Dealers/finder.aspx

Or use their official retail store (assuming you've tried the Trial 1st and decided to buy Sonar, there are many versions now as well) - http://www.store.cakewalk.com/

Audio Effects (Cakewalk Store, some are free) - http://www.store.cakewalk.com/b2ceuro/category.aspx?categoryID=40&cat=40

Sample Fusion Store (Image Line, the maker of Fruity Loops Studio, this Store is selling audio samples, most in .wav files, they are very good for quick audio design, I use SFX and Vocal Pack) - http://www.image-line.com/documents/samplefusion.html

Vector Effects (Most work with FL, but some will work with VSTi compatible software/hardware) - http://www.image-line.com/documents/effects.html

Synth Maker (FL only, enormous Synth Studio package, perfect for most precise audio design when it comes to synths) - http://www.image-line.com/documents/synthmaker.html

And here's Edisson (The pluginpack I was talking about, I know it's FL compatible, but in notes they say it's compatible with any tool that supports VST plugins, haven't tested that theory yet) - http://www.image-line.com/documents/edison.html

[Kommiekat 11]

Beyerdynamic MX300 Gaming Headset

LJ

US$348 on Amazon.

Not cheap but not too expensive either.

I'm getting off topic, but could use some advice for some earphones (not headphones) for the smartphone.

Willing to pay up to US$100. Any Brands you suggest?

[PTV-Jobo 820]

You're kidding right? It's a soundmod thread, and people are coming the request advice for earphones/earbuds for smartphones? lol

Let's get the train moving along the track and not attempt derailing before people start requesting fashion tips and dating advice from LJ next, people.

[Kommiekat 11]

You're kidding right? It's a soundmod thread, and people are coming the request advice for earphones/earbuds for smartphones? lol

Let's get the train moving along the track and not attempt derailing before people start requesting fashion tips and dating advice from LJ next, people.

Earplugs that are used to get the maximum result of Jarheads MOD when playing Arma 2 with his MOD loaded is not off topic nor is it anything close to "requesting fashion tips and dating advice".

Sorry bud, but seems you're the one off topic.

[PTV-Jobo 820]

I'm getting off topic, but....

Sorry bud, but seems you're the one off topic.

Mmhmm. :rolleyes:

[LordJarhead 1721]

Earplugs that are used to get the maximum result of Jarheads MOD when playing Arma 2 with his MOD loaded is not off topic nor is it anything close to "requesting fashion tips and dating advice".

Sorry bud, but seems you're the one off topic.

Your earlier post: "I'm getting off topic, but could use some advice for some earphones (not headphones) for the smartphone."

You have a smartphone you can play Arma with? WOW, didnt knew iPhone 12s has been released so soon ;)

I guess you get the point. But seriously, Yokhanan is right.

Since I'm kinda nice sometimes: Creative EP-630 In-Ear, cheap but enough for smart-phones.

Now lets please stay on topic here!

LJ

[AndroidSpawn 10]

I'd like to share a little trick.

If you need to lower your effects volume because of TS etc. Keep it maxed in-game and use the windows mixer to lower the game volume. That way you will keep the awesome quality of JSRS.

I have noticed that I give this advice to people a lot. Hope you enjoy JSRS even more until because of this, until 1.5 is out! :)

[Kommiekat 11]

I'd like to share a little trick.

If you need to lower your effects volume because of TS etc. Keep it maxed in-game and use the windows mixer to lower the game volume. That way you will keep the awesome quality of JSRS.

Could you kindly elaborate on this a bit more?

I'll try just about anything to maximize JSRS.

What do you mean by "TS"?

And the Windows mixer? Where's that?

You're saying Options-->Audio-->Max the effects volume and use the Windows Mixer (?a free app for downloading?)?

Thanks

---------- Post added at 10:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:42 AM ----------

Mmhmm. :rolleyes:

Your earlier post: "I'm getting off topic, but could use some advice for some earphones (not headphones) for the smartphone."

You have a smartphone you can play Arma with? WOW, didnt knew iPhone 12s has been released so soon ;)

I guess you get the point. But seriously, Yokhanan is right.

Since I'm kinda nice sometimes: Creative EP-630 In-Ear, cheap but enough for smart-phones.

Now lets please stay on topic here!

LJ

Sorry about that. Looks like I put my foot in my mouth.

I should have typed "may be off topic" because actually, earphones can be used on computers these days and if I go this route, I'd prefer a nice set to maximize your MOD. I thought asking you for a suggestion would be better since you do seem to know about Sound and Audio more than I do.

I checked out your advice about Creative.....will research on my own. Thanks!

[AndroidSpawn 10]

Teamspeak, Arma should be played with friends :). Click the speaker icon down at the right corner of your screen and the mixer will magically appear. ;)

[PTV-Jobo 820]

Sorry about that. Looks like I put my foot in my mouth.

No biggie, man. Hope I didn't come off too dickish. I meant my words more lightheartedly than in a "I am so angry!!!" type, lol. I think the earbuds from Creative might be good as well, just keep away from their over-hyped new line of headsets. Keep seeing endless complaints. I myself hope to someday find a new soundcard to replace this Fatality crap as well. It's a decent card, it's just the company and their drivers that suck horribly. But when it comes to earbuds and stuff, I guess they hold their own.

As far as TS, yeah as previously mentioned it stands for Teamspeak. Teamspeak running ACRE with the simulated radio setup plus JSRS 1.5 is pretty epic together in a MP setting. Sometimes it makes ArmA sound and feel more like intense helmet cam footage than just merely a game. :D

[hellfire257 3]

Ooh LJ has an MMX300? Oh snap! Love my pair to bits. I did have the Xonar DG but swapped her out for the Xonar STX. I found the STX delivered a lot more texture.

Anyway, good to see you still working away on this. Just look how far you've come! Projects like JSRS really show the best side of this community (damn that sounded cliché!).

Take care out there LJ!

[Tonci87 163]

Ok guys lets go for some promotion fun.

YOU name a weapon, a vehicle, a situation you want to hear and I´ll consider recording it with JSRS 1.5 (excluded are giant AI clusterfucks since that could go wrong together with recording)

[NeuroFunker 11]

Ok guys lets go for some promotion fun.

YOU name a weapon, a vehicle, a situation you want to hear and I´ll consider recording it with JSRS 1.5 (excluded are giant AI clusterfucks since that could go wrong together with recording)

good idea! I wonder if you can represent that video in game, like this one. Interesting, how different it sounds from reality :p

weapon: doesn't matter (default tank crew); vehicle: t90; situation: tanks shooting range (can be used with "live news camera" thing, with subtitles. Something about Russian army, does some military training today in Chernogorsk outskirts, for more fun^^.

Edited December 12, 2012 by NeuroFunker

[Tonci87 163]

Sorry, my limited scripting skills and time don´t allow me to make exact recreations and stuff. But I guess i´ll be able to record some shooting

[NeuroFunker 11]

ah np, just shooting would be enough then ;)