Hi all, I've been away from EAW for years, as I could not get it to run properly on my XP machine no matter what I tried over the those years. With a recent upgrade of hardware and to Windows 7, I was delighted to find out a few days ago that it works again, albeit clunkily.

Since then, I've been looking around both in this forum and the web for optimal ways to run it, and I'm almost there, running 1.28E with both nGlide and D3DWindower to get the horizon fog on nVidia GTX550.

I'd like some help from the experts here to see if there is a solution for a few niggling issues that I haven't been able to find answers for, please..

1. Sound doppler effect: 1.28x readme says Doppler effects are in the sounds, but I can't hear it in the game. In plain 1.2 with MeatWater sound pack, the Doppler effect (in cockpit) is as I expect it, and sounds great. In all 1.28x versions, there is barely any change in pitch even during close proximity, high-speed passes. This bugs me greately - Is there something I'm missing here?

2. Cockpit shake results in double-vision: On my machine, cockpit shake often leaves double-image of the cockpit after the shaking stops. Is this a known issue?

3. View creep: In 1.28x, After a while flying and using snap views, the views do not return to front view properly, and even while in front view, it slowly creeps away from centre(no, I'm not in padlock view). Again, it this a known problem?

4. Widescreen with nGlide? I've tried every combination of nGlide and .INI resolution settings I could think of, but can't get widescreen with Glide (other than of course the stretched view). Is there a way?

By the way, for what it's worth, I think the work that people have done with 1.28 is just phenomenal. Nothing out there recreates the atmosphere of WWII air war like EAW (ok I haven't been there, but it "feels" right), and I very much appreciate the efforts of dedicated people keeping it alive over such a long period.

Hello zetecr, (How do you pronounce that?)

Sound. The doppler effect is in the exe not in the sounds.
Meatwaters sounds were excellent new (then) sounds for EAW,
but 1.2 did not have a doppler effect, so how you are hearing this
effect in 1.2 is beyond me. If you use your external view, (f9) and
rotate your view from front to back, you will hear the sound pitch change.
You will also hear it with the fly-by view. (cntrl-f8)
Also, in 1.28x, each plane now has it's own individual sounds, so Meat's
Radial and In-line engine sounds won't work unless you renumber them to
the plane-slot you wish to use them on.

All of your other issues are not known issues. 1.28x was made for 1024 x 768,
which IS a wide-view...but it also runs in many other view settings, which can
be adjusted at the very top of your eaw.ini file. Your problem may have something
to do with your windower settings.
Your view creep has got to be a mouse problem. Either make sure your mouse is plugged in correctly, or that the batteries are fresh if it is wireless, or that your arm or hand is not touching it while you are flying.
Sounds to me like your install is not correct.
Do NOT install EAW from the CD. COPY the files from the CD and paste to a folder.
Download 1.28e, ETO_01, Planes, and Sounds folders. Follow directions for installation.
Let us know how it goes......
AO

AO, thanks very much for the advice. Very much appreciated.

Sound doppler effect I'm talking about is in cockpit views, not external. I can say absolutely positively there is doppler pitch change dependent on relative speed of other planes in cockpit view in 1.2. I haven't checked out the new external view effects in 1.28x versions you mentioned (and I can't atm because I'm in hospital), but from your description it sounds like a workaround to simulate doppler effect in external views. If you hear a pitch change based on relative position (eg as you circle around the plane), rather than relative speed, then this is not true doppler effect.

If it' s not too much trouble, I'd like you (and others?) to try a quick mission where a bunch of enemy fighters are flying straight towards you and note the pitch change during the high speed pass. I turn down all other sounds in settings and turn up "external sounds" to test this. In 1.2 there is very pronounced pitch change under these conditions. In 1.28x, however, the pitch does not change anywhere near as much, if at all. This bugs me like hell!

You mentioned that doppler is implemented in the exe, and I'm now wondering whether the code for the new effects might be interfering with the original effects. Would people in the know help and pleeeease look into this..

Hello zetecr.

I'm a bit confused.

We currently use 1.28E, rev4 I think.
It has the revised sound system you describe, plus loads of other improvments.

Where did you get 1.28X from?

Hi Zetecr,

I have raised this at the coders group, so we will look into it for you and see what can be done


cheers,


Pobs

Hi zetecr,
this was very interesting to experiment with.

First, let me say that the doppler effect applies to all
views, internal and external.
I tried fly-by views and such with of course, no pitch change.
I also found that if I turned engine volume ALL the way down,
ALL engine plane volumes went down, not only mine....and this was
with external volume all the way up. So I had to turn the engine
volume way up, with the external volume all the way up.

Suffice to say that I was quite surprised to hear a bit of a pitch
change when a gaggle of 109's went past me!
Of course, in 1.28 the effect is much more pronounced, and the engine
volume only turns down MY engine, so I can turn down my engine and turn
up all others with a full external sound setting:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Llws5a5-biQ

Is your 1.2 patched with the 1.6 patch? I have not tried this.
Anyway, in 1.28, whether you are in cockpit or external view,
if a plane is facing you, it's pitch will be higher than when you are
behind it.
Here is another example of this sound effect in external view, and if you
could stay in the same view to another plane, in cockpit, you would hear
the same thing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXPQNVQQog0

AO

Guys, many thanks for taking the interest in helping with this.

Col. Gibbon, sorry I confused you. By 1.28x I mean all 1.28 versions I've tried, ie 1.28, 1.28a, b and e.

AO, thanks for posting the video, and this confirms what I've been saying. The new effects seem to be "simulating" doppler effect by changing the pitch depending on the position of the listner, not the relative speed.

In real life, the sound pitch does not change whether you listen from in front or behind, but changes according to how fast you move towards or away from the sound source.

The problem with the way 1.28 works is that if you pass a plane at high speed from BEHIND (let's say making a pass at B17s in a 262), pitch change will be REVERSE of what you'd hear in real life! I haven't tried this..

In the video you posted, it's interesting you say 1.28 pitch change is more pronounced. What I hear is that 1.2 sound pitch changes at a far more rapid rate at the point of reversal, and each plane that goes past changes pitch at different rates according to how close they pass. this is another thing 1.28 sound can't do.

Pobs, thanks a million for putting this to the coder group. My view is that having the correct sound in cockpit is far more important for immersion than the "ear candy" of having simulated doppler in external views, and I hope others agree.. if not, perhaps they can give us a .ini setting to let people choose?

Hi,
tried your example in 1.28 (262 flying past B-17's from behind)
and indeed, the fly-by sound was reversed......in 1.2 thou, the
bombers pitch remained the same as I went by. But even thou I am
flying at 450mph, they are flying at 200+mph, so I am only going past
them 2, maybe 300mph, as opposed to head-on, which would combine the
rate of passing. (Me and plane I'm head-on with, both doing 300, would
equal 600mph, which very well could have been built into 1.2.)



In 1.28 the sound distance was increased, so you hear planes
sooner as they approach, and longer after they have passed.

In the video it may have 'seemed' like more of a separateness
of plane sounds as they went past, but you will get the same
with 1.28. It's just that the 109's in the 1.28 part of the vid
were more in an even line. (1.2 part they passed 4 in front then
4 behind.)

But I would agree that the 'doppler' effect was already in 1.2,
in cockpit anyway. This definitely deserves some looking into!
It only lasts about a second, but I can hear it. Unfortunately, I cannot
hear the pitch change 'rate' with proximity, as it happens entirely too
fast with 1.2. You cant hear them until they are right on you and the pitch
is changing as soon as you hear them, then gone before you can count to 2.

You stated "this is another thing 1.28 sound can't do." Whats the other thing?
For a guy with only a couple of posts here, you seem to know an aweful lot about
1.2 and 1.28. I have not seen a new guy come here and not need to ask a few
questions about installation and such first, so maybe you already read alot here
and had your own trial and error time before posting here? Good for you!


What I would like to test now, is trying a head-on at a slow rate
of speed in 1.2 and see what that sounds like. Tough getting an enemy
plane to cooperate thou....lol!
Will report back later,
AO

AO, thanks again for testing the various scenarios. Thanks also for the kind words about my knowledge of this issue, which I really dont deserve. I'm just more anal about these sorts of things than some others, I guess..

My experience leads me to believe 1.2 doppler effects are calculated on the fly, based on relative speed between your plane and individual sound sources, ie the way that properly reflects reality. I don't believe it is fixed for a particular speed of a pass as you seem to suggest.

I'd like to try the rear approach experiment myself, because if I'm right, there should be a pitch change in 1.2, even if subtle due to the relatively moderate closure rate as you point out.

Welcome zetecr,

Knegel would be the one to ask about it AFAIK he coded the way the sounds work and much else.
I too have the effect a bit much at times and generally turn the external sound volume way down.

The other that could be related is your sound card or chip if its built in the motherboard sometimes have poor qualtiy with EAW you might try adjusting the sound quality in confguration menu.

Cheers!

RAF_Roy,

Thanks for the welcome and info.

I'm not sure what you mean by "I too have the effect a bit much..", but turning down external sounds is not an option for me, as I find it one of key things that make EAW such an immersive sim. Last year, I was seduced by the eye-candy of Wings of Prey and bought it, but abandoned it after only a month or so. External sound was one of a number of areas it fell short compared to EAW.

My problem isn't the sound quality, but the way the external sound pitch changes are calculated. In any case, I'm not using the onboard sound card, and instead use an old Creative Audigy card.

Hi,

just had a look and somebody did replace the real doppler effect with a face effect, which is just exhaust direction related(for sure not me, i didnt work on this).

I have reenabled the real effect and minimized the exhaust direction effect, if you send me an E-Mail addy, i can send a test exe to you.

Greetings,

Knegel

btw. i did introduce an engine overdrive quiete a while ago, where the engine goes very fast if the plane fly faster than maximum speed.(dive)

While testing sound effects you should be aware of this.

Oooh!Oooh!Oooh!
If you could drop one in my folder too?
Thanks!
AO

Hi,

after a little more tests now the doppler effect work as before and as it should!!

I never got aware that it got dissabled, but now after its on again i must say its horrible without.

Thanks for the hint!!

Knegel

Thanks Knegel, you are a legend. I appreciate very much your quick response!! You have PM with my email address.

I'm stoked I've been able to contribute in this small way to further the cause of EAW..

Hello Zetecr.

We're always please to hear from people who find glitches. It's the only way to improve the game for everyone's enjoyment.

This is really turning out to be nice!
Thanks Zetecr for bringing it up!
And thank you Ralf for taking the time to look into it
and make it work!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onDfh9WBsdc

AO

I've not had a chance yet to try this new sound system, but from your video it sounds fabulous!

Great work Ralf!!

Knegel, this game just gets better. May I send you a pm for the new exe, please, or will it be posted somewhere?

Hello,

this exe will be offered asap.

Greetings,

Knegel

Great, and thank you.

The zip is here:

http://www.users.on.net/pam_biddell/EAW1.28e_Fix08.zip

I put the extracted "eaw.exe" and "SoundDist.mpf" files into an E folder (E-128E_Fix08) for OAW128, so when it loads the "eaw.exe" it also puts the "SoundDist.mpf" into the root folder.


Jel

Hi,

just as clarification:
This SoundDist.mpf is not needed at all, the game work without!

Its just a example, you can open it with notepad and change the values to get other max distances for the different sounds.
It can be located in the EAW root folder, or inside one of the EAW setup folders(ETO_01, SAW1.28 etc).

I have no idea if to long distances can cause problems with the game performence, but when i set the max disatnce for bomb and flak explositions to 2000 (YARD) or higher, the game turn to be very immersive, when you fly over a frontline or through flak fire.

Also longer engine sound distances are nice.

Greetings,

Knegel

Hi all,

this is not working here, after change the .exe and placed the soundDist file in my root folder i've the doppler effect (and guns sounds!) just in external view! in the cockpit view i only hear my engine sound, what am i doing wrong?

Thanks

Thanks...updated fix 08!

Hi Maj.,
in your 'configure game' turn the engine volume down (Your own engine in-cockpit
is not supposed to be so loud. I have mine set a little over 1/4 volume.)
and turn the external volume up a little. (Halfway?)
This should work for you!

AO

It works ok now, i forgot to put the external sound a bit upward

Thanks for the tip AO and thanks for the upgrade guys,

Cheers

Hi,

if you center all sliders, the sounds should be rather balanced all over, then you still can move them up or down to your preference.

Greetings,

Knegel

Thanks Knegel,

Cheers