Had this on my mind for a while, but I'd like to see a slight randomisation of a few shift+a options for separate cars while online.

When a new race starts at the moment, say an all XFG grid, all the cars all start with their engines in sync somewhat which can cause some phasing in the sound, but a slight variation in exhaust tone and some other settings would make each engine sound a bit different, just like it'd be if you were actually stood on a grid of identical cars.

I know it's not a major thing, but it'd increase the realism IMO.

Sounds like a good idea to me

why not

Wonderful idea !　

Great suggestion

Yes, some could have broken belts and make a very, very loud squeaking noise.

Right now they are synced in perfect phase. I'm assuming the cars spawn at the track simultaneously with the engine running, haven't really confirmed this but it would make sense as it is the simplest way.

Different cars could have slightly different idle speeds. (10% max or so would be enough and it would not affect fuel consumption)

Or, idle speed could wander.

What i would really like to see (hear) is unstable idling, running on 3 cylinders for a moment or something to that effect.

I also welcome any pops and bangs from exhaust.

These are little things, and it won't take long for someone to point that out along with Already Suggested (tm).

Quote from boosterfire :

Yes, some could have broken belts and make a very, very loud squeaking noise.

ROFL!

But, the OP has a pretty good idea there.

Taking it a step further, the LFS sound engine could be made to have some constant random variation in some of the many variables that already exist in the SHIFT-A interface. Thus, when you set it to a certain value, it's actually saying "value of 40 +/- 15" or some such, and the sound engine could randomize the setting within that range at some sort of interval; a relatively quick one - not like every few seconds so you get a discernable change in particular instant. Messing around with that idea could alleviate some of the monotony in the engine sounds.

That should be easy enough to implement, as the "shift-a" settings can already be changed in real time with no fps hit.

it would be cool to set ai sounds.

I think this is a mighty fine suggestion. I love hearing different engine notes from the same cars at a track, and I always wished LFS had a similar 'feature.' I guess real randomization (within reason, as BBT suggests) is the perfect solution.

Big +1 from me.

Quote from MAGGOT :

I think this is a mighty fine suggestion. I love hearing different engine notes from the same cars at a track, and I always wished LFS had a similar 'feature.' I guess real randomization (within reason, as BBT suggests) is the perfect solution.

Big +1 from me.

aint the whole problem with the engine sounds that if ur in a XRG and everyone else too. and u change ur sound you change EVERYONES sound, aslong as they are in the XRG ofc.. for this to work we have to get separate soundfiles for our own cars + the others on the server.. hope i make sense.. just woke up

Separate soundfiles for every user in the server would mean lots and lots of .eng -files, it would be too messy. So randomization would be better.

Sometimes i blow my engine up (driving in bigger gear and slam it on 1st gear). The sound ... its more realistlic on lower rpms than its by default. Or something

Quote from Not Sure :

Separate soundfiles for every user in the server would mean lots and lots of .eng -files, it would be too messy. So randomization would be better.

well i dont think we can have that without separate soundfiles.. as i said, if u edit ur car, everyone sounds the same.. dont think its an easy thing to change.. :/

It could be done on the server side, when enter the track server randomise 0-10% here and there, changes you temporary .eng file and send your values to others and you receive their temporary .eng values.

Or, in garage can be 'random' button so you find sound which you like just by some clicks, and then use it online.

Or, you could change your personal sound not random, but manually, but only certains sounds and only by small amount.

Quote from Feffe85 :

well i dont think we can have that without separate soundfiles.. as i said, if u edit ur car, everyone sounds the same.. dont think its an easy thing to change.. :/

Which is why he is suggestion randomisation - same ENG file, but LFS.exe applies a slightly different version for each car. Only slightly different though; enough so the engines aren't in phase and causing interference in an odd manner, but similar enough so they all sound like they're the same type of car with the same type of engine.

I for one wouldn't want the ricer brigade allowed to put their own low quality sound files on their car and annoy everyone with their lack of audio talents.

Why don't we have our .eng files shared? They would download when you connect to a server, just like the skins do. We could have something similar on LFSW to upload your engine sounds as well, then all the cars wouldn't be the same. And people don't change their engine sounds as often as their skins, so I think the space for saving the files wouldn't be a problem.

Quote from Not Sure :

What i would really like to see (hear) is unstable idling, running on 3 cylinders for a moment or something to that effect.

What? Usually when engine runs on 3 cylinders only it means there is something going wrong... Healthy engine runs on all cylinders. With a "tight" cam the idle can be somewhat "unstable" but it still runs on all cylinders.

But in general the idea of some little randomization OP posted is quite good I think.

Quote from Nick. :

Why don't we have our .eng files shared? They would download when you connect to a server, just like the skins do. We could have something similar on LFSW to upload your engine sounds as well, then all the cars wouldn't be the same. And people don't change their engine sounds as often as their skins, so I think the space for saving the files wouldn't be a problem.

I don't really like this idea TBH.
Because I'm pretty sure there is lots of people in LFS who have no idea of how real engines sound. I mean I wouldn't like hearing the .eng sound some 13 year old created with the thought of ricerITBfartcanturboBOVDVwastegatechatter ultimate performance engine in mind. And then with a massively bad sound quality too.
I've seen some of these in youtube and lots of people who modify .eng files don't seem to have a clue about how real engines sound.

Quote from BigPeBe :

I mean I wouldn't like hearing the .eng sound some 13 year old created

It's easy, add an option to enable/disable user created sounds, jsut like it was the Haze effect or whatnot.

Quote from Feffe85 :

well i dont think we can have that without separate soundfiles.. as i said, if u edit ur car, everyone sounds the same.. dont think its an easy thing to change.. :/

You can change the engine noise while driving and it will not change other cars noise, only yours. For example, if your on a track with 15 other guys, and you have 15 different engine sounds for that car, you can give them each a different sound. Then, they will all sound different. The only downside is once you pit, all the cars sound the same again.

Quote from NightShift :

It's easy, add an option to enable/disable user created sounds, jsut like it was the Haze effect or whatnot.

Yep that would solve it. But in general I think the randomization would be a lot better and realistic than the .eng file sharing.

Well maybe we could have both but still I'm giving my vote to the randomization.

Randomisation is a great idea because it would sort out those issues with interference. But I also like the idea of .eng sound customization (though TBH I'm probably biased since I believe .eng sound sharing was first suggested by me in this other thread )

Quote from BigPeBe :

What? Usually when engine runs on 3 cylinders only it means there is something going wrong... Healthy engine runs on all cylinders. With a "tight" cam the idle can be somewhat "unstable" but it still runs on all cylinders.

Like I said, "something to that effect". I didn't mean that the engines should be malfunctioning exactly (though it would be col after a crash, or as the fuel is running out), but just that the sounds should be more "dirty" and not so perfectly clean.

Do racing cars really respond to throttle instantly at very low revs? I would imagine there being some hesitation but what do i know..


-1 for auto-downloaded user created sounds

If the engine is properly tuned then yes they will react to the press of a gas pedal without hesitation even at lower revs. It can be very rough sounding and uneven at lower revs. But if there is "lag" well then it usually means it's not properly tuned. ie. wrong sized jets in the dual carbs (if that's the right term in EN).