Hi,One of the many great advantages with FSX is surround sound. That's engines sounding behind you and wind noises infront etc. It adds massively to the realism. I have been puzzled why any new aircraft I have bought (I think that includes the Jetsream and the major players in the soundpack business) has had stereo Wav files which are not in the correct format for surround sound to work. It seems you need mono files and then FSX decides which channels to play it- by information in the config?.I can't think of an exception, so I guess there must be a reason- but when I convert the wav files for engines and wind to mono, surround sound subsequently works normally.Maybe mono wavs don't work correctly for two speakers? If that was a reason I would have thought it would have been worth an installer option for both configurations. As I say I'm puzzled!Have you come accross this issue in connection with NGX?Keith Harvey

Hi,One of the many great advantages with FSX is surround sound. That's engines sounding behind you and wind noises infront etc. It adds massively to the realism. I have been puzzled why any new aircraft I have bought (I think that includes the Jetsream and the major players in the soundpack business) has had stereo Wav files which are not in the correct format for surround sound to work. It seems you need mono files and then FSX decides which channels to play it- by information in the config?.I can't think of an exception, so I guess there must be a reason- but when I convert the wav files for engines and wind to mono, surround sound subsequently works normally.Maybe mono wavs don't work correctly for two speakers? If that was a reason I would have thought it would have been worth an installer option for both configurations. As I say I'm puzzled!Have you come accross this issue in connection with NGX?Keith Harvey

Dear Keith,The surround sound functionality only applies to FSX sounds like engines and not to custom sounds programmed in the panel - the wind sounds do not have the surround functionality as FSX does not support this, so they are stereo files. All PMDG FSX aircraft have mono engine sounds and the corresponding 3D surround sound programming - this is observed particularly in the outside view where the sounds will change as you pan around the aircraft. But any custom sounds like GPWS, TCAS, switches and lever sounds are only stereo files and are not part of the FSX sound system, so they will not vary if the viewpoint is changed.Also, FSX applies the surround sound concept even to stereo speakers - again the sounds vary depending on viewpoint position.Best regards,Armen

Hi,One of the many great advantages with FSX is surround sound. That's engines sounding behind you and wind noises infront etc. It adds massively to the realism. I have been puzzled why any new aircraft I have bought (I think that includes the Jetsream and the major players in the soundpack business) has had stereo Wav files which are not in the correct format for surround sound to work. It seems you need mono files and then FSX decides which channels to play it- by information in the config?.I can't think of an exception, so I guess there must be a reason- but when I convert the wav files for engines and wind to mono, surround sound subsequently works normally.Maybe mono wavs don't work correctly for two speakers? If that was a reason I would have thought it would have been worth an installer option for both configurations. As I say I'm puzzled!Have you come accross this issue in connection with NGX?Keith Harvey

If you have you're Windows Speaker settings correct you should hear a good deal of engine sound in the J41 for sure from the rear speakers. The only think that sorta of throw's it off is the start-up wave, which is just you're normal stereo.This is what I hear in my set-up...no fancy soundcard fake "3D Sound" BS or anything on like that. Just 5.1 Speakers selected in the Windows Speaker Config.If you've got things set correctly (in Windows 7 at least) you should hear ATC chatter through just the center channel...then you know FS is recognizing you're 5.1 (or whatever) set up correctly.Patrick Houghton

Thanks for the reply. I couldn't remember if I had modified the wavs on the jetstream or not. It certainly is currently working as it should.I Should have known you were on top of this. I can't think of another aircraft or sound package I've had from any other developer that has got the wavs in the correct format. Mind you I don't think I will be buying anybody else's aircraft once the NGX is out!On the matter of prop sounds, the jetstream sound package is great and I understand why the sounds works the way they do on throttle-up. However, when you fly on such aircraft, you go from a tolerable noise level to going deaf on take-off. On future prop aircraft it would be nice to get some sense of that heavy vibration through the sound package. Not that I want to go deaf when flying it!Thanks again for the replyKeith Harvey

On the matter of prop sounds, the jetstream sound package is great and I understand why the sounds works the way they do on throttle-up. However, when you fly on such aircraft, you go from a tolerable noise level to going deaf on take-off. On future prop aircraft it would be nice to get some sense of that heavy vibration through the sound package. Not that I want to go deaf when flying it!

Well, our own CEO has several thousand hours in the real thing and he says the sounds are realistic (they were recorded on a real one too)... not sure what you want exactly. There aren't many turboprops like the J41 - geared engines do not sound like free turbine engines ala the PT6. I'm betting what you've flown on in the real world weren't geared.