How much do you use sound in multiplayer FPSes?

[DangerAardvark]

I remember playing ET with headphones on back in the day and running through areas listening more than looking; even getting accused of hacking because my supposed ability to see through walls. I haven't really played online FPSes since ET. Is a good sound setup important these days?

 

[lxskllr]

Absolutely... The only mp game I play is UT2k4, but I'd say I use my ears as much as my eyes. I have a 5.1 speaker setup, and the couple of times I used headphones it negatively affected my game. The positional accuracy just wasn't there with the headphones.

 

[Capt Caveman]

Incredibly important. With my X-Fi and Medusa 5.1's playing BF2, I can hear people coming up behind me, climbing up a ladder, on the other side of a wall which direction they're going, etc...

 

[Inspector Jihad]

i get knifed in cs way more when i dont have sound

 

[legoman666]

I use it a lot in CS:S. Not as much in TF2, just not really as important. In CS:S, you can watch some people playing and be amazed at their either a) lack of sound or b) inability to interpret the footsteps coming up behind them (when theyre the last alive on the team) as something they should pay attention to.

 

[Ika]

Sound in CS (1.6 or Source, moreso in Source) is really important, especially on close-combat and indoor maps like cs_office.

 

[natep]

i find it important in TF2. there are a lot of sound bytes from the character classes that give info on what is going on. it would also be really hard to stop spies as an engineer w/o that sapper *bzzzzt* noise. the fact that the sentries *beeP* when you are seen helps too, since you can just step backward whenever you hear it.

 

[Aikouka]

Originally posted by: lxskllr
Absolutely... The only mp game I play is UT2k4, but I'd say I use my ears as much as my eyes. I have a 5.1 speaker setup, and the couple of times I used headphones it negatively affected my game. The positional accuracy just wasn't there with the headphones.

My headphones have positioning so I can usually tell where a sound is coming from even with them on. If I couldn't, I'd definitely be worse as you describe.

 

[pontifex]

footsteps don't seem to be in games any more or they're just too quiet to hear if they are there.

i don't think sound plays as much a role as it could though.

 

[Ctrackstar126]

Originally posted by: pontifex
footsteps don't seem to be in games any more or they're just too quiet to hear if they are there.

i don't think sound plays as much a role as it could though.

I can hear footsteps but its usually if you in a more quite area. I have dt770s paired with an x-fi and they have saved me time to time. Does it give me an edge every time I play definitely not but there are times where because of them I was able to get the jump on someone.

 

[nycxandy]

Sound is very important in Counter-Strike.

 

[JPB]

All my fps's I use sound all the time. Logitech Z-5500 5.1.....and its at half volume.

I just have to hear to play properly

 

[ConstipatedVigilante]

Sound is great in many games. I use it all the time in BF2. Unfortunately, I don't have a 5.1 setup - just a nice 2.1 and headphones.

 

[Inspector Jihad]

Originally posted by: Aikouka

Originally posted by: lxskllr
Absolutely... The only mp game I play is UT2k4, but I'd say I use my ears as much as my eyes. I have a 5.1 speaker setup, and the couple of times I used headphones it negatively affected my game. The positional accuracy just wasn't there with the headphones.

My headphones have positioning so I can usually tell where a sound is coming from even with them on. If I couldn't, I'd definitely be worse as you describe.

what kind of headphones do you have and do you have any recommendations? i think soemthing like that would be a good idea for me rather than getting a new set of 5.1 speakers since i'm perfectly happy with my z-2300s for everything else.

 

[imported_sushicide]

Sound was very very useful in CS, especially during beta when you can still hear the other team's radio message. I find myself not really caring that much about sound anymore since alot of FPS games nowdays have too many damn people on a map to differentiate friends from foes.

 

[Cabages]

I play with music on in CS. But im not one of the idiots that put MUSIC in there name. Those guys piss me off.

 

[Vidda]

Very important as a 1v1er in Quake/UT.

 

[Stas]

Important in Q3 Deathmatches and CS:S. In Q3 you can hear sombody grab armor from half the map away; A humming noise gives a rail gun away (useful to know ). In CS:S detecting footsteps is probably 30% of successful pwnage.

 

[omber]

I need sound for CSS - you can tell what surface someone is on so you can more or less pinpoint just by hearing it plus my headphones are 5 channel so I get extra directivity from that..

 

[IEC]

Being more auditory than visual... I use sound extensively, often to the point of being called a hacker

 

[j0j081]

Originally posted by: Spartan Niner
Being more auditory than visual... I use sound extensively, often to the point of being called a hacker

yeah when I used to play CS:S I got accused of wallhacking all the time because my headphones are really good with directional sound and I'd hear people coming all the time and get in perfect position to kill them easily.

 

[clipperfixer]

I play SOF2 online, I don't use the sound packs, and I have a sniper sound mod that shuts down all the sounds EXCEPT the important ones, footsteps, guns reloading, pickups, bullets , etc and my favorite the lovely sound of snipers using goggles if you hear the goggles squeal they are very close, shotty time I just use a set of Sony in the ear type headphones, very comfortable, and good sound, only 2.1 though.