Matrix Games Forums

The game must be designed in a VERY noisy environment.

Close a ingame window or popup, and *CLICK* you start waking the neighbors.
Simply mousing over some features and the Launcher and *Click*, less volume but still no where near quiet.

So while you may be catering to the hearing impaired BY SHOUTING AT THEM ALL THE TIME, well you get the point, very annoying.

I'll second that again. I usually play while doing something else in another window. If for example I'm listening to a TV show at a comfortable audio level, the UI effects over in DW are extremely loud. I can't believe there's no option to adjust in the first place.. it just seems like something that someone would have brought up by now..

I've been asking for that since DW original release.

The work-around I use is to go to Windows sound control (bottom right of your task bar, normally), open the mixer and disable sound for Distant Worlds.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-za/windows7/adjust-the-sound-level-on-your-computer

It is strange how some things are really bothering some people, while the others don't notice or even see how it could be a problem if not explained to them.
Well one really feels what he feels, and it makes this a genuine problem to some of us.

ORIGINAL: CyclopsSlayer

The game must be designed in a VERY noisy environment.

Close a ingame window or popup, and *CLICK* you start waking the neighbors.
Simply mousing over some features and the Launcher and *Click*, less volume but still no where near quiet.

So while you may be catering to the hearing impaired BY SHOUTING AT THEM ALL THE TIME, well you get the point, very annoying.

I had the same problem but with the construction and mining sounds. So I reduced the sound volume by using a -10dB cut, I like the explosions though so I left them. The only other thing is the alarm sound which I replaced with the an edited Star Trek red alert, the rest of the sounds do not really come across as loud to me but if you can list the sounds you think are to loud then I will see what I can come up with.

Darkspire

That's the problem though. There's a slider for the game sound effects, but you can't turn the UI sounds off. I suppose I'll use Kayoz' suggestion.

ORIGINAL: necaradan666

That's the problem though. There's a slider for the game sound effects, but you can't turn the UI sounds off. I suppose I'll use Kayoz' suggestion.

And as I said, if you tell me what sounds are too loud I will reduce the volume on them, no good using a cannon to kill a bee hive, you will be reducing the volume for all the sounds doing it that way, much better if you just reduce the ones that are giving you problems.

Darkspire

Oh I do turn off all sounds when I'm not fullscreen, so using the windows mixer is an elegant solution, didn't think of it because I mostly use it for muting web pages rather than games.

For me it's just the extreme clicking sound some UI buttons make, the beeping the rest of the buttons make isn't quite so loud.

ORIGINAL: Darkspire
...no good using a cannon to kill a bee hive...

Oh please! I'm not that sort of person.

I recommend a flamethrower for those pesky bee hives.

There are only two UI sounds so I reduced both by -20db, if that is to much just say and I will redo them and just decrease / increase till we have a volume your happy with.

MellowUI

Just back up your original files, button1.wav and button2.wav and replace them with the ones in the zip by putting the files in the zip into 'C:\Matrix Games\Distant Worlds\Sounds\Effects' (that's on XP)

ORIGINAL: Kayoz

ORIGINAL: Darkspire
...no good using a cannon to kill a bee hive...

Oh please! I'm not that sort of person.

I recommend a flamethrower for those pesky bee hives.

Nuke them from orbit, only way to be sure [:D]

Darkspire

ORIGINAL: Darkspire
Nuke them from orbit, only way to be sure [:D]

Damn... I've got nothing to top that...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a88Z7YOh_us

My biggest gripe with sounds are the increasingly loud ambiance sounds when you zoom in. Suns and shipyards are incredibly loud. [:-]

ORIGINAL: Mansen

My biggest gripe with sounds are the increasingly loud ambiance sounds when you zoom in. Suns and shipyards are incredibly loud. [:-]

We now have two zips.

Zip One - MellowClick UI sounds reduced by -20dB

Zip Two - MellowSunIndustry Construction, Mining and Suns / Stars reduced by -10dB

Back up your effects folder and put these in, they are the same sound just reduced in volume.

ORIGINAL: Kayoz

ORIGINAL: Darkspire
Nuke them from orbit, only way to be sure [:D]

Damn... I've got nothing to top that...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a88Z7YOh_us

If you can't top it go one bigger ...

Darkspire

Elliot, please incorporate Darkspire's little mod lol

Neat, thanks Darkspire. Never thought to edit the sound files. [:D]

Thank you both [8D]

If there are any other sounds that are too loud just shout or inbox me.

Darkspire

Thanks! I hadn't noticed it so much before as I would almost always have a headset on and be in voice-comms. Full studio quality headphones pretty much squashed the noticeable volume, since Shadows I mostly have the headset off and was, well, getting rocked. (and I listen to my music at window rattling volume)

The new sound files are very welcome, and much more tolerable!

Thanks!

Not to sure about the rest of you but I am finding the construction sounds are a bit to low now, I have redone them to -5dB, I have Winamp or 1by1 playing at 50% volume and the sounds were a bit lost below it, I am playing on a prewarp custom empire and having the home world on screen building things a fair bit, that's why I have been noticing the volume for construction. If anyone wants me to upload the new ones for construction shout and I will put the link up.

Darkspire

Darkspire: I would like you to upload your -5dB sound files for construction.