specrt Posted September 4, 2019 Share Posted September 4, 2019 (edited) Solved: uninstalling KB4512941 resolves the issue completely, or see the tip below. After installing recent hotfixes (25.7.3 + 25.7.3.1) most of the audio sounds twisted. This includes roughly all sound effects that originate from outside of my field of view (from the sides, from behind). These effects sound weird and noticeably damped. This affects the experience greatly, because of the fast-paced nature of the game sound sources keep popping in and out of being normal, which disorients me quite a lot. The "twisted" part of this headphone test gives me the same impression as aforementioned sound effects. The issue doesn't persist anywhere outside of Warframe application. I think it's worth mentioning the recent Windows update (KB4512941), which I have installed as well as hotfixes between two gaming sessions and which, supposedly, "addresses an issue that prevents certain games from leveraging Spatial Audio capabilities". This or some other update was, apparentely, a reason for another sound bug, but in that case it was the fault of Dolby Surround, which I do not even have installed, and I've checked Windows Spatial Audio settings just in case, they were set to "None". I'm using Sound Blaster Tactic3D Alpha USB sound card in pair with Cloud Alpha headset with few SB enchancements enabled, but disabling them or plugging the headset into motherboard-integrated sound card didn't change much (the game froze and crashed as I've unplugged the audio jack from the integrated sound card, but that is beside the current issue), as well as checking "Disable sound enhancements" option in Windows sound settings. Here is an example. Notice, how you can hear the door with both ears, but the pillar can only be heard from one side, despite it being activated from only a little bit further, and the sound is twisted and very soft if it is behind me. I admit, it may be just some quirk of my perception, but the change was apparent to me as soon as I logged into the game and walked around the orbiter and persists still. The only sound that hasn't changed is when it comes from in front of me, no matter how far away. Edited September 6, 2019 by specrt Solved 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specrt Posted September 5, 2019 Author Share Posted September 5, 2019 (edited) Update 1: I've tried playing Apex Legends, it has the same issue. Checking the game audio settings gives a clue - the game thinks that surround 7.1 is present in Windows and sets its audio configuration accordingly. The fix for this in Apex is to manually edit the config file in order to force the application to use stereo instead of surround. So it seems to be the fault of 1903 Windows update. The option of disabling 7.1 surround in Windows is gone, and it should only activate on its own if any of spatial audio configs are used, which are not in my case (and some others). I'm at loss now, since my sound card is fairly old and its support is discontinued, meaning that no new drivers will be released, and I don't see where else there would be an option to prevent Windows from recognising my sound card as surround one. Any tips would be appreciated. Edited September 5, 2019 by specrt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[DE]George Posted September 5, 2019 Share Posted September 5, 2019 Have you tried to force Windows to output stereo? Control Panel->Hardware and Sound->Sound->Highlight your soundcard/device->Configure->Choose the configuration you want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specrt Posted September 5, 2019 Author Share Posted September 5, 2019 Yes I did try, stereo was and remains the only option available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specrt Posted September 5, 2019 Author Share Posted September 5, 2019 (edited) Okay, seems like I've found the solution here. It seems to be the problem between this particular Windows update and USB sound cards, and is indeed solved by manually updating drivers from Device Manager and telling the device to use "USB Audio Device" drivers. The sound went back to how it was, while I'm still able to use settings and software specific to my sound card idk how I've managed to use Sound Blaster enhancements before, but I can't replicate it. Edited September 5, 2019 by specrt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I_Funky_I Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 I've been having issues with my sound since installing this Windows 10 update as well. I did what you suggested and it fixed the issues I was having (some audio dialogue was missing or inaudible). Thanks a bunch for the tip! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KezzaWezza Posted September 16, 2019 Share Posted September 16, 2019 Im having the same issue but im not using a USB soundcard im using the motherboard audio and according to device manager my drivers are all up to date Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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