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Audio Implementation Greats #1: Audio Toolsets [Part 1]

Posted by lostchocolatelab on Jan 13, 2010 | 9 comments

Audio Implementation Greats #1: Audio

Toolsets [Part 1]

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After steeping in the current console generation, several examples of best practices in

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audio implementation have been exposed through articles, exposes, and video examples
scattered across the internet. In an attempt to overview some of the forward thinking
front runners in the burgeoning field of Technical Sound Design, Ive been pulling
together examples of inspirational audio in games as a way to highlight innovative
techniques and the process behind them. As a way to kick off the series well begin by
focusing a bit on the legacy of available toolsets that have been used to incorporate or
implement audio content. Part 1 will tackle audio middleware and in 2 well take a deeper

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look into proprietary tools. Stick around as we peel back the curtain on the veiled art of
audio implementation.
Audio Toolsets Part 1
- Audio Middleware
If there is one thing that currently separates us from our spotted history in game audio,
it is the publicly available middleware toolsets that allow us to sound design in the box

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Kevin Durr on Tim Nielsen
Special: MS Recording

interactivity in a close approximation of how it will sound once it finds its way into the
game. With the powerful combination of several game and audio engines, this trend
towards enabling the Sound Designer to be more involved and in control of game related
sound decisions is in stark contrast to the old model of handing sounds off to a
programmer for implementation. In an attempt to expose the history of game audio
toolsets Ive rounded up a selection of interfaces I was able to find at large either on the
web or embedded in various presentations over the years and link to said documents
where applicable. Im always on the lookout for public screen shots of proprietary
toolsets for education purposes in order to illustrate a greater understanding of what
has become a critical component to interactive audio.

Cormac on The Business of

Foley
Kevin Durr on Tim Nielsen
Special: MS Recording
Florian Titus on The
Business of Foley
Kevin Durr on Tim Nielsen
Special: MS Recording

Microsoft Direct Music Producer

Cloud

Based on the Microsoft Direct Music/ Direct Sound for PCs introduced in 1999 version of

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Direct X, Direct Music Producer enabled functionality within the toolset to create and

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audition interactive functionality using the features of the low level audio libraries. This

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included the ability to loop files, specify random or sequential playback behavior, create
sample banks (DLS), and specify parameters for interactive playback using MIDI. More
info on the specific functionality can be found in a terrific write up by Dave Javelosa over
at the IASIG website: DirectMusic Producer for the Masses. While the interface and
pipeline of DMP is relatively esoteric and punishing in relation to what is currently
available, the tool continues to hold court natively in the Hero Engine from Simutronics
where segment (.sgt) files are necessary to enable seamless looping for ambient

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Microsoft Direct Music Wiki

Microsoft Direct Music Producer Download
An Overview of DirectMusic Producer

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Archives:
Archives: SelectMonth

Direct Music Producer

Creative Labs
In order to access features of its sound cards and the OpenAL audio library, Creative
Labs released several tools to assist audio developers in bringing realtime 3d audio to
games.
EAGLE: Environmental Audio Graphical Editor
The Eagle toolset, announced in 2000, provided access to environmental modeling in
order to simulate Environmental Reverb, Obstruction, and Source Model parameters for
use in conjunction with EAX (Environmental Audio Extensions). The toolset provided
Sound Designers with the ability to easily create a variety of different audio data sets, or
models. These models include: unique environments which simulate reflection and
reverberation properties of a room; source property sets which provide initialization
parameters for sounds such as distance attenuation and sound cones; and obstacle
behavior models that simulate the effects of sound moving through, and around, doors,
boxes, windows or other virtual objects. In addition, EAGLE aids the sound designer in
creating these models by providing interactive 3D graphical representations as well as
real-time auditioning of multiple data sets.
EAGLE: Cached Announcement
Creative Labs EAX ADVANCED HD

Creative Labs EAGLE: Environment

Creative Labs EAGLE: Obstruction

Creative Labs EAGLE: Source Model

EAX2

The EAX2 toolset allows for the auditioning of environmental Reverb parameters to be
used in the programming of presets for EAX used in OpenAL and various middleware
solutions such as the FMOD and Miles Sound Systems.
Creative Labs EAX

EAX2 Panel

Creative Labs ISACT

One of the tools that most resembles modern middleware toolsets is Creative Labs
ISACT or Interactive Spatial Audio Composition Technology. When it was released in
2005, ISACT provided one of the first visually focused toolsets which allowed an audio
designer to make decisions about, and audition, the way their designed sounds should
be used in conjunction with a 3d audio engine beyond simple sound file playback. In a lot
of way it set the standard as an all-in-one environment to author abstract sound with the
immediate feedback provided by the tool. ISACT was not freely available, and required
some kind of developer affiliation in order to acquire a copy of the tool.
Creative Labs Developer Central
Audio Middleware: GameCoda & ISACT
Creative Labs Introducting GameCoda & ISACT
Soundblaster 2003 Milestones
OpenAL

ISACT Production Studio

Microsoft XACT & XAudio2

Microsoft has taken great strides to provide audio tools to specifically leverage the
features of its audio libraries, beginning with Direct Music Producer, and extending to
the XBOX and XBOX 360 consoles in the form of XACT. Some of the standout additions to
the engine and tool include the ability to author sound propagation curves, global
variables including Doppler and speed of sound, realtime parameter control, and Reverb
presets. While many of its features and functionality have been forward thinking and
directly in the service of advanced audio professionals, theres been a recent backlash in
the XNA community due to the difficulty involved with simply playing a sound file as
opposed to creating an XACT project to perform this simple function. XACT continues to
be bundled with the Xbox 360 development SDK and provides a solid foundation for
implementing a high quality abstracted audio solution.
MSDN XAXT Overview
The Microsoft Cross-platform Audio Creation Tool
XACT Rant1
XACT Rant2
XACT Audio Field Guide
Hands-on Workshop XACT Audio
DirectX SDK
GameAudioTools Scott Selfon
USC Game Audio Course Slides
Also see:
Microsoft Gamefest 2006 Audio Presentations
Microsoft Gamefest 2007 Audio Presentations
Microsoft Gamefest 2008 Audio Presentations

Microsoft XACT

Microsoft XACT

FMOD
Firelight Technologies introduced FMOD in 2002 as a crossplatform audio runtime library
for playing back sound for video games. Since its inception FMOD has branched into a
low-level audio engine, an abstracted Event system, and Designer tool that allows access
to several features of the runtime audio engine without programmer involvement.
Within the FMOD Designer toolset a Sound Designer can define the basic 3D/2D
parameters for a sound or event, in addition to the ability to effectively mock up complex
parametric relationships between different sounds using intuitive crossfading and the
ability to draw in DSP curves to effect the audio. FMOD Designer was among the first
fully available toolsets that could be downloaded and used regardless of development
affiliation for educational purposes. Additionally, due to their flexible licensing structure,
FMOD became a solid and widely adopted audio middleware choice for all levels of game
development and continues to be a major player in todays game development.

Firelight Technologies FMOD

FMOD

Audiokinetic: Wwise
Introduced in 2006, the Wwise (Wave Works Interactive Sound Engine) and toolset
provides access to features of their engine from within the comprehensive content
management UI. In addition to an abstracted Event system which has become a sort of
standard across many audio solutions, they further enable the ability to make choices
regarding additional functionality such as; volume changes, logic, switch/ state changes,
attenuation profiles, and in-game connection and profiling utilities. The ability to mock
up every aspect of the engines ability brings the Wwise toolset further into a full
prototype simulation outside of the game engine. Their commitment to consistently
providing new features and improvements, including a manageable upgrade strategy at
the low level, adds to their adoption at several publishers and larger developers over the
past 4 years.
Wwise

Wwise

This article is meant more as a brief history of Audio Middleware, and not a
comprehensive investigation of features and functionality. If youre interested in a
deeper look into the differences between toolsets past or present there is a link to a
great series of articles from Mix Magazine that covers in depth all of the available audio
middleware solutions from 2007.
Audio Middleware: The Essential Link From Studio to Game Design
In addition to this I would recommend each manufacturers website for further
information on the current state of development and feature sets.Until next time. Please
drop us a line with any feedback or insight!

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9 Comments
Chris@EngineAudio January 14, 2010

Thanks for bringing all of this great information together in one place!

REPLY

Tom@fullsail January 14, 2010

This is really helpful and appreciated! Please keep this kind of information coming.

REPLY

Joe January 19, 2010

Great post, thanks!

REPLY

uge January 25, 2010

wow! really I didnt know about this! thanks a lot! :)

REPLY

George "The Fat Man" Sanger January 28, 2010

This is the article Ive been looking for! FinallyI feel I can get perspective on the
comparative abilities (and histories) of these integrators. Thank You, Sir. Lets Jam.

REPLY

King of Mexico January 28, 2010

Wow. Just wow.

REPLY

Strontium 90 January 28, 2010

great collection of info- thanks.

REPLY

lvar February 28, 2010

Thanks!!! Really interesant.

Gracias Miguel ;)

REPLY

Brett April 1, 2010

GameCoda had a tool called Cage Producer, which was part of the Sensaura middleware
before Creative even got involved with them. It was a different tool to ISACT altogther.
CRI also had a tool called sound factory.
Both of these would deserve their own section I think! :)

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