Idea for possible Simvibe on PS4/Xbox

  • Thread starter Thread starter rj5992
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First things first...Hi folks, this is my first post here after lurking for ages.

Now onto the actual topic. I've been toying with the idea of adding a bass transducer to my rig. The only issue is that I'm a console player (PS4) and as such run into two main problems with using one.

Firstly, the audio outputs are completely governed by the PS4 operating system and as such, when using a Bluetooth audio headset, the console will cut all audio signals running to the transducers. I need the headset for party chat whilst racing online.

Secondly, because the only way of running it is through an audio signal, I will lose the option of running a program like Simvibe, which from what I've read online is basically mandatory to get the best out of the system.

Now, I've been using RS Dash and CrewChief since I first heard about them (the phone apps for a digital dash and an improved crew chief respectively). These use the data that the game sends out over the internet, and interprets them to provide various detailed real time information.

Is it possible to create a SimVibe like app that interprets this data to allow a more controlled experience from the bass shaker? It would also free up the restricted audio connections to be used normal. I'm thinking locking up, abs vibrating, possible crash impacts. I don't know whether it will be able to replicate rumble strips or track bumps since they are more force feedback based but then again I have no idea what data the game sends out, only that I remember the RS Dash creator commenting on it being a lot of information.

Sorry for the long winded post, I'm not an app developer and don't have a clue how that all works but was merely curious as to whether it would be possible and whether someone would think it worth the time to develop themselves to sell. I'd certainly buy!

Cheers,

RJ
 
Hi again RJ! Once again I believe @Sick Cylinder might be someone who might be able to assist with bass transducer questions, although I'm not sure he'll know much about apps!

But I just thought I'd say...
when using a Bluetooth audio headset, the console will cut all audio signals running to the transducers.
Could you not tell the PS4 to output chat audio only to the headset? Or are you using them for all sounds and just want the bass rumble separated?


I had an oldish vibrating gaming chair upstairs
It looks quite nice, why don't you use it? Or when you say oldish do you mean worn out? :)
The audio bits and pieces could probably be salvaged but it might be more trouble than its worth.
 
Ah! Nice to bump into you again! Yeah, I was hoping to output all audio to headphones whilst separating the bass for vibration. Reason being as I have my rig in an upstairs room and don't want to deafen/shake the house down, so was thinking of going for smaller transducers mounted under the seat pad rather than one big one shaking the whole rig.

Thanks for your response!
 
Small rumbles then. :)
It might be possible but I'm not sure. Others may know more than me.

I output via optical to a separate surround sound amp and speakers then get my rumble from a large woofer. I believe that others using different methods don't get the same volume or bass effects that I do

Unfortunately the PS4 is a step back from the PS3 in that it's very restrictive in what it outputs, to where and to when. That's progress. :boggled:
 
Ah! Nice to bump into you again! Yeah, I was hoping to output all audio to headphones whilst separating the bass for vibration. Reason being as I have my rig in an upstairs room and don't want to deafen/shake the house down, so was thinking of going for smaller transducers mounted under the seat pad rather than one big one shaking the whole rig.

Thanks for your response!

I don't believe that an app is necessary - it should be possible to access the audio signal and use the bass frequencies (below about 100Hz) to power a transducer or multiple transducers. As @IfAndOr has said connectivity options were reduced between the PS3 and PS4. The PS4 Pro and old PS4 has a fibre optic connection. The new vanilla PS4 lacks this extra connection.

Transducers don't produce sound, they produce movement so they won't deafen anyone and rubber isolation is used to prevent any shakes being transmitted to anything other than the medium which you want shaken (i,e, your seat). Your rig should be fully isolated from the floor to prevent any vibration from reaching it - bigger transducers will transmit more vibration to your body, but not to the floor if isolation is correct.

The audio signal which you can amplify to power your transducer(s) is in the 0.1 of the 5.1 surround signal - this contains road thumps, engine vibration, rumble strips, collisions etc. The amount and the effectiveness of the signal varies from game to game - @Scaff did an excellent comparison test of racing games. Project Cars 1 set the standard for audio tactile effects. Project Cars 2 is not as good because the audio signal is weaker and the mix is not as good.

If you are unable to use the 0.1 effects signal (as I am) it is included and shared between the full range stereo audio signals - I have previously made a post on how to use stereo audio for tactile transducers and will add it below for you to read - feel free to ask any questions.

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I did this with a PS3 as follows (probably similar to X Box) - set the console to multi-out (sends signals to all outputs at once - connected the PS3 to 5.1 surround sound audio amp by optical fibre cable, connected PS3 to TV by HDMI then set TV volume to 0, connect 2 mono subwoofer amps, one to each audio side of the audio out from the back of the console . Each subwoofer amp powered 2 x 50W RMS bass shakers positioned on either side of the chair. With GT5 and GT6 the effect was ok for rumble strips and collisions and very good for rallying. Good engine vibration effects with Audi and Mercedes V8 cars. Very poor i.e. almost no engine vibration effects with 4, 6, 10 or 12 cylinder cars. Some strange effects - i.e. if driving a 4 cylinder car and overtaken by a V8 Merc the seat would vibrate a lot until that car was out of range.

Note - the full range stereo signal contains the LFE signal. The way I connected the PS3 to the shaker amps was not an option with the PS4 because it does not have enough audio output options (might also be true of the X Box). Eventually I got my system working by using a mini-jack from the TV headphone output - this provides a full range stereo signal - the tactile effects were absolutely mind blowing on Project Cars 1 - for engine vibration - all configurations of engine - gearchange jolts etc. Unfortunately with PC2 the audio signal is too weak so I don't get any effects with the new game.

Effects vary a lot from game to game e.g. GT5 and 6 good, PC1 very good, Dirt Series very poor, PC2 very poor.

Personally I don't think stereo effects are worth the extra cost and effort and would advise people to stick with mono - I switched from stereo to mono with PC1. It is difficult to effectively isolate the shaking effects from a stereo system - for instance even if a shaker is mounted on the left side of the seat it will still shake the right side by transmission through the seat. A mono system is good enough - the eyes will see the source of a directional effect from the screen and it adds to the immersion giving a realistic effect without needing to be stereo. On top of that it is easier to get a strong signal from a stereo source - high signal strength is key to a good effect and sadly the two games which I play - PC2 and AC have a weak signal - the music for AC provides plenty of shakes, but not the action in the game.

Note I don't split the LFE signal to the sub from my 5.1 system and feed it to a tactile amp as that isn't an option with my surround sound system. For those that can, splitting the LFE signal to power a mono shaker system will be the easiest option. If you are using a full range stereo signal you will need an appropriate amp(s) such as a subwoofer amp which enables you to filter out all, but the small range of bass signals that you need - shakers are only designed to work with a very narrow signal range i.e. below about 120 Hz and will sound horrible with higher frequencies - the strongest effect is at about 40 Hz.

Sorry it's a long post - hope some of it is useful!
 
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Wow, thanks for all that information, you've given me a huge amount. I can't read through it all just yet as I'm at work but I'll definitely give it a detailed look through soon.

Thanks very much!
 
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