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6.8 Sound system

Within a flight simulator cockpit sound plays an important role in order to really submerge in your environment. In the section Sound definitions an overview is given from the sound effects that one can generate from within the Microsoft Flight Simulator. Below additional areas with respect to sound effects will be discussed. Issues related to sound with respect to generating vibrations in your cockpit setup are discussed in the section Vibration system.

6.8.1 Headset

Using a headset is an option to get more submerged in your flight simulator cockpit while flying, or not to disturb the people around you. There are many general suppliers for headsets (e.g. Headsets.com). An other option is to obtain a voice gaming device (see section Voice commands).

Starting with FSX the Microsoft Flight Simulator supports the use of multiple sound cards. This means that for instance ATC sound can be separately directed to a headset.

An interesting device is the Audio Over Ride Box (Jeff McCracken) that lets you combine several different sources of sounds. If you already own a real world pilot headset, then the PC Flight Simulator Headset Adapter (Pilot Products Distributing) or the Aviation Headset Adapter (Montreal AeroPlus) allows you to use your headset with the Microsoft Flight Simulator. On FlightSim there is an article by Alan Bryant on adapting an aviation headset for use with a PC sound card.

An even more Microsoft Flight Simulator specific solution is the GF-ATC Headset Comms Panel (GoFlight). Interacting with air traffic controllers over the Internet, or with the built in ATC, is made more realistic by volume and squelch knobs. An analog filtering circuitry routes an "optimized for voice" signal to the headset, while passing the original audio through to the computer's speaker system. Responding to the menu- based air traffic control in Microsoft Flight Simulator can be done using a rotary knob with integrated push switch and a single-digit LED display.

6.8.2 Adding sound effects

Although the Microsoft Flight Simulator offers a range of sound effects, additional sound effects can / will increase the realism of your flight simulator cockpit. Several add-ons are available that provide means to add sounds.

There is software that allows you to really define your sound environment. Esound (Pete Dowson) allows for sounds to be triggered by events occurring in the Microsoft Flight Simulator or on request from self developed gauges / logic. By default sounds are mixed with the Microsoft Flight Simulator sounds, but alternatively sounds can be directed specifically to any one of up to 8 distinct sound systems registered with Windows. Also sounds can be positioned individually Left, Center or Right on Stereo systems, and any one of nine prime positions on quadraphonic (4 speaker) systems. Bottom line the boundaries are formed by your own imagination. Similar to Esound is pmSounds (project Magenta). The program allows you to specify sounds depending on flight data. It runs in parallel to the Microsoft Flight Simulator on the same PC or on a networked PC using WideFS. 

FSSoundScape (Lago) is a module that will let you add sounds to locations. The module allows you to place your aircraft in the position where the sound needs to be heard, open the menu, select the sound you want to hear and instruct the module under what condition it needs to be played (time, weather, season, etc…). Next time you fly / drive over this location you will hear the sound.