I’m sorry but changing the sound of the '16 R8 Plus and '13 R8 Plus was completely unnecessary and it doesn’t even sound better and here’s my overdetailed analysis of why:
The Huracan and '16 R8 Plus use updated versions of the 5.2 liter V10s present in the Gallardo Superleggera, Performante and '13 R8, with newer exhausts of course. So, first of all:
The '16 R8 and '13 R8 do not sound identical in real life. So they shouldn’t in game either… I mean in FH3 they didn’t. The newer R8 is raspier with more backfire and louder. Same can be said about Huracan vs Gallardo. This was a problem before the update and still after because I guess they figured both R8s needed the same “patched” sound files… But seeing the Gallardos and Huracan still sound the same as each other as well, I shouldn’t be surprised.
The updated sound is wrong, unsurprisingly. The tone is wrong and it just sounds like some kind of cheap generic V10 sound made in house. In real life, the new R8 sounds almost identical to the Huracan. They share the same kind of engine and exhaust upgrades and they’re kind of just the same cars. The sound it had before the update was just like the Huracan, and countering all of the baseless arguments against it, that sound was accurate. It did sound like that.
I went to COTA and they were running laps in new R8 Plus’ for hours. It sounded like the sound prior to updating. I’ve spotted many R8s and Huracans revving and accelerating off in real life too. What do ya know? It sounded like the old sound. So what happened?
So I suggest they undo this “patch” and go back to the Huracan sound, because now when you drive the Huracan and R8 back to back they sound way different than they should, AND I suggest adding the old FH1 and FH2 sounds to the Gallardo Superleggera, Performante and '13 R8 Plus.
But my biggest issue is: we’ve got all of these cars that need updates that people complain about. I’ve literally seen no one complain of the Huracan or '16 R8 sound. So why ignore all of these cars that actually need a sound update and focus on something that has no problems or inaccuracies?
It just leaves me shaking my head. Look, I still love the game, and many cars do have good sounds and some good updates have been made. But what is this? It just shows they haven’t truly learned.
There’s a thing called research, and as a car enthusiast it’s just something you do. So it amazes me that a gaming company that used to prioritize accurate depictions of cars has seemingly stopped doing it.
You know, but there’s a simple solution. How about actually go out and record real sounds rather than try to make up some fake sound in your studios? I mean FH1 literally most sounds are recorded or sound like it. Was that too hard to keep doing?
I complained. Because they simply weren’t up to par.
I do the same research you do. The old sound had wrong pitch. It was too low (car at 9000 rpm sounded like 8000). Your research should have told you this. The new sound is better in this regard and does not sound very different from a real R8. From acceleration videos, they seem close, in fact.
As for the differences between old and new R8, that’s not something that can be done feasibly in post-release support. I’m surprised they actually took the time to even bake a new R8 sound in the first place. That shows commitment. I hope the Gallardo gets the same treatment, because it sure as hell doesn’t sound like a Huracán.
Here’s a video, time stamped at the R8 comparison (this clip was made before the sound update):
(skip to real thing)
I don’t know how you’re gonna argue that they don’t sound similar because they do.
Meanwhile, the new sound clip does not sound like the real thing:
Like what more do you need?
Is the new sound a higher quality sound clip? Yes. But is the tone and pitch right? No. I’m sorry but it’s just not. It has the overall V10 sound but it is not as accurate as it was before, albeit (again) a higher quality sound clip. Its hard to describe, but if you play the clips back to back, it’s like the new sound is lower in tone (or weaker) and not as bellow-y. The new R8 and Huracan V10 have that raspy, high pitched scream style that the Aventador’s V12 has at high rpm. New sound doesn’t. Had they altered the sound but kept the tone and pitch I’d be happy, but it sounds more synthetic in both these videos and on my sound system and compared to what I’ve heard in real life.
I don’t think driving an R8 from the interior is gonna change my opinion of how it sounded when I’ve stood next to them taking off.
Another point here, I’d much rather them put effort into working on the cars that sound drastically innacurate (Viper, Pagani’s, Honda’s, Nissan GTR’s etc) then tweaking a generic v10 on the R8/Huracan. While these may sound a bit different IRL, they still just produce a super generic V10 noise that aren’t that much different between R8’s and Huracans and across different years. It’s generally the same sound and I’m fairly happy with those. They aren’t undrivabe.
Note how the dev team probably didn’t need to record any new samples, they just layered a V10 sound on the background of the Audi V8 sample, mixed them properly and called it a day. Which is a perfectly fine thing to do, because Audi’s metallic exhaust note is universal across its V8 and V10 models and has a very characteristic sound.
The fact that these sound updates are not being listed in the patch notes or a list is not being published is really annoying me. Why do we have to play a guess game every time?
I’m not sure about realism, but the car sounds in FH4 don’t make me smile as they don’t sound as aggressive as some earlier FH games. I might as well be driving a stock Toyota Corolla.
My main issue with the new sound on the 16’ R8 is that although it’s a good sound, it just isn’t that fitting. From what I’ve heard, the Huracán and ‘16 R8 sound a little ‘tamer’ than the Gallardo and ‘13 R8, which is why I think that this new sound should be applied to them instead.
The fact that it was added to the ‘13 R8 gives me hope that the sound will also be given to the Gallardo and Gallardo Spyder, since in my opinion the sound screams Gallardo.
Do I appreciate the new sound? Yes. Of course I do. In fact I actually quite like it. But do I think it’s fitting on the ‘16 R8? No. A good sound isn’t always an accurate sound in my eyes, which is why I’d rather the ‘16 R8 have the ‘tamer’ sound of the Huracán, and the Gallardo and ‘13 R8 have the newer, more aggressive sound.
Credit where credit is due: good job on improving both the R8 sounds! Much better now - closer to the actual cars. I also appreciate the LaFerrari sound you guys improved a few weeks back - superb!
Just my humble two: please keep up the hard work by improving the other sounds which need to be corrected - Zonda Chinque roadster, Zonda R, ACR Viper (the latest one in the game, not drift version), Skylines before the R35, Huracan, Gallardo, and perhaps the FXX-K also - although sample sounds fairly close it needs to scream more because the sound is very aggressive and hair raising in real life.
Most important and this is really holding me back from purchasing the full game: not enough volume, bass and ‘fullness’ in the car sounds. The dynamic range needs an update to make them sound like they’re more “there”. I have a reasonably good home theatre setup and I always feel as if my sub and midrange speakers are being underworked. Noticeable and loud forced induction sounds also seem to be absent from many cars where the turbo flutter/wastegate or supercharger sound in real life is crazy loud.
Finally, the interior sounds need more rumble and bass - they sound distant. Why is that? When I let my foot off the gas, most cars go near-silent unless I downshift to make sure the engine is still there! Engine noise and exhaust rumble needs to be a lot more pronounced. This reminds me of the kamikaze choppers and unusually loud rumble strips/suspension bottom out effect from FM7 - the cars also lack bass in that game while certain effects in the environment are far too loud.
Thought I’d post here as I haven’t actually spoken within this thread.
Although I haven’t posted here, I have been in discussion with the audio team about this thread and they do keep watch with what is posted here.
This has therefore led to the recent audio changes in several updates that you have seen made within the past month of so. (You can check them in the release notes Here.)
Whilst this may not seem enough, we are constantly working to improve every sound and audio aspects focusing on feedback given by the community.
I apologise for my lack of response in this thread.
THANK YOU! This is all we have been asking for Retro. Thank you for making your presence known here. We are grateful for that.
I think one complaint about the patch notes is it has in the past simply said “sound fixes related to community feedback”’or something like that. There has been no mention of which cars for updates, it has been a guessing game to figure out which cars received updates. If they could be mentioned in the next round of updates that would be really helpful. EDIT: I looked through those patch notes and only one mentions anything about audio improvements, and no specific cars were mentioned. But I know for example the last update the Audi R8 was tweaked. That wasn’t mentioned at all in the patch notes. An oversight maybe?
I think what would be helpful too is some kind of road map to fixing the rest. What cars are they working on? How are they making these fixes? What sources are they using to understand how these cars sound in real life and create accurate sound files?
thank you very much for acknowledging this. with correct car sounds and mixing level/dynamic range, i think this game can be pure gold. i’ve also left some feedback for your dedicated team in the fm7 sound thread - if you could please acknowledge that too - would be icing on the cake!
Thank you so much! I compiled a list of cars that could be improved on page 8. It’s not complete (I stopped after a while, I thought it won’t be of any use but maybe I was wrong) and some were done in the patch (that r34 sound is not really good though, I think I even liked the previous one more) but it may help. Lots of research went into this one, comparing sounds to mostly FH3 and reading people’s thoughts on forum and YouTube. Also, there are volume issues, for example Porsche 911 GT2 993 is very quiet, weird considering it’s a pretty much road going race car. I needed to turn down the music to even hear it and then I drove some less sporty car (can’t remember which sadly) and had to turn up the volume because it was loud and more clear.
As for M4, it should have M4 GTS sound but without so many exhaust crackle.
For me for the R34, they should use the FH3 R32/33 sound file. The one currently in use is the file from FM7 so I can’t imagine this would be too difficult.
