Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Surround Sound
Certain platforms don't support the idea of surround sound—most mobile devices
really only support stereo and that's about it. However, for PC or console games,
it is possible to have more than just two speakers. In a
5.1 surround
system, there
are a total of five regular speakers and one subwoofer, which is used for the low-
frequency effects (LFE) channel.
The traditional 5.1 configuration is to place three speakers in the front and two in
the back. The front channels are left, right, and center, whereas the back features
only left and right. The position of the subwoofer relative to the listener doesn't
matter, though placing it in the corner of a room will cause its low-frequency
sounds to resonate more.
Figure 6.4
illustrates a common 5.1 layout.
Figure 6.4
A standard 5.1 surround sound speaker configuration.
The neat thing about a 5.1 configuration is that it gives a much greater perception
of the position of sounds. If a spaceship flies overhead in the game, the sound can
pan from the back speakers to the front, so it feels like it's flying past you. Or in a
horror game, it might be possible to determine if there's an enemy creeping up on
you from the left or right.
