Audio related problem...prob codec confliction

[darkop16]

Hey,

 

I have worked on getting fallout 3 to work with some of the mods I wanted to play for a few weeks now. I had a few problems that I believe I corrected and mostly everything is working as it should.

 

The only problem I have seems to stem from the radio channels. At first, I had the radio stutter issue. I used this guide to fix it:

 

http://www.thenexusforums.com/index.php?/topic/159037-radio-stutter-fix-for-fallout-3/

 

Strangely enough, the MAD filter was the only option that worked for me but I am running XP pro SP3 and the guide said it only works for Windows Vista and Windows 7. Whatever, it got rid of the stutter.

 

My problem now is if I use one of the music radios or no radio, my frame rates are cut in half. The audio is not stuttering or anything, but I can tell a big difference as the game world slows down. The only way I get good frame rates is if I have a radio channel that has a voice actor recording playing, such as the outcast signal, Wernher's channel or the enclave radio when President Eden is talking. If I try to enable and then disable one of the good radio channels, my frame rates fall just the same. So I am stuck listening to the outcast signal replay over and over again to play the game.

 

My guess is that the music files are in a different format than the voice playing files and the codec being used to play the music files is sucking up a lot of power from my computer and for some reason when I am not listening to a radio, it is still activated in the back ground. The only time it does not seem to be on is when I am listening to a voice playing file (such as President Eden talking) which is using a good codec.

 

I have the K-lite Codec pack v6.6.0 (the latest) installed and I made sure the ffdshow exception for fallout 3.exe was in place. I even put the FOSE exe in there since that is what I am using to start the game. Going back to the guide for audio stuttering, I tried everything in the guide except for the MAD filter since it said only for vista and 7. Turned out MAD filter got rid of the stutter, but I used the guide again and followed the steps in part C but I left Fraunhofer IIS MPEG Layer-3 Codec and MPEG Layer-3 Decoder off and kept MAD filter on but the outcome was still the same.

 

My Computer Specs are:

CPU: e6600 @ 3.2ghz (yes I tried putting it back at factory settings to see if the overclock I have been using for years now was bad....just made my computer slow)

RAM: 3GB G.Skill HZ PC6400

Mobo: ASUS P5B Deluxe

GPU: Geforce 8800 GTS (no overclock and latest drivers from Nvidia)

Soundcard: Creative Labs X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty (the latest drivers from creative)

OS: XP Professional SP3

Codec Pack: K-lite v6.6.0 standard

 

I have run out of ideas and can't find anything else through Google to try, any help would be appreciated.

[phoneyLogic]

The mad filter is not only working for Win7, there are some rare cases, where it does sth on XP. As for installing and deinstalling codecs, you really should restart you pc to get changes into effect.

 

My guess is that the music files are in a different format than the voice playing files and the codec being used to play the music files is sucking up a lot of power from my computer and for some reason when I am not listening to a radio, it is still activated in the back ground.

Yep, think you are right.

 

 

The only time it does not seem to be on is when I am listening to a voice playing file (such as President Eden talking) which is using a good codec.

Eden talks with ogg codec, this might clear the cache or relieves the mp3 codec. There seems to be a conflict. Madfilter doesn't realy resolves it on XP. So did you made sure that you didn't miss an audio codec on the disabling part? If you really get all audio codecs, you can't hear any sound (even with your media player). Then you can try each single codec one by one.

 

 

Here is the full thread by the way:

http://www.thenexusforums.com/index.php?/topic/99804-radio-stutter/page__view__findpost__p__2401011

 

There are many little different solutions which are at least always a variation of the mp3 codec issue.

Edited December 11, 2010 by tortured Tomato

[darkop16]

Nice. I guess I was so busy thinking of a set way to get the music to play correctly, I did not think about working my way up from scratch. I will give it a try.

 

Thanks

 

Update:

 

Well, that did not take long. I disabled all audio related codecs and re-enabled them one by one. Turns out both the Fraunhofer and MAD filter are bad. I have all other codecs enabled except for those three and the game runs beautifully now...except there is no music now.

 

Shouldn't a codec in the k-lite pack kick in? I would like to stick with the k-lite pack instead of using another pack like CCCP since it has served me well in the past. Is there a codec I could add on that would work in Fallout 3?

Edited December 13, 2010 by darkop16

[phoneyLogic]

Nice. I guess I was so busy thinking of a set way to get the music to play correctly, I did not think about working my way up from scratch. I will give it a try.

 

Thanks

 

Update:

 

Well, that did not take long. I disabled all audio related codecs and re-enabled them one by one. Turns out both the Fraunhofer and MAD filter are bad. I have all other codecs enabled except for those three and the game runs beautifully now...except there is no music now.

 

Shouldn't a codec in the k-lite pack kick in? I would like to stick with the k-lite pack instead of using another pack like CCCP since it has served me well in the past. Is there a codec I could add on that would work in Fallout 3?

Glad it worked :)

You don't necessarily need codec packs. But if you want, just stick with klite. Codecs in general tend to make things worse in Fallout 3.

 

Yes, the guide I wrote is just a summary of the most common problems and my own testings. So it would be great if you post your experience in the thread as well. This may help other members who try to fight the sound issue. Many people expect an "all in one fix" which just does not exists. The linked thread can be inspiring. You'll earn a kudo if you post a good working solution. :wink:

Edited December 13, 2010 by tortured Tomato