I’m noticing on the preview stream that each station stop throws a red signal after the platform. It then clears right after the stop. Is that real world practice for Metrolink?
No, this is not correct. In real life, the dispatcher routes the train as far as he/she can and the signals are set that way. You'd arrive at a station with a clear signal ahead of you and it wouldn't be red and then switch to green. If I remember correctly, the Peninsula Corridor is like this. Once you got the okay to proceed, the signal would switch to green. That's not correct. Likely a DTG/TSW thing.
That's common with a lot of DTG routes, signals are often red until a station stop is cleared. It might just be how their dispatcher works in certain cases
Yeah it made me curious because it was reminding me of older TSW routes. The newer routes allow for straight green signals if the route is clear
Not always. Especially with US content, that is why its hard to play with safety systems on in the NEC because you get random yellow signals for seemingly no reason
I noticed a lot of yellow signals today in the stream that didn't seem to match up with where the train was actually going.
I wonder if it has something to do with the fact this route has long sections of single track? I know it’s been mentioned before that it can cause dispatcher issues.
Well, in the real world, even on the long stretches of single track, the signals are almost always green, unless there's some kind of track change, like switching to a siding or other main track, that would cause a different signal aspect.
They use the dispatch beyond setting and have it not set on the Go to instruction but on the load instruction (boarding of passengers). Therefore, you approach a red signal and only once you stop, the dispatcher actually tries to clear the path for you. They started to use that in newer routes of TSW to prevent the constant green signals from one end to the other which may be realistic but boring.
Yellow signals is the exact same places every time is boring as well. And since when was TSW a game that prioritised fun over realism?
The red lights at end of platforms is being looked into, hopefully in the release version but if not, it'll be shortly after. Matt.
This is a timetable design issue, not a game limitation. Like stated before, there is a Dispatch Beyond Instruction setting that isn't ticked on these stop instructions.
Can't speak for US but especially for German routes, there has been criticism from these forums that the safety systems are barely useful because every signal is green.
With it like it currently is set up, you are never going to be on time, if you follow the operating rules which slows the train to 40 mph at an approach.
Yet if that is what the route is showing ahead, then greens are what you see and the safety systems will just be there waiting for something.
Since this thread is a Metrolink question thread and the original asked question has been addressed, I have another one. Can you fix the volume of the bell inside the cab of the F125? It's NOT that loud in real life sitting in the cab. Can you guys also at some point give us some kind of preview of the cabcar? You showed the cab in the stream and it looks amazing. Pretty much exactly how it looks. But we haven't heard any sounds! I'd love to hear the horn to insure you guys actually recorded the cabcar horn too as the locomotive horn and cabcar horn DO NOT sound the same. They're similar, but also distinctly different. Hoping you didn't use the horn from the F125 on the cabcar. And to make sure the bell isn't too loud on that either.
I'll pass on the bell feedback and talk to JD about getting a demo video up for the cab car if there's time. Definitely got a very different horn though, can confirm. Matt.
It could also be too that the cab windows were open for a lot of the stream which might have been making it sound louder. Not sure if we heard it with the windows closed. If that's the case and it's quieter with the windows closed, it might not need to be changed. But we'd need to hear it with the windows closed. Either way though, love to hear it. Thanks Matt!
Yeah we've been discussing it with the metrolink guys on our beta discord and they've explained that with the bell, for some reason, *right* under the driver (normally its on the other side and/or half way down, but on the F125 it's literally right under you) they expect it to be very loud with the windows open. They were going to compare it with windows shut but suggest it maybe could do with a small drop at least but still expect there's a fair noise because of its location. Matt.
Yeah, that makes total sense. It is still louder than other locomotives or even the cabcar when sitting in the cab for this reason. If the window is open, it's very loud indeed. Did you guys record the horn and bell for inside the cab with the window and door closed? Thanks for looking into this, Matt!
I don’t know about you but I play this (and other) games for fun. Yes realism, as far as it goes is important but if I’m not having fun, then it is a chore and ceases to be interesting. That is why I like the versatility. You can set all the safety systems on and have the HUD switched off if that’s your thing or you can have your hand held or anything in between.
Matt, I don't want to sound like a broken record here but you probably get so many notifications that it might be easy to miss posts. Did you guys record the horn and bell for inside the cab with the window and door closed? It's much louder with the window open.
Gotcha okay. Well thanks for the response. Just hoping it doesn't come out sounding too loud even with the window and doors closed.
Hi amtraknick1993 - my name's Matthew and I did the sound for the F125. Based on your feedback along with the feedback Matt mentioned on discord, I've now adjusted the level of the interior bell with windows and doors closed, so hopefully it's more or less where it should be now! Also, I can confirm we recorded the horn and bell inside the cab with the windows closed, but I wasn't personally on the recording trip, so without having been inside the cab to hear the volume differences in real life, there's always going to be an element of educated guesswork involved. So thanks for the feedback, it's good to be able to get this stuff as close to real life as possible!
Another "not real" issue, is passenger trains always stops at the end of the platform. So this causes passengers start to walk up to there, and mostly only few of them have time to board. May be to have the real thing - usually train stops depending of it length (at least in Europe)-, can be complicated due to software issue. But will be great if can be achieved on future updates.
Great to hear! Thanks for taking the feedback, Matthew! This is not how it works on Metrolink. There are car spot markers for both the locomotive and cabcar. They are blue signs with a number on them designating how many cars you have in your consist and that is where you stop the locomotive. So Metrolink trains don't "always stop at the end of the platform." It depends on the car markers and that's where you spot the train. At several stations, they don't pull anywhere close to the end.
I think grdaniel48 was referring to the fact that in TSW (and also in TSC unless programmed by the scenario creator) you are always stopping at the end of the platform. As you said above, there would be car stop markers on UK platforms to signify where to appropriately stop, the same as in the US.
Again, I really appreciate your reply and am happy to hear that my feedback was received. I have one more bit, if you don't mind. The only other thing I could think of and hope for currently is that the airbrake sounds in the cabcar were recorded separately from the F125. Since we haven't seen a cabcar preview yet it's hard to say. These too sound completely different from the locomotive as they have the Wabtec airbrake stand, which is very common on US equipment where as the airbrake stand on the F125 is completely different and more modern. The sounds for the brakes on the F125 sound really good, pretty much exactly how they are in real life. But the cabcar airbrake sounds are completely different and also make air sound every time you move the handle and set more air. It's not one singular sound that only plays once. The F125 seems to have modeled this as it seemed to make sound every time Matt moved the handle in the stream. I hope the cabcar has the proper sounds and is setup the where it makes sound every time you move the throttle. I hope I'm not coming across as nit-picky but just passing off more feedback and information of how things and sounds should be for the most realistic simulation, which you guys try and strive for.
Good to hear the F125 brakes are in good shape! Our Metrolink contact has been amazing and has really gone into as much detail as he can with everything, which has been super helpful. The Rotems brake releases etc were indeed recorded separately as well, and my colleague Rhys, who did the audio for the Rotem cab cars, has implemented so that the releases etc play appropriately as brake pressure is changed. As I say, our Metrolink contact has been fantastic and has been such a huge help in making sure these trains are as accurate as possible throughout the whole process, so hopefully once it's out you'll agree that it's all paid off!
This is really great to hear! Thank you for putting up with my questions but also being engaged on here to answer them. From what I've seen so far, I think it will have paid off! Thanks again Matthew!
amtracknick1993 - What you have mentioned, is what I said! On TSW you always - or most of the times - have to stop at the end of the platform, even the train be shorter. That is not real, as you mentioned. So you agree with my comment!.
Unfortunately, now that the game has released, I can't completely agree with this comment anymore. The Rotem brake sounds don't sound close to what they should sound like in real life. You said they were recorded separately and from what I've heard, they're similar to the F125 and also not what they sound like. This is quite unfortunate. They're quiet and make very little air noise when you move the handle. At 4:01 in this video, that's what the airbrakes sound like in the Rotem cabcar. This is nothing close to how they sound in the game. Is there any explanation? I was hoping this wouldn't be the case since you ensured everything was recorded properly.
Sorry to hear that! I can only speak for what I know, but to the best of my knowledge we recorded the Rotem brakes and the F125 brakes separately - and they are definitely different sounds for the Rotem brake releases than the F125, albeit similar in game at the moment. I'll take a look at the video, and can double check what sounds we got recorded and get back to you.
I've watched the video and had a listen to what is in game by comparison. The brake hisses we have in game are definitely the Rotem recorded ones, although they're too quiet and are could do with having some low end boosted - but listening to both side by side, they're definitely the same noise, it just needs a volume boost and a little bit of editing to get it to more closely match real life again. Things like brake hiss are sometimes difficult to edit, because generally speaking there's a lot of extra noise happening at the same time the brakes are going off (as you can hear in your video), so isolating just the brakes without losing some of the low end can sometimes be difficult depending on how much extra noise there is. I'll double check what's possible at this stage in terms of adjustments, and if possible I'll up the volume and see if I can boost the lower frequencies to get some of the Rotem characteristics back, and if it's not possible to get it in an upcoming patch, then it'll at least be fixed for any future iterations of the Rotems We do try our best to get it as accurate as possible, but we'll always check the forums etc too, in case something like this has slipped through the cracks and we can make improvements.
Thanks Matthew! I've had a chance to run the route with the Rotem cabcar more and I think the way you put it is more accurate. They're just too quiet at the moment and could use a bit of a volume boost as well as maybe some low end like you said. But other than that, they are actually okay. Sometimes you just need a little more time behind the throttle to figure it out! The only other thing I would say is the locomotive bell is still just a tad loud in the cab but it's definitely better than it was before. Not a big deal though. The Rotem cabcar brakes were the focus of my reply. Thanks for staying engaged with me/us on this post!
No problem! My colleague, who did the implementation for the Rotems, has taken the job on, so is in the process of adjusting levels etc for the brake apply as per your feedback, and this will hopefully be included in an upcoming patch
