Just random thought, why is it that realistically only the Class 170 has proper sound dampening? A lot of the other trains have very loud motor sounds that wouldn’t be heard as loud irl.
I present the counterpoint. This is entertainment software and part of the appeal to many rail and train enthusiasts is hearing the thrash in the cab, even if not strictly realistic. In fact most modern trains in the game are too quiet, even if you open the cab windows (where you can) to let some exterior sound in. I want a visceral train sim experience, noise, bounce and thrash. Not floating along welded track cocooned in cotton wool. Up to a point DTG know this, which is why the classic UK diesels have the “stack music” piped into the cab, whereas in reality in the cab of a 47 or similar you actually hear very little of the engine sound. Maybe there should be an option to choose between realistic and enhanced sound but until then I will take the latter.
I thought proper train buffs would want realism, if you want thrash stand outside I understand your point, didn’t think of that to be honest, i just thought it might be something that was overlooked
Why do you think there is a demand for “Wired For Sound” cab ride videos from the likes of Locomaster Profiles or Videoscene where the audio is recorded from the rear cab of the loco with the window down, then merged with the video footage from the cab cam? Not saying that everyone playing the game wants that, but to me the sound trains make has always been one of the key factors of my interest in the field. Even from a young age when my parents took me down to Newcastle Central station and you could see and hear the mighty Deltics even at idle was awesome to a youngster. Or, pre Metro days, all the Met Cam DMU’s in the suburban platforms revving their guts out to create the vacuum. My first trip up to Scotland in 1978 I took a tape recorder with me so I could capture the sounds of a Class 26 thrashing its guts out on the way up to Wick from Inverness. Even now when I catch a bus, I annoy the hell out of my wife by insisting we sit as far back as we can to get the noise and vibration from the engine! I even value the thrash from my car when it climbs a steep hill, or for that matter when the EV (hybrid) part kicks in it has a vague Electrostar note!
That sounds like an awesome memory! Personally I like the sounds they make but the cab ride videos i’ve always watched are the ones from the leading cabs and the only real thing you hear is the rails and the HVAC’s and I love that. I do agree there should be some kind of option, I play for a realistic train sim, I can hear trains just as well from the outside I don't need to hear it in the cab . The reverb of the old DMU’s and the inside noises of the thrash are awesome in their own right, a completely different set of sounds.
Everyone wants ultimate realism to what their perfect railway is, which is often no sound dampening, with diesel engines on their last legs running very rich and with a horrendous oil leak to boot. The colder the better. Basically, this Along with horrendously inefficient operations and unsuitsble vehicle allocations. Wasn't AP once criticised because their sound packs became too realistic (ie perceved to be unrealistically quiet)?
My only regret is our simulation experience doesn’t allow smellovision, though I think the wife might complain if the computer room had the rich pervading odour of turbocharged red diesel exhaust!
