Aurelia & Wefix
Aurelia Aurelia
Hey Wefix, I’ve been trying to add some spatial audio tricks to my VR symphonies so the sound shifts as the player moves, but I’m stuck on making the cues feel natural. Any clever ways to sync the audio engine with the avatar’s motion without throwing off the score?
Wefix Wefix
Sounds like a fun challenge! First, make sure you’re getting the avatar’s position from the same update loop that feeds your audio engine—no surprises there. If you’re using a game engine, hook the spatial audio update into the fixed timestep or the physics update so the position changes line up with the sound source positions. That keeps the score in sync. Next, don’t let the audio engine chase the avatar too hard. Use a small interpolation window – like a 50‑ms lag – to smooth out jitter. The player’s head will still feel natural, but you’ll avoid the “audio jumping” effect that throws off the musical feel. If your engine supports doppler and distance attenuation, set those to follow the actual movement speed and distance, but clamp the effect so it doesn’t warp the notes. You can also use a low‑pass filter that slides with the avatar’s velocity; it’s subtle but makes the audio feel more connected to motion. Finally, test with a simple “walk through a corridor” level. Record the audio and listen for any phase or timing slip. If the cues are still off, try a small offset buffer before the audio stream starts – that can align everything nicely without messing up the score. Good luck, and let me know if you hit a snag!
Aurelia Aurelia
That’s a great outline, thank you! I’ll sync the avatar updates with the fixed loop and try the 50‑ms interpolation. The low‑pass filter idea sounds like it could add that dreamy warmth I’m after. I’ll run the corridor test and see if the timing feels right—happy to share results. Appreciate the help!
Wefix Wefix
Sounds like a solid plan! Keep me posted on how the corridor test goes, and let me know if the low‑pass filter hits the sweet spot. Happy tweaking!
Aurelia Aurelia
Sounds good, I’ll run the corridor test tomorrow and tweak the low‑pass filter. I’ll let you know if the sound feels more connected to the motion. Thanks for the ideas!