.

Windows XP 32-bit

.

Video GamePass/FailNotes

.

Battlefield 2FailAll combinations of settings result in stereo sound.

.

Battlefield 2142FailAll combinations of settings result in stereo sound.

.

Call of Duty 4PassMust manually set to 5.1 in-game for surround sound. Center channel not very prominent. Rear channels sound noticably higher-pitched than front which makes it very easy to pinpoint sounds such as the chopper in the first level, but pitch-shifting hurts the overall realism.

.

Call of Duty: World at WarFailUnable to initialize surround sound.

.

Counter-Strike: SourcePass7.1 and 5.1 work fine in practice thanks to center channel, but hard to tell difference between front/back corners in the built-in audio test room for 5.1.

.

Crysis WarheadPassWorks fine.

.

Enemy Territory: Quake WarsPass (barely)Positional cues are subtle in 7.1 and more prominent in 5.1 by pitch-shifting (preferred). Explosions and player's weapons sound badly clipped in both but not as terrible as HL2's clipping.

.

Fallout 3PassWorks fine.

.

Half-Life 2 (no episodes)FailBoomy-sounding samples (eg. Dr. Breen, boxes, falling, ambience in the first level) sound awfully clipped. Can't tell difference between front/back corners, and in the case of Barney in the first level, even left from right. Can only tell front center because of raised volume. Fails same way for both 5.1 and 7.1

.

Left 4 DeadPassWorks fine in both 5.1 and 7.1.

.

Mirror's EdgePassWorks fine.

.

Quake 4PassWorks okay, and a prominent use of the center channel helps differentiate between front/back. Quake does not detect OpenAL support. Must configure sound card as 5.1 in Windows to initialize surround sound.

.

PortalFailSurround sound is rotated 90 degrees. Example: looking at or to the right of the FM radio will produce clear sound, looking behind or to the left will muffle it. Fails in both 5.1 and 7.1.

.

PreyPassWorks fine. Must configure sound card as 5.1 in Windows to initialize surround sound.

.

Team Fortress 2PassWorks fine in both 5.1 and 7.1. There was one instance however that I can't reproduce where I could not hear sound effects positioned directly behind me.

.

Unreal Tournament 2004FailAll combinations of settings result in stereo sound.

.

Unreal Tournament 3FailAll combinations of settings result in stereo sound.

.

ApplicationPass/FailNotes

.

RightMark 3DSoundFailHard to tell front/back in 7.1. 5.1 completely indistinguishable. DirectSound 3D Software mode only.

.

VLC Media PlayerPassWorks fine. Must manually select 5.1/7.1 as audio device in VLC.

.

Windows Media PlayerPassWorks fine.