Have any 8760/8690 Owners tried SRS Soundbox to improve sound quality?

do you guys experience crackling sound when pushing volume to 100% on TruSurround setting enabled? cause i do. crackling sound coming from speakers/headphones. i have set TruBass to maximum and i think that it could be the problem. anyway, i just want to know if it's only an issue of mine.

 

It's probably just clipping, try lowering your levels

 

Just wondering, how does one determine what speaker size setting to use? (for both the laptop speaker and headphones) The setting ranges from 40Hz to 300Hz.

The headphones I'll be using are SHURE SRH840.

 

Go with 40Hz

 

Been using this program on the recommendation of this forum and it has made a noticeable difference in both gaming and movies.
Running TrusurroundXT mode sounds best to me in both applications.
Having the sound master volume set %100 causes clicks and pops in the noises but setting the level 1 or 2% under max will eliminate the noise artifacting.

Playing GTA IV with the SRS Soundbox enabled results in very clear and understandable speech, music, and sound effects that are of just the right sound level, not too loud, not too quiet. Other games have been just as spot on (Dirt 2, my train simulator (lol))

Movies are a mixed bag. I find myself constant adjusting the volume of my headphones while watching a movie (both Blu-Ray and .avi, .mpeg, etc) sometimes to catch speech and then turn it down again when the action starts. Minor adjustments.
The same was also true when watching without headphones in MPC. The sound levels seemed to vary slightly causing some parts to be a bit quieter than others.
I do not know whether it is my ears, my computer, the movies, or the SRS Soundbox causing this issue. I could just be really picky and hard of hearing.

Overall I'd give this a recommend over the OEM sound solution provided.

 

Tried it, its really just an equalizer... I can get the same effect with my realtek hd audio manager..

 

Doesn't the "Powerful" setting with realtek HD audio manager do the same thing?

 

a 3d sound usb external sound card for 3$ shipping included can do the job as well

 

Well, yeah, if you can spend the additional money, then getting something like a decent USB DAC will do miracles for sound from the notebook. I have one ordered and I'll let you guys know how drastic of a change this makes.

This software is just a much cheaper (albeit compromised) solution for those who haven't bought extra hardware.


Also and update: had to set the Speaker Size to something like 150-200Hz. 40Hz just sounds so tinny.

 

I would go with even a higher setting, I have mine set to 300Hz. The bass is much better at the higher settings.

 

Just a heads up that SRS Soundbox is no longer available, it was replaced by HD Audio Lab, or HAL. I updated the link on the front page.

Here is the link:

https://www.srslabs.com/store/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=38&idCat=51

 

Anyone try it out yet?

Are there any distinctive differences, or just a renamed/refreshed of the same?

 

Breakaway is much better than SRS Sandbox

Breakaway Audio Enhancer

 

Hmm...

Now Im confused

 

I am very surprised by this software and have never heard of it until now. Without the slightest doubt, and with great surprise, I would also say that it is much better than SRS Audio Sandbox.

 

I usually use The Regulator on Breakaway's Core Preset whenever I'm using my headphone.

 

Sweet.

Now let's see if anyone can top that software again. I'm looking for the best of the best.

 

Looks like I will be trying this out a well. Are you going to switch over?

Patrck - good find, we around here are always open to improving the sound as much as possible, considering what we have to work with.

 

I am definitely liking Breakaway much more than SRS. Rep+ to you, my friend.

 

I have one more but this one doesn't work with games.

Stereo Tool 5.02 - free Winamp plugin

You can install it even though you dont have Winamp installed. Just download one of the Codec Packs:

Shark007.net - Windows 7 Codecs - WMP12 Codecs
Download K-Lite Codec Pack
CCCP - Combined Community Codec Pack

And use the ffdshow audio decoder that is included and do this:



Basically you just enter the directory where you installed Stereo Tool and check Winamp2 on the left side.

Now it should work when you are watching videos, as long as you are using Media Player Classic that is included on CCCP and K-Lite. Use the Web Radio (stereo) preset on the settings of Stereo Tool.

If you want the latest build of Media Player Classic: http://www.xvidvideo.ru/media-player-classic-home-cinema-x86-x64/

Download them there.

 

I will definately be switching over to this one. I have even heard sounds in my Prototype game that I could never hear before. That game is notorious for low audio as well. Just be aware that the volume controls after install are almost double of what you will see with the volume control bar when you use the fn + F5 / F6 shortcut key i.e the blue volume bar may show zero or 100% but you can still go even higher or lower.

 

Hey LaptopNut,

I decided to play around with breakaway again and figured out a way to use it and SRS at the same time. With some tweaking I feel the sound is better than either one by itself. If your interested I can elaborate further.

 

I am definitely interested in how you did this since I didn't think to try. Any more details would be appreciated and I might give it a try myself.

 

Well after some testing there are more issues with this that makes this really only useful for listening to music. The biggest problem with games and videos is the increased latency causes the sound to be out of sync with what is happening on the screen. For music though it rocks (literally).

One of the configuration issues I have is every time the computer is booted or rebooted SRS and breakaway are both enabled as default devices, when only the breakaway device should be configured as such for this to work.

It is really easy to configure both programs to run together. Obviously make sure both programs are installed, just go to the settings window in breakaway and set SRS as the output device, and be sure breakaway pipeline 1 is the input.

I really like the sound of this set up but you can only use one program or the other at the same time. Oh well still searching for sound nirvana on this laptop with just one DSP doing the trick.

 

Thanks for the information. It is a shame it doesn't sound like it works but maybe there is a way we haven't found yet. Maybe experimenting with the buffer size in Breakaway will make a difference or maybe there are other settings that can help.

 

Any update on what is THE BEST SOFTWARE/BEST SETTINGS?

 

I prefer to use an external 3d audio usb soundcard found on ebay for 3$

 

Not really, I still use SRS and I think LaptopNut still uses break away audio enhancer. Each has it's pluses and negatives. I just did not like the idea of spending more money on these as they are similar enough that I don't need to change.

I may in time play with the idea of trying different speakers if they are easy to remove, but it probably is a complete tear down of the laptop to get them out.

 

Has anybody used the Bypass functionality from Breakaway?

I have a Sennheiser headset that has an USB adapter and I am trying
to find if Breakaway is better than with the headset alone.

The only major difference that I find is that with Bypass I have more bass.

 

^ Bypass = No Enhancements from Breakaway (Laptop's normal sound).

I put the buffer size on 480 - Output and 441 - Input.

See if you like my settings on Breakaway.

Also you can make breakaway toolbar appear on the task bar for easier volume adjusment.



There is also another solution:

Right click on the volume icon @ notification area > select Volume Control Options.

put a check on the default communication device, which will be Breakaway Pipeline and then put a check on Speakers.

All you have to do is adjust the speakers to adjust the MASTER Volume on your laptop.

EDIT: I forgot to mention that I use a Sennheiser HD595, the settings are for that headphone.
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