Tactile Immersion - General Discussion - Hardware & Software

[Mr Latte]

I'm assuming we can load the beta from within the app? I didn't know he had released one and not finding a link to it on his site. Would definitely like to give it a try with the added road texture.

It is a separate EXE
Used to be hidden in a rather silly place at the bottom on his own guide page.

 

[Mr Latte]

See Here at bottom.
I don't know why he doesn't have the *Beta Version on the "Downloads" link
Others have found it hard to find in the past too.

 

[Hiro Abe]

Thanks, Rodney. I see it now.

 

[StealthTT]

Hey experts,

I was hoping I could get some help on my new setup. I just purchased and received my Buttkicker setup. I ended up going with 2x Buttkicker Advances, 1x iNuke 3000DSP and an Asus Xonar DGX sound card. I also order all of the corresponding cables (2x SpeakOn adapters/cables and 1x XLR to 3.5mm adapter).

I just plugged everything in and I can't get any output or feedback to the Buttkickers whatsoever. So I'm either I'm missing something or I have two DOA Buttkickers. I've been pulling my hair out for the past two days and I can't seem to figure it out.

Wiring is pretty straight forward, both Buttkickers are wired the same.
Asus sound card --> (3.5mm to XLR cable) --> iNuke 3000DSP --> Channel A - (SpeakOn cable) --> Buttkicker A

Things I have verified:

Sound Card
- The drivers are installed and I've plugged headphones directly into the card. It work fines and I can hear audio w/o any issues. So I know the sound card works. For all my testing, I've set the Asus soundcard as the default, just to rule out any sound going to the wrong place. Playing music or games should go directly to the iNuke amp.

Cabling
- From the sound card, the 3.5mm to XLR cable is plugged into the "green" jack. I've verified this connection is good, because I can open the iNuke Remote software and see the signal respond on both input/output channels. I also removed the PC from the picture by plugging my iPhone and playing some music. Same thing, I could see the green input/output bars respond in iNuke but no responses on Buttkicker Advances.
- On the SpeakOn adapters, I've wired my red/white wires to the 1+ and 1- outputs. Red goes to the red terminal on the Buttkicker Advances and the white wires goes to the black terminal. So that's pretty straight forward.

AMP
- I didn't have a lot of options to test the iNuke. But I did have a subwoofer in my car. So I grabbed that wired it to the iNuke. Without changing too many variables, I just took the wires going from my Buttkicker and wired into the sub terminal. I was able to hear sound from the subwoofer, using the wires from both channels on the iNuke. So that tells me basically everything from the sound card to the end of the SpeakOn cable is working.

Buttkickers with the car amp
- I decided as a last ditch effort to plug the Buttkickers into my car audio amp (installed in my car). I used completely different speak wires but I used the same channel as my sub, which is working w/o any issues. The Buttkickers still wouldn't respond.

So what am I missing? Is there a secret on/off switch on the Buttkickers or are both of these units DOA?

Thanks for any help!

StealthTT

 

[Ceolmor]

Hey experts,

I was hoping I could get some help on my new setup. I just purchased and received my Buttkicker setup. I ended up going with 2x Buttkicker Advances, 1x iNuke 3000DSP and an Asus Xonar DGX sound card. I also order all of the corresponding cables (2x SpeakOn adapters/cables and 1x XLR to 3.5mm adapter).

I just plugged everything in and I can't get any output or feedback to the Buttkickers whatsoever. So I'm either I'm missing something or I have two DOA Buttkickers. I've been pulling my hair out for the past two days and I can't seem to figure it out.

No expert, but I have exactly the same setup as you, except my iNuke is the 1000DSP.

I'd be surprised if you had two dud Buttkickers. This sort of thing has often happened to me with audio, and it is usually just some setting or configuration I've overlooked or got wrong.

Do you have any tactile software ( e.g. SimVibe or SimShaker Wheels) or are you just using audio? If you are only using audio, is it possible that the frequencies coming from your audio are too high for the Buttkickers to respond to?

Try testing with the Online Tone Generator, using frequencies between say 10hz and 60hz. Make sure it is mapped to your soundcard.

I think you can get a limited period free trial with Simshaker Wheels. It might be worth downloading it and seeing if that works.

Are you using the Xonar DGX soundcard for everything? See my Windows Sound screenshot. I have Oculus Rift's own soundcard as Default for sound and the separate Xonar DGX for the tactile/Buttkickers. My onboard soundcard is not used, but if I didn't have the Oculus Rift, the onboard soundcard would be the Default, for audio.

Here are screenshots of my settings.

 

[wajdi]

Hi
The dayton audio apa150 150w power amplifier arrived today with the 2 bass shakers.
In the rear of the amplifier There is a rotary switch 50-150 Hz. What is the best frequency with SimVibe?
And there’s another one with 2 options, Mono and Stereo, which one should I select?
Thanks

 

[StealthTT]

No expert, but I have exactly the same setup as you, except my iNuke is the 1000DSP.

I'd be surprised if you had two dud Buttkickers. This sort of thing has often happened to me with audio, and it is usually just some setting or configuration I've overlooked or got wrong.

Do you have any tactile software ( e.g. SimVibe or SimShaker Wheels) or are you just using audio? If you are only using audio, is it possible that the frequencies coming from your audio are too high for the Buttkickers to respond to?

Try testing with the Online Tone Generator, using frequencies between say 10hz and 60hz. Make sure it is mapped to your soundcard.

I think you can get a limited period free trial with Simshaker Wheels. It might be worth downloading it and seeing if that works.

Are you using the Xonar DGX soundcard for everything? See my Windows Sound screenshot. I have Oculus Rift's own soundcard as Default for sound and the separate Xonar DGX for the tactile/Buttkickers. My onboard soundcard is not used, but if I didn't have the Oculus Rift, the onboard soundcard would be the Default, for audio.

Here are screenshots of my settings.

Hey Ceolmor,

Thanks for the reply. I just contacted Buttkicker and they said to test the ohms between the terminals on each Buttkicker. They said it should be around 4 ohms and I measure 3.7-3.8. So I'm inclined to think it's not the Buttkickers either.

As for tactile software, I just purchased SimVibe yesterday and tried testing through that (hitting the green arrow on the wheels). I get the same results (i.e. iNuke Remote shows input/output but the Buttkickers don't do anything).

I'll try to do the online tone generator and see what I can get out of. I don't think I'm overrunning the amp, because when I look at the iNuke Remote software, the input/output bars go around half way up, according to my volume settings.

Also, I normally use my Acer monitors, as my default sound. But just for testing and eliminating any possible binding problems, I've made the Asus my default for the time being.

 

[Mr Latte]

Hi
The dayton audio apa150 150w power amplifier arrived today with the 2 bass shakers.
In the rear of the amplifier There is a rotary switch 50-150 Hz. What is the best frequency with SimVibe?
And there’s another one with 2 options, Mono and Stereo, which one should I select?
Thanks

Happy Days:

I believe you want to set the amp to
FLAT & STEREO

This will not use the crossover on the amp and will just output each channel as it is input not mixing both into mono.

Id like to get you involved in the SSW effects testing thread thats coming
This will let you easily select and find variations of an effect I produced but find a variation of it that may feel better on your own hardware units. It will also save you a lot of time messing about with Simvibes controls and not so well understood or explained tone generation settings.

I would say that I am confident I can get you a better immersion in SSW than with Simvibe but of course having both gives you options to choose what you want to use.

Your call what you want to do friend.

 

[Mr Latte]

Hey Ceolmor,

Thanks for the reply. I just contacted Buttkicker and they said to test the ohms between the terminals on each Buttkicker. They said it should be around 4 ohms and I measure 3.7-3.8. So I'm inclined to think it's not the Buttkickers either.

As for tactile software, I just purchased SimVibe yesterday and tried testing through that (hitting the green arrow on the wheels). I get the same results (i.e. iNuke Remote shows input/output but the Buttkickers don't do anything).

I'll try to do the online tone generator and see what I can get out of. I don't think I'm overrunning the amp, because when I look at the iNuke Remote software, the input/output bars go around half way up, according to my volume settings.

Also, I normally use my Acer monitors, as my default sound. But just for testing and eliminating any possible binding problems, I've made the Asus my default for the time being.

Aghhhhhhhh, sorry to hear of your issues, quite frustrating...

You seem to of done everything right.
When you connected the sub to the iNuke had it plenty of output and volume?
I query if the amp is outputting enough energy and if your car amp had enough wattage to get a response with the LFE when you tested those on that.

The "TEST" in Simvibe does not output the Hz it appears to show, it stays the same and it only alters the amplitude/gain. Its complete pants for testing tactile as its faulty but is useful just to feel a response to know that Simvibe is sending to the correct channels and things are connected properly

This test in Simvibe is not using active telemetry converted into audio, which is what happens when the sim used is active within Simvibe. I did create a test via the community market thingy for AC using the Porsche 918 that with its engine rev it then outputs via the telemetry 10Hz for every 1000 RPM. Therefore 6000 RPM = 60Hz and its 10000 RPM is 100Hz. You need to use that car to make it accurate but I did this as Simvibe actually had no way of testing within a Sim a typical 10-100Hz set of frequencies.


If your meters on iNuke are showing a response then the amp is getting the input from the soundcard okay. The lights on the front reflect the INPUT signal not the amps OUTPUT but you can see both in the software.

If you have the amp set to 4ohm and have maxed its potential output, you shouldn't have to do anything more to feel a response. We can increase the OUTPUT gain via the CROSSOVER but again you should'nt need to do this to get a response.

With even an iNUKE DSP 1000 it can power an LFE sufficiently with the volume at 12-2pm positions. So still nowhere close to the amps full output.

It is very odd you have potentially 2 non-working BK units so I'm questioning the amps output.
What gauge of speaker cable was used and how long but this shouldn't be the issue either.

Can you take a BK unit to a music/instrument store (this will have 4ohm amps) and have it tested?
This is a rather odd situation as your cabling also seems to be correct for the SpeakON and units own speaker wire.

Hope you find the cause and get things replaced and sorted.

 

[Mr Latte]

Online Generators:
These need the soundcard the tactile are connected to be the PRIMARY soundcard.
Quite a few exist:

https://www.wavtones.com/functiongenerator.php

This and its links has many cool effects as well as pink, brown, noise
https://mynoise.net/NoiseMachines/whiteNoiseGenerator.php

See Here
https://mynoise.net/


I know and feel the pain of those that get new gear and have issues, been in that situation before myself. Video below to help cheer you up...

One of the purposes of my own rig is enjoying tactile with music too bringing more life to its enjoyment. Here the combo of TST and BK can shine well if configured with their own preset in iNuke DSP

 

[Ceolmor]

I query if the amp is outputting enough energy and if your car amp had enough wattage to get a response with the LFE when you tested those on that.

I think @StealthTT has the BK Advance, not the LFE. Not that it makes any difference to his problem.

If your meters on iNuke are showing a response then the amp is getting the input from the soundcard okay. The lights on the front reflect the INPUT signal not the amps OUTPUT but you can see both in the software.

I didn't realise this. Is the volume knob controlling the output or input? I'm sure when I turn down the volume knob the number of lights reduce. If it is controlling the input, what controls output?

With even an iNUKE DSP 1000 it can power an LFE sufficiently with the volume at 12-2pm positions. So still nowhere close to the amps full output.

This surprises me. On my seat I have to have the volume at 2pm to 3pm to get any decent response from my BK Advance, which of course requires less power than the LFE. In fact I've been thinking of going 'chassis' mode with two more BK Advances, but thought I might get the 3000DSP, if I can find one.

 

[Mr Latte]

@Ceolmor

The digital limiter on iNUke DSP sets the limit for the wattage you want to use.
The meters let you determine how much of that your using but also can show if the input source is too hot.

Notice CLIP & LIMIT

IIRC the Crossover gain level will increase the OUTPUT of whatever the INPUT gain is.
You can test this by altering this filtering in the crossover compared to using the knobs on the front.

If you apply say 6db gain to the Crossover (it allows upto +12dB) you should have more strength in your output to your BK but not need to increase the knob position or possibly over-distorting the input source making it too hot.

2 or 3 lights on the iNuke panel is probably fine, keep in mind we are using a source restricted to only low frequencies also. Maybe more activity is seen with full range audio, tbh I've not really considered checking. However some Hz from the source (if full range) could have higher dB than others and this may reflect in the activity for the front lights.

 

[Ceolmor]

@Ceolmor

The digital limiter on iNUke DSP sets the limit for the wattage you want to use.
The meters let you determine how much of that your using but also can show if the input source is too hot.

Notice CLIP & LIMIT

IIRC the Crossover gain level will increase the OUTPUT of whatever the INPUT gain is.
You can test this by altering this filtering in the crossover compared to using the knobs on the front.

If you apply say 6db gain to the Crossover (it allows upto +12dB) you should have more strength in your output to your BK but not need to increase the knob position or possibly over-distorting the input source making it too hot.

2 or 3 lights on the iNuke panel is probably fine, keep in mind we are using a source restricted to only low frequencies also. Maybe more activity is seen with full range audio, tbh I've not really considered checking. However some Hz from the source (if full range) could have higher dB than others and this may reflect in the activity for the front lights.

Thanks @Mr Latte That is very helpful.

I've never come across an amp before that has a volume control for input but none for output. But I suppose if you don't touch the DSP and leave everything flat line, then input and output are the same level.

I will have a play tonight. Currently on the channel for the seat BKA I get the red light on the front panel regularly clipping. I will experiment with the input level turned down and the gain in Crossover increased to see if this gets me more wattage without clipping.

 

[Mr Latte]

Thanks @Mr Latte That is very helpful.

I've never come across an amp before that has a volume control for input but none for output. But I suppose if you don't touch the DSP and leave everything flat line, then input and output are the same level.

I will have a play tonight. Currently, on the channel for the seat BKA I get the red light on the front panel regularly clipping. I will experiment with the input level turned down and the gain in Crossover increased to see if this gets me more wattage without clipping.

Its possible with SSW effects that can have 0dB amplitude within the .wav and when combined with a high "input gain" this could cause red light (clipping) scenario. This is one reason the .wav for each individual SSW effect I intend to make will now come ready for the user as available with different levels of gain. It appears different amps, soundcards can vary, so having effects with a suitable "amplitude" helps a user avoid clipping but also the need to turn an amp to max output. So what suits will vary for different people between the V40 - V5 sets of effects.

Its easy to have too much gain in Simvibe too for the effects, although it has a clipping indicator for each effect hidden in one of the options.

You should get a better experience from dialing back the knob level to about 1-2pm and add some gain via the crossover and this give you plenty of power. It will boost the whole dynamic range equally unless you use filters or a slope in the crossover section.

Keep in mind with the DSP controls you can use this extra gain to boost the overall output but keep others in check as you certainly will not want mid-bass Hz to be as high. Basically the lower the Hz the more bandwidth it has the more energy it needs. So often we could be boosting low Hz and trimming others, especially if you use more gain in the crossover.

Use the visual frequency chart within the DSP to let you keep track of what dB and Hz are affected by any filter changes or EQ changes you may make.

One last point, I believe more energy or specific boosting of individual Hz is possible via PEQ than using the general gain in the crossover. With a bit of playing around, you should find a nice balance between input gain, output level and shape the output if desired with EQ or crossover filtering.

 

[wajdi]

Happy Days:

I believe you want to set the amp to
FLAT & STEREO

This will not use the crossover on the amp and will just output each channel as it is input not mixing both into mono.

Id like to get you involved in the SSW effects testing thread thats coming
This will let you easily select and find variations of an effect I produced but find a variation of it that may feel better on your own hardware units. It will also save you a lot of time messing about with Simvibes controls and not so well understood or explained tone generation settings.

I would say that I am confident I can get you a better immersion in SSW than with Simvibe but of course having both gives you options to choose what you want to use.

Your call what you want to do friend.

Hi
Thanks you for your prestigious advices. I will let you know.

 

[Mr Latte]

Hi
Thanks you for your prestigious advices. I will let you know.

Your welcome, hope life is good in Israel.
Feel free to get involved with the other thread if you fancy buying SSW.

 

[Michal Burisin]

Anyone managed to connect more than one amp to iNuke remote software? It seems the software is ready for it:

But it recognizes just one Amp at a time - it prefers DSP1000 when I have both connected.

If I want to tune DSP3000 settings, I have to manually unplug DSP1000 and restart the software, pretty annoying, am I doing something wrong?

I searched web and found more people with this problem.

Anyone around here managed to solve it?

One other thing, sometimes the software refuses to start, I click it and nothing happens. In processes, there's no stuck process. I have to restart PC when this happens. Hopefully it doesn't happen too often.

 

[Mr Latte]

USB supports just one device at a time.
Sometimes disconnecting and reconnecting at the amp will help the software.

Once configured the amps will always power on with the last used profile settings.
You can back up a profile to PC and then load it into a different amp to save within one of the 20 memory slots.

When you have a profile done you generally do not need to change it.
This is more for tuning how Hz are output on each unit and to suit your own installation or materials.

The amp deserves a proper review and overview thread with all the features made simple to understand but I keep putting it off, get caught up in enough tactile/hardware discussions already.

 

[Michal Burisin]

USB supports just one device at a time.
Sometimes disconnecting and reconnecting at the amp will help the software.

Once configured the amps will always power on with the last used profile settings.
You can back up a profile to PC and then load it into a different amp to save within one of the 20 memory slots.

When you have a profile done you generally do not need to change it.
This is more for tuning how Hz are output on each unit and to suit your own installation or materials.

The amp deserves a proper review and overview thread with all the features made simple to understand but I keep putting it off, get caught up in enough tactile/hardware discussions already.

Thanks for answer, that's what I was afraid. I'm in middle of tuning, trying to compensate for linear feeling through the range of frequencies and also balance between back and front and having the option to switch quickly between amps would make it much easier. Once done, it won't be such problem as the changes won't be as frequent.

 

[Mr Latte]

Thanks for answer, that's what I was afraid. I'm in middle of tuning, trying to compensate for linear feeling through the range of frequencies and also balance between back and front and having the option to switch quickly between amps would make it much easier. Once done, it won't be such problem as the changes won't be as frequent.

Its possible if you have or can borrow one to use the 2nd amp connected to a laptop.
I wish these worked via wireless networking with DSP etc but amps that do like Crown are crazy prices. Shame though no app for ipad etc was ever done for an updated iNuke version.