Xbox to use Sensaura 3D Positional Audio
The final pieces of the Xbox puzzle start to lock together
Yesterday, Sensaura used to Game Developers Conference 2001 to let people know that it has won the contract to handle 3D positional audio in Microsoft's Xbox games console. The Xbox's audio capabilities have never been in doubt - the console features the most powerful audio processor ever built in to such a console, now with 64 hardware-accelerated channels of Sensaura 3D Positional Audio (S-3DPA). The Xbox will also include three more hardware-accelerated technologies from Sensaura, the I3DL2 compliant EnvironmentFX reverb engine, as well as MacroFX and ZoomFX, which help make the sounds more realistic. In software, the technologies will be manipulated via an enhanced API based on DirectSound. "Sensaura has become the de facto 3D audio technology standard on the PC," says MD David Monteith, and naturally he is delighted to see the company gain some recognition by having its work singled out for use in the Xbox. The technology itself is based on 11 years of research and development including work at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London and Capitol Studios in Los Angeles. You can find Sensaura technology in over 40 million PCs worldwide, as they hold licenses with Yamaha, ESS Technology, Analog Devices Inc., Crystal/Cirrus Logic and nVIDIA amongst others. This announcement comes barely a month after Microsoft and Tetratel quietly announced the Xbox's inclusion of the EyeFX 3D glasses technology. With true 3D positional audio and EyeFX, gamers can look forward to some truly stunning realism in Xbox games. Related Feature - Tetratel to provide EyeFX tech to Xbox