Attention Soldiers!

Vivox has kindly provided a detailed Quick Start to Voice Chat, and an FAQ & Troubleshooting Guide. Read on for more about Vivox Voice Chat!

Reminder: When you first login into the client, go to Options>Sound Tab>Microphone>and select your headset device.





Combat Arms Voice Chat - Quick Start

What do I need to download to get voice chat?

When you log into Combat Arms on or after November 24, 2009, Vivox voice chat will automatically be enabled.  The voice solution is activated through the game patch on that day.

I do not want to use voice, how do I de-activate?

Two ways to deactivate voice:

i. Go to the options/settings and check disable.

ii. In-game - simply press F8 to disable voice. 

How do I access voice chat once I am in Combat Arms?

Voice chat is on by default when you log into the game.  The first time you will see (hear) voice chat is in a game lobby.  There is no voice in the server lobby.  After the game is launched from the game lobby, you will have voice in game. 

There are different methods of voice chat depending on the game type. 

i. Team based games, you have voice channels for each team and cross-team voice chat is not available. 

ii. Non-team based games (like One Man Army - Deathmatch) there is one voice channel for everyone.

Do I need to use push-to-talk (PTT)?

In the game lobby, there is a UI button you need to press to enable voice.  It is not a toggle.  You must hold it down to talk and be heard. 

In the game, you hold down a PTT key (defaults to T) to speak and be heard. 

There is no Open-Mic or PTT toggle by design. 

How do I talk to my friends? Groups?

Presently, there are no private clan or friends channels. 

Voice - Troubleshooting

Why do I sound loud or distorted to other people?

You may find that some other programs require you to turn on the +10 mic boost in your Windows audio preferences. Voice does not require this and you may need to disable it.

To disable +10 mic boost enter your Windows volume control panel. Make sure the "Advanced Controls" option is selected in the "Options" menu. After this is selected you will need to select Options -> Properties from the menu and select the "Recording" option. While there, make sure that "Show Microphone" is checked, then click "OK". You will see an "Advanced" button below your microphone volume slider. Click this button and uncheck the +10 mic boost box from the following screen.

What ports does Voice use?

By default, Voice uses UDP port 5060, 5062 and 3478.

How can I be sure my headset is working correctly?

On Windows machines, there is a Sound Hardware Test Wizard available in Sounds and Audio Devices in the Control Panel.  With this wizard you can record and playback your voice, verifying that your mic and headphones are working.

In several games that our voice product is in there is an Echo Test available.  The Echo Test allows you to test your voice setup locally and listen to how other people hear you. You will find the echo test usually under the Audio tab. The test will play a voice prompt when it starts and after that you should hold your push-to-talk key (if any) to hear yourself.

I got an error message that said "SIP transaction timed out", what do I do?

This usually means that the voice system can't communicate using the protocol port meant for voice over IP. Internet protocols designate certain communication ports on your computer for certain functions, and port 5060 is designated for voice over IP, with additional ports beginning with 5062 and moving up at increments of 1 being used if 5060 is not available. Generally this error message means that some device (like a firewall, or security software) is not allowing access to the required port, and that Voice is unable to contact the SIP proxy on port 5062. Because of the high probability that port 5060 may not be available, Voice is designed to attempt to use alternative VoIP port 5062 first. The problem could be caused by a firewall interfering with the connection. Try turning off your firewall. If that fixes the problem, then open the following ports on the firewall:

* Ports 12000-17000 - UDP - for voice media (RTP/RTCP)

* Port 80 and 443 - TCP - for Web server (HTTP/HTTPS)

* Ports 5060 and 5062 - UDP - for voice control signals (SIP)

* Ports 3478 and 3479 - UDP - to aid in setting up voice with NAT (STUN)

I got an error message that said "Initialize failed (The underlying connection was closed: The remote name could not be resolved)", what do I do?

 

This error usually means that your computer is not online, or that your network connection has dropped and has been re-established. To fix the problem, you need to:

1. Fully exit

2. Make sure that your network connection is functioning, and;

3. Restart

Occasionally Voice will hang in this state when a network connection is dropped/re-established (e.g. when switching wireless networks). The fix is to fully exit Voice (by exiting ), confirm a functioning network connection, and restart .

Why is my audio quality bad?

Poor audio quality can be caused by a lack of bandwidth or CPU. Ensure that there are no bandwidth intensive applications, such as BitTorrent or Limewire running on your network.

You may also want to check your Task Manager to ensure resource availability (i.e. CPU usage below 100%).

Hardware issues such as a poor microphone connection can also degrade audio quality.

I can't hear anything at all and/or no one can hear me, what should I do?

Try the following troubleshooting tips:

* Ensure that you're holding the "Talk" hotkey.

* Check to see that the input and output locations are set correctly .

* Check that your microphone and speakers are plugged in properly.

* Make sure that external volume control on the headset is turned up and is not muted. If this doesn't fix the problem, check the audio controls on your computer. Make sure that the audio is not muted and that it is turned up.

* Try turning off your firewall. If that fixes the problem, then open the following ports on the firewall:

- Incoming UDP port 5060, 5062, 3478

- Outgoing TCP port 80 and 443

- All destination UDP ports 12000 - 17000

* Try to access at non peak usage.

If none of the above work, please contact your Game Support group, or  Email Vivox Support.

Why can I hear, but other people can't (or the other way around), and how do I fix the problem?

First step would be to verify that your headset is working properly.

 Please refer to "I can't hear anything at all and/or no one can hear me, what should I do?" for more troubleshooting tips.  

My voice chats keep getting dropped, what can I do?

Dropped calls can often be due to home router firmware bugs. Upgrading the firmware of the router and/or rebooting the router sometimes fixes the problem.

VoIP protocols don't function correctly in networks that include some types of NAT transversal or firewall components. The result is that calls can have one-way audtio or fail. One-way audio usually results from a double NAT issue or an unfriendly NAT transversal being used on the network. VoIP itself presents a problem for NAT because the normal protocols it uses deal with the signaling and establishing of the connection.

Notes:

Note that Running Xfire while playing disables Voice keyboard bindings. A workaround for this is to use the middle mouse button as your talk key.

Voice says it's having trouble connecting...what should I do?

Two features commonly found in consumer routers are SIP ALG (application level gateway) and SPI Firewall (stateful packet inspection firewall).  While both of these features are meant to enhance the functionality of the router (better SIP translation of NATed addressing and some additional security features), they can interfere with the processing of Voice-over-IP SIP protocol.

When changes to firmware are made, it is nearly impossible to test all possible network environments in which the router will be used.  It is common to find problems in early versions of router family firmware depending on where the original firmware was implemented.  As users report issues, development responds therefore making the most recent firmware your best bet.  Adding to the difficulty in management, both of these firmware features are also "black boxes" as they can only be enabled or disabled and generally have no other visible configuration options.

The best recipe for a problematic router is:

1.  Make sure the router is running the very latest firmware from the manufacturer.

2.  Starting with the default settings (SIP ALG on, SPI Firewall on, and no special forwarding rules) test voice

3.  If voice doesn't work reliably, try turning off SIP ALG first (if possible)

4.  If voice still doesn't work reliably, try turning off SPI firewall as well (if possible)

5.  If voice still doesn't work, consider testing voice with an alternate router or by connecting the computer directly to the cable/dsl router.

If voice works when directly connected but not behind the router, it is quite possible that the router does not correctly pass VoIP SIP traffic. Options at this point include contacting the router vendor support channel, or testing with an alternate router.

Disabling SIP ALG has no security implications.  Disabling SPI firewall will change the security profile of the router somewhat but the fundamental blocking of Internet initiated requests by virtue of the NAT feature will still be present.  If leaving SPI firewall disabled is a concern, be advised that newer routers often handle SIP traffic better, learning from issues found with their ancestors.

For more information regarding issues that have been found you may Google "problem sip alg" and "problem spi firewall".

--Combat Arms Command--