UE5-Modular-Game-Framework/docs/blueprints/14-data-assets/134_DA_AudioSettings.md

134 — Audio Settings Data Asset (DA_AudioSettings)

Purpose

Central configuration Data Asset for the MetaSounds Audio System. Holds all default bus configurations, volume defaults, pooling limits, ducking amounts, and accessibility settings. Loaded by SS_AudioManager on initialization to configure all 4 MetaSound buses.

Dependencies

• Requires: SS_AudioManager (132 — loads this DA on init), MetaSound sources (MS_MasterBus, MS_SFXBus, MS_AmbientBus, MS_MusicBus, MS_DialogueBus)
• Required By: SS_AudioManager (132 — direct consumer), Sound Design Team (primary editor target)
• Engine/Plugin Requirements: MetaSounds plugin, GameplayTags plugin

Class Info

Property	Value
Parent Class	PrimaryDataAsset
Class Type	Data Asset
Asset Path	Content/Framework/Audio/DA_AudioSettings.uasset
Implements Interfaces	(none)

---

1. Enums

Uses E_AudioBusCategory from SS_AudioManager (132).

---

2. Structs

Uses S_AudioBusConfig and S_RoomAcousticProfile from SS_AudioManager (132).

---

3. Variables

Bus Configuration (Instance Editable)

Variable	Type	Default	Category	Description
SFXBusConfig	S_AudioBusConfig	(see defaults below)	Bus Config	SFX bus configuration
AmbienceBusConfig	S_AudioBusConfig	(see defaults below)	Bus Config	Ambience bus configuration
MusicBusConfig	S_AudioBusConfig	(see defaults below)	Bus Config	Music bus configuration
DialogueBusConfig	S_AudioBusConfig	(see defaults below)	Bus Config	Dialogue bus configuration

Volume Defaults (Instance Editable)

Variable	Type	Default	Category	Description
DefaultMasterVolume	Float	1.0	Volume	Default master volume (0–1)
DefaultSFXVolume	Float	0.85	Volume	Default SFX volume (0–1)
DefaultMusicVolume	Float	0.80	Volume	Default music volume (0–1)
DefaultAmbientVolume	Float	0.75	Volume	Default ambient volume (0–1)
DefaultDialogueVolume	Float	1.0	Volume	Default dialogue volume (0–1)

Pool & Limits (Instance Editable)

Variable	Type	Default	Category	Description
SFXPoolSize	Integer	32	Pool	Max concurrent SFX audio components
MaxConcurrentDialogue	Integer	2	Dialogue	Max simultaneous dialogue lines
MaxWeaponFireVoices	Integer	8	SFX Sub-mix	Max concurrent weapon fire sounds
MaxFootstepVoices	Integer	4	SFX Sub-mix	Max concurrent footstep sounds
MaxImpactVoices	Integer	8	SFX Sub-mix	Max concurrent impact sounds

Ducking Configuration (Instance Editable)

Variable	Type	Default	Category	Description
DialogueDuckSFX	Float	0.5	Ducking	SFX volume multiplier during dialogue (1.0 = no duck, 0.5 = -6dB)
DialogueDuckAmbience	Float	0.25	Ducking	Ambience volume multiplier during dialogue (-12dB)
DialogueDuckMusic	Float	0.125	Ducking	Music volume multiplier during dialogue (-18dB)
DuckTransitionTime	Float	0.3	Ducking	Ducking fade-in/out time (seconds)

Accessibility (Instance Editable)

Variable	Type	Default	Category	Description
bMonoAudioDefault	Boolean	false	Accessibility	Default mono audio state
DefaultBalance	Float	0.0	Accessibility	Default L/R balance (-1.0 = left, 0.0 = center, 1.0 = right)
bAudioCuesForUI	Boolean	false	Accessibility	Play confirmation SFX on UI button presses

MetaSound Source References (Instance Editable)

Variable	Type	Default	Category	Description
MasterBusSource	UMetaSoundSource	None	MetaSound Ref	MS_MasterBus MetaSound patch
SFXBusSource	UMetaSoundSource	None	MetaSound Ref	MS_SFXBus MetaSound patch
AmbientBusSource	UMetaSoundSource	None	MetaSound Ref	MS_AmbientBus MetaSound patch
MusicBusSource	UMetaSoundSource	None	MetaSound Ref	MS_MusicBus MetaSound patch
DialogueBusSource	UMetaSoundSource	None	MetaSound Ref	MS_DialogueBus MetaSound patch

Room Defaults (Instance Editable)

Variable	Type	Default	Category	Description
DefaultRoomPreset	DA_RoomAcousticPreset	DA_RP_Outdoor	Room	Fallback room preset when no zone is active
RoomPresetList	Array<DA_RoomAcousticPreset>	(all presets)	Room	All available room presets (populates SS_AudioManager.RoomPresets)

---

4. Default Bus Configurations

SFX Bus Default Config

Field	Value
BusCategory	SFX
DefaultVolume	0.85
MetaSoundSource	MS_SFXBus
bSpatialized	true
AttenuationSettings	ATT_DefaultSFX
MaxConcurrentSounds	32
DuckingPriority	10
DuckAmount	0.5
SettingsBindingTag	Settings.Audio.SFXVolume

Ambience Bus Default Config

Field	Value
BusCategory	Ambience
DefaultVolume	0.75
MetaSoundSource	MS_AmbientBus
bSpatialized	false
AttenuationSettings	(none — stereo)
MaxConcurrentSounds	1
DuckingPriority	5
DuckAmount	0.25
SettingsBindingTag	Settings.Audio.AmbientVolume

Music Bus Default Config

Field	Value
BusCategory	Music
DefaultVolume	0.80
MetaSoundSource	MS_MusicBus
bSpatialized	false
AttenuationSettings	(none — stereo)
MaxConcurrentSounds	4 (layers)
DuckingPriority	20
DuckAmount	0.125
SettingsBindingTag	Settings.Audio.MusicVolume

Dialogue Bus Default Config

Field	Value
BusCategory	Dialogue
DefaultVolume	1.0
MetaSoundSource	MS_DialogueBus
bSpatialized	true
AttenuationSettings	ATT_Dialogue
MaxConcurrentSounds	2
DuckingPriority	100
DuckAmount	1.0 (ducks all other buses)
SettingsBindingTag	Settings.Audio.DialogueVolume

---

5. Functions

Public Functions

GetDefaultBusConfig → S_AudioBusConfig

• Description: Returns the bus config for a given category.
• Parameters:

  Param	Type	Description
  Bus	E_AudioBusCategory	Which bus to get config for

• Blueprint Authority: Any (Pure)

GetDefaultVolume → Float

• Description: Returns the default volume for a bus category.
• Parameters:

  Param	Type	Description
  Bus	E_AudioBusCategory	Which bus

• Blueprint Authority: Any (Pure)

---

6. Data Asset Edibility Notes

Sound Designer Workflow

1. Open DA_AudioSettings in the Content Browser
2. Assign MetaSound source references to each bus
3. Adjust default volumes per bus
4. Configure ducking amounts for dialogue priority
5. Set SFX pool size and sub-mix voice limits
6. Assign default room preset
7. Changes take effect on next game launch (no recompile needed)

Platform-Specific Variants

• Maintain separate DA_AudioSettings Data Assets per platform if needed:
  • DA_AudioSettings_PC — Higher pool size (32), full spatialization
  • DA_AudioSettings_Console — Reduced pool (24), optimized attenuation
  • DA_AudioSettings_Mobile — Minimal pool (16), simplified reverb

---

7. Communication Matrix

Who Talks	How	What Is Sent
SS_AudioManager (132)	Direct: Load Data Asset on Initialize	Reads all bus configs, volumes, pool settings
SS_AudioManager (132)	Function Call: GetDefaultBusConfig	Queries S_AudioBusConfig per category
Sound Design Team	Data Asset Editor	Edits bus configs, MetaSound refs, ducking params

---

8. Validation / Testing Checklist

• All 4 BusConfig structs have non-null MetaSoundSource references
• SFX bSpatialized = true, Ambience/Music bSpatialized = false
• Dialogue DuckingPriority = 100 (highest)
• Dialogue ducking multipliers: SFX > Ambience > Music (more duck for music)
• SFXPoolSize between 16–64 (reasonable range)
• MaxConcurrentDialogue <= 2 (prevents overlapping VO chaos)
• Volume defaults between 0.0 and 1.0
• DialogueDuck* multipliers between 0.0 and 1.0
• DefaultRoomPreset not null
• RoomPresetList contains all expected room presets
• Platform variants have appropriate pool sizes for target hardware
• Edge case: Null MetaSound source → SS_AudioManager logs warning and disables that bus

---

9. Reuse Notes

• This Data Asset is the sound designer's control panel for the entire audio system.
• S_AudioBusConfig fields are exposed directly — no blueprint access required to tune bus behavior.
• The SettingsBindingTag on each bus config maps to the persistent settings key, enabling the settings UI to discover available audio sliders automatically.
• Ducking amounts use multiplicative volume (not additive dB) for simplicity — a value of 0.5 means "reduce to 50% volume when dialogue is active."
• Voice limiting per sub-mix (WeaponFire=8, Footsteps=4, Impacts=8) prevents a single audio category from drowning out others.

---

Blueprint Spec: DA_AudioSettings — Central configuration for MetaSounds audio buses. Architecture document: metasounds-audio-system.md