FAQ: Mixing sound mods

Hello everyone! Since I've been getting questions about this repeatedly and have had people reporting issues because of it, I'm making a little FAQ about mixing IASM with other sound mods.

Q: Can I mix your sound mod with another?

A: Yes, in theory, this is possible, but with some limitations. Most sound mods use what's called masterbank files. These files contain metadata about their sound mod such as the GUID of their sound events, name, path, and a lot of other info. When masterbank files are present, it conflicts with other sound mods since their mod might try referencing events or sounds that don't exist in the other sound mod.

Q: How do I mix your sound mod with another?

A: Disclaimer: I cannot guarantee mixing sound mods will work at all! Neither IASM nor the other sound mod creators create their mods to be compatible with others.

STUFF CAN AND WILL BREAK! 

From my personal testing, the only way this is possible is by deleting the masterbank files from the other mod you are trying to mix it with. Besides that, you must also include all the files from IASM for it to work correctly. Leaving out any files such as aircraft_engine.bank will cause IASM to break! Keep in mind that deleting the masterbank files can also have implications for the other mod. I'm unsure to what exact extent but don't be surprised if something from their mod doesn't work. That's not the creator's fault.

Q: Why are my missile sounds gone?/I'm experiencing lag spikes!/etc

A: IASM is thoroughly tested before every release. This is done by myself, but also by several others. Besides that, I'm also always using IASM whilst I play War Thunder. Specifically the Multi-RWR version with custom VWS. This is because I prefer my sounds (obviously) but also to consistently put my mod to the test by simply using it.

Whenever bugs are found, I will always work on instantly fixing them and releasing a hotfix. So far, with v8.1 I haven't found any issues on my end nor have my testers. Any issues you come across are most likely caused due to user error, etc. If you experience any issues, please make sure you go over the installation steps again found here, and test IASM by using only the files from IASM and not mixing it with any other mods. If you still experience issues at that point, only then I'd recommend reaching out to me and reporting the issue.

Q: Can sound mod creators work to make their mods compatible with each other?

A: To an extent, this would be possible, but every sound mod creator has their own plans and ideas, so quite frankly, this will most likely never happen. It would restrict creators a lot in what they could add to their mod since some additions will inevitably make their mod incompatible and force them to use masterbank files. Some events might also cross-reference others, so at that point it would already make it incompatible too.

I hope this answers most of the questions I commonly get about this topic. If you ever have any more questions, feel free to comment or send a DM!