Setting up bass shakers with SimHub
Last updated · SimHub 9.11.22
SimHub drives bass shakers as audio, so you need a dedicated audio interface — separate from your game sound — an amplifier, and one or more tactile transducers bolted to the rig. Set Windows to 16-bit, 48000 Hz for that device, and disable both Exclusive Mode and audio Enhancements, because those two settings account for most silent-shaker problems. Then add one effect at a time and tune it before adding the next. A single audio interface supports up to eight channels; digital optical is limited to two.
The hardware side of this is simple and the software side has three specific traps. This covers both, and the traps are near the top because that is where they cost you the most time.
The hardware
- Tactile transducers
- The shakers themselves — a voice coil bolted to something solid, reproducing low frequencies as movement rather than sound. Dayton Audio pucks are the common starting point; ButtKicker units are the common upgrade.
- An amplifier
- Transducers are passive and need real power. Match the amp to the transducer's impedance and rating; a small class-D amp is enough for puck-style units.
- A dedicated audio interface
- This is not optional and it is where most builds go wrong. See below.
- Somewhere solid to mount them
- The seat frame, the pedal tray, the rig's main rails. Mounted to something that flexes, a transducer wastes most of its energy bending the mount.
The audio interface must be dedicated. Sharing one sound device between game audio and shakers causes conflicts, and it also means every effect is audible as sound. A cheap second USB sound card is a perfectly good solution — this is about separation, not quality.
On channel counts: SimHub supports one or more audio interfaces of up to eight channels each, so a multi-shaker rig is entirely feasible. Digital optical output is limited to two channels with PCM — if you were planning to run a four-corner setup down an optical cable, it will not work.
The Windows settings that silence shakers
Three settings, all in the same place, all responsible for a large share of "my shakers do nothing" reports. Open mmsys.cpl — press Win+R and type it — then find your shaker output device and open its properties.
- Set the format to 16-bit, 48000 Hz. On the Advanced tab. Mismatched sample rates cause silence, distortion or intermittent output depending on what else is running.
- Disable Exclusive Mode. Also on the Advanced tab — untick both "Allow applications to take exclusive control" and the priority option beneath it. With exclusive mode available, another application can seize the device and SimHub simply stops being heard.
- Disable all Enhancements. On the Enhancements tab. Loudness equalisation, bass boost and virtual surround all mangle the signal SimHub is carefully generating — these are effects designed for music, applied to something that is not music.
Voicemeeter and virtual mixers are a very common silent-shaker cause. Voicemeeter, VB-Cable and similar virtual audio devices take exclusive access to hardware outputs. If you run one, it is a prime suspect the moment shakers go quiet — and the symptom is intermittent rather than constant, which makes it hard to spot.
Channel modes and custom maps
SimHub offers four ways to address your outputs:
- Mono
- Everything to one output. Right for a single shaker.
- Stereo
- Two outputs, left and right.
- 4 Channels
- Four outputs — the usual four-corner arrangement.
- Custom Channel Map
- Per-effect, per-location routing. This is what you want once you have more than two shakers, because it lets a single effect be strong in one place and subtle in another.
The custom map is where the effect-per-channel gain from the gain chain becomes useful: the same road-texture effect can sit quietly under the seat while a kerb effect hits hard at the pedals.
If a custom channel map makes everything quieter. Check the effect-per-channel gains. A custom map introduces a fourth multiplier that mono and stereo modes leave at 100% — set it low on every channel and the whole rig drops in level for no visible reason.
Configuring an individual effect
Each effect exposes the same set of controls:
- Frequency — either a base and high frequency that the effect sweeps between as intensity rises, or a single fixed frequency. Sweeping feels more alive; fixed is more predictable and easier to keep separate from other effects.
- Data source — whether the effect reads the telemetry output or the input value. Which is right depends on the effect.
- Gain modulation mode — Light, Adaptive or Fat. These change how intensity maps to force. Adaptive is the sensible default; Fat pushes more energy into the low end.
- White noise randomisation — adds a degree of irregularity so a repeating effect does not become a machine-like drone. Small amounts help texture effects considerably.
- The response filters — gamma, threshold, minimum force and input gain, covered on the effects page.
On frequency, the honest position: SimHub publishes no recommended values, transducer models differ enormously in what they reproduce well, and a figure that suits a Dayton puck bolted to a steel frame may be wrong for a ButtKicker on a plywood seat pan. Treat any number you find — here or anywhere — as a starting point to test, not a setting to copy.
As a rough orientation: heavy impacts and engine rumble live at the very bottom of the range, where you feel rather than hear them; road texture and kerbs sit higher, where the transducer can articulate fast changes. Keeping simultaneous effects in different parts of the range is what stops them merging.
A tuning method that actually converges
The reason most shaker setups feel like undifferentiated buzz is that they were built by enabling everything and then adjusting. That never converges, because every change alters the context for every other effect.
Turn everything off except one effect
Everything, without exception. You are establishing what one effect feels like in isolation, which is impossible with five others running.
Record a lap
SimHub can replay recorded telemetry, so you can tune against the same corner repeatedly instead of trying to drive and adjust simultaneously. This is the single biggest improvement you can make to the process.
Tune that one effect until it is right
Frequency first, then gain, then the response filters. Aim for clearly noticeable rather than strong — it will feel weaker once other effects join it, and stronger after ten minutes of not hearing it.
Add the next effect and check both
Not just the new one. If the new effect masks the previous one, separate them — by frequency, by channel, or by dropping one.
Stop at three per shaker
The official guidance, and it is right. Past three continuous effects a transducer averages them into noise. Punctual effects like gear changes do not count.
A/B it the next day
Toggle the whole system off mid-session and drive a lap without it. If you do not immediately miss it, it is too subtle; if the silent lap is a relief, it is too strong.
When it does not work
| Symptom | Most likely cause |
|---|---|
| Completely silent | Wrong output device selected, or exclusive mode allowed another app to seize it |
| Silent only sometimes | Voicemeeter or another virtual audio device, or the sample rate not being 48kHz/16-bit |
| Very weak everywhere | The four gain stages multiplying — see the gain chain |
| Weak only with a custom channel map | Effect-per-channel gains left low across the map |
| Stops until you press "Test now" | A known open issue — see below |
| Everything feels like one buzz | Too many continuous effects on one shaker, or all of them in the same frequency range |
| Distorted or crackling | Amplifier clipping, or audio enhancements still enabled |
The intermittent-output bug is real and acknowledged. There is a known open issue where ShakeIt Bass Shakers output stops until the Test now button is pressed. If that matches what you are seeing, you have not misconfigured anything — check the issue tracker for current status rather than rebuilding your setup.
The full symptom-by-symptom version is on shakers silent.
Common questions
Do I need a separate sound card for bass shakers?
Yes. SimHub's guidance is that the audio interface must be dedicated rather than shared with game audio — sharing causes conflicts and makes every effect audible as sound. An inexpensive second USB sound card is sufficient; this is about separation, not audio quality.
What Windows audio settings do bass shakers need?
16-bit, 48000 Hz on the shaker output device, with Exclusive Mode and all Enhancements disabled. Open mmsys.cpl, find the device, and check the Advanced and Enhancements tabs. These three settings account for most silent-shaker reports.
How many bass shakers can SimHub drive?
One or more audio interfaces of up to eight channels each, so a large multi-shaker rig is feasible. Digital optical output is the exception — it is limited to two channels with PCM, so it cannot carry a four-corner setup.
Why do my shakers stop working randomly?
Two common causes. Voicemeeter or another virtual audio device taking exclusive access is the first. The second is a known open issue where ShakeIt Bass Shakers output stops until the Test now button is pressed — if that matches, it is a bug rather than your configuration.
What frequency should I set for each effect?
There is no published set of correct values, and transducer models differ enormously in what they reproduce well. Broadly, heavy impacts and engine rumble sit at the very bottom of the range and road texture and kerbs higher up. Treat any specific number as a starting point to test, not a setting to copy.
How many effects should one shaker have?
Three continuous effects at most, per SimHub's own guidance. Beyond that a single transducer averages them into a buzz that carries no information. Brief punctual effects such as gear changes are excluded from the count.
Do bass shakers work without the paid licence?
Yes, fully. The licence raises hardware update rates from 10FPS to 60FPS, which sharpens short transients like kerb strikes and impacts. It improves the result; it does not gate it.
Sources
Related guides
SimHub is developed independently by Wotever and is not affiliated with oesimracing. This page was checked against SimHub 9.11.22 on 4 August 2026; where the interface has moved on since, the version stamp tells you how far. More on what SimHub is and what it costs.