Fixed critical sound timing bug. Finally, after a couple of days of banging my head against this problem and sound getting progressively worse, it's fixed. Turned out the fix was a very simple timing issue for when to play sounds.

sound.py

@@ -120,24 +120,25 @@ class Sound:
             pygame.event.clear()
             pygame.mixer.stop()
 
-        # Play the sound
-        channel = self.sounds[soundName].play(-1 if loop else 0)
-        if not channel:
-            return None
-
         # Apply appropriate volume settings
         sfx_volume = self.volumeService.get_sfx_volume()
 
-        # Handle positional audio if positions are provided
+        # Handle positional audio if positions are provided - check range BEFORE starting sound
         if playerPos is not None and objPos is not None:
             # Calculate stereo panning
             left_vol, right_vol = self._get_stereo_panning(playerPos, objPos, centerDistance)
 
             # Don't play if out of range
             if left_vol == 0 and right_vol == 0:
-                channel.stop()
                 return None
 
+        # Play the sound
+        channel = self.sounds[soundName].play(-1 if loop else 0)
+        if not channel:
+            return None
+
+        # Apply volume settings
+        if playerPos is not None and objPos is not None:
             # Apply positional volume adjustments
             channel.set_volume(volume * left_vol * sfx_volume, volume * right_vol * sfx_volume)
         else:
@@ -351,6 +352,10 @@ def _find_matching_sound(soundPattern, sounds):
         keys = [k for k in sounds.keys() if re.match("^" + soundPattern + ".*", k)]
     return random.choice(keys) if keys else None
 
+def get_available_channel():
+    """Get an available channel for playing sounds."""
+    return pygame.mixer.find_channel()
+
 # Global functions for backward compatibility
 def play_bgm(musicFile):
     """Play background music with proper volume settings."""
@@ -425,20 +430,22 @@ def play_sound(sound_or_name, volume=1.0, loop=False, playerPos=None, objPos=Non
 
     # Case 4: Sound name with dictionary
     elif isinstance(sounds, dict) and isinstance(sound_or_name, str) and sound_or_name in sounds:
+        # Apply volume settings
+        sfx_vol = volumeService.get_sfx_volume()
+
+        # Handle positional audio - check range BEFORE starting sound
+        if playerPos is not None and objPos is not None:
+            left_vol, right_vol = _get_stereo_panning(playerPos, objPos, centerDistance)
+            if left_vol == 0 and right_vol == 0:
+                return None  # Don't start sound if out of range
+
         # Play the sound
         channel = sounds[sound_or_name].play(-1 if loop else 0)
         if not channel:
             return None
 
         # Apply volume settings
-        sfx_vol = volumeService.get_sfx_volume()
-
-        # Handle positional audio
         if playerPos is not None and objPos is not None:
-            left_vol, right_vol = _get_stereo_panning(playerPos, objPos, centerDistance)
-            if left_vol == 0 and right_vol == 0:
-                channel.stop()
-                return None
             channel.set_volume(volume * left_vol * sfx_vol, volume * right_vol * sfx_vol)
         else:
             channel.set_volume(volume * sfx_vol)