The volume on commercials drives me insane!!! Do you have any suggestions on how to prevent the constant volume up, volume down game that is played while watching T.V.?
gofar99 Messages: 1949 Registered: May 2010 Location: Southern Arizona
Illuminati (5th Degree)
Hi, Sad thing about the volume issue. it has been kicking around since the dawn of TV. There is a possible solution... there is a device by Terk (spelling?) that is supposed to level out the sound. I have seen it in several catalogs. I have not personally used one, but it may do what you want. My solution is not to watch much TV and keep the remote in hand when I do.
Another possible solution is to google for "companders" they are the opposite of expanders and I strongly suspect might be available from pro music sources.
Awesome, thank you so much! Perhaps I will look a bit more and see if this device has good reviews. You'd think with the way technology is advancing, they would have a common solution for this frustration.
By the end of this year, they'll be enforcing a law that mandates commercials can't be louder than the average volume of the TV show. That should help tremendously, so if you can hold out until then, you won't have to buy anything!
Miranda Starr Messages: 15 Registered: February 2012
Chancellor
I don't always agree with laws that mandate what private companies do, but this law makes sense to me. I understand that advertisers want to get your attention, but extra-loud commercials go to far.
gofar99 Messages: 1949 Registered: May 2010 Location: Southern Arizona
Illuminati (5th Degree)
Hi, I hate to be a nay sayer.. .. but I'll bet they don't enforce it or more likely the advertisers find a way around it. They already have to stay below the peak volume levels as it is required by both the FCC and practical concerns. If you over modulate then it causes all sorts of artifacts in the signal (that part is generally self enforced). Now to get them to keep it below the average level has been a constant battle. I would love it if they would enforce it and make it stick.
Wayne Parham Messages: 18786 Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
Yeah, if they compress the signal but stay under the FCC-mandated limit, I'm not sure how that can be actionable. I guess they could set a limit on compression, but how would you test that? Measure the dynamic range? Would that be appropriate - mandate a minimum dynamic range as well as a maximum amplitude? I dunno, commercials annoy the heck out of me too, but I think politicians and extra red tape bothers me even more. I always have the volume knob.
I know what you mean! Obviously it's to get you to pay attention to the ads more, but it sounds like a counterproductive approach if people just end up muting it! I don't get why universal volume control isn't standard by now.
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Do you have any suggestions on how to prevent the constant volume up, volume down game that is played while watching T.V.?
There is a possible solution... there is a device by Terk (spelling?) that is supposed to level out the sound. I have seen it in several catalogs. I have not personally used one, but it may do what you want. My solution is not to watch much TV and keep the remote in hand when I do. 
You'd think with the way technology is advancing, they would have a common solution for this frustration.
