Smart TV's are dumb as a box of rocks, Rant...

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Woody's Workshop

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You would think with all the smart devices, including beds that can adjust to your position while you sleep, you could get a smart TV.
We live in an apartment complex and quiet time is from 10pm to 8am.
I'm often up past midnight watching movies.
It boggles my mind that I have to turn the volume to 50 to hear words spoke, but 5 for everything else.
Now a Smart TV, a REAL smart TV would measure disables and adjust accordingly so all sounds would be at the same level.
My wife is almost daily confronted by the neighbor complaining of load noises past quiet time, even though I sit with the damn remote in my hand and adjust volume as needed. But there are the split seconds between low voices and action scene noises, gun shots, engine revving, tires squealing, etc.
So don't no one tell me they have a Smart TV, because it's as dumb as a box of rock!
Rant over.
 
Are you listening through the built-in speakers? A surround sound system helps because it sends the dialog to one speaker, left and right sounds to another pair, back channels, etc.

I find my hearing loss is getting worse with age. Can't lip read TV very well. Try turning on closed captioning during quiet time, see if that helps.
 
Some TVs offer two volume control options.

The first keeps commercials from being loud, often commercials are recorded at a higher volume to get your attention.

The second option appears to be what your looking for, it keeps the output volume the same, this prevents the gunshot, explosion etc.... from being louder.

If your TV is less than 10 years old there is a chance you have one of these options.

Go to settings and look around, try anything related to sound, every manufacturer calls it something different.
 
You could pipe the sound to a receiver that has dynamic equalization which will flatten out the loud parts and boost the soft parts.

Part of the problem is that the content was recorded with a high dynamic range which is poorly reproduced by most TVs.

Part of the problem is that as we age, we have trouble hearing both high pitched sounds and often the frequencies used by voice. So, to hear what is being said, we have to turn it up. My wife, though younger than me, needs TV shows to be set louder than I do in order to make out the voice. However, she is less tolerant of the loud parts... Leading to "turn it up!" Followed by "now it's too loud.". Sigh.

On my receiver I've adjusted things to boost voice frequencies and specifically the center speaker which helps a lot. But poorly mixed audio is frequently a problem.

Good luck! A headset would solve the complaints.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using Tapatalk
 
Both of our TVs have a sound setting to enhance voices. It helps, but the best solution is a surround sound system with a center speaker. You can adjust the volume of the center speaker, where most voices are, separately from the volume of the other speakers.
 
In the music business, it's called a "limiter". A device that balances the loud and soft sounds. I too have this problem with TV's. My computer does thew same thing when I'm streaming. I have to babysit the damn volume knob. Maybe a set of headphones for me too....hmmmmm
 
Nice solutions, thanks, but I'm poor and just want to watch the Damn TV when I want to!
I can't afford surround sound systems, or I"d have one.
My bitch is with the F-ing TV's them selves...and maybe the idiots that transmit signal.
If they are broadcasting signal like everyone has a surround sound the should be Shot!!!
 
You would think with all the smart devices, including beds that can adjust to your position while you sleep, you could get a smart TV.
We live in an apartment complex and quiet time is from 10pm to 8am.
I'm often up past midnight watching movies.
It boggles my mind that I have to turn the volume to 50 to hear words spoke, but 5 for everything else.
Now a Smart TV, a REAL smart TV would measure disables and adjust accordingly so all sounds would be at the same level.
My wife is almost daily confronted by the neighbor complaining of load noises past quiet time, even though I sit with the damn remote in my hand and adjust volume as needed. But there are the split seconds between low voices and action scene noises, gun shots, engine revving, tires squealing, etc.
So don't no one tell me they have a Smart TV, because it's as dumb as a box of rock!
Rant over.
I have no idea what TV you have, but there might be a "dynamic range" setting in your TV's audio settings to reduce the range between loudest and quietest audio level. Check your manual or ask about your specific TV in an appropriate forum found using Google.

The best solution as already suggested is wireless headphones.
 
Nice solutions, thanks, but I'm poor and just want to watch the Damn TV when I want to!
I can't afford surround sound systems, or I"d have one.
My bitch is with the F-ing TV's them selves...and maybe the idiots that transmit signal.
If they are broadcasting signal like everyone has a surround sound the should be Shot!!!

I with you on this but I have been blaming Xfinity not the TV. I also thought that commercials were supposed to be sent at the same volume level as the programming. If so, it ain't done on cable. I am not going to buy any extra stuff to hook to the TV.
 
I with you on this but I have been blaming Xfinity not the TV. I also thought that commercials were supposed to be sent at the same volume level as the programming. If so, it ain't done on cable. I am not going to buy any extra stuff to hook to the TV.
There is legislation on commercial volume, but it was, surprise, surprise, very poorly written, intentionally or otherwise:

"Part of the trouble may be an apparent loophole in the language of the CALM Act, which states that a commercial must be no louder on average. That means the commercial announcer can shout loudly at the beginning of the ad so long as the middle of the ad is softer."

From the author of that legislation who, one would think, would have enough communications engineering expertise to avoid the loophole mentioned above, the FCC:

https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/loud-commercials-tv

Adjust your settings

If you are experiencing spikes in volume with both programming and commercials, you may be able to change the settings on your television or home theater system to help stabilize overall loudness. Many televisions and home theater systems have features to control loudness, such as automatic gain control, audio compression, or audio limiters, that can be turned on to provide a more consistent volume level across programs and commercials. These functions usually need to be activated through the equipment's "Set Up/Audio" menu.


They even mention the loophole themselves:

Some commercials with louder and quieter moments may still seem "too loud" to some viewers, but are still in compliance because average volume is the rule.

OR, you can most likely be wasting your time doing this:

Filing a complaint

The FCC does not monitor programming for loud commercials. We rely on people like you to let us know if they think there's a problem. If you have experienced what you believe is a violation of the rules regarding the loudness of commercial TV ads, you may file a complaint with the FCC at no cost.

What to include in your complaint:

If you watched the commercial on pay TV (cable or satellite) or if you watched it on a broadcast station
The name of the advertiser or product promoted in the commercial
The date and time you saw the commercial
The name of the TV program during which it aired
Which TV station (by call sign and/or channel number and the station's community) or pay TV provider transmitted the commercial
If you watched the commercial on pay TV, the channel number on which you saw it and the cable programmer or network


Bottom line, look for that dynamic range or similar option in your TV's audio settings or get some inexpensive wireless headphones selected via user reviews on Amazon.
 
There is legislation on commercial volume, but it was, surprise, surprise, very poorly written, intentionally or otherwise:

"Part of the trouble may be an apparent loophole in the language of the CALM Act, which states that a commercial must be no louder on average. That means the commercial announcer can shout loudly at the beginning of the ad so long as the middle of the ad is softer."

From the author of that legislation who, one would think, would have enough communications engineering expertise to avoid the loophole mentioned above, the FCC:

https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/loud-commercials-tv

Adjust your settings

If you are experiencing spikes in volume with both programming and commercials, you may be able to change the settings on your television or home theater system to help stabilize overall loudness. Many televisions and home theater systems have features to control loudness, such as automatic gain control, audio compression, or audio limiters, that can be turned on to provide a more consistent volume level across programs and commercials. These functions usually need to be activated through the equipment's "Set Up/Audio" menu.


They even mention the loophole themselves:

Some commercials with louder and quieter moments may still seem "too loud" to some viewers, but are still in compliance because average volume is the rule.

OR, you can most likely be wasting your time doing this:

Filing a complaint

The FCC does not monitor programming for loud commercials. We rely on people like you to let us know if they think there's a problem. If you have experienced what you believe is a violation of the rules regarding the loudness of commercial TV ads, you may file a complaint with the FCC at no cost.

What to include in your complaint:

If you watched the commercial on pay TV (cable or satellite) or if you watched it on a broadcast station
The name of the advertiser or product promoted in the commercial
The date and time you saw the commercial
The name of the TV program during which it aired
Which TV station (by call sign and/or channel number and the station's community) or pay TV provider transmitted the commercial
If you watched the commercial on pay TV, the channel number on which you saw it and the cable programmer or network


Bottom line, look for that dynamic range or similar option in your TV's audio settings or get some inexpensive wireless headphones selected via user reviews on Amazon.

I have tried all the TV settings and the cable box has none. I could afford a home theater but don't want any extra crap sitting around. I don't like having to fiddle with the volume control but do know how to push buttons.
 
I apologize if I sound nasty, I don't mean too.
I'm broke, been without Tea (caffeine) and chew (nicotine) since yesterday.
I'm just a grumpy old man right now, I don't mean to spread it around...

I am pretty grumpy myself.
 
I have tried all the TV settings and the cable box has none. I could afford a home theater but don't want any extra crap sitting around. I don't like having to fiddle with the volume control but do know how to push buttons.
Solution for commercials at least, not programming - the "mute" button on the remote. For those with DVRs, record everything you want to watch and then just skip the commercials.
 
My Toshiba's Tuner died. I can get NetFlix and all the other crap, just no plain broadcast (I ditched DirecTV years ago for Roku)
 
Solution for commercials at least, not programming - the "mute" button on the remote. For those with DVRs, record everything you want to watch and then just skip the commercials.

Yup, recording solves the commercials issue. I record a lot but still watch in real time too. My problem with the mute is that I tend to start fooling on the computer and then, if I don't hear the program come back, I end up having rewind to catch what I missed when the show returned.
 
A fairly inexpensive thing to try would be to use amplified computer speakers, placed near where you sit. You may need to extend the wires a bit. Should run less than $25. A nice set of speakers with a subwoofer should run less than $50. You'll only get sound in two channels, though, not surround sound.

Something like this: https://www.microcenter.com/product/317452/Speaker_System_Z313
 
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