Mumbling

petra

The problem is the size of the speakers in the slim line TVs that we all have.
Does anyone remember the size of the speakers in those old box sets, they were huge.
I got that info from a retired BBC sound engineer.

I have a hi-fi attached to my TV with two proper speakers and still have a problem with mumbling actors and loud music. So this is not the problem

keepingquiet

I don't watch Emmerdale but get annoyed by the poor sound quality on some TV dramas- I have to turn the volume up when people are speaking but then some music or even adverts come on and its wow! turn that down. I've heard you can get these bar things you put in front of the tv that make the sound better. Maybe I've just got a rubbish tv!

We’ve had this problem for a few years, I’m 64 and husband 67 so not that old. Both had our ears tested and no problems with them. It’s not your Tv. We tried linking up two sets of Bluetooth headphones but couldn’t get them to work together.

Then when the adverts come on, they are absolutely booming!!!

There was a letter in The Times the other day from a reader who, having paid for the most expensive stall seats at a production of Private Lives, could hear clearly only two members of the cast, both over 60, as the rest mumbled. Well done, Patricia Hodges and Nigel Havers. I know it's all done in the name of realism, like murky lighting in tv dramas, but we are entitled to see and hear what we are paying for.

I blame Lee Strasberg and The Method.

My DH is a retired BBC lighting director and meets up with colleagues (retired and otherwise) on a regular basis, some of whom work/worked in the sound department. I am therefore reliably informed that the problem is because there are no longer any sound supervisors overseeing output levels and no checks on how sounds are perceived at our end.

And the incredibly annoying really loud music at the start of a programme is done deliberately to get attention.

MissAdventure

Then when the adverts come on, they are absolutely booming!!!

Oh yes, get ready to hit the mute button!

gulligranny

My DH is a retired BBC lighting director and meets up with colleagues (retired and otherwise) on a regular basis, some of whom work/worked in the sound department. I am therefore reliably informed that the problem is because there are no longer any sound supervisors overseeing output levels and no checks on how sounds are perceived at our end.

And the incredibly annoying really loud music at the start of a programme is done deliberately to get attention.

Ha! Thank you gulligranny. I knew it, been saying this for the last few years, the sound output is not as good as it used to be! Young men who like loud music and do not realise that background music should stay in the background. And as you say no-one is checking what we actually hear. Maybe you could ask your husband to mention to those still in the business how very annoying it is to have loud music and quiet dialogue.

Chestnut - oh, he does, they all have a really good moan. Unfortunately most programmes are not made in-house but by other production companies so most of the complaints fall on deaf ears (no pun intended!)

Thank heavens for subtitles ...

It seems that BBC programmes are renowned for having poor sound quality. We have subtitles on for all dramas, but don't need them for the news or documentaries - the newsreaders and voice overs know how to speak clearly.