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TV show mixes...why is the music so much louder than the dialogue?


deep owl

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I don't normally watch TV, but over the last few months I've been using Netflix. Watching Bones, Lie To Me, and Supernatural quite a bit and noticing a few things.

Biggest thing is the level of dialogue vs. level of music. Intro and ending music pretty much blows everything else away. Transitional music gets a bit loud too. Point is I find myself turning my master volume up and down quite a bit.

I've considered that this may be due to the acoustics of my room or possibly a psychoacoustic effect but I've also heard several other people say the same things about their experiences at their own homes.

I have to wonder if the post mixers on shows like mixing this way or if they're answering to higher ups.

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I kinda figured that. I was an editor for 8 years doing corporate video and it was definitely 'edit by committee' as well as choose and mix shite royalty free music. I think the viewing public would appreciate an 'easy on the dynamics' mix for apartments and suburban homes.

 

Dialog/music/exf level decisions are made by producers/directors/big wheels,etc.

 

Eric

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+1 for riding the levels on these shows as well. Most were probably mixed in a DTS or Dolby surround environment with the proper speaker arrangement and calibration.

 

For broadcast there's only an EBU loudness compliance standard to keep programs within the same loudness ballpark, but that goes out the window when the dialogue within a show is mixed low in comparison to the music.

 

If there were a way to monitor 'dyanmics' and create a standard for broadcast or at least if there was a best practice other than to taste I'd be interested to learn from post people with more experience.

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The "auto" setting on TVs sucks too, so that's not an option. My dad has his TV set that way. When there's silence, the TV gains up to a nice hiss. When there's "dynamic" volume, it clamps down. Awful.

Lots of people watch TV with other people in the house, or kids in bed, or neighbors through thin walls. It's infuriating that TV has such a big dynamic range. And it drives me crazy when dialog scenes sound like they're in a dance club.

Robert

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For broadcast there's only an EBU loudness compliance standard to keep programs within the same loudness ballpark, but that goes out the window when the dialogue within a show is mixed low in comparison to the music.

Although the point of this EBU recommendation (R-128) is exactly what's being discussed here. To average the loudness of a program so that consumers don't get a feeling of "jumping volume" all the time.

And it's not simply a matter of balancing loud music at the end with quiet dialogue in the middle. Averaging measurements are taken all the time at preset intervalls. Plus the overall level has been reduced and, ironically, it allow for more dynamic sound

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