A Cure for Loud TV Commercials

Every night, I battle my TV. Just as I'm settling in to a nice, relaxing half-slumber while listening to Sarah-Jessica-Parker-as-Carrie-Bradshaw rant about men, I find myself rudely awakened by some horrendous Livelinks commercial. Suddenly I'm in a mad rush to find the remote so I can down the volume. Even if I was looking to talk to other 18-and-over singles in my area (and I'm not), I would still be annoyed because the current differential between the volume of TV shows and commercials has gotten out of hand.

If the FCC won't regulate that, then a new Dolby technology announced at CES might. Dubbed Dolby Volume, this technology aims to level out sound discrepancies between shows and commercials, different channels, and even scenes within the same programs. By simulating the way people hear, Dolby is able to use software to keep volumes within a certain range without losing detail or complexity. You set it to the volume you like, and the technology complies.

According to Dolby, the technology may be available in new TVs by the end of this year, or early next. If and when that happens, it will be a happy day for ears everywhere.

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