Compression squeezes the life out of music!
Dynamic range compression isn't new, it's been used by recording, mixing, and mastering engineers for many decades. A little bit of compression is fine, but over-compression can sound downright ugly. Most of today's music, whether it's on LP, CD, the radio or iTunes is over-compressed. Most remastered CDs are over-compressed.
Before we go any further, I'm not referring to the lossy compression used in MP3s, or lossless compression used in Apple Lossless. They've got their own set of problems, but dynamic range compression is a very different predicament.
To the casual listener compression can sound "good," mostly because it makes the music seem louder and punchier, and once music's natural soft-loud dynamic shifts are squashed flat music is easier to hear in noisy environments like cars or over iPods. Compression reduces the need to adjust playback volume--because it's always nearly the same volume--loud.
Engineers worry that if they don't compress their recordings the music would seem too soft and low. That is, if a music listener went from really loud, compressed music to quieter, uncompressed music they probably wouldn't like uncompressed music--unless they turned it up! That way they would hear the music's natural soft-loud dynamics.
Unfortunately, that's not an acceptable scenario to most engineers or record labels. They're addicted to over-compression, it's a hard habit to break.
But the unnatural onslaught of compressed sound obliterates musical nuance, delicacy and emotional power. Compression's loud-all-the-time nature sucks the life out of music.
Here's a great video that demonstrates the evils of compression.
... Read moreThanks to Dolby Volume, too-loud commercials, inaudible dialog, overly loud special effects, and inconsistent volume will all be a thing of the past, says Dolby spokesman Craig Eggers.
Dolby Volume improves the listening experience "by leveling the volume across channels and programs while preserving the listening experience at any volume level." To hear Dolby Volume, you'll need to buy a new receiver, like Harman Kardon's AVR 7550HD or Arcam's FMJ AVR600. They're the first two A/V receivers that feature Dolby Volume, but we expect to see it appear in a wide range of TVs, home theater in a box systems, and more over the next few years.
Hardware manufacturers are free to implement Dolby Volume in slightly different ways, and some will offer low, medium, and high levels of the Dolby Volume "effect." So the degree of volume consistency may be user-selectable.
The sophisticated technology measures and controls perceived volume levels to provide a consistent volume listening experience. Eggers confirmed that Dolby Volume is fully compatible with all sources: Blu-ray, DVD, TV, CD, MP3, iPods, FM radio, analog and digital, including, yes, DTS-encoded DVDs and Blu-ray Discs!
But Dolby Volume isn't just about maintaining consistent volume, it also preserves the apparent tonal balance, so even during hushed late-night listening sessions you'll still hear the same bass and treble balance as you would with the level turned up loud.
I haven't heard Dolby Volume yet, but if it works as advertised it really will be amazing. No more mad dashes across the room to turn down the volume when changing sources or discs. I can't wait.
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