NBTC: Digital TV channels must normalize audio volume of their content

[webfact]

NBTC: Digital TV channels must normalize audio volume of their content

BANGKOK, 2 Mar 2015, (NNT) - The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has started enforcing a regulation making digital channels standardize the audio volume of their shows and advertisements at minus 1 decibel. The campaign started yesterday, March 1st.

The Secretary-General of the NBTC, Thakorn Tanthasit, explained that his agency deemed the move necessary, as several TV shows and commercials are using high volume to attract an audience, thereby manipulating them to receive their contents.

Mr. Thakorn, says the practice is considered unfair to customers, adding that it also causes noise pollution without a good reason.

At the beginning of this year the NBTC contacted digital TV operators about the matter, giving them two months to prepare for the implementation.

Beginning on March 1st, all shows and commercials on digital TV must normalize audio volume to minus 1 decibel at most.


-- NNT 2015-03-02

[canopus1969]

How sensible, well done

[Thian]

Why only the digital tv channels?

[worgeordie]

Pleased with that, as sick of the wife saying its too loud,when I tell

her for the 1000 th time its because the adds are on.

Now if they could get rid of the bells and whistles and funny noises

in Thai soaps it would be a step forward for Thailand into the real

World.

regards Worgeordie

[Lupatria]

it also causes noise pollution without a good reason

Who would ever expect this could become a subject of matter in Thailand?

[ourmanflint]

TV is usually mixed at between -18db and -20dB and adverts are allowed to go up to -12dB in Europe and USA, so why on earth they are aiming for a level of just -1db is madness.

[weegee]

anything they do would be a god send....I get woken up every time a commercial comes on.....Now thats not healthy..

Edited March 2, 2015 by weegee

[Benmart]

TV is usually mixed at between -18db and -20dB and adverts are allowed to go up to -12dB in Europe and USA, so why on earth they are aiming for a level of just -1db is madness.

I'm not in charge, not in the USA or Europe and go with the flow, Otherwise, madness is a chair side companion.

[arrowsdawdle]

How sensible, well done

Now if they can just figure out how to consistently sync the sound with the picture it will be like advancing to the 1950s all over again.

[Jonmarleesco]

'Mr. Thakorn says the practice ... causes noise pollution without a good reason.' That's worth a guffaw, or two.

[Jonmarleesco]

How sensible, well done

Now if they can just figure out how to consistently sync the sound with the picture it will be like advancing to the 1950s all over again.

And if they could correctly sync the whole with the programme guide's blurb.

[razer]

Love you guys. Visited the USA six years ago and they do the sound blasting commercials too. God bless the remote.

[Rorri]

OK... what is -1 decibel (dB)? I'll tell you what, it actually means nothing, unless referenced to a level, dBm,... dBm is a power measurement while dB is a logarithmic ratio. Another fact, the human ear can only just, yes just, perceive a change of 3dB, a change of -1dB means nothing. Another interesting fact, every +3dB change is a doubling of power and every -3dB is a halving of power.

[timendres]

TV is usually mixed at between -18db and -20dB and adverts are allowed to go up to -12dB in Europe and USA, so why on earth they are aiming for a level of just -1db is madness.

Not sure, but I believe they mean that the difference must be less than 1db.

[Bluespunk]

"Mr. Thakorn, says the practice is considered unfair to customers, adding that it also causes noise pollution without a good reason."

Erm, there's this button on the remote control...

[mathewjg]

Be great if the movie world could balance the music and sound effects with speech levels. One minute the speech is muffled and the next an explosion comes in at about 3 times the volume of the speech. Some tvs have auto level control but that gets irritating after a while.

[ourmanflint]

TV is usually mixed at between -18db and -20dB and adverts are allowed to go up to -12dB in Europe and USA, so why on earth they are aiming for a level of just -1db is madness.

Not sure, but I believe they mean that the difference must be less than 1db.

Normalized means peaks are at -1db not a difference of 1db

[Thai at Heart]

So glad that this massive issue has been solved.....

[Traveling Sailor]

TV is usually mixed at between -18db and -20dB and adverts are allowed to go up to -12dB in Europe and USA, so why on earth they are aiming for a level of just -1db is madness.

Madness perhaps, but Thainess for sure.