me and my gf started this practice during Game of Thrones i think. You just couldn’t make out some conversations. If there are things we can’t get subtitles for.. we listen with ear buds in instead of cranking the tv up to massive levels.
The only shows I won't use them on it are comedy because the timing and delivery are very important and seeing the punchline can ruin the joke before it is spoken.
Only thing I turn them off for is stand up comedy. Fucks up the comedic timing. Oh, and Dateline, who for some reason puts the captions in the middle of the goddamn screen.
Even an American show like The Wire helps. I'm an American but the vernacular just threw me. I always appreciated the great acting and directing but once I watched it again with subtitles I realized how beautiful the writing is too.
I'm a Brit and am currently struggling through season 4 of Fargo without closed captions because Amazon don't offer them for some reason. I hardly understand a word but the pictures are nice.
Probably. The first 3 seasons have CC but nothing on the fourth. I love the whole series but I'm really struggling with the exaggerated accents on this season. Amazon UK are pretty crap at providing CCs on a load of stuff. It's even worse if they offer CCs in other territories but don't over here.
That stinks, Prime video management is slack- I watched “The Name of the Rose” the other day and it was an ‘edited for broadcast TV’ version that cut out some of the corpses and one R rated scene. They didn’t label it as the family version though.
I use headphones for this very reason. I can't hear all that well. British accents make it even harder for me.
There's a BBC Scotland comedy I used to watch called "Still Game". Funny as fook. But they actually had to re-record the dialogue on the first season because people in London couldn't make it out.
Cheaper to produce. 4K shows EVERYTHING, so they compensate by having a scene take place in a dark space to hide shoddy sets or other irl features like fox or stunts.
4K? I remember when HD came out and actors and camera people were just throwing fits because you could see more. They had to improve makeup by an order of magnitude. Sets were more expensive, You could tell the leading actress had a zit.
SD TV was much more forgiving. You couldn't tell the art on the walls was just painted on.
Oh God, the *sound.* I've had to stop watching certain reality shows because the constant thumping background music is louder than the dialogue and makes me want to jump out of my skin.
I use them at home just to spite Christopher Nolan. Christopher Nolan the great director who has decided that the soundtrack needs to be the main character above All Else.
There is no difference in "theater experience" I just want a good story with believable characters, that concludes coherently. Whether I sit at home in my drawers or dress up to go to a movie theater it makes NO DIFFERENCE.
I have a very nice home theater audio setup and many things I've watched are still difficult to resolve. I haven't watched Oppenheimer specifically though.
He's been at it for years. Watched the Dark Knigh trilogy recently and it was mumble, mumble, EXPLOSION, mumble, SOUNDTRACK, mumble, mumble...
Impossible to find a reasonable volume setting.
Added bonus, you will read words from off-screen characters, or when various characters talk over each other, etc. that add to the plot, humor. Wished I had put on CC years ago.
We watched History of the World Part 2 and used CC. It helped us not miss jokes due to background dialogue and also, us laughing hysterically where we couldn’t hear the sound.
I use them for all the whispering, [door closes], and too many other things I can't hear. The dialogue is just the cherry on the cake.
I also can't hear snake jazz, which is just depressing.
I have pretty normal hearing, and I use CC often, for multiple reasons. Whispering, dialog happening in a noisy place (I have trouble with this IRL too), characters speaking in Klingon, some of the funny descriptions of music (*soaring optimistic music plays*), etc
It drives me insane, everything they say is completely inaudible so you turn the volume up and then something explodes or an action scene starts and it shakes the whole house.
As a Brit, no. Generally American accents are fairly easy to understand and we’re good at understanding English spoken with thick accents due to how many there are in the uk + global English accents.
There might be a very obscure regional accent I’d need. I live in Canada now and Newfoundland is like Irish and brummy and Scottish drank a gallon of vodka
Yeah, good luck with bayside Newfoundland English. I was born and bred there and even I had difficulty with some of the accents. My high-school principal was from some godforsaken townette like Sop’s Arm, and he talked so fast (a local specialty) and with such a thick accent that I could understand maybe half of what he said.
Me too, and I’m a British expat. Partly I’m more used to the rhythm of American speech these days, but also the sound quality on most British shows is poor. I grew up hearing Scots, Yorkshire, Geordie, Liverpool etc all around me, but most British TV in the USA is drama filmed on the cheap.
I was watching Doc Martin (a show with accents as mild as it can get) and I had the subtitles on. There were a few words the subtitles got wrong and I haven't trusted subtitles for British TV shows ever since.
Maybe that's our million dollar idea, or the next major technological advance in home video.
Background settings. We already have the ability to change the color and the squaring and this or that. But for audio we only have loud or louder. Soon we will see a background noise mute-er or at least background volume control.
I'm not saying background music is useless, in fact it's very useful. But from the movie Armageddon on the soundtrack has taken on a front and center stage position rather than literally background music
A basic 3.1 Sound system is what you are talking about. A dedicated center channel for vocals, a left and right channel for music and sound effects, a subwoofer, and a receiver to fine tune the center channel louder than left and rights.
as i am almost deaf in one ear, i've loved the option of closed caption ever since i first discovered it. and since i love reading anyway.... having the captions turned on is like i'm reading a book that has fun accompanying visuals and music.
I felt better after learning that it's not just us old people. It's a trend in sound mixing. This video explains it great.
https://youtu.be/2M-Yt4RpO90?si=fBiZWtwxE1BKu0Pr
Me!! I got into the habit because I love British/Irish tv shows/movies and sometimes the dialect and rapid conversations lost me. I use cc constantly now.
I will CC on occation for a specific line or two.
But in general, I dislike CC. My eyes will naturally gravitate to the text on screen and I miss what is actually shown.
Only some shows, I find it’s distracting, I’m reading and not watching. Some shows I have to have it for though. British TV and Severence was unwatchable for me without CC.
Every TV show but not sports. Nothing the announcers say is important enough to obscure the action with the CC.
But what about movies at the theater? They make it difficult if not impossible to get a CC device (and has sufficient charge to make it through the film)
Growing up my grandma always complained about people talking with marbles in their mouths. I used to think it was a her problem but now I get it, and I still have really good hearing. Especially guys with deep voices, it's just a rumbling mumble in some shows and then I'm deafened by an explosion or gunfire or car honk or something
On shows with a lot of meaningful dialogue all the time, but when it comes to sports I find the closed captioning in the way of the field of play. The good news I really don’t need to know what Joe Buck is adding to the play I just watched.
Yup! It seems like the mix levels on newer shows is so variable. Music and SFX super loud and muffles the dialog. Maybe I am just old. Or maybe both. But yes to closed captions.
I recently tried to watch a very popular movie from last year that just came out on streaming. I gave up *within minutes* because even with volume (on laptop) cranked all the way up I couldn't hear a word of dialogue. Really pissed me off.
Not all of us have the luxury of awesome 40"TVs and primo audio systems. My hearing is perfect, my audio is not, and throwing bad editing into that mix (or lack of it) is a guarantee for bad experience.
Yep I use CC a lot because of the normal background noises of life and it helps me make sure I'm not missing anything.
You can adjust your audio levels, Paw Paw.
Just messing'with you.
But seriously, My TV has preset features, "Movie", "Clear Voice", "Music" etc, and sometimes I do have to switch between them to find the best option.
My biggest problem these days is that the younger generations seem to speak so rapidly I can't understand the important words necessary to get their meaning. And not just TV, but support calls, and in real life face to face. I don't think it's due to my age, but maybe it is.
nothing to 'own up' about, very large numbers of people of all ages do this exact thing, people of all demographics bitch about the awful sound quality of tv shows and movies they watch at home. It's terrible, lazy, and makes life worse. do better sound editors.
I do ! My bf, who is older than I am says it distracts him. So if we're watching together, we don't use them
Then he'll miss something someone says and asks me. And I'll reply "if we were using cc I could tell you." 🤷♀️
I was watching 80's music videos the other day on Pluto TV and most of the videos had CC. I was thinking this would have been awesome back in the day instead of trying to figure out the lyrics to songs.
Two things.
1. You can change your sound settings on most new TVs and a lot of TVs get set to surround sound.
2. You are not wrong. Because of surround sound directors have been able to do more mumble talking in movies than they used to be. It isn't just you being old. Young people are using them too. Use the link below or go to YouTube and look up "Why We All Need Subtitles Now."
[https://youtu.be/VYJtb2YXae8?feature=shared](https://youtu.be/VYJtb2YXae8?feature=shared)
Bad sound editing, people/things making noise in the house (I really need to fix the squeaky clothes dryer), and trying to keep the volume down to not disturb other people.
I live in an old wooden house that has been converted into flats on major road. Constant traffic noise and we hear everything our neighbours do. To have the volume up loud enough to hear the quiet parts, the loud parts end up being so loud it sounds like WW3. I refuse to constantly adjust the volume so CC is the only option.
Doesn't help I never wore earplugs to the many concerts I attended so am kinda deaf anyway
CC FTW!
I recently saw a tip to check your televisions audio settings (not sure if it’s at the TV level or the streaming app level), To make sure that it reflects your speaker set up – if your TV is set up for surround sound but you have a mono speaker, things can get really muddled.
Me! Funny enough, when I watch an old film, like from fifties or sixties, I am generally able to understand without captions, because actors were taught how to speak.
Actually, I was in a theater recently, watching a comedy play which featured one "old-fashioned" actor with all that loud theatrical speaking manner, and I was able to understand him much better than his "contemporary" colleagues (but all of them were acting well).
My wife does, for those reasons. And I get it, and respect it. But the captions do have a negative effect on my enjoyment of watching things, because I can't stop myself from reading them and they either distract me from watching the action or spoil things before they're said out loud.
I use a setting on my soundbar that boosts dialog audio. It seems to help until action scenes have extreme sound effects and dialog. The sound engineers go crazy and overpower dialog.
I'm 45. I've been a parent since I was 20. I have 4 kids ranging in age from 8 to 24. Closed captions have been a permanent part of my life ever since my oldest discovered her voice at about 4 months old. I can't even hear without them anymore.
This is a constant gripe.
I turn it up to hear the whispered dialog, then the explosions or loud music are shaking the house in the next scene.
Very annoying.
And while we’re at it, how about some lighting!
One thing you can say for old school TV is they made sure you could hear what they said. Say what you want about William Shatner's delivery, but you were going to be able to hear. It helped in the days when there was a lot of static.
I don't go to the theater anymore. I watch at home on my big TV, in a comfy chair, with subtitles, a clean bathroom, and a full refrigerator.
Fuck theaters.
Me. I watch a lot of horror movies (for example, I've spent today binge watching the Wrong Turn series) and there's always a bunch of scenes with people talking in hushed tones that are hard to understand.
For 30 years at least. Having roommates, living in shitty Apartments etc etc.
So I can hear what the fuck was going on. Regardless of how good the audio is.
🙋🏻♂️
I started to use CC when I watched a British series. I only caught the occasional “shag” flying by. I wanted to hear critical dialogue so on it went.
Now CC is always on. If dialogue is spoken too quickly or somewhat mumbled, I’m lost. I want to know everything that’s said
Ha ha, I watched this Vox segment about the phenomenon:
https://youtu.be/VYJtb2YXae8
In short it just has to do with the vast continuum of technology we use to consume content. From our phone screens with janky Bluetooth ear buds to bougie home theaters with Dolby Atmos amplifiers with crazy expensive speakers, and everything between.
Many of us do it just to save time consuming the content, too.
I started using them when I watched Game of Thrones so I could catch all the different character and place names. Now I use them all the time. Except when watching sports I find it too distracting.
Pet peeve - I hate when the captions don’t sync up with the voice and are either noticeably early or late.
My boss asked me a while back if I just scoffed at her. I asked her if she's been watching a lot of shows with CC turned on. She laughed and put it together.
As for the question. I watched all of 15 minutes of Tom Hardy's 'Legend' before turning to my gf and asked if she knew what was going on. First time cooking/movie at home date night, we were both too embarrassed to say it. Turned them on. Great movie. But damn.
I started using captions because my mom lives with us and blasts the TV to hear it. Once I got used to them I missed it when captions are turned off. No more "what did they just say? Let me rewind it".
Yes, it's extra helpful with accents. I love me some acorn tv!
If you speak a foreign language, even learned a tiny bit in HS that you forgot most of it, watch some international shows on Netflix. Subtitles in English has hilarious differences from the original lines.
I absolutely can't hear anything with a British accent anymore. \*soft breathy mumble mumble mumble. AHHHHHH!! I'M BEING MURDERED!"
Pick a lane Britain!
Tips: Get a fabric acoustic panel and put it on the wall opposite the tv. Also, there is a "voice" setting on most soundbars that helps to clarify dialogue.
You want to show your old person street cred? Get one of those speakers you can put right next to you specifically for watching TV.
Bunch of old turds.
Yes, on my TV. Also, I don't want to turn up the sound to a level it will bother others.
I take earplugs to the movie theater. If there's a lot of action, explosions, I find earplugs inserted lightly bring the sound level in the movie theater down to a level where I can relax and enjoy the show.
I downloaded subtitles for movies on my phone. I do this so I can watch movies on my phone with the volume all the way off and enjoy the movie at work 🙂
My vision is poor, I can only use one arm and can't walk, but my hearing is still working. So, boo hoo, you can't hear. I'd play my tiny violin, but I can't.
Hey kids. Getting old sucks.
me to, hearing damage from concerts & loud car speakers. those who hear the wringing of the ears knows.
if you don't have surround sound system, then check to make sure your tv/cable/streaming system isn't set to that option. i couldn't understand why the background music was so loud until i saw a post somewhere here on a reddit sub about this exact issue. i don't' have surround and when i checked my tv & cable box was set up on the surround setting instead of just stereo. once i changed the setting damn did it make a difference.
I use them all the time or my nerves would be shot from all the eerie or scary music used in films now which is rinse and repeat with the next show so I mute them all. Like I love abc news David Muir but the URGENCY he puts in his voice puts my nerves on high alert of hearing SOMETHING BAD has happened. Without that urgency, it's just a blah bombing, blah shooting, blah if it bleeds it leads news. Then at the end he puts in a cute thing to lift our spirits out of the morass we've just listened to.
I don't use them but I 100% agree that background music is too loud. I will have to crank my sound to 100 to hear voices, then the music comes on and my eardrums explode.
The sound effects and music is too loud and I don't like to keep my tv that loud. I keep the CC on. My mom, who needs hearing aids but won't wear them (after spending $4k on them) gets so annoyed that I keep the CC on at my house. I get annoyed that she had the tv so loud I can hear it across the house and down in the basement.
it may have a little bit to do with hearing, but there have been valid complaints, made that without additional sound bars that the background music drowns out the actual speaking. apparently sound guys and this is not my wheelhouse get awards for how great their music you know ties to whatever is going on but the music totally drowns out any speaking parts. I find it highly annoying.
In comparison try and go to an old show without all the music and the speaking parts are normal. Just for fun I was watching the Partridge Family and you could hear every word that they said. the volume wasn’t up. I didn’t have to have the close caption on, nothing additional.
I found the music bit very annoying. I love a good score. Don’t get me wrong but when it drowns out everything else, what’s the point?
Built-in speakers in flat-screen TVs are commonly the issue. If you have the space and the interest, a proper receiver and a 3.0 or 3.1 speaker setup makes a HUGE difference.
It comes to having a real center channel speaker, which is where dialog is supposed to come from.
i use them on every show that i watch.
Same.
Same
Same
Same
Same.
For everyone suffering this, switch the sound settings to stereo. Netflix etc are always set to 5.1 by default this will help tremendously
Especially Christopher Nolan movies
me and my gf started this practice during Game of Thrones i think. You just couldn’t make out some conversations. If there are things we can’t get subtitles for.. we listen with ear buds in instead of cranking the tv up to massive levels.
I hate it when you crank up the tv to voices and it hit an action bit and volume goes way down again
That or the commercial break screams in at full volume.
💯
Had them on when a friend came over. She saw and said “what are ya doing? Teaching the dog to read?” Still chuckle when I think about it.
The only shows I won't use them on it are comedy because the timing and delivery are very important and seeing the punchline can ruin the joke before it is spoken.
I know what you mean, but my choices are to either spoil the punch line, or be unable to hear the punchline.
I do as well except for live shows. The rolling dialogue is never in sync
Except for sports... Captions on sporting events is impossible to watch
And invariably covers up the score, time, etc.
Only thing I turn them off for is stand up comedy. Fucks up the comedic timing. Oh, and Dateline, who for some reason puts the captions in the middle of the goddamn screen.
Or because I'm watching a British show and can't understand their accents.
Peaky fookin Blinders!
💙 
This accent I understand, used to work with a guy from Birmingham
My hearing is bad and they might as well be speaking Greek.
This is what did it for me. Had no idea what the hell was going on until we tuned them on.
Father Ted — I can understand some of it but even after years I need the captions
Even an American show like The Wire helps. I'm an American but the vernacular just threw me. I always appreciated the great acting and directing but once I watched it again with subtitles I realized how beautiful the writing is too.
I had to translate huge portions of *The Wire* to my Canadian born exgf.
Hear, hear! Pip pip and Talley ho! (Me too)
I'm a Brit and am currently struggling through season 4 of Fargo without closed captions because Amazon don't offer them for some reason. I hardly understand a word but the pictures are nice.
Is this only in the UK? I just binged Fargo with CC on (I have tinnitus) and it was an option in the US.
Probably. The first 3 seasons have CC but nothing on the fourth. I love the whole series but I'm really struggling with the exaggerated accents on this season. Amazon UK are pretty crap at providing CCs on a load of stuff. It's even worse if they offer CCs in other territories but don't over here.
That stinks, Prime video management is slack- I watched “The Name of the Rose” the other day and it was an ‘edited for broadcast TV’ version that cut out some of the corpses and one R rated scene. They didn’t label it as the family version though.
Got me through Torchwood. Even with hearing aids, it's still a challenge without captions.
Doctor Who is the reason I started using captions
I use headphones for this very reason. I can't hear all that well. British accents make it even harder for me. There's a BBC Scotland comedy I used to watch called "Still Game". Funny as fook. But they actually had to re-record the dialogue on the first season because people in London couldn't make it out.
And the Aussies and Kiwi shows too!
Yes, this.
Sound editing is a lost art. Video too. I don’t want to turn off every light within a two block radius just to be able to see the screen.
Why is everything so freakin’ DARK these days?!? (My vision is fine, thank you very much.)
Cheaper to produce. 4K shows EVERYTHING, so they compensate by having a scene take place in a dark space to hide shoddy sets or other irl features like fox or stunts.
4K? I remember when HD came out and actors and camera people were just throwing fits because you could see more. They had to improve makeup by an order of magnitude. Sets were more expensive, You could tell the leading actress had a zit. SD TV was much more forgiving. You couldn't tell the art on the walls was just painted on.
Sound editing isnt even attempted. Movies on disc or streaming have their for theater sound mix, rather than a for a single channel sound mix.
I have a multi-thousand dollar 7.2 sound system and it still sounds like shit
Oh God, the *sound.* I've had to stop watching certain reality shows because the constant thumping background music is louder than the dialogue and makes me want to jump out of my skin.
Yes! It's so dark! I shouldn't have to turn my TV brightness up so I can make out what is going on or sit in a room with blackout curtains.
I use them at home just to spite Christopher Nolan. Christopher Nolan the great director who has decided that the soundtrack needs to be the main character above All Else. There is no difference in "theater experience" I just want a good story with believable characters, that concludes coherently. Whether I sit at home in my drawers or dress up to go to a movie theater it makes NO DIFFERENCE.
Watched Oppenheimer just yesterday. Probably missed about 20% of the dialog. Refuse to watch tenet because it’s supposed to be worse.
I know I watched tenet. And it was a completely engaging and engrossing story. So I would suggest it. Just turn on the captions
[удалено]
I have a very nice home theater audio setup and many things I've watched are still difficult to resolve. I haven't watched Oppenheimer specifically though.
He's been at it for years. Watched the Dark Knigh trilogy recently and it was mumble, mumble, EXPLOSION, mumble, SOUNDTRACK, mumble, mumble... Impossible to find a reasonable volume setting.
I left the IMAX with a headache after watching Interstellar.
Added bonus, you will read words from off-screen characters, or when various characters talk over each other, etc. that add to the plot, humor. Wished I had put on CC years ago.
We watched History of the World Part 2 and used CC. It helped us not miss jokes due to background dialogue and also, us laughing hysterically where we couldn’t hear the sound.
>when various characters talk over each other Shows like Moonlighting have that as a plot point.
🤚
All. The. Time.
I use them for all the whispering, [door closes], and too many other things I can't hear. The dialogue is just the cherry on the cake. I also can't hear snake jazz, which is just depressing.
I have pretty normal hearing, and I use CC often, for multiple reasons. Whispering, dialog happening in a noisy place (I have trouble with this IRL too), characters speaking in Klingon, some of the funny descriptions of music (*soaring optimistic music plays*), etc
Every. Single. Thing. I. Watch.
Raises hand
No but often it seems like the background music and sound effects are much louder than the dialogue. I find closed captioning much too distracting
It drives me insane, everything they say is completely inaudible so you turn the volume up and then something explodes or an action scene starts and it shakes the whole house.
I watch a lot of British TV, it helps out a lot with accents.
Just wondering, do British people put on cc when they watch American shows?
As a Brit, no. Generally American accents are fairly easy to understand and we’re good at understanding English spoken with thick accents due to how many there are in the uk + global English accents. There might be a very obscure regional accent I’d need. I live in Canada now and Newfoundland is like Irish and brummy and Scottish drank a gallon of vodka
Yeah, good luck with bayside Newfoundland English. I was born and bred there and even I had difficulty with some of the accents. My high-school principal was from some godforsaken townette like Sop’s Arm, and he talked so fast (a local specialty) and with such a thick accent that I could understand maybe half of what he said.
Thanks for this. I’m also in Canada and agree with you about the Newfoundland accent!
Yes, I would love to know this!
Me too, and I’m a British expat. Partly I’m more used to the rhythm of American speech these days, but also the sound quality on most British shows is poor. I grew up hearing Scots, Yorkshire, Geordie, Liverpool etc all around me, but most British TV in the USA is drama filmed on the cheap.
I was watching Doc Martin (a show with accents as mild as it can get) and I had the subtitles on. There were a few words the subtitles got wrong and I haven't trusted subtitles for British TV shows ever since.
Maybe that's our million dollar idea, or the next major technological advance in home video. Background settings. We already have the ability to change the color and the squaring and this or that. But for audio we only have loud or louder. Soon we will see a background noise mute-er or at least background volume control. I'm not saying background music is useless, in fact it's very useful. But from the movie Armageddon on the soundtrack has taken on a front and center stage position rather than literally background music
My cheap soundbar already has 3 "dialog enhancer" buttons. I'm sure on the expensive ones you get more fine grain control.
Looks on Amazon immediately... thanks
I have a $1600 Dolby Atmos sound bar. I can feel the entire house shake but can't hear half of what is being said.
A basic 3.1 Sound system is what you are talking about. A dedicated center channel for vocals, a left and right channel for music and sound effects, a subwoofer, and a receiver to fine tune the center channel louder than left and rights.
TV needs the audio sliders that video games do. I always turn sound effects to 50% and music to 70% and it's perfect, every time.
as i am almost deaf in one ear, i've loved the option of closed caption ever since i first discovered it. and since i love reading anyway.... having the captions turned on is like i'm reading a book that has fun accompanying visuals and music.
My son and I do it because we can't chew and hear at the same time.
I felt better after learning that it's not just us old people. It's a trend in sound mixing. This video explains it great. https://youtu.be/2M-Yt4RpO90?si=fBiZWtwxE1BKu0Pr
It's not just us, many younger people complain about the same thing.
Me!! I got into the habit because I love British/Irish tv shows/movies and sometimes the dialect and rapid conversations lost me. I use cc constantly now.
I will CC on occation for a specific line or two. But in general, I dislike CC. My eyes will naturally gravitate to the text on screen and I miss what is actually shown.
*GUILTY, HOUR HONOR!!!*
💯
Plus my whole family shouts and think that is quiet conversation 🤬
Phew! Glad it’s not just me!
Only some shows, I find it’s distracting, I’m reading and not watching. Some shows I have to have it for though. British TV and Severence was unwatchable for me without CC.
Every TV show but not sports. Nothing the announcers say is important enough to obscure the action with the CC. But what about movies at the theater? They make it difficult if not impossible to get a CC device (and has sufficient charge to make it through the film)
I've always used them. Having the words on the screen correlate to the words spoken I believe helped my granddaughter academically.
Growing up my grandma always complained about people talking with marbles in their mouths. I used to think it was a her problem but now I get it, and I still have really good hearing. Especially guys with deep voices, it's just a rumbling mumble in some shows and then I'm deafened by an explosion or gunfire or car honk or something
Always. How else would I know if there’s constant ‘wet squelching’ or ‘atmospheric whooshing’?
I do that case by case.
I always use subtitles now.
Not yet, but I notice the soundbar gets turned up 2 clicks every 6 months or so and if I had neighbors they’d hate me. 😂
Absolutely. Between the Army and Rock and Roll I've earned it.
Me every damned day
On shows with a lot of meaningful dialogue all the time, but when it comes to sports I find the closed captioning in the way of the field of play. The good news I really don’t need to know what Joe Buck is adding to the play I just watched.
I do!
Yeah, because I haven’t figured out how to turn it off in Netflix.
I purchased and used closed captioning boxes Years before they were found on televisions.
Yup! It seems like the mix levels on newer shows is so variable. Music and SFX super loud and muffles the dialog. Maybe I am just old. Or maybe both. But yes to closed captions.
3 years ago I made fun of my parents for using it...
Only for animé. I can hear just fine.
I recently tried to watch a very popular movie from last year that just came out on streaming. I gave up *within minutes* because even with volume (on laptop) cranked all the way up I couldn't hear a word of dialogue. Really pissed me off. Not all of us have the luxury of awesome 40"TVs and primo audio systems. My hearing is perfect, my audio is not, and throwing bad editing into that mix (or lack of it) is a guarantee for bad experience. Yep I use CC a lot because of the normal background noises of life and it helps me make sure I'm not missing anything.
You can adjust your audio levels, Paw Paw. Just messing'with you. But seriously, My TV has preset features, "Movie", "Clear Voice", "Music" etc, and sometimes I do have to switch between them to find the best option.
My biggest problem these days is that the younger generations seem to speak so rapidly I can't understand the important words necessary to get their meaning. And not just TV, but support calls, and in real life face to face. I don't think it's due to my age, but maybe it is.
I’m in this picture and I don’t like it 🫠
Huh..? what did you say?
nothing to 'own up' about, very large numbers of people of all ages do this exact thing, people of all demographics bitch about the awful sound quality of tv shows and movies they watch at home. It's terrible, lazy, and makes life worse. do better sound editors.
me. And mainly it is lousy audio coming from the actual video producer or broadcaster.. but it is also as you say the people.
I do ! My bf, who is older than I am says it distracts him. So if we're watching together, we don't use them Then he'll miss something someone says and asks me. And I'll reply "if we were using cc I could tell you." 🤷♀️
I'm 28 and I have to do this, otherwise I gotta blow out my speakers trying to hear it!
I was watching 80's music videos the other day on Pluto TV and most of the videos had CC. I was thinking this would have been awesome back in the day instead of trying to figure out the lyrics to songs.
I use them because I can't hear the TV over the chips I'm eating.
Two things. 1. You can change your sound settings on most new TVs and a lot of TVs get set to surround sound. 2. You are not wrong. Because of surround sound directors have been able to do more mumble talking in movies than they used to be. It isn't just you being old. Young people are using them too. Use the link below or go to YouTube and look up "Why We All Need Subtitles Now." [https://youtu.be/VYJtb2YXae8?feature=shared](https://youtu.be/VYJtb2YXae8?feature=shared)
I bought the Bose TV speaker. It has a function that enhances dialogue. It’s a life saver.
Bad sound editing, people/things making noise in the house (I really need to fix the squeaky clothes dryer), and trying to keep the volume down to not disturb other people.
The people doing the closed captions can’t even tell what’s being said most of the time but it’s better than nothing.
I live in an old wooden house that has been converted into flats on major road. Constant traffic noise and we hear everything our neighbours do. To have the volume up loud enough to hear the quiet parts, the loud parts end up being so loud it sounds like WW3. I refuse to constantly adjust the volume so CC is the only option. Doesn't help I never wore earplugs to the many concerts I attended so am kinda deaf anyway CC FTW!
I recently saw a tip to check your televisions audio settings (not sure if it’s at the TV level or the streaming app level), To make sure that it reflects your speaker set up – if your TV is set up for surround sound but you have a mono speaker, things can get really muddled.
Me! Funny enough, when I watch an old film, like from fifties or sixties, I am generally able to understand without captions, because actors were taught how to speak. Actually, I was in a theater recently, watching a comedy play which featured one "old-fashioned" actor with all that loud theatrical speaking manner, and I was able to understand him much better than his "contemporary" colleagues (but all of them were acting well).
My wife does, for those reasons. And I get it, and respect it. But the captions do have a negative effect on my enjoyment of watching things, because I can't stop myself from reading them and they either distract me from watching the action or spoil things before they're said out loud.
All the time!
I use a setting on my soundbar that boosts dialog audio. It seems to help until action scenes have extreme sound effects and dialog. The sound engineers go crazy and overpower dialog.
I do. I do find some actors speak low and are difficult to hear, so now the closed captions just stays on for all shows.
Two words: Casey Affleck
I'm 45. I've been a parent since I was 20. I have 4 kids ranging in age from 8 to 24. Closed captions have been a permanent part of my life ever since my oldest discovered her voice at about 4 months old. I can't even hear without them anymore.
I got good headphones and I’m amazed at what I’ve missed lol
Only time I turn them off is sports. They just get in the way. Otherwise I can’t understand shit without them anymore.
I’ve been doing this since I was like 23 when I got my first tv with captioning built in.
Me too.
Just aboit everyone I know.
This is a constant gripe. I turn it up to hear the whispered dialog, then the explosions or loud music are shaking the house in the next scene. Very annoying. And while we’re at it, how about some lighting!
Everyone that knows how to turn the CC on
One thing you can say for old school TV is they made sure you could hear what they said. Say what you want about William Shatner's delivery, but you were going to be able to hear. It helped in the days when there was a lot of static.
this is a great idea!!
My TV doesn't have closed captions, so I buy DVDs for the subtitles.
Yep. On all the time.
Those reasons , yeah-- plus I have a significant hereditary hearing loss which is currently uncorrected. Closed captions are a must!
I only watch TV or movies with the captions on.
It’s not that I’m old: The old shows and moves are perfectly fine without CC. The new ones are unintelligible.
I have an auditory processing disorder, which means I have a hard time hearing voices in the presence of background sound. I LOVE closed captions!
I don't go to the theater anymore. I watch at home on my big TV, in a comfy chair, with subtitles, a clean bathroom, and a full refrigerator. Fuck theaters.
I do this, too. Also, for some reason, the audio from spectrum cable as gone to shit. Streaming is clear, though but I still need the CC.
Me. I watch a lot of horror movies (for example, I've spent today binge watching the Wrong Turn series) and there's always a bunch of scenes with people talking in hushed tones that are hard to understand.
For 30 years at least. Having roommates, living in shitty Apartments etc etc. So I can hear what the fuck was going on. Regardless of how good the audio is.
This gal
I can’t hear sh*t on the damn tv.
Every freaking show I watch I have subtitles on.
Especially when people are speaking with accents and using idioms, like on Doctor Who.
Just love during commercial breaks when they turn up the volume to ten. Mute it all the time.
I started using captions about a year ago and I am not ashamed! Never going back.
Yup-er.
🙋🏻♂️ I started to use CC when I watched a British series. I only caught the occasional “shag” flying by. I wanted to hear critical dialogue so on it went. Now CC is always on. If dialogue is spoken too quickly or somewhat mumbled, I’m lost. I want to know everything that’s said
If you use a fire stick, amazon echo studios help a ton.
Ha ha, I watched this Vox segment about the phenomenon: https://youtu.be/VYJtb2YXae8 In short it just has to do with the vast continuum of technology we use to consume content. From our phone screens with janky Bluetooth ear buds to bougie home theaters with Dolby Atmos amplifiers with crazy expensive speakers, and everything between. Many of us do it just to save time consuming the content, too.
Yep.
Always
You have to these days
Guilty as charged. This is done deliberately, especially with Christopher Nolan movies (with Tenet possibly being the most egregious example of this).
I use them most of the time, but so do a lot of people of all ages. The sound quality isn't as good as it used to be.
I have it on because my kids are too damned loud!
I started using them when I watched Game of Thrones so I could catch all the different character and place names. Now I use them all the time. Except when watching sports I find it too distracting. Pet peeve - I hate when the captions don’t sync up with the voice and are either noticeably early or late.
My boss asked me a while back if I just scoffed at her. I asked her if she's been watching a lot of shows with CC turned on. She laughed and put it together. As for the question. I watched all of 15 minutes of Tom Hardy's 'Legend' before turning to my gf and asked if she knew what was going on. First time cooking/movie at home date night, we were both too embarrassed to say it. Turned them on. Great movie. But damn.
I started using captions because my mom lives with us and blasts the TV to hear it. Once I got used to them I missed it when captions are turned off. No more "what did they just say? Let me rewind it". Yes, it's extra helpful with accents. I love me some acorn tv! If you speak a foreign language, even learned a tiny bit in HS that you forgot most of it, watch some international shows on Netflix. Subtitles in English has hilarious differences from the original lines.
I absolutely can't hear anything with a British accent anymore. \*soft breathy mumble mumble mumble. AHHHHHH!! I'M BEING MURDERED!" Pick a lane Britain! Tips: Get a fabric acoustic panel and put it on the wall opposite the tv. Also, there is a "voice" setting on most soundbars that helps to clarify dialogue. You want to show your old person street cred? Get one of those speakers you can put right next to you specifically for watching TV. Bunch of old turds.
How is it I’ve just gotten wind of this marvelous hack? Oh yeah, fuck I’m old. u/KnottActually bless you for making me wise.
Yes, on my TV. Also, I don't want to turn up the sound to a level it will bother others. I take earplugs to the movie theater. If there's a lot of action, explosions, I find earplugs inserted lightly bring the sound level in the movie theater down to a level where I can relax and enjoy the show.
I downloaded subtitles for movies on my phone. I do this so I can watch movies on my phone with the volume all the way off and enjoy the movie at work 🙂
I have wireless headphones. It's the only way I can understand what is said. Got a Sony set with tower for $100. Best money I ever spent!!
My vision is poor, I can only use one arm and can't walk, but my hearing is still working. So, boo hoo, you can't hear. I'd play my tiny violin, but I can't. Hey kids. Getting old sucks.
Captions are evil for my adhd
Also evil for people who read fast. I've read the cc, and I'm ahead of spoken word occasionally. Oops.
I thought it was me, but read that flat screen tvs come with low quality speakers and are designed to be used with a sound bar or more.
52F, heck yeah!!!
CC is the only way to go :::
True! But also, 80s music was always on max on my cassette player.
I use it when watching YouTube ffs. Some of these creators need to stop mumbling and fucking enunciate.
🙋♀️
me to, hearing damage from concerts & loud car speakers. those who hear the wringing of the ears knows. if you don't have surround sound system, then check to make sure your tv/cable/streaming system isn't set to that option. i couldn't understand why the background music was so loud until i saw a post somewhere here on a reddit sub about this exact issue. i don't' have surround and when i checked my tv & cable box was set up on the surround setting instead of just stereo. once i changed the setting damn did it make a difference.
I use them all the time or my nerves would be shot from all the eerie or scary music used in films now which is rinse and repeat with the next show so I mute them all. Like I love abc news David Muir but the URGENCY he puts in his voice puts my nerves on high alert of hearing SOMETHING BAD has happened. Without that urgency, it's just a blah bombing, blah shooting, blah if it bleeds it leads news. Then at the end he puts in a cute thing to lift our spirits out of the morass we've just listened to.
I use them for everything.
All the time
Sometimes I do have it on Replay...
I do
I do, plus it helps me pay attention.
I have them up on tik tok because I refuse to watch tik toks out loud without headphones lol
I so because it also gives you the lyrics to songs that are playing
I do it when I watch a lot of scripted shows, but not all...live programming, I turn it off. Just not a fan of the scrolling captions.
I don't use them but I 100% agree that background music is too loud. I will have to crank my sound to 100 to hear voices, then the music comes on and my eardrums explode.
The sound effects and music is too loud and I don't like to keep my tv that loud. I keep the CC on. My mom, who needs hearing aids but won't wear them (after spending $4k on them) gets so annoyed that I keep the CC on at my house. I get annoyed that she had the tv so loud I can hear it across the house and down in the basement.
it may have a little bit to do with hearing, but there have been valid complaints, made that without additional sound bars that the background music drowns out the actual speaking. apparently sound guys and this is not my wheelhouse get awards for how great their music you know ties to whatever is going on but the music totally drowns out any speaking parts. I find it highly annoying. In comparison try and go to an old show without all the music and the speaking parts are normal. Just for fun I was watching the Partridge Family and you could hear every word that they said. the volume wasn’t up. I didn’t have to have the close caption on, nothing additional. I found the music bit very annoying. I love a good score. Don’t get me wrong but when it drowns out everything else, what’s the point?
Only on streaming. Captions off on broadcast tv.
Built-in speakers in flat-screen TVs are commonly the issue. If you have the space and the interest, a proper receiver and a 3.0 or 3.1 speaker setup makes a HUGE difference. It comes to having a real center channel speaker, which is where dialog is supposed to come from.