Amazon Prime Video’s “Dialogue Boost”
Tuned’s Head of Audiology, Dr. Heather Malyuk, wrote, “Amazon recently announced the release of a new AI-based feature called Dialogue Boost, a feature created with the purpose of analyzing speech patterns to isolate and enhance them for increased dialogue clarity.” Amazon reported this feature was built for those who have hearing loss, however, anyone can find it useful when watching a show where they find the dialog is difficult to understand. Amazon described it as, “…an innovation that lets you self-select dialogue volume levels to suit your needs on any device with Prime Video. Dialogue Boost lets you increase the volume of dialogue relative to background music and effects, creating a more comfortable and accessible viewing experience…”
Amazon continues, “Dialogue Boost analyzes the original audio in a movie or series and intelligently identifies points where dialogue may be hard to hear above background music and effects. Then, speech patterns are isolated and audio is enhanced to make the dialogue clearer. This AI-based approach delivers a targeted enhancement to portions of spoken dialogue, instead of a general amplification at the center channel in a home theater system.” Currently this feature is only available for select shows but more are expected to be added in the future.
Here is how you can access it:
When you’re watching a show, select the Closed Caption or Subtitles icon.
From the Audio section, select the Dialogue Boost frequency to be Medium or High.
Because Amazon is using AI to find conversation it deems difficult to understand, it won’t automatically make all dialog clearer. Thus, it won’t be a magic solution for everyone, especially those who have more severe hearing losses or whose word understanding is worse. Dr. Malyuk comments, “We know as audiologists that even the clearest of signals can still be frustrating when making its way through a compromised auditory system.” That being said, we’re excited for this new inclusive listening option from Amazon Prime Video and hope it makes their viewing experience more enjoyable.
You can find the full Amazon article here.
Laura Sinnott, former sound recordist, wrote a wonderful professional blog response to the Amazon announcement that explains in detail why speech can be hard to follow on TV and movies and some tips for what you can do at home to help improve your sound quality. She writes,
“Background: Dialogue for Film and TV
As a former sound recordist, dialogue editor and sound mixer for films, I am intimately familiar with the blood, sweat and tears that go into dialogue intelligibility. So why is it so dang difficult to understand dialogue while watching TV (in whatever format you ingest it in) these days people ask? The answer is complex, and while we won’t get into the technical details here, here’s the low-down:
Dialogue is actually prioritized when we design a soundtrack, however, the sound “mix” is crafted for the highest, most complex delivery medium possible. Think: Dolby Atmos (over 30 speakers) or IMAX for a movie theater. Then the audio gets mashed, mushed, compressed and processed, often using automated software, before you eventually listen to it on your wafer-thin TV with cheap, Left and Right (stereo) speakers in your reverberant living room.
Actors truly do mumble more now compared to decades ago when film sound was more similar to theater sound (they projected their voices!)
Dialogue is mixed at a low level in order to leave room for loud sound effects (dynamic range), so if you find yourself cursing while manipulating the volume dial at night hoping you don’t wake the little ones, you are not crazy! You’re acting like a manual, wide-dynamic range compressor.
Amazon Prime recently announced the release of "Dialogue Boost" - a feature that I was initially excited about. I thought - finally! Consumers have control over the dialogue channel! However, learning more, it’s not at all what I thought. It’s only AI that identifies dialogue and automatically increases the volume. If Amazon really wanted to make a difference, they would develop a streaming format that allowed the end user to have control over the dialogue channel, because the dialogue channel already exists. That would truly increase accessibility.
We sound mixers put the dialogue on a completely separate audio channel so that when a show is watched in a different language, it’s easy to just remove the original dialogue and replace it. In theory, we could all have two volume controls - one for overall volume, and one for JUST the dialogue. But we don’t have that.
A note in defense of dialogue editors and sound mixers: we truly strive to make dialogue as intelligible as ever. Having sat in a mix room with directors, some do insist on making the sound effects and music louder and louder, but they’re often trying to cover up poor performances or poor screenwriting. However, most directors are obsessed with the dialogue being King and Queen of Clarity, because heaven forbid the audience member misses one word of plot.
However, again, the further and further down the chain of down-mixing and processing the original audio mix travels, combined with the poor quality speakers and your actual living room acoustics muddying up the sound, dialogue in modern shows and films are indeed difficult to decipher. I.e., the closest we can listen to the audio in its original format, the easier it will be to decipher it.
Clinical Tips to Help Patients Understand Dialogue
Here are some general tips in order of what would be the most helpful:
Buy TV speakers or a sound bar with 3.1, 5.1, or 7.1 channels (speakers). Then, you can have independent control over the Center channel, which is the dialogue channel. Tech literacy level to accomplish: 5 of 5
Use headphones or earphones, wired or wireless. There are many out there now that will perform a hearing test and then personalize the audio for your hearing profile. (Audeara, NuHeara). Listening with headphones drastically increases clarity because the sound isn’t getting muddy in a reflective room. Tech literacy level to accomplish: 3 of 5
*Enable or disable appropriate "Audio Settings". Specific links below**. Tech literacy level to accomplish: 3 or 4 of 5 (depending on the system)
Come to terms with the fact that a lot of dialogue is NOT enunciated and that is often an artistic choice (but an artistic choice I bet no consumer appreciates).
Captions and subtitles are not on this list because that’s a whole different ballgame and not directly audio-related.
*To enable/disable appropriate Audio Settings, find out what system you have, and Google “audio settings [insert platform/device here]”.
**Current (April 2023) links to audio features and settings for a handful of popular streaming services:
Amazon - Dialogue Boost uses AI and attempts to increase dialogue volume. Currently only for a handful of programs
Apple TV - Reduce Loud Sounds acts a bit like a compressor to decrease volume difference between dialogue and loud music/effects
Netflix - Many films default to 5.1 surround sound, so check to make sure you’re listening in stereo (unless you are listening in surround sound). Instructions on the “Netflix Volume is Too Low or Quiet” page. Netflix also has “spatial audio” options (virtual surround sound) for stereo audio, but no dialogue enhancement features yet.
Hulu - No dialogue enhancement options yet
Smart TVs with dialogue enhancement features:
Roku “Dialogue Enhancement” and “Night Mode”
Is this topic fascinating to you? Vox created an AMAZING video worth watching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYJtb2YXae8”