audio versus video

[musicman1999]

Peruvianskies proposed a question in another thread:What do people want high end audio or video?I think its a great question.
In a movie watching experience what percentage do people think is video and what percentage audio?and why.

thanks
bill

[PeruvianSkies]

Peruvianskies proposed a question in another thread:What do people want high end audio or video?I think its a great question.
In a movie watching experience what percentage do people think is video and what percentage audio?and why.

thanks
bill

To answer my own question....I would say about 85% video and 15% audio. This is NOT to say that people don't care about what they hear, but this seems to be the ratio when it comes to putting funds together...example: my friend spent $2200 on his LCD and $400 on his audio system (speakers + receiver all in one box).

[musicman1999]

Sorry,i was not to clear,i did not mean dollar wise.I meant if you sit down to watch a film is the video more important than the audio,or vise versa,or is it 50-50.Do you enjoy a film that has substandard video,if it has a killer audio track?Does it have to have good sound and video,maybe the story is more important.

bill

[PeruvianSkies]

Sorry,i was not to clear,i did not mean dollar wise.I meant if you sit down to watch a film is the video more important than the audio,or vise versa,or is it 50-50.Do you enjoy a film that has substandard video,if it has a killer audio track?Does it have to have good sound and video,maybe the story is more important.

bill

Ahhh. Well, let's put it this way...if you were in a movie theater and the image was out-of-focus I think people would complain much more regularly about it than they would if the audio was out-of-sync. If the audio was distorted they would less likely complain than if the picture was scratched and fuzzy. In terms of 'quality' I am about 50-50...If the film doesn't have a good quality recording and sound-design than it's less engaging for me and likewise the film needs to have good picture quality in order to achieve a visual narrative. Both picture and sound must work hand-in-hand in order to achieve a multi-sensory experience.

[Mr Peabody]

It's tough to dissect an experience that counts on both aspects but I definitely get more irritated with a bad soundtrack. I can deal with some video imperfections if you throw in some cool sound effects.

[drseid]

Peruvianskies proposed a question in another thread:What do people want high end audio or video?I think its a great question.
In a movie watching experience what percentage do people think is video and what percentage audio?and why.

thanks
bill

For HT I am about 60% video, 40% audio. That said, I enjoy listening to music more than watching films (even though both are my hobbies) so I would invest more in audio if it were a split system for use with both.

---Dave

[Luvin Da Blues]

For me it depends on the movie.

If its a movie with great special audio effects, a musical or a bio about an artist/performer then the SQ has to be there B4 the PQ. If it's a movie thats mostly dialog or great visual effects then the PQ has to be there B4 SQ.

Of course some (most?) movies have to have both.

[kexodusc]

There's a lot of research on this topic - depending on which study you cite, the visual sense is the dominant sense in 60-85% of the population, followed by auditory, then physical.
In every study I've seen Visual wins out at about 2:1 over Auditory, or more. This doesn't mean these people don't care about audio, just that video is more important.
My dominant sense is visual, yet I'm more fussy about my stereo than my display, prefer music to movies/tv, and music is a big part of my life. Still, I think there's a reason that movies outsell "books-on-tape".

[musicman1999]

Kex
i think you are right that most people's dominant sense is visual and i am afraid that many people just don't care about the audio,not so much for people here,but people in general.Me,i would like to say i am 50-50 but i am far more picky about the audio side.Good audio can contribute to films other than big action films,it can be subtle like in the way a door slam is placed just right in the soundfield or the way the background music is rendered.

bill

[kelsci]

Good question. Most of the time I seem to lean to the audio. Sometimes, it is a seesaw.

[kexodusc]

Kex
i think you are right that most people's dominant sense is visual and i am afraid that many people just don't care about the audio,not so much for people here,but people in general.Me,i would like to say i am 50-50 but i am far more picky about the audio side.Good audio can contribute to films other than big action films,it can be subtle like in the way a door slam is placed just right in the soundfield or the way the background music is rendered.

bill

I use to think I was primarily audio, but I keep scoring visual - a lot of companies test this sort of thing on those goofy corporate training seminars...mine was done with those Myers-Briggs tests. I'm definitely visually dominant. But that doesn't mean you prefer video to audio always.
I think home audio is an acquired taste that takes longer to develop and appreciate. Visual stimuli are faster, easier...kinda like the dark side of the force.

[PeruvianSkies]

So check this out...

I was thinking about this question today and I realized a few things. The first, is that in our lifetime most of us get to see many great displays of visual splendor (i.e. a sunset, beachfront, nature, or a painting), but few of us get to experience audio-bliss. That is, the lifelike sounds coming from an symphony or the timbre of a solo acoustic guitar. They might get to experience these things in person, but not in a reproduction, therefore sometimes you can't truly appreciate good audio until you hear it for yourself.

[musicman1999]

Some truth there,but i don't believe there is an audio system out there that comes close to a good live concert experience.

bill

[Wireworm5]

IMO, Audio is not essential in conveying the story line of a movie. You can get the jist of a movie watching a 10" black n white tv. And be just as caught up in the story. However I think back to when I was into gaming on the computer and I just used the soundcard that came with the computer. Then a friend talked me into getting a good soundcard, and I did. The enhanced sound made the gaming experience much more enjoyable.
This was a real eye opener for me on how sound although not our dominate sense is none the less a sense that we rely on to a great extent.
Getting the soundcard was also a big motivating factor for me in persuing a HT system. I was always interested in audio but wouldn't invest in a home stereo after having my first system stolen in '79. Now I have my own home and insurance and I can crank it as loud as I want with nobody to complain. Life is good.

[Wireworm5]

Some truth there,but i don't believe there is an audio system out there that comes close to a good live concert experience.

bill

I was at the bar the other night listening to a band called 'Cold Filter' ( I bought their cd and they sound like Metallica St. Anger album) and listened intently on the overall sound. The bass guitar had way more harmonics than anything I've heard on my home system and the drums just dominate. But I couldn't hear the lead guitar, probably due to location to the right of the stage. Only my best DTS concert dvd comes close to this realism.
I don't think it's because stereo equipment isn't capable of reproducing these realisms. It just can't be fully captured on present day recording methods.

[Mr Peabody]

Hey, has anyone seen Edtyct on the boards lately? He usually had good input on video and he has been absent on our HD disc threads, nor have I seen any recent posts.

[musicman1999]

Hey, has anyone seen Edtyct on the boards lately? He usually had good input on video and he has been absent on our HD disc threads, nor have I seen any recent posts.

No,not for some time.

bill

[musicman1999]

I was at the bar the other night listening to a band called 'Cold Filter' ( I bought their cd and they sound like Metallica St. Anger album) and listened intently on the overall sound. The bass guitar had way more harmonics than anything I've heard on my home system and the drums just dominate. But I couldn't hear the lead guitar, probably due to location to the right of the stage. Only my best DTS concert dvd comes close to this realism.
I don't think it's because stereo equipment isn't capable of reproducing these realisms. It just can't be fully captured on present day recording methods.

Bars are not known for accoustics,so that may have something to do with it.Even if classical music is not your thing,i suggest hearing an orchestra in a good concert hall,it will change the way you think about live music.Talk about power.You can't reproduce that kind of dynamics in your listening room,or anyone's.

bill

[Wireworm5]

In terms of what a stereo can do, amplified music is a good benchmark. The bar although not perfect, generally sounds a heck of alot better than any arena concert I been to ( if we compare home audio to that, I''ll vote the home audio, please), and it's right in your face at some 95 db's.
In a good venue with unamplied instruments, I won't argue your point.

[PeruvianSkies]

IMO, Audio is not essential in conveying the story line of a movie.

Oh please. Audio is equally important and just as vital. Most people think that silent movies never had any sound with them, which is totally false, most of the time they had live orchestras performing the music to aid as a soundtrack. You might be able to get the essentially elements of the storyline, but music and audio is quite important too, keep in mind we are talking about dialogue here as well.

[Wireworm5]

Oh please. Audio is equally important and just as vital. Most people think that silent movies never had any sound with them, which is totally false, most of the time they had live orchestras performing the music to aid as a soundtrack. You might be able to get the essentially elements of the storyline, but music and audio is quite important too, keep in mind we are talking about dialogue here as well.

Sorry to disagree with you, but most of the time when listening to music I watch tv in closed caption. So No, I don't need the soundtrack to follow the story, just the words.
Another example: I used to work at a casino where they had a bank of tvs on one wall for simalcast horse racing. There were varies sizes in tv's some big, some small, some good picture quality others bad and well you couldn't hear the sound well due to all the other noise. Regardless of the tv type, they all served the purpose of conveying the info of what's happining with any particular horse race.
Visuals is all that is needed in conveying a message or story.

[PeruvianSkies]

Sorry to disagree with you, but most of the time when listening to music I watch tv in closed caption. So No, I don't need the soundtrack to follow the story, just the words.
Another example: I used to work at a casino where they had a bank of tvs on one wall for simalcast horse racing. There were varies sizes in tv's some big, some small, some good picture quality others bad and well you couldn't hear the sound well due to all the other noise. Regardless of the tv type, they all served the purpose of conveying the info of what's happining with any particular horse race.
Visuals is all that is needed in conveying a message or story.

A horse race isn't exactly a narrative now is it?

[pixelthis]

A horse race isn't exactly a narrative now is it?

Sure is, a blazing story of what happened to my paycheck
I went to see the third terminator movie, opened the door to another theater where it was in full swing, and it was georgous, and the DTS sound was amazing.
But in my theater the sound was flat, and I found out the DTS was "broken".
So I sat in the lobby at ten at night and waited an hour for the last showing in the other theater.
Do you know how many would do this? Not many.
I used to drive fifty miles to see movies with stadium seating and perfect sound and video,
a lot thought I was crazy(dont say it)
Trust me, video has audio beat hands down for the great unwashed, however.
Its just different is all. You keep asking this question because liking to listen to music
you think most feel that way but they dont.
They will sit and watch a movie but music is for parties, listening to while you jog or drive, etc, most arent serious music listeners.
I pointed out to you on another thread that up to 90% of the sound from a movie comes from the center channel and you didnt beleive me, well, thats because thats where most of the DIALOG comes from, and movies are mixed to be heard in theaters, so most sound comes from the front speakers
Because thats where the picture is, and where most of the sound comes from, which
is talking.
You keep trying to compare audio and video, but they are really two different experiences,
to most one has absolutely nothing to do with the other.
And when it comes to sound for HT, they just want their helicopters to blow up on cue

[PeruvianSkies]

Sure is, a blazing story of what happened to my paycheck
I went to see the third terminator movie, opened the door to another theater where it was in full swing, and it was georgous, and the DTS sound was amazing.
But in my theater the sound was flat, and I found out the DTS was "broken".
So I sat in the lobby at ten at night and waited an hour for the last showing in the other theater.
Do you know how many would do this? Not many.
I used to drive fifty miles to see movies with stadium seating and perfect sound and video,
a lot thought I was crazy(dont say it)
Trust me, video has audio beat hands down for the great unwashed, however.
Its just different is all. You keep asking this question because liking to listen to music
you think most feel that way but they dont.
They will sit and watch a movie but music is for parties, listening to while you jog or drive, etc, most arent serious music listeners.
I pointed out to you on another thread that up to 90% of the sound from a movie comes from the center channel and you didnt beleive me, well, thats because thats where most of the DIALOG comes from, and movies are mixed to be heard in theaters, so most sound comes from the front speakers
Because thats where the picture is, and where most of the sound comes from, which
is talking.
You keep trying to compare audio and video, but they are really two different experiences,
to most one has absolutely nothing to do with the other.
And when it comes to sound for HT, they just want their helicopters to blow up on cue

There is no such thing as DIALOG, if you read that post where you talked about the center-speaker you will see that I pointed out that the word is DIALOGUE. Learn how to spell the things that you are talking about, especially if you are going to capitalize the word. I never said that audio and video are the same thing, they are no't, but the compliment each other. It's like asking the question, "which wing is more important on an airplane...the left or the right?" Maybe in your world the left wing is more important, but to most people they feel that both wings are important, you can't have the full experience without both, and in the case of the airplane, I guarantee you that you want to have both working at the same time. Although, feel free to fly with only one wing sometime if you'd like to disagree.

[thekid]

Well obviously people say "let's watch a movie" as opposed to go " let's listen to a movie" so I think they go to a movie more to have their visual senses entertained. In an electronic store we have all witnessed people staring at the latest/greatest flat screens out there for fairly long periods of time even though there is no sound or what sound there is is being drowned out. However having said that, as technology advances and special audio effects become important in a lot of movies I think we might see more of a balance and audio will become more of a factor particularly with the growing popularity of HT.

The audio industry would probably serve itself by doing a little PR in this area. I think the general public thinks that often times high-end gear or even mid-budget gear takes a long time to set up and is complicated thus we have companies like Bose which emphasize the ease of setting up their 3-2-1 or Accoustimass systems getting a high percentage of the market. I think if the industry did more to educate people and a lot of companies spent some marketing dollars you might see a greater interest from the public on the audio end. Let's face it some companies out there foster the image of audio as being expensive and complex.