Flatscreen TVs can’t beat CRT TV sound – but do you care?

Improving flat TV sound: I agree with all the complaints and the reasons why listeners moan! Also, on many sports matches, I have to turn up the sound to an uncomfortable level to hear the commentary above the background noise, usually crowd noise; there is too much emphasis on ‘getting the atmosphere’ – to the detriment of missing what’s being said. I have found a good, but cheap, set of headphones with its own volume control helps a lot. I can then watch and hear my programmes with the volume where I want it without annoying my wife with the crowd noise etc!
However, my question concerns a cheap solution to improving flat TV sound. Some suggest plugging in PC speakers to the audio output socket or headphone socket of the TV. Which socket is best and why PC speakers and not other types?

Thanks, LesF, very helpful, but why old ‘PC speakers’ rather than other speakers was my question. Wouldn’t any reasonable quality old speakers do, say from an old hi fi or stereo set?

PC speakers contain an amplifier. You would need a separate amplifier to drive other speakers, though that is likely to produce much better sound quality.

Perhaps we should assume that we will have to put up with poor diction and pronunciation for the time being. Can we compensate to some degree by improving the sound quality and controls on modern flat-screen TVs? I do hope so.

I fully endorse this comment,the ability for broadcasters to pronounce their words,and project their voice does not seem to be a requirement these days.they often look away and mumble to each other as if they are no longer speaking to an audience.Quite often when it switches to an outside broacast I can hear and understand them better than those in the studio!.
Accents can be a problem,but although I speak with a yorkshire accent,and somewhat deaf.I can always hear ( using my hearing aid) and uderstand-the Queen and most royalty,David Cameron,Ed Milliband George Osbourne,Ed Balls etc.I don’t suppose they have had special speech coaching!

I am surprised that some well known people do not take more care with how they speak. Many now benefit from subtitles on TV programmes and perhaps improved audio systems on TVs could help those who struggle to hear but do not need to use subtitles.

This conversation seems to have drifted away from the original topic of audio quality of flat screen TVs! However I agree with the last few comments on diction and would add that there is a tendency among some broadcasters to speak much more quickly, and if that also involves a regional accent it makes things quite difficult for some people to understand. What is even worse – and I’m afraid I have to pick out “The Voice”as a prime example – the use of a subject- related lingo or patois is something that few of us except the officianados of pop can hope to understand.

Hi Chris, you can get quite good explanation of patois on Wikipedia but in a nutshell it is the jargon or informal speech used by a particular social group: examples from language come from island communities. I first heard some in the Channel Islands, a sort of franglais. I won’ t pursue this but hope it helps.

THanks LesF. Very interesting; I think my grandchildren have some experience of patois! however off topic again. In my case, near the flat screen television was a simple and cheap(ish) micro hi fi with an audio-in socket. Found myself a short stereo plug-plug lead and connected headphone skt. on the telly’ to the mini hi-fi audio in. What a difference! However it cannot improve the poor diction and sound engineering. Another irritant is the constant overlaid background music. Noise with rytham would sometimes be a better description

I’m glad your speaker solution worked out for you, but to my mind that’s still sixty quid you shouldn’t have had to spend. The laissez-faire attitude adopted by Which? over the subject of TV sound should amaze me, but it doesn’t, they seem to be adopting the position that the supplier is right and the customer must lump it on a lot of hi-tec goods.