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HBO Max streaming service


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1 hour ago, atomheartbevo said:

Fandango is just a gateway to the chains, but the chains want full control once you’re in the door.


This. Plus Fandango is an easy way to sell tickets online without the additional overhead. Fandango gets their cut, sure, but that’s less expense overall.

 

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  • 1 month later...

A question about movies on Max. Does anyone else feel the dialogue on movies is really shitty? We watched Twister last night and I swear I had to crank the receiver well beyond its normal levels of loud. This also was the case with Batman Begins until I remembered I owned it on Blu-ray so we switched over and it sounded incredible. It's not my receiver or Apple TV as rentals and movies I own sound great. 

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1 hour ago, mdmost said:

A question about movies on Max. Does anyone else feel the dialogue on movies is really shitty? We watched Twister last night and I swear I had to crank the receiver well beyond its normal levels of loud. This also was the case with Batman Begins until I remembered I owned it on Blu-ray so we switched over and it sounded incredible. It's not my receiver or Apple TV as rentals and movies I own sound great. 


I have noticed this, yes. And not just Max.

Not sure what the deal is, but I also have to turn the receiver up a bit for movies, and some shows too.

GoT, HotD, Rome, etc. 

My best guess is it has to do with compression and saving bandwidth.

 

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That hasn’t worked for me. 
 

It’s not that it’s terrible, it acts more like the compression lowers the overall volume level, and some lesser sounds are lost. Raising volume helps, but some minor pieces still get clipped from the mix. An aTV or good receiver can overcome compression on a video signal, but can’t make up what’s clipped from the track.

Signal compression has to be the issue, in some form, IMO.

 

 

 

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Completely different issue. It's not that dialogue or things aren't clear. The sound itself is fine.

Let me try to go through how this happens.

 

Say you're watching something on YTTV. Then you flip to a different app like Max and put on a movie. Changing nothing in between other than service/stream. The volume level is noticeably lower than it was on YTTV. It isn't a setting change, or anything of the sort.

For example, on my receiver the average volume for normal TV watching is around 50. Tonight I'll flip it to Max, from whatever is on YTTV before, to watch House of the Dragon.

When I do that, I'll have to turn the volume up to about 65.

Once that is over and I flip back to YTTV, at that point I'll turn it back down to 50.

 

Here's another example, but the opposite way. When I watch something off the ESPN app, I end up turning it down to somewhere around 40-43.

 

My best guess at this point is it has something to do with the compression of the entire stream, or the lack thereof. I'm thinking that the ESPN stuff has little to no compression, YTTV has some, and Max/others use even more. That streaming services use compression is a known deal. How much, not so much common knowledge. Same thing cable operators do, just streaming.

The only quality issue that I've noticed is that some sounds get "clipped" from the mix, and I'm guessing it's due to compression. But I'm talking minor supplemental sounds that would be background type stuff. Dialogue and things like that are fine. Most of the time 99% of people wouldn't really notice or give it second thought. "Oh, guess I'll turn it up a tick."

And once the volume is turned up a little more, everything is fine. I've seen this both with Roku, and then the appleTV after I switched over to that. So it's not a local issue, but the incoming stream. An aTV or good receiver will make up a good bit of that compression loss in the video, but the audio stream is a bit different in that regard. It's not necessarily a few missing pieces that can be made whole or close to whole like with video.

It really isn't that highs/lows get clipped like with a night mode. There are still those frequencies present. But volume-wise is a little different. Think of a basic equalizer, and raising/lowering the overall volume level. Now if that happens in the stream before it gets to the local system, what can the local system do? You just turn it up a little more to make up for it, but the really really quiet sounds can get lost, regardless of frequency.

It's really just a minor annoyance of having to change volume levels between apps/shows. Max seems to be the biggest difference, but I'll pay closer attention to specifics. Could be different within the same app, even. Just kinda depends.

 

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Yes, the compression varies greatly from service to service regardless of device. You are 100% correct. 
 

The dynamic volume option is like the old “auto volume” settings for commercials on old TV sets. It works to regulate the audio regardless of which app/stream you are using (avr/wide) adjusting volume and range.
 

Apple TV does not offer “pass through audio” meaning there is no way to get the full uncompressed audio from a film like you can with a Blu Ray etc. I’m not sure if any of the devices do?

Edited by ChickenSandwich
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8 minutes ago, ChickenSandwich said:

Yes, the compression varies greatly from service to service regardless of device. You are 100% correct. 
 

The dynamic volume option is like the old “auto volume” settings for commercials on old TV sets. It works to regulate the audio regardless of which app/stream you are using (avr/wide) adjusting volume and range.


 

Agreed. Various names, but same principle. Unfortunately that isn’t an answer for my particular setup. 
 

But again, not a real thing for me. Just turn it up or down. More of an oddity. Overall just letting md know he isn’t getting dementia, or at least this isn’t a sign of such. 

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  • 5 weeks later...
On 7/7/2024 at 4:33 PM, atomheartbevo said:

Every time this thread gets bumped, I assume it’s about them being shut down for some reason, or wiping all of the HBO content out and just having Chip and Joanna Gaines’ and true crime crap.

Earnings call today. Probably hear about. Ore stuff being canceled or sold off.

This is going round the socials

GUWVBI1WkAA1Nu6?format=jpg&name=medium

 

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  • 4 months later...
On 12/2/2023 at 9:53 AM, Texzilla58 said:

Bookies. An LA bookie seeks to keep making a living in a time of legal sports betting, apps, and legal weed while his clients find different angles to not pay him. Charlie Sheen as himself running a poker game out of a highend rehab facility. Two eps in.

Just starting. not bad.
 

i see a season 2 is out. 

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  • 5 weeks later...

Just finished binging Gilded Age. It’s def no Downton Abbey but it’s a cool time period that I don’t feel gets a lot of run. And kind of apt, as we are entering another Gilded Age 

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Anyone else watching The Pitt? I'm liking it a lot, but that's cause I was a fan of ER back in the day. I think it was originally supposed to be a continuation of ER with Wyle as an older Carter, but the Crichton estate wasn't down unless they got credits or royalties, I don't know, some real greaseball shit. Either way, entertaining show.

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13 hours ago, crony said:

Anyone else watching The Pitt? I'm liking it a lot, but that's cause I was a fan of ER back in the day. I think it was originally supposed to be a continuation of ER with Wyle as an older Carter, but the Crichton estate wasn't down unless they got credits or royalties, I don't know, some real greaseball shit. Either way, entertaining show.

3 episodes in. Really enjoying it.

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On your recs I checked this out. Very solid first couple of episodes. I would love to see something like this, but with Dr. Greene in Hawai'i sans family that treats him like shit.

The ginger chick in the glasses is an undercover freak.

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On 1/19/2025 at 6:05 PM, Js1 said:

Just finished binging Gilded Age. It’s def no Downton Abbey but it’s a cool time period that I don’t feel gets a lot of run. And kind of apt, as we are entering another Gilded Age 

Yeah it's not on the level of Downton Abbey but it would be tough to match...but I very much enjoy it. The Mom is hot.  And the Main guy that's supposed to be a rich asshole actually has some depth and is very very loving of his family.  Doesn't cheat on his wife and stand up for the right things occasionally.  Fresh to see.

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On 5/27/2023 at 12:27 PM, Texzilla58 said:

Somebody Somewhere. We are into the second season. It’s quirky show based in Manhattan KS. First season was very good, second season the main character is just plain unlikeable. My wife’s typical comment is “what a cunt!”

we just started this the other day. figured we'd give it a shot after seeing so many rave reviews about it.

almost done with Season 1.  we definitely like it.  i can also see Sam getting angrier and more bitter.

definitely has the feel of a Reservation Dogs for midwestern white people.  it's quirky, dark at times, and really funny in a non-punchline way. very observational humor. 

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3 minutes ago, Jive Turkey said:

we just started this the other day. figured we'd give it a shot after seeing so many rave reviews about it.

almost done with Season 1.  we definitely like it.  i can also see Sam getting angrier and more bitter.

definitely has the feel of a Reservation Dogs for midwestern white people.  it's quirky, dark at times, and really funny in a non-punchline way. very observational humor. 

I would never call it the most perfect show, but it had a perfectly cromulent 3 season run. I enjoyed it a lot 

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On 1/20/2025 at 10:27 PM, crony said:

Anyone else watching The Pitt? I'm liking it a lot, but that's cause I was a fan of ER back in the day. I think it was originally supposed to be a continuation of ER with Wyle as an older Carter, but the Crichton estate wasn't down unless they got credits or royalties, I don't know, some real greaseball shit. Either way, entertaining show.

My sister-in-law is an ER doc, got her seal of approval on the reality aspect. Enjoyed the first episode. 

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