I tried to post this yesterday via mobile but was having issues. Yesterday I took some family on Countdown... ahem, Dinosaur for their first time and was totally disappointed that the environmental audio effects were completely off (Meteors, Dinos, etc.). The only thing audible was the audio coming from the on board speakers (Seeker, computer, vehicle sounds.).
I noticed something was way off as soon as the ride started and I didn't hear anything whilst "going back in time", especially the very loud crash at the end. Then as the ride continued, there was absolutely no sound other than the onboard audio. It was so disappointing and ruined the experience for my family who had never been before. I also noticed that it seemed significantly brighter during the ride, and thought to myself "here we go again".
After we exited the vehicle, I immediately approached a cast member about the situation and asked if they were experiencing technical difficulties. She was unaware of the fact that half the ride wasn't working and contacted the control tower to inquire. After speaking with the tower she informed me that there was a ride stop (which requires rebooting the entire ride computer system) earlier in the morning, and that someone must have forgotten to un-mute the volume.
She thanked me for pointing it out, and gave us a second ride with the problem corrected. However, when going "back in time" for the second time I didn't hear much and thought they must not have fixed, or un-muted the audio. Then just at the last second I heard a very faint resemblance of the crash sound. From there, as the ride continued I begun to hear the sound effects, but I noticed that in many places they seemed much, much quieter than normal. This was disappointing to say the least, but at least my family got to hear the roaring of the dinos and not the sound of the mechanical beasts mechanics.
After exiting the ride for the second time, I noticed the cast member who I spoke with before speaking with a management type off to the side. I approached her and told her that the audio was back on, but that in most places it was super quiet compared to normal. The manager explained to me that they had made some changes to the audio levels throughout the ride. I told him how disappointing this was and asked if this was due to complaints. He informed me that the changes were being made due to a number of complaints, and that the noise level in the building was too high for OSHA regulations and they made the adjustments to make the environment more comfortable for cast members and guests alike. I again told him how CTX is my favorite attraction and how under rated it is and that I was very disappointed to hear this news.
I didn't think to ask about the lighting levels because my family was yelling at me to come look at the silly face I made at the Carno, but I have no doubt that this is also related. I haven't been to AK since December and didn't notice any differences in the ride then, and it seemed like the way this manager was speaking, it was a change that was just made. I did ask if this was a permanent change and he informed me that it most likely would be, but for now its indefinite.
Does anyone else out there love this ride as much as me, and hate that they keep dulling things down everywhere? CTX inst the only place this kind of "taming" happens, but come on! Why? The crap about OSHA is probably just that. Crap. I doubt very seriously the ride has been operating since opening just fine, and then all of the sudden 14 years later its time to meet OSHA regulations. Why make such an awesome ride if you're just going to dumb it down and make it boring. If too many guests are complaining, make a bigger warning sign.
It was kinda funny that the entire day, everyone who rode the attraction did so without the audio effects and still enjoyed it. If you didn't know they were supposed to be there, I guess it wouldn't be so bad. Im not usually one to complain about anything, especially anything related to WDW, but I can't believe they didn't even know there was a problem until I mentioned it, and I absolutely hate this change!
I noticed something was way off as soon as the ride started and I didn't hear anything whilst "going back in time", especially the very loud crash at the end. Then as the ride continued, there was absolutely no sound other than the onboard audio. It was so disappointing and ruined the experience for my family who had never been before. I also noticed that it seemed significantly brighter during the ride, and thought to myself "here we go again".
After we exited the vehicle, I immediately approached a cast member about the situation and asked if they were experiencing technical difficulties. She was unaware of the fact that half the ride wasn't working and contacted the control tower to inquire. After speaking with the tower she informed me that there was a ride stop (which requires rebooting the entire ride computer system) earlier in the morning, and that someone must have forgotten to un-mute the volume.
She thanked me for pointing it out, and gave us a second ride with the problem corrected. However, when going "back in time" for the second time I didn't hear much and thought they must not have fixed, or un-muted the audio. Then just at the last second I heard a very faint resemblance of the crash sound. From there, as the ride continued I begun to hear the sound effects, but I noticed that in many places they seemed much, much quieter than normal. This was disappointing to say the least, but at least my family got to hear the roaring of the dinos and not the sound of the mechanical beasts mechanics.
After exiting the ride for the second time, I noticed the cast member who I spoke with before speaking with a management type off to the side. I approached her and told her that the audio was back on, but that in most places it was super quiet compared to normal. The manager explained to me that they had made some changes to the audio levels throughout the ride. I told him how disappointing this was and asked if this was due to complaints. He informed me that the changes were being made due to a number of complaints, and that the noise level in the building was too high for OSHA regulations and they made the adjustments to make the environment more comfortable for cast members and guests alike. I again told him how CTX is my favorite attraction and how under rated it is and that I was very disappointed to hear this news.
I didn't think to ask about the lighting levels because my family was yelling at me to come look at the silly face I made at the Carno, but I have no doubt that this is also related. I haven't been to AK since December and didn't notice any differences in the ride then, and it seemed like the way this manager was speaking, it was a change that was just made. I did ask if this was a permanent change and he informed me that it most likely would be, but for now its indefinite.
Does anyone else out there love this ride as much as me, and hate that they keep dulling things down everywhere? CTX inst the only place this kind of "taming" happens, but come on! Why? The crap about OSHA is probably just that. Crap. I doubt very seriously the ride has been operating since opening just fine, and then all of the sudden 14 years later its time to meet OSHA regulations. Why make such an awesome ride if you're just going to dumb it down and make it boring. If too many guests are complaining, make a bigger warning sign.
It was kinda funny that the entire day, everyone who rode the attraction did so without the audio effects and still enjoyed it. If you didn't know they were supposed to be there, I guess it wouldn't be so bad. Im not usually one to complain about anything, especially anything related to WDW, but I can't believe they didn't even know there was a problem until I mentioned it, and I absolutely hate this change!
