...only to have the music so quiet that most people don't even know its there if they don't know to listen for it? The wooshing sound effects are a nice enhancement, at least, but this has bugged me ever since they installed the feature. Also, the return tunnel's sound effect has been out of sync ever since the refurbishment - its unfathomable that an error like that would go uncorrected for that long.
That kind of thing bothers me, and we see more and more of it - some sort of "enhancement" is made to a ride while the existing effects need attention, and then that "enhancement" isn't attempted to be properly tweaked or fixed. Another recent example would be the mermaids at POTC, which work intermittently and were not added seamlessly - meanwhile the animatronics themselves in the ride are operating with limited movement and need attention.
And also I guess this goes on to one of my bigger annoyances regarding WDW show quality in general - WDW attractions tend to have poorly balanced or too quiet of audio levels! If you go to Universal, everything sounds great. Sound quality and loudness is one of those things that really engrosses you in the experience. Now, a natural argument to that is "Universal isn't aiming for young children, so their rides will be louder and more aggressive." Well, I'd be inclined to agree with that, but DLR's sound levels are basically just as loud as UOR's.
When I ride a ride, I want to be fully engrossed in that ride. You don't pay to see a movie in a theater only to have the sound set at a quieter "comfortable" level... you pay so you can experience that movie in the most engrossing way possible. Rides should be the same way. Just the other day on Spaceship Earth I noticed how the whir of the ride motors and clanking of the vehicles was the most prevalent sound. I couldn't help but note how much more engrossing the experience would be if the sounds around you were loud enough to envelop you as well as block out the ride mechanical noises.
That's not to say that some rides don't sound great though - for instance, Test Track 2.0 has noticably louder sound effects and onboard audio than before and I feel that that enhances the experience. Star Tours sounds pretty great. It's a small world (ironically) sounds great currently. Dinosaur and Rock 'n' Roller Coaster would not be perceived as anywhere near as thrilling as they are without their loud audio.
Yet still, there are many attractions that are too quiet.
Thoughts?
That kind of thing bothers me, and we see more and more of it - some sort of "enhancement" is made to a ride while the existing effects need attention, and then that "enhancement" isn't attempted to be properly tweaked or fixed. Another recent example would be the mermaids at POTC, which work intermittently and were not added seamlessly - meanwhile the animatronics themselves in the ride are operating with limited movement and need attention.
And also I guess this goes on to one of my bigger annoyances regarding WDW show quality in general - WDW attractions tend to have poorly balanced or too quiet of audio levels! If you go to Universal, everything sounds great. Sound quality and loudness is one of those things that really engrosses you in the experience. Now, a natural argument to that is "Universal isn't aiming for young children, so their rides will be louder and more aggressive." Well, I'd be inclined to agree with that, but DLR's sound levels are basically just as loud as UOR's.
When I ride a ride, I want to be fully engrossed in that ride. You don't pay to see a movie in a theater only to have the sound set at a quieter "comfortable" level... you pay so you can experience that movie in the most engrossing way possible. Rides should be the same way. Just the other day on Spaceship Earth I noticed how the whir of the ride motors and clanking of the vehicles was the most prevalent sound. I couldn't help but note how much more engrossing the experience would be if the sounds around you were loud enough to envelop you as well as block out the ride mechanical noises.
That's not to say that some rides don't sound great though - for instance, Test Track 2.0 has noticably louder sound effects and onboard audio than before and I feel that that enhances the experience. Star Tours sounds pretty great. It's a small world (ironically) sounds great currently. Dinosaur and Rock 'n' Roller Coaster would not be perceived as anywhere near as thrilling as they are without their loud audio.
Yet still, there are many attractions that are too quiet.
Thoughts?
