Sorry but Narrator Audio Quality is Unacceptable. Here's Proof.

[hypercybermegatron]

I get it. It is important to economise on file size, especially if you have 9 languages to cater for. Compromises must be made, that is a given.

However the audio quality of the narrator is rather poor, and noticeably compressed. You can hear the crushed 's' sounds and sibilant consonants in general.

Compression itself is not the issue here, it's the optimisation of the encoder which is the issue.

For starters, the narrator doesn't need to be stereo. Mono will suffice.

In fact, the individual channels are almost perfectly correlated anyway! So getting rid of the redundant channel will reduce the file size by 1/2 , giving you much more space to play with to optimise the quality of the audio.

This is absolutely unacceptable quality for "Definitive Edition".

General

Complete name : G:\Steam\steamapps\common\AoEDE\Content\Voice Over\en\70043.mp3
Format : MPEG Audio
File size : 161 KiB
Duration : 12 s 904 ms
Overall bit rate mode : Variable
Overall bit rate : 102 kb/s
Writing library : LAME3.99r

Audio

Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 3
Format settings : Joint stereo / MS Stereo
Duration : 12 s 904 ms
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 102 kb/s
Minimum bit rate : 32.0 kb/s
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 44.1 kHz
Frame rate : 38.281 FPS (1152 SPF)
Compression mode : Lossy
Stream size : 160 KiB (100%)
Writing library : LAME3.99r
Encoding settings : -m j -V 5 -q 0 -lowpass 17 --vbr-new -b 32

Solution to this issue. Optomise encoder settings

Recommended encoder settings

From Hydrogen Audio

Very low bitrate, small sizes: eg. for voice, radio, mono encoding etc.
For very low bitrates, up to 100kbps, ABR is most often the best solution. Use --abr <bitrate> (e.g. --abr 80).

--preset voice is only available in the command line front-end, and is there for compatibility. It is currently mapped to --abr 56 -mm, so that means that the recommendation would be to encode in mono, and use ABR.

The moral of the story here is that VBR is not recommended for voice. Instead, ABR is recommend.

The --preset voice encoder setting of --abr 56 -mm produces better quality sounding voice than the VBR stereo settings above. And getting rid of the 17 kHz LPF would also improve the sound quality. Ideally, you would choose the highest bit rate possible that your file size requirements would allow for.

I'm hoping that the original .wav versions of these tracks have been preserved and that the audio can be re-compressed with optimised settings and that the new .mp3 files can be released in an upcoming patch. It's seriously a 10 min task and the result would likely be both smaller file size and better audio quality, with the goal being "perceptual transparency".

Thanks for reading.

Source: https://wiki.hydrogenaud.io/index.php/LAME

Speakers and Audio Output:
KRK Rokit 5s using balanced cables and USB audio interface

[Luna]

tl:dr narrator sounds funny and i want it fixed

[hypercybermegatron]

Originally posted by probably vegan:

tl:dr narrator sounds funny and i want it fixed

Not funny, bad.

Unacceptable for something which claims to be "Definitive Edition".

[Luna]

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

Originally posted by probably vegan:

tl:dr narrator sounds funny and i want it fixed

Not funny, bad.

Unacceptable for something which claims to be "Definitive Edition".

20$ for the work they put in is pretty reasonable

[hypercybermegatron]

Originally posted by probably vegan:

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

Not funny, bad.

Unacceptable for something which claims to be "Definitive Edition".

20$ for the work they put in is pretty reasonable

It's not. It comes down to either ignorance or laziness. Who is the publisher?

[Luna]

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

Originally posted by probably vegan:

20$ for the work they put in is pretty reasonable

It's not. It comes down to either ignorance or laziness. Who is the publisher?

i dont think ive ever seen someone complain about something as petty as the quality of the narrators voice. this is worse than the ultrawide mass effect thing

[hypercybermegatron]

Originally posted by probably vegan:

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

It's not. It comes down to either ignorance or laziness. Who is the publisher?

i dont think ive ever seen someone complain about something as petty as the quality of the narrators voice. this is worse than the ultrawide mass effect thing

If you have no standards then expect low standards.

I've provided objective proof of the issue, as well as a solution which will solve the space requirements issue as well as improve audio quality for these files.

Attention to detail is not a sin.

"Ultrawide Mass Effect" is false equivalence. This is a quality issue not a lack of feature.

[Luna]

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

Originally posted by probably vegan:

i dont think ive ever seen someone complain about something as petty as the quality of the narrators voice. this is worse than the ultrawide mass effect thing

If you have no standards then expect low standards.

I've provided objective proof of the issue, as well as a solution which will solve the space requirements issue as well as improve audio quality for these files.

Attention to detail is not a sin.

https://youtu.be/LrWBcDgry8E

this is you right now

[hypercybermegatron]

Originally posted by probably vegan:

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

If you have no standards then expect low standards.

I've provided objective proof of the issue, as well as a solution which will solve the space requirements issue as well as improve audio quality for these files.

Attention to detail is not a sin.

https://youtu.be/LrWBcDgry8E

this is you right now

You seem to have a bias towards incompetence. Good for you.

[Luna]

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

Originally posted by probably vegan:

https://youtu.be/LrWBcDgry8E

this is you right now

You seem to have a bias towards incompetence. Good for you.

i just take comfort with the idea that i dont expect absolute perfection for 20$

[hypercybermegatron]

Originally posted by probably vegan:

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

You seem to have a bias towards incompetence. Good for you.

i just take comfort with the idea that i dont expect absolute perfection for 20$

I want to emphasise that the solution to this problem requires virtually zero effort. It's simply a matter of re-converting the original .wav files and applying the right mp3 compression settings. I have provided a detailed technical analysis of the issue and an informed solution which improves both audio quality and reduced file size.

As for expectations of a $20 game, this depends on the publisher. My expectations for a huge name publisher to nail basic quality standards are high, and I make no apologies for that.

It's great to see small indy studios pay attention to detail in their games and enjoy the rewards. In fact, what I've noticed is that indy studios are much more receptive to feedback and actually take into account user feedback in Steam and other forums. They seem to take real pride in their work and always want to improve their games. And as a result, they seem to be producing much more polished games.

Personally, if this were my work and someone drew attention to it I would be embarrassed. But that's just me, call me what you like.

[Luna]

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

Originally posted by probably vegan:

i just take comfort with the idea that i dont expect absolute perfection for 20$

I want to emphasise that the solution to this problem requires virtually zero effort. It's simply a matter of re-converting the original .wav files and applying the right mp3 compression settings. I have provided a detailed technical analysis of the issue and an informed solution which improves both audio quality and reduced file size.

As for expectations of a $20 game, this depends on the publisher. My expectations for a huge name publisher to nail basic quality standards are high, and I make no apologies for that.

It's great to see small indy studios pay attention to detail in their games and enjoy the rewards. In fact, what I've noticed is that indy studios are much more receptive to feedback and actually take into account user feedback in Steam and other forums. They seem to take real pride in their work and always want to improve their games. And as a result, they seem to be producing much more polished games.

Personally, if this were my work and someone drew attention to it I would be embarrassed. But that's just me, call me what you like.

its not a problem. not a single soul on the planet has said "you know what, i dont like how the narrator sounds, its bad" other than you, so instead of complaining about real things like hidden bonuses and tech that doesnt do what it says half the time, you choose "narrator compressed, me no like"

[hypercybermegatron]

It is a problem, and an objectively verifiable one as I have shown.

Your churlish contributions to this discussions do not even broach any of the technical info and facts I have presented. Says a lot really.

Yes. You have repeatedly expressed your view that this isn't a problem to you, and I don't begrudge you for that. The "Yanny/Laurel" debate showed how one sound can be perceived differently by different people. We all take the way we hear for granted as if it's absolute reality. Also, if you are using low quality speakers or headphones then sound quality will be uniformly average at best, but likely worse, therefore disguising flaws in audio. All I can comment on is what is a glaring issue to my ears, present real numerical evidence as to the cause of the issue, and a solution.

Originally posted by Probably Vegan:

"narrator compressed, me no like"

In the OP I said: "Compression itself is not the issue here, it's the optimisation of the encoder which is the issue." What part of that sentence don't you understand? Obviously, literacy is not your strong suit (I gathered that when you said tl;dr, that's usually the first alarm bell). But I don't hold that against you either. I just hope you don't have any quality control responsibilities for any games, esp. in the audio department, that would be terrible.

Why go to the trouble of hiring a voice actor in the first place if the recordings don't get the proper treatment they deserve, eg. simply choosing voice optimised mp3 compression parameters? If issues like this aren't addressed it simply means that whoever is responsible for making these files doesn't take pride in their work. Because, like I said earlier: "Non-optimised settings result in poorer audio quality and larger file size." It's an embarrassment for a large publisher and big name title, and it seems like there's an absence of some basic sound engineering fundamentals that's at fault here.

Well I've offered a solution, the powers that be may do with it what they will. I don't look forward to your next low value contribution to the discussion, but hopefully you can surprise me with something meaningful instead.

[Luna]

i feel my skull compressing because i choose to talk to someone that complains about something sounding slightly off and write several paragraphs on why it should be fixed, because they so desperately want your 20$

[hypercybermegatron]

Originally posted by probably vegan:

i feel my skull compressing because i choose to talk to someone that complains about something sounding slightly off and write several paragraphs on why it should be fixed, because they so desperately want your 20$

Like clockwork, no surprises as predicted. Nothing of value to add.

Mmm, you seem to have a serious aversion to paragraphs and reading in general. That's ok. There is a nice little show for you to enjoy called "Sesame Street" where a big yellow bird called "Big Bird" will teach you the alphabet. Good luck.

With all due respect, I don't think there's much to compress.

[Luna]

Originally posted by hypercybermegatron:

Originally posted by probably vegan:

i feel my skull compressing because i choose to talk to someone that complains about something sounding slightly off and write several paragraphs on why it should be fixed, because they so desperately want your 20$

Like clockwork, no surprises as predicted. Nothing of value to add.

Mmm, you seem to have a serious aversion to paragraphs and reading in general. That's ok. There is a nice little show for you to enjoy called "Sesame Street" where a big yellow bird called "Big Bird" will teach you the alphabet. Good luck.

With all due respect, I don't think there's much to compress.

finally poked enough holes for you to resort to personal insults with zero substance.