Watching Football on TV Without Announcers

[y2k8]

I posted this in The Lounge and got only 22 views and zero responses. Reposting here because it is technically Jets related and I think many people will be interested.

As many old timers may remember the Jets played the Dolphins in a game broadcast by NBC without announcers. I have been wishing for decades that with all of these channels and new technology, you could watch sports on TV with all the sights and sounds of the game but without the voices of announcers. This is especially true of Jets games as I find myself turning off the volume when we are losing badly - which is often. 

Anyway, I just learned this week that people with 5.1 Surround Sound systems can turn off (or unplug) the center speaker and watch sports with all the audio - but free of annoying announcer commentary. It seems the dialogue is all in the center channel. 

https://sixcolors.com/post/2014/11/how-to-make-tv-sports-announcers-shut-up/

So, I very much would like to live in a world without announcers, but instead of getting an entire Surround Sound System, I'd rather just get a 5.1 sound bar.

My question to those with 5.1 sound bars (like Sonos Arc) - Do you have the ability to turn down the center channel and get the same effect? 

Any audiophiles out there who can advise on this? Anyone with a sound bar care to experiment the next time you watch sports on tv?

I cannot find anything on the internet that verifies this can be done with a bar. 

 

[Warfish]

Been watching playoff baseball on TV without turning up the announcers.  They're horrible.  

Honestly, most announcing teams are pretty horrible at the National TV Level.

For Baseball, I much prefer my home team local announcers.  

For the NFL.....I take what I can get, we usually get the D or E crew most weeks.  

 

Sorry I can't help with the technical questions.

[section314]

8 minutes ago, y2k8 said:

I posted this in The Lounge and got only 22 views and zero responses. Reposting here because it is technically Jets related and I think many people will be interested.

As many old timers may remember the Jets played the Dolphins in a game broadcast by NBC without announcers. I have been wishing for decades that with all of these channels and new technology, you could watch sports on TV with all the sights and sounds of the game but without the voices of announcers. This is especially true of Jets games as I find myself turning off the volume when we are losing badly - which is often. 

Anyway, I just learned this week that people with 5.1 Surround Sound systems can turn off (or unplug) the center speaker and watch sports with all the audio - but free of annoying announcer commentary. It seems the dialogue is all in the center channel. 

https://sixcolors.com/post/2014/11/how-to-make-tv-sports-announcers-shut-up/

So, I very much would like to live in a world without announcers, but instead of getting an entire Surround Sound System, I'd rather just get a 5.1 sound bar.

My question to those with 5.1 sound bars (like Sonos Arc) - Do you have the ability to turn down the center channel and get the same effect? 

Any audiophiles out there who can advise on this? Anyone with a sound bar care to experiment the next time you watch sports on tv?

I cannot find anything on the internet that verifies this can be done with a bar. 

 

You must remeber what was even more memorable about that announcerless game for the Jets? It was week 16, we won, Giants lost, and they picked 2nd, Jets 3rd. They took a guy named LT. Games with no announcers still make me shake, as this post proves.?

[Wit]

It’s tough. Sometimes I hate the announcers, but for football especially, there is so much information about the “under the hood” stuff that I don’t know and that I appreciate hearing. For Yankees baseball sometimes I feel like it’s a Michael Kay talk show, and the radio….. kill me. 

[Beerfish]

When Jim Nance does a Pats game I want to jam pencils in my ears.

[undertow]

Just put the game on mute and play this

lol

[kevinc855]

Romo is the best announcer ever. If he’s calling a game I love it 

**** ryan archaleta tho

[The Crusher]

The sound of my weeping during Jets games drowns out the announcers for me. 

[Smashmouth]

11 minutes ago, kevinc855 said:

Romo is the best announcer ever. If he’s calling a game I love it 

**** ryan archaleta tho

he's good but not close to the best ever . Also he's not doing play by play he's a color commentator like a John Madden . One guy who was very good back in the day was Joe Namath but I think his drinking outside of football killed him back then. Aikman and Johnston are very good as well. Phil Simms was good. Boomer was good on MNF not sure why that ended. So many I'm leaving out

[TheNuuFaaolaExperience]

I would listen to Bob Wischusen if I could sync up the radio and TV. 

[More Cowbell]

59 minutes ago, y2k8 said:

I posted this in The Lounge and got only 22 views and zero responses. Reposting here because it is technically Jets related and I think many people will be interested.

As many old timers may remember the Jets played the Dolphins in a game broadcast by NBC without announcers. I have been wishing for decades that with all of these channels and new technology, you could watch sports on TV with all the sights and sounds of the game but without the voices of announcers. This is especially true of Jets games as I find myself turning off the volume when we are losing badly - which is often. 

Anyway, I just learned this week that people with 5.1 Surround Sound systems can turn off (or unplug) the center speaker and watch sports with all the audio - but free of annoying announcer commentary. It seems the dialogue is all in the center channel. 

https://sixcolors.com/post/2014/11/how-to-make-tv-sports-announcers-shut-up/

So, I very much would like to live in a world without announcers, but instead of getting an entire Surround Sound System, I'd rather just get a 5.1 sound bar.

My question to those with 5.1 sound bars (like Sonos Arc) - Do you have the ability to turn down the center channel and get the same effect? 

Any audiophiles out there who can advise on this? Anyone with a sound bar care to experiment the next time you watch sports on tv?

I cannot find anything on the internet that verifies this can be done with a bar. 

 

The way you turn down the center channel is through the receiver so you need a 5.1 home theater receiver  and a sound bar that has inputs for the center, fronts and rears. If the Sonos Arc has this, then you can get this effect. I have a real 5.1 system and I believe this would work by muting the center speaker. 

Btw, sound bars are for people that just want something that sounds better than the TV speakers. I would invest in a home theater in a box and get a bluetooth transmitter for the rear speakers so you don't  need to run wires all over the place. You will get a much better effect for about the same price. 

[slimjasi]

1 hour ago, section314 said:

You must remeber what was even more memorable about that announcerless game for the Jets? It was week 16, we won, Giants lost, and they picked 2nd, Jets 3rd. They took a guy named LT. Games with no announcers still make me shake, as this post proves.?

Typical Jets luck 

[y2k8]

20 minutes ago, More Cowbell said:

The way you turn down the center channel is through the receiver so you need a 5.1 home theater receiver  and a sound bar that has inputs for the center, fronts and rears. If the Sonos Arc has this, then you can get this effect. I have a real 5.1 system and I believe this would work by muting the center speaker. 

Btw, sound bars are for people that just want something that sounds better than the TV speakers. I would invest in a home theater in a box and get a bluetooth transmitter for the rear speakers so you don't  need to run wires all over the place. You will get a much better effect for about the same price. 

Thank you for this info. I'm not an audiophile so the primary reason I am even contemplating this is because I loathe listening to announcers. Local, national - doesn't matter. I figured the soundbar would be 1. a way to POSSIBLY remove Jim Nance, Joe Buck and Cris Collinsworth from life and 2. Slightly upgrade the sound of my TV.  In that order.

Any recs on reasonable SS 5.1 systems? All the speakers and the woofer seem like a lot to deal with.

[Anthony Jet]

This is already being discussed in another thread

[y2k8]

5 minutes ago, Anthony Jet said:

This is already being discussed in another thread

I just did a search and found nothing. 

[More Cowbell]

23 minutes ago, y2k8 said:

Thank you for this info. I'm not an audiophile so the primary reason I am even contemplating this is because I loathe listening to announcers. Local, national - doesn't matter. I figured the soundbar would be 1. a way to POSSIBLY remove Jim Nance, Joe Buck and Cris Collinsworth from life and 2. Slightly upgrade the sound of my TV.  In that order.

Any recs on reasonable SS 5.1 systems? All the speakers and the woofer seem like a lot to deal with.

If you are interested in getting quality sound, I would look at the all in one kits from Polk or Klipsh. Those are audiophile brands but they are not that expensive. You should be able to get fronts, center, and rears, and a powered sub for a 300 or 400. You would just need the amp and you can get a really good one for between 250 and 300 or a budget one for 100. If you want to get the whole system in a box (hone theater in a box) check out Onkyo. Not the best speakers but a very good receiver comes with their budget systems. They run about 400 and up. You also want to get a bluetooth transmitter for the rears. Best buys rocket fish brand makes a very good one. It is paired at the factory so you just plug it in and bam, surround sound. 

[Anthony Jet]

30 minutes ago, y2k8 said:

I just did a search and found nothing. 

It was a joke about your thread in the lounge