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Can AI help you hear TV dialog better?

Answer: Yes.

A hand holding up a remote control in the foreground pointing towards a television blurred in the background.
If you’ve ever turned on subtitles because you just can’t figure out what people are saying in a movie or TV show, you’re not alone. It’s an industry phenomenon that more and more people are noticing, but fortunately AI may be able to help.

DTS, maker of DTS:X digital surround sound, has developed a feature called DTS Clear Dialogue to do exactly what its name suggests. Trained on thousands of hours of content, the feature uses a machine learning algorithm to parse out dialog from background noise or sound effects. Viewers can then turn up the volume on just the dialog.

The feature can be integrated into smart TVs, but it only works with the TV’s built-in speakers, so if you use a soundbar or other external system then you’re out of luck. It will, however, work with TV-connected headphones or earbuds. DTS hasn’t announced which manufacturers will be putting the feature in their devices, but it should become available sometime in 2025.