In plain English
When audio is mainly someone talking, background music or noise can drown the voice for hard-of-hearing listeners. This AAA rule says the background should be off, turn-off-able, or clearly quieter than the speech (about 20 dB below, which sounds roughly four times softer).
If you produce narrated videos or audio with a music bed, the fix is a good audio mix that keeps the music well under the voice.
Who this is for
- Hard-of-hearing listeners, who cannot separate a voice from loud background sound.
- Everyone in a noisy environment trying to catch the words.
How to check and fix it yourself
Listen to your narrated content. Can you clearly make out every word over the music? If the bed competes with the voice, lower it in the mix.
Voiceover with music mixed well below it. ✓
Music at a similar level to the voice. ✗ lower the background
No background sound at all. ✓Where we can help
We review your speech-based audio for background levels that bury the voice and flag where the mix needs adjusting. It rounds out the media and clarity checks.