Related Story: TV ads: quiet, please

Sure, loud commercials can be annoying. But how loud are they? And how often do the noisy pests show up?

To find out, we borrowed a digital sound level meter and used it on a series of shows and their commercials.

Each test was conducted on the same TV, with the stereo on the same setting each time.

Though we tried to measure a variety of channels, the sample size isn't large enough to draw any statistically meaningful conclusions.

That said, here are the results, which note all the commercials that vary from the average program volume by two decibels:

KOTV-CBS, Let's Make a Deal: Average program volume: 65-70. Total commercials: seven. Commercials louder than the program: three. Commercials quieter: none.

KTUL-ABC, General Hospital: Average program volume: 70-75. Total commercials: 11. Commercials louder than the program: five. Commercials quieter: one.

KJRH-NBC, Dr. Oz: Average program volume: 68-72. Total commercials: six. Commercials louder than the program: none. Commercials quieter: one.

CNN, CNN Newsroom: Average program volume: 68-70. Total commercials: four. Commercials louder than the program: four. Commercials quieter: none.

ESPN, Sportscenter: Average program volume: 68-70. Total commercials: nine. Commercials louder than the program: three. Commercials quieter: one.

Nickelodeon, Back at the Barnyard: Average program volume: 68- 72. Total commercials: 10. Commercials louder than the program: one. Commercials quieter: none.

TNT, Numbers: Average program volume: 65-70. Total commercials: six. Commercials louder than the program: two. Commercials quieter: none.

Based on the samples, it's clear that some commercials are, in fact, louder than the programs they're attached to. But less than half of the commercials were louder, and the rare commercial was quieter.

There's also no rhyme or reason as to which channels had the loudest commercials, nor what types of products had the loudest ads.

The three commercials that were four or more decibels above the program average were for a cold medicine, a department store and an Internet service provider.

And it's not just commercials that vary in volume. The seven channels sampled had average noise levels that varied by five decibels on the same volume setting.

SUBHEAD: A spot check of commercials shows less than half of the ads were louder than the programs.

Originally published by ROBERT EVATT World Staff Writer.

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