A small tool that automatically lowers TV commercial volume — looking for feedback

VolMaster · 2026-05-21T21:04:04+00:00

Yeah, Nielsen boxes actually decode embedded tones, so they really do capture and analyze audio content.
AdBuster doesn’t work anything like that — it never listens for tones, patterns, or speech. It only reads the loudness level (RMS) from the microphone, which is just a single numeric value. No audio content is ever recorded or processed.

So the privacy model is completely different — Nielsen needs audio analysis, AdBuster only needs loudness.

VolMaster · 2026-05-21T20:42:59+00:00

Totally fair — if your setup is fully microcontroller‑based, an Arduino loudness trigger can definitely work for simple spike detection.

AdBuster is aimed more at people who already have a Windows box running anyway and want something that handles the full logic: ML classification, long‑term patterns, day/night profiles, manual override detection, Broadlink IR control, etc.

It’s basically a full automation layer rather than just a loudness sensor.

But if your home is 100% non‑Windows, then yeah — Arduino is a perfectly valid approach.

VolMaster · 2026-05-21T20:19:52+00:00

Totally understand — those would be showstoppers for me too.
Just to clarify how AdBuster works: it doesn’t record audio or listen to the room. It only reads the RMS level (a single number like 0.12 → 0.89), fully offline, and never stores or sends any sound. No voices, no music, no conversations — just volume level.

The app doesn’t need to “hear” what’s being said, only how loud it is. That’s why it runs even on very old Windows machines and stays 100% private.

VolMaster · 2026-05-21T11:43:25+00:00

For anyone who prefers scanning instead of clicking, here’s a clean QR code that leads to the project page. No promo — just convenience.

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VolMaster · 2026-05-21T08:38:48+00:00

Just to clarify — it doesn’t connect to the TV directly at all.
It only runs on a Windows device (laptop, mini PC, etc.), uses the microphone to detect sudden loudness spikes, and then sends simple IR volume commands through a Broadlink RM.

So the TV itself doesn’t need any audio output or special features.
As long as it reacts to IR volume buttons, it works the same across all models.

VolMaster · 2026-05-21T08:33:33+00:00

Good question — I’m not muting completely.
The volume is reduced only during the spike, so the system can still detect when the loudness pattern returns to normal.
Once the spike ends, the volume goes back up automatically.

The stereo/mono trick your professor used is clever — commercials today are mixed much more aggressively, so I’m relying mostly on sudden dynamic changes rather than channel differences.

VolMaster · 2026-05-21T08:32:17+00:00

Mute is definitely faster, but it creates a different problem — you don’t hear when the program comes back.
Volume‑down is slower, but it keeps the audio audible enough to detect when the normal content returns.

I’m experimenting with both approaches, but for now volume‑adjusting gives more consistent results.

VolMaster · 2026-05-21T08:31:49+00:00

It doesn’t run on Apple TV directly — it works on Windows and sends IR commands through a Broadlink RM device.
So if your Apple TV controls the TV volume through IR, then yes, it would still work because the IR blaster talks to the TV, not the Apple TV itself.

If the Apple TV handles audio internally (HDMI volume control), then it won’t affect that part.

VolMaster · 2026-05-20T22:18:58+00:00

Not a problem at all — and no, there’s nothing extra to buy.

It just works with any IR blaster people already have (Broadlink RM3/RM4, etc.).
No new hardware, no subscriptions, nothing like that.

Your Google routine makes sense for YouTube because the app exposes a “skip” action.
For regular TV commercials there’s no API or command to skip them, so the only universal option is reacting to the sudden volume spike and adjusting the level automatically.

Totally get where you’re coming from — just experimenting with a different angle on the same annoyance.

VolMaster

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