Refurbished roomettes-can't shut off speaker??

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Shortline

Shortline

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Mar 13, 2011
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First time in the refurnished Superliners with the LED lighting and touch controls. One thing that seems to be missing is the volume/channel selector to turn down, or off, the speakers. Am I missing it or is it just not here anymore?
 
Not that I'm saying that you're complaining. On one side, many say the announcements can't be heard in the rooms. Now we here the other side saying that they can be heard. Just remember that in coach or any other car, the volume can not be turned up or down either.
 
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Which is (just one of many) reasons why I am not in coach....I kinda like turning off the constant diatribe through the cars, I already know what a hotdog costs in the cafe car, and since I've already had dinner, really don't care that they're calling th 7 PM dinner reservations to the dining car......I guess that's a no, I can no longer kill the PA....
 
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To be honest, I don't know. The main thing I look for in the room is the outlet and the light switches. I really have never touched the channel and volume controls, since I know they don't work anyway now that the A/V stuff has gone bye-bye!
 
I am sure Amtrak is counting on using this system in case of an emergency. If you have the speaker turned off, you won't get directions.
 
the_traveler said:
To be honest, I don't know. The main thing I look for in the room is the outlet and the light switches. I really have never touched the channel and volume controls, since I know they don't work anyway now that the A/V stuff has gone bye-bye!
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They did sort of work...you could always change off channel 1, to not get announcements in the room. They still broadcast in the halls, but I prefer the sound of silence in the room.
 
I feel your pain Shortline.

Nothing would make me happier than having a completely quiet sleeper car for *gasp* restful sleeping.

On Amtrak trains I can sleep anytime, day or night, except when someone is making a racket over the PA.

If the PA is there for emergencies then they should stop abusing it for sales pitching and gruff instructions.

If the PA is there for endless pitching and admonishing then it should be possible to turn it all the way off.

Just my views of course, but I often see similar exhaustion in the eyes of other travelers whenever the PA comes on.
 
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Devil's Advocate said:
If the PA is there for emergencies then they should stop abusing it for sales pitching and gruff instructions.
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If you think that they're "gruff instructions", please consider this:
On the TE/SL, a passenger boarding in STL had not heard the announcement made just after leaving CHI!

The passenger boarding in LVW did not hear that announcement made in STL.

The passenger boarding in ELP did not hear that announcement made in AUS.

The passenger boarding in Tucson did not hear that announcement made in Deming.

Etc..., etc...! And this situation is true on every train. Just because you board the CZ in CHI and go to EMY, or if you board the SS in NYP and ride to MIA does not mean every other passenger does also. And they may also be riding a train for the first time. Maybe they're riding the TE from Hope to Dallas only.
 
These announcements should be standardized and automated system wide with recordings.

Amtrak staff are not professional announcers and and shouldn't be forced to attempt to be.

"Live" microphones ONLY in an emergency.
 
If this is the case, I am NOT happy. We turn the PA off because I'm sensitive to noise. We get a roomette so we don't have to hear constant talking/noise and that darn PA. It always starts up at 6:00 AM because the SWC (when we travel on it) ends up with a waiting list for breakfast, and they start calling names. The snack car attendant announces that he's open too. So when we got a roomette for the first time last year, it was bliss. I loved being able to turn it off. If there's an emergency, we'll open our door so we can hear the one in the hallway.
 
I will co-sign 'chimes'

%24%28KGrHqR,!o4FI5ch1ydlBSO0!treK!~~60_57.JPG
 
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SarahZ said:
If there's an emergency, we'll open our door so we can hear the one in the hallway.
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And what if there was an actual emergency and you did not hear the announcement because you didn't open your door? :huh: Or your door will not open? :huh: Or if you're a smoker, or just want to stretch your legs, at the 15 minute stop coming up - and they announce "The stop at _______ will only be for 2 minutes." but your door is closed and you have the speaker off? :huh:
No, the last one is not an emergency. No, the train is not late. It is 13 minutes behind the scheduled arrival time, but if the train departs in 2 minutes, it will have departed right on time. (That's why the schedule is padded.)
 
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roomette said:
These announcements should be standardized and automated system wide with recordings.

Amtrak staff are not professional announcers and and shouldn't be forced to attempt to be.

"Live" microphones ONLY in an emergency.
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Acela Express has a type of automated message that will play over the PA. It's somewhat annoying though.

Septa's new Silverliner V's have automated station announcements, not only is it annoying, when the trains go through a phase break sometimes the system has to be reprogramed. I prefer conductors yelling stops into the car or calling them over the PA.

Sure some announcements get out of hand as far as length. The SCA I had on 30 this weekend made announcements that were 3 minutes long and then some!
 
"Hi this is Jimmy your Cafe Car attendant ...[45 second pause] I'll be .... [30 second pause] ... I'll be taking my break in 15 minutes and .... [20 second pause] ... I won't be back until ... [40 second pause] ... until after my break so if you want something from the Cafe Car .... [20 second pause] .... I'll be here for a few minutes ... [10 second pause] ... I might be longer than expected because I have a enormous cyst on my back I may enlist the help of the LSA in lancing.

Never enough of the information you need and an overload of information you do not.

That's always been my experience with seldom exception.

They need to record the 'evergreen' announcements.
 
Although I would like the option to turn off anouncements, I find some of the Amtrak staff are characters, and quite entertaining.

One gets used to their slant on things on a long journey.

Given the whispery ultra low volume of some PA equipment, I don't think Amtrak could honestly rely on that in an emergency!

Just a thought on the chimes pictured by Roomette... Would not each metal bar sound the same note, they all look to be identical ?

Ed :cool:
 
benjibear said:
I am sure Amtrak is counting on using this system in case of an emergency. If you have the speaker turned off, you won't get directions.
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Surely its not rocket science to wire a by-pass for emergency announcements.
 
It may not be rocket science but Amtrak can't afford a model rocket so I doubt it is in their budget.

I am only speculating on being for an emergency.

Sounds like Amtrak has more of an issue with the staff not knowing how to use the system.
 
cirdan said:
Surely its not rocket science to wire a by-pass for emergency announcements.
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They do such on the cruise ships.

Casual announcements are in the hallway speakers only.

Priority announcements are in the hallways, plus the speakers in each cabin. If your TV is 'on', they auto mute it too.
 
Shortline said:
One thing that seems to be missing is the volume/channel selector to turn down, or off, the speakers. Am I missing it or is it just not here anymore?
Click to expand...

the_traveler said:
I really have never touched the channel and volume controls, since I know they don't work anyway now that the A/V stuff has gone bye-bye!
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I, too, didn't think the volume/channel controls even worked anymore. So, if they are now missing, big deal, there is no true functional loss.
 
I just returned from riding three LD trains in July-August---the CS, EB, and SWC. In at least one case(CS) and I think in the others only the speakers in the hall work anymore. And in the case of the CS you could not hear the announcements unless you left your door open since the volume was too low. I LIKE hearing the announcements so I would complain that I had trouble hearing the announcements instead of requesting the ability to turn them off. There is so much other ambient noise like the train movements, rattles, etc, why would the announcements be an intrusion. You cannot turn off the announcements on other public transportation such as airliners(even in international lie flat first class), and buses.

I vote YES for the public announcements even when the cafe guy is opening and closing the cafe snack bar.
 
Here's the thing - if there's the option to turn it on/off, people can decide whether they want to hear the announcements or not...those who are worried about an emergency or like hearing the announcements can turn them on, and those who want the silence could turn them off.

I would hope Amtrak wouldn't only rely on the PA in an emergency...it's often not reliable enough or loud enough to be an effective means of communication in an emergency.
 
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