I honestly think that a lot of the issues people are having with the sound may be remedied by changing how they do the mics for the TV broadcast. It seems to be allright to me during the onboard videos, but most of the nuance goes away for the long distance stuff. Maybe put the audio stuff closer to the track, have it be more directional, or maybe its just as simple as cranking up the gain a bit. Its clear they are much quieter then they were, but that doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing if they do it right.
Also, we are one race in to the season, so the Jury certainly isn't out IMHO. Nearly every person that the Sky Sports crew talked to mentioned it in the negative, so I think everyone will be doing what they can to crank up the volume level.
I'll admit being a bit pleased to see Vettel retire. I don't have any ill will towards the guy, but its time to let some other people win for a while. He can come back later in the season and dominate again. Its much cooler to see that happen mid to late season. I want it to be like a few years ago where a bunch of dudes were fighting for the championship even through the last race. The more the merrier, and the more varied the podiums and race winners the better IMHO. The playing field has been leveled and that means even rookies and midfield/backmarker teams can get in on the action if they play their cards right.
I went from skipping races and only watching highlights for the last half of last season to being truly excited for the season now. There is a lot to like about this whole mixup, so I would say get over all the nit picking and just come along for the ride.