Its kind of funny about the shutter sound. I'd read about how quiet it was compared to the other m43 cams, Olympus in particular. But I got my expectations up too much because, once I actually heard it I was a bit disappointed. It is a bit more muffled than the EPL3 and other Pens and Pany's I've owned - not as loud a 'thunk', but its fundamentally a somewhat muffled or damped version of the same sound and clearly audible in any sort of quiet environment. I was thinking it would be a bit closer to maybe the GXR (either the 28 or 50mm lens unit) which is nearly silent but does have an audible little snick that you almost have to listen for to hear. I wasn't expected dead silence like the X100 or any of the leaf shutter compacts (GRD3, LX5, X10, etc), but was expecting quieter than it is. And as long as I can clearly hear it, I really prefer the shutter sound of the X-Pro 1, which is probably a similar volume (maybe even slightly louder), but a very pleasant (to my ears) "click" or "snick" sound as opposed to the fairly quiet thud of the OMD.
This is a non-issue to me, BTW and I don't intend it as a criticism of the camera. Its more an observation about expectations. Like if several people and reviews tell me a movie is really good, it better be REALLY good or I'm likely to be disappointed by it. OTOH, a movie I stumble onto with no idea or expectations about it can be a pleasant surprise even if its only sort of good. I guess I had higher expectations for the OMD and lower expectations for the X-Pro 1 shutter sounds, and my reactions to both were colored by those expectations...
I wonder how much time, if any, the engineers spend trying to "tune" the shutter sound, assuming there is one and its not just a simulated shutter sound (which all of the silent shutter cameras I'm aware of have programmed in as an option). I remember reading about how the Mazda Miata engineers spent an inordinate amount of time and resources tuning the exhaust note of the early iterations of the Miata to create a signature sound, very similar to the old MG or Spitfires from British Leyland. Do camera makers put any thought into this stuff or does it just come out the way the mechanicals dictate???
-Ray