Develop Bugs

Walkman'ish quality?

Hi guys,
so one thing has been bothering me since I plugged my earphones into my Z1C - the sound quality. I used to own a Walkman mp3 player and I loved its sound quality, but it's less than half of that in my phone. I don't get as many bass if any at all when using crystal clear sound or whatever it's called. If I manually turn the bass down, it increases by a small amount, but the overall sound quality goes down significantly. Is this a common problem? (or a problem at all?) What do you think? Do you enjoy your music experience or do you try to fight it? Is there any way to make music sound better without installing any 3rd party players?
Have a nice day.

Comparing to sgs 2 for me crap... Sound from my Sgs2 was much much better on same headphones

mosespl said:
Comparing to sgs 2 for me crap... Sound from my Sgs2 was much much better on same headphones
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Click to collapse
Exactly the same story here.

The clear audio + mode sounds terrible in my opinion. I'm using the Unique and bass boost equalizer presets in sound enhancements. They sound much closer to my Walkman.

if you have root you can install viper fx and inside it there is an option to configure a lot of thing and mod sound in headphone i dont use it but everyone in viper fx thread confirm that it makes a miracle so maybe it's worth to try

Pathetic Sound Quality
Is there any mod to get deeper bass & clear highs????

Try:
- Viper4Android: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2191223
- eXtremeBeats: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2634729

Wasn't planning to root at the moment. However problem solved - Poweramp.

Sound boost without root?

Hey, I'm finding the volume through headphones a bit low sometimes, depending on the mp3...
I've used Dolby Atmos in the past with other phones, but that required rooting, twrp, flashing.... I wouldn't like to have to do the same with this phone. Is there any app or adjustment I can make to boost the volume a bit? I'm already using Ex Equalizer pro, but I don't hear a substantial difference...
Thanks in advance!

Erjimipey said:
Hey, I'm finding the volume through headphones a bit low sometimes, depending on the mp3...
I've used Dolby Atmos in the past with other phones, but that required rooting, twrp, flashing.... I wouldn't like to have to do the same with this phone. Is there any app or adjustment I can make to boost the volume a bit? I'm already using Ex Equalizer pro, but I don't hear a substantial difference...
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
try Poweramp

Erjimipey said:
Hey, I'm finding the volume through headphones a bit low sometimes, depending on the mp3...
I've used Dolby Atmos in the past with other phones, but that required rooting, twrp, flashing.... I wouldn't like to have to do the same with this phone. Is there any app or adjustment I can make to boost the volume a bit? I'm already using Ex Equalizer pro, but I don't hear a substantial difference...
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not a solution - android newbie here.
Signed up to this website to troubleshoot the same issue. I suspect this is a software limitation imposed somewhere in the OS or added on top by the manufacturer, but I consider this a significant con on this phone. I tried listening to music while working out last night and it was just far too low to enjoy, ended up just going with my old iPod instead. I've tried out a few "volume booster" and "EQ" apps but the result as expected is just software based wave scaling that significantly distorts audio without actually increasing output power. If you are interested in audio quality, software EQ is not a solution at all.
I would imagine there would be a system file somewhere that can adjust this but that would likely require root access and whether or not it's in plain readable text is anybody's guess. Unfortunately this is my first Android device so I'm clueless.
I'll try looking for the application posted above.. let's see
update: poweramp isn't free, and from what I'm seeing does nothing that I can't do much better using VLC.
Veering off topic slightly, but is there a solution for users who are willing to root to the device? I'm asking for something that produces higher output voltage from the headphone jack.

serious_don said:
Not a solution - android newbie here.
Signed up to this website to troubleshoot the same issue. I suspect this is a software limitation imposed somewhere in the OS or added on top by the manufacturer, but I consider this a significant con on this ............ do much better using VLC.
Veering off topic slightly, but is there a solution for users who are willing to root to the device? I'm asking for something that produces higher output voltage from the headphone jack.
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Viper4Android can give much better output with certain profiles, but requires root and it's not advisable to root Honor 7X as stock firmware is not released by Honor yet. In most cases one will end up with a bricked phone or a phone without any OTA's

So... Nothing to do? I'd really love more volume but I don't want to root...

Erjimipey said:
So... Nothing to do? I'd really love more volume but I don't want to root...
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You have to search for a music player which can amplify the sound, most have it as a setting called "Gain". Neutron and Poweramp can do this but they are paid.
Sent from my Nexus 5X using XDA Labs

Erjimipey said:
So... Nothing to do? I'd really love more volume but I don't want to root...
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Click to collapse
For music download VLC media player (it's free). It's what I went with for now. When you play a song find the menu and bring up the equalizer. At the top of the equalizer is a horizontal bar for volume, you can crank the gain up a bit with that. At 100% it will distort but you can get a nice little boost with it without significantly distorting your music. That's what I'm doing for now. None of the volume boosting apps system-wide have produced any respectable results for me, so for YouTube I'm still stuck with low volume. You can try searching the play store for volume boosters if you don't mind distortion for everything else.
On the other hand, I'm wondering if Bluetooth buds will be able to get me the volume I want. I have a Bluetooth headset but it sounds atrocious for music. Otherwise I'll have to buy a portable amp. Either solution is totally ridiculous IMO.
Honor 7x is a solid phone, even the gimped US model I bought. This is the only problem I've come across with it thus far. I doubt Oreo will fix it, so I'll be waiting until the phone can be reliably rooted.

I'll try VLC and see what I can do with Google play music.
Thanks for your inputs!

Hi-Res output Snapdragon 625

Tested on the lousy zenfone 3 zoom (stock 3.5mm audio sucks inspite of DAC chip because of the poor engine optimization) and it worked like a champ but i believe other devices with SN 625 may benefit from it and they are A LOT, (use 709 build ONLY) other builds won't work as good, i tested them all.
Please do make a feedback on which other device this worked.
Snapdragon 845 devices (e.g. Sony XZ2) – improved Hi-Res Output detection
Sony XZ/XZ1 – improved Hi-Res Output detection
Lenovo X3 – reenabled 24bits
OnePlus (1st edition) – disabled DVC for Hi-Res output due to forced speaker playback
added new per-output option – No Duck – for cases when notification causes issues. Activated by default for Hi-Res output for some Snapdragon 625 devices (Asus Zenfone 3)
HTCs @ 7.0 – improved Hi-Res Output stability
Nexus 6P – fixed notification coloring
Enjoy Hi-Res music all.

Direct download, use poweramp unlocker to activate it.

sam.fisher190 said:
Tested on the lousy zenfone 3 zoom (stock 3.5mm audio sucks inspite of DAC chip because of the poor engine optimization) and it worked like a champ but i believe other devices with SN 625 may benefit from it and they are A LOT, (use 709 build ONLY) other builds won't work as good, i tested them all.
Please do make a feedback on which other device this worked.
Snapdragon 845 devices (e.g. Sony XZ2) – improved Hi-Res Output detection
Sony XZ/XZ1 – improved Hi-Res Output detection
Lenovo X3 – reenabled 24bits
OnePlus (1st edition) – disabled DVC for Hi-Res output due to forced speaker playback
added new per-output option – No Duck – for cases when notification causes issues. Activated by default for Hi-Res output for some Snapdragon 625 devices (Asus Zenfone 3)
HTCs @ 7.0 – improved Hi-Res Output stability
Nexus 6P – fixed notification coloring
Enjoy Hi-Res music all.
link for pros:
<Mod edit>
APK for noobs i'll upload it when the server wakes up
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Can't see any difference on the audio on Poweramp with this option set for active. The audio quality really sucks on this device.

Mrkblo said:
Can't see any difference on the audio on Poweramp with this option set for active. The audio quality really sucks on this device.
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Click to collapse
Did you toggle the 'Wired headset/AUX" ? and was your test with headphones or via the loud speaker? and what your headphones are?
This release 709 worked for me gloriously! the only problem that it's not free and needs some work that you can find on youtube or i would post a fellow up about the odds of activating it but i just needed a conformation that it at least made a difference by utilizing the DAC chip on board!!

sam.fisher190 said:
Did you toggle the 'Wired headset/AUX" ? and was your test with headphones or via the loud speaker? and what your headphones are?
This release 709 worked for me gloriously! the only problem that it's not free and needs some work that you can find on youtube or i would post a fellow up about the odds of activating it but i just needed a conformation that it at least made a difference by utilizing the DAC chip on board!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've downloaded the apk you uploaded and followed the screenshots. It made zero difference to the sound quality. Poweramp DVC is great on other devices, but on my zenfone it sucks, the audio is distorted, the only way to tolerate the audio quality is by disabling it. Best player I could find so far for my zenfone is Phonograph.

Mrkblo said:
I've downloaded the apk you uploaded and followed the screenshots. It made zero difference to the sound quality. Poweramp DVC is great on other devices, but on my zenfone it sucks, the audio is distorted, the only way to tolerate the audio quality is by disabling it. Best player I could find so far for my zenfone is Phonograph.
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Click to collapse
The zenfone 3 zoom have an amazing sound quality and believe me the bass is insane via a good headphones, you just need to find a solution to make use of it's potentials, if you want to go throw troubleshooting provide some more information like the exact model and what software build you are currently running... you are right about the distortion i was very upset with the sound quality at the beginning but poweramp made the DAC work properly.

sam.fisher190 said:
The zenfone 3 zoom have an amazing sound quality and believe me the bass is insane via a good headphones, you just need to find a solution to make use of it's potentials, if you want to go throw troubleshooting provide some more information like the exact model and what software build you are currently running... you are right about the distortion i was very upset with the sound quality at the beginning but poweramp made the DAC work properly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't say that the sound quality on the zenfone 3 zoom is amazing. This DTS audio thing is terrible and makes sound awful. I've installed an even older version of poweramp and tried your solution, and it made a difference with my JBL T210 (not the best one around, surely). However, using Poweramp with DVC on an old Galaxy S6 that I have laying around is still miles better. Sound quality is my only complaint about this phone, that's why I was hoping for a custom rom for this thing.

Mrkblo said:
I wouldn't say that the sound quality on the zenfone 3 zoom is amazing. This DTS audio thing is terrible and makes sound awful. I've installed an even older version of poweramp and tried your solution, and it made a difference with my JBL T210 (not the best one around, surely). However, using Poweramp with DVC on an old Galaxy S6 that I have laying around is still miles better. Sound quality is my only complaint about this phone, that's why I was hoping for a custom rom for this thing.
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Click to collapse
Yeah you're absolutely right that DTS is a marketing thing and it sucks, you just keep trying on that poweramp 709 build only and try downloading it from APKPURE or somewhere else because the one that i provided was patched with lucky patcher and i hoped it would work with a non-rooted device to skip the activation process but apparently that is not the case, after i reflashed the phone and got rid of the root access i had to install poweramp unlocker and i have to reinstall the the main app every 2 days because without the root i can't seem to be able to activate it, keep digging, i know what a good DAC sounds like, it's not an HTC native level but it's miles ahead of the stock drivers and even better than viper4android module on magisk.

sam.fisher190 said:
Yeah you're absolutely right that DTS is a marketing thing and it sucks, you just keep trying on that poweramp 709 build only and try downloading it from APKPURE or somewhere else because the one that i provided was patched with lucky patcher and i hoped it would work with a non-rooted device to skip the activation process but apparently that is not the case, after i reflashed the phone and got rid of the root access i had to install poweramp unlocker and i have to reinstall the the main app every 2 days because without the root i can't seem to be able to activate it, keep digging, i know what a good DAC sounds like, it's not an HTC native level but it's miles ahead of the stock drivers and even better than viper4android module on magisk.
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Click to collapse
No worries about that. I've purchased the app years ago. The only thing now is that I can't allow it to update. Thanks for the hint, the sound is clearly better now.

sam.fisher190 said:
...because the one that i provided was patched with lucky patcher and i hoped it would work with a non-rooted device to skip the activation process but apparently that is not the case,...
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Click to collapse
THREAD CLOSED! Download file removed!
XDA Forum Rules (excerpt):
...
6. Do not post or request warez.
If a piece of software requires you to pay to use it, then pay for it. We do not accept warez nor do we permit members to request, post, promote or describe ways in which warez, cracks, serial codes or other means of avoiding payment, can be obtained or used. This is a site of developers, i.e. the sort of people who create such software. When you cheat a software developer, you cheat us as a community.
...
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Mi 9 SE audio recording for extreme loud environments

I went to an electronic party last weekend so I could finally test the audio recording quality on extreme situations.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzfXQqgGZ1M
Turns out its really awful. Even my friend with a Motorola G5 have better audio quality. That is pretty disappointing for me, as I'm also a DJ and music producer so I make videos under this circunstances a lot. Also it impacts song-finder apps, as the quality is so bad that the app can't recognise the song.
Is there anything that can be done via software? Custom ROM or tweaks... Or is it a matter of the microphone (hardware) quality itself?
Btw I've already tried recording with the Open Camera App selecting the "unprocessed" audio source. Gets distorted same way.
Thanks in advance.

I confirm the existence of a similar problem for me and several people. How can this be fixed at least temporarily?
Thanks in advance.

Gratefall said:
I confirm the existence of a similar problem for me and several people. How can this be fixed at least temporarily?
Thanks in advance.
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Click to collapse
Can't really call it a "problem" since it affects all Xiaomi phones. It's just a standard quality microphone paired with bad software otimization. I did some tests and the microphone is actually capable of capturing audio with less distortion under these conditions, the problem is the processing applied to the audio isn't optimized for these situations, making it distort.

Did you have the same issues using other kernels or roms? I confirm I've been getting similar issues also

massalami said:
Did you have the same issues using other kernels or roms? I confirm I've been getting similar issues also
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Yea I tried every rom and kernel... all the same.
If it was only at shows... could live with it. But the audio distorts even at daily things like recording messages on whatsapp when inside a vehicle (I reported this on another thread). I get really frustrated.

Same here..I participate at the lot of Trance events and simply, audio is one big bulshitt. (like at 99% of Android phones). For loud events recordings, iPhones are still the best

satmaster said:
Same here..I participate at the lot of Trance events and simply, audio is one big bulshitt. (like at 99% of Android phones). For loud events recordings, iPhones are still the best
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Exactly... I always had android, then I swiched to an iphone 6s only because of the audio I knew was good... now I finally came back to android (cause I love the OS and its variety of functions compared to iOS) and unfortunately suffering again with poor audio recording. The few android I know can handle this are the top-end Samsung (S8, S9, S10). I heard about HTC also but never got to see or test it personally.
Altough I really can't understand why manufacturers don't take this audio thing more seriously, they leave this aside like no one cared about audio quality lol

-Luigi. said:
Exactly... I always had android, then I swiched to an iphone 6s only because of the audio I knew was good... now I finally came back to android (cause I love the OS and its variety of functions compared to iOS) and unfortunately suffering again with poor audio recording. The few android I know can handle this are the top-end Samsung (S8, S9, S10). I heard about HTC also but never got to see or test it personally.
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Damn, I thought I was the only with this kind of concern and this is the reason I'm currently using an iPhone 6s as my second phone just for audio recording. In my case I like to listen and play metal music with my band in a rehearsal room, so I always used my phone to record my rehearsals to see my band's progress and some other things and the best phone with a good recorder was the Mi 8 Lite until someone robbed me.
Idk why Xiaomi don't take a look to this issue, I mean, I'm not saying they have to listen to heavy metal or something like that, just realize the many scenarios the people would use the recorder app or the camera, e.g. in concerts.

VoidCrafter said:
Damn, I thought I was the only with this kind of concern and this is the reason I'm currently using an iPhone 6s as my second phone just for audio recording. In my case I like to listen and play metal music with my band in a rehearsal room, so I always used my phone to record my rehearsals to see my band's progress and some other things and the best phone with a good recorder was the Mi 8 Lite until someone robbed me.
Idk why Xiaomi don't take a look to this issue, I mean, I'm not saying they have to listen to heavy metal or something like that, just realize the many scenarios the people would use the recorder app or the camera, e.g. in concerts.
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Click to collapse
Most android manufacturers lose users to Apple just because of details like this, they don't realize how important this might be for some users. I mean, take for example artists on the music world... these are influent people... and 99% of them use iPhones because of things like the audio quality.
Anyway... this conversation can go really far.
Talking about the Mi 9 SE... mostly the cause of the the bad audio quality is bad software optimization. Xiaomi could get this a lot better with just some simple updates. I've tried modifying some microphone options, turns out it can actually record with less distortion (not really perfect but better). Still a bit of the guilt is on the microphone hardware itself... its kinda cheap.

try cameramx app, set audio source to external. it worked quite well at a muse concert.
the issue is the recording volume too high which affects also whatsapp vocal messages.
somebody solved it on rooted devices by installing root volume mixer pro, set the microphone gain to -3. this wasn't tested at loud events, only on whatsapp.

turronet said:
try cameramx app, set audio source to external. it worked quite well at a muse concert.
the issue is the recording volume too high which affects also whatsapp vocal messages.
somebody solved it on rooted devices by installing root volume mixer pro, set the microphone gain to -3. this wasn't tested at loud events, only on whatsapp.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've tried using Open Camera with audio source set to unprocessed. Didn't solve it for me, got a bit less distortion but still a lot (maybe bacause the sound was really extremely loud). Will try with "external" source.
I was trying to modify the mic gain directly on the system files, but I'm gonna try that volume mixer pro thing also. Ty.

-Luigi. said:
I've tried using Open Camera with audio source set to unprocessed. Didn't solve it for me, got a bit less distortion but still a lot (maybe bacause the sound was really extremely loud). Will try with "external" source.
I was trying to modify the mic gain directly on the system files, but I'm gonna try that volume mixer pro thing also. Ty.
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Click to collapse
Did it make it any better?

I have the Xiaomi Mi 9 SE , i love the phone, but yes the recording quality is terrible. i downloaded the Root volume control, but when im in the path files, i dont know what changes to make.....
What is the recording mic on the camera called in the files??.......what values am i looking for??......
How many changes to i need to make.......??

I don't know ir the problem is because harware or software, but this problem doesn't happen in all Xiaomi phones, because models like Mi 9T (Pro version also) or Mi 8 records the audio clearly, also, remember that an user said that the Mi 8 Lite has a good quality of audio recording (I don't know if the NORMAL Mi 9 (not SE) records well the audio). Probably the problem is from the hardware, because phones like a big part of Redmi or other Android has a low quality mic, so the sound recorded will be poor, this problem also happens with other companies like OnePlus.
But if we want to talk in a general way, all the cellphones, including those made from Apple, ASUS, HTC or Samsung are going to lose quality in the record of concerts, very few phones like some LG are good recording specifically the audio from concerts.

I fixed a bit this problem just putting a finger up the microphone. At least it didnt clip af

Try another camera app like Cinema-FV5. I heard it improves.

Had this problem with every xiaomi I owned, only Mi 8 Lite didn't have it, so strange :\

hi, i had this problem on Redmi 3, on MI 9 SE its better, but still present. I installed CameraMX and set microphone to external and i think it helps a lot !

Bluetooth audio level on car radio

Ok, audio via phone Bluetooth connection question.
I recently exchanged my Samsung Galaxy S9 for a OnePlus 7T, and I notice that with the new phone, I have to play music on my car radio (Kia Forte) at a higher level of sound. Sound quality is good though. Has anyone had a similar experience, be it an Android or an iOS phone? Thanks!

I've been trying to work this out myself.
I moved from a Galaxy S8 to a OnePlus 7t and I stream my music via Bluetooth to my JBL Charge 4; I have been feeling like volume has been a lot lower and bass is just not there like it was on the S8. But then I had been flicking between Spotify and Deezer on my S8 so that could have contributed to the confusion as the volumes levels differ a bit on there too.
I'm on 10.0.9 (Stable - EU) and believe it to be quieter and lacking in comparison to Samsung :/

Try dolby atmos equalizer and you can feel the difference of volume boost and audio quality had same problem on my car with sony BT stereo but with that app it's a lot better, give it a try.. You can find it under "oneplus 7t themes apps and mods"

Hitman478™ said:
Try dolby atmos equalizer and you can feel the difference of volume boost and audio quality had same problem on my car with sony BT stereo but with that app it's a lot better, give it a try.. You can find it under "oneplus 7t themes apps and mods"
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Click to collapse
Are you referring to the APK? I did see this the other day but wasn't sure if it persisted after reboot

Hitman478™ said:
Try dolby atmos equalizer and you can feel the difference of volume boost and audio quality had same problem on my car with sony BT stereo but with that app it's a lot better, give it a try.. You can find it under "oneplus 7t themes apps and mods"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My T-Mobile 7T has the Dolby Atmos equalizer option, and it does help with sound quality, but not overall loudness.
Also, I tried this on my OP, and it more or less helps with a bit louder sound, but not as loud as the Samsung.
https://mobileinternist.com/low-bluetooth-volume-android

mmotti said:
Are you referring to the APK? I did see this the other day but wasn't sure if it persisted after reboot
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Yes the apk.. to get it working properly you need to disable the in-built one, either via adb or disable application app (root)