The microphone for the Nexus 4 is very noisy. A user on another thread described a video he recorded
to sound as if it was "recorded underwater".
I looked up the Android SDK and the MediaRecorder object has access to the following audio streams:
CAMCORDER, DEFAULT, MIC, VOICE_CALL, VOICE_COMMUNICATION, VOICE_DOWNLINK, VOICE_RECOGNITION, VOICE_UPLINK.
http://developer.android.com/reference/android/media/MediaRecorder.AudioSource.html
I noticed that while audio and video recorders sound bad on Nexus4, voice calls are of decent quality.
Not all phones have the hardware to handle all these so most sound recorders use MIC or DEFAULT.
I found the source code to the MIUI Sound Recorder and it was easy to add a setting that lets you
manually select which hardware stream to record from.
I ran some tests on the Nexus 4 and came to the following conclusions:
- MIC, DEFAULT and VOICE RECOGNITION are probably the same stream and sound bad.
- the CAMCORDER audio stream is the cleanest.
I propose that until Google and LG fix this issue ROM developers alter the Android API on Nexus 4 (only)
so that the CAMCORDER stream always overwrites MIC and DEFAULT.
I'm attaching the modified MIUI Sound Recorder with manual stream select if anyone wants to do
tests on their own. Here's an amplified view of MIC vs CAMCORDER.
-Mindroid- said:
The microphone for the Nexus 4 is very noisy. A user on another thread described a video he recorded
to sound as if it was "recorded underwater".
I looked up the Android SDK and the MediaRecorder object has access to the following audio streams:
CAMCORDER, DEFAULT, MIC, VOICE_CALL, VOICE_COMMUNICATION, VOICE_DOWNLINK, VOICE_RECOGNITION, VOICE_UPLINK.
http://developer.android.com/reference/android/media/MediaRecorder.AudioSource.html
I noticed that while audio and video recorders sound bad on Nexus4, voice calls are of decent quality.
Not all phones have the hardware to handle all these so most sound recorders use MIC or DEFAULT.
I found the source code to the MIUI Sound Recorder and it was easy to add a setting that lets you
manually select which hardware stream to record from.
I ran some tests on the Nexus 4 and came to the following conclusions:
- MIC, DEFAULT and VOICE RECOGNITION are probably the same stream and sound bad.
- the CAMCORDER audio stream is the cleanest.
I propose that until Google and LG fix this issue ROM developers alter the Android API on Nexus 4 (only)
so that the CAMCORDER stream always overwrites MIC and DEFAULT.
I'm attaching the modified MIUI Sound Recorder with manual stream select if anyone wants to do
tests on their own. Here's an amplified view of MIC vs CAMCORDER.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I modified my kernel to fix this and I used your apk to test for both mic and camcorder and I don't notice the difference with my updated kernel.
http://faux.androidro.ms/mako/beta/mako-jb-kernel-004b06.zip
check for me to see if I really fix it or not since I am not an audio expert
Thank you, faux!
I've been meaning to try your kernel for a while so now I just have to.
Please treat my ideas about how Android exposes the audio stream as a speculation for now.
I didn't run any in-depth tests and I didn't trace the kernel code.
To my ears the MIC/DEFAULT streams are very noisy. The CAMCORDER one is noisy also
and but somewhat less so. They all sound bandpassed (probably a microphone limitation).
I'd like to know what other users think of the sound.
Very interesting.
I agree that N4 mic is so sensitive that it picks up a lot of background noises. I have been tweaking with mic volume to offset it.
If OP is true, then there's a hope for VoIP users who use Csipsimple. Without changing the kernel, csip can use CAMCORDER mode by changing the settings under media>audio troubleshooting.
The very high mic gain is the main issue with the sound quality. It needs to be adjusted from
the kernel driver which is not a trivial procedure. Gain from apps works on top of the hardware
gain and does not affect distortion that happens earlier in the signal chain.
One user put scotch tape on the mic to mechanically attenuate the sound and reported good results.
If the the sound system on the nexus 4 is built on top of ALSA, I.e. if the directory /proc/asound exists, then microphone levels can be adjusted in user-space. There is an app (ALSAMixer) available on the market that could be used here.
What would be the effect of covering the mic with something to reduce it's sensitivity?
chdloc said:
If the the sound system on the nexus 4 is built on top of ALSA, I.e. if the directory /proc/asound exists, then microphone levels can be adjusted in user-space. There is an app (ALSAMixer) available on the market that could be used here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure if that will do it. The textbook audio recording chain goes like this:
microphone -> preamp -> analog-to-digital converter
If I'm not mistaken ALSA(the driver) will take over afterwards. We need a way to control
the hardware gain on the preamp. It's possible that preamp gain is permanently fixed by design.
On the other hand almost all modern preamps have automatic variable gain so it might just be
a matter of figuring out how to turn it on.
EDIT:
ALSAMixer doesn't work at all on my phone (stock 4.2.1 - rooted)
Do you know of any custom kernels for the Nexus4 that use ALSA?
donec said:
What would be the effect of covering the mic with something to reduce it's sensitivity?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Aside from the ugly look it should work OK. I would suggest using some kind of soft thread fabric.
Wool is one of the best materials for sound absorption but you should try different materials.
The downside is that mechanical methods don't attenuate all frequencies linearly - they work much better
on higher frequencies so you will have to try and see what material works best.
If this works out it would be ideal to open the phone and plug the microphone hole on the inside with the proper material.
I don't have a Nexus 4, but I do know that the Nexus 7 uses ALSA. Have you checked for /proc/asound? If it exists, then you may need the proper ALSA libraries first.
Sent from my Nexus One using xda app-developers app
im starting to think LG just used cheap mics to keep cost down. From the buzzing to the sub par recording quality
-Mindroid- said:
Aside from the ugly look it should work OK. I would suggest using some kind of soft thread fabric.
Wool is one of the best materials for sound absorption but you should try different materials.
The downside is that mechanical methods don't attenuate all frequencies linearly - they work much better
on higher frequencies so you will have to try and see what material works best.
If this works out it would be ideal to open the phone and plug the microphone hole on the inside with the proper material.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have my Nexus 4 in a case and thought maybe I could improve the quality by placing a piece of cloth between the case and the phone.
Lockeskidney said:
im starting to think LG just used cheap mics to keep cost down. From the buzzing to the sub par recording quality
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The specs for the microphone do not look bad either. http://www.knowles.com/search/prods_pdf/SPU0410LR5H.pdf is the spec sheet and it should be working to 116 dB, which is louder than I'd want to be in - though it is only the loud end of rock concerts. Noise also looks okay on the spec sheet, but you cannot expect Schoeps quality of course..
The underwater sounds I'm hearing with the sound recording tool remind me of processing, heavy compression andf such. Not what I heard on my camcorder tests, which had a pleasant sound.
Overload is more likelely to be caused by audio codec settings. A voice call has the mouth close to the mic, that is loud too, and works well. But applications like movie recordings crank up the gain to record sounds further away.
jutezak said:
The specs for the microphone do not look bad either. http://dl-bacon.bbqdroid.org/GeebCM/EN_LG-E973_SVC_ENG_121127.pdf is the spec sheet and it should be working to 116 dB, which is louder than I'd want to be in. Noise also looks okay on the spec sheet, but you cannot expect Schoeps quality of course..
The underwater sounds I'm hearing with the sound recording tool remind me of processing, heavy compression andf such. Not what I heard on my camcorder tests, which had a pleasant sound.
Overload is more likelely to be caused by audio codec settings. A voice call has the mouth close to the mic, that is loud too, and works well. But applications like movie recordings crank up the gain to record sounds further away.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nice find! Thank you for sharing!
Microphones in general are almost never bad. It's the preamps and digital processing that add more to the mix.
Regarding the "underwater" sound I now suspect a lack of a Low Pass filter. Check out my other thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=36856100&postcount=18
jutezak said:
The specs for the microphone do not look bad either. http://www.knowles.com/search/prods_pdf/SPU0410LR5H.pdf is the spec sheet and it should be working to 116 dB, which is louder than I'd want to be in - though it is only the loud end of rock concerts. Noise also looks okay on the spec sheet, but you cannot expect Schoeps quality of course..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Human speech can generate 116dB SPL measured at 1-2" distance fairly easily. I just measured the level my speech at 1" distance (with a lab-grade device) and I did not have to shout to produce 116dB SPL. The spec sheet says that the microphone produces about 10% THD typically at 118SPL for a 1kHz tone.
jutezak said:
Overload is more likelely to be caused by audio codec settings. A voice call has the mouth close to the mic, that is loud too, and works well. But applications like movie recordings crank up the gain to record sounds further away.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Distortion of the microphone signal is generated (or amplified) in at least four locations:
1. The microphone itself (analog or digital if the microphone is a digital microphone as many MEMS are; the above referenced Knowles mike is analog)
2. The amplifier (analog)
3. The analog-to-digital converter (ADC) which is spec'ed with a maximum input voltage to generate a signal that hits "digital rail", i.e. 0dB FS (full-scale)
4. digital gain along the digital processing path
Potential "clipping" (i.e. signals producing 0dB FS at the ADC) can only be avoided if the analog amplifier (if there is one) can be controlled. By looking at the ALSA mixer settings for the Nexus 4 my only hope lies in the controls that are labeled "ADCX Volume" where X=[1,6], i.e. numid. I believe -Mindroid- shared his "idle" settings vs. settings during a call and only X={1,3}, i.e. numid={48,50} have changed. Give changing those two parameters a try...
I posted this in a different thread, but thought it would be useful here as well as a potential lead to a workaround:
Looks like the audio chip in question is a Qualcomm WCD9310.
It's used in a few other devices as well (eg: GS3 USA). If their audio runs fine, perhaps we could try running their audio drivers on our device?
Related
Hi there
last week I got a new Samsung Galaxy S GT I-9000, and although I am generally happy with it, I am very disappointed with the ADC recording quality.
As others, I noticed it after asking a friend to film me playing at a gig, and the audio was completely unuseable.
After digging around and some experiments I found so far 2 serious issues:
1 - As others pointed out, the microphone input level seems to be unadjustable. I have digged around in the hidden menus, where I could find a way to adjust the input level for speech calls but not for audio recording.
(Audio -> Handset ->I2S1 Rx Gain, although I am not sure if the signal clips before or after that point when doing audio recording ).
2 - This is an issue I have not seen documented anywhere: no matter what application I use, I am not able to record at any higher sampling rate than 22.050kHz. This is with both handset and headset microphone. But what is probably worse, is that the signal is not (or not very well) low pass filtered (antialised) before being downsampled!! I tried recording a frequency sweep from 0 to 16kHz, and the first 8kHz (11025 Hz inn 22050 Hz sampling rate mode) were Ok, the next 8kHz (11025Hz) where aliased like hell. Try record a 10 khz and a 12 kHz tone at 11khz adc rate and you will get a 10khz back in both cases, almost at the same amplitude ! Not sure why I can't acces 48kHz, as I read somewhere that the audio chipset should support that.
Anyone know if there is a fix for either?
Just uploaded the recorded sample for reference.
This was a 100Hz to 16kHz frequency sweep of 30 seconds.
The test setting was far from ideal (just played it out on my PC) but it gives an indication. Note that aliasing is so bad that even harmonic distortion gets aliased, and it becomes really loud when all harmonics get imaged back to the same frequency by the aliasing process. If the situation is not fixed, there is no hope for high quality audio for the galaxy... Anyone knows if with 2.2 upgrade this will work?
Do HTC desire or wildfire have similar issues? I am seriously considering swapping before my 14 days trial runs out: no point in having HD video (main selling point of the phone) if the audio is close to unuseable (and I don't want to go to Apple just yet)
The voice quality on my Galaxy S is really bad. I've had several people say to me that on calls it's difficult to understand what I'm saying and that the sound is either muffled or distorted.
I tried some recordings with the voice recorder app and these two don't sound clear at all.
Could this be caused by the same thing you're mentioning, or do I have a problem with my phone?
How do other people find the call quality (that is, someone listening to you calling *from* your Galaxy.)?
Meza1 said:
The voice quality on my Galaxy S is really bad. I've had several people say to me that on calls it's difficult to understand what I'm saying and that the sound is either muffled or distorted.
I tried some recordings with the voice recorder app and these two don't sound clear at all.
Could this be caused by the same thing you're mentioning, or do I have a problem with my phone?
How do other people find the call quality (that is, someone listening to you calling *from* your Galaxy.)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think this is related to the same bugs mentioned as the subject of this thread.
BTW, it looks like HTC desire has the same issue wrt video recording, so it might be an Android issue rather than a Samsung one...
You can find some additional details in the modaco forum, on thread samsung-galaxy-s-i9000-mic-sensitivity-recording.
(can't add the link here)
ilcello said:
(...)
2 - This is an issue I have not seen documented anywhere: no matter what application I use, I am not able to record at any higher sampling rate than 22.050kHz. (...)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After flashing the european firmware JM1 from Kies I am able to record at 44.1 kHz now!
Haven't checked aliasing yet.
I'm on JM2 and this is a topic that I would very much be interested in.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
There is another older post but still active here:
http://ip208-100-42-21.static.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=721069
Same problem gggrrr
I recorded a friend of mine singing last night and the audio on the video is terrible and i mean really terrible, the picture is fine but the audio, nope.
I have heard that there is a way to load in a new kernal to be able to change the sensitivity of the mic but i'm not sure if that is the way to go or not, i just want to be able to record video that sounds good, please help.
Flash a kernel with voodoo sound. Then the audio quality will be amazing
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Read this thread
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=806195&page=103
I've used voodoo sound ever since I go this phone. You don't even have to flash a kernel anymore, supercurio's made it even easier, as long as you have root just go onto the market and buy Voodoo Control Plus and unlock the true audio capabilities of your Galaxy S
I started out with JPY and using Tape Machine I've been able to record just fine at 44100Hz. Same with JVB.
Thanks for that, i installed voodoo control plus, really easy to do, at a gig tonight so i will record and see what the sound is like on the video, thanks again
russellhearn69 said:
Thanks for that, i installed voodoo control plus, really easy to do, at a gig tonight so i will record and see what the sound is like on the video, thanks again
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank supercurio not me
I have a new T-Mobile HTC One. I tried testing out the video quality and recorded a song playing from my stereo system. After recording it, I noticed almost all of the sound was on the left channel, and the right channel was almost non-existent. I uploaded the video to my computer to hear it and noticed the same issue - the left earphone was loud and clear, the right was very quiet.
Is this a defect with my device? How does it differentiate between the left and right sounds when recording audio? Is the back mic for the left channel and the bottom mic for the right?
Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks
mic
jpzsports said:
I have a new T-Mobile HTC One. I tried testing out the video quality and recorded a song playing from my stereo system. After recording it, I noticed almost all of the sound was on the left channel, and the right channel was almost non-existent. I uploaded the video to my computer to hear it and noticed the same issue - the left earphone was loud and clear, the right was very quiet.
Is this a defect with my device? How does it differentiate between the left and right sounds when recording audio? Is the back mic for the left channel and the bottom mic for the right?
Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You may have had your hand accidentally covering the back mic.........
CC
I wish, but I've tried multiple times and my hand isn't blocking anything. I talked to HTC and they think it's a hardware defect. I'll probably need to get a new device. I'm just curious as to how the phone records the L vs. R channels.
EDIT: It's definitely an issue with the bottom microphone. When I cover the back speaker, the video's sound is almost gone. When I cover the bottom speaker (right channel), there isn't much of a difference at all.
Can anyone do me a favor and test their HTC One's video recording by recording a video with some audio playing, and then cover up the back mic, and then let go of that and then try covering the bottom speaker. When you play back the video, does it sound like both channels are equal (in other words, both mic's are recording).
Are you still waiting for an answer? Yes I can reproduce a true Stereo Recording with the HTC video app. If I cover one of the mics the signal on the other side is still unchanged. If I blow into the mainmic (near the usb port) it is only on the right channel. If i blow into the camcorder mic (near the lense) it is only on the left audiochannel.
BUT if you use a third party video or one of the audio apps on the market which are able to record just audio (lile RecForge or VoicePro) you will find that the camcorder mic ist not used.
This occurs even if the app uses AudioRecord with the parameter CHANNEL_IN_STEREO. I guess HTC uses a command to activate the camcorder audiochannel before recording.
For all who are serarching a worarround: Look here.
Ralf
Hi,
strangely, i find the audio quality to be very poor (much worse than the GNEX i'm coming from anyway).
- sound stage is much narrower using the walkman app.
- using poweramp has proven to be impossible : there is an awful background noize (that i don't get either with the walkman app, either with google play music, like a FM radio interference.) The sound stage seems wider (I suppose this is thanks to the "direct volume control" feature of poweramp)
I did the test with 320kbps mp3, and a wide range of CD quality FLAC files.
I have tried the high res usb DAC output, but will not be using it on a daily basis as :
- it requires the platic waterproof protection to be off
- with my usb dac (dragonfly 1.2) the phone cannot control the dac's volume control (100% output volume would smash to pieces my earphones, and my ears)
- having a cable attached to the microusb port is the best way to break the port...
I'm not using any of the rubbishy musiFX, clearaudio stuff.
My earphones are high end IEMs (westone W60).
Anyone experienced this too ?
Well, I have encountered similar problem with you..
For the noise floor, it seems that this problem appears only if you use Poweramp, I have tried to use walkman and folder player with creative in-ear 3 and ATH-AD900X, the noise floor is not very obvious. Generally, I think z3c has a relatively good control of noise floor, and the arising of noise is due to Poweramp.
For the sound stage, yes it is narrower when you use Walkman, open the Clear Audio+ will enlarge sound stage a little bit but then the problem of sibilance arises
YEEES. Thank you so much for confirming I'm not going nuts and my phone is not malfunctioning !
I've sent a bug report to poweramp devs. I hope it gets fixed...
I personally can't bare clearaudio-style features which tend to give the feeling the music was recording microphone was set up inside a can...
ps: btw I learnt a new word today : sibilance.
ps2 : please upvote the bug thread on poweramp's forum (http://forum.powerampapp.com/index.php?/topic/6857-horrible-noise-floor-on-z3-compact/)
ps3: forgot to mention, this noise problem is related to Direct Volume Control. disabling this feature in poweramp removes the noise issue, but also reduces sound quality and sound stage.
icsha said:
Well, I have encountered similar problem with you..
For the noise floor, it seems that this problem appears only if you use Poweramp, I have tried to use walkman and folder player with creative in-ear 3 and ATH-AD900X, the noise floor is not very obvious. Generally, I think z3c has a relatively good control of noise floor, and the arising of noise is due to Poweramp.
For the sound stage, yes it is narrower when you use Walkman, open the Clear Audio+ will enlarge sound stage a little bit but then the problem of sibilance arises
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hi, i'm too dissapointed about the music quality.
it was much better when i installed custom rom on xperia tipo with z1 features, clearaudio+ gave the huge quality boost
Hi did anyone try recording a musical instrument with the Nokia 8?
Is anyone willing to try and do something simple with a guitar or something else I'm really curious what the OZO sounds like when recording a musical instrument...
Thanks guaranteed!!
I haven't recorded isolated instruments, but I have noticed that in loud settings (concert venue, car stereo) the microphone seems to saturate and clip pretty easily. I haven't seen any kind of gain control, either. It would probably be pretty decent in a quiet, more studio-like setting, but it doesn't seem to handle louder environments well.
xasbo said:
I haven't recorded isolated instruments, but I have noticed that in loud settings (concert venue, car stereo) the microphone seems to saturate and clip pretty easily. I haven't seen any kind of gain control, either. It would probably be pretty decent in a quiet, more studio-like setting, but it doesn't seem to handle louder environments well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you this information is very useful for me, that kind of clipping worries me as I also play a high tin whistle that it's shrill high notes could cause microphones to clip, do you think they can fix that gain issue? Is the recording you did after the recent updates? Also have you tried recording a loud environment with a different phone to compare if they would clip in the same loud environments? Especially interested in the LG V30 or G6 with regard... I also heard that the new Sony Xperias should be good with regard and able to record loud concerts... Thank you very much!
I watched a video on Youtube in which a person used a Nokia 8 to record pushing back a Boeing 777 aircraft! wow! the sound is very crisp and doesn't clip despite the relatively loud environment, xasbo, do you reckon your specific unit could be faulty? and the clipping has been fixed in more recent units? thanks for your help!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jBIBjL-uXQ
The Galaxy S9 is an audio powerhouse. It has the first set of stereo speakers on a Samsung flagship, and it even comes standard with a set of AKG-tuned earbuds that would normally cost $99. But if you want to further enhance your audio experience, there's a feature that will customize audio output to your own specific hearing.
The feature, aptly called Adapt Sound, is hidden deep within the settings menu on your S9 or S9+, but will make a world of difference in audio quality once enabled. As its name implies, Adapt Sound will fine tune your S9's audio and customize it to perfectly match your hearing, which dramatically enhances the perceived quality of any set of headphones.
Step 1 Find the 'Adapt Sound' Menu
To start, head to your phone's main Settings menu, then select "Sounds and Vibration." From there, scroll down and tap on "Sound quality and effects" found along the bottom half of the menu.
Now, tap on "Adapt Sound" near the bottom of the screen. You'll be asked to grant phone call related permissions, so tap "Allow" on the prompt. Within "Adapt Sound," leave the available age-based sound profiles alone, and tap on "Add Personalized Sound Profile."
Step 2 Take the Hearing Test
Now, go to a totally quiet location and plug in your headphones. Tap on the "Start" button on the bottom when you're ready. Adapt Sound will now run a hearing test, which consists of a series of beeps of varying frequencies from the left and right earbuds. It'll ask if you can hear each tone along the way, so take your time and answer honestly in order to create an accurate profile.
Once the test reaches 100%, you'll now notice a personalized equalizer catered to each ear. Now that you've completed the test, you're free to move on to the final step.
Step 3 Finalize Your Audio Profile
After finishing the tests, Adapt Sound will ask for you to choose your preferred ear for phone calls. Once you've made your decision, your custom audio profile will be activated and made available for preview. So tap on "Preview" and check out the difference Adapt Sound makes by toggling between "Personalized" and "Original," along with "Left," "Right," and "Both" ears.
In addition to this, you have the option of naming your sound profile — simply tap on "Profile name" and enter your desired label when prompted. After that, tap on "Save" in the upper-right corner to save your profile and finish up with setup.
With Adapt Sound enabled, we highly recommend playing your favorite song to determine exactly how much of an impact it's made on sound quality. It'll make a huge difference on how you hear audio, especially if your hearing isn't great to begin with.
Xperience Z said:
The Galaxy S9 is an audio powerhouse. It has the first set of stereo speakers on a Samsung flagship, and it even comes standard with a set of AKG-tuned earbuds that would normally cost $99. But if you want to further enhance your audio experience, there's a feature that will customize audio output to your own specific hearing.
The feature, aptly called Adapt Sound, is hidden deep within the settings menu on your S9 or S9+, but will make a world of difference in audio quality once enabled. As its name implies, Adapt Sound will fine tune your S9's audio and customize it to perfectly match your hearing, which dramatically enhances the perceived quality of any set of headphones.
Step 1 Find the 'Adapt Sound' Menu
To start, head to your phone's main Settings menu, then select "Sounds and Vibration." From there, scroll down and tap on "Sound quality and effects" found along the bottom half of the menu.
Now, tap on "Adapt Sound" near the bottom of the screen. You'll be asked to grant phone call related permissions, so tap "Allow" on the prompt. Within "Adapt Sound," leave the available age-based sound profiles alone, and tap on "Add Personalized Sound Profile."
Step 2 Take the Hearing Test
Now, go to a totally quiet location and plug in your headphones. Tap on the "Start" button on the bottom when you're ready. Adapt Sound will now run a hearing test, which consists of a series of beeps of varying frequencies from the left and right earbuds. It'll ask if you can hear each tone along the way, so take your time and answer honestly in order to create an accurate profile.
Once the test reaches 100%, you'll now notice a personalized equalizer catered to each ear. Now that you've completed the test, you're free to move on to the final step.
Step 3 Finalize Your Audio Profile
After finishing the tests, Adapt Sound will ask for you to choose your preferred ear for phone calls. Once you've made your decision, your custom audio profile will be activated and made available for preview. So tap on "Preview" and check out the difference Adapt Sound makes by toggling between "Personalized" and "Original," along with "Left," "Right," and "Both" ears.
In addition to this, you have the option of naming your sound profile — simply tap on "Profile name" and enter your desired label when prompted. After that, tap on "Save" in the upper-right corner to save your profile and finish up with setup.
With Adapt Sound enabled, we highly recommend playing your favorite song to determine exactly how much of an impact it's made on sound quality. It'll make a huge difference on how you hear audio, especially if your hearing isn't great to begin with.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How is the audio over head/ear phones? I previously had the Galaxy S7 and while it was a great device, I found the audio output via the 3.5mm socket to be pretty underwhelming. And I had tuned it using the similar software function above, but it was still under par for me. I haven't tried the S8 but seen a review that said the audio/earphone quality still wasn't that great. So hoping the S9 has been improved, as they have been focusing on improving audio albeit via the external speakers. Im in the UK so believe it would be the Exynos model if that makes any difference.
Sent from my Redmi Note 4 using Tapatalk
I just did this and it made quite a difference. Thanks for sharing this.
gsmyth said:
How is the audio over head/ear phones? I previously had the Galaxy S7 and while it was a great device, I found the audio output via the 3.5mm socket to be pretty underwhelming. And I had tuned it using the similar software function above, but it was still under par for me. I haven't tried the S8 but seen a review that said the audio/earphone quality still wasn't that great. So hoping the S9 has been improved, as they have been focusing on improving audio albeit via the external speakers. Im in the UK so believe it would be the Exynos model if that makes any difference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Juice3250 said:
I just did this and it made quite a difference. Thanks for sharing this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For me made it a quite difference also.
The sound is very nice. And with this small trick much better.
I turned on the Atmos setting, and immediately noticed the difference, just on speakers as the headset is in the car.
Dolby Atmos is terrible
wmharley said:
I turned on the Atmos setting, and immediately noticed the difference, just on speakers as the headset is in the car.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if you use high quality headphones, you can noticeably tell that atmos is terrible. it compresses the sound and gives it an unnatural vibe. I find that none of the extra features actually enhances, so i leave everything off. fellow members at head-fi have found the same results I have.
I need to try this with my beats x
adapt sound is also dependent on your headphones. you may think you have lost some hearing if you use headphones that have narrower frequencies, because that pair is just unable to output certain frequencies, so do this test with headphones that can output more, if you want a more accurate result of your current hearing.
radiohead14 said:
if you use high quality headphones, you can noticeably tell that atmos is terrible. it compresses the sound and gives it an unnatural vibe. I find that none of the extra features actually enhances, so i leave everything off. fellow members at head-fi have found the same results I have.
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For me the phones amp is kind of weak so atoms gives it a volume boost in a conveniently easy push of 1 button.
Without it over ear headphones that are 32 ohms are slightly below my preferred listening volume. With ear buds the volume is fine as long as I have a great seal. I find the included AKG's decent in sound quality but not very compatible with my ears shape so I'm constantly pushing them in.
I did the Headphine Sound setup but didn't find it to have made a vast difference in my listening experience. Maybe if toggling between profiles I could notice a little difference but nothing that makes me feel like a whole new world has opened up to me.
I've used the SHPS 9500s over ears, Westone w40 IEM, and the included AKG IEM.
I listened to a HiRes Flac 192/24 and felt like the track lacked life without the Atmos turned on, this was especially the case when using over ear headphones.
Will try with my PSB M4U 1 closed back over ear phones soon.
mc_365 said:
For me the phones amp is kind of weak so atoms gives it a volume boost in a conveniently easy push of 1 button.
Without it over ear headphones that are 32 ohms are slightly below my preferred listening volume. With ear buds the volume is fine as long as I have a great seal. I find the included AKG's decent in sound quality but not very compatible with my ears shape so I'm constantly pushing them in.
I did the Headphine Sound setup but didn't find it to have made a vast difference in my listening experience. Maybe if toggling between profiles I could notice a little difference but nothing that makes me feel like a whole new world has opened up to me.
I've used the SHPS 9500s over ears, Westone w40 IEM, and the included AKG IEM.
I listened to a HiRes Flac 192/24 and felt like the track lacked life without the Atmos turned on, this was especially the case when using over ear headphones.
Will try with my PSB M4U 1 closed back over ear phones soon.
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Click to collapse
agree that the phone's amp is weak. the earphone i used for testing, a Sennheiser IE80, doesn't have any issues, but the stock AKG and various Sony I tried were on the weaker side. Atmos, I found, also varies on the track played, but the increase in volume you hear is probably due to the compression, so it'll give you that increase in volume, but you may also not notice that certain frequencies have been dampened. Testing various tracks with different earphones, I found that in most cases, Atmos just muddies songs.. almost like a blanket was put over it. The only times I found Atmos to be preferable was when playing older tracks that weren't mixed well and were on the trebly side. Atmos hid some sibilance due to my previous finding of Atmos just kinda putting a dampen on most tracks.
also agree on the stock AKG's not being the ideal in-ear fit, as i too have found myself constantly having to adjust (i commute in NYC transit, so this was a good test of isolation). the littlest movement, and you lose a lot of low end and volume.
i suggest you do the adapt sound test with the headphones you will use the most with the phone, as it is highly dependent on the frequencies. and if your hearing is still really good, then you may not find much benefit to it. it's mainly pushing frequencies higher if your hearing has lost some ability to discern those. so if your hearing is great, then you may not find much difference.
gsmyth said:
How is the audio over head/ear phones? I previously had the Galaxy S7 and while it was a great device, I found the audio output via the 3.5mm socket to be pretty underwhelming. And I had tuned it using the similar software function above, but it was still under par for me. I haven't tried the S8 but seen a review that said the audio/earphone quality still wasn't that great. So hoping the S9 has been improved, as they have been focusing on improving audio albeit via the external speakers. Im in the UK so believe it would be the Exynos model if that makes any difference.
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I seriously feel like my S7 was way louder... Im even considering to root this device just to edit the mixer gains xml for more volume... this is really dissapointing.
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