Develop Bugs

Distorted bass (headphone jack)

I am having a problem with the headphone output. When listening to anything bass heavy... such as house music, the bass is distorted. Its sounds almost as if the headphones I am using are blown. I know this is not the issue because I have tested several different pairs, all with the same result. I even experience this when I have the phone hooked up to my car stereo. Volume isn't an issue and everything else seems to sound fine... its just that bass notes and kick drums sound horrible.
I'm coming from a Vibrant which was a powerhouse with voodoo sound enabled.
I understand that the Yamaha dac in the SGSII is nowhere near as good as the Wolfson used in the SGS... but it shouldn't sound this bad?!?!
I have tried just about every audio/dsp app available to no avail.
Does anyone else have this issue?
Also... not sure if it matters but I am running Juggernaut v3.7
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

hmm I was going to suggest you get power amp and just turn down the overall level in the eq. that might help in troubleshooting where in the signal chain the distortion is coming from. If it remains distorted at low level i would assume it wsa a hardware problem.
Ive certainly not any problems with distortion as long as i keep good gain structure in my eq.

I have tried power amp. I also tried lowering all the levels down. Nothing works
I forgot to mention that the problem exists even at the lowest volume settings... quite fustrating
I really hope it isn't faulty hardware... not sure ill be able to get a replacement

Completely different hardware but I had this issue on my HD2 after either making the lower frequency settings too high with other DSP or equalizers or when I used root level volume boosters like Volume Hack+
Are you using a stock (non-flashed non-rooted) build? If not, you can try a nand backup and flash a fresh install of your ROM. Not installing anything and go back to the same songs to see if they distort.
The SGS2 can push a good amount of low frequency granted you have earphones/equipment that can pick up low frequency output. I use it in my cars and with my Sennheiser headphones with no real issues and great output. Even with max volume, no distortion.
The HD2 was capable of only so much before it distorted but I haven't been able to replicate the issue with my SGS2. But then again, I haven't installed DSP or any other 3rd party volume/equalizer apps.

Im running juggernaut 3.7 w/ bullet kernel. To be honest I didnt check what it sounded like prior to rooting and flashing the custom rom. I only installed the dsp apps to fix the problem.
A new release just came out so I will take your advice, wipe and start with a fresh install.
Hope it fixes the problem.... its really driving me nuts.

Have you tried a different ROM? If not, try CM7 Alpha v3. Theres nothing like CM's DSP Manager.
Make a NANDROID backup first, that way if the problem still persists, you can always easily switch back to your current ROM.

Loud bass = turning volume down (AUX)

Hey.
Im a very satisfied One X user, and its really a great device, but I've found a bug/problem that is a pain in the ass.
When my phone is connected to my cars stereo (Aux port) and im listening to music from One X music player or youtube, the volume decreases when the bass kick gets loud, why is it doing this?
I have used my Desire and Sensation on the same "setup", and they did'nt make any problems.
Help?

Could be something with sound enhancement settings you use.
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA

supendal said:
Could be something with sound enhancement settings you use.
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im using Beats, because it gives me the best sound quality I think.

if you use "bass boost" on anything you will lose the higher end sounds and also volume, i would try using a different profile.

Lennydk87 said:
Im using Beats, because it gives me the best sound quality I think.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Beats is the problem, turn it off.

Beats uses very high compression, to produce a loud sound, this is your problem, get your player out of this dreadful setting, re-adjust your hearing and then enjoy your music!

Sounds like compression, can't say I've heard it that bad on my one x even with beats on though it will notice more on certain types of music, especially some modern music or remastered albums.
Maybe it's a setting in your stereo or choice of player, are you using an FM transmitter plugged into the Aux or any type of input box or is it a straight jack to jack?

Im using a jack cable directly from my One X to my car stereo.
And the type of music im primarily listening to is Hardcore gabber, the hardest type of electronic music.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VynanJCz638

Lennydk87 said:
Hey.
Im a very satisfied One X user, and its really a great device, but I've found a bug/problem that is a pain in the ass.
When my phone is connected to my cars stereo (Aux port) and im listening to music from One X music player or youtube, the volume decreases when the bass kick gets loud, why is it doing this?
I have used my Desire and Sensation on the same "setup", and they did'nt make any problems.
Help?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Beats compresses the hell out of absolutely everything. All it does is EQ the sound a bit, compress everything and add some stereo widening. You're MUCH better disabling it and using PowerAMPs built-in EQ or something, It'll give a much better sound.

Probably best to turn off beats and use a flat eq on the phone and use the eq on your car stereo to get the sound you want.
Or try DSPManager for your phone

head over to my post to install DPSManager allows you more control over the sound then beats
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1636914

Volume/Equalizer mods/apps/etc

Hey guys,
So my previous Android device, I downloaded a graphic EQ, and it just worked. Even if I was watching a movie sans headphones, I could use it to boost mid-range so that dialogue was a little louder. It didn't increase overall volume, but it did shape sound and it didn't decrease overall volume.
On my T211, I have downloaded EQs, and they work provided I am not streaming audio via bluetooth. It would kind of be cool if they worked with bluetooth speakers as well (not sure if they work with bluetooth headphones) - but the bigger annoyance for me, is that if I boost one frequency, it seems that the overall media volume declines proportionately. I don't know if it works exactly to that effect, but it is something like that; the EQ improves the sound quality quite a bit, in fairness the bass is better quality than with my previous phone (w/headphones), but the music only gets so loud. Then I turn the EQ off, and the music is noticeably louder, but the sound is flat and lower quality. It's as if there's an internal safeguard to limit overall audio output, or the power it uses, or something.
There seem to be several files in the system/etc folder which would seem to govern volume and audio effects. But I haven't figured out any more than that. Not a big deal - I own a headphone amplifier - but I have seen a tweak to improve headphone volume on the Note 2 and more generally I feel this is a worthy subject for discussion. Anybody have input? If it matters, I deleted my MusicFX.apk file and 'Music Effects' no longer appears in my settings menu (which shouldn't make a difference considering my EQs do work.

[Q] earphone over external speaker, is it possible?

I tried to do a search for headphones over the speaker but didn't come up with anything, so...if a thread like this is already out there please point in right direction and delete then. Alrighty on to the question.
When you plug your earphones into the phone you get to listen to some radio(FM) but you also have the option to play the FM radio over the speaker itself, which is awesome. Now I want to know IF something like that is possible for youtube as well? I can't see anything that can enable me to choose the speaker itself(like with FM radio) and instead forces me to listen to it over the earphones.
Is there an option like that and if so, where?
Yes, I'm well aware that this might seem like a completely stupid question, but at any given time someone has to be the idiot that asks it :victory:

BerndM14 said:
I tried to do a search for headphones over the speaker but didn't come up with anything, so...if a thread like this is already out there please point in right direction and delete then. Alrighty on to the question.
When you plug your earphones into the phone you get to listen to some radio(FM) but you also have the option to play the FM radio over the speaker itself, which is awesome. Now I want to know IF something like that is possible for youtube as well? I can't see anything that can enable me to choose the speaker itself(like with FM radio) and instead forces me to listen to it over the earphones.
Is there an option like that and if so, where?
Yes, I'm well aware that this might seem like a completely stupid question, but at any given time someone has to be the idiot that asks it :victory:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't understand why this option would need to exist. Headphones need to be plugged in for FM radio to work because they act as the antenna, which is why you get the option to use the speaker, alternatively. YouTube doesn't need an FM antenna, so just unplug your headphones if you want to use the speakers.

craig0r said:
I don't understand why this option would need to exist. Headphones need to be plugged in for FM radio to work because they act as the antenna, which is why you get the option to use the speaker, alternatively. YouTube doesn't need an FM antenna, so just unplug your headphones if you want to use the speakers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because the audio is louder... Have you tried to listen to a radio station through FM on the speaker and then go and listen to a stream of it at full volume? Somehow it seems that the volume can go higher with the earphones plugged in than to have it NOT plugged in. Yet...It could perhaps be argued that the stream sounds less loud(regardless of the fact that the volume is maxed out) because it is indeed a stream and it might have some interference.
But if the volume can actually go higher as a result of the earphones being plugged in, why can't we have the option then to have the volume louder if we so choose, by plugging in the earphones and maxing out the volume over the speaker? Like we do with FM...?
I take it though, from your response, that such a thing is not possible?

BerndM14 said:
Because the audio is louder... Have you tried to listen to a radio station through FM on the speaker and then go and listen to a stream of it at full volume? Somehow it seems that the volume can go higher with the earphones plugged in than to have it NOT plugged in. Yet...It could perhaps be argued that the stream sounds less loud(regardless of the fact that the volume is maxed out) because it is indeed a stream and it might have some interference.
But if the volume can actually go higher as a result of the earphones being plugged in, why can't we have the option then to have the volume louder if we so choose, by plugging in the earphones and maxing out the volume over the speaker? Like we do with FM...?
I take it though, from your response, that such a thing is not possible?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ahh, I think I'm starting to follow. There are a number of factors that are likely causing this differentiation, none of which have to do with having headphones plugged in.
A radio station's FM broadcast and internet broadcast are processed and compressed in different ways. FM compression is analog, while internet compression is digital, and there are crazy different algorithms, but both come down to fitting the "signal" or "data" into a particular bandwidth.
With FM, a station just throws the signal out in all directions, and while it's technically not comparable, there is less need for compression here, as with the internet broadcast, the more listeners there are, the more taxing it is, thus the digital signal is likely more compressed. This is probably more or less the reason for the discrepancy.
Also the streams could be normalized differently. Or any number of other variables. For all intents and purposes, the FM stream and internet stream are two completely different things.
I hope this helped!
(And no, as far as I know there's no option to do what you want, but even if there were, it wouldn't have the effect you're looking for )

Why would compression affect volume? It's not like you need more bits to go louder.

BenPope said:
Why would compression affect volume? It's not like you need more bits to go louder.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
FM audio doesn't have bits, for starters, it's analog radio waves. Functionally, an FM broadcast path is analog to analog to analog, where as a digital broadcast path is closer to "analog to digital to analog."
And from a technical standpoint, yes, more bits *does* equal louder. The more you compress digital audio, the more audio is being removed from the stream. MP3 compression (and probably M4A/AAC) remove the high-end and low-end frequencies:
In a compressionless, raw, audio file, a ton of bits are wasted on sound that is beyond the range of human hearing, and the range that speakers can produce. The point of digital audio compression is to eliminate the functionally "empty" bits, however the more compression there is, the more it starts removing what humans/speakers CAN process. As you approach high compression, mp3s will lose more and more sound, but even with mild compression, you're going to lose the crispness of the highs (like cymbals) and the lows (bass guitars/synths.) This will give it a muddy sound, and as there are less cymbals and bass guitars, the sound is technically quieter. In fact, if you were to compress an mp3 down to like 1Kbps, it's going to mostly sound like static. But I'm not aware of any audio tools that will let you go that low. Online radio stations typically broadcast at 64Kbps or 96Kbps. Which is crap. (Of course I haven't listened to online radio in years, it's probably better by now.) To put it another way, an FM transmission can broadcast at full strength, whether one person is listening or a million. With a digital broadcast, one million listeners will be far more taxing on bandwidth than just one person listening, so it's not cost-effective to broadcast with the same signal quality as FM. Of course FM is subject to radio interference, but that's not selective the way digital is. On FM you'll hear other noises on top of the signal, but as long as your signal is relatively decent, you're not losing much.
Without teaching a course on audio processing, basically:
More processing = more degradation.
More compression = more degradation
Analog is very different than digital for a multitude of reasons that I'm not going into.
EDIT: Also, FM does use compression, but it's a different type. Rather than removing audio based on pitch frequency as digital compression does, it uses dynamic compression, more akin to what a guitarist's compression pedal would do. It makes the quiet noises louder and the loud noises quieter, definitely makes quiet songs louder than if you were listening to an mp3, which doesn't do this type of compression.
ANOTHER EDIT: Unless the topic steers back towards mobile development, I won't indulge this thread anymore. XDA isn't for audio discussions (yes, I know I'm the one who took it off the rails in the first place.) If anyone is still confused as to why FM audio and digital audio sound different, you can PM me.

Dragonfly red USB-DAC loudness issue / 5x / Stock ROM

Hey guys,
I just bought a nice USB-OTG DAC for Hi-Fi sound, the Audioquest Dragonfly Red. I really like the augmented sound it delivers - although I noticed a major drawback:
The maximum sound is strongly limited due to a false recognition of the true max volume by the phone. Loudness is controlled by the phone digitally, there're no buttons on the device itself.
According to my research, it is a known issue that the device is always started with level 22 of possible 64 levels of volume. This is intended to prevent harm to one's ears. But Android phones mistake level 22 as the total maximum and don't allow to go any louder. The manufacturer says that this can only be corrected over the ROM. There IS a workaround by using 'USB audio player pro', because this app directly controls the sound output. BUT, I want to listen to Spotify and Tidal, and these apps do NOT allow sound output control.
Any ideas?

I think the problem can be fixed by disabling safe headphone volume (can be done via GravityBox, not sure if there is another method) or redictering audio using SoundAbout app.
Both methods require root privileges and in my opinion this isn't a solution you're looking for.
Just sharing my ideas.

Yeah, redirecting sound output is about what I would have guessed. I just wanted to check if there's already a working solution for non-rooted devices before rooting mine.
The thing is, that I tried a couple of USB-OTG DACs, and only the Dragonfly red is having this issue. Unfortunately it's also the best sounding one...

you can find poll on reddit.

Alright, it's working with USB audio player pro. But - one major drawback:
Although Tidal is supported, this workaround does not allow for playback of offline Tidal tracks... So still no solution that'll work in everyday life...

I spent last few hours to look for options for making the Dragonfly Red work with my Z3C. This post on Pixel 2 https://forum.xda-developers.com/pixel-2-xl/themes/pixel-2-usb-audio-control-t3704024 works perfectly to significantly increase the Red's volume, however, its interface doesn't fit properly on smaller screens (HD on Z3C).