Develop Bugs

[Q] 4g Speed Decreases Drastically After Root

So I have no idea what would be causing this, but here's the deal. I'm on a Boost SGS2 E4GT, and when I'm on stock I average around 3-4 mbps using the wimax where I'm at. Then I flash AGAT kernel via Odin, flash SU, and then I can't break 600kpbs no matter what server I pick on Speedtest. Then I odin back to full stock and my speeds go right back up. What gives? Any ideas?

GPadraic said:
So I have no idea what would be causing this, but here's the deal. I'm on a Boost SGS2 E4GT, and when I'm on stock I average around 3-4 mbps using the wimax where I'm at. Then I flash AGAT kernel via Odin, flash SU, and then I can't break 600kpbs no matter what server I pick on Speedtest. Then I odin back to full stock and my speeds go right back up. What gives? Any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It has to do with the custom kernel. You can flash agat's stock repact kernel, so you have a custome recovery, re-root and you should be fine after that. But there is a speed deffernce between custom kernels and stock kernels. They have an effect on the modem. I don't kow why, but I can say personally that I have experienced this as well.

I can confirm that this worked. I did a speedtest and pulled 600kbps from my local server. Then flashed agat repack, rebooted, then got 8mbps on the same server.
So you're absolutely right it is the custom kernel, thank you! Does this mean that I'm stuck on tw based roms if i want 4g speeds?
Sent from my SPH-D710BST using Tapatalk 2

GPadraic said:
I can confirm that this worked. I did a speedtest and pulled 600kbps from my local server. Then flashed agat repack, rebooted, then got 8mbps on the same server.
So you're absolutely right it is the custom kernel, thank you! Does this mean that I'm stuck on tw based roms if i want 4g speeds?
Sent from my SPH-D710BST using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't say stuck. You can try different AOSP/CM type ROMs. And see if your speeds go up or down.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium

Okay thanks. I'll shop around and see what i can see.
Sent from my SPH-D710BST using Tapatalk 2

Bump -- I've been looking but havent found any. Anyone know of AOSP/CM10 compatible kernels that don't cripple 4g speed?

GPadraic said:
So I have no idea what would be causing this, but here's the deal. I'm on a Boost SGS2 E4GT, and when I'm on stock I average around 3-4 mbps using the wimax where I'm at. Then I flash AGAT kernel via Odin, flash SU, and then I can't break 600kpbs no matter what server I pick on Speedtest. Then I odin back to full stock and my speeds go right back up. What gives? Any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can also try different modems as well as kernels. keep in mind that from one minute to the next the cell towers can get jammed with traffic slowing your speeds down. However it is true some custom rom can deplete 4g speeds, but the user experience with a custom rom can be so much better than the stock experience. Some people like the stock roms. Thats th beauty of android, we have so many choices

cerj said:
You can also try different modems as well as kernels. keep in mind that from one minute to the next the cell towers can get jammed with traffic slowing your speeds down. However it is true some custom rom can deplete 4g speeds, but the user experience with a custom rom can be so much better than the stock experience. Some people like the stock roms. Thats th beauty of android, we have so many choices
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I certainly understand about that the speed will vary, but I'm talking an a difference of 8mb/s. If I run on stock kernel, I get 9mb/s pretty consistently. If custom, I max out at 600kb/s. If I go back and forth between the kernels I see my speed vary as I would expect (e.g. within five minutes, speedtest on stock kernel gets 9mb/s then flash custom and get 600kb/s).
I like custom roms, too, but I also like getting what I paid for in terms of 4g, hence my dilemma.

ASOP, AKOP, CM10 and wimax

I would like to have to have just a normal Jelly Bean 4.1 or know 4.2.1 experience of my phone. I tried out the Pacman rom and CM10 rom. Both have the same issue. My 4g wimax speeds go from 10megs to 750kbps.
Is there something that I missing or is everyone just fine with horrible speeds? I even tried the temp boot and updated my PRL and such.
Is there anyone running a stock android 4.1 or 4.2.1 with 10 meg wimax speeds? or does this not exists.
currently im running TW jelly bean FL16 rom....perfect wimax. so its not JB.
~also which I found annoying was this was the same issue on my piece of crap evo3d. wimax would go from 10megs down to 750kbps on every ASOP, AKOP, CM9 and up.

spigen said:
I would like to have to have just a normal Jelly Bean 4.1 or know 4.2.1 experience of my phone. I tried out the Pacman rom and CM10 rom. Both have the same issue. My 4g wimax speeds go from 10megs to 750kbps.
Is there something that I missing or is everyone just fine with horrible speeds? I even tried the temp boot and updated my PRL and such.
Is there anyone running a stock android 4.1 or 4.2.1 with 10 meg wimax speeds? or does this not exists.
currently im running TW jelly bean FL16 rom....perfect wimax. so its not JB.
~also which I found annoying was this was the same issue on my piece of crap evo3d. wimax would go from 10megs down to 750kbps on every ASOP, AKOP, CM9 and up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some have said that its because there is no kernel source for JB. So aosp roms don't have kernel source for the kernels they use.

BluesRulez said:
Some have said that its because there is no kernel source for JB. So aosp roms don't have kernel source for the kernels they use.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So when the developer of the roms say 4g is working, its actually not?

spigen said:
So when the developer of the roms say 4g is working, its actually not?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. It is working.
Tbh I never fully trust speedtest.net servers. For example.. I have 2 servers in columbus, oh and 1 in radnor,oh near me. Columbus servers are 50 miles closer to me than radnor ones. Still I always get 2-3 times faster results on radnor servers.
So in reality I have a faster throughput but I am misled by server caps. Now i know this is not the case because obviously on a tw rom you get much faster results.
What I am trying to say here is that when I am on 4g on non tw roms, 4g is much faster than 3g even though speedtests tells another story for me. 4g and 3g speedtests give me similar results. I also get faster tranafer rates when downloading files when on 4g.
So my guess always has been that on non tw jb roms, speedtests are not measured correctly.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app

BluesRulez said:
No. It is working.
Tbh I never fully trust speedtest.net servers. For example.. I have 2 servers in columbus, oh and 1 in radnor,oh near me. Columbus servers are 50 miles closer to me than radnor ones. Still I always get 2-3 times faster results on radnor servers.
So in reality I have a faster throughput but I am misled by server caps. Now i know this is not the case because obviously on a tw rom you get much faster results.
What I am trying to say here is that when I am on 4g on non tw roms, 4g is much faster than 3g even though speedtests tells another story for me. 4g and 3g speedtests give me similar results. I also get faster tranafer rates when downloading files when on 4g.
So my guess always has been that on non tw jb roms, speedtests are not measured correctly.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i live in downtown Cincinnati with perfect 4g signal. Speedtest is one way to check. Another is by trying to download things.it took a couple mins to download speedtest. I mean its like being on 56k modem or something. So no 4g is not working correctly. it might be working, but at 1/12 of the speed its suppose to.

The source for aosp kernel was made from ics kernel source which apparently has a buggy 4g problem... That's why custom kernels also have throttled 4g. Hopefully after jb source drops somebody will make another kernel with the new source...
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium

It's an issue with source built kernels. Nobody really knows why it happens hut it is what it is. Repacked kernels are where it is if you want 4g speeds to not be absymal.
Sent from my SPH-D710

lilotimz said:
It's an issue with source built kernels. Nobody really knows why it happens hut it is what it is. Repacked kernels are where it is if you want 4g speeds to not be absymal.
Sent from my SPH-D710
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What roms come with repacked kernels? Does that mean just modded touchwiz based roms?

Service issues, what would you guys recommend?

Well I've been on AOSP ROMs for a couple of months now, and I love everything about them. The only thing I HATE is the service problems that come with them. So I switched back to the stock TW rom and updated my PRL and profile, my PRL went from 25012 to 25014 and my service at home (with an airave, mind you) was 3G and full bars. Thinking I had it all settled, I went back to AOSP and I'm still getting the service issues I had before: either I'm getting 1x + full bars, or 3G and 1-3 fluctuating bars, usually steady at 2 (again, this is on an airave, and my girlfriend with her iphone 5 has full 3G bars at my house). I've flashed every radio under the sun but they seem to make no noticeable difference.
Any ideas/suggestions? I'm not opposed to switching back to a TW rom...but I'd rather stay on AOSP. It seems to me that I have no choice though.

sevenpioverthree said:
Well I've been on AOSP ROMs for a couple of months now, and I love everything about them. The only thing I HATE is the service problems that come with them. So I switched back to the stock TW rom and updated my PRL and profile, my PRL went from 25012 to 25014 and my service at home (with an airave, mind you) was 3G and full bars. Thinking I had it all settled, I went back to AOSP and I'm still getting the service issues I had before: either I'm getting 1x + full bars, or 3G and 1-3 fluctuating bars, usually steady at 2 (again, this is on an airave, and my girlfriend with her iphone 5 has full 3G bars at my house). I've flashed every radio under the sun but they seem to make no noticeable difference.
Any ideas/suggestions? I'm not opposed to switching back to a TW rom...but I'd rather stay on AOSP. It seems to me that I have no choice though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you certain about the strength of your signal on TW? I know that the original stock TW does a little trick in making you think that you have higher signal than you actually do (showing 3G when you really only have 1x... showing 4 bars when you really don't have a strong signal). It's best to compare the actual signal strength in dB (under System Settings - About Phone - Status). I know some custom TW Roms fixed this so that it's consistent with AOSP, but I don't know which ones have and which haven't (and if it's not listed in their features, it's hard to tell without diving into some code). I'm not sure if the iPhone does the same trick as stock TW does, but I know my wife's iPhone 4S typically gets worse reception than my GS3, so anecdotally, it doesn't.
On the other hand, if you're experiencing considerably slower speeds on AOSP compared to TW, it might be cause to stick with TW. Now-a-days, TW is creeping closer to getting the features of AOSP, so it might be time to switch back.

topherk said:
Are you certain about the strength of your signal on TW? I know that the original stock TW does a little trick in making you think that you have higher signal than you actually do (showing 3G when you really only have 1x... showing 4 bars when you really don't have a strong signal). It's best to compare the actual signal strength in dB (under System Settings - About Phone - Status). I know some custom TW Roms fixed this so that it's consistent with AOSP, but I don't know which ones have and which haven't (and if it's not listed in their features, it's hard to tell without diving into some code). I'm not sure if the iPhone does the same trick as stock TW does, but I know my wife's iPhone 4S typically gets worse reception than my GS3, so anecdotally, it doesn't.
On the other hand, if you're experiencing considerably slower speeds on AOSP compared to TW, it might be cause to stick with TW. Now-a-days, TW is creeping closer to getting the features of AOSP, so it might be time to switch back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I should've added that I did compare signals under status and my signal reading was true. But I suppose you're right, time to learn all about TW roms.
Sent from my SPH-L710

sevenpioverthree said:
I should've added that I did compare signals under status and my signal reading was true. But I suppose you're right, time to learn all about TW roms.
Sent from my SPH-L710
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is one thing you can try (obviously Nandroid up before trying it). There's a thread that talks about poor 3G speed and the things you can do to fix it (not limited to AOSP or TW Roms, if I recall correctly). Here's the thread. I personally wouldn't flash the zip in the thread without look through it (I think it replaces your build.prop), but I would follow the steps in the linked thread to see if those tweaks will work.

So should I try the tweaks first and then resort to the zip?
Sent from my SPH-L710

sevenpioverthree said:
So should I try the tweaks first and then resort to the zip?
Sent from my SPH-L710
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm wary of the zip because I'm not sure if it's for TW or AOSP roms (doesn't say in the thread). If I recall correctly, the zip is just a modified build.prop sysctl.conf which includes the tweaks from his linked thread. He just made the flashable zip so people won't have to mess around inside system files. But since I don't know if it's specifically for AOSP, I'd personally be a little wary of it.
Edit: Since it's not a build.prop and is instead a sysctl.conf file, it might be safe to flash. I haven't looked too much into this recently, but I'd less wary since it's not a build.prop file you're flashing.

topherk said:
I'm wary of the zip because I'm not sure if it's for TW or AOSP roms (doesn't say in the thread). If I recall correctly, the zip is just a modified build.prop which includes the tweaks from his linked thread. He just made the flashable zip so people won't have to mess around inside system files. But since I don't know if it's specifically for AOSP, I'd personally be a little wary of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see, well thanks a bunch topherk I'll do my research and see how it goes
Sent from my SPH-L710

Hey OP... I don't know how phone savy you are lol, but........ here ya go.
Scroll half way down and do those tweaks.
---------- Post added at 02:19 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:19 PM ----------
topherk said:
On the other hand, if you're experiencing considerably slower speeds on AOSP compared to TW, it might be cause to stick with TW. Now-a-days, TW is creeping closer to getting the features of AOSP, so it might be time to switch back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like which features?! I've yet to see that lol.

Joe0113 said:
Hey OP... I don't know how phone savy you are lol, but........ here ya go.
Scroll half way down and do those tweaks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm guessing I use the "signal tweaks"?

sevenpioverthree said:
I'm guessing I use the "signal tweaks"?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do this at your own risk and follow EVERY SINGLE STEP.. Read, read and read some more. And when you think you're done reading, just do it one more time! And yes, signal tweaks and you can even do NetSpeed Tweaks as well to increase data speeds.

You could use a tw ROM with morphology. I have that and the aosp launcher.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app

WindroidApps said:
You could use a tw ROM with morphology. I have that and the aosp launcher.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I might do that, and I did confirm that my TW rom isn't playing a trick on me, the readings are true. On AOSP I'm usually at 80-100 dbm and 2 asu, whereas on TW I was at 75 dbm and 8/16 asu. This makes me sad ): I tried every tweak mentioned in this thread but to no avail. Oh well, TW isn't so bad, I just really like AOSP.

sevenpioverthree said:
I might do that, and I did confirm that my TW rom isn't playing a trick on me, the readings are true. On AOSP I'm usually at 80-100 dbm and 2 asu, whereas on TW I was at 75 dbm and 8/16 asu. This makes me sad ): I tried every tweak mentioned in this thread but to no avail. Oh well, TW isn't so bad, I just really like AOSP.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TW always tells you your 1X signal strength even under status in about phone. AOSP is telling you your 3G or LTE strength so that's why it seems different. Download SignalCheck from the Play store & it should tell you your actual signal strengths.

[Q] LTE on all AOSP ROMS

One reason that's kept me from flashing an AOSP rom and keeping it is the latest strength issue. I live in the middle of no where basically but some how I have lte which averages 10+mbps on two but drops to under 2mbps on every aspect romantic I've tried. I there a reason for this and any fixes available?
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app

I'm curious to see what others say about this. Others have said that AOSP ROMs simply display your true signal strength and that's why people think they have weaker signal but you are actually experiencing much weaker signal.
Just for more clarification, if you use an AOSP rom and have weak signal, can you just flash a tw rom and instantly have normal signal?

hewey_mx5 said:
I'm curious to see what others say about this. Others have said that AOSP ROMs simply display your true signal strength and that's why people think they have weaker signal but you are actually experiencing much weaker signal.
Just for more clarification, if you use an AOSP rom and have weak signal, can you just flash a tw rom and instantly have normal signal?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once I go back to tw my bars average 3-4 and speed tests are in the10+mbps range
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app

AOSP roms display your true voice/evdo signal, that's different from LTE/data.
The reason users tend to get less mobile data performance on AOSP is because, essentially, AOSP is ported to our device and to any device that is not a Nexus. That's why we have issues, because people like CM and preludedrew (evervolv) have to work with the files provided to us by the OEM, files which are not compiled for AOSP, but for whatever proprietary UI came with the phone (Sense, Touchwiz, Motoblur, LG UI, etc etc).
However, now with the leak from the S4 Google Edition, we should see all around improvements to the US SGS3 CM10.1 and other 4 2.2 AOSP roms.
See my post here for the reason behind that: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=43084900

CNexus said:
AOSP roms display your true voice/evdo signal, that's different from LTE/data.
The reason users tend to get less mobile data performance on AOSP is because, essentially, AOSP is ported to our device and to any device that is not a Nexus. That's why we have issues, because people like CM and preludedrew (evervolv) have to work with the files provided to us by the OEM, files which are not compiled for AOSP, but for whatever proprietary UI came with the phone (Sense, Touchwiz, Motoblur, LG UI, etc etc).
However, now with the leak from the S4 Google Edition, we should see all around improvements to the US SGS3 CM10.1 and other 4 2.2 AOSP roms.
See my post here for the reason behind that: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=43084900
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow you guys work hella fast I might even flash some nightlies now
Edit: If one wanted to could they simply place these files in any AOSP rom they wanted or would it be best to just wait for the dev to do so?
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app

Having more bars on tw is apparently normal. Something about the way it displays the signal is different than the way AOSP roms do it. I don't know all the technical aspects of it. IIRC the bars aren't an indication of how strong your data is though. I've been in places where I had "full bars" but no data at all.
Have you tried liquidsmooth? It's my daily and haven't had problems with LTE. My house is out in a hilly area and don't get LTE there but I do at my friends house and the speed hasn't been any slower there as far as I can tell. 22mb down usually there.
Edit: CNex to the rescue lol

islanda73 said:
Wow you guys work hella fast I might even flash some nightlies now
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All thanks go to SamMobile for providing that leak lol.
Someone in the CM thread commented that after flashing the nightly with the S4GE blobs, their 3G went from around 500kbps to 1500kbps...but of course ymmv (your mileage may vary).

Sadly the issue still remains the same
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app

[Q] Same carrier, two different phones, difference reception

I have my Galaxy S3 and my coworker has an HTC Evo. Both of us have Sprint and yet his phone gets 3 bars of reception whereas mine only gets 1, 2 if I'm very, very lucky.
AFAIK, he's running stock, unrooted and I'm running rooted with latest LiquidSmooth 2.9 with the MD4 modem. No idea what modem he has.
What could be the reason why he's getting better reception? Better antenna build in the Evo?

Volknochi said:
I have my Galaxy S3 and my coworker has an HTC Evo. Both of us have Sprint and yet his phone gets 3 bars of reception whereas mine only gets 1, 2 if I'm very, very lucky.
AFAIK, he's running stock, unrooted and I'm running rooted with latest LiquidSmooth 2.9 with the MD4 modem. No idea what modem he has.
What could be the reason why he's getting better reception? Better antenna build in the Evo?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some of it has to do with the rom. Some aosp roms show a more accurate bar reading...which is why your's is fewer. I wouldn't really get to worked up over it. They both probably get similar reception and data speeds on 3g

lvpre said:
Some of it has to do with the rom. Some aosp roms show a more accurate bar reading...which is why your's is fewer. I wouldn't really get to worked up over it. They both probably get similar reception and data speeds on 3g
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, my data is absolute sh!te and it's a pain to load nearly anything. I get data transfer speeds in the very low kbps.

lvpre said:
Some of it has to do with the rom. Some aosp roms show a more accurate bar reading...which is why your's is fewer. I wouldn't really get to worked up over it. They both probably get similar reception and data speeds on 3g
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm going to agree Ivpre. I would not get worked up over it. Unless of course it is necessary for you to have more Bars showing then him :silly: . You do most likely get the same Data Speeds.
Volknochi said:
Actually, my data is absolute sh!te and it's a pain to load nearly anything. I get data transfer speeds in the very low kbps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would suggest Updating PRL / Profile. Maybe even trying a different Modem. Not everyone gets great reception on MD4. You may have to experiment to see which works better for you.

If you want to properly know if your device is getting less of a signal you need to flash a TW rom, preferably one which is close to stock update prl and profile. Then check your signal and data speeds compared to your friends. AOSP roms remember are built from leaks, and ported from other devices. There is no true aosp source for the Sprint S3. So there's lots of patches and coding which goes into getting the cdma radios working.
Sent from the future via Tapatalk 4

prboy1969 said:
I'm going to agree Ivpre. I would not get worked up over it. Unless of course it is necessary for you to have more Bars showing then him :silly: . You do most likely get the same Data Speeds.
I would suggest Updating PRL / Profile. Maybe even trying a different Modem. Not everyone gets great reception on MD4. You may have to experiment to see which works better for you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We've actually done a Speedtest together and his had a higher data rate than mine. I've had different modem with the earlier builds of Liquid Smooth as well, but still low reception. I've also updated my PRL/Profile in the past in hopes that it'll help but sadly no.
I'll look into having a TouchWiz ROM versus this one. I just love how LiquidSmooth is, so hoping I can find a TW ROM that's just as fun.
EDIT: I don't even know how to find a TouchWiz ROM. I figured it would say "TW" along the subject line, the same way AOSP does, but alas I cannot find that. I have heard of Goodness, is that a TW ROM?

Volknochi said:
I have my Galaxy S3 and my coworker has an HTC Evo. Both of us have Sprint and yet his phone gets 3 bars of reception whereas mine only gets 1, 2 if I'm very, very lucky.
AFAIK, he's running stock, unrooted and I'm running rooted with latest LiquidSmooth 2.9 with the MD4 modem. No idea what modem he has.
What could be the reason why he's getting better reception? Better antenna build in the Evo?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some devices just get better reception than others. Better internal antennae.
My mom's old photon always got better reception than my 3d & s3
Sent from my SPH-I710 using xda premium

Volknochi said:
I'll look into having a TouchWiz ROM versus this one. I just love how LiquidSmooth is, so hoping I can find a TW ROM that's just as fun.
EDIT: I don't even know how to find a TouchWiz ROM. I figured it would say "TW" along the subject line, the same way AOSP does, but alas I cannot find that. I have heard of Goodness, is that a TW ROM?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most likely cause all the roms which do not say AOSP or CM or AOKP or something like that are TW roms. I would recommend MOAR or TPR The People's Rom.
Sent from the future via Tapatalk 4

OP,
Unless you're being very careful with your comparisons and using quantitative, and not qualitative, data like db, seeing more "signal bars" means nothing.
Sent from my buttered S3

You must also keep in mind, that even after you switch to a TW Rom. There is no guarantee that you will see better reception. IE more bars. There are quite a few variables involved. What you should concentrate on is making your device the best it can be for you. As CNexus stated. When comparing you have to compare Apples to Apples, and Oranges to Oranges.
TEAM MiK
MikROMs Since 3/13/11

Bananas to bananas
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