Develop Bugs

[Q] Video capture quality on the G2..

All the video samples from the G2 I have seen on Youtube so far have not been impressive. Most disturbing about these videos is the sound quality, it is pretty bad. I have a Nexus One (hacked with Cyanogenmod's 720p recording feature) and it also isn't that great so I'm guessing this is a 'feature' of HTC phones. Compared to the Galaxy S (from Samsung) the HTC phones (G2, N1 and even the EVO) seem to suck in the video / audio department.
In a recent post I read that the audio codec for a HD recording off the G2 is this:
AMR (samr), Mono, 8k, 32 bits per sample
Could this be the problem and can this be changed?

AMR == Adaptive Multi-Rate Audio Codec. Dunno what the "s" in "samr" is all about tho.
I see a comparison with the nokia 8 and there is a definite sound quality difference. (Be sure to watch this in 720p)
Wonder if the sample rate is adjustable by firmware/settings or if it's set in hardware. Strangely wikipedia lists 14 modes, none of which are at the "8k" (rate?) you reported... I see AMR_7.95 tho.
Anyway, my g2 is on the way....
W

cowmixtoo said:
AMR (samr), Mono, 8k, 32 bits per sample
Could this be the problem and can this be changed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, yeah that's pretty bad.. 8k.

ericc191 said:
Wow, yeah that's pretty bad.. 8k.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, my watch can do better..

I just confirmed that my N1 encodes audio in the exact same format.

cowmixtoo said:
I just confirmed that my N1 encodes audio in the exact same format.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Idle thought- I wonder if the codec is set to a low bandwidth to accommodate slower SD card speeds. I think the g2 comes with a class 2, and this thread suggests that there is stuttering when playing back at the HD setting.
This is just idle speculation.

http://vimeo.com/15487989
Done a couple days ago, not so much about the audio, but the video couldnt keep up.

Yup, I noticed a lot of stuttering when playing videos back too.

ericc191 said:
Yup, I noticed a lot of stuttering when playing videos back too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What SD card?

Agreed. Audio isn't stellar and playback has stuttering. In fact, I've already experienced a weird situation where the video wouldn't actually play - just showed a blank screen with the audio playing.
I love this phone, but the video / audio / picture quality on my Sprint Epic is far superior.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

VValdo said:
What SD card?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
8GB Class 6 Transcend. It usually transfers up to 7mb/ps, so definitely not the issue.

ericc191 said:
8GB Class 6 Transcend. It usually transfers up to 7mb/ps, so definitely not the issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Damn thought it might be it... well what else causes stuttering? Not buffering enough... or maybe cpu being pulled to do something else..?
Is there any message from logcat when it's stuttering?
Meanwhile, I'm looking at the video camera source to see if there's any way to change the audio bitrate...
Lines ~230:
Code:
for (AudioEncoderCap encoder : EncoderCapabilities.getAudioEncoders()) {
switch (encoder.mCodec) {
case MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AMR_NB:
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("amrnb", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AMR_NB);
break;
case MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AAC:
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("aac", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AAC);
break;
}
}
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.putDefault(MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.DEFAULT);
/*
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("amrwb", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AMR_WB);
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("qcelp", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.QCELP);
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("evrc", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.EVRC);
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("aacplus", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.AAC_PLUS);
AUDIO_ENCODER_TABLE.put("eaacplus", MediaRecorder.AudioEncoder.EAAC_PLUS);
*/
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("1280x720", 6000000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("720x480", 3000000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("800x480", 3000000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("640x480", 1600000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("352x288", 360000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("320x240", 320000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.put("176x144", 192000);
VIDEOQUALITY_BITRATE_TABLE.putDefault(320000);
}
The video bitrate is right there.. how do you change the audio I wonder....? And what's up with the commented-out bits...
Maybe I'll try to get this running... I have no g2 yet to try it on but will soon.
W

One more thought... This is an old issue. If you doubt the potential the video camera COULD have, take a look at this audio comparison linked from the thread. At least on the n1, the microphone is capable of way better sound than the camera app currently offers. The g2 has a faster processor-- it should be able to encode better sound.. AAC? Ogg?
Update: It's not the camera app's fault. It's Android's. There is an open issue for this. It looks like Android itself doesn't support anything better. The good news is this isn't a hardware limitation. As someone suggested, a WebM encoder seems like an obvious thing to add.

VValdo said:
One more thought... This is an old issue. If you doubt the potential the video camera COULD have, take a look at this audio comparison linked from the thread. At least on the n1, the microphone is capable of way better sound than the camera app currently offers. The g2 has a faster processor-- it should be able to encode better sound.. AAC? Ogg?
Update: It's not the camera app's fault. It's Android's. There is an open issue for this. It looks like Android itself doesn't support anything better. The good news is this isn't a hardware limitation. As someone suggested, a WebM encoder seems like an obvious thing to add.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well that's a plus.

VValdo said:
One more thought... This is an old issue. If you doubt the potential the video camera COULD have, take a look at this audio comparison linked from the thread. At least on the n1, the microphone is capable of way better sound than the camera app currently offers. The g2 has a faster processor-- it should be able to encode better sound.. AAC? Ogg?
Update: It's not the camera app's fault. It's Android's. There is an open issue for this. It looks like Android itself doesn't support anything better. The good news is this isn't a hardware limitation. As someone suggested, a WebM encoder seems like an obvious thing to add.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
wow amazing! i really hope we can fix this issue

I just starred the issue (they look at that don't they?)... I recorded some video at a concert last night and while the video wasn't terrible, the sound is absolutely unbearable. Makes the videos pretty much worthless

I keep wondering if it's possible to stuff our own codec in there. I mean, some of the android phones have higher quality audio, right? If so, how do they do it? Why are those codecs commented out in the video camera code for...?
Doesn't cyanogenmod have FLAC support? Couldn't other codecs be added to the phone app, even if they're in java?
You're right, the current audio situation sucks.

High-Quality Audio Recording

I have a question for the developers (im not one):
Though the KF doesnt have a built-in mic, it supports an external one for audio recording. Ive been using Android devices for a little over two years, and have tried a number of audio recoring apps on them.
There are a number of stereo microphones available (from Belkin, Tascam, Blue, etc) that allow high-quality stereo recording on ipods and iphones. There are a number of apps available for recording on Android, but the quality of the recordings is not great. Why is that? Is there something inherent in the Android platform that does not permit hi quality recording?
Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk

This link might enlighten you a bit. Along with extremely poor audio-latency it would seem that audio recording is also problematic. Strange to find this in an audio device such as a phone eh?

Thanks; I actually used to use the Rehearsal Assistant app. I posed this same question to the developer of J4T, which is a very cool Android multitrack recording app, and I just got his response:
"One reason might be that the best recording quality that is supported by most Android phones is mono, 16-bit pcm, with samplerate 44100. So to make sure a recording app runs on most most android phones, the developer should probably use those numbers and not go any higher.
But it also means it's possible to have android phones that can record at much higher quality, and maybe they are out there. But that capacity may go unused, because the apps are developed for the 'average' phone.
Perhaps on other platforms the 'average phones' have higher bitrates and samplerates.
There are actually 2 ways to do audio recording on Android, but I'm not familiar with the other way (where you can record to AAC or AMR format). Perhaps the quality using those codecs is better than PCM, I don't know.
Please don't take this as a definite answer - this is just a guess from my perspective, maybe a manufacturer (or the Android team) would give a different answer."
I've been using a Belkin Tundtalk stereo microphone with a 3rd-generation ipod nano to make reharsal recordings of my rock band; the quality is actually very good. It records in wav format, stereo, 16-bit pcm, with samplerate 44100. So, outside of the fact that Android records in mono, not stereo, the potential for decent quality is there. The lousy quality must have a lot to do with the cheesy microphones used in the Android phones. If I could find a decent quality mic that would work with my Android phone (or with the Fire), I imagine it would make a big difference.

Yeah, from what I know about Android audio going the other way, the audio-latency issues, Google really managed to screw up on a bunch of levels. The audio app market on the iPhone is pretty big and they just haven't stepped up to the plate for developers from what I can see. I see a few apps coming out like AudioSketch that claim to have custom low-latency audio drivers, but that one isn't available for the Kindle Fire so I really can't say. But, sorry, I am digressing. I'd be curious as to see what results you get from your experiences.

grvthang said:
Perhaps the quality using those codecs is better than PCM, I don't know.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This man doesn't now a thing about sound encoding. PCM is uncompressed audio format so it have smallest use of CPU and it has best quality. Only problem is that is space-hungry in comparison with other codec's.
In audio, whole system is good as the weakest thing in it. You need good MIC, you need good MIC input, you need good audio driver and you need good recording app. If one link in this chain is inadequate resulting sound quality is on level of that poor part.

Hey, just a thought but you might be able to turn your question into a free Kindle Fire if you were so inclined.

Buffet_of_Lies said:
Hey, just a thought but you might be able to turn your question into a free Kindle Fire if you were so inclined.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now that you've brought it to my attention, I AM so inclined! That's for letting me know.

I posted my question there, and after about an hour it was Closed as "not constructive" lol.
As I said, I'm not a developer. Even before I posted the question here I googled the subject and haven't been able to come up with a definitive answer as to why this is so. I would think there would be a huge market for after-market microphones for people to use on their Android phones (as there is for iphone and ipod). If I was an iphone fanboy, this would be my first argument against Android - crappy audio recording!

PowerAmp Settings

Anyone got a good configuration for PowerAmp? I think PowerAmp provides a better overall experience, but, google play is clearer. Would appreciate any recommendations
Sent from my HTC 10 using XDA-Developers mobile app

If you haven't already done so sign up for the alpha:
http://forum.powerampapp.com/index.php?/topic/8810-poweramp-alpha-build-703/
The most recent changelog:
Alpha-3:
- added DVC support for Hi-Res Snapdragon 24-bit PCM variant (e.g. LG Gx/v10, HTC A9, etc.)

Just start with everything neutral and go from there. It really depends on headphones too. I have sennheiser Momentums and currently use the Techno preset. I feel like it gives good bass but doesn't overdo it on the treble.
Patiently waiting for Maximus to come to the HTC 10

I saw a video on YouTube that had a good EQ.
Sent from my HTC 10 using XDA-Developers mobile app

Soooo... any Presets for the Alpha for the Speakers?

Electronic Punk said:
If you haven't already done so sign up for the alpha:
http://forum.powerampapp.com/index.php?/topic/8810-poweramp-alpha-build-703/
The most recent changelog:
Alpha-3:
- added DVC support for Hi-Res Snapdragon 24-bit PCM variant (e.g. LG Gx/v10, HTC A9, etc.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't used the alpha but I purchased power amp a few years ago and it has been the absolute best music app I have ever used on HTC devices since boom sound was introduced. I had no idea that they had an alpha version. I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 558 headphones and I can make them sound absolutely awesome with custom EQ settings in power amp. The combination of the Dolby enhancement within HTC's phones just puts it over the top I use the HTC in ear setting then I overlay the power amp EQ on top of that. You can really create some amazing sound when you combine an HTC phone that has been sound with power amp

I downloaded the alpha build. After I configured it liked I wanted it and man if you think the normal PowerAMP sounds good, the alpha is like 2 times better. Highest quality sound I've ever heard, no lie.
Sent from my HTC 10 using XDA-Developers mobile app

Haldi4803 said:
Soooo... any Presets for the Alpha for the Speakers?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been messing around with it but I'm not going to share any presets as sound is so subjective.
Personally I dropped 31Hz all the way down to, what is it, -10 because reasons. Why waste amp power for that..
Otherwise I just gave the mid-upper bass a small bump and yanked the highs down a smidgen.
As an example 80's pop/dance-pop/whatever sounds really nice, I was listening to GTA VC Flash FM sound track earlier today.

Video quality

Your friends are never going to believe what you did. The only way to prove it to them is with that video you took. Rate this thread to express how videos shot on the OnePlus 3 come out. A higher rating indicates that videos are smooth (and not choppy) and that auto-focus works very well, and that the camera adjusts quickly to different lighting conditions while recording.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add!

Video quality is okay, nothing great. The stabilization could be better. I also don't like that there is no 1080p/60 option.

svetius said:
Video quality is okay, nothing great. The stabilization could be better. I also don't like that there is no 1080p/60 option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You got any sample? And i think none of the latest flagships support 1080p60fps, dont know why

Techradar said you can record 1080p 60fps with other camera app, like open camera.
Anyone can test it?
Thanks

abelvarela said:
Techradar said you can record 1080p 60fps with other camera app, like open camera.
Anyone can test it?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I gave open camera a shot and set it to 60fps, it doesn't actually do it, sadly enough. I've tried it both at the default bitrate (~20) and forced it to 5 mbit, both on the old api and the new camera2 api, nothing.
I'm not entirely certain what OP's reasoning behind no 60fps recording is anyway, I hope they'll add it in an update since AFAIK there's no hardware limitations which wouldn't allow it.

B1nny said:
I gave open camera a shot and set it to 60fps, it doesn't actually do it, sadly enough. I've tried it both at the default bitrate (~20) and forced it to 5 mbit, both on the old api and the new camera2 api, nothing.
I'm not entirely certain what OP's reasoning behind no 60fps recording is anyway, I hope they'll add it in an update since AFAIK there's no hardware limitations which wouldn't allow it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Htc 10, lg g5, htc 10, nexus 6p, xiaomi mi 5, none of these offer 60fps. Actually i think of all recent flagships only s7 is capable, i dont know reasons behind this decision of oems

I have an old hardware Zuk Z1 (snapdragon 801, same hardware as oneplus one) and it CAN record great quality 1080p 60fps.
With my Zuk I have low cost phone with great battery, very good responsive, customizable software, and a video resolution I CAN'T GET WITH NEW 2016 FLAGSHIPS.
incomprehensible.
Specially because that is the only reason I don't renew my phone.
But I would be happy to buy oneplus 3 of they add full HD 60fps non slowmotion video recording.
Hope they add it.

Anyone can test Video Recording in a really Loud environment?
Like for example a Rave or Concert?
Since the OPO, OP2 and the OPX all had serious issues with audio clipping on such occasions im very curious if OnePlus finally fixed this issue in theyre newest phone

Psych0_D0g said:
Anyone can test Video Recording in a really Loud environment?
Like for example a Rave or Concert?
Since the OPO, OP2 and the OPX all had serious issues with audio clipping on such occasions im very curious if OnePlus finally fixed this issue in theyre newest phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interested too

Psych0_D0g said:
Anyone can test Video Recording in a really Loud environment?
Like for example a Rave or Concert?
Since the OPO, OP2 and the OPX all had serious issues with audio clipping on such occasions im very curious if OnePlus finally fixed this issue in theyre newest phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
abelvarela said:
Interested too
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll be at the AirbeatOne festival soon , and record some videos, will report back then

I can record 1080p60 on blisspop
Demo: https://www.dropbox.com/s/gcn2lg9knir2fji/VID_20160625_132718.mp4?dl=0

abhi08638 said:
I can record 1080p60 on blisspop
Demo: https://www.dropbox.com/s/gcn2lg9knir2fji/VID_20160625_132718.mp4?dl=0
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would be awesome! ?
---------- Post added at 09:18 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:12 AM ----------
Video quality is okayish. OIS is not reliable on video and the sound is not processed properly.

laz3r69 said:
That would be awesome! ?
---------- Post added at 09:18 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:12 AM ----------
Video quality is okayish. OIS is not reliable on video and the sound is not processed properly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah the software needs improvement and the noise cancellation is way too aggressive, I was only able to bump up the audio for the background noise and not disable the noise cancelation. Of course I did that after taking the video
But 1080p60 is possible

Psych0_D0g said:
Anyone can test Video Recording in a really Loud environment?
Like for example a Rave or Concert?
Since the OPO, OP2 and the OPX all had serious issues with audio clipping on such occasions im very curious if OnePlus finally fixed this issue in theyre newest phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
THIS! My OnePlus one always made it sound like I was recording constant farting no matter what festival/club I went too. Switched to an iPhone 6 Plus and never had any audio distortion no matter how loud the music was...

mole51 said:
THIS! My OnePlus one always made it sound like I was recording constant farting no matter what festival/club I went too. Switched to an iPhone 6 Plus and never had any audio distortion no matter how loud the music was...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is temp fix for that issue

what iv understood that someone said, that these mobile phone processors cant go constant 60fps video like gopro can. I had it on oneplus1 with Sultan-ROM and fps seemed to fluctuate somehwere between 59fps and 60fps (bsplayer with the i in the upper right corner, it had FPS counter) and i think i saw some small stuttering sometimes.. it looked almost like it were running too fast, hard to compare(and i dont have gopro) but it would be really cool to have it do like gopro but its probably gonna need own chip to make video.. (im not an expert on this matter, just what iv noticed) in the end i just recorded 4k so my daughter can enjoy 4k videos when he's all grown up. 4k downscaled into 1080p is _REALLY_ sharp compared to normal 1080p mode where native 1080p almost looked like youtube quality at 1080p and 4k downscaled to 1080p looked like ripped BR-movie with 11Gb/2hrs .. really crisp.
-- Waiting for my 1+3, estimated delivery date => monday 18th of july

crysen said:
I'll be at the AirbeatOne festival soon , and record some videos, will report back then
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so, airbeat one is over
any insightful results you can share with us?
Sorry for poking but i really need to know

Psych0_D0g said:
so, airbeat one is over
any insightful results you can share with us?
Sorry for poking but i really need to know
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, the video quality is quite good. However the sound is pretty bad, when the music gets too loud, I'll try to upload some examples if I get some time today after work

crysen said:
Yes, the video quality is quite good. However the sound is pretty bad, when the music gets too loud, I'll try to upload some examples if I get some time today after work
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks, so it seems that oneplus did not change anything about the microphone clipping?
will wait for sample videos tho. Thank you already

After 3.2.2?
Is the video recording quality/audio when recording fixed after the 3.2.2 update? Planning on buying this phone over the upcoming note7/s7 edge. I like the touchwiz interface but not the Samsung bloatware apps like their keyboard/gear manager etc..
I shoot alot of 1080p video I don't think I will ever shoot videos at 4K
For 1080p is the OP3 video quality good enough?
Thanks guys

What do we get with 'aptX audio technology ?

I was trying to prepare for the Snapdragon 845 beast and the ( dang, dang, dang ) usb-c audio port.
There was a nice article to read at :
https://www.pcworld.com/article/328...e-jack-why-usb-c-audio-still-doesnt-work.html
I believe I read it right in that the pixel 3 is a 'active' dongle type. ( it's got a DAC ? In the plug ? )
.
The qualcomm doc doc says the audio on the 845 includes the addition of 'aptX' . . . I need to buy new stuff to take advantage of it ?

In the developer options you can change your audio codec to aptx hd. But I can never get it to stick. By default it says it's on the default. If I change it it shows it switched to aptx but then if I exit out of developers options then go back in it says it's using the default again.

freebee269 said:
In the developer options you can change your audio codec to aptx hd. But I can never get it to stick. By default it says it's on the default. If I change it it shows it switched to aptx but then if I exit out of developers options then go back in it says it's using the default again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here. Didn't do that on 2XL

Golf c said:
Same here. Didn't do that on 2XL
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
.
Um, on the Snapdragon comparison chart, the 835 did not have aptX...
.
Well, that a bummer the pixel 3 has a bug with aptX ! ! !
.
I was on amazon, checking out the lay of the land of aptX, but now I can "forget about it" and save thirty bucks. Thanks !

old_fart said:
.
Um, on the Snapdragon comparison chart, the 835 did not have aptX...
.
Well, that a bummer the pixel 3 has a bug with aptX ! ! !
.
I was on amazon, checking out the lay of the land of aptX, but now I can "forget about it" and save thirty bucks. Thanks !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wrong. Where do you get your info.

When you play audio using an aptX/HD device then the pixel will automatically switch it to that codec. Whatever device you're using the phone will pick the best codec to use, it doesn't really matter what the default is. Same behavior as the 2.
Using Sennheiser HD 4.40 with the 3XL and I don't think I'll need to install viper on this device. Sounds incredible with some eq tweaking.

What he said.
It won't use the aptX codec until you connect to a device that supports aptX.
Aptx will deliver better highs and lows.
More solid bass, slightly clearer highs and better bandwidth so things sound clearer.
Some people may not notice a difference, but most will.
It's almost as big a difference to me as going from AM/FM to a CD player.
And it's been in all three Pixel generation phones now.
You can even add it to non-aptX phones if you run a Lineage OS ROM.

Golf c said:
Wrong. Where do you get your info.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, you are correct and I was wrong and was having a 'senior moment'.
.
Well actually I was chasing and focussing on "Qualcomm Aqstic™ audio technology" which is the new one for 845 audio tech . . There was controversy with it and the manufacturer's were calling the 'CVC 6.0 NOISE SUPPRESSION' --> Noise Cancelling, when it is not. It makes the phone calls sound cleaner. True noise cancelling doubles or triples the cost.

old_fart said:
Yes, you are correct and I was wrong and was having a 'senior moment'.
.
Well actually I was chasing and focussing on "Qualcomm Aqstic™ audio technology" which is the new one for 845 audio tech . . There was controversy with it and the manufacturer's were calling the 'CVC 6.0 NOISE SUPPRESSION' --> Noise Cancelling, when it is not. It makes the phone calls sound cleaner. True noise cancelling doubles or triples the cost.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No worries mate. I have alot of senior moments too.