Music playback volume. - Hero, G2 Touch Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

When I had an iPod Touch, it's output volume had been capped ( something to do with European Union health and safety regulations ). I found a hack that removed that limit - and all was good.
I find a similar problem with the Hero - it's too quiet.
Is there any way to increase the volume??
cheers

Better headphones?
Anything above half volume is too much using my isolation buds.

J-Zeus said:
When I had an iPod Touch, it's output volume had been capped ( something to do with European Union health and safety regulations ). I found a hack that removed that limit - and all was good.
I find a similar problem with the Hero - it's too quiet.
Is there any way to increase the volume??
cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
there is a way but requires a hacked csv file "which i am working on at the moment"

Related

[Q] Optimus One(P-500) "Clear voice" function?

I am having a strange problem with incoming calls.
The voice quality is very bad with the other persons voice being "metallic".
However, no such problems in outgoing calls, and other people can hear my voice fine.
I called up my network operator, and they tell me I need to switch off "Clear voice" setting in my phone.
However, I went through all settings, and there is actually nothing with this name.
So is there such a setting?
If not, can I try upgrading to latest firmware. Actually, I have not updated my froyo (I am still on 10b), as I do not want to loose capability of rooting.
I think latest is 2.2.2 (10e). I am not sure if its rootable.
Any ideas?
I don't think there is such option in optimus one, try to switch to 3g network if you use 2g, but compared with other phones my optimus one output sound quality is bad. I don't think that you can do anything but if you find a way to improve sound quality let me know.
do you experience background static noise? because I cand hear a background buzzing noise everytime the sound is on.
tsk1979 said:
I called up my network operator, and they tell me I need to switch off "Clear voice" setting in my phone.
However, I went through all settings, and there is actually nothing with this name.
So is there such a setting?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ask to talk to someone technically savvy who knows WTH are they talking about next time. There is no such thing anywhere and frankly I do not recall any mobile phone that would have such thing like "clear voice".
2g and 3g have nothing to do with voice quality... oh, and the background static is a bug of all O1s, unfortunately.
Voice quality is dependent on the price of the device, so a budget phone generally means poorer quality... only Nokia had perfect reception on their low-end models... just my 2 cents.
Maybe that operator got his features mixed-up and he was referring to HD Voice - I know Orange launched it in a few countries, but that's a whole other thing.
Sent from my LG-P500 using XDA Premium App
sholimar said:
2g and 3g have nothing to do with voice quality... oh, and the background static is a bug of all O1s, unfortunately.
Voice quality is dependent on the price of the device, so a budget phone generally means poorer quality... only Nokia had perfect reception on their low-end models... just my 2 cents.
Maybe that operator got his features mixed-up and he was referring to HD Voice - I know Orange launched it in a few countries, but that's a whole other thing.
Sent from my LG-P500 using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, speaking of HD Voice, do you think devices NOT bought from Orange could use it?
Also, have you noticed that, during calls, there seems to be some form of noise reduction going on? If the person you are talking to is in a quiet(er) environment, and they stop talking, the speaker goes completely silent, whereas when they are talking you can hear the normal (IMO) GSM background noises.
metalboy94 said:
Ah, speaking of HD Voice, do you think devices NOT bought from Orange could use it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, many devices support it at this time, since it's a codec-related thing and not a hardware one (and it's not proprietary to Orange, it's a standard that will be implemented in time)... It's rather tricky to make an assumption about your O1, since I really have no clue if the appropriate codecs are included on our phones, if they are activated etc.; just ask someone from Orange (although I'm sure that most will not know the answer).
Here's a very interesting article detailing HD voice tech, written by Eldar Murtazin: http://www.mobile-review.com/articles/2010/hd-voice-en.shtml.
metalboy94 said:
Also, have you noticed that, during calls, there seems to be some form of noise reduction going on? If the person you are talking to is in a quiet(er) environment, and they stop talking, the speaker goes completely silent, whereas when they are talking you can hear the normal (IMO) GSM background noises.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, that's normal, I have encountered it on many phones... it's probably related to the passive noise cancellation algorithms our devices use (where they try to make out what part of the sound received in the mic is the voice and which one is the ambient background). It's a really long discussion, since when the mic receives a sound lower than X dB it cuts it out, then as soon as it detects a more powerful sound it applies a kind of gain (hence the static) and so on.
Oh, note that these are all more like educated guesses, but I think they're pretty correct.
Now, with active noise cancellation... well, that's just another world! (I had the pleasure of a few conversations with a phone that supported it)
There is no static.
Its just that, from some networks(not all) when I get incoming call, the voice is "metallic" and keeps breaking, even when signal is full.
So its impossible to have a conversation.
I guess its a problem with my network operator then.
In Hidden Menu (3845#*500#), under
DEVICE TEST->SOUND TEST-> VOCODER are the settings that affect noise reduction and bad call quality but I do not know what parameter disables sound processing on calls.
Also on page no.55 in service manual, there is this text and I hope that it can be useful to someone with greater knowledge to change parameters and turn off noise suppression, and that stupid hiiiisss sound during call.
3.13.2. Audio signal processing & interface
3.13.2.1 MSM7227 audio interface
The MSM7227A audio front end comprises the stereo wideband codec, PCM interface, and additional DSP
audio processing. The stereo wideband codec allows the MSM7227 device to support stereo music/ringer
melody applications in addition to the 8 kHz voice band applications on the forward link.
In the audio transmit path, the device operates as 13-bit linear converter with software, selectable 8 kHz and
16 kHz sampling rate. In the audio receive path, the device operates as a software-selectable 13-bit or 16-bit
linear converter with software selectable 8 kHz,16 kHz, 22.05 kHz, 24 kHz, 32 kHz, 44.1 kHz, or 48 kHz
sampling rate. Through software, the Rx path can be configured as either a mono or stereo output. New to
the MSM7227 device is a transmit (Tx) ADC path that now supports stereo wideband sampling. The
integrated codec contains all of the required conversion and amplification stages for the audio front end. Th
codec operates as a 13-bit linear codec with the transmit (Tx) and receive (Rx) filters designed to meet ITU-T
G.712 requirements.
The codec includes a programmable side tone path for summing a portion of the Tx audio into the Rx path.
An on-chip voltage/current reference is provided to generate the precise voltages and currents required by
the codec. This circuit requires a single capacitor of 0.1 μF to be connected between the CCOMP and GND
pins. The on-chip voltage reference also provides a microphone bias voltage required for electret condenser
microphones typically used in handset applications. The MICBIAS output pin is designed to provide 1.8 V DC
while delivering as much as 1 mA of current.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Volume boost

I've been looking at playback volume issues. I notice that the Android maximum volume on the gen8 is lower than the maximum alsa-supported volume. So one can boost the maximum playback volume a bit by using alsa mixers.
I have a little script that does that, but it uses a modified version of amixer from the alsa-tools package. Unfortunately, I haven't yet found a way to build amixer outside of the giant gen8 buildroots package, which means that due to GPL issues the only way I can redistribute is by including the giant gen8 buildroots. That's annoying. If anybody has a better solution, that would be welcome.
trust me, you don;t want to boost the volume due to the speaker of gen8 is very weak and fragile, even the default maximum volume could break it without much time. I RMA once due to play music at maximum volume, and a lot of other people experience the same thing.
How about the headphones? Can one play through them at max volume? The archos ones seem very quiet.
You could always get one of these (or similar):
http://amzn.com/B002V5M5E6
macemoneta said:
You could always get one of these (or similar):
http://amzn.com/B002V5M5E6
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True. But a software solution is preferred.
I might just tweak my little hack so it boosts only headphone volume, not internal speaker volume.
A smarter procedure would be to do digital range compression within alsa, and boost the apparent volume without actually boosting the maximum sound output. There are alsa filters for that, but I don't know how easy it is to insert an alsa filter.
arpruss said:
I might just tweak my little hack so it boosts only headphone volume, not internal speaker volume.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're able to do this, would you post how?
jknut said:
If you're able to do this, would you post how?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure, but because of the GPL issues mentioned in my original post, it might not be helpful to you unless you've got the Archos Gen8 build environment installed.

[Q] Volume hack

I am using my rooted XS with Marshall Minors and found the volume to be low unless I increase via EQ which then distorts the sound. Is there any hack to increase the volume like Alsamixer? or any app that will unleash the power of audio volume?
Thanks
you tried xLoud on settings? this phone is really loud for me..
Yakandu said:
you tried xLoud on settings? this phone is really loud for me..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did, the main issue is I use audiobook player which is quiter and with max volume is still not great. I need to use this for my studies. The xloud has no effect on this. Previously with Galaxy Nexus I used alsamixer which was great in unlocking the volume but it doesn't work on XS.
i dont know but i used to use the audioboost it was work before with x10 but i find xperia s to work really loud i have half way income-call volume and it work perfectly fine for me !!!
seems to me that i got my ears too sensitive !
It may not be ideal but you could just batch reincode your audiobooks at 150% Volume(Gain).
Scratchling said:
It may not be ideal but you could just batch reincode your audiobooks at 150% Volume(Gain).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks mate. They are actually mp3 files do you recommend easy to use free app?
I tried few but they do not do straightforward volume gain.
sakiin said:
Thanks mate. They are actually mp3 files do you recommend easy to use free app?
I tried few but they do not do straightforward volume gain.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Audacity will do it. You need to get LAME separate for MP3s(Legal thing). To do a single file open the mp3, slide the -...+ slider on the left of the track to the right, then export the MP3 to a new file. Done.
Not sure about batch processing with it, I've only ever done such things with images, but google is your friend on that one.

Stock Music Player workaround

Many of you included myself complain about stock music player. It has uncountable problems but as far as I know it is the only player which can use the built in high end DAC. The most annoying thing is that it plays song in alphabetic order if files appear at all and secondly it is very slow.
I would suggest a temporary solution what I did and it works perfectly so far.
Delete all playlist (m3u, cue etc.).
Remove a metadata from files too.
Remove all songs with metadata from the phone!!!
Delete all record from "My Playlist" in the initial screen. (I was able to do it just one by one)
Reset Music Player by deleting cache and data in Application Settings
Reboot phone
Then open Music Player and play songs from Folder option. It will be enough fast and all songs appear and in filename order.
In order to remove metadata from files I would suggest using Mp3tag
http://www.mp3tag.de/en/
If you collect your files in any structure on the PC, all you can do is to move root folder into Mp3tag screen, select all songs and remove tags by right clicking. Then you can copy files to phone.
!!! Be careful !!!
Don't remove tags from your archive music folder. You cannot undo. Always create temporary folder and copy wishing music files there in order to remove metadata (tags).
Good lock!
obladi64 said:
as far as I know it is the only player which can use the built in high end DAC.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
where the heck did you read this load of bull?
Flaîm said:
where the heck did you read this load of bull?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have read discussions about it but no one was sure in any other player uses it obviously. If you know such please share it with evidence too. Thanks in advance.
obladi64 said:
I have read discussions about it but no one was sure in any other player uses it obviously. If you know such please share it with evidence too. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
unless your device somehow is capable of utilizing magic to process and output audio there's nothing but the only active DAC to do this task, which you can set in your audio settings.
edit: sorry for being a sarcastic ****
Flaîm said:
unless your device somehow is capable of utilizing magic to process and output audio there's nothing but the only active DAC to do this task, which you can set in your audio settings.
edit: sorry for being a sarcastic ****
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Except there is two DAC for output : AKM and SD820 built-in.
Flaîm said:
unless your device somehow is capable of utilizing magic to process and output audio there's nothing but the only active DAC to do this task, which you can set in your audio settings.
edit: sorry for being a sarcastic ****
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok I was not so precize. Other players don't use AKM dac directly. They do it just via Android which convert all audio input to 48/16 output. Let me know if I am wrong but justify it with something please. Of course then this stream goes to AKM DAC but this not the way we wish it. I welcome any non stock player which can drive dac directly in same way as stock one does. Sooner or later it will be available hopefully but now I don't know any.
If the "Headset HiFi" control in Settings is to switch between SD820 and AKM DACs, then I'm able to use the AKM DAC with other media players that pass audio processing/decoding to the OS (as opposed to fancier players that utilize their own built-in decoding methods/codecs). In my music player of choice (Clean Music), I can switch between the two "Headset HiFi" options (Standard & Super) in the middle of a song and, after a pause to transition, hear a difference between them.
obladi64 said:
Ok I was not so precize. Other players don't use AKM dac directly. They do it just via Android which convert all audio input to 48/16 output. Let me know if I am wrong but justify it with something please. Of course then this stream goes to AKM DAC but this not the way we wish it. I welcome any non stock player which can drive dac directly in same way as stock one does. Sooner or later it will be available hopefully but now I don't know any.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
didnt know of that. any sources that this is the case?
edit:
according to this documentation it should be a systemwide default value - unless ZTE ****ed that up
https://developer.android.com/reference/android/media/AudioFormat.html
xtermmin said:
If the "Headset HiFi" control in Settings is to switch between SD820 and AKM DACs, then I'm able to use the AKM DAC with other media players that pass audio processing/decoding to the OS (as opposed to fancier players that utilize their own built-in decoding methods/codecs). In my music player of choice (Clean Music), I can switch between the two "Headset HiFi" options (Standard & Super) in the middle of a song and, after a pause to transition, hear a difference between them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have bad news which is good news actually. SD820 DAC is not used in A7 at all. There are two additional DACs and one ADC. "AKM AK4961 DSP CODEC, which can be considered the primary chipset for Hi-Fi audio playback and recording. The AKM AK4490EN DAC is an independent Hi-Fi audio sampler". This later is what you turn on when set "Headset HiFi" option. So SD820 ADC/DAC don't play at all.
http://www.androidauthority.com/taking-audio-next-level-zte-axon-7-706898/
and same is on ZTE site as well.
I have doubts that you can hear the difference between the two AKM chips while you don't between Clean Player and the built in ZTE player. Although I don't listen 4961 but I do Clean Player. The difference is significant especially if record is 44.1 kHz because conversion of it to 48 kHz is more difficult than of 96kHz record.
obladi64 said:
I have bad news which is good news actually. SD820 DAC is not used in A7 at all. There are two additional DACs and one ADC. "AKM AK4961 DSP CODEC, which can be considered the primary chipset for Hi-Fi audio playback and recording. The AKM AK4490EN DAC is an independent Hi-Fi audio sampler". This later is what you turn on when set "Headset HiFi" option. So SD820 ADC/DAC don't play at all.
http://www.androidauthority.com/taking-audio-next-level-zte-axon-7-706898/
and same is on ZTE site as well.
I have doubts that you can hear the difference between the two AKM chips while you don't between Clean Player and the built in ZTE player. Although I don't listen 4961 but I do Clean Player. The difference is significant especially if record is 44.1 kHz because conversion of it to 48 kHz is more difficult than of 96kHz record.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, the SD820 DAC is used and enabled. People with fancy players like PowerAmp (the latest alpha) report that in the app's settings, the only DAC that shows up in the list is the SD820 DAC. No AKM DAC listed.
I'm not an audiophile or anything, but when I have Super selected, the audio has a little more of a "punch" to it, while Standard I can kinda hear a bit of a ceiling. (this is all without ATMOS, of course)
xtermmin said:
Actually, the SD820 DAC is used and enabled. People with fancy players like PowerAmp (the latest alpha) report that in the app's settings, the only DAC that shows up in the list is the SD820 DAC. No AKM DAC listed.
I'm not an audiophile or anything, but when I have Super selected, the audio has a little more of a "punch" to it, while Standard I can kinda hear a bit of a ceiling. (this is all without ATMOS, of course)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SD820 in Poweramp: I cannot say anything pro or contra. I try to be smart from commercial b...ts. I don't know any well detailed technical quide. Based on these as engineer I would say that SD820 DAC is not used at all. Phone reports SD820 DAC for third party softwares due to compatibility reason but in real AKM chips works. Like I said I don't know it surly but most likely. I am also searching for the correct answer.
I believe that you hear the difference especialy if PowerAmp turns SD820 on somehow.
Otherwise the two AKM chips are different therefore they should sound differently. To hear it is just question of headphone price. Of course it is without ATMOS.
guess we need @rikin93 to use his contacts to get a definitive answer
Flaîm said:
didnt know of that. any sources that this is the case?
edit:
according to this documentation it should be a systemwide default value - unless ZTE ****ed that up
https://developer.android.com/reference/android/media/AudioFormat.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. It is justify my concern rather.
"Expressed in Hz, the sample rate in an AudioFormat instance expresses the number of audio samples for each channel per second in the content you are playing or recording. It is not the sample rate at which content is rendered or produced. For instance a sound at a media sample rate of 8000Hz can be played on a device operating at a sample rate of 48000Hz; the sample rate conversion is automatically handled by the platform, it will not play at 6x speed."
obladi64 said:
No. It is justify my concern rather.
"Expressed in Hz, the sample rate in an AudioFormat instance expresses the number of audio samples for each channel per second in the content you are playing or recording. It is not the sample rate at which content is rendered or produced. For instance a sound at a media sample rate of 8000Hz can be played on a device operating at a sample rate of 48000Hz; the sample rate conversion is automatically handled by the platform, it will not play at 6x speed."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you missed the important part:
As of API M, sample rates up to 192kHz are supported for AudioRecord and AudioTrack, with sample rate conversion performed as needed. To improve efficiency and avoid lossy conversions, it is recommended to match the sample rate for AudioRecord and AudioTrack to the endpoint device sample rate, and limit the sample rate to no more than 48kHz unless there are special device capabilities that warrant a higher rate.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
which means that it can be programmed to output at 192 khz, but 48 khz should be the default value if there's no additional hardware.
or am i just misinterpreting this whole paragraph?
so either no player can play at 192 khz, or every player plays at 192 khz
Flaîm said:
you missed the important part:
which means that it can be programmed to output at 192 khz, but 48 khz should be the default value if there's no additional hardware.
or am i just misinterpreting this whole paragraph?
so either no player can play at 192 khz, or every player plays at 192 khz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, someting like that. Since it is Androud part it is 48 kHz. I used Clean player as altarnative and I prove that there is difference between this and stock.
So as I understand it says that every source is converted to 48kHz and this is sent to dac. You can play 44.1 or 192 kHz source it doesn't matter streams will be converted to 48. Stock player alone can bypass it so far. And it is important in case of CDs as well becuase 44.1 to 48 conversion is the one of the ugliest thing can happen here.
obladi64 said:
Yes, someting like that. Since it is Androud part it is 48 kHz. I used Clean player as altarnative and I prove that there is difference between this and stock.
So as I understand it says that every source is converted to 48kHz and this is sent to dac. You can play 44.1 or 192 kHz source it doesn't matter streams will be converted to 48. Stock player alone can bypass it so far. And it is important in case of CDs as well becuase 44.1 to 48 conversion is the one of the ugliest thing can happen here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i just tested listening to some flacs in my regular player, vlc player and the zte player with my beyerdynamic custom one pro. either all of them were outputting the same format, or i am just not able to hear the difference.
Flaîm said:
i just tested listening to some flacs in my regular player, vlc player and the zte player with my beyerdynamic custom one pro. either all of them were outputting the same format, or i am just not able to hear the difference.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So I am not fan of VLC Player therefore it is not installed on my phone. May be I felt wrongly and there is no difference because it doesn't exist at all and every player drives DAC appropriately. All I know is that I listened music by Clean Music for weeks and than I exchanged to ZTE player. Going through the music repertoire I was surprised. Anyway I am human too.
After all the fact is that you didn't here difference proves only one thing, namely you cannot hear the difference. Here and now.
I will study developer link what you suggested more thoroughly and also I am still waiting for the correct technical details from Android experts. Until I use ZTE player which works fine in above mentioned way. All song appears, all in order, no lag and sound brilliant. What else is needed?
Music Player DAC issue **Fixed**
Hi, I have a fix to using the DAC on non-stock music apps.
So I received my Axon yesterday.
Ipgraded from the Lenovo Vibe X3. I first ran in on the DAC problem on the X3.
In my experience all of these dedicated DAC phones follow the same approach, i.e., LG V10, Vivo Xplay 5, Vibe X3, Axon 7, and (I as sum) LG V20 as well.
There is already a thread on XDA explaining this in detail. -> http://forum.xda-developers.com/lg-v10/general/music-apps-using-dac-t3252596
In short, the apps listed on the V10 page will use the DAC. Although the Vibe X3 had a dedicated DAC toggle, and the Axon 7 doesn't.
To test whether the DAC is being used by a music app on the Axon 7 is:
1. Plugin high fidelity headphones (so you will be able to hear and verify the difference in music), if you can do it with regular earphones/headphones, good for you. and kickass hearing btw
2. Play music on the music app you want to test. (Refer the LG link I posted)
3. while the music s running in the background, go to Settings -> Sounds & Vibration -> Headset Hi-Fi -> and switch between Standard & Super settings.
IF that app is using the DAC, you'll notice a slight pause (when the DAC switches on/off) and of course the difference in sound quality.
Note: Switch Dolby off or ignore it when testing the app, cos for some reason switching Dolby Atmos on/off produces the same gap in playback as the DAC.
On the Vibe X3 it didn't.
I used to use PowerAmp earlier, cos I found that best for my taste.
Then I discovered Neutron, and fell in love with that.
However then I bought a DAC phone & both Power-amp & Neutron don't use the DAC(or I wasn't able to make them)
As per a lot of users online "Poweramp Alpha" can be made to use the DAC on such phones, somehow. I tried fiddling around with it, got fed-up & left it.
If someone has the patience to figure it out AND explain it to me, I'd be grateful, cos Poweramp is my player of choice in terms of UI & ease of usability.
Neutrons latest changelogs mention it can use DAC usage as an update. But I can't notice the difference in the method listed above, or maybe its referring to USB DACs.
Now my player of choice adter going through the list of DAC supported music apps is Pulsar. - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rhmsoft.pulsar
Reason being, I found it to be the lightest/cleanest player which supports the DAC and can relatively smoothly handle my 10K+ collection of 320kbps MP3 & FLAC collection.
You guys can go through the list of apps on the LG V10 page and decide. which suits you best.
h/t @stupc. I've found his thread to be the most informative and bang on in solving the problem of 3rd party DAC phones throughout the net. And trust me, I've searched. Went crazy trying to solve this when I first bought the X3
Hope this helps.
Mods: Please move the post/thread to the appropriate section if required and close the thread as solved.
Hit Thanks if this helped.
Evil0verlord said:
[...]
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thank you for your answer.
the method to check whether the seperate DAC is being used supports my observation, that i wasnt able to hear a difference between all 3 players i've used.
but i guess the question remains whether the output is in 48khz or 192khz for all of them :/
I'm sceptical about the differing sound quality when switching the "Headset HiFi" setting. I noticed that the volume increases significantly when the setting is on, and goes quieter when switched off. This is a well known and proven psychological sales tactic for audio. The human brain subconsciously associates louder sound to be of higher quality.
In this case it would be very difficult to perfectly volume match the on/off setting of the "Headset HiFi" toggle for a proper blind test. I don't believe any user testing can be trusted unless it's done blind, as confirmation bias could easily take precedence.
Some good reading:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychoacoustics
EDIT: I just did some more rudimentary testing with consumer quality mp3s and the ZTE music app, toggling the Headset HiFi setting on/off. The difference in frequency response is very noticeable even when not using high end FLAC encodings. There are significant bumps in bass and treble, even when compared to other sources I have with known flat sound signatures.
So you're asking, what does this mean? There's two scenarios:
1) if the Headset HiFi toggle is indeed switching between the Axon high end DAC and the SD820 standard DAC, the Axon DAC is far from neutral and has a coloured sound with unnaturally increased bass and treble response. This is arguably positive for the average consumer who likes the visceral sensation of an unnatural U-shaped equalizer, but will be disappointing for audiophiles looking for a flat sound signature.
2) the second possibility is that the Headset HiFi toggle does not change which DAC the system is using, but rather is like a Loudness button found on many stereos. When volume decreases, the human ear perceives low and high frequencies dropping off faster than other mid range ones. Loudness buttons are added to stereos so that low volume listening frequency response sounds closer to what the ear perceives at higher volumes.

LG V60 volume limitation

I upgraded from a V35 to a V60 and an very happy with the audio quality.
However, I listen to classic rock. Now I find that either Android, LG or Verizon has limited the LG V60's volume to 75% while using plug-in headset earphones and/or plug-in earbuds.
After two months of phone calls, in person visits to Verizon and web seatching there is nothing that can be done from a user perspective, that I can find. I've tried a couple of "volume booster" apps with zero success.
I've found this limitation using LG's earbuds, every set of earbuds I own, and, with Beyerdynamic 770's (250 ohm, Note, after reading reviews, I assumed the V60 would drive those 770's w/o issue). The limitation also exists played thru a NobSound DAC.
I've seen mention of "Poweramp" in other audio related threads, used in the thread to boost output from 48khz to 192khz, which should be amazing. But there are several similarly named apps...my guess is the aforementioned app is "PowerAmp Full Version Unlocker", for $5.49. Would this help volume as well?
Is there anyway to defeat this limitation?
Even a 10% increase would be satisfactory.
What if you turn on the DAC setting in the quick-settings? I'm sure you already thought of that.
svetius said:
What if you turn on the DAC setting in the quick-settings? I'm sure you already thought of that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, no effect.
I'm using the Neutron Player app which has a 'use on-board device's volume control' option you could turn off & use your DAC. I did this to use my tablet with an iFi DSD nano and the next time I used the [stupid] USB C to 3.5mm dongle without the DAC, it nearly blasted my ears. So if you try it, be careful when you're not using an external DAC.
The app is a pain to setup but that's because, in part, it has so many configuration options. Think Android vs iPhone taken up several notches. Once it's setup, you'll get used to the GUI/Ux itself which I did not find intuitive. Anyway, there's a free eval. version if you wanted to check it out.
Mojo1114 said:
Yes, no effect.
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Click to collapse
Hmm....I know this kind of sucks, but how about an external DAC? Those usually work via USB C and can provide very loud, very clean output.
Op is using a DAC.
The limitation also exists played thru a NobSound DAC.
yep_nexus said:
I'm using the Neutron Player app which has a 'use on-board device's volume control' option you could turn off & use your DAC. I did this to use my tablet with an iFi DSD nano and the next time I used the [stupid] USB C to 3.5mm dongle without the DAC, it nearly blasted my ears. So if you try it, be careful when you're not using an external DAC.
The app is a pain to setup but that's because, in part, it has so many configuration options. Think Android vs iPhone taken up several notches. Once it's setup, you'll get used to the GUI/Ux itself which I did not find intuitive. Anyway, there's a free eval. version if you wanted to check it out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. It seems an app will be the solution. And I've seen Neutron Player mentioned in other threads.
To repeat your method as I understand it: Neutron allows me to turn off the phone's volume (which will bypass the 75% limitation) and send the raw signal via Neutron to my external DAC which will ultimately control volume?
And Im a bit confused by your advice to use caution the next time I plug in my phones directly into my phone with my wired headphone's 3.5 jack? That implies the phones limits are permanently bypassed? Am I understanding you correctly?
I'm also curious over PowerAmp app as well. Not being tech savy, intuitive is a plus.
And again, many thanks for taking the time to comment!
Mojo1114 said:
To repeat your method as I understand it: Neutron allows me to turn off the phone's volume (which will bypass the 75% limitation) and send the raw signal via Neutron to my external DAC which will ultimately control volume?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Correct!
Mojo1114 said:
And Im a bit confused by your advice to use caution the next time I plug in my phones directly into my phone with my wired headphone's 3.5 jack? That implies the phones limits are permanently bypassed? Am I understanding you correctly?
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Click to collapse
Right, so Neutron has another setting (and it could be Android too, not sure), that starts the app automatically when you connect headphones. Or at least it offers to start, and you can easily accidentally tap it when it pops up. I wanted to bypass my tablet's volume when I connected my external DAC, since that has a hardwire volume control so I enabled that 'bypass device's volume' control. However, later when I went to use my tablet to watch a quick video I plugged in my every day earphones, probably tapped Neutron player unintentionally, and it started playing at max volume. On my V60 phone that probably isn't super loud, especially from what you're saying. However on my Samsung tablet it was screaming loud. It happened long enough ago that I've forgotten the exact circumstances.
Anyway, that control doesn't permanently bypass the phone's volume control. You can shut it off, and I can't say for sure if it has any affect on other apps. I only made that mistake once. Later I realized the volume in Neutron was loud enough with my DAC connected. The internal volume may well be bypassed automatically. I guess I need to listen to some music again through this rig soon to test it out. Unfortunately for both of us that won't be tonight.
Mojo1114 said:
I'm also curious over PowerAmp app as well. Not being tech savy, intuitive is a plus.
And again, many thanks for taking the time to comment!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't used PowerAmp since it first came out in the early 2000s with the advent of MP3s. But chances are it is more intuitive than Neutron Player. I'm a professional audio engineer by trade & tech nerd, yet still get caught up in the menus and different screens all the time. If it didn't sound so good and stream DSD files right along side PCM audio, and stream my entire music collection from my NAS, I'd kick it right to the curb.
My pleasure. Hope this helps! Cheers.
Any real solution for this yet? I think it can be bypassed with root access to the build prop or the sound mixer found in system/vendor/etc.
Any rooted user care to check?
Are you saying this can be fix in build prop?? Which entry?
I'm about to root my phone. Have already BL unlock it.
hooutoo said:
Are you saying this can be fix in build prop?? Which entry?
I'm about to root my phone. Have already BL unlock it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It should be in one of those two files. Most likely the sound mixer file though. I don't know exactly how the entry will look but i would guess something like "headphone volume limitations = max 75"
Change 75 to 100 save and reboot.
Again this is all just guesswork I'm not a developer and haven't rooted this particular phone yet and likely won't unless we get a custom aosp.

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