Took the plunge with the Microphone mod [Video added] - Acer Iconia A500

So I opened the back of the A500 and looked around abit and switched places with the microphone and the noise canceller. And now at least when I record, peoples voices can be heard pretty decent. Plus I drilled a hole in the 'hole' to open up the space for the sound to come in abit.
So even with the Acer case on you can hear the voices pretty well
Before you couldnt hear anything. But now the whole google voice thing isnt so easy to use since the mic is face the opposite way but I never used it anyways, plus for VOIP calls its much better to use a headphone.
Just sharing
Please feel free to ask any questions.
Cheers!
Edit: From what I saw in the back I believe the microphone could be changed to a better one some day. Just a matter of finding a good replacement.
(01/08/2011)Add: Here is a sample of the sound when you record a person speaking infont of the iconia now with my mod.
Link sample with modded microphone: [http://dl.dropbox.com/u/33166156/Test.3gp
This is my son and as you can see you can hear him perfectly well
I think the noise canceller could be adjusted to 'muffle' the screeching sound abit.
Cheers!
Edit: Link was broken, fixed now.

i am really thinking about doing that. Iit easy to open the case?

mnaderi said:
i am really thinking about doing that. Iit easy to open the case?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes its actually very easy, you have to begin at the corner either left or right on the bottom of the A500 (meaning the Dock port area) you take something very thin and sturdy but be careful not scratch it up or bend to hard just make an opening maybe 2,3mm then stick something plasticky (like a protective shield cover slate) but strong and stick in the opening and drag slowly to the right until the entire left side is open (left to the Dock port I mean) and then from there you just gently lift up up until you have the whole bottom open and then you just again you the plastic tool to drag the sides (left and right) and just gently lift with the plastic tool and slowly it will loosen bit by bit once you have left and right and the bottom released then you just hold the whole thing and lift it and with will click off by itself from the upper part.
Here is a video showing pretty much what I described, its very easy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIvbWo_p3KI

That tear down video makes things look easy

UnicornKaz said:
That tear down video makes things look easy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
...there's a tear down vid?

thanks, i opened it up and did some tweaking unfortunately it's only about 30% better, i also made a hole for the case as well. how much did yours improve when you did your mods. i'm guessing the rear mic has to be tweaked as well. thanks

Did you switch places with the mic and the noise canceller?

Pull the Mic out take it to radio shack and get a better set of mic to go in there.I have done this with Michael and internal speakers on notebooks. But I have Bluetooth high def headset. So no need here

this mic problem is seriously killing me.
I often use my tabto record videos but i can never hear any voices cause they are really low. So i am ready to do anything to the tab for a better microphone experience.
As far as drilling holes is concerned, i would want to know where is the mic suitated if there are two. I do noe that one is on the top of the screen in the middle gap between the metal cover n screen glass. Is there another one?
And what can be possibly done to fix or better this issue?
I even tried voip and no1 could hear me, very disappointing pls help sum1.....

i found a kind of solution on youtube...
WuS47cbxyC0

Related

Crunched the faceplate - now the speaker is REALLY scratchy - anybody do repairs?

I did a REALLY a stupid thing this weekend. I had the trunk of my wife's car up and had no pockets, so I put the phone on the edge of the trunk and put everything else in the trunk. I swung the lid down and it bounced back up.
I had no idea what was keeping the trunk from closing until I saw my phone sitting there. Thankfully, the trunk's on a Toyota Echo, so it didn't crush the phone, but it did dent the faceplate right where the speaker and email/browser button is.
Now calls are really scratchy and crackling, so I'm guessing that I have a partial connection to the speaker or crunched it well enough to kill it.
While it's useable, it makes it hard to use - is there anyone on the forums that does repairs?
kcfried said:
While it's useable, it makes it hard to use - is there anyone on the forums that does repairs?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How about you!!??
All the info you need is here.
Mike
I know this thread is a bit old, but I just fixed the same problem with my Hermes.
Find a good disassembly guide and pull the beast apart, when you get to the speaker, it will be caved in/crushed.
There are two clips on either of the long sides, unclip them and carefully lift the metal bit off a little way, get a small jewelers flat head screwdriver and push the dints out, being very careful of the delicate wires.
Or you could just find a new speaker
EDIT: While you're at it, bend the speaker contacts out a bit too just in case they were squashed, also to get better contact.

Speaker Issue

Hi,
Has anyone encountered any issues with their speaker apart from that infamous volume balance?
My right speaker refuses to play anything but if I press the chassis of the transformer together the speaker works but stops working as soon as I let go. To me it sounds like some sort of loose connection/contact.
How easy is it to dismantle? Has anyone encountered a similar issue?
Thanks.
neoghio said:
How easy is it to dismantle? Has anyone encountered a similar issue?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My left speaker doesn't work, but very occasionally will momentarily come to life. Squeezing the edge doesn't make a difference. I assume its a loose connection, but I have'nt done anything about it yet.
My left speaker doesnt have any sound at all
Hey OP, I have the same issue, except mine still plays at times, gets fuzzy and buzzy at loud volumes, then stops. However, if I press the right side together, it plays again, so it's not noticeable if I use a really tight sleeve on it, but with the loose sleeve I normally use on it .. :/
Same here, when it does play, its very buzzy. I am inclined to open it up and check if its some loose contact or something but I don't fancy messing my Transformer up as of yet lol.
No problems with either of my Transformers myself, but there were a few reports in the past of poor connections to one of the speakers on some TF units. (Right speaker, if I remember correctly.) Forum search will find them.
If my TF had these issues I would send in for repair
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1118010&highlight=speaker
My left speaker quit working all together and right speaker from the start was extremely weak. I sent it to ASUS for repair with less than one week turn around and both speakers are nice now. Well worth the time to have done properly.
I'm scared of the RMA process tbh :/
I Managed to fix mine if you people are interested.
It involved disassembling the Transformer.
I took the speaker out of the "compartment" it was in, switched on the tablet and put on some music. No music came out. Pressing the speaker in sound came out but as soon as I let go the sound disappeared. I cut out a small piece of paper and folded it a couple of times and placed it in the compartment the speaker goes in.
When I put the speaker back in the paper sort of squashed the speaker in a bit which in turn kept playing music.
Its not the best of explanations but if someone has a similar issue they may be able to use that as a guideline lol
How hard is it to disassemble the tablet? Also, what tools would I need?
asdfuogh said:
How hard is it to disassemble the tablet? Also, what tools would I need?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its not very hard. You just need some patience as removing the bezel is the only bit you need to be careful with.
You would need a Phillips screw driver (one of the small ones) and a Torx T5 I believe was the correct size.
I used this video as a guidance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JG9gEYRALtU
To remove the bezel he uses a plastic tool with a very thin edge but many people have had success simply using a guitar pick to remove the bezel. Luckily I had one of those plastic tools and was able to remove it.
Once you can see the insides:
That little black rectangle on the right is the speaker, inserting the small screwdriver in the compartment its in, you should be able to take it out and if your encountering the same problem as me, just press and hold the speaker from both sides to see if audio works.
Picture credit goes to hybridau
neoghio said:
Hi,
Has anyone encountered any issues with their speaker apart from that infamous volume balance?
My right speaker refuses to play anything but if I press the chassis of the transformer together the speaker works but stops working as soon as I let go. To me it sounds like some sort of loose connection/contact.
How easy is it to dismantle? Has anyone encountered a similar issue?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This happened to me tonight while watching a youtube vid! Been looking through the forums for successful speaker replacements and messaged one guy already who might have the correct replacement speaker part.
Will update when I know more.
Cracking it open is very easy as long as you take it slow. I did it to fix my power button. It is pretty well known by now that the TF101 was one of the most cheaply built but still amazingly performing tablets on the market.

Nexus 7 3G - is my rear microphone bust?

I moved from an iPad to the N7. When I first got it I accidentally and absent-mindedly pushed the SIM opener into the rather stupidly-placed rear mic hole (which is the same size as the tray opener hole) because I'm used to the removal hole being at the side of the tray and was rushing to get it up and running
I can't seem to get it to record anything, so can I assume that I've bust it or does it only kick in under certain conditions or in certain apps? I've tried downloading different voice recording apps but even the ones that allow you to switch mics don't seem to actually switch on the N7 - they just seem to use the mic on the top-right of the device.
Can someone on here test their mics and let me know if it records on both? I know that if I push my finger over the main mic I just get some ambient muffled sound (probably just being picked up by the covered mic).
I don't know how resistant the mic is to having a SIM opening tool pushed quite hard into it, stupid as I feel, I'm sure I'm not the only person to have made this mistake!
Thanks
leoni1980 said:
I moved from an iPad to the N7. When I first got it I accidentally and absent-mindedly pushed the SIM opener into the rather stupidly-placed rear mic hole (which is the same size as the tray opener hole) because I'm used to the removal hole being at the side of the tray and was rushing to get it up and running
I can't seem to get it to record anything, so can I assume that I've bust it or does it only kick in under certain conditions or in certain apps? I've tried downloading different voice recording apps but even the ones that allow you to switch mics don't seem to actually switch on the N7 - they just seem to use the mic on the top-right of the device.
Can someone on here test their mics and let me know if it records on both? I know that if I push my finger over the main mic I just get some ambient muffled sound (probably just being picked up by the covered mic).
I don't know how resistant the mic is to having a SIM opening tool pushed quite hard into it, stupid as I feel, I'm sure I'm not the only person to have made this mistake!
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have not made the same mistake as you but my mic is not working either. Is working only the mic that is in the power button, but not the one on the Sim card tray...
Can any confirm that is a real mic and it´s working?
Thanks!
Mine too... not that loud compared to the main mic in power button.
Confirmed that the microphone is working only when the Nexus is on landscape mode.
I sent an RMA to Google thinking that the unit was faulty and then I came with the solution by myself. What a lack of knowledge of their own product!!

S5 Duos low mic

Hey guys just got my S5 and I am told that the mic volume is quote low by people I speak to. Is this normal or I have a faulty device on my hands
Very unlikely to be a hardware problem. Usually it's a user error e.g. not holding the phone close enough to your mouth or using the phone in very loud environments.
Try using the phone normally i.e. not in speaker phone mode where performance is worse and you annoy everyone within earshot. You can also try disabling noise reduction in the settings menu. Infrequently you may have water, dirt or your finger (when you hold the phone) obscuring the microphone hole on the bottom of the phone.
It's also possible to tweak the mic volume in the service menu /audio submenu. A forum search will explain the details if you wish to try that.
.
fffft said:
Very unlikely to be a hardware problem. Usually it's a user error e.g. not holding the phone close enough to your mouth or using the phone in very loud environments.
Try using the phone normally i.e. not in speaker phone mode where performance is worse and you annoy everyone within earshot. You can also try disabling noise reduction in the settings menu. Infrequently you may have water, dirt or your finger (when you hold the phone) obscuring the microphone hole on the bottom of the phone.
It's also possible to tweak the mic volume in the service menu /audio submenu. A forum search will explain the details if you wish to try that.
.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HI, thanks for the info.. i have seen almost the same in the forum and outside like here http://droidtricks.blogspot.ae/2011/09/how-to-increase-or-boost-low-microphone.html
Is this still valid ?
Same issue with me
dusk1911 said:
Hey guys just got my S5 and I am told that the mic volume is quote low by people I speak to. Is this normal or I have a faulty device on my hands
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the same problem on the same device - but from all the googling I did - It turns out it a common problem with the S5 (single or dual SIM).
So far I did not find any solution to the problem...
Please share if you had any luck?
I am even considering widening the hole of the microphone (it is about 30% narrower then the S4), I do not care that much of the water protection...
Solved!
Happy to report I solved my low mic. problem!
Unfortunately it compromises the waterproofing, but I gladly sacrificed it!
I did poke in the microphone hole with a tin wire about 3-4 mm into the hole. I did not feel any resistance, but apparently I broke the waterproofing membrane on the microphone hole.
Now people can hear me even when I am whispering! I am so happy with my phone! (at one point I was thinking of replacing it because of the muffled mic.!)
The membrane I am talking about can be seen on the middle frame over the mic. hole on the attached picture.
Please if you do what I did - be careful, it might damage the microphone...
armsel said:
Happy to report I solved my low mic. problem!
Unfortunately it compromises the waterproofing, but I gladly sacrificed it!
I did poke in the microphone hole with a tin wire about 3-4 mm into the hole. I did not feel any resistance, but apparently I broke the waterproofing membrane on the microphone hole.
Now people can hear me even when I am whispering! I am so happy with my phone! (at one point I was thinking of replacing it because of the muffled mic.!)
The membrane I am talking about can be seen on the middle frame over the mic. hole on the attached picture.
Please if you do what I did - be careful, it might damage the microphone...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi armsel,
Good Spot!!! thanks for sharing the trick. I am having the same problem with my and I wish to follow your procedure in my phone.
Please provide more information with detailed steps and screen shots because I'm little confused in figured out microphone hole why because found two holes in bottom and top of the phone. I knew its my own risk and don't consider about waterproof.
Thanks in advance...
Tvm G said:
Hi armsel,
Good Spot!!! thanks for sharing the trick. I am having the same problem with my and I wish to follow your procedure in my phone.
Please provide more information with detailed steps and screen shots because I'm little confused in figured out microphone hole why because found two holes in bottom and top of the phone. I knew its my own risk and don't consider about waterproof.
Thanks in advance...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your primary microphone is the one on the bottom - next to the USB port (the top microphone is used for noise cancellation and you can leave as it is). You only need to poke the bottom one. Be gentle - if you feel resistance - don't push (I did not feel any resistance as far as I can remember). Test afterwords and see if there is an improvement - if not, try to penetrate little bit further (I believe I went something like 3, maybe even 5 mm in).
Best way to test - if you have another phone and call it on Viber (I did that with my wife galaxy S4 mini). And leave your next to a radio set with talk show on.
Good luck! :good:
Solved!!!
armsel said:
Your primary microphone is the one on the bottom - next to the USB port (the top microphone is used for noise cancellation and you can leave as it is). You only need to poke the bottom one. Be gentle - if you feel resistance - don't push (I did not feel any resistance as far as I can remember). Test afterwords and see if there is an improvement - if not, try to penetrate little bit further (I believe I went something like 3, maybe even 5 mm in).
Best way to test - if you have another phone and call it on Viber (I did that with my wife galaxy S4 mini). And leave your next to a radio set with talk show on.
Good luck! :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi armsel,
Problem is solved now !!! Microphone is working fine now my voice is audible.
Poked with small needle at least 3mm to 4mm and test my voice with voice call and some messenger apps works fine :good:
I am wondering how you got this trick bcos searched whole web but could not get a right solution.
Great help and Thanks Man...

Microphone Broken? D801

Hello,
I have an issue with my microphone where I need to yell into it for it to have any volume at all. This behavior appears in Google Now, during phone calls, and with the Screen Recorder app (affects everywhere).
Reading a kernel thread in Android Development, I saw tons of people talking about gain and settings for the microphone, so for 3 months I chalked it up to a kernel issue in the CM nightlies I was using. Yelling into my phone in public so people could hear me haha
Since the official T-Mobile Lollipop ota came out, I decided to flash the KDZ from LG. This of course wiped out everything, recovery, new bootloader, even a new battery charging screen when dead. Clearly completely refreshed.
The issue persists.
Does anyone know what this could be? I had a similar issue when I was still in warranty, so I had the microphone replaced. I'm not sure if it did anything, I made a few test calls when it came back from warranty and it seemed to work (obviously on KK stock software for warranty shipment)
Please let me know! I wish I had an intuition with the G2 like I have had for several devices in the past, but I don't.
Thanks,
jcarrz1
My speaker is quite awful too. very quiet. (alarms, music, etc)
Headphones fine, normal volume too. and clear sound
jcarrz1 said:
My speaker is quite awful too. very quiet. (alarms, music, etc)
Headphones fine, normal volume too. and clear sound
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
May be the holes for mic is blocked with dust particles.
Would consider what he's ^^^^ saying.
Maybe worth opening the phone and cleaning out your dust from the inside out.
Especially on the bottom left where the Mic is.
Once you have it open blast the ports and speaker holes with a good amount of compressed air.
See if that makes a difference
That was it! thanks guys.
I actually used a normal staple to clean out the holes, I didn't have air or a needle handy. but it worked perfectly (I removed the back cover so I could see when they were cleaned out (by shining a light) and so that i wouldn't poke anything inside).
It's amazing how a little gunk/lint in those holes made me completely inaudible.
Thanks again.
jcarrz1 said:
That was it! thanks guys.
I actually used a normal staple to clean out the holes, I didn't have air or a needle handy. but it worked perfectly (I removed the back cover so I could see when they were cleaned out (by shining a light) and so that i wouldn't poke anything inside).
It's amazing how a little gunk/lint in those holes made me completely inaudible.
Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anytime!
Glad it worked out & was an easy fix

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