Database Users

X10 Sound Solution!

Although this is my first post/contribution to the forums, I've been a long time visitor and absolutely love this community, especially the effort that goes into not only providing exceptional ROMs, but the support thereafter. In short, this community, without the slightest exaggeration, is the reason I stepped into the Android world.
That said, I've frequently come across the issue/concern of low sound, be it via headset, in call, speaker, etc. I've tried everything suggested online particularly regarding the X10, to no avail. So to anyone still struggling with an issue with sound, try the following:
Enable the PowerAMP "tone" setting and adjust the preamp to max. Leave the equalizer off as its unneeded. Then, using DSPManager (assuming you have flashed the zip file; search xda if you need it), adjust the EQ settings for whichever configuration you are after. With regards to the headphone configuration, the newly applied settings will now superimpose with the PowerAMP settings, and the end result is a significant sound improvement. For the other two configurations, tune the EQ to your liking and you should achieve a similar result.
Being that both PowerAMP and DSPManager can be installed on just about any ROM without issues, the above method should work for most, if not all custom ROMS's. Nonetheless, I'm currently running rendeiro's scamble, and after applying the above settings on my new Superlux closed cans, I kid you not, they really do sound studio quality! I hope this helps someone, as I wasn't able to come across a clear cut solution anywhere, and always ran into problems or no noticeable improvement with all other suggestions.

Would anyone happen to know what the latest version of DSPManager is that can be easily flashed via recovery on the X10? If a link to the relevant thread/file can be provided, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Awesome. I damaged my Atrix and I'm using an old Xperia X10 again so I'll give this a try and report back.
The primary reason why I left is because the damn speaker volume is too low and half a dozen exchanges later I had no luck. Just abandoned the phone. This would be awesome, especially considering now that we have custom ROMs. I'm blown away by some of the new ROMs. When I left, custom ROMs were just in their infancy. THIS is why I bought an Xperia X10. Just happened a year too late lol

[Q] HD2 low headphone volume

Does anyone have the lowdown on whether the HD2 sold in Europe suffers from the dreaded "EU volume limiter" and if so, is it limited to 100dB or 85dB?
Been a few threads on this subject already, and interestingly some people say they don't experience the problem, others do.
Currently using stock ROM 3.14.206.1 and wondered if the ROM version might make a difference.
I find that the supplied earbuds are quite loud but poor quality. They seem to be more sensitive than most standard headsets. If you substitute a decent headset the volume is just adequate on loud pop tracks with all controls maxed-out. It's too quiet to be usable on classical though, or on any low-level recordings. The same headset gives plenty volume on my HTC Wizard, as do a set of TDK earbuds.

I solved Android flashed 2.3.3 and using the original player with an app called Music fx, wow, it's a totally different world!

banghera said:
I solved Android flashed 2.3.3 and using the original player with an app called Music fx, wow, it's a totally different world!
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Was thinking of testing it with Android on the SD card anyway as that would pin down whether it's a software or hardware/firmware issue. From what you say it sounds like it's in the OS, so in principle it should be fixable.
Tried using TCPMP instead of WMP and this seems to indicate the player software isn't the cause.
I'd rather keep WM6.5 as the main OS for the moment as I've quite a few good apps.
Anyway, I've asked HTC if they can confirm whether this example has volume limiting or not. If yes, I'll be poking-around for a crack.
Strangely, results seem to vary between one startup and another. Last night I had it playing acceptably at 3/4 volume but today it's reverted to needing everything at max.

Not sure if Volumex fixes that, you can try though...

Random Actions in Default Music App?

I haven't been using the default music app because randomly it does an action after a while of playback, pretty much every few minutes; back, forward, pause, whatever, it random action just randomly happens. I've wondered if I somehow accidentally used some sort of gesture or touched the screen, but it happens when the screen is off as well and there doesn't seem to be any gesture that would affect the music app anyway. Does anyone have any idea what can be causing this?
I've been using PowerAmp which doesn't seem to support the A7's DAC. I have it set to 24 bit sound in the last Alpha of PowerAmp (which was many months ago, I've given up on any update for PowerAmp ever arriving) but after side by side sample comparisons they do sound different. The problem is I'm not sure if there's a slight volume difference between programs causing that, or if it's some setting, or if it really is due to the output being done on different DACs resulting in the differences. Pocket Now's video stating it only outputs 16 bit downsampled audio has also stuck in my mind, but despite contacting them twice on different social media, they never responded. That's infuriating, making a bold statement like that, then never providing an explanation and leaving it ambiguous, never stating if the downsampling was at software level, firmware level, or anything.
So I basically have no idea what the hell is going on with the audio on this thing in any way, from software to hardware. That's incredibly frustrating considering the DAC is a major reason why I bought this phone instead of something else.
Edit: I forgot to ask, what software should I use to confirm what sort of bit rate depth the Axon 7 is outputting? I have a Sound Blaster ZxR for recording, so I can plug the A7 right into that.

I can't tell you how to test the depth of the audio coming from the cell. If you can't tell the difference is there any real point? It it just a matter of wanting the product you thought you were paying for?
For the other issue, a really simple thing you've probably done already is checking that ZTE's voice software isn't enabled for media control. An old S4 of mine would go "back" any time a sound remotely like a short "a" played.

PiArc said:
I can't tell you how to test the depth of the audio coming from the cell. If you can't tell the difference is there any real point? It it just a matter of wanting the product you thought you were paying for?
For the other issue, a really simple thing you've probably done already is checking that ZTE's voice software isn't enabled for media control. An old S4 of mine would go "back" any time a sound remotely like a short "a" played.
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I can tell a difference, on the default music player it sounds better, for example instruments sound more crisp and separated from the rest of the audio. The issue is that I can't tell if that perception of more crisp/separated sound is due to a slight difference of volume between programs which is difficult to perceive. Just to add to the confusion, different songs seem to have different volume levels on each player, which aren't consistent. For example song A may be louder on PowerAmp, but song B is louder on the stock player. In those cases where the songs are clearly different volumes (maybe 10% of the time) it makes it extremely difficult to tell which one sounds better to me. This is with all equalizer/Dolby settings disabled.
Humans easily mistake higher volume for "better" quality in various ways. That's really the reason for the "volume wars" or whatever it's called; music was often mastered with levels just blasting instead of balancing the audio properly.
What I was asking is what free program can I use to record audio from my phone to check if it's outputting 24 bit audio? But on that same note, yes, I suppose that would also let me directly measure volume as well.
As for the voice recognition, I'll try disabling that and see if it helps, but isn't that supposed to only work when holding down the back key anyway? Also, often when it did a random command like next or previous song, I was silent.

Ah, I see. Sorry to not be helpful whatsoever.

Hmm y somehow ZTE has volume differences. I also noticed it if i enable/disable Dolby Atmos.
But i also think that ZTE set up some DSP stuff on AK4490/61. I would be happy if there was an app which could change DSP etc settings of this DACs :/

I also noticed the fluctuating volume, for me it's via bluetooth.
It would progressively become quiet and when the next song starts it would scare the crap out of me (much louder), then repeat.
Rarely, it would continue to play randomly after I disconnect from bluetooth (not immediately after).
So it would be nice if someone found a good music player that takes advantage of the DACs and not exhibit random behavior -- alternatively if this was fixed that would also be good.
EDIT: For me, it happens in a certain volume range in the upper end. Anything lower or higher this does not happen.

Solved: Bluetooth volume defaults to maximum on each new connection

I have found that each time that I connect my bluetooth audio devices to the phone the volume resets to the loudest setting. The change seems to happen as soon as I start audio the first time after connecting. When I adjust the volume I can see momentarily that it was on a lower setting and then it jumps all the way up to maximum. This has happened with three different brands of headsets. It does not happen with wired earbuds. An app called "Bluetooth Volume Control" will automatically adjust the volume based on the bluetooth device connected. This work reasonably well but not 100% so far. Any thoughts or suggestions are appreciated.
Edit: I found a solution for this. In the developer options under the "Networking" heading, there is an option to "Disable absolute volume." Turning this option on allows the volume to stay where I put it.

Well, I love having mine maxed out every time. I had the Nexus6p which did something much more annoying. It would always set the Bluetooth volume to the middle and then I would have to turn it all the way up every time. I set up a Tasker option, but like your app, it didn't work 100% of the time either.

ArkAngel06 said:
Well, I love having mine maxed out every time. I had the Nexus6p which did something much more annoying. It would always set the Bluetooth volume to the middle and then I would have to turn it all the way up every time. I set up a Tasker option, but like your app, it didn't work 100% of the time either.
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In the past it would have been less of an issue but the combination of the new phone and my newest bluetooth set means that half way is ear damaging. My older sets were less so but are still uncomfortably loud.

My god, I hope no one else complains about this. I can't stand devices that default to a safe volume limit. FYI, when connected via BT, the phone volume is software based and what ever device you are using is hardware based. It is ALWAYS recommended to max out the software volume and then use the hardware (actual device) volume to adjust to your preference. On other phones I would always have to readjust both volumes, not fun. OnePlus does it right.

Joecascio2000 said:
My god, I hope no one else complains about this. I can't stand devices that default to a safe volume limit. FYI, when connected via BT, the phone volume is software based and what ever device you are using is hardware based. It is ALWAYS recommended to max out the software volume and then use the hardware (actual device) volume to adjust to your preference. On other phones I would always have to readjust both volumes, not fun. OnePlus does it right.
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Not all bluetooth earbuds have volume controls. It would be nice to just have the volume stay where I put it. That would be the "right" way. you could leave it high I could leave it lower.

So I found this. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.phascinate.precisevolume&hl=en
It allows granular control over volume, presets for different devices, boosting or reducing the overall volume... etc.
For example, in my car maximum volume is preferred because I would rather use the volume control on the dash, however my wireless earbuds have no volume control and this newest pair have a truly ridiculously loud maximum volume, and I want them to default to about 50 percent. This app lets me set up separate presets for each.
It also lets you adjust the maximum volume and the rate of change when you use the volume controls. This was useful also.
free to use with ads but it is $2.99 to make it useful though.
I think that is problem solved but I wish that I didn't need an app to prevent an automatic volume change. It isn't about loud or soft. It is the fact that I put it where I want it and the phone changes it. In my case these headphones are capable of such loud volumes that starting soft would be preferable.
Here are the headphones by the way. A bit expensive but very worth it.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/jam-tra...-ear-headphones-black/5796033.p?skuId=5796033
as a point of comparison I have also had these
https://www.amazon.com/SoundPEATS-B...TF8&qid=1501000430&sr=1-7&keywords=soundpeats
and these
https://www.amazon.com/LG-Electronics-HBS-760-Bluetooth-Wireless/dp/B00WE1QYX0/ref=dp_ob_title_wld
The Jams are way better than both in every respect.

Finally found a real solution. In the developer options, under the "Networking" section, there is an option to "Disable absolute volume." turning this option on allows the volume to stay where I put it.

kutluch said:
Finally found a real solution. In the developer options, under the "Networking" section, there is an option to "Disable absolute volume." turning this option on allows the volume to stay where I put it.
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Thank you,I have been searching for a solution months!
I was getting affraid to use my headphones... :crying:

kutluch said:
Finally found a real solution. In the developer options, under the "Networking" section, there is an option to "Disable absolute volume." turning this option on allows the volume to stay where I put it.
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Click to collapse
Thanks for the solution! I've been having the opposite problem, i. e. every time I connected my Bluetooth earplugs the volume was always at the minimum. Now it's working fine.

kutluch said:
Finally found a real solution. In the developer options, under the "Networking" section, there is an option to "Disable absolute volume." turning this option on allows the volume to stay where I put it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I noticed this and had it on but I turned it off, then I noticed that the volume was not staying like it did when I used other bluetooth earbuds. After reading your post, I then reenabled the option and works nicely. I got the IdeaUSA v203 headphones today, and I was trying to keep the volume about the same via bluetooth and aux cable, in-case I ran out of battery and need to plug in aux to use headphones. This works perfectly for me. I use Poweramp and nicely done for this. It says up to 40 hours playback but I think with the way I got it might give me a few hours less playback but I am willing to sacrifice for volume. One reason I love Oreo or higher OS now. My S7 Edge is nice with this.:good:

THANKS! Worked for me!

I have 'disable absolute volume' ON and i still have this problem. Its a very big problem, because having music defaulted to large scares the me so much and also is causing damage to my ears.

littlemermaid1 said:
I have 'disable absolute volume' ON and i still have this problem. Its a very big problem, because having music defaulted to large scares the me so much and also is causing damage to my ears.
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Same here. Toggling that did nothing at all.
My issue was that if I took a phone call while any media was playing, when I hung up on the call the media volume would jump to max and playback would resume which DESTROYED my ears.
My solution was to uninstall the Samsung Sound Assistant app and then rebooting my S9. (Because the behavior persisted until rebooted after the uninstall.) That fixed the issue entirely. I miss the functionality of Sound Assistant so I might try reinstalling to see if it works itself out but for now having the problem fixed is very nice.

Some kind of weird auto volume levelling while using bluetooth audio

Hi guys,
I am using bluetooth audio in my car and I noticed just after buying this phone, that when I set phone volume to 100% (in general, any volume above 67%), which I always do, since stock audio is not much powerful, volume changes rapidly during a song. To be more specific - I listen to electronic music and during every kick, volume goes down and up in the gaps between them, so it sounds like a wave. Higher frequencies or silent passages are loud as hell, lower bassy sounds are silent and this changes 2-3 times a second. It rips my ears off.
With my previous phones used in this car (LG G3, Zenfone Max 3), I never had this issue. I even tested some very cheap phones, every single one of them was ok, sound was not even distorted on max phone volume. On any bluetooth headphones it's the same case, so it's not car audio issue. Also when using corded headphones or aux, sound is perfectly fine as it should be.
What I already tried to fix it:
Messing with every setting in developer mode
Unpairing smart watch (just in case)
Tried loads of different audio players - with no EQ on, just flat
Reset to factory settings
Nothing helped. I lost almost a month with Asus "so called" support, I even shot a video for them with clear evidence what is happening. No help, except they tried to make an idiot of me. I get angry just thinking about that communication with them. Am I really the only one with this issue? I don't believe that warranty claim would solve anything and I really want to keep this phone.
Any help would be really appreciated. Thank you.

Try this, Goto Developer Options, activate the "Disable Absolute Volume" toggle (see screenshot). Disconnect and reconnect your Bluetooth connection. Hope it'll work out for you.

sanctitude888 said:
Try this, Goto Developer Options, activate the "Disable Absolute Volume" toggle (see screenshot). Disconnect and reconnect your Bluetooth connection. Hope it'll work out for you.
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Actually, this was the very first thing I tried. Just to be sure, I did it once again together with disconnecting and reconnecting as well, nothing changed...

How about set whatever player you are using to be not battery optimized? I haven't been able to try any fix since I seldomly bluetooth connected to my car stereo. Or try, bluetooth volume control from Playstore maybe?

sanctitude888 said:
How about set whatever player you are using to be not battery optimized? I haven't been able to try any fix since I seldomly bluetooth connected to my car stereo. Or try, bluetooth volume control from Playstore maybe?
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I am using JetAudio and optimization is turned off. Tried volume control you suggested, but it makes no difference. Sound is still messed up.

I use Shuttle as music player, bare in mind that every recording has a different mastering approach, thus volume levelling could be varied, especially on first pressed of classic records. Usually I am amplifying low signal wave records manually. But to keep away from such trouble, I suggest Spotify since it has normalizing feature, or turn on this feature if it is available in your music player.

sanctitude888 said:
How about set whatever player you are using to be not battery optimized? I haven't been able to try any fix since I seldomly bluetooth connected to my car stereo. Or try, bluetooth volume control from Playstore maybe?
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I use poweramp.
It really help you. Give a try.
Do not use any third party equalizer app with Poweramp,use it's own eq .

I use CM's audiofx since it has somewhat subtle enhancement, aggressive sound tweak is nice but after 10 minutes or so, it tends to hurt my (old) ears. So most of the time I turn off EQ in order to preserve original sound, not that always works though, especially when it comes to mainstream records.

sanctitude888 said:
I use Shuttle as music player, bare in mind that every recording has a different mastering approach, thus volume levelling could be varied, especially on first pressed of classic records. Usually I am amplifying low signal wave records manually. But to keep away from such trouble, I suggest Spotify since it has normalizing feature, or turn on this feature if it is available in your music player.
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Click to collapse
I am listening to my offline archive, not using Spotify etc. There is no way how the source file is affected - maybe one, but hundreds of tracks? Nope. If I have 67% volume or less set in my phone, sound is fine (but overall volume is low, since stock audio has no other amplifier. But when phone is set to 100%, no matter how loud I set car audio, sound gets wavy then. No other phone ever had this issue, I tried direct comparison as well.

I managed to do some test for a whole album on my way home, I could declare the volume level as well as connection was quite stable with no apparent bitrate drop. As a matter of fact it's superior than realme 2 pro which was suck big time in audio department. Although it is no comparison to my now dead lg V10, at this price point I can safely say I'm quite satisfied. The stereo is neither after market nor android auto.

sanctitude888 said:
I managed to do some test for a whole album on my way home, I could declare the volume level as well as connection was quite stable with no apparent bitrate drop. As a matter of fact it's superior than realme 2 pro which was suck big time in audio department. Although it is no comparison to my now dead lg V10, at this price point I can safely say I'm quite satisfied. The stereo is neither after market nor android auto.
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Click to collapse
Thank you for your efforts, so it looks like this is issue on my side. I already contacted seller and I will apply for warranty claim, because there's nothing more I can do.

Junglista said:
I am listening to my offline archive, not using Spotify etc. There is no way how the source file is affected - maybe one, but hundreds of tracks? Nope. If I have 67% volume or less set in my phone, sound is fine (but overall volume is low, since stock audio has no other amplifier. But when phone is set to 100%, no matter how loud I set car audio, sound gets wavy then. No other phone ever had this issue, I tried direct comparison as well.
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I also have the same problem with my Bluetooth headphones (Sony WH CH400) which does not happen on my Redmi 3S (PE 9).
Songs can't hit the high frequencies and sound gets lowered down.
I googled and apparently its the stock Bluetooth stack that doesn't let the bitrate go above certain amount and needs some patching which Asus may not do.
Check this https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/software-hacking/improve-bluetooth-audio-quality-t3832615

@Junglista what did you do? found any workaround?

lscambo13 said:
@Junglista what did you do? found any workaround?
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Not yet, I read briefly the forum you advised, but I need to dig in a bit more. Anyway, even this the closest cause, I don't believe that this is issue is bitrate related (but I may be wrong). I still can hear high frequencies in music, but when bassy part comes in, it's like someone turns higher frequencies volume down, so you can hardly hear them. And when bass is gone, volume rises again to "match" volume of lower frequencies. I still did not apply for warranty claim, because according to the forum you posted, I don't want to give up early and try patching the stack (if I will be able to somehow). Nevertheless, I know exactly what reply I would receive after 30 days at after sales service - issue was not found.

Junglista said:
Thank you for your efforts, so it looks like this is issue on my side. I already contacted seller and I will apply for warranty claim, because there's nothing more I can do.
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Hey! Literally i have the same problem. I have the same phone 4 gb variant. I previously used a phone with dolby and now this phone sucks. I think every phone unit has the same problem.

Junglista said:
Not yet, I read briefly the forum you advised, but I need to dig in a bit more. Anyway, even this the closest cause, I don't believe that this is issue is bitrate related (but I may be wrong). I still can hear high frequencies in music, but when bassy part comes in, it's like someone turns higher frequencies volume down, so you can hardly hear them. And when bass is gone, volume rises again to "match" volume of lower frequencies. I still did not apply for warranty claim, because according to the forum you posted, I don't want to give up early and try patching the stack (if I will be able to somehow). Nevertheless, I know exactly what reply I would receive after 30 days at after sales service - issue was not found.
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I've requested a developer to implement this in his rom. Let's wait and hope the issue to be addressed by our amazing community, else our only hope is Asus Pie update.
PS. I have the exact issue, maybe I explained poorly. lol.

lscambo13 said:
I've requested a developer to implement this in his rom. Let's wait and hope the issue to be addressed by our amazing community, else our only hope is Asus Pie update.
PS. I have the exact issue, maybe I explained poorly. lol.
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Click to collapse
I have the same issue with audio quality via bluetooth. Hope Asus will fix it

rooos said:
I have the same issue with audio quality via bluetooth. Hope Asus will fix it
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I've reported the bug on ZenTalk. I encourage everyone to report there too because it should be Asus' duty to fix this bug on stock rom.
https://www.asus.com/zentalk/in/thread-266521-1-1.html

lscambo13 said:
I've reported the bug on ZenTalk. I encourage everyone to report there too because it should be Asus' duty to fix this bug on stock rom.
https://www.asus.com/zentalk/in/thread-266521-1-1.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just put my comment there, hopefully things will start to move. Thanks for helping with this.

Smk_04 said:
Hey! Literally i have the same problem. I have the same phone 4 gb variant. I previously used a phone with dolby and now this phone sucks. I think every phone unit has the same problem.
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Hey i found a way to tweak up things. The new omni player is on xda. It has a setting called output method. Select the OPEN SL ES. .ur problem will be solved.
App link: https://www-xda--developers-com.cdn...esign-audio-google-cast-android-auto-support/