Android head unit microphone issues - Android Head-Units

These systems are well known for their mic troubles and I have taken this up with the manufacturer. There is a post that I have seen somewhere in this forum that details a hardware fix. From what I have gathered, anyone brave enough to attempt and has accomplished this fix has not reported any issues; great for the electricians out there.
I do work in the computer industry, but identifying electrical components and soldering is not something I am too confident with. The manufacturer did however, send me an updated update.img file in response to my mic issues. I've installed this and it made some improvement, but nothing so significant that I have actually started using the mic. It also has a new wallpaper and noticed that the default apps have been updated, but not sure how?
Anyway, I've just had a bright idea! I've tried improving the mic by using various bluetooth mics, various external mics that plugin into the mic jack, using the internal mic and manufacturer software update. All make very little difference, but has anyone actually tried using a USB mic?
I don't have one to hand and don't really want to buy one if this doesn't solve the issue. Would drivers/android recognising the usb device be an issue? Hoping someone has had a go at trying this out or can try it out if thay have a usb mic?

Shame no one replied on this one. Did you end up trying a USB mic solution and did it work out for you?

Yeah... Haven't tried it yet as don't want to buy one if it doesn't work. Your reply to this thread would have bumped it back to the top so may still get a response Im hoping

According to this link http://liliputing.com/2012/09/using-skype-on-an-mk802-android-4-0-mini-pc.html, a microsoft lifecam vx-700 with built-in microphone was found to be working on some android devices. The question is whether our firmware would work too. And whether there would be a way to simply disable the built-in input and only route the external usb sound in. It all feels like its probably too much to ask....

OK so I tried a cheap usb webcam with built in microphone to see if it would make a difference. The webcam seems to be working fine for video, was instantly recognized by android and showed video, but sound is still the horrible mess coming from the internal mic. I doubt that a dedicated USB mic would be any different.

Thanks for checking... you saved me some time at least.

Could it be when using an internal mic + external at the same time that can cause this kind of trouble? That is what it seems when i read around forums.

have a look at this, maybe it helps:
http://www.autopumpkin.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=171&start=90

I simply cut the internal red wire to mic and installed external mic again and the problems have disappeared. I have been told there is a slight echo but that may be fixed by changing the BT firmware from default.

I think the mic location on the HU is excellent and we don't really need to route an external mic somewhere else. How about just trying to desoldier the old one and try to locate a high quality one and soldier a new one ?
Fortunately I am lucky and my internal mic works great.

raptor18 said:
I think the mic location on the HU is excellent and we don't really need to route an external mic somewhere else. How about just trying to desoldier the old one and try to locate a high quality one and soldier a new one ?
Fortunately I am lucky and my internal mic works great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lucky you, though to be fair without an external mic my internal worked, just not very well. I have read somewhere that soldering to the internal connections had issues but not sure why, it cant hurt to try can it?

roscored1000 said:
Lucky you, though to be fair without an external mic my internal worked, just not very well. I have read somewhere that soldering to the internal connections had issues but not sure why, it cant hurt to try can it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Shouldn't be a tough solder job.
Just make sure to use a solder sucker to remove old mic and you should be fine.

Guys,
I have the same problem with my android car navigation system.
I have a Note 4 and an android car navigation system in my car (with built in wifi and Bluetooth (BT)). The microphone of the car navigation system has a very low quality, it is almost not working/usable. I would like to pair my phone to the car system in BT but would like to disable the built- in microphone of the android car system and use the note 4's microphone by default and hear the sound of the person who is talking to me on the car speakers.
Is this possible? How? Do I need to use third party apps ?
Many thanks in advance

So frustrating... Anyone have a fix yet?
Android head unit mic barely picking up.
Why have they not fixed this issue?
So frustrating. Got everything all hooked up and straightened out except the daggum mic. I just bought this android head unit (9.0) and the person on the other end of the phone call can't hear me. So I plugged in the external and same. They can barely here me when I am screaming into it.
I have got to get this fixed.
Anyone found a solution yet???

Find out how to get into the engineering menu of your HU, there you can adjust the mic gain. Also have a look at this thread for other ideas.

did you fix it?
---------- Post added at 12:07 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:03 PM ----------
I improved the level of my mic built-in with th MTK enginerring app. hardware test and changing mic volumen in normal mode, headset mode and loudspeaker mode, but it is not enough when engine is working. I will try to solder and external mic to the pads of mic built-in. I think that it is problem of software filtering because when engine is off, sounds doesn't rattle, the volumen is not to high but the comunication is steady, but when i start the engine, conversation gets cuts. maybe engine sound is interfering with the mic built-in mic. I will update progresions.

8227L YT9216BJ Head Unit
even my above car android unit has mic problem. it does not recognize the voice commands unless spoken very close to the mic, which is not practical
Also, Bluetooth calls are intermittently heard (with Airtel). But when switched to JIO simcard, works fine.
Please can anyone support with a solution on both the issues
[email protected]

In short for helping anyone that has the same problem
I have a Bosion D6 android (android 10 version – 4 gb ram 64 storage, 8-core) head unit on my Ford Focus mk2.
Everything was perfect expect the microphone, even after I installed the external mic that came with it, the sound was poor and my listeners’ complaint that the quality of the conversation was not very good.
Read tons of stuff here and elsewhere so I decided to spend some money (around 20€) and bought a Sony microphone XA-MC10 to replace the Chinese original (since I have read some good reviews and you can find it in your local market also)
The difference was more than noticeable and everyone now listen to me perfect. i test it myslef through the sound recorder app and it seems like going from say 64kbits/s to 146kbits/s or more.

I don't want to open another thread because the problem is similar.
When I connect with iphone carplay, the interlocutor often hears me jerky, I tried both internal microphone and external also cutting the internal one to exclude it but nothing.
Using the application "microphone amplifier" and applying the filters instead it feels perfectly, but obviously every time it should start and set, so very boring.
Tried to use MTK Engineering mode to change the mic volume, but it doesn't solve completely.
Anyone have any ideas to try?
Thank you in advance

Did anyone ever find a solution to sounding really quiet to the person your calling? Cheers

Related

What is the best mic fix for this tablet?

I'm new to this tablet, only had it a week and relized people cant hear me when i Skype with them. So before i purchase a head phone set with a mic on it i wanted to ask here to find out what is the best solution ??
I use a stereo headphone (make Wesc - more or less 50 €) with a little microphone which is located on the cable (close to the headphone). The sound is crystal clear.
I didn't find any other solution for using voip (skype, google) with this tablet.
I use it in three ways.
1- like castafiore do.
2- using only a headphone, no mic. (use the internal mic)
3- using speakers conect to heatphone plug. (use the internal mic)
I think that the "plug" disconect something internal in reference with the "cancel noise system."
Please excuse my bad english.
tabasco22 said:
I use it in three ways.
1- like castafiore do.
2- using only a headphone, no mic. (use the internal mic)
3- using speakers conect to heatphone plug. (use the internal mic)
I think that the "plug" disconect something internal in reference with the "cancel noise system."
Please excuse my bad english.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So are you saying that all I need is head phones no mic?
Yes.
If you want better results, you can install: "volume control"
market.android.com/details?id=com.revsodev.volumecontrol&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5yZXZzb2Rldi52b2x1bWVjb250cm9sIl0.
and high the "in-call volume".
Try skype test.
I talk with my son every night and he hear me wery well.
Unlike tabasco22 even though the noise is reduced when there is something plugged into the headphone jack, the internal mic is not usable for skype.
it seems that there are many headphone/mic sets that work, though i have tried 2 iphone sets that do not .
bullyspud said:
Unlike tabasco22 even though the noise is reduced when there is something plugged into the headphone jack, the internal mic is not usable for skype.
it seems that there are many headphone/mic sets that work, though i have tried 2 iphone sets that do not .[
So should i not buy headphones with a mic that are for apple ipod or iphone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use SONY headphones ,speakers.
using a $1.50 headset with mic i got from ebay. works great. actually it works way better then it should for that price.
yo all have been thanked
I was gonna just drill a bigger hole in mine lol I guess I could be more logical ill try volume control + see if it helps any
Sent from my HTC Inspire 4G using Tapatalk
Making a hole?
There is another solution: take off the back cover of the tablet. If you do a test with the two microphones totally uncovered (as I've done myself), you will notice that there is NO improvement at all.
Evidently, the problem doesn't come from there...
castafiore said:
Making a hole?
There is another solution: take off the back cover of the tablet. If you do a test with the two microphones totally uncovered (as I've done myself), you will notice that there is NO improvement at all.
Evidently, the problem doesn't come from there...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea figured thanks for the info:thumbup:
Sent from my HTC Inspire 4G using Tapatalk
Anybody tried remove second mic? I mean sound canceling mic. Or maybe just cover it with tape.
I think it's a software problem, between the level of the microphone and cancel noise system level
This problem disappears when you insert any kind of plug into the speaker output., which cancels the "noise canceling system".
deepdelete, you phisicaly disconect the "sound cancelling mic" when you insert a plug.
I think sensitivity of sound canceling mic must be lower, or it must be placed somewhere else.
Sure there is also possibility to correct things with software mod.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noise-canceling_microphone
deepdelete said:
Anybody tried remove second mic? I mean sound canceling mic. Or maybe just cover it with tape.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I did try that as well. But it doesn't make any difference neither.
I think you could be right, deepdelete. The second microphone on the a500 faces the back of the tablet (opposit the user).
But the 2 microphones are so closed to each other that the desired effect (as explained on the link you give), the "noise-cancelling", doesn't work properly. It's just a guess but it sounds logical (to me, anyway ).
Surprised nobody mentioned, removing the tab from the cover if you use one.
Found this out the hard way. Tab's cover, actually covered the mic! And, if I held it in my hands, it actually picked up the residual sound my fingers made when holding it. Resulted in a "garbled" sound on the other end.
I found with skype, the best thing, was to remove it from the cover, and place it on the covers "stand".
Where is the microphone located? I can't even use the voice search function with mine.
STUPID MIC locations... AGAIN AGAIN AGAIN AGAIN AGAIN AGAIN
There are two mics..
ONE is dead center in the grove between the glass and case at the top of screen. you will see a tiny slot..
the second one.. on the right of the sd card door you will see a tiny hole.. Its right under there.. This one is for background noise canceling. Like from the a500s own speaker.. and does not work well.. The mic works ok with yahoo messenger.. if YOU HAVE NO BACKGROUND NOISE AROUND or you cover that back mic..on not well BUT BETTER THEN IT DOES WITH GTALK OR skype ..
it just sucks is all there is to it.. I tried replacing the mic with a high end known to work well mic . NO LUCK So its either a hardware chip.. or software issue.. Do not think this will ever be fixed .. USE HEADPHONES

ACER A500 Microphone Fix?

Hi, guys Ive been looking for microphone fix on my A500 , when i record any video it has this loud background noise...which in fact my room is silent , also when I'm recording videos outside & using Skype . Im using HC 3.2.1 rooted with thor's CMW ver 1.5 . I been searching the forum for a fix but i cant find it or so as I read that they will fix this issue on HC 3.2, but still i get this issues . Is this a Hardware problem or OS issue?
Also can I still return this tablet to walmart & get a refund? I already exchange the first 1 cuz It got a charging issue. SO basically I'm returning an exchange tablet. It hasn't been 14 days yet. as they mentioned for returns & refunds.
Thanks.
hatyrei said:
Hi, guys Ive been looking for microphone fix on my A500
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Funny, I was coming here to ask for help about something similar...
In my case, I have a refurbished A500 which has been awesome so far, with the exception of the microphone. It records terribly, lots of noise and distortion in any recording I make (using Recorder as the test app I made a short .amr recording which I attach 7zip-compressed).
A friend has an A500, and it doesn't seem to display this issue. While it's no deal-breaker (I can live without recording audio...playback of tv shows loaded on the card works better-than-fine!), I'm wondering if there's anything I can do to fix it, or at least make it a little less...noisy.
I believe the culprit has to do with the speakers creating feedback. The workaround is to use headphones. Hope this works for you.
Take a look here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1065219
tabasco22 said:
Take a look here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1065219
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did read that entire thread, which only tells me there are multiple unrelated issues around audio recording on the A500...these issues seem to get all mixed-together in that thread, with people who only care about Skype focusing on that and cross-talking to people who have completely different recording issues. I was hoping this thread could avoid the whole need-to-use-Skype distraction and focus on the specific issue of seemingly over-driven recordings. (With the refurb, I'm also out of the whole keep-complaining-to-acer-until-they-do-something-to-fix-it focus there seems to be on that thread. I can't really complain, and any warranty I had expired a while ago.)
The earlier suggestion to use a headset is, however, something I should have considered first (even read in the earlier Skype-centric thread), and am a little embarrassed I didn't. Sometime this weekend I'll pick up a cheap 3.5 mic/headphone set and see if that makes any difference. If it does, and the recordings though it are cleaner, I can be more comfortable it will work for one thing I care about...using the A500 with the SquareUp CC processor.
Mic - Solution for me.
Problem: Microphone recordings sound terrible. Soft, Choppy, Mechanical, like a bad cell call, bathroom (NOT the severe helicopter sound as others have reported). My hypothesis like others have suggested, seems to be noise cancellation issues. Especially since the issues vary app to app. These mics are right beside each other and I assume they're pretty much hearing the same thing, and the rear is trying to cancel what it hears, which is the same as the front! End result being filtering what it hears, ie filtering everything? FAIL.
Test 1: Using Recorder and Skype Test call, I tested different distances talking to the front/back, covering front mic, covering back mic, case on, case off, headphones plugged in/out, etc. In some instances you could hear some, and other hear nothing, some sound ok, some sound horrible. I wasn't satisfied with ANY.
Test 2: Popped off back of tablet and disconnected REAR facing mic. They are side/side, make sure you disconnect the correct one, the one with the diaphragm pointing out. Simple connector. Then tried Recorder/Skype Test call and both sounded Excellent. I have not tried a call with Skype, just the test. EDIT: Tested a real Skype call last night. No sound issues on my end or other end.
Conclusion: Removal of rear mic provided the best quality. There is zero filtering/cancellation/etc.
Gotta try this
Hmm!
Should of thought of this myself. Going to give it shot and post back later!
Unhooked the rear mike --it helps the front m ike is usable now. Not perfect but works.
So for me
1 Run Flexreaper ICS by Civato = better mike
2 Drill hole for front mike = not as muffled
3 Disconnect rear mike= almost as good as a phone but not as sensitive.
Okay on recording and search but Skype still noisy without headset.
Damn connectors were a pain to unhook.
appoaf said:
Problem: Microphone recordings sound terrible. Soft, Choppy, Mechanical, like a bad cell call, bathroom (NOT the severe helicopter sound as others have reported). My hypothesis like others have suggested, seems to be noise cancellation issues. Especially since the issues vary app to app. These mics are right beside each other and I assume they're pretty much hearing the same thing, and the rear is trying to cancel what it hears, which is the same as the front! End result being filtering what it hears, ie filtering everything? FAIL.
Test 1: Using Recorder and Skype Test call, I tested different distances talking to the front/back, covering front mic, covering back mic, case on, case off, headphones plugged in/out, etc. In some instances you could hear some, and other hear nothing, some sound ok, some sound horrible. I wasn't satisfied with ANY.
Test 2: Popped off back of tablet and disconnected REAR facing mic. They are side/side, make sure you disconnect the correct one, the one with the diaphragm pointing out. Simple connector. Then tried Recorder/Skype Test call and both sounded Excellent. I have not tried a call with Skype, just the test. EDIT: Tested a real Skype call last night. No sound issues on my end or other end.
Conclusion: Removal of rear mic provided the best quality. There is zero filtering/cancellation/etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did and I agree this is a fix if you want to use recorder, Skype, talk, tango, etc. But I also learned to forget using the video camera UNLESS you have it using the rear camera (this is one you use by default when you Skype). Looks like it uses the microphone that points in the direction of the active camera.
So I would suspect the noise cancelling algorithm settings are to blame for poor sound recordings.
I solve this issue by using my stereo earphone with mic that came with my Nokia phone. I have tried a bluetooth stereo headset with mic and another wired earbuds with mic, there was either still a lot of noise or the sound level was very low. Basically, it is the same as using a headset. Finally I found one earphone with mic that works well. I actually have two of the same earbuds from 2 identical Nokia 5230. I tested them on two Iconia A500 with voice chat and video chat, it works very well both ways. I have also tried to turned off the Dolby Mobile as suggested by someone. It actually makes it worse and the sound level went down a lot.
acer a501 microphone fix
hi all
today i finally got to the bottom of the microphone issue
versions 3.x had some issues with the mic that cant be fixed - tried different internal and external mics but no good - i thought it was a hardware issue
and not able to solve but after ota update of ics the external mic is perfect - crystal clear and no noise and heaps of level.
the internal mic is crap so i decided to change the microphone with anything i could find - it has to be electret mic.
I had a few lying around and some worked well and some did not - i eventually found one that worked really well will heaps of level - the
only prob was that it was twice the size of the original.
i had to cut some of the plastic away but eventually got it installed.
The internal mic works great now - much better than the muffled one that came with the unit.
I left the second mic connected as it seems to make no difference in or out.
So what i have found -
firmware on 3.x no good for mic
ics makes mic work well if you use exeternal.
internal mic - get rid of it as it is useless.
hope this helps someone as i spent lots of time trying to fix this
OK but...
jzaiter said:
hi all
today i finally got to the bottom of the microphone issue
versions 3.x had some issues with the mic that cant be fixed - tried different internal and external mics but no good - i thought it was a hardware issue
and not able to solve but after ota update of ics the external mic is perfect - crystal clear and no noise and heaps of level.
the internal mic is crap so i decided to change the microphone with anything i could find - it has to be electret mic.
I had a few lying around and some worked well and some did not - i eventually found one that worked really well will heaps of level - the
only prob was that it was twice the size of the original.
i had to cut some of the plastic away but eventually got it installed.
The internal mic works great now - much better than the muffled one that came with the unit.
I left the second mic connected as it seems to make no difference in or out.
So what i have found -
firmware on 3.x no good for mic
ics makes mic work well if you use exeternal.
internal mic - get rid of it as it is useless.
hope this helps someone as i spent lots of time trying to fix this
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HoneyComb 3.2 disconnected the rear microphone, Resulted in Better Quality without helicopter noise specially better for skype Etc.
Video recording still Just hardly acceptable. but quality is still bad.
Wont buy from acer anymore.

Anyone here using the internal microphone on your head unit?

How is the sound quality through the internal mic on your after market head unit? Is it acceptable? Can the person you talk to hear you good enough?
Which unit are you using?
I'm using it without problem, anybody's can heard me.
Enviado desde mi Nexus 5 mediante Tapatalk
Cool, thanks. What unit are you using?
Because i've always thought built in microphones are crap and unusable. Obviously i'm wrong.
Anyone else give their thoughts?
Hi,
my internal mic is absolutely crap, nobody understand a word. My unit is a Naviskauto C0255. Newest andoird from booroonbook installed. I was not able to get the external to work, i posted this already, waiting for help. Is far as i know there is no chance to deactivate the internal mic and as long as it is not deactivated, the external will not work. they do not work together, 100%sure, even if other tell you they do!
That's why i started this thread.
To understand how big this problem is.
Imagine that you buy a head unit for bluetooth calls and it doesn't work nomatter if you use an external mic or not. Absolutely frustrating and the producers don't seem to understand what we want.
raptor18 said:
That's why i started this thread.
To understand how big this problem is.
Imagine that you buy a head unit for bluetooth calls and it doesn't work nomatter if you use an external mic or not. Absolutely frustrating and the producers don't seem to understand what we want.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I found this thread:
http://www.autopumpkin.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=171&sid=7db8f39bd1e4fbc8faedd1637802d486
The pumpkin is the same as my device. The user called "Jammy" is a stuff member from Naviskauto. As you can read, they have no idea...they sent new external mics to the people but this, of course, doesn't solve the problem. In the end (at page 10) "Jammy" gave up. One user wrote that we have to cut of the red wire of the internal mic band then the external will work. i am not sure if this is the right way...
i only used the internal mic on my Joying for one call, then I hooked up the external mic, and since I got it hooked up, i never felt like tearing open the dash again to try it.
However I was told both sound ok, just that I was louder on the external mic. I would say 75% of the time people say it is fine. However I dont make a lot of phone calls, and I drive a Jeep, which tend to be noisy
Excellent.
Anyone else that can fill in?
Per mtcb thread, the same mic issues exists as almostevery cheap chinese head unit, including the wince units. The solution is to physically and electrically disconnect the internal microphone and connect a quality external microphone. Forget the cheap Chinese external mics and source a local lapel electret microphone. The difference will be night and day! Installation is important too - suggest mounting on steering column or (best) pointing back toward driver near rear view mirror (window acts as a parabolic reflector.) Keep away from sides/side window to minimise road noise.
Mine is fine up until I'm at maybe 70+mph then it's echoey
I've just bought an external that I will fit which will hopefully improve it...I have been able to use it fine for 3/4 months though

PX5 Headunit Phone issues when recording dashcam DVR

I have been having a serious issue with my head unit ever since I got it. Well, actually, not me, but everyone who I talk to on my phone with it over bluetooth, in particular when my DVR is recording the dashcam. When the built-in DVR is recording the dashcam, it keeps making a loud buzz sound every 5 seconds to the receiving end of the call. That is, I don't hear it, but anyone I'm talking to on the other end of the call does. It is very loud and irritating, to such a degree that I have to turn off the DVR every time I'm in a call. Obviously, this shouldn't happen. Additionally, I find the same thing happens when making a call with Skype installed on the radio, which wouldn't be using bluetooth at that point, so it seems somehow either the dashcam itself (it is not the DVR software, I tried another software that did the same thing) or a hardware issue is creating noise on the line-in or mic in the sound system that goes out to the other end of the call. I've tried support from the "manufacturer", but they aren't much use and I don't intend to send the unit back to China and wait to get it back for 4 or 5 months. I suspect it isn't likely to be the dashcam, so for some reason there seems to be feedback on the USB line to the sound module.
So, I'd appreciate any ideas here. I've also tried numerous other DVR apps, but it seems that pretty much none of them function correctly with the USB dashcam that came with the radio. I don't know if it's an issue with the specific camera or that it's a USB interface for the camera. So, I'd appreciate any experience anyone can offer to resolve this.
Other than these issues, I've got it working the way I want. I installed a cooling fan on the PX5 CPU. I need to put a capacitor in parallel with it still as I think it's causing the LCD to flicker slightly. It came with Android 8, so I installed Android 9 on it. Upgraded the MCU. I also replaced the plain WIFI antenna wire with a plugin port so I can connect a better wifi antenna. I found an app that allows me to force a normal reboot instead of the pseudo-reboot it does with the power button because Android sometimes needs an actual real reboot.
There are some really annoying quirks about the radio too that if anyone knows how to change I'd be very grateful. For one, the Accessibility Services keep getting disabled when the radio is shutdown with the car. It seems to be a memory function built into the device as it doesn't happen with a real normal reboot. Also, the wifi sometimes gets shut off, I assume for the same reason. And the lack of security really really bugs me.
That's not an issue it's a feature I guess they didn't want to dedicate a PCB layer to route analog signals I even wonder if they have a dedicated layer for power. Anyway the problem is they run analog lines next to/under digital lines and no ground plane to isolate the 2. There is a mic mod thread that addresses those issues if you're interested.
Maybe just installing an external mic would be sufficient if your HU already has a connector for it. As for your other issue, check the factory settings menu there should be a setting to restore the unit to previous state on reboot. Sorry I can't remember the exact name of it.
nic2k said:
That's not an issue it's a feature I guess they didn't want to dedicate a PCB layer to route analog signals I even wonder if they have a dedicated layer for power. Anyway the problem is they run analog lines next to/under digital lines and no ground plane to isolate the 2. There is a mic mod thread that addresses those issues if you're interested.
Maybe just installing an external mic would be sufficient if your HU already has a connector for it. As for your other issue, check the factory settings menu there should be a setting to restore the unit to previous state on reboot. Sorry I can't remember the exact name of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have an external mic. It doesn't help. Thanks for pointing me in the direction of the mic mod. It's probably what I've been looking for. As for the factory settings, I don't seem to have an option to restore the unit previous state in my factory settings.

Mekede Headunit Microphone Quality

Folks, I'm at my wits end and hope someone here can help. I purchased a Mekede M300 Android head unit (I believe this is a rebranded Joying unit) over a month ago for my wife's Honda HR-V 2017. Installation was fairly straightforward and any minor issues that came up were able to be resolved messaging the seller on Aliexpress.
There is one major issue that remains which is a dealbreaker - call quality is absolutely horrendous while driving and/or with the air conditioner on.
I've tried:
Testing on multiple devices
Testing with and without an external 3.5mm microphone installed (unit has a crappy internal one)
Factory resetting
Adjusting "sound mix scale" and "power conditioning" values in unit settings with no noticeable improvement
What I believe is happening is some processing/filtering is being done on the mixed audio input from internal mic (and the external mic, if plugged in). AC or road noise drowns out my voice and I cannot be heard well on the other end. No idea how to avoid this...
Does anyone have any suggestions or solutions? Attaching system info if it helps identify the device.
This is a major issue with all of these Chinese head units. They do not use noise-cancelling microphones.
As soon as "ambient noise" like airco, ventilation, tyre noise, wind noise, engine noise, etc. becomes too loud, you can forget it.
Even a 10 euros/dollars investment in a cheap noise cancelling internal mic (so two cheap mics instead of one cheap mic) would already be a great difference.
Even the cheap units are so powerfull that simply using two very cheap mics and some algorithm to separate the "general constant" noise from the "differentiating" signal (voice) would make a huge difference.
Maybe you could try with a USB headset to see if you can use a USB microphone for a phone call. If it works you might purchase a USB-cancelling microphone. I must admit I never tried that as I don't do phone calls in my car.
surfer63 said:
This is a major issue with all of these Chinese head units. They do not use noise-cancelling microphones.
As soon as "ambient noise" like airco, ventilation, tyre noise, wind noise, engine noise, etc. becomes too loud, you can forget it.
Even a 10 euros/dollars investment in a cheap noise cancelling internal mic (so two cheap mics instead of one cheap mic) would already be a great difference.
Even the cheap units are so powerfull that simply using two very cheap mics and some algorithm to separate the "general constant" noise from the "differentiating" signal (voice) would make a huge difference.
Maybe you could try with a USB headset to see if you can use a USB microphone for a phone call. If it works you might purchase a USB-cancelling microphone. I must admit I never tried that as I don't do phone calls in my car.
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Thanks for the info. Any recommendations for a replacement mic? I already tried purchasing a rather cheap one on Amazon that didn't make a noticeable difference.
I tested hypercardioid microphone and results were pretty good, but it has to be mounted near your head. Problem I have is that internal microphone, the one on the display, is still on. I'm thinking of de-soldering it as it's not too difficult to access.
firstbob said:
I tested hypercardioid microphone and results were pretty good, but it has to be mounted near your head. Problem I have is that internal microphone, the one on the display, is still on. I'm thinking of de-soldering it as it's not too difficult to access.
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I read about this and didn't want to have to do it if possible. Was call quality acceptable with the hypercardioid microphone? Can you provide a link?
fusionice said:
I read about this and didn't want to have to do it if possible. Was call quality acceptable with the hypercardioid microphone? Can you provide a link?
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It's like this one: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002433011687.html I specifically was looking for cardioid microphone that does not pickup lower frequencies, this one starts at 50Hz.
It could be a bit louder ( gain was set to medium ) so it's probably not perfect, but results from directional pickup were good.
firstbob said:
It's like this one: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002433011687.html I specifically was looking for cardioid microphone that does not pickup lower frequencies, this one starts at 50Hz.
It could be a bit louder ( gain was set to medium ) so it's probably not perfect, but results from directional pickup were good.
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Thanks, I'll look into that one.
When you say that you set the gain to medium, is that some setting on the headunit? If it is, I could not find a similar setting on my unit.
@surfer63 I've seen one of your posts breaking down different values in the "config.txt" file. Could mine be a culprit? It is set to "persist.btmic.gain=8"
fusionice said:
Thanks, I'll look into that one.
When you say that you set the gain to medium, is that some setting on the headunit? If it is, I could not find a similar setting on my unit.
@surfer63 I've seen one of your posts breaking down different values in the "config.txt" file. Could mine be a culprit? It is set to "persist.btmic.gain=8"
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Browsing through engineering menus I saw the mic gain settings. I found it after testing so I did not play with it.
fusionice said:
@surfer63 I've seen one of your posts breaking down different values in the "config.txt" file. Could mine be a culprit? It is set to "persist.btmic.gain=8"
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This one is unknown to me. Like mentioned: I don't do phonecalls in the car and never even looked at this one. I really don't know.
On my head unit, a TEyes FYT sc9853i unit, it did not have an external mic connector. I modified the harness so that my stock car microphone could be used. I soldered a connector directly to the internal mic location and removed the internal mic. It was located on the side panel where the touch controls are located. It is easily accessible from behind through a separate removable cover panel. Not sure if yours is the same. The stock microphone is located just above the drivers sun visor. I have a North American Kia Sorento 2012 SX.
mastrv said:
On my head unit, a TEyes FYT sc9853i unit, it did not have an external mic connector. I modified the harness so that my stock car microphone could be used. I soldered a connector directly to the internal mic location and removed the internal mic. It was located on the side panel where the touch controls are located. It is easily accessible from behind through a separate removable cover panel. Not sure if yours is the same. The stock microphone is located just above the drivers sun visor. I have a North American Kia Sorento 2012 SX.
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I think it's likely that all 9" (and probably 10.1") HU displays with capacitive buttons on a side are the same. I have TS10, relatively new unit, and date on the that side board is 2019.
mastrv said:
On my head unit, a TEyes FYT sc9853i unit, it did not have an external mic connector. I modified the harness so that my stock car microphone could be used. I soldered a connector directly to the internal mic location and removed the internal mic. It was located on the side panel where the touch controls are located. It is easily accessible from behind through a separate removable cover panel. Not sure if yours is the same. The stock microphone is located just above the drivers sun visor. I have a North American Kia Sorento 2012 SX.
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Yes mine looks like this as well. How difficult was your modification? Did you need to build a custom harness/connector to keep the OEM mic? Seems pretty involved, but I'd give it a try if I just needed to solder a readily available part.
If you have access to 4pda, the hardware forum has good write-ups on microphone changes and other hardware modifications. I use Google Translate for 4pda and it works well enough. This has info for an external mic:
Головные устройства TEYES - Аппаратная модификация, автозвук, брак и ремонт - 4PDA
Головные устройства TEYES - Аппаратная модификация, автозвук, брак и ремонт, [Головное устройство][Автомагнитола][Android]
4pda.to
I needed an external module for my head unit to work with the OEM amplifier. The module harness came with a connector for the OEM mic. It plugged directly into the microphone connector I added to the head unit.
It's a little involved, but not difficult. My soldering skills are very limited. Made a huge difference in the call quality.
For those of you who run across this thread (as I did) trying to resolve the mic / bluetooth call quality issue, I thought this might help.
I desoldered the built-in mic and tried various high quality aftermarket microphones, none of which solved the issue. Then, as a last-ditch, 'why not?' effort, i plugged in the cheap mic that shipped with the head unit. Surprisingly, this works well! So, for all of you having the call quality problem, disable your internal mic and use the mic that came in the box with your Mekede/Navifly unit; it just might solve the problem.
I don't know what's really going on, but I have a theory that higher quality, more sensitive mics actually reduce call quality on these units as they try to filter out all the extra background noise and overcompensate... but the included external mic is less sensitive and is what they test with, so that's what they tune the unit for.
Anyway, I hope this helps somebody.
Trayal said:
For those of you who run across this thread (as I did) trying to resolve the mic / bluetooth call quality issue, I thought this might help.
I desoldered the built-in mic and tried various high quality aftermarket microphones, none of which solved the issue. Then, as a last-ditch, 'why not?' effort, i plugged in the cheap mic that shipped with the head unit. Surprisingly, this works well! So, for all of you having the call quality problem, disable your internal mic and use the mic that came in the box with your Mekede/Navifly unit; it just might solve the problem.
I don't know what's really going on, but I have a theory that higher quality, more sensitive mics actually reduce call quality on these units as they try to filter out all the extra background noise and overcompensate... but the included external mic is less sensitive and is what they test with, so that's what they tune the unit for.
Anyway, I hope this helps somebody.
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I guess you did not check the impedance of the microphones you've tried did you? A microphone can only work well if it's impedance (ac resistance) matches the input impedance of the microphone preamp. That's also the reason why the internal and external microphone never perform well in parallel installation. That's something that the Chinese manufacturer don't understand it seems...
Another head unit but I'm sure not too different to illustrate disconnecting the internal mic:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/...-usage-reference-thread.4236281/post-87970225
blue_one said:
I guess you did not check the impedance of the microphones you've tried did you? A microphone can only work well if it's impedance (ac resistance) matches the input impedance of the microphone preamp. That's also the reason why the internal and external microphone never perform well in parallel installation. That's something that the Chinese manufacturer don't understand it seems...
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Apologies for missing this until now. I unfortunately did not measure the various mics' impedance. I will note, though, that while the one I noted (that shipped with the head unit) did work better than anything else I tried at that time, due to a rather harsh sound at freeway speed, the Mrs. wanted me to keep searching. I tried one more aftermarket mic that ended up working even better. Here it is on amazon:
FingerLakes 3.5mm Microphone
The stats on the page list the following:
Sensitivity: -30dB+/-2dB
Frequency Range: 50Hz-20KHz
Output Impedance: ≤2.2 kΩ
SNR: >58dB
I don't know how accurate the above specs are, but it's a really inexpensive mic so if anybody has the proper equipment and wants to measure impedance and post it here for posterity, this is an inexpensive unit that is working well on my Mekede UIS7862 unit.
Did you ever get this resolved? I have the exact same issue. Is there an adapter that I could purchase to connect my OEM microphone?
Kmaso1 said:
Did you ever get this resolved? I have the exact same issue. Is there an adapter that I could purchase to connect my OEM microphone?
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That depends...
You need to check how your car exposes the mic connection. If it's part of the main EOM connector you have to add additional wires and solder a 3.5 mono plug on them.
If your car provides the mic via a separate plug there may be adapters available.
I have a separate plug for external mic. Here is a photo of the rear of the unit. The mic is poor with and without the external one plugged in

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