Database Info

[Q] HDMI output, audio poor quality? SOLVED, see #32

Hi
I just got a UK Wi-Fi Xoom, and started out by installing 3.1 and tiamat 1.4 OC kernel on it.
Now i hooked it up to my amp/tv (Onkyo amp, Panasonic TV) but no matter what i played, the audio quality was really poor (no bass, sounded like 8khz mono). Actually the audio coming from the built in speakers sound better! The cable should be fine, as i briefly tried it with an Optimus 2X, and as far as i remember audio was fine...
Any ideas?
Edit: Solved! See #32

This might not be the best test but I hooked up my Xoom directly to the TV which outputs to a pair of Bose bookshelf speakers and Angry Birds sounded great.
What I found off was the color quality of the home screen and through Quick Pic and stock Gallery. Angry Birds looked and played fantastic. My 3 and 5 year olds were glued to the screen. To fix the color I probably need to play with the color settings on the TV...no biggie. Haven't tried a movie yet.

Hi
After i wrote this i tried connecting it directly to the TV. Same result... (crappy audio). I only tried movies/music, and not games, which really dosent matter that much

same problem for me, European 3G Xoom running 3.0.1
Image quality is good, audio very poor.

I have also noticed that the audio quality leaves alot to be desired when using the HDMI out. Granted I am playing them through my TV speakers, but it does seem to be of lesser quality then other sources like OTA TV. Colors also seem a bit off, or over saturated or something. Maybe playing with the TV color settings would help that.
But its still pretty cool that xoom has HDMI mirroring, I use it alot.

I have the same problem... Connecting the audio via the 3.5mm jack sounds great, but connecting via HDMI seems to only send 2 channel audio, with no bass, maybe even at a lower bit rate (not sure, but it sure sounds crappy).

Same issue here. The audio is also heavily clipped. I tried to adjust the volume on the XOOM to at least alleviate the clipping, but I found that the volume controls have no effect on the HDMI out volume (at least on Android 3.1 + Tiamat 1.5 GHz with GPU OC).

willverduzco said:
Same issue here. The audio is also heavily clipped. I tried to adjust the volume on the XOOM to at least alleviate the clipping, but I found that the volume controls have no effect on the HDMI out volume (at least on Android 3.1 + Tiamat 1.5 GHz with GPU OC).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can confirm that the volume controls also has no effect on the HDMI output volume on stock, non-rooted Xoom 3.1.

ok so it is not just mine... Now the big question is if it is every xoom that has this issue or if it is just a selection?

Iv been asking about his for weeks. The sound output is terrible. Hooked up to my Sony system, same as OP says, no bass whatsoever. Same exact sound at same volume played through audio jack is giving my neighbor a heart massage.
Im really disappointed because I was hoping to output some nice tunes and even films but audio quality is unbearable.
Stock UK 3G on 3.0.1.
I demand answers :-D
Macbots drool as I XOOM through the Galaxy to my hearts Desire.

alias_neo said:
Iv been asking about his for weeks. The sound output is terrible. Hooked up to my Sony system, same as OP says, no bass whatsoever. Same exact sound at same volume played through audio jack is giving my neighbor a heart massage.
Im really disappointed because I was hoping to output some nice tunes and even films but audio quality is unbearable.
Stock UK 3G on 3.0.1.
I demand answers :-D
Macbots drool as I XOOM through the Galaxy to my hearts Desire.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm glad to see this thread too. I've asked about this in other threads and on other forums and the only type of response I get is something like "I hooked it up to my tiny TV and opened the radio Disney app and it sounded just fine!" So it's good to hear people with ears noticing what I've been noticing.
That being said, from what I've been able to research it's either a problem with honeycomb's media player app or honeycomb itself. I've looked at the kernel code and while I did discover that the sample rate is hard coded to 44100 for the audio (with a TODO note in there to make it configurable eventually) I didn't see any errors that would cause it, unless it has to do with the fact that the kernel driver is forcing it to 2 channels but it's possible that honeycomb separates the sub woofer channel which is then discarded by the lower level drivers. Another theory is that they apply some equalization to the sound to make it sound decent on the internal speakers and that sound equalization gets applied to HDMI out as well (but not headphone out). What do you guys think?

Would be interesting to see how other HC devices perform in this area, sound quality, and video quality over HDMI. That might help to pin point weather this is a HC issue or a Xoom hardware issue.
The other HC devices that could be tested:
Acer Iconia Tab -- NO HDMI out
Galaxy Tab 10.1 -- NO HDMI out (proprietary dock connector for video out?)
Tmobile Gslate -- NO HDMI out
Asus Transformer -- Yes (Mini HDMI (Type C))
FWIW the Asus Transformer has the HDMI port is on the device and not on the keyboard accessory.
Xooms HDMI is listed as: "HDMI Type D (HDMI 1.4) connector"
I wonder what the quality of the Asus Transformer has on HDMI out, I wonder if it even does full mirror mode.
Wait, serioulsy only one other HC device has an HDMI out? Strange.
I wonder how GingerBread or Froyo quality is with HDMI mirror, are there any android phones with out of the box HDMI out with mirror?
My EVO has HDMI out but it doesn't mirror out of box, I think there is way with custom roms/kernels to get EVO HDMI mirror working.
Droid X has HDMI but no mirror unless you root, and install a special APK.
Are there any android phones with HDMI out mirror?

pearl62 said:
I have the same problem... Connecting the audio via the 3.5mm jack sounds great, but connecting via HDMI seems to only send 2 channel audio, with no bass, maybe even at a lower bit rate (not sure, but it sure sounds crappy).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Greetings. Same problem with HDMI....workable, tolerable with EQ on amp. However....steaming music through Tune In radio or any other service is where I have a problem with the 3.5mm. Music Beta starts automatically. No matter what I do I can't get it to stop.
Suggestions...workarounds? Do I need to root the thing and remove Music Beta and go third party?

The Acer Iconia A500 does have micro HDMI out

Hi all,
Sorry to go against the majority here but connecting the Xoom to my Dell 21.5" HD Monitor with a Motorola Micro HDMI to HDMI cable is bringing me great results the picture quality is stunning. For sound i use the Audio out on the monitor to take the sound to my JBL powered sub woofer and 4 speakers and this also sounds great and i can also use the volume controls on the Xoom to change the volume through the speaker system. Are you all using the Motorola cable or another make?
Marc

I have the same issue. Horrible audio unless I use a 3.5mm Jack. I want good HDMI out... :'(
Sent from my Xoom using XDA Premium App

what9000 said:
I have the same issue. Horrible audio unless I use a 3.5mm Jack. I want good HDMI out... :'(
Sent from my Xoom using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here. As soon as I started playing a movie through HDMI out I knew something was wrong. Came on here for an explanation or a solution, guess its down to a software limitation?

someone should bring this up in the Motorola owners forum. The forum mod there, Mmat, is really good about addressing issues the community brings to light and telling the software team

Epedemic said:
Hi
I just got a UK Wi-Fi Xoom, and started out by installing 3.1 and tiamat 1.4 OC kernel on it.
Now i hooked it up to my amp/tv (Onkyo amp, Panasonic TV) but no matter what i played, the audio quality was really poor (no bass, sounded like 8khz mono). Actually the audio coming from the built in speakers sound better! The cable should be fine, as i briefly tried it with an Optimus 2X, and as far as i remember audio was fine...
Any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you can take another HDMI machine to test your tv. the HDMI line is also very important. my xoom is run well in my sharp tv.

I have the same problem with the sound quality that I get when connecting my WiFi only Xoom to my HT system. I tried connecting to a Bose lifestyle V30 and I get sound but it is just flat. No bass what so ever and only get sound from my center speaker. I tried a different HDMI input in the Bose system with the same result. If I connect the Xoom via headphone jack to RCA imput it woks just fine and get good quality sound.
I tried connecting to a Denon AVR-2308CI and I get the same result that I get with the Bose system. I have used 3 different HDMI cables, including a Motorola brand. No difference. Picture quality is great in all cases but the sound is just flat.
Now the question is: Is this a hardware or a software limitation?

[Q] Using USB Speakers with Transformer

Hiya,
I got hold of a pair of logitech Z305 USB speakers to try on my Transformer. When I plug them in, the light on them turns green, and the volume buttons on them work to increase and decrease my volume. However, I don't get any sound out of them; sound still comes through the tinny asus speakers!
So, is there any way to change where sound is output too on the tablet? I am aware that I could get a 3.5mm cable and plug that in to the speakers/netbook as well, which should work, but I was wondering if there was a more elegant/less cable-intense solution?
Thanks,
James

It's important to understand that USB speakers (and usb headphones/microphones) are not simply speakers/headphones/mics. They are really little USB sound cards that happen to have a pair of speakers or mic hoooked up to a small power amp built in to them. They do not magically transfer the output of your built-in sound card to the speakers over USB. (like plugging in an 1/8" stereo plug would). So, unless the transformer has support for the standard USB audio protocols used by your USB speakers (and I doubt it does) you won't hear anything out of those speakers. Additionally, since the transformer doesn't know what to do with the USB sound card you have plugged it it doesn't recognize it as an alternative sound output (like A2DP bluetooth audio) and will continue to pump sound out of the built in speakers.
Your best bet is going to be to use standard speakers with an 1/8" jack or a set of expensive bluetooth speakers. Now, will the 3.1 upgrade bring support for usb speakers and headphones? Maybe... I haven't seen anything to indicate one way or the other aside from the very nebulous statement that 3.1 will provide USB host "support".
-Matt

[Q] Purchased cord HDMI sound problem??

Hello Guys,
I purchased a belkin micro hdmi cable yday... Mirroring worked pretty fine. Even played some demo 1080p videos on my g2x and they looked great. But the sound still comes from G2x instead of TV speakers.. I am sure tv supports sound from hdmi (i have a ps3 that works like that). I also couldn't find any settings that can change the audio output method. Is this the way it works i.e. (the sound never comes from tv??)..

Aneelll said:
Hello Guys,
I purchased a belkin micro hdmi cable yday... Mirroring worked pretty fine. Even played some demo 1080p videos on my g2x and they looked great. But the sound still comes from G2x instead of TV speakers.. I am sure tv supports sound from hdmi (i have a ps3 that works like that). I also couldn't find any settings that can change the audio output method. Is this the way it works i.e. (the sound never comes from tv??)..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sound is most definitely output to TV over. There are no settings (other than manual resolution), it's all automatic.

Yup.. it worked today though with out me doing anything different.. I'l keep an eye on when this happens again. I am running only stock android but just rooted (for the setDNS app to revive my wifi ). So should be a glitch in the stock kernel(like many other problems) if it occurs randomly..

MHL problem (SOLVED)!!!

I received my monoprice MHL adapter, plugged the hdmi cable into it, plugged the power into it and plugged it into my phone. the phone shows HDMI hooked up and my monitor will alternate between showing whats on the phone and going to a white fuzzy screen then back to mirrored than fuzzy every couple of seconds.
I plugged my brothers sensation in and it works fine so I doubt it's the adapter, he is rooted running a custom ROM.
I am unlocked and rooted but running stock rom, T-Mobile USA version.

So I went into T-Mobile and asked about this issue, they didn't know, they called tech support who in turn told them to call HTC. They gave me HTCs number, I called and explained what was going on, HTC tells me the phone ISN'T MHL compatible, that we're supposed to use the media link dongle, which costs about $100.
He suggested I try just a straight up micro hdmi cable to my tv instead.
So an older phone (sensation) has the ability, but this new high tech, best of the bunch phone can't do it, what a bunch of ****.
Edit: OK, I figured out the issue, I was running an HDMI to VGA cable to my monitor, since the monitor is a VGA connection. I then went ahead and hooked it up to another monitor that had a straight HDMI connection and it worked perfect, so VGA HDMI cable no good, straight up hdmi to hdmi works great!
Edit 2: So I just tried the MHL adapter again with the vga HDMI cable, and now it works. It's like it needed one cable to make it work and now it will work with the other, nothing changed except that I tried it another TV.

a HDMI to VGA cable? as long as you dont have special equipment this cable can't be used for anything HDMI is a completly digital standard. DVI is digital + analog so a VGA - DVI adapter is possible, but HDMI to analog is without special hardware impossible.

stunner2002 said:
a HDMI to VGA cable? as long as you dont have special equipment this cable can't be used for anything HDMI is a completly digital standard. DVI is digital + analog so a VGA - DVI adapter is possible, but HDMI to analog is without special hardware impossible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are correct sir, my bad, it is a DVI cable. So just replace VGA with DVI in my first and second post.
The cable I have is this one.
Thanks.

Okay. Could be a problem with HDCP.
Gesendet von meinem HTC One S mit Tapatalk 2

I'n having this issue too.. still unresolved
My MHL came in 2 days back. Hooking the phone up keeps alternating between what's on the phone and the white noise screen. I have a straightup HDMI cable going from the MHL to my LCD TV.
Any suggestions are welcome

KT said:
I'n having this issue too.. still unresolved
My MHL came in 2 days back. Hooking the phone up keeps alternating between what's on the phone and the white noise screen. I have a straightup HDMI cable going from the MHL to my LCD TV.
Any suggestions are welcome
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK, I noticed if i just go and hook up my cable to the mhl the problem comes back, the solution is to hook everything up to the phone, then reboot the phone and the problem will be gone. One other thing is make sure you have your media volume turned up as it affects sound output, so if your media volume is muted, it will also be muted or whatever volume the phone is set at. I thought I was nuts when there wasn't any sound coming from my stereo until I realized that I had my volume all the way down.
DO the reboot thing and it should work no problems, also, our phones don't need to be plugged in to your power cord to use the MHL, so I'm wondering if the MHL adapter is even necessary for us if we can live without the power cord needing to be attached.

Ready2Mosh said:
OK, I noticed if i just go and hook up my cable to the mhl the problem comes back, the solution is to hook everything up to the phone, then reboot the phone and the problem will be gone. One other thing is make sure you have your media volume turned up as it affects sound output, so if your media volume is muted, it will also be muted or whatever volume the phone is set at. I thought I was nuts when there wasn't any sound coming from my stereo until I realized that I had my volume all the way down.
DO the reboot thing and it should work no problems, also, our phones don't need to be plugged in to your power cord to use the MHL, so I'm wondering if the MHL adapter is even necessary for us if we can live without the power cord needing to be attached.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks.. Will try and circle back..
Re: The power cord, not sure if it's 'needed' but I'm guessing without external power the phone wouldn't last an hour.
Seperate issue - When I last tried, I was playing around with it and the phone heated to a point it was slightly uncomfy holding the phone.

KT said:
Thanks.. Will try and circle back..
Re: The power cord, not sure if it's 'needed' but I'm guessing without external power the phone wouldn't last an hour.
Seperate issue - When I last tried, I was playing around with it and the phone heated to a point it was slightly uncomfy holding the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, without the external battery going to the phone it will drain dramatically. I also noticed the heating issue you mentioned.

Ready2Mosh said:
OK, I noticed if i just go and hook up my cable to the mhl the problem comes back, the solution is to hook everything up to the phone, then reboot the phone and the problem will be gone. One other thing is make sure you have your media volume turned up as it affects sound output, so if your media volume is muted, it will also be muted or whatever volume the phone is set at. I thought I was nuts when there wasn't any sound coming from my stereo until I realized that I had my volume all the way down.
DO the reboot thing and it should work no problems, also, our phones don't need to be plugged in to your power cord to use the MHL, so I'm wondering if the MHL adapter is even necessary for us if we can live without the power cord needing to be attached.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Update: So I tried hooking up all the cables to my phone, restarted the phone and then plugged it into the TV. It still gives me same results unfortunately. I get a display but it keeps going away every few seconds and the white noise screen appears.
What a buzzkill... My old phone (Sensation) was flawless in this respect

USB Audio for TF700

Hi,
I've been looking for a solution to use a dedicated USB soundcard with my TF700, because the sound quality from the 3,5mm analog out isn't loud enough, the quality isn't great and I hear lots of intermittent "hiss" noises when I'm watching movies with DTS sound (whatever the video player I use).
The main problem is the loudness, since I'd like to use the tablet to watch videos i.e. in a plane.
I was thinking of an external USB soundcard like the Asus Xonar U1 or U3 to connect to the dock's USB, but I'd like to know if anyone has tried it before.
Preferably, I'd like something with a dedicated headphone amp.
I have a HiFimeDIY Sabre DAC that kind of works when I plug it in the dock, I hear sounds but with lots of popping and cracking.
Using the USB Audio Player I could make the tablet work correctly with the DAC, but that one only works for music, and their custom driver doesn't work with other apps.
Any help?
(sorry if I posted in the wrong section)

An update:
I went to a store and tried a Xonar U3 connected to a TF700+dock. Same thing as with the Sabre DAC I tried earlier.
Whenever I play something, the sound is "recognizable", but it's mostly made of popping and cracking.
It sounds the same as is I was used the Audio Player before applying the proper settings (force 1-bit, 16bit sampling, 4k buffer).
This seems to be a driver issue. I heard Samsung phones/tablets work flawlessly with most external USB DACs, so this is a real shame.

Why don't you get a Fiio amp?

projeto56 said:
Why don't you get a Fiio amp?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have one and it works great with headphones & portable speakers
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004QVPGXK/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1

sparksd said:
I have one and it works great with headphones & portable speakers
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004QVPGXK/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What Rom?

dbaler said:
What Rom?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
CROMBi-kk.