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Strange Bluetooth Audio issue. Suggestions?

I have a strange issue that I'm hoping somebody here can shed some light on. My Nexus 5 is running stock KitKat ROM with Franco Kernel & GravityBox Xposed module.
The Bluetooth has always worked fine and paired up well with my car without any noticeable audio issues. However, last week I got a pair of cheaper Arctic brand (yes the same Arctic that makes case fans. LoL) Bluetooth headphones to have something wire free for when I go running (they get great reviews on Amazon). They are specifically these here:
http://www.amazon.com/ARCTIC-Blueto...0&sr=1-1&keywords=arctic+bluetooth+headphones
When they came in they paired up with my Nexus just fine and I had no audio cutting out issues over Wifi or LTE. Also worked great on phonecalls. The range is excellent as I can have my phone laying on my Kitchen table and be around 25 - 30 ft away across the house with a wall in between and audio doesn't cut out.
So fast forward to when I attempted to use them on a run. I have a Spi Belt to carry the phone when I run (it's basically a thin flexible waist belt with a stretchy thin neoprene pocket on the back to hold your phone snugly against your back (no bouncing) while your run. The first day I ran, I had the Nexus in the Spi Belt and the bluetooth audio signal cut in and out like crazy. The phone is in a thin neoprene pocket with only the bottom of my Nike Dri fit shirt covering it........and it's less than 3 feet from the Bluetooth headphones on my head. Needless to say I was very fruststrated.
I did some searching online and ran across some info on a possible bluetooth issue with the latest Qualcomm radio module update as well as people reporting Bluetooth issues in KitKat. One of the suggestions was disable the 5GHZ band for Wifi. I did this and when I ran the next day, with the same setup the audio only cut out a few times (instead of like 100 times the first day).
So my question is. Does anybody here know if there is a known Bluetooth issue? Is there a fix or workaround? I'm thinking it's related to the Bluetooth on the Nexus because the improvement was immense when disabling the 5GHZ on Wifi.
This weekend I am going to try turning the Wifi off completely, as well as testing my same running gear setup with my sister's iPhone 5S to prove the issue is with the Android/Qualcomm Bluetooth. It's a VERY annoying issue.
If I hold the Nexus in my hand while running, the audio is flawless. However, I think it's interference related somehow since making the adjustment to the Wifi Frequency really helped the issue, even when the Nexus was in the Spi Belt strapped to my back and under my shirt.
Any additional information or suggestion is extremely appreciated.
- jsgates

Update......
jsgates said:
I have a strange issue that I'm hoping somebody here can shed some light on. My Nexus 5 is running stock KitKat ROM with Franco Kernel & GravityBox Xposed module.
The Bluetooth has always worked fine and paired up well with my car without any noticeable audio issues. However, last week I got a pair of cheaper Arctic brand (yes the same Arctic that makes case fans. LoL) Bluetooth headphones to have something wire free for when I go running (they get great reviews on Amazon). They are specifically these here:
http://www.amazon.com/ARCTIC-Blueto...0&sr=1-1&keywords=arctic+bluetooth+headphones
When they came in they paired up with my Nexus just fine and I had no audio cutting out issues over Wifi or LTE. Also worked great on phonecalls. The range is excellent as I can have my phone laying on my Kitchen table and be around 25 - 30 ft away across the house with a wall in between and audio doesn't cut out.
So fast forward to when I attempted to use them on a run. I have a Spi Belt to carry the phone when I run (it's basically a thin flexible waist belt with a stretchy thin neoprene pocket on the back to hold your phone snugly against your back (no bouncing) while your run. The first day I ran, I had the Nexus in the Spi Belt and the bluetooth audio signal cut in and out like crazy. The phone is in a thin neoprene pocket with only the bottom of my Nike Dri fit shirt covering it........and it's less than 3 feet from the Bluetooth headphones on my head. Needless to say I was very fruststrated.
I did some searching online and ran across some info on a possible bluetooth issue with the latest Qualcomm radio module update as well as people reporting Bluetooth issues in KitKat. One of the suggestions was disable the 5GHZ band for Wifi. I did this and when I ran the next day, with the same setup the audio only cut out a few times (instead of like 100 times the first day).
So my question is. Does anybody here know if there is a known Bluetooth issue? Is there a fix or workaround? I'm thinking it's related to the Bluetooth on the Nexus because the improvement was immense when disabling the 5GHZ on Wifi.
This weekend I am going to try turning the Wifi off completely, as well as testing my same running gear setup with my sister's iPhone 5S to prove the issue is with the Android/Qualcomm Bluetooth. It's a VERY annoying issue.
If I hold the Nexus in my hand while running, the audio is flawless. However, I think it's interference related somehow since making the adjustment to the Wifi Frequency really helped the issue, even when the Nexus was in the Spi Belt strapped to my back and under my shirt.
Any additional information or suggestion is extremely appreciated.
- jsgates
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, so I am still working on narrowing down the exact issue but I have been able to narrow the issue down some more. I tested with my Nexus 5 in the running belt this weekend when visiting my parents over WIFI & LTE and was unable to get the audio to cut out once. So at this point I do not believe the issue is directly related to the Bluetooth connection.
When I went out after work today the issue returned. However, today since it turned cool here I was just walking instead of running and carried the phone in my pocket.....so I started to check the screen when the audio cut out. I noticed that the mobile data connection had dropped from "LTE" to "H" (which I believe is 3G).
Whenever I am out running I have the Runkeeper App running (which uses GPS), and then Tune-In Radio to listen to sports talk radio (streaming low bitrate audio over LTE).
Until I started using the new Bluetooth Headphones, I was running the same route with wired Sony earbuds and I did not have any audio issues. So at this point I am thinking that since LTE dropped off, there is something about the combination of LTE, GPS, & Bluetooth being active at the same time that is causing interference and causing LTE to drop and switch to 3G, hence causing the audio hiccup. (like maybe it bouncing between LTE & 3G).
Any thoughts or additional ideas to troubleshoot further? Even though I don't want to my next step is to try with Runkeeper/GPS disabled and see if the issue is still present (I really need Runkeeper to track my distance). Whenever TuneIn, Runkeeper, & GPS & Bluetooth are all enabled, the Nexus RAM is only about halfway full.
Thanks for any additional suggestions. This issue is driving me nuts.
-jsgates

Another update....
Ok, I'm out of ideas. It makes no difference what apps are running and although LTE does drop to 3G in some areas, that doesn't appear to be causing any issues.
After doing some more googling I ran across a thread on Reddit where a few users had stated that using a custom kernel that has the minimum CPU frequency set at 300 MHZ which is lower than stock could cause audio stutter in some audio players. So I tried bumping my min cpu freq all the way up to 672 but that seemed to have no affect on my audio issue.
As a last resort to eliminate the Franco Kernel as a possible issue, I flashed back to 4.4.2 Stock Kernel.
I have the same audio issues on stock kernel as on Franco. At this point I guess I'm going to RMA the headphones to Amazon for a replacement pair.
Today while I was out running, the Bluetooth connection totally dropped twice. So the issue has to be with the headphones or the Bluetooth on my Nexus 5, correct?
This is one of the strangest issues I've ever had to troubleshoot on any equipment.
- jsgates

Same issue here but with a Bluetooth headset I use whilst on the motorcycle. It's pretty random when it happens though.. Some days it will be absolutely fine. Others (most of the time, unfortunately) it freaks out. I'll post back here if I figure out what's going on.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app

Cross-body interference........
Well after some more scouring the net I ran across this info. Looks like a crappy issue to have.
Cross-body Interference
A little known fact about Bluetooth is that the radio signals do not go through your body very well. This is because Bluetooth's radio frequency is blocked by water, and the human body is made up of mostly water. If you keep your cell phone in your pocket and your headset in your opposite ear, then it is possible the connection may be weak, which can cause some interference issues. Many cell phone manufacturers are aware of this issue and have attempted to compensate by boosting the power of the Bluetooth radio.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am going to give the Motorola Motorola S10-HD Bluetooth headphones a try and see if I have any better results with them. I just don't see how you can EVER have direct line of site with your phone in your pocket or strapped to your back in the Spi Belt.
Some equipment must have fewer issues than others because I would think this would be something a LOT of people complained about, but I had trouble running across this possible issue on the net.
-jsgates

Same Nexus 5 bluetooth issue
I also have a nexus 5 and I am experiencing the same issue with my Denon bluetooth headset.
At first I thought the noise was caused by the Runkeeper app together with my music app, because when I just use Google Play Music I experience less interruption of the Bluetooth signal.
Did you find a solution to your Nexus 5 Bluetooth issues?

I have experienced the same thing. Just bought SONY MRD-10RBT headphones which cost me some good dime. and I use bluetooth audio streaming from my Xperia Z3. I put phone in my front jeans pocket and I get hiccups every 1-2 minutes.
what the hell?? is the technology still so inferior??? can anything can be done about this?

Sound issues with speaker and ear piece

Hi all. So, I had previously fixed a few LG G2 phones (sold at a profit too - didn't like all the bloat and PITA to root) and thought to use the money to upgrade to a Nexus 5. Found a great deal on eBay for a working, perfect condition one, with the one exception that the ear piece wasn't working. Bluetooth and speakerphone works fine along with everything else.
I figured no big deal, it's a $3-$7 part and the tear down makes it out to be a pretty easy swap. So I got the phone and ordered the part. While waiting for the part I used Bluetooth headset for calls, or the speakerphone, both work fine. I tried some old Samsung (from my old Galaxy Nexus) headphones with mic and those worked fine too. Tried a pair of Sony headphones, works.
Here's the issue, so I got the part swapped. Still no sound. Oddly enough, the speaker doesn't work either now, sort of. So the ear piece is completely dead with the new or original part in it. I don't remember, though I think I can recall that the speaker worked for media (songs, games, videos, Netflix, etc.) but the speaker works for phone calls and notification sounds.
Strange right? Anyone else run into this issue or have a fix or idea?

Sorry but I have to...did you turn up the volume? Remember there are separate volume sliders in different places.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Free mobile app

MrObvious said:
Sorry but I have to...did you turn up the volume? Remember there are separate volume sliders in different places.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah yes, forgot to include. I have all the volumes (software) up. I've checked multiple programs (see some results below), I have flashed factory 4.4.4, 5.0 and 5.0.1 and even Paranoid's ROM onto this phone, nothing changes which leads me to believe its a hardware issue, but I have changed out the earpiece with a brand new OEM one. Cache wiped, data and Davlik wiped, factory reset over and over. I have rebooted the phone countless times, I have inserted headphones over and over. I swear that the speakerphone did work before, but I cannot remember if it ever did for media since I rarely use that feature (headphones and Bluetooth are my key). So if it did, I have no idea when/what changed before it worked to when it didn't.
It has not been dropped or submerged in any liquid, I take good care of my phones. Yes, they go in my pants pocket for travel, but sit on my desk when I'm not outside. I don't sweat so much walking around the city that I get moisture to the phone that way, never had before in the years that I do this. Nothing has dropped on it, dropped near it or had electromagnetic shock (I've worked in enterprise server environments for 20+ years, so I know how to handle electronic equipment to make repairs). Details:
I CAN hear the alarm, ring tones, notifications and touch sounds through the bottom speaker. I CAN also hear the receiver of phone calls through the speaker if I use speakerphone when on a call.
I CANNOT hear media through the bottom speaker, like games, (Plants vs Zombies 2, Angry Birds, PBA Bowling - yes boring choices) or music (Google Play, Slacker or Pandora) or videos (Netflix, YouTube, my own on MX player). I've tried the app to make the earpiece on for this to make it "stereo" to no avail. Basically, it would seem anything that has "stereo" output doesn't work while "mono" sounds do.
I CANNOT hear anything through the earpiece at all, nothing, nada, zero.
I CAN hear through the earphone plug and I I CAN hear via Bluetooth. This goes for ALL SOUNDS.
Hope that covers everything. Anyone want to buy a Nexus 5 32GB in black with these problems?

Bluetooth woes

Has anyone experienced issues with Bluetooth devices? I have 2 devices (that are somewhat obscure) that I'm having problems with. First, what does work:
1) Beats Wireless Headphones
2) Bluetooth in my car
3) Unify Roverbeats (For bluetooth via A/V receiver that doesn't have it built-in.
4) Fitbit Surge (Had a little trouble getting it paired initially, but it's been fine since.)
The two items I'm having the trouble with are:
1) Omron 7 Series Wrist (BP654) Blood pressure cuff.
2) Vicks SmartTemp Bluetooth thermometer.
I have gotten both to pair, though it seems to be hit and miss. Once I need to actually use them, though, I'm having little to no success in getting the phone to see them. Unfortunately, I have to take both my BP and Temp every 3 hours (due to recently diagnosed, extremely rare immune system disorder.) This would be a deal-break for me, with the Blu Pure XL, it I didn't have 2 other android tablets I can use. However, I'd sure like to have these working on the phone! (BTW, they all worked seamlessly on my LG G4.)
Has anyone else experienced bluetooth issues with the Pure XL?

More Bluetooth problems....
The Bluetooth problems I mentioned earlier have only worsened. My car sometimes will, sometimes won't connect. The surge connects 90% of the time. Everything else is touch and go, with my BP Cuff only connecting once (during the pairing sequence.) Also, when selecting "un-pair" on any device already paired almost never un-pairs it. I usually have to reboot, then try again to actually get it to un-pair.
Aside from the Bluetooth issues, I've not really encountered anything else that is a show-stopper. I'd like to have Android pay, but it's not a necessity. I want root more (which disables Android pay anyway.)
DannyHammons said:
Has anyone experienced issues with Bluetooth devices? I have 2 devices (that are somewhat obscure) that I'm having problems with. First, what does work:
1) Beats Wireless Headphones
2) Bluetooth in my car
3) Unify Roverbeats (For bluetooth via A/V receiver that doesn't have it built-in.
4) Fitbit Surge (Had a little trouble getting it paired initially, but it's been fine since.)
The two items I'm having the trouble with are:
1) Omron 7 Series Wrist (BP654) Blood pressure cuff.
2) Vicks SmartTemp Bluetooth thermometer.
I have gotten both to pair, though it seems to be hit and miss. Once I need to actually use them, though, I'm having little to no success in getting the phone to see them. Unfortunately, I have to take both my BP and Temp every 3 hours (due to recently diagnosed, extremely rare immune system disorder.) This would be a deal-break for me, with the Blu Pure XL, it I didn't have 2 other android tablets I can use. However, I'd sure like to have these working on the phone! (BTW, they all worked seamlessly on my LG G4.)
Has anyone else experienced bluetooth issues with the Pure XL?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

I've only paired a Metawatch so far but no issues. I keep forgetting to sync it to my car. I'd say the connection with the XL is better than with my M9, which dropped/reconnected randomly.

So far it seems to work fine with my car but when I use it with moto x sol deck it starts breaking up after 15-20 minutes. The only way to fix it is to turn on and off bluetooth.

Pure XL bluetooth serious problem
I have a Pure XL also, originally i only had problems occasionally with playing media through my LG Tone+ headphones. then i also tried connecting my Fitbit Charge HR it would shut down the bluetooth and lock the bluetooth off. i tried uninstalling the fitbit app and only running the headphones and the bluetooth ended up locking up. when i go to the bluetooth settings it shows it as constantly turning off and turning on. i cant stop it. tried rebooting. and also tried turning off and leaving off for awhile and still when i turn it back on it is still locked up.

Issues with jawbone up3, screwed up bad
Also having issues maintaining a sync without a reboot. In my wild attempts to fix this issue I ended up uninstalling Bluetooth Share.... Would any of you fine gentlemen be kind enough to post a copy of the apk from /system/bluetooth for me?
edit: found it github*com/acheron1502/android_vendor_BLU_BLU_PURE_XL/tree/master/proprietary/system/app/Bluetooth
thanks to acheron1502!

I only use Bluetooth for me FM transmitter in my car.... I never seem to have any problems at all as far as connection and playing music/sounds.... But the hands-free doesn't seem to work.... I can hear them but they can't really hear me very well.... I just put it off to the mic on the FM transmitter....

Just got my blu pure xl today and Bluetooth sucks, its not much better than my blu vivo air. Signal cuts off only being like 5 feet from the phone using my brand new jbl reflect mini Bluetooth earbuds. Hooked to my 4 year old kindle fire hd left on my second floor I was still getting reception in my basement. I'm so pissed I thought that this specked out phone would have good Bluetooth reception but nope ****ty. Blu/gionee needs to start putting way better Bluetooth transmitters in there phones.

I've got to reboot my phone several times a day to keep synced with my runtastic orbit. definitely the phone, had no issues with my LG. Its a nuisance, not a major issue.

Bluetooth woes followed by total meltdown!
After all of my initial issues with Bluetooth on my pure XL, I put a Samsung 200 GB MicroSD card in. It worked for a while, but I think I somehow damaged the card moving it in and out of the phone. Finally, I left the phone charging with card inserted. After an hour or two I came back to get it and it was fire hot...so hot that the plastic back cover had started to melt right below the memory card slot. After it cooled down I removed the SD card. The went on to work half the time, but eventually completely died. I contacted BLU and they sent me an RMA, so I sent the phone to them. I figured they would come back and say the phone was not covered anymore because I had the TWRP recovery and root installed. However, after they received the phone, I got an email with tracking number on the return to me. They ended up sending a completely new phone (off the shelf with all the goodies included.)
Since the new one has been back, and I got the march update, I haven't had any Bluetooth issues save 1: it won't connect to my Denon AVR receiver's Bluetooth mode. Everything else that I listed at the start of the thread is all working correctly now. Every once in a while I have to do a reboot to reset it, but it's way better than it had been!

BLUETOOTH CLICKING NOISE (handsfree)
Is anyone having issues with when using their BLU Pure XL in the car when using handsfree? I have an issue when about 1 minute into the phone call, the person I am talking to hears a loud click every 2 seconds and will not stop until I turn off the bluetooth or put on speaker. If i switch back to bluetooth, same thing happens. The longest I've gone on a call is probably 4 minutes before it started to happen. If i hang up and call the person back on bluetooth, same thing happens.
Anyone has a solution with this as its so bad that I am considering buying a new phone because of this issue!
Thanks

Bluetooth Audio Streaming Stuttering

I would like to share my experience with my S7 G930 and the problem I have with BT audio.
I have a helmet with BT N-com from Nolan that let you use your phone and play music via BT. It works very well with my S4 Lollipop but has problem with my new S7 (stock Rom Android 6.0.1).
When you try to play media stream the sound is very choppy and stuttering.
I tried to use my helmet with many other devices and it works good. I tried to use S7 with other BT speakers or audio receivers and it also works good!
So I have finally discovered the difference between all the successfully tests and the one that fails when I try the S7 + Helmet combination.
The helmet offers both headset service (for phone calls) and the A2DP service (for music streaming). The problem is there when both the services are in use at the same time if the headset service is started first. Since headset is faster to connect than A2DP this is always the case. If I disconnect the BT and activate manually the services in the opposite order (first A2DP and then Headset) everything start to work fine.
Since the S4 works good without problem I think this is a problem with S7 or Android 6.0.1.
I hope this will help someone else with my same problem and I hope to have some feedback of your experiences with BT peripherals that use both the services (usually it should be the case with car hi-fi). I would be happy to report this issue to

Since this is a helmet you're talking about, I assume this is outdoor experience?
My Sennheiser Momentum 2 Wireless - MSRP $500, so it's about as premium as you can get for a Bluetooth, noise-canceling headphone - gets slightly choppy outside, under a few different scenarios...
* If the phone is in my back pocket, and I had my hand in that pocket covering the phone, audio is choppy and awful
* Weekday mornings as I exit NY Penn Station to walk to work, the audio gets choppy for a few seconds before stabilizing for the rest of the walk.
* On the walk back to Penn Station at 6, as soon as I get to the corner of 33rd and 8th Ave (opposite the building), audio gets awful again until I get outside the front of the station.
I'm on my second pair of headphones, with this one functioning better than the first pair. But it has me wondering whether the problem is with the headphones or with the S7. Sennheiser says it's due to all the other Bluetooth and wireless signals in the area, and I can understand that. But my previous pair, Sony MDRXB950BT, didn't have these issues. One user on Head-Fi wondered if it's the power management of the headphones, since they have great battery life and the noise cancelling kicks in automatically with Bluetooth.
I tested the first pair of the Momentums with an iPhone 6 Plus, while the drops and hiccups weren't as bad as with the S7, they were still there. So I'm leaning more towards a headphone problem than a handset problem.

I'm definitely experiencing similar issues. BUT, I'm streaming to my receiver which worked amazing until after the last update. I'm on 6.0.1. Works perfect in my car right now (fingers crossed). But it has done it a few times, thought it was my case which was aluminum.
Either way a patch or minor update needed. Tired if the random choppiness. Sad that I have to keep the phone plugged into a wireless receiver. .???

Anyone having issues with Bluetooth in their car?

So my pixel has been acting weird from the beginning.
Sometimes while I'm playing music over bluetooth, it will abruptly stop and I can't get the phone to disconnect or anything without restarting the car
It doesn't always turn the music off If I'm taking a call so the music plays in the back ground while talking on the phone.
This is on a '14 Camry XLE hybrid. I never experienced issues with my iPhones 6s or galaxy s7
I've tried re-pairing the phone.
Any ideas?
FWIW bluetooth on my beats headphones was fine.
Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk