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[Fix] Raphael speaker volume hard mod (+pics&vids)

Hi, i've seen a lot of request for a raphael speaker hardmod and also tried to find one myself, well.. As you thought, no luck.
So I decided to make one of my own, and yes, it works!
So here's what i've done (every piece makes it a bit better, so, choose the ones you wish to do, or do all of them like i did!):
1. Cut the back cover to look similiar to the original desing from htc (Picture 1)
Just throw the first metal grill (the one on the back cover) to garbage, that's what i did As the speaker has a cloth on it, you don't need those grills.
2. Make some room for sound to echo inside the back cover (Picture 2)
I did 1. and 2. with normal household scissors.
3. Prevent the sound from the front of the speaker going to the back of the speaker and thus undoing some sound. Try to insulate the back a bit (Picture 3) I did it with 2-sided 1mm thick tape and left the protecting layer on the tape (green) so it doesn't stick to the back cover.
4. Open up the phone (Help to disassembly here), lift the speaker and the.. uh.. thing on top of the speaker off from the back housing carefully (2-sided tape keeping it in place) so you wont break it. Time to throw away the second metallic speaker grill! Use scissors to carve the speaker hole bigger (see speaker in picture 3), use the tape that kept the speaker in it's place as a guide to how big to carve the hole, but don't cut any tape off, the hole becomes too big if you do that!
Video 1 : Results of the mod, you should hear the difference clearly! Too bad i didn't have a video of an original Raphael, but i think you do have one there as you're reading this.
Video 2 : Comparing the results with and without the back cover. This shows how big difference does the "sound echoing space" inside the back cover (Whatever) do!
And last side note before you begin, i will not take responsibility of ANY damage etc you manage to do to your precious phone. I've broken one already, did the mistake to grab the speaker wires and the speaker stopped working as the wires cut off.
Also, be VERY careful with this mod, you're working with the interior of the phone! Please don't do this if you don't have any experience disassembling/reassembling mobile phones.
Hope this helps you as much as it did me! It actually sound better live than on the vid, too bad my camcorder saves the vid to some ****ty format when recording to SD.
(Did i rickroll you btw? )

My apologies to the OP, I inadvertently merged this thread with my Q&A's thread. Enjoy this speaker fix.

is it just me or am i not hearing any sounds at all in those videos? (unless it uses a special type of codec..)
id love to hear the difference

Is the speaker volume really to quiet to justify a hardCORE mod that could ruin your phone?

Rottis said:
Hi, i've seen a lot of request for a raphael speaker hardmod and also tried to find one myself, well.. As you thought, no luck.
......format when recording to SD.
(Did i rickroll you btw? )
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GR8 work!
it's nice to see you can fix the very low system volume.
I was especially amazed from the echo box effect on the rear housing.
thanks!

ndda said:
Is the speaker volume really to quiet to justify a hardCORE mod that could ruin your phone?
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Initially, I was not going to reply to this, but it seems to me that you may be in the process of buying a Fuze and this may be very important for you to know.
No, the system volume is not that low, and frankly speaking, it is an issue which exists in some phones, not all. And, if it's possible for you to take a look at the phone at an AT&T store, do so, and decide for yourself (take a look at more than one Fuze).
@Rottis: Would you disagree that the low volume problem does not exist on all phones?

incisivekeith said:
Initially, I was not going to reply to this, but it seems to me that you may be in the process of buying a Fuze and this may be very important for you to know.
No, the system volume is not that low, and frankly speaking, it is an issue which exists in some phones, not all. And, if it's possible for you to take a look at the phone at an AT&T store, do so, and decide for yourself (take a look at more than one Fuze).
@Rottis: Would you disagree that the low volume problem does not exist on all phones?
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Click to collapse
I didn't know that the volume problem exists on some phones. I own a HTC Touch Pro by Vodafone with no issues related to the volume (other annoying issues though).
I thought that the phones should be technically similar only with different brandings.
Do they use different hardware?

incisivekeith said:
Initially, I was not going to reply to this, but it seems to me that you may be in the process of buying a Fuze and this may be very important for you to know.
No, the system volume is not that low, and frankly speaking, it is an issue which exists in some phones, not all. And, if it's possible for you to take a look at the phone at an AT&T store, do so, and decide for yourself (take a look at more than one Fuze).
@Rottis: Would you disagree that the low volume problem does not exist on all phones?
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Click to collapse
No, not all phones have the problem. I had an Sony Ericsson P1i before this raphael, and its speaker was truely amazing! And you could make it even better with a softmod.
That's the main reason i did this mod, as I have gotten used to a good quality speaker.
@Giannis86: try to install FFDSHOW (google for it) and it should work. Do not use Windows Media Player though. Sorry, i don't know the codec it uses for sound, but it should be some popular one, i didn't have to install any codecs for it (Using ubuntu btw).
@ndda: Yes it is, have you ever heard it? Or if you have, have you ever compared it to, for example the P1i?
If you ask me, the mod was worth it!

@ndda: Sorry, i missed a part in your message, yeah, i think they DO use the same hardware, it wouldn't make any sense if they didn't.
Well, the sprint version is different, but that does make sense.

I've done something similar to this with my old Dell Axim x5 to fix a touch-screen issue, but I did this knowing my Axim was worth only $50. I think it would have been more helpful if you showed a picture of the speaker wire and the connector, because I had to deal with that with my Dell and it wasn't as delicate as you describe the one on the Raphael.

Here's some pics of the speaker, it's wire and connector as requested.
The pics I took from the Raphael service manual, sorry for low quality.
Pic 1 (MB Connector)
Pic 2 (Speaker connected)
Pic 3 (Speaker + wire)

Btw, as said here earlier, the service manual can be easily found from the internet

None of your links go through any more... could you post new links for the mod pics & vids please?

gdbnet said:
None of your links go through any more... could you post new links for the mod pics & vids please?
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Click to collapse
That must have been a temporary problem, as they all work perfectly fine at the moment. Please try again

[Q] Audio distortion on asus tf300t? (SOLVED!!!)

Anyone else notice distorted audio? It only seems to be on certain lower tones but at any volume. Not a volume is too loud issue just seems the speakers don't like a certain tone. This is my second tf300t, on the first audio was always crisp and clear but it was always freezing so i exchanged it. This one hardly freezes but i notice a crackly hum almost like a vibration of sorts while playing some tones in either music games or movies. Sometimes audio is perfect and sometimes it does that distortion. Almost like a blown speaker. Its weird though because it sounds clear and perfect on some media its only certain tones that obviously not all songs, games, or videos will use. I'm running fully stock no root or unlock .30 firmware updated immediately after unboxing which could be the firmware i guess since the one i returned was .29 firmware and didn't have the issue. I'd appreciate it if someone on .30 would be willing to test and see if you hear it also. A game that does it is Hardwood Spades its free in play store but the music/sound in that game is a good one to test because it seems to use the tone that causes it all the time.
Thank you very much in advance for any help you can provide.
Edit: So no one would offer any help with this however I took it upon myself to figure this out. YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT IT WAS!
OK so I got fed up with lousy sound quality and didn't want to send this out and wait 3 weeks to get it back so I decided to take the back cover off (very easy with plastic spudger) I found that the speaker housing is made up of two pieces of plastic sandwiched together with the speakers mounted in the middle. The weird noise was coming from those pieces of plastic rattling together with lower tones being played. Why you ask? Well it was rattling because, ASUS MISSED A SCREW that holds the housing in place in the tablet. Yeah a screw was missing on one side. So I removed the whole speaker housing and looked underneath then put it back in and took a screw from a non vital area in the tablet and screwed the speakers in all the way and played some different things and guess what no distortion. WTF IS UP WITH QC AT ASUS LATELY!
Anyway thanks for reading :-D

If this post is helpful to you please hit the thanks button. I'd appreciate it.

Wow. That's resourceful. Good to hear that you fixed it.

That screw was intentionally left out to help with the light bleed in that corner. They are all like that.

[Q] Funny clicking noise when camera is turned on

Hey guys I just got my moto g and i just noticed that there is a clicking noise when i turn the camera on or off. I'm not sure if I damaged it or if it's just the nature of the phone.
Thanks!

g3omanser said:
Hey guys I just got my moto g and i just noticed that there is a clicking noise when i turn the camera on or off. I'm not sure if I damaged it or if it's just the nature of the phone.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think they all do it.

This happens to all moto Gs. I think it's just the nature of the phone. There was a thread about this on the moto g support forums and it seems this is normal
Sent from my XT1034 using Tapatalk

me too and i try to ignore it

This is normal, also had it in my old xperia U, figured it was the tiny camera lens getting "ready" and back to a secured position when turned off.

Just tested this now, it seems to make a popping sound when you launch and close the camera they seem to be different volumes too with closing making a louder noise, how stange. Maybe the tiny motor kicking in for OIS
Edit: maybe not as a quick search reveals this camera has no OIS.

michael-jb said:
Just tested this now, it seems to make a popping sound when you launch and close the camera they seem to be different volumes too with closing making a louder noise, how stange. Maybe the tiny motor kicking in for OIS
Edit: maybe not as a quick search reveals this camera has no OIS.
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Click to collapse
It does have focus control though which equally requires a moving element.

phew! thanks guys for the help. i was getting worried that my phone got damaged or something. i also thought that the camera was getting ready to shoot like many of you said but i guess there's no need to worry now. i guess you cant really complain about anything about this phone especially with this AMAZING price tag and performance. I just got my 4.4 update btw. SOO excited to see how it runs

g3omanser said:
AMAZING price tag and performance
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Second that, but if you are a detail freak you might be annoyed by some of the corners that are being cut to keep the cost so low. Still, the cheapest place in the UK with stock are Tesco's and they'll take returns til the cows come home, so nothing really to lose.

My old HTV EVO (WiMax) did this also, so I'm pretty sure its normal. It was especially noticeable during boot-up.

Questions and help issues go in Q&A and Help section
Thread moved
Thanks
FNSM

I think it's Auto Focus mechanism. In Moto Defy it was really loud. Also the volume buttons make similar noise to camera's.

where can i buy those tools like the suction and many screwdriver

Recently my phone which has a screw off, and if you shaking the phone you can hear the unpleasant sound. :crying::crying::crying:
I had seen S6 disassemble video on youtube, i feel amazing for that. So the question is where can i buy those tools like the suction and many screwdriver.

Ifixit.com has the tools and the how to guides for most phones

LOLWOWJason said:
Recently my phone which has a screw off, and if you shaking the phone you can hear the unpleasant sound. :crying::crying::crying:
I had seen S6 disassemble video on youtube, i feel amazing for that. So the question is where can i buy those tools like the suction and many screwdriver.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Before you start disassembling your S6, are you sure it's a loose screw your hearing rattling around?
If I shake my S6 I hear a rattling sound too. I thought it was something loose, turns out the noise is coming from the camera.
The Lens floats around shake your phone and then look at the camera you will notice it's never perfectly centered and it moves around as you shake the phone.
You can thank OIS for the rattling sound

You can buy from ebay, I bought one recently and it works great, I can share you the link if you need.

my camera is OK,but the sound it still there
Gboss01 said:
Before you start disassembling your S6, are you sure it's a loose screw your hearing rattling around?
If I shake my S6 I hear a rattling sound too. I thought it was something loose, turns out the noise is coming from the camera.
The Lens floats around shake your phone and then look at the camera you will notice it's never perfectly centered and it moves around as you shake the phone.
You can thank OIS for the rattling sound
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Click to collapse
Thank you for your reply! My camera is OK, and when i shake my s6 the sound that sound like a screw rattling around is still there.
I cannot bear that.. A seemingly high-end sophisticated phone have a small screw shake voice, I was disappointed to assembly of Samsung.

can you show the link?
tomatoguy said:
You can buy from ebay, I bought one recently and it works great, I can share you the link if you need.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you!

It is very useful for the repair I did on my cellphone.
I bought these to help me replace a couple of dead cellphone screens.
Highly recommended if you're going to DIY.
Here is the link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0123DAZWO

Thank you!
sever-barre said:
It is very useful for the repair I did on my cellphone.
I bought these to help me replace a couple of dead cellphone screens.
Highly recommended if you're going to DIY.
Here is the link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0123DAZWO
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your recommend!

Thank you for your recommend
blah_blah_blah_blah said:
Ifixit.com has the tools and the how to guides for most phones
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will to choose some tools!

I'm all for DIY fixits, but is there a reason why you cannot take it back to Samsung or to your carrier to get it fixed? It might be safer this way.

Open camera app and shake again. Does it still rattle? I thought I damaged my phone or there is a screw loose but then I read that the rattling sound has something to do with the ois. When camera is off it can move a bit but when camera is started it fixes itself and I can't hear a noise anymore.
If it still rattles the same when phone is off and when camera app is started, you should try to go far warranty.

Question Earpiece/loudspeaker quality

Hi,
how is the loudspeaker quality for people who already own the phone?
For me the speakers are not that great. Especially the top one in the earpiece. Calls aren't that great and listening to voice messages or even videos and music is just ok.
I get scratching in the top one pretty early. It depends on the audio quality/source but sometimes it already scratches around 60% of max volume. Especially in calls and voice messages.

It sound very good. Less bass then my s21U, but still ok. Calls are very ok too.

So no scratching for you?
I have got an S20 here and it definitely has a better sound quality with less distortion/scratching...

I was quite impressed. Especially in flex mode when both speakers face forward. Definitely one of the highlights of this phone if you ask me.

So no scratching when listening to voice mails on higher volumes? Just tried video and there the quality is fine. It is voices where my speaker struggles.

The sound Quality if better (subjectively) than my S21+, which I traded in. Less tinny and no distortion so far on loudspeaker call in flex mode.

So in my experience the speakers especially the one on the top is worst than the ones of the S20 which is sad.
One thing I noticed in addition to the bad sound quality is that the speaker grill of the earpiece doesn't cover the 3 holes completely. I am able to look through the holes. The grill only covers a part of the holes. Haven't seen this before. Can anybody confirm this or do I indeed have a faulty product?

I will try to describe this as best I can and you can decide if this is the same thing or if yours appears to be missing parts.
I have the three holes. Inside them, there is what looks like plastic coming from the top that covers about half of the opening. If I angle the phone to see into the gap, there is another cover under it.

twistedumbrella said:
I will try to describe this as best I can and you can decide if this is the same thing or if yours appears to be missing parts.
I have the three holes. Inside them, there is what looks like plastic coming from the top that covers about half of the opening. If I angle the phone to see into the gap, there is another cover under it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, I guess than it's supposed to be like that. Looks a bit weird to me.
How is the sound quality on your end? The quality itself is ok for me, what annoys me is the distortion I get pretty early around 60-70% of max volume depending on the audio. Especially calls, video calls and voice messages get distorted really quickly. Video and music mostly seem to be fine.

Cris7ianO said:
Ok, I guess than it's supposed to be like that. Looks a bit weird to me.
How is the sound quality on your end? The quality itself is ok for me, what annoys me is the distortion I get pretty early around 60-70% of max volume depending on the audio. Especially calls, video calls and voice messages get distorted really quickly. Video and music mostly seem to be fine.
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Click to collapse
Haven't made any real calls yet, but everything else seemed normal. I should probably test that before the return period runs out. I'll let you know.

twistedumbrella said:
Haven't made any real calls yet, but everything else seemed normal. I should probably test that before the return period runs out. I'll let you know.
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Click to collapse
Feedback is appreciated . Voice messages in Whatsapp for example, same for Whatsapp and Duo video calls and phone calls as well... Distortion and scratching in the upper range coming out of the earpiece/upper speaker.

I have to decide if I keep the device until Saturday. It would be great if a few more people who own the phone could give some feedback regarding the loudspeaker of the phone during voice and video calls and voice messages

Sounds defective. Just finished testing and it was not only clear, but loud. I know with previous phones, I couldn't hear a thing at any less than one step below the max volume. I had this one at half and it was just as loud. If you happened to start at max, it's possible a speaker blew out. The thing they never tell you is that they aren't truly meant to run at that volume for anything more than a minute or two.

twistedumbrella said:
Sounds defective. Just finished testing and it was not only clear, but loud. I know with previous phones, I couldn't hear a thing at any less than one step below the max volume. I had this one at half and it was just as loud. If you happened to start at max, it's possible a speaker blew out. The thing they never tell you is that they aren't truly meant to run at that volume for anything more than a minute or two.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the feedback. What confuses me is that I get the distortion only in calls or voice messages. No problems when listening to music or videos.

Cris7ianO said:
Thanks for the feedback. What confuses me is that I get the distortion only in calls or voice messages. No problems when listening to music or videos.
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Click to collapse
I have heard rumors the speakers are separate between the two, but I'm not sure.
I know Samsung tends to send phones to be repaired over replaced, even when it just released last week. Hopefully they don't give you any trouble if you decide to flat out return it, though.

twistedumbrella said:
I have heard rumors the speakers are separate between the two, but I'm not sure.
I know Samsung tends to send phones to be repaired over replaced, even when it just released last week. Hopefully they don't give you any trouble if you decide to flat out return it, though.
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Click to collapse
Yeah the service is ridiculous. I love Android and use it for years for various reasons. But these encounters with bad service drag my mind towards apple. I already contacted Samsung. They offered an exchange. But I have to send in my flip first. As this is currently my only phone due to sending my S20 in for the trade-in I will not be able to do that. I am using the phone with dual sim for private and business purposes. I will try to force Samsung to send me a new one prior to sending mine back. If they don't accept I will withdraw my order and get something else. The trade-in might get me into trouble as it seems. Will never purchase over Samsung directly again. Never had issues with Amazon or apple...