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[Q] Nexus 5 Bluetooth and wired headset problems

Hello,
Pardon if this has been answered already, I simply did not find my exact question answered.
I am using my unmodified Nexus 5 (not even rooted), with the latest KitKat (v.4.4.2 build KOT49H) with quite a few wired and wireless headsets and people always complain they cannot hear me. Eventually I got my hands on an old Samsung Galaxy S2 and tried my best bluetooth headset with it: Imagine my surprise, I could hear myself quite clearly even when I was talking really really softly, barely above a whisper. My headset is excellent. My phone is not.
My questions revolve around what to do about it.
Nothing in KitKat allows me to adjust the bluetooth microphone gain, nor does it let me use an equalizer on my microphone. I can adjust the volume of the headset, but this does not do anything to the microphone gain.
So...
Question 1: am I the only person with this problem?
Question 2: what do you people do about it?
Question 3: are there any mods / custom ROMs out there that attempt to fix this problem? Google does not appear to be interested in doing so.
Thanks in advance!

*bump*
Any ideas? I have tried re-pairing my bluetooth headset - no go. I have tried flashing custom ROMs and kernels - no go again. It seems to be a problem with the phone, but I have no idea how to fix it. And Google searches always return other people having this problem. Noone with solutions, though.
Using a wired headset results in even worse results, if that were at all possible.
Has anyone tried to replace the bluetooth stack or driver with something that works?
Thanks!

*bump*
Yesterday I spent quite a few hours tinkering with my phone. I tried every last radio out there for the Nexus 5 and none had any effect on bluetooth microphone levels. Then I tried a few AOSP ROMs: CM11 and Omni. They turned out to be so closely related I might as well have just tried one. None had any effect on bluetooth microphone. Heck if CM11 doesn't do it, there really are no alternatives out there! I tried the FauxAudio tweak, even paid $2 to Faux, which successfully managed to do nothing: app didn't was written badly. Finally, I tried a bunch of volume boost tweaks. That worked, actually. That is, it boosted the wrong volume. Finally, in a moment of true and utter desperation, I opened an ADB shell and edited that mixer file by hand. I then discovered that microphone gain on bluetooth is not controlled there.
I tried all my wired headsets again: Etymotic HF3's microphone produces such an atrocious sound, if I am to rely on it I need to seriously consider becoming a mime. Then there were my Bose QC15 headphones with a remote cable for Android by some off-brand company: that was terrible, the cable is useless. Heck, not even mime lessons can help me there.
Eventually I chanced upon an old microphone cable for my QC15 headphones. Just microphone, no remote. Surprisingly, this one is loud and clear! That after being anything but loud or clear on my old cell phone. Interesting. Unfortunately, it's been out of production for a few years. My working theory is that Bose realized putting a decent microphone on expensive headphones gives people real value, makes them spend money, and that way lies madness. We can't have that, can we. So when that cable starts cutting, so does my use of this cell phone.
I am screwed.
In any case, I will stop bumping my own thread, you guys obviously don't know a solution or there would have been a lively conversation right now. And I am pretty sure there is a moderator or two frowning right now, possibly getting ready to throw an encyclopedia at me. My only hope is that Google is going to do something about that pesky Broadcom driver that doesn't work sometime before the mass exodus to the iPhone. And before my precious microphone cable stops working, or I will be leading the way for that exodus. It's a phone, damnit, if it doesn't work like one it's no good.
Hmmm.... it should be possible to wire a good lavalier mike on a cell phone cable... maybe I can get an op-amp from an old tape recorder to get decent amplification... When attaching a 9V battery on my headphone cable begins to look appealing, we really have a problem.

Yes, if nobody reply you is because no one can help u.
But for what it's worth, i had an Xperia Play for 2 years. Using an Motorola Bluetooth Headset H350 while driving and a MW600 Sony Ericsson Stereo Bluetooth Headset, both never had a problem.
Now from 2013 Christmas both headsets with my new N5: still never a problem and not noticing any low volume or mic. Sorry

same issue
Dany XP said:
Yes, if nobody reply you is because no one can help u.
But for what it's worth, i had an Xperia Play for 2 years. Using an Motorola Bluetooth Headset H350 while driving and a MW600 Sony Ericsson Stereo Bluetooth Headset, both never had a problem.
Now from 2013 Christmas both headsets with my new N5: still never a problem and not noticing any low volume or mic. Sorry
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hi,
i am having the same issue with my Nexus 5 in combination with my Logitech H800 Wireless headset (people can`t hear me).
Anybody who did find a solution for this?
Thx

pitchdown said:
hi,
i am having the same issue with my Nexus 5 in combination with my Logitech H800 Wireless headset (people can`t hear me).
Anybody who did find a solution for this?
Thx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No solution. I tried everything, everything I could think of. I got FauxAudio to work eventually and that did nothing for Bluetooth performance (and it said it wouldn't, but I was desperate).
I returned a lot of high end bluetooth headsets over this issue. Eventually I came upon the Plantronics Voyager Legend. I would like to tell you this really expensive headset works fine, but no - microphone gain is still low, though this time around people can hear me okay. Not great, just okay. I am using that now. It's not perfect, it's far from perfect, but finally usable. Sort of. If I speak loudly.
For what it is worth, the ElementalX kernel improves Bluetooth stability on the N5 quite a bit. Microphone gain is still low, though. Another thing that sometimes helps a little is turning off the multimedia profile on the headset, though why THAT would make a difference is beyond me.
All we can do is wait, watch the Samsung Galaxy S5 get released and wonder if we should switch.

kangelov said:
No solution. I tried everything, everything I could think of. I got FauxAudio to work eventually and that did nothing for Bluetooth performance (and it said it wouldn't, but I was desperate).
I returned a lot of high end bluetooth headsets over this issue. Eventually I came upon the Plantronics Voyager Legend. I would like to tell you this really expensive headset works fine, but no - microphone gain is still low, though this time around people can hear me okay. Not great, just okay. I am using that now. It's not perfect, it's far from perfect, but finally usable. Sort of. If I speak loudly.
For what it is worth, the ElementalX kernel improves Bluetooth stability on the N5 quite a bit. Microphone gain is still low, though. Another thing that sometimes helps a little is turning off the multimedia profile on the headset, though why THAT would make a difference is beyond me.
All we can do is wait, watch the Samsung Galaxy S5 get released and wonder if we should switch.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Somebody advised me to download the app "persist"
This is free from the playstore.
Can you try this and let me know this is working for you?
Thx

pitchdown said:
Somebody advised me to download the app "persist"
This is free from the playstore.
Can you try this and let me know this is working for you?
Thx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This app controls the bluetooth volume, not the bluetooth gain. The bluetooth volume was never a problem.

kangelov said:
This app controls the bluetooth volume, not the bluetooth gain. The bluetooth volume was never a problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok,
i am having the problem with my Logitech H800 headset with the nexus 5.
So this is a android kitkiat 4.4 issue?
Or is this problem only on several Nexus 5-devices?

pitchdown said:
Ok,
i am having the problem with my Logitech H800 headset with the nexus 5.
So this is a android kitkiat 4.4 issue?
Or is this problem only on several Nexus 5-devices?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My guess is either the bluetooth baseband or the bluetooth kernel driver used in the N5 is flaky. This is why I think so:
Problem does not exist on my old Samsung Galaxy S2, including when it runs the same nightly of CM11, nor does it exist on my computer or my desk phone. All the headsets I've owned performed admirably there, so the headsets are not directly the cause. From what I've seen no ROM and no kernel out there seem to be making a difference as far as Bluetooth gain is concerned, the problem is persistently there and the same. Best I could tell it's just the N5 with a problem and it's just for the phone profile. I've tried the Bose headset (the worst performer headset with the N5 of the lot) on a colleague's N5 and his phone was just as bad with it as mine. I am not sure if it's a small batch of N5s having a problem, I don't own lots and lots of N5 phones to try on, but I doubt it: with anything digital things are usually all-or-nothing and the N5 has an off-the-shelf Bluetooth chip, which is not unique to the N5. My guess is it's the entire model, but having only tried on 2 N5 phones, this is no more than a guess.
From what I saw online, the entire Nexus line has poor Bluetooth performance, not just the 5, and Google changed the Bluetooth stack with KitKat besides possibly introducing more problems. If you have a non-Nexus phone, the manufacturer most certainly replaced the Bluetooth driver and radio with one of their own, so problem goes away, but the Nexus line does not enjoy such attention.
An interesting thing to try would be for someone to put the LG G2 Bluetooth driver on a N5 kernel and try it out. I don't have the time or the expertise to do that, but there are plenty of people who do. Assuming the G2 does not have problems with bluetooth gain, if the problem still persists it will tell us if it's the N5 baseband or hardware doing it, and noone can help us there if that's the case.

I have this problem too, using my Nexus5 with iphone headsets. Peoples told me in skype and hangouts, that they hear me bad...

Shiver2005 said:
I have this problem too, using my Nexus5 with iphone headsets. Peoples told me in skype and hangouts, that they hear me bad...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a different problem. The wired headset problem is easily solvable with FauxAudio and a supported kernel.

This maybe realted to the changes Google made to the core Bluetooth stack as of Android 4.3+ I know they made adjustments for the BLE [low poer Bluetooth devices like pedometers and other senor type crap]. It is BEYOND me as to why Google keeps adding functionality ot the core Bluetooth stack when it is GLARINGLY OBVIOUS they have real problems with Bluetooth as a whole. WHY NOT fix the core issues so Bluetooth is much better at the basics before trying to add functionality or more complex?
I know they complained it would cost a bit for a different newer Bluetooth license but I mean in my personal experience with many different phones Bluetooth is SUPER flaky even at it's best in Android, and does not even work the same way across devices [I have used 3 different Jabra speakerphones on my bosses Galaxy 3 recently and they all worked to varying degrees even though they all use the same version of Bluetooth protocol], but my T989 [Galaxy 2 T-mobile], my parents G2s My bosses older Bionic, My fathers new Droid X, etc. all have random problems. You can usually find one device that works well with a certain phone/ROM, but that can change between ROM versions and devices so it is like you need to go and buy 1 of everything every time there is an update and go crazy finding the ONE that works [and as noted on page 1 with the gentleman using the same Platronics Voyager Platinum as I have it is a super expensive very nice device that worked BEAUTIFULLY in ICS, but now in 4.1 + you can not get more than 1 or 2 words across the mic unless you are YELLING at it like a crazy person on the SAME device].
So all that to say I think it is prolly related to changes Android made in 4.3+ flipped the Bluetooth operability on it's head.

Mic Volume OK with KitKat 4.4.4 and cheap "HB-800" headset
there've been no posts for a while so maybe the problem has gone away with the KitKat updates.
But anyway:-
I have a Nexus 5 and recently bought a cheap generic stereo earbud headset with mic from eBay .... $14.82 Ozzie including delivery to Western Australia.
I've actually asked the other party whether they can hear me (specifically "am I loud enough?") because I read this thread and have been assured that it's all good.
In fact it's a pity the sound quality at MY end isn't better, but that's probably the low quality ear buds rather than electronics / firmware reasons.
Of course, ymmv.
Here's the ebay item title in case anyone wants to look it up or I can pm the item number if it helps.
"Headphones Earphones with MIC 1st Stereo Bluetooth Hands-Free Wireless HV/HB-800"

No, the problem is still there. Reason there are no posts is that no one has a solution. Nothing has changed since March. I am somewhat controlling it with CM11 running on the ElementalX kernel. Without this kernel Bluetooth performance is unbearable. With it it is barely adequate.
It's funny that a cheap headset would work okay while multiple top-of-the-line everything-but-the-kitchen-sink models like the Plantronics Voyager Pro would still be having problems.
I was seriously considering getting the OnePlus One, the Nexus 6 and even the iPhone 6 hoping the issue would finally be fixed. It's ridiculous that a phone commonly accepted as the measuring stick of the Android world would be having problems with simple tasks like driving a bluetooth headset. *very disappointed*

Me too. Two days with my new N5 and when I use my Sony SBH20 people hear me bad... With my N4 no problem. Its annoying! Ive to speak with headset because Ive problems with my left arm and legs, I only have the right to hold the phone, I cant do anyhing more and when I walk I need that arm to hold my cane.
I dont see a real solution, I will have to return the N5

Annoying buzz or static noise when using headphones in Nexus 5

For your information.
-Unrooted, it only has the Aviate launcher but this thing has been going on weeks before it.
-No cellular service(I am using it only at WiFi. It is like as if it were an iPod touch.)
-Happens in videos, YouTube daily motion etc.
-Only when using earphones.
Hey forum! I once again bring up another problem with my Nexus 5. I had it for 60ish days, and this thing has only been occurring for a few weeks. It is this annoying sound which occurs when I plug my headphones and watch some YouTube videos. Initially I thought it was my headphones, but I used two and found that the problem was the same. I believe it is definitely my Nexus 5, but I do not know why and how. It is a pest to me which I want to exterminate, and I gladly could use some help. Is this worthy enough to send back and get a new device? If so, what do I need to be aware of (additional charges, if I can ask for a new color etc).
I found this video which has strong resemblance to my problem only his occurs on speaker. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XZSef6fuKU&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Thank you for your help,
EL
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

I'm having the same issue on my N5 (stock, rooted). I've been searching online, but have yet to find an explanation or solution. I'll report back here if that changes.
Hopefully somebody else on this forum can chime in with some useful information.

I'm getting an annoying buzzing through my headphone jack as well. Noticed it more when playing through my car stereo. I'm inclined to say it's software related, not hardware. Hopefully in 4.4.3 there will be something that will take care of it. I can't see the hardware degrading that quickly, i've only had my phone for less than 4 months and this issue is just starting.

So I think I solved this problem on my phone. Before, I was having glitchy hiccups at least once per song. This hasn't happened once in the past two days since I went into the xposed module gravitybox and disabled "More music volume steps." Hopefully this helps someone else or perhaps inspires them to their own solution.

ancient light said:
So I think I solved this problem on my phone. Before, I was having glitchy hiccups at least once per song. This hasn't happened once in the past two days since I went into the xposed module gravitybox and disabled "More music volume steps." Hopefully this helps someone else or perhaps inspires them to their own solution.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do have more music steps in the ROM settings I changed, but not on Gravity Box. I'll have to see if those are possibly a cause.

I have the same issue but also when playing music using the internal speakers of the phone. It happens when playing music with Spotify and YouTube but I do not think it ever happened to ingame music of any game.
I will also try the XPosed module and report back if it worked..
Edit: Using this tweak of GravityBox did not work for me. The buzzing continues

everyone with this problem
does it only happen when you have the phone plugged into a car or home charger?
i have always gotten this on all my android phones when charging and listening to music in my car or with headphones.. its just one of those things that happens because all the components inside our phones arent shielded as well as they should be

It does not has anything to do with the charger because it happens without it plugged in

Does anyone have updates on the issue? It still occurs on my phone, even on Android L. So I guess it cannot be a software issue

Mine does this all the time when I'm watching videos on YouTube on speaker or headphone... On every ROM from stock to slimkat (using now) and sometimes through the music player. I'm guessing it's some sort of WiFi interference?

My newly acquired Nexus 5 also suffers from this issue
It's exactly the same as in the video. And I don't know why, it's more apparent when watching youtube videos, and much less common when listening to music (both locally with Poweramp and while streaming with Spotify).
I also can confirm this has nothing to do with the device being in charge or not.
Help??

I'm going to buy Nexus 5 soon and that issue sounds really bad to me. Any more information about it? I listen to music on my phone every day and I'd be really disappointed if the noise happened to me.

For me that issue stills persists after over half a year of owning the Nexus 5. I tried several ROMs, some Audio Mods. Nothing helped. I guess it must be a hardware issue.
I wrote a ticket about it to LG, but never got an answer. Since there is not much discussion about it in the internet it appears like it is only an issue with a small amount of devices. So if you are going to buy one the chances are low to get this bug.

You are probably right but when I consider my luck, I still get worried. Keeping my fingers crossed though Thanks for an update.

i think all nexus 5 devices have it, but not everybody notices it.
from my experience with various brands, as much as i dislike them as a company, but samsung has the best headphone jack sound output.

rayiskon said:
i think all nexus 5 devices have it, but not everybody notices it.
from my experience with various brands, as much as i dislike them as a company, but samsung has the best headphone jack sound output.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see. I'm not a big fan of Samsung either, I had some phones from them and I didn't really like those Also for comparision, HTC Desire Z's sound that was coming from the minijack output was perfect for me on my Soundmagic PL11 buds (I'm not an audiophile).
I need to get a new phone anyway and Nexus 5 seems to be something I was looking for - cheap, powerful and comes with Full HD screen. Even if headphone jack isn't going to work well...

TheReduxPL said:
I see. I'm not a big fan of Samsung either, I had some phones from them and I didn't really like those Also for comparision, HTC Desire Z's sound that was coming from the minijack output was perfect for me on my Soundmagic PL11 buds (I'm not an audiophile).
I need to get a new phone anyway and Nexus 5 seems to be something I was looking for - cheap, powerful and comes with Full HD screen. Even if headphone jack isn't going to work well...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The headphone jack on the N5 works well, i listen to music through my phone almost on a daily basis, so you don't have to worry about that, but i've come across the glitch linked in OP several times, and it can be reproduced. it doesn't just appear out of nowhere.

i had have this issue from when i bought my device
Annoying buzz and static noise but ya live with it ,regard's joe.

since upgrading to lollipop i can notice this sound glitch (while listening to music over headphones) more often, it occurs once in every 10min for sure... it's really annoying

I hope it's not placebo, but for me, since the lollipop upgrade, I haven't noticed this noise. I've even been listening to more music than before, as this quite got on my nerves, but now it seems to be gone.

Bluetooth Streaming Issues

Having some very annoying BT issues. Phone pairs fine with pretty much anything. But when streaming audio it cuts in and out pretty frequently but never lost its connection. Called ATT and they sent me a new one. Phone does they same thing. This one actually looses its connection periodically, some days are worse than others. Main issue is in my 2013 Subaru Outback. Does it sometimes with my Phillips BT speaker but not as consistently.
I'm not rooted and have tried both ART and dalvik and the issue is present no matter what.
Since this has happened with two phones I figured I can't be the only one. Anybody else have this problem?

I drive a semi all day, I connect my phone via BT to the stereo and listen to audiobooks/slacker radio for 12 hours a day and have never had this issue. In the BT menu there is an option to 'Turn on Audio Channel Mode' have you tried that? I don't have it on but perhaps it will help? Also I know this phone supports some new BT standards for low power, perhaps this is causing an issue with you devices, I don't know if you can turn that off, or if it's something that is just not very backwards compatible?

i have a similar connect/disconnect issue but only if its not in use it seems. like when its just connected but not streaming i'll notice my car will say it disconnected and reconnected. sometimes when i'm on the phone it gets all staticky and robot sounding...but only with my cars bluetooth. never had an issue with my og pro on 4.4 so i dont think its 4.4. havent done a factory reset yet, hopefully thats all it is cuz there are some other little quirks too

I don't experience audio cut outs, but I do experience severe cracking no matter what tweaks/adjustments I make.
Another problem is that it doesn't read my texts to me while connected to my car. Works fine with my Nokia Lumia 1520 and HTC One x. Its pretty annoying.

You guys should post details on the bluetooth devices you're connecting to. I had a white G3 and now have a black one and both did nothing you guys are talking about when connected to Pyle, Klipsch, Logitech or Chrysler Uconnect bluetooth audio devices. I use Spotify, Car Home Ultra, Google Maps Navigation, make calls via the phone and the Uconnect system will pick up the activity and play the audio correctly, initiate and receive calls in UConnect, Send/Receive Texts via UConnect, control audio volume and tracks. None of that causes disconnects or static for me.
I do have serious problems when playing music with the stock music app over bluetooth. If I try to rewind or ff the G3 starts freaking out and will begin playing the music slower despite not having touched the advanced audio controls. It really sucks. Luckily it doesn't do that with Poweramp or Subsonic clients. Doesn't happen with headphones directly connected either.
If this is not a problem with the G3 when paired to certain devices I think your bluetooth radios are defective. There would be way more complaints if this was prevalent.
---------- Post added at 03:58 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:51 AM ----------
absinthex said:
I don't experience audio cut outs, but I do experience severe cracking no matter what tweaks/adjustments I make.
Another problem is that it doesn't read my texts to me while connected to my car. Works fine with my Nokia Lumia 1520 and HTC One x. Its pretty annoying.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Text reading will depend on your device and your car's bluetooth stack compatibility. My GS5 could do everything but call out in my car. It worked good for a month then an update broke it. iPhone 5S could do everything but read and send texts. My G3 does everything great. If you research your car radio model and the G3 I'd bet you'd see that nobody has it working with the AT&T G3. You may see people with variants have it working especially international. Sometimes there are weird tricks to get things working. I had to disconnect and reconnect my GS5 a few times in order for it to work.

GorillaPimp said:
You guys should post details on the bluetooth devices you're connecting to. I had a white G3 and now have a black one and both did nothing you guys are talking about when connected to Pyle, Klipsch, Logitech or Chrysler Uconnect bluetooth audio devices. I use Spotify, Car Home Ultra, Google Maps Navigation, make calls via the phone and the Uconnect system will pick up the activity and play the audio correctly, initiate and receive calls in UConnect, Send/Receive Texts via UConnect, control audio volume and tracks. None of that causes disconnects or static for me.
I do have serious problems when playing music with the stock music app over bluetooth. If I try to rewind or ff the G3 starts freaking out and will begin playing the music slower despite not having touched the advanced audio controls. It really sucks. Luckily it doesn't do that with Poweramp or Subsonic clients. Doesn't happen with headphones directly connected either.
If this is not a problem with the G3 when paired to certain devices I think your bluetooth radios are defective. There would be way more complaints if this was prevalent.
---------- Post added at 03:58 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:51 AM ----------
Text reading will depend on your device and your car's bluetooth stack compatibility. My GS5 could do everything but call out in my car. It worked good for a month then an update broke it. iPhone 5S could do everything but read and send texts. My G3 does everything great. If you research your car radio model and the G3 I'd bet you'd see that nobody has it working with the AT&T G3. You may see people with variants have it working especially international. Sometimes there are weird tricks to get things working. I had to disconnect and reconnect my GS5 a few times in order for it to work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I found this, but my 2014 FJ Cruiser isn't on the list, neither is my G3.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&so...woHcO6CgPFvWsEew&sig2=QZyBxl51eRFrONj056uGBg
Still looking.

absinthex said:
I found this, but my 2014 FJ Cruiser isn't on the list, neither is my G3.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&so...woHcO6CgPFvWsEew&sig2=QZyBxl51eRFrONj056uGBg
Still looking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm guessing you don't have the JBL radio. http://www.toyota.com/fjcruiser/features.html#!/interior I love FJCs especially for offroading. They're beasts.
I can't find the model info for your radio. You can check Toyota parts for it. Should be the only one besides the JBL. The notes on that interior page reference needing to have a compatible bluetooth stack. I went through similar crap with my 2013 Durango. Nothing past the Galaxy S 2 from Samsung on CDMA (Verizon or Sprint) works with UConnect stereos for placing calls which can suck really bad if you're moving around during the day. No texts read aloud on my radio will say the number or name because of some issue with the was texts in the US are sent as opposed to international ones.
The G2 works well with the Entune Toyota radios so it looks like you just got screwed with that FJC radio. Those Fj radios have always been kinda outdated and more durable looking if not in function. It's kinda like Wrangler radio systems. They don't want a little mud or water to break em or something.
You could try a work around. You could just toggle Settings >Sound> Message/call voice notifications. It's at the bottom of the Sound page. When it's on its supposed to read the texts for you. If the stereo can pause music during a song to allow navigation commands to be heard it may announce the texts for you. Some radios and phones have problems with that too.
If that works maybe use a shortcut to the Sound settings in an app like Car Home Ultra or use something like Tasker to switch it on when bluetooth connects to your car. That second option would be pretty seamless.


GorillaPimp said:
I'm guessing you don't have the JBL radio. http://www.toyota.com/fjcruiser/features.html#!/interior I love FJCs especially for offroading. They're beasts.
I can't find the model info for your radio. You can check Toyota parts for it. Should be the only one besides the JBL. The notes on that interior page reference needing to have a compatible bluetooth stack. I went through similar crap with my 2013 Durango. Nothing past the Galaxy S 2 from Samsung on CDMA (Verizon or Sprint) works with UConnect stereos for placing calls which can suck really bad if you're moving around during the day. No texts read aloud on my radio will say the number or name because of some issue with the was texts in the US are sent as opposed to international ones.
The G2 works well with the Entune Toyota radios so it looks like you just got screwed with that FJC radio. Those Fj radios have always been kinda outdated and more durable looking if not in function. It's kinda like Wrangler radio systems. They don't want a little mud or water to break em or something.
You could try a work around. You could just toggle Settings >Sound> Message/call voice notifications. It's at the bottom of the Sound page. When it's on its supposed to read the texts for you. If the stereo can pause music during a song to allow navigation commands to be heard it may announce the texts for you. Some radios and phones have problems with that too.
If that works maybe use a shortcut to the Sound settings in an app like Car Home Ultra or use something like Tasker to switch it on when bluetooth connects to your car. That second option would be pretty seamless.

Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, they are! That's the main reason for purchasing one; and that it's the last year that they are being sold in the US, so I thought I'd pull the trigger on one.
But, no, I don't have the JBL head unit. I have the stock FJammer unit, but at least it's an upgraded model of those that were being sold in prior years.
I tried that work around when I first got my phone. Didn't work. I've gone through all Google, Google Now and all LG settings that have anything to do with Bluetooth and TTS. The nagivation works, but when it wants to. Sometimes, it will pause music, whether the music is playing through a CD or Bluetooth, and sometimes it won't pause the music, and it's barely audible. Even though I can hear it, it doesn't mean it's working how it should. When I should be hearing, "In a quarter mile, make a left turn at blah blah..." I really end up hearing, "ake left turn at bla..."
I think I'm just gonna live with it. Hopefully there will be a Bluetooth fix for this when LG releases an update.
Thanks for the replies.

absinthex said:
Yes, they are! That's the main reason for purchasing one; and that it's the last year that they are being sold in the US, so I thought I'd pull the trigger on one.
But, no, I don't have the JBL head unit. I have the stock FJammer unit, but at least it's an upgraded model of those that were being sold in prior years.
I tried that work around when I first got my phone. Didn't work. I've gone through all Google, Google Now and all LG settings that have anything to do with Bluetooth and TTS. The nagivation works, but when it wants to. Sometimes, it will pause music, whether the music is playing through a CD or Bluetooth, and sometimes it won't pause the music, and it's barely audible. Even though I can hear it, it doesn't mean it's working how it should. When I should be hearing, "In a quarter mile, make a left turn at blah blah..." I really end up hearing, "ake left turn at bla..."
I think I'm just gonna live with it. Hopefully there will be a Bluetooth fix for this when LG releases an update.
Thanks for the replies.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I read about it being the last year. If I had it to burn I'd buy one and import a 2014 rereleased 70 Land Cruiser.
Damn that sucks. My Nexus 4 wouldn't make those pauses in music or other audio apps for navigation at all. It really sucked after having it with HTC and Samsung phones for a few years.
There's always those Jabra Freeway & Tour units. Not the best builtin option but a lot cheaper than an upgrade of radio. In my experience counting on a manufacturer fix for stuff like that hasn't worked out for me. That's why I am cancelling my Sprint account this week. I got stuck with a phone that wouldn't work and they wouldn't cut me any slack at all. It's probably because I just moved over from T-Mo.
I hope it works when ATT finally updates us. Rock climbing in that FJ should take your mind off things.

GorillaPimp said:
Yeah I read about it being the last year. If I had it to burn I'd buy one and import a 2014 rereleased 70 Land Cruiser.
Damn that sucks. My Nexus 4 wouldn't make those pauses in music or other audio apps for navigation at all. It really sucked after having it with HTC and Samsung phones for a few years.
There's always those Jabra Freeway & Tour units. Not the best builtin option but a lot cheaper than an upgrade of radio. In my experience counting on a manufacturer fix for stuff like that hasn't worked out for me. That's why I am cancelling my Sprint account this week. I got stuck with a phone that wouldn't work and they wouldn't cut me any slack at all. It's probably because I just moved over from T-Mo.
I hope it works when ATT finally updates us. Rock climbing in that FJ should take your mind off things.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a damn blast!! Sucks it's my daily driver; I want to mod it out more and more. Thanks for the help. If I ever get this resolved I'll let you know.

Poor Bluetooth audio quality

I just got the tmobile variant s6 and immediately went to test the Bluetooth audio stream on my 2015 gs350. I noticed a crackle in the audio. It is minimal but quite noticeable at high volume. This is disappointing as my Sony Z3 had excellent BT audio quality on my gs. Anyone else notice this?

neles86 said:
I just got the tmobile variant s6 and immediately went to test the Bluetooth audio stream on my 2015 gs350. I noticed a crackle in the audio. It is minimal but quite noticeable at high volume. This is disappointing as my Sony Z3 had excellent BT audio quality on my gs. Anyone else notice this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do not seem to have that issue over my car's bluetooth. T-mobile also.

I'm getting good audio quality via my Sony SBH80 aptx BT headset. Perhaps you can play on the Sound Alive equalizer.

Just wanted to let you know that I am having this same problem. When streaming music in high quality from Google Play, the treble is all crackly and distorted. It's really disappointing. I'm going to do some testing today against my old m8 and using non-streaming music. But never had this issue before.

It's probably the fact you are streaming audio. Try some high quality downloaded music, like from Spotify. I've no issues at all.

I am also having the same issue with the Verizon version of the S6. It sounds terrible over my car Bluetooth when streaming but sounds good through my bluetooth Bose headphones. I didn't have any trouble with my car Bluetooth with my iPhone 6. I really hope Samsung gets this sorted out with a software update.

I too am having issues with streaming bluetooth. I think that my issue with it is amplified, because I normally listen to music only on my Magnavox Turntable, and the sound from that console is unbeatable by any electronic streaming or mini-speaker. My son bought me a bluetooth speaker for my birthday last year, which was very nice of him, but the sound just does not compare to the 1970's technology.
Maybe I'm just old.

Do you happen to have any bluetooth le devices, like a fitbit, attached at the same time? I tried disconnecting my garmin vivosmart and there's a dramatic improvement.

evanl81 said:
Just wanted to let you know that I am having this same problem. When streaming music in high quality from Google Play, the treble is all crackly and distorted. It's really disappointing. I'm going to do some testing today against my old m8 and using non-streaming music. But never had this issue before.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here. Lowering the treble help a tiny bit but what's music without treble . I've tried disconnecting my pebble watch but no dice. I really don't want to go back to aux.

In my car, before I disconnected the Garmin, I found that adjusting the toggles in Play Music - edging the first dial two toward Treble and the other dial three toward Instrument helped a bit.

I noticed the crackling on treble as well. As evanl81 suggested, I disconnected my Moto 360 (switched it to airplane mode), toggled the phone's bluetooth to have a fresh connection to the car, and the crackling is gone by at least 90%!
Very disappointing. Didn't have this problem with my Nexus 5. I'd very much prefer to not have to disconnect my watch every time I get in the car

palmboy5 said:
I noticed the crackling on treble as well. As evanl81 suggested, I disconnected my Moto 360 (switched it to airplane mode), toggled the phone's bluetooth to have a fresh connection to the car, and the crackling is gone by at least 90%!
Very disappointing. Didn't have this problem with my Nexus 5. I'd very much prefer to not have to disconnect my watch every time I get in the car
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would be a problem. I'm starting to think that we are wirelessly connected to too many things!!

So it looks like my pebble watch was the problem. Seems i can't have other BT devices connected while connected to my car. Once I put my pebble in airplane mode, then off/on the BT radio and all is good! Sucks but at least it's a workaround.

I'm trying to use AutoInput and Tasker to automate the disconnection and reconnection of my watch when connected to the car bluetooth right now, still working out the kinks though. :\ Endless little things and inconsistent behavior.
It would be fantastic if this gets fixed by Samsung at some point!

stureiney said:
That would be a problem. I'm starting to think that we are wirelessly connected to too many things!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I have a Nexus 4 with 5.0 and now with 5.1 and its connect to LG g watch, a parrot ck3100 and auki bluetooth reciber and the quality is perfect. With S6 I only connected to my LG g watch and auki and the audio quiality is a ****.

i don't know about bad audio quality for bt but i get audio cut outs and choppiness when using my jaybird bluebuds. it gets really annoying. i noticed it happens in wide open spaces too like when i'm outside but not near any walls or enclosed areas. if i'm indoors, it works perfectly fine. i remember reading about the way bt works and the signal needs to bounce off other surfaces or something like that in order to work properly. i had this same issue way back in my OG Droid days and there was a build.prop edit to boost the signal by giving bt higher priority.
anyone else have this problem? i'm on VZW variant btw.
other than this issue, bt audio sounds perfect. i also use Viper to give the audio volume a major boost.

I'm having the same issue on my car audio.
It was perfect with the Nexus 5, very disappointed to have this with the S6.

I just got my sg6 have a samsung gear live and bluebuds x I get crackling sounding high end, very annoying, coming from an HTC one m7 with the same setup and had zero problems, really hope they are able to fix this!
OK so I enabled the tube amp setting and nothing else, it seems to have made a huge difference. I can now listen to music without cringing. Hope this helps.

Ok, I made a few findings about the issue. I also have a moto 360 connected to the S6 and the crackling is so high that is imposible to hear music with a minimum of quality.So i tried with the watch off or in airplane mode and the crackling is still there but sometimes it dissapears after connect and disconnect the bt devices but not always. Now, the elephant in the room:
I have a Samsung Hs3000 bt stereo headset and the music quality is superb even with te moto 360 connected. The magic is that this particular device has aptx codec included. So if you have an aptx bt device the quality its going to be there. For no aptx devices i'm trying an experiment: i remember from the nexus 7 2013 and other android phones that bluetooth audio quality was bad since kitkat and the problem was bluetooth compression was too high. There are two files that control this behaviour: audio.a2dp.default.so and bluetooth.default.so. If we could edit this two files maybe we could fix this. If someone can help me and tell me what program can i use to edit this files on my computer i'll try to fix it myself.
Enviado desde mi SM-G920F mediante Tapatalk

Just wanted to follow up on this thread - I recently switched to the Note 5 (which I love) and also got a Huawei Watch. When the watch is connected to the phone and the phone is connected to bluetooth, the sound quality is really horrendous. So I'm guessing it's something with the BT smart implementation in Samsung phones or something? It's really annoying. I too tried to work out some stuff with AutoInput, but it's a huge pain. The only real workarounds are to put the watch in Airplane Mode or just disconnect through the Android Wear app. And unfortunately there are no shortcuts through AutoWear. Oh well.

Bluetooth Audio issues

Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am having the oddest issue with my phone. The u11 is 99% amazing, to me. I really like everything about it......
-except-
When paired to my 2013 Dodge Dart (don't ask. big mistake) the music audio plays slow. I don't mean the speed of reaction as far as switching tracks or how long it takes to play the next song... I mean it sounds like the audio is pitched down by about 20%.
Things I know/Have Tried from a troubleshooting perspective..
The phone bluetooth audio works fine.
The audio, when connected to the aux jack, works fine.
The audio, when connected to OTHER bluetooth devices such as my HK Aura plays fine.
My phone and car are updated to the latest firmware.
I realize that the conclusion is going to be "it's your car dude".... but since it's not so easy to get rid of the car... and I don't really want to swap this phone out for a Galaxy......
Is anyone else experiencing this? Has anyone had this and sourced a solution?
Thanks.

I've used my U11 in my 2013 Dodge Grand Caravan (don't ask. big family) and it performed flawlessly.
I imagine they are on similar systems, mine is just the standard UConnect head unit. This happens will all media streaming?

riggsandroid said:
I've used my U11 in my 2013 Dodge Grand Caravan (don't ask. big family) and it performed flawlessly.
I imagine they are on similar systems, mine is just the standard UConnect head unit. This happens will all media streaming?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes standard head unit. strictly an LED display with knobs.
Yes. It's across the board.
Google Play
Pandora
Tidal
Netflix (it's trippy to watch the video move at regular speed while the vocals are not only behind, but pitched down!)
I've also tried varying bit rates on my personal MP3s.
I have a hunch that this has to do with the audio in the phone being 24bit and the radio converting to 16 bit, but I have nothing to base that on...

Basic suggestion - unpair and re-pair to see if that resets something.

I've connected my u11 to two different cars so far (an Infiniti and a Land Rover), and haven't had that issue.
I've also connected to a plethora of BT speakers, with no issue....

It is probably your car. To be honest, I think it's a UConnect issue that doesn't play nice with HTC phones. My HTC 10 had basically same issue I'm having now where music sounds like garbage, distorted. The U11 is even worse! I believe my head unit is the RHB model in a 2011 Ram. But 2 phones now with same issues, can't be coincidence.
Sent from my 2PZC5 using Tapatalk

davidtm0 said:
Basic suggestion - unpair and re-pair to see if that resets something.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The classic, of course.
I did pair and unpair a few times even going so far as to to completely reset the car radio from any pairings.
no luck, but thank you for the suggestion.

mbaseball3 said:
It is probably your car. To be honest, I think it's a UConnect issue that doesn't play nice with HTC phones. My HTC 10 had basically same issue I'm having now where music sounds like garbage, distorted. The U11 is even worse! I believe my head unit is the RHB model in a 2011 Ram. But 2 phones now with same issues, can't be coincidence.
Sent from my 2PZC5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah, based on everything else I've done. It is most likely the car. Unfortunately I use that feature way too much to over look it...
Thanks for the input.

I have yet to test my wife's Samsung s8 to see if the issue carries. Not a good test though since the s8 has Bluetooth 5.0 but it's all I've got ha!
Sent from my 2PZC5 using Tapatalk

I have a similar issue, my U11 stutters and warbles and is generally unlistenable when using my tunelink (for android). However, when playing music through my Bluetooth headphones it plays perfectly, when playing through my Bluetooth speaker it plays perfectly and finally when playing through my Bluetooth headset it plays perfectly. Tried on my sisters car stereo and it plays perfectly. Its just the tunelink that has a problem. Tried a S8 and it plays perfectly through the tunelink, as does my 10 and my M8.
Edit:
Have bought another adapter to test and this also connects and plays perfectly with my U11. I guess it's just a compatibility thing with the tunelink.

Hey I have the same problem in my U11 and 2012 Dodge Challenger (ask, I love this Car!!)
The only solution I have found is if a restart the app on the phone then the playback is good. but I do wish i could just connect it and it would the playback would run fine like my old HTC M9.

Just to add to the thread. My u11 is slow to connect to my 2014 pilot and 2012 infiniti. Why it does connect it always disconnects. I'm on us unlocked 1.16 firmware.
I've read there is issues with Android 7.1.1 and 7.1.2 is better but searching the internet it does not seem the issue is too wide spread.
Edit. Testing with Wi-Fi on, not connected. So far so good

I have similar issues. I have a Subaru Outback (2015) and while my previous phone (Nexus 5) and my kids' iPhones all sound fine, the U11 sounds terrible when connected via BT. It is very grainy, like a sample rate mismatch. Same result in all audio apps. The U11 sounds find when connected to my Bose BT headphones. It's just some weird incompatibility with the car. Extremely frustrating. Its 2017 people!!