Jump to content

Volume question


drftr

Recommended Posts

Trying to see if I can get everything to work during my trial period I noticed a problem with the volume keys on my phone:

 

The volume on my Bluetooth headset is far lower than for my wired ones and I followed instructions on how to solve the problem, with the last step being raising the Preamp volume a bit. However, after doing so the volume button on my headphone maxes out at a point where in the software it says I'm at 80-something percent, and I can add more volume with the volume rocker on my phone indeed. I assume I somehow don't have access to the added volume by the Preamp setting through my headphones? Or is there yet another setting to make the 2 go in tandem again? Would be a pity to miss out on this!

 

Tnx...

 

drftr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Like in Poweramp unfortunately the names of settings are highly confusing as they often include "double negatives" which is difficult to refer to. Like you mention Absolute Volume must be OFF, but the actual setting is called Disable Absolute Volume and I have that ON. So when you say AV must be OFF then I assume that's the same as Disable AV being ON. See what I'm saying? Very confusing but I THINK we say the same thing and therefore my setting is correct. Or...?

 

drftr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The wording of the BT Absolute Volume option is an Android Developers setting, not Poweramp's. It does vary sometimes by manufacturer, and I agree that 'enabling' a 'disable' setting does feel like a double negative.

It should look like this on Samsung firmware anyway:

Screenshot_20210817-210424_Settings.jpg

Andre

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Andre. I was thinking about app settings like:

 

"No DVC for Bluetooth Absolute Volume" which no doubt makes some people struggle to answer with Yes / No. What does answering this question with No even mean, some will think. Easier to answer would be "DVC for Bluetooth Absolute Volume" Yes / No?

 

But thanks for confirming my setting is correct. Still not sure how to solve the problem then of course.

 

drftr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm finding out on the Head-Fi forum that indeed if I turn Absolute Volume off I can't use volume control on the ear buds as you'd expect. So I have to choose between having a lower (read: too low) volume that can be fully controlled on the in-ears, and a higher volume that can't be controlled at the in-ears. Great... 😞

 

drftr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@drftr I agree, Absolute volume stuff is sometimes quite hard to understand, and the way it's implemented in Android firmwares is very "dirty". So definitely it's good to have some improvements on that settings page in the future.

As for ear buds + volume control, it usually continue to work, but volume is controllable from 2 points - phone and buds, where I recommend setting phone volume up to max 3/4 (75%) to allow some dynamic range for equalizer/tone, the volume on the BT device can be any as it fits.

Absolute volume just forces 100% volume in the Android system (but not on all devices, e.g. OnePlus uses ~90% level, etc.) and assumes your BT device do all the DSP processing, not phone. While this may be good for (big and beafy) speakers, good car audios, etc., it's not so that good for headsets and earbuds, where frequency response is way, way different and lacking a lot, esp. in the lower end and you want the equalizer/tone power to improve that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So now with the following settings:

 

Disable Absolute Volume = ON

Enable Direct Volume Control = ON

No DVC For Bluetooth Absolute Volume = ON

Preamp +3 dB

 

the volume is great at 75% without any noticable strain/stress in the music. But the app shows:

 

"DVC for Bluetooth: Available

Absolute Volume: Disabled"

 

That is just weird. What am I missing? These 2 don't go together:

 

1. No DVC For Bluetooth Absolute Volume = ON

2. DVC for Bluetooth: Available

 

How can "No DVC" be ON (as in: DVC is OFF) while DVC is "available"? Can something be OFF and available at the same time? Is it my English maybe?

 

drftr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

After a lot of reading, help from the WF-1000XM4 forum, and finding this apparently common problem on Galaxy phones, one poster nailed it with the following instruction (shared here hoping others can use this to their advantage):

 

Turn off Disable Absolute Volume

Unpair all bluetooth devices

Apps-->System Apps-->Bluetooth-->Storage-->Clear data

Turn off Bluetooth

Reboot

Turn on Bluetooth

Pair with device

 

Worked like a charm and the problem seems to be caused by the Samsung One UI interface in combination with Android 11.

 

drftr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So after that method, what setting do you eventually have for that Android Developer Options Bluetooth "Disable Absolute Volume" switch. And in PA, do you have DVC turned on or off for your BT headphones?

It'd be interesting to see what is finally working for you - while listening via BT, long-press on the metadata-info line at the bottom of the player screen, and post the resulting Audio Info display (probably two pages).

Andre

Link to comment
Share on other sites

ANDROID:

Disable Absolute Volume = OFF (hilariously meaning Absolute Volume is ON)

 

Poweramp:

No DVC For Bluetooth Absolute Volume = ON (hilariously meaning that Direct Volume Control is OFF)

 

This combination gives by far the loudest volume, so now I can turn down volume to a much more healthy 75% or so, while also being able to use volume control on the in-ears.

 

Should I somehow expect a lower sound quality because of these settings, Andre? Remember I don't use any sound processing in the chain.

 

drftr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@drftr The toggles are to enable whatever the function is as listed,  not an on/off switch. So there is a difference and they work as indicated, and not a double negative.

Since you don’t use any sound tuning functions other than DVC there is likely not too many differences you would be able to hear. But combining them to give the loudest output just to turn the master volume down is now different than setting them as recommended then setting the volume higher. It is essentially the same as long as you aren’t maxing out the amplifier to clipping. At that point only the limiter would have an impact, if it is enabled. Bluetooth headphones will have limits, based on their hardware capability regardless.

On the other hand, if you get an additional function using the volume control on the headphones, that is a benefit you may prefer.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Can't developers read/write English anymore nowadays? Are you saying that in Android I now have Absolute Volume OFF and in Poweramp I have turned Direct Volume Control ON? That would be totally crazy. That would mean that whatever you think a certain setting means, it could be the complete opposite.

 

drftr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I must admit, I'm rather with @drftr  that I would much prefer simple on/off switches all round.

It's rather like having 'Hide' options for interface elements, where ticking the box means to not show something, while unticking the box means to show the item. Or those sneaky email subscription choices when you register online for something, with wording like "tick here if you don't want our carefully selected spammers to send you junk mail" instead of "tick here to receive junk mail".

Andre

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@andrewilley Yeah, the last I want to do is insult someone who was part of the development, but I HONESTLY have no idea what I have selected now. I have questions on the Head-Fi forum about my settings and I can't answer them while these guys are trying to help 😞

 

drftr

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...