How Can I Turn Off Bluetooth?

[Dryst]

I am seeing no way to disable Bluetooth within settings.  Each time I choose my mobile phone as my source in my vehicle, Poweramp will always start 100% of the time.  I have cloud streaming apps that I want to use instead from my mobile phone, but I see no settings to disable Bluetooth.  I had to uninstall Poweramp from my phone to stop it from automatically opening.

Can I stop Poweramp from using Bluetooth that is not so obvious?

[maxmp]

@Dryst the option is: Headset/Bluetooth -> Resume On Bluetooth.

If it's still started, then either bluetooth headset looks like generic headset (then Resume on Wired Headset option may help) or the vehicle headunit explicitly sends Play commands and Poweramp complies. I would suggest first disable such auto resuming option on the other side, but there is also new option Ignore Bluetooth Commands (beta builds). Thanks!

[Dryst]

Resume on Bluetooth was not enabled.  Poweramp even when forcefully shutddown will not only automatically start, but it will steal Bluetooth that was started by other mobile apps before Poweramp even started.

 

[andrewilley]

Poweramp can't "steal" Bluetooth, Android passes command events to it. When this happens, please check PA Settings=>Headset/Bluetooth=>Last Processed Commands and see what has occurred in the log. 

Also, do you have any other apps that could be triggering this (e.g. the Resume feature in the separate Poweramp Equalizer app if you have that installed).

Andre

[Dryst]

This issue I described just happened prior to posting it.  It is Poweramp only that does this.  Other mobile apps that I have installed have options to disable bluetooth, but Poweramp does not.  This is the problem.

The scenario was that Astiga cloud player was running and playing audio when I started my vehicle.  Poweramp was not running at all.  It must have some background processes that I will find and disable if at all possible.  I started my vehicle, and Poweramp out of the blue decided to launch and takeover Bluetooth streaming.  The one and only way to stop this is to uninstall Poweramp.  Nothing else works.

With Poweramp uninstalled, Astiga streams over Bluetooth that is what I want to happen.  I hope this is clear now.  Per the first reply, there is a BETA feature that I am surprised was not added long ago that will disable Bluetooth from Poweramp.

 

Edited December 29, 2023 by Dryst

[andrewilley]

@Dryst The beta option mentioned above to ignore Bluetooth commands is only for the first few seconds after a BT connection has been made (in case a BT device is issuing an automatic MEDIA_PLAY command when it connects). It might help your case though, have you looked into the two things I asked in my last reply which might help diagnose if there is something specific causing this for you?

Poweramp does have background processes that Android can send instructions to, otherwise it could not allow background music playing or have the option to resume playing on connection/etc. But it's Android that determines which app that has indicated that it is a media player it should send commands to. Poweramp merely responds to what Android sends it.

Andre

[Dryst]

Based on what you are stating, the only fix is the uninstall Poweramp.

 

The best use case that will meet my needs is to provide an option to disable all Poweramp background services.  Allow Bluetooth to operate only when the app is actively running.  When Poweramp is not running, do not allow Bluetooth to function.  This would meet my needs perfectly, and allow me to keep Poweramp installed.

As an alternative to the above, I will restrict Poweramp's batter usage in hopes that it will disable background functionality that is unwanted and not needed in my case.

[andrewilley]

21 minutes ago, Dryst said:

Based on what you are stating, the only fix is the uninstall Poweramp.

Where did I say that? I asked for some diagnostic information to help find out what's happening here, but you seem reluctant to provide it. You haven't even mentioned basic details such as what phone and Android version you are using.

I just tried playing a YouTube video on my Samsung Galaxy A54 (Android 14) using the internal speaker initially. When I then connected a pair of Bluetooth headphones, the audio feed switched seamlessly over to being heard via the headphones and the headphone buttons (Play/Pause/Next/Previous/etc) would then control YouTube playback. Poweramp's command log shows it received a single message from Android to say that the BT headphone had connected, but it did nothing else until I opened the interface (at which point it took over handling any playback requests). This is the one command that Android sent to Poweramp:

==================
09:12:17.441 BTReceiver headset event
connection BT=true am mode=0 Parrot Zik V1.10
==================

Andre

[Dryst]

The issue is for that single command sent all audio is directed over Bluetooth from Poweramp to the paired device.  The absolute one and only fix is to unistall Poweramp.  I am repeating myself now.  Nothing else fixes this issue.

[andrewilley]

2 minutes ago, Dryst said:

The absolute one and only fix is to unistall Poweramp. I am repeating myself now. 

As you just repeat the same statement rather than answering any questions aimed at trying to help you, it does sound like you have found your preferred answer then. I'll leave you to it.

Andre

[maxmp]

@Dryst Poweramp has no control over BT (or audio overal) routing so if Android decides it should use Bluetooth audio now, all audio, including Poweramp will be redirected to that Bluetooth connection. 

Also, BT connection events (the ones which may trigger "Resume On *" options if enabled), BT button presses/commands, and BT audio routing are 3 different protocols which are not directly related and are handled independently by Android and Poweramp. To understand what exactly starts Poweramp, the "Last Processed Commands" log can be used, but it's either "Resume On*" options or BT RESUME command.

[andrewilley]

@Dryst I also tried Amazon Music, Spotify, BBC Sounds (all of which are streaming players) and Rocket Player and Samsung Music (for local audio files). All of them worked perfectly just like YouTube did, in that when I turned on my Bluetooth headphones that app's output switched seamlessly over to the headphones, and the headphone buttons then controlled playback for that current app as expected. The only notifications that Poweramp received during the whole testing process were simple Blueooth connection/disconnection messages (which it did not need to do anything with). Android did not forward any Bluetooth commands to Poweramp while the other apps were playing.

It's worth noting that this may only apply for apps that properly flag themselves as media players. If for example I was using a web browser and visiting a website that had some audio content, Android may not treat that as being a "media player" app per se, and thus it could route Bluetooth commands to what it considers to be valid media player instead.

You only mention "Astiga cloud player", for which I don't have an account so I can't test. Does your problem also occur with Spotify, YouTube, etc? If not, it's worth contacting the Astiga app developers as the source of your problem.

Andre

[Dryst]

The same happens for Bandcamp media player that also includes a Bluetooth streaming media app.

I do not like Spotify and do not use it nor have it installed.  Likewise, I do not have or use YouTube music.  The reasons is neither one of these are lossless streaming solutions.  Astiga streams FLAC audio from the cloud.  I use Bandcamp too, because they offer a free app to stream all my music purchases that does come in handy at times.  You may not use or have either of these installed.  Neither is free.

Edited December 30, 2023 by Dryst

[andrewilley]

@Dryst  Still unable to replicate your issue even using the Bandcamp app and streaming some of their free content. While streaming something on the phone speaker using the Bandcamp app, if I connect a Bluetooth device the audio output switches correctly to the newly connected device and the BT device's controls advance, pause, etc the music in Bandcamp. Poweramp's log shows that Android has sent it nothing except a simple connection notification.

I've tested this with an older Galaxy A70 running Android 11, and a new A54 running Android 14. I tried each phone with a series of BT devices including Parrot Zik headphones (AAC codec connection), my Hyundai car headunit (SBC codec), and a simple portable speaker device (also using AAC). All combinations worked perfectly with every app I tried, including with Bandcamp and many other media apps.

You still seem highly reluctant to provide any of the requested setup or diagnostic information to help look into this issue though - such as phone make/model, Android version, Bluetooth device make/model (and its connection method - AAC, SBC, 16-bit, 44.1kHz?) or even the Last Processed Commands log from Poweramp. So I'm really at a loss as to what you hope anyone can do for you.

Andre

[Dryst]

Poweramp is uninstalled from all my devices, and I have requested a refund.

[andrewilley]

Which is why there is a Trial period for Poweramp, so you can make sure you are happy your system works properly with it. Sadly it seems like yours does not, although we may never find out the details now.

Andre

[MotleyG]

12 hours ago, Dryst said:

Poweramp is uninstalled from all my devices, and I have requested a refund.

Good to hear this resolved your BT playback issues. I'm assuming you had the same results with the Pano and Last.fm apps as well. If only there was a way to find an actual solution to your individual isolated issue, perhaps by just responding to some helpful users on some online forum with a few questions about your setup.