I found a substitute for the 'headphone antenna' in the Moto G 2nd, but suspect that this will work for any phone as well. I live in a city with about 20 FM stations and do not want to suck data, nor wear those fragile buds. I always use bluetooth. What I did was just plug in a headphone plug from an old set of stereo headphones, (cord removed) and voila!
I found I scanned just as many stations with a corded headset as I received with just a plug. Depending on your area, YMMV.
Take an old stereo plug and just remove all the wiring, then file it down so it is not obtrusive. Mine protrudes 1/8"
WantToJAVA said:
I found a substitute for the 'headphone antenna' in the Moto G 2nd, but suspect that this will work for any phone as well. I live in a city with about 20 FM stations and do not want to suck data, nor wear those fragile buds. I always use bluetooth. What I did was just plug in a headphone plug from an old set of stereo headphones, (cord removed) and voila!
I found I scanned just as many stations with a corded headset as I received with just a plug. Depending on your area, YMMV.
Take an old stereo plug and just remove all the wiring, then file it down so it is not obtrusive. Mine protrudes 1/8"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Assuming there are no shorts inside the jack, how does the phone know it's plugged in?
rouyal said:
Assuming there are no shorts inside the jack, how does the phone know it's plugged in?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was doing this a couple of years ago on an old Huawei phone. I think that it just looks for something contacting the contacts inside the phone. I had a plug cut down like this and another with a foot of cord still on it that I coiled up and tied that got a little better reception than just the plug.
rouyal said:
Assuming there are no shorts inside the jack, how does the phone know it's plugged in?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I doubt if a short matters, but filing it down you can see two concentric rings not conntected to anything. If you are then worried, you can put a teeny dab of black caulking compound on the two rings and let it dry. The antenna is capacitively and inductively coupling to the circuitry/wiring inside the phone. If you take an alligator clip to an external metal antenna and ground it, it will still work. Generally speaking they put a series capacitor of a few pFarads in series with the driven element, so again, no shorts matter.
WantToJAVA said:
I doubt if a short matters, but filing it down you can see two concentric rings not conntected to anything. If you are then worried, you can put a teeny dab of black caulking compound on the two rings and let it dry. The antenna is capacitively and inductively coupling to the circuitry/wiring inside the phone. If you take an alligator clip to an external metal antenna and ground it, it will still work. Generally speaking they put a series capacitor of a few pFarads in series with the driven element, so again, no shorts matter.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not worried about shorts, because I know that the headphone jack (the part that plugs in) should be an open circuit. I am wondering since the jack is supposed to have no resistance between the connection points (open) I don't see how the phone can even tell that one is plugged in. I'm guessing maybe the phone hole has two points of contact inside that contact, say, the common on the jack, to know somethings been inserted
rouyal said:
I'm not worried about shorts, because I know that the headphone jack (the part that plugs in) should be an open circuit. I am wondering since the jack is supposed to have no resistance between the connection points (open) I don't see how the phone can even tell that one is plugged in. I'm guessing maybe the phone hole has two points of contact inside that contact, say, the common on the jack, to know somethings been inserted
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Something like that, the connection from ring or tip going open flips a nand gate somewhere, enabling the fm radio... Main thing is that it works for those on limited data plans, or those like myself who have ripped scores of earphone cords!
Related
Hi. I broke my 3.5mm adapter, two of the connections are now broken. I soldered both wires back but I don't know if they should be soldered with a specific contact. I chose the each wire with a contact, randomly. I put the little plastic case together and, of course, it doesn't work. The sound still comes out of the speakers.
So, is it ruined? The adapter is very simple so I thought I could do it myself.
My second question is that if I buy another adapter, would I have to buy one that's stereo? I saw some descriptions on ebay and some are listed as stereo and some as mono, but they look the same.
Thanks.
My experience
octavia said:
So, is it ruined? The adapter is very simple so I thought I could do it myself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did some surgery on my 3-in-1 USB Adapter and repaired it. I'd left my headset plugged into it when I put it in my bag and something must have pressed against it, pushing the socket at an angle and causing the case halves to split apart. I fully dissasembled it and when I realised the studs which the screws go into had broken clean off, it was out with the superglue with a thin bead around the edges and squashing the halves together in a rubber jawed hobby vice while it dried. It's all fixed now but as the halves are now inseperable, I cant tell you which of those thin wires goes where. The obvious choice would be to carefully inspect the blobs of solder to see which have a 'stump' of wire still embedded in them and try those but be careful because Russian roulette with the wires cannot be good for the circuitry in the phone if you get it wrong. There is a picture of the HTC extUSB pinout accessible through the Kaiser wiki and if you have a multimeter, some thin copper wire for probes and lots of patience, you should be able to work it out.
My second question is that if I buy another adapter, would I have to buy one that's stereo? I saw some descriptions on ebay and some are listed as stereo and some as mono, but they look the same.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've not seen a mono one but as the device I have was very cheap (under £10) and plays stereo fine, you may as well splash out on a stereo one
Bought one of these:
eBay - search for "FUZE Car Kit" - The one I bought was "C529"
Fits the Fuze like a glove... But best of all: I took the thing apart because I had no interest in FM-modulated sound and found the 3 wires that went from the quasi-USB connector to the modulator circuit board. Those three were (you guessed it) red, white, and black - the 3 wires needed for audio signal...
1. Took it apart totally removing both the switch and the modulator part
2. made a new back out of a piece of plastic
3. went to radio shack, bought a "stereo mini" (1/8) female receiver and wired it to the red/white/black wires that were going to the modulator
4. drilled a 1/4 inch hole in the side of the rest of the housing for the headphone plug
5. rewired red-to-red, black-to-black (since I removed the switch)
VOILA! What i WANTED! A cradle-style holder for the FUZE with a stereo (headphone) jack so that I can just plug in a wire to my aux-input and get my tunes through the radio without the crummy sounding modulation
Yay. Ok you guys may or may not find this useful - but just wanted you to know it was very easy and do-able.
bought exactly the same thing! the fm transmitter switches of randomly, plus I can't listen to my cd's from my car stereo.
Thinking of modding it so that I can attach a speaker.
Can you post a pic of your mod?
thanks
wanwarlock - what kind of car do you have? I ask only because you could do what I did to a "T". If you have a newer car with either a stock head-stereo that has an AUX or CD Changer input or an aftermarket stereo with one of those - then you're set! You can buy adapters on eBay that make your CD Changer/AUX input a regular RCA style input (Red/White). Then go to RadioShack and buy an adapter to go from a Stereo-Mini Female to RCA-style Male and you're done - just plug that wire into the stereo input on your cradle and you're listening to the phone... Unplug and you're listening to whatever else Let me know if you have questions
any pics...?
Yes step by step picutres please if possible i would like to do soemthing like this for my phone as well. And is there any way to get the microphone connection as well? So we can use something like this thanks
nvm: just realized the mic input thing was a usb connection. I was thinking it was the other type of connections like regular iphone headset connections.
(as requested).
The first picture is the cradle attached to a bracket I made... The Honda Pilot has a bizarre little pocket beneath the radio above the "not an ash tray" that is totally useless. I cut a piece of wood, attached a bent strip of aluminum to the wood and a piece of foam to the top of the wood (to allow for a snug fit in the pocket), drilled a few holes in the aluminum, and attached the cradle to the aluminum.
The second picture shows the cradle from the outside - the power jack and the headphone jack.
The last picture shows the wiring detail. Let me know if you have any questions -
mybikegoes200 said:
(as requested).
The first picture is the cradle attached to a bracket I made... The Honda Pilot has a bizarre little pocket beneath the radio above the "not an ash tray" that is totally useless. I cut a piece of wood, attached a bent strip of aluminum to the wood and a piece of foam to the top of the wood (to allow for a snug fit in the pocket), drilled a few holes in the aluminum, and attached the cradle to the aluminum.
The second picture shows the cradle from the outside - the power jack and the headphone jack.
The last picture shows the wiring detail. Let me know if you have any questions -
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hmm interesting thanks so much for the pictures.
thanks for the pics... i imagine this wont work with the seidio case
extensive said:
thanks for the pics... i imagine this wont work with the seidio case
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not even a little chance - the cradle fits the fuze *very* snug. So snug that I might actually sand it down a bit. With a case of any sort it definitely wouldn't fit.
This is pretty sick I must admint. However, I find myself wanting a cradle that has NO electronic connections, that way I can take the phone out of the cradle and mess with it in my hand and it still be connected to the audio cable and/or power cable.
Anyone know of a good cradle like this?
seanvree said:
This is pretty sick I must admint. However, I find myself wanting a cradle that has NO electronic connections, that way I can take the phone out of the cradle and mess with it in my hand and it still be connected to the audio cable and/or power cable.
Anyone know of a good cradle like this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
why not just get the generic holder and a car charger?
USB Head Unit
Another solution that I am going to try shortly is hooking up the Fuze via usb cable and set it to drive mode. I might need to put the music in a root folder but I will report back.
I'm trying it on a Pioneer head unit with USB functionality input.
Has anyone tried this yet?
i think it can work. not too familiar with usb headunits i.e. file structure etc. what does your manual say? theoretically should work in drive mode.
my head unit only has aux in...
Is the 2.5mm jack funky for anyone else? When I have headphones or ext. speakers plugged in, slight movements will cause the connection to be lost -- I have to rotate the plug around to restore, and then hold the phone still. (Any fix other than new handset?) Thanks.
You are using the wrong size. 2.5 is too small. You should get a 3.5 and it should fit fine.
Sorry, I must be confused about the size (it's a 3.5mm jack?). I am indeed using the right sized plugs for the jack -- standard headphone/speaker plugs.
pavvy said:
Is the 2.5mm jack funky for anyone else? When I have headphones or ext. speakers plugged in, slight movements will cause the connection to be lost -- I have to rotate the plug around to restore, and then hold the phone still. (Any fix other than new handset?) Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like a bad jack. Loose joints, etc can cause that. Try another headphone or speaker plug. If the same happens, you have a bad jack.
androidmonkey said:
Sounds like a bad jack. Loose joints, etc can cause that. Try another headphone or speaker plug. If the same happens, you have a bad jack.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, thanks -- it happens with headphones and speakers that have been fine with other devices (even happens w/the Samsung-provided set of headphones).
Bummer, but I may just have to live with it; I'd hate to trade this phone in for a refurb (for something so relatively minor)...
I had an issue where after about 30 minutes of playing music the phone would randomly think that signals were being send by whatever was plugged into the jack to pause/skip, etc. This would happen whether I was using the stock ear pieces or other headphones or had it plugged into my car's stereo.
I ended up exchanging the device to resolve the problem.
Mine has the same problem, so apparently it's not incredibly uncommon. Luckily I literally never use headphones with my phone, or anything that requires the 3.5 jack honestly so it's a non-issue.
RadAway said:
I had an issue where after about 30 minutes of playing music the phone would randomly think that signals were being send by whatever was plugged into the jack to pause/skip, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting, that happens on mine as well (I actually thought the random pausing may be a "feature" -- like for when the headphones become accidentally unplugged!).
Make sure your hedphones/speakers plug fits snuggly into the jack. I had an "issue" when I thought I had a bad jack, but I just wasn't plugging the headphones all the way in, looked like a jackass when I claimed a warranty replacement, and took the TMO skin off the phone for the last time before shipping my "defective" phone, just to try it one more time, saw that the plug didn't go all the way in, pushed it a bit harder and it clicked into place LOL
lqaddict said:
Make sure your hedphones/speakers plug fits snuggly into the jack. I had an "issue" when I thought I had a bad jack, but I just wasn't plugging the headphones all the way in, looked like a jackass when I claimed a warranty replacement, and took the TMO skin off the phone for the last time before shipping my "defective" phone, just to try it one more time, saw that the plug didn't go all the way in, pushed it a bit harder and it clicked into place LOL
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll admit to thinking the same lol
Thanks, that is good advice (same thing happened to me once with an ipod nano -- case prevented a plug from going in all the way!) -- but in this instance, my case doesn't cover the top edge of the phone, so the jack is free & clear...
Hello people,
I've finally had enough with the headphone problems many have reported, the distorted sound and triggering voice commands. I've previously swapped the jack with a new one(had to buy a whole mid frame) and now it's started doing it again, about a month later(the original one lasted just as long).
The issue is that this phone is huge and when using it in my pocket with the headphones on, it moves that jack with every step. This wouldn't be a problem if the jack was soldered on or at least wired to the board, but instead it's just placed on top.
So I've decided I want to solder it on. I'm a bit scared as I've never soldered to a pcb board... And I might desolder other items. I'm going to hone my skills first on some other broken devices, but at this point I'm pretty sure I'll do it in the end.
Has anyone else here done this? Want to watch me possibly destroy this otherwise great phone? Heh.
Ty
Dude you're nuts. Just go get some Bluetooth headphones, it's 2016!! I literally haven't used my headphone jack more than 3-4 times in the 4 months I've owned this phone.
Also, I'm pretty sure the headphone jack isn't soldered in specifically so that if the jack moves around a little it won't cause damage to the board. This is common on most/all phones. Soldering it down would be a TERRIBLE idea. You will likely damage your phone.
Why didn't you just send it in for warranty repair?
Sean89us said:
Dude you're nuts. Just go get some Bluetooth headphones, it's 2016!! I literally haven't used my headphone jack more than 3-4 times in the 4 months I've owned this phone.
Also, I'm pretty sure the headphone jack isn't soldered in specifically so that if the jack moves around a little it won't cause damage to the board. This is common on most/all phones. Soldering it down would be a TERRIBLE idea. You will likely damage your phone.
Why didn't you just send it in for warranty repair?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I couldn't send it in because I unlocked it, which voided the manufacturer warranty. If I remember correctly on my old galaxy s4 it was plugged in with a cable, which was a much better solution. The reason my sound interrupts is because when it moves, it moves the pins on the board causing slight interruptions.
However the pins in the jack are long enough and soft enough that they would bend first instead of breaking the board.
And about Bluetooth headphones? I've bought 3 different sets, they either have huge controllers hanging and pulling on one side, or they are too big, or they're poor quality, I've spent more than I want to admit on different sets (see attachment).
So today I'm going to try and solder the jack, and throw this phone away if I break it and buy a small one, that doesn't put that much pressure on the jack in my pocket.
Stay tuned. I should take pictures.
No go
Well, it didn't work. I knew it would be hard to solder the little legs that where under the actual jack. Getting them all melted and touching before they cool down, without melting the plastic or the rubber around the jack was not possible in the end.
Only 2 of the 5 pads actually stuck together, and there was only a buzz coming from the headphones. I decided to open it again and remove the solder just in case something was shorted, I didn't want the sound chip to get toasted. My biggest mistake was leaving the glue on the jack, which stuck to the mid-frame. When I pulled that apart, the jack, with the two pads came with it.
I'm putting the pictures up if anyone wants to have a look at the mess, you can see in the first and second picture why my sound is interrupting: the pad is damaged from continuous friction.
The phone still works so I've lost nothing other than my time.
BTW, at the moment I'm using wired headphones to a Bluetooth adapter. Until they make smaller/lighter wireless headphones I'm stuck with this.
They got Bluetooth without the wire hanging thing that bugs ya (bugs me too) don't have a name or link right now but a quick Google search should pull them up
Ken C said:
They got Bluetooth without the wire hanging thing that bugs ya (bugs me too) don't have a name or link right now but a quick Google search should pull them up
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea, I saw Jordan Keyes review these ones. They are too much like having screws screwed in your ears. If they can get them smaller, and still have 2-3 hours battery, I'll be interested.
I am not sure how the LG Tone type of Bluetooth ear buds are any more intrusive than regular earbuds with a cord hanging down the side of your body! They definitely last a long time for me.
bv90andy said:
Yea, I saw Jordan Keyes review these ones. They are too much like having screws screwed in your ears. If they can get them smaller, and still have 2-3 hours battery, I'll be interested.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How about these
Use this instead, it's a taotronics tt-br05 Bluetooth wireless receiver, you can plug your wired headphones in it and use Bluetooth instead of the 3.5mm plug.
Has play/pause and volume/track change buttons. Also has a mic for calls.
Search in Amazon.
Ken C said:
How about these View attachment 3865297
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They only have 1 hour battery before you have to plug them in the little tube to charge again. The battery technology isn't there yet.
kadopt said:
Use this instead, it's a taotronics tt-br05 Bluetooth wireless receiver, you can plug your wired headphones in it and use Bluetooth instead of the 3.5mm plug.
Has play/pause and volume/track change buttons. Also has a mic for calls.
Search in Amazon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have actually been using this
Good option, but it wasn't great sound quality.
Anyway, I've bought a second hand Xperia z5 compact and use that now. The moto x style has become a in house tablet.
Doesn't matter what I connect, it doesn't feel like it's every inserted completely and because of it I've been getting really irritated when the music stops.. Can I replace it and keep the same audio quality?
Or should I wait to trade it in?
Are you 100% sure that there is nothing stuck inside the port that is blocking a secure connection? Could be something pretty tiny even as it wouldn't take much to prevent the plug from clicking in completely
Yup, mine is the same. H918. I just take a little piece of the rubber off the plug in part and haven't had any problems since.
i faced this with my g3, if the headphones do not have a mic its a 2 connector and idk why but it makes teh phone think u hit the answer/call/play/pause button, just get a headset with a mic, problem soft or get bluetooth and dont sweat it at all
pre4speed said:
Yup, mine is the same. H918. I just take a little piece of the rubber off the plug in part and haven't had any problems since.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll try that, thanks
Pocket lint has done this to me several times. I put a little hook on a tooth pick and reached in. Every time I think no possible way, that's what it is.
You can also pull the cotton off a q tip and twist in there.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
yup. my v20 started this with my car aux cable. activates google now constantly, stops music, any slight bump of the 3.5mm jack and im jacked.
Took phone apart cleaned with denatured alcohol and still the issue. The port is cheap and the connectors are not sufficently making contact with the aux end. Its a sh!tty quality part LG dumped on the phone so our quad dac experience would suck.. Just poor manufacturing is the issue imo
I have the same issue whenever I use a headset or plug without mic/buttons; Google Now keeps activating unless I position the cable just right, and it is extremely annoying. I also checked the circuit board when fixing my SD Card slot and noticed that the headphone jack is soldered on, so I wouldn't mess with that unless you have a lot of soldering experience under your belt.