I've seen a few posts recently about how to set up Viper4Android on an Android head unit, so thought I would start this thread so that we could share some ideas. The configuration that I posted below is what I came up with in 15 minutes of experimenting yesterday. It's not a definitive or optimum config, it's just what I came up with, but I am very happy with the result. The purpose of this thread is to share ideas and configurations, due to there being a complete lack of this kind of information anywhere else that I could find.
First, a disclaimer: I'm half deaf, have constant ringing in my ears, and I am most definately not an audiophile, so take anything I say below with a grain of salt. Having said that, I do appreciate clarity when listening to music, so that is always my priority.
So I installed an android head unit in my car last week, installed the Hal9k ROM which came with Viper4Android (V4A) pre-installed. I've played around with V4A on my phone before with goods results, it's mainly geared towards phones with earphones, so don't expect too much from it using it in the car. But I played around with it yesterday and came up with a setup that I am really happy with, it gives in my opinion a richer, fuller sound, with no loss of clarity.
So here is what I did:
1) Select the speaker icon down the bottom. The headphone setup certainly has a lot more options available, but I went with the speaker setup as that's what I'm using.
2) Turn on the Master Limiter
3) I turned on Playback Gain control for a specific reason. My head unit has a bit of hiss with no signal at very high volumes. I can't hear it while the engine is running, but it's there. Bumping up the playback gain control let me turn down the gain on the head unit (look in Factory Settings) which reduced the hiss, but without any clipping or distortion that I can hear. I set Strength to 2, Max Gain to 9x, and output threshold to -1db.
4) I turned on the FIR equaliser. I was using the equaliser in the Amplifier app that came with my head unit, but I would rather just have all of these settings in one place, so I set the Amp equaliser to flat, and made all of my adjustments within the FIR equaliser. My setup tends to be a bit bass-heavy to my ears, so I just use the equaliser to gently taper off the bass, and I leave everything else flat. But just adjust it so that it sounds right to you in your car with your choice of music.
5) I turned on Reverberation. I dare say many will scoff at this, but I like the effect. It makes the sound more "full", without any loss of clarity that I can hear. I used fairly minimal settings to achieve this effect. Room size = 25m2, Sound Field = 6m, Damping Factor = 20%, Wet Signal= 20%, Dry Signal = 50%.
And that's what I came up with in 15 minutes. I'm really happy with the result though. Hopefully that will give others a starting point to do some more experimentation. And if you have your own ideas, please share them here
jrobbom5 said:
I've seen a few posts recently about how to set up Viper4Android on an Android head unit, so thought I would start this thread so that we could share some ideas. The configuration that I posted below is what I came up with in 15 minutes of experimenting yesterday. It's not a definitive or optimum config, it's just what I came up with, but I am very happy with the result. The purpose of this thread is to share ideas and configurations, due to there being a complete lack of this kind of information anywhere else that I could find.
First, a disclaimer: I'm half deaf, have constant ringing in my ears, and I am most definately not an audiophile, so take anything I say below with a grain of salt. Having said that, I do appreciate clarity when listening to music, so that is always my priority.
So I installed an android head unit in my car last week, installed the Hal9k ROM which came with Viper4Android (V4A) pre-installed. I've played around with V4A on my phone before with goods results, it's mainly geared towards phones with earphones, so don't expect too much from it using it in the car. But I played around with it yesterday and came up with a setup that I am really happy with, it gives in my opinion a richer, fuller sound, with no loss of clarity.
So here is what I did:
1) Select the speaker icon down the bottom. The headphone setup certainly has a lot more options available, but I went with the speaker setup as that's what I'm using.
2) Turn on the Master Limiter
3) I turned on Playback Gain control for a specific reason. My head unit has a bit of hiss with no signal at very high volumes. I can't hear it while the engine is running, but it's there. Bumping up the playback gain control let me turn down the gain on the head unit (look in Factory Settings) which reduced the hiss, but without any clipping or distortion that I can hear. I set Strength to 2, Max Gain to 9x, and output threshold to -1db.
4) I turned on the FIR equaliser. I was using the equaliser in the Amplifier app that came with my head unit, but I would rather just have all of these settings in one place, so I set the Amp equaliser to flat, and made all of my adjustments within the FIR equaliser. My setup tends to be a bit bass-heavy to my ears, so I just use the equaliser to gently taper off the bass, and I leave everything else flat. But just adjust it so that it sounds right to you in your car with your choice of music.
5) I turned on Reverberation. I dare say many will scoff at this, but I like the effect. It makes the sound more "full", without any loss of clarity that I can hear. I used fairly minimal settings to achieve this effect. Room size = 25m2, Sound Field = 6m, Damping Factor = 20%, Wet Signal= 20%, Dry Signal = 50%.
And that's what I came up with in 15 minutes. I'm really happy with the result though. Hopefully that will give others a starting point to do some more experimentation. And if you have your own ideas, please share them here
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I downloaded Malay Mod {and got the Full Version}. It also came with V4A but I hear no difference no matter what I've got selected. Mine has "Headset - Phone Speaker - Bluetooth Device - USB/Dock" tried them all ..
My headunit pushes amps via RCAs, so maybe it doesn't work through those channels?
Good ideas on your tuning {I've for tinnitus too}.
Related
Friends obviously a LOT of Nexus 7 owners have complained about sound issues, from obviously defective units to the simple issue of volume being inadequate for use
My question is what is "normal" on this device? anyone know a db / sound-pressure at radius specification?
other than obvious noise through a speaker, how does anyone know if their unit is "normal" ?
cognus said:
Friends obviously a LOT of Nexus 7 owners have complained about sound issues, from obviously defective units to the simple issue of volume being inadequate for use
My question is what is "normal" on this device? anyone know a db / sound-pressure at radius specification?
other than obvious noise through a speaker, how does anyone know if their unit is "normal" ?
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My speaker is defective, and in need of going out for repair/replacement, but the volume seems like it will be fine for my needs once the rattle/vibration is fixed. It only happens at certain frequencies, so I can still get a solid sense of the output level.
Trying to determine the exact db at a specific distance isn't going to do you much good, because it will be based on either the loudest frequency, or 1khz. The 1khz rating is somewhat reasonable to use, but what if there's a massive spike there (and on small speakers, there generally is). Say it could hit 95-100db at 1khz, it still will likely only hit about 5db at 40hz. See where I'm going with this?
I don't know, I could grab my spl meter, and run a whole series of tests at 1 meter in a quasi-anechoic environment (though it's really cold outside here), if you're really that keen on finding out precise measurements of the frequency output over the 20-20 range. Seems a little overboard for a 7" tablet though. I would consider the volume more than adequate for listening to the news, or voip calls, but there isn't a tablet that exists where I would be happy with the sound of the speakers for music.
Of course, I'm kind of picky about these things.
From what I see in the boards, there are three types of view points on the output.
1. Plenty good for normal use.
2. Terribly low for music.
3. Flat out broken, so you can only turn it up half way (the second is my current situation).
Also, don't forget that the speaker is in the back, so you'll have to keep it turned around or bouncing straight off of a hard surface, to get the full output to your ears. Some cases may also significantly reduce the output as well.
more questions: if we presume/conclude "there is a volume problem even when the speakers are not defective", then two follow-on questions:
1. is it JUST speakers?
2. combo of lousy speakers and a problem with the DSP/firmware/software/etc.... ?
I think it is 2 but I'd love to hear a root cause on the whole issue.
with SOME music sources I can get through the speakers a little bit louder response, at FULL volume max'd - than I can with MX Player on a video with the Player set on Volume Boost [200%].
in the case of MX Player, its basically worthless through the speakers both from a dynamics standpoint [obvious...] and just volume unless you are in a stone-quiet area and are craning toward the device to hear.... and you have acutely good hearing.
Then, if one is unconcerned about warranty: anyone have suggestions on replacement speaker that perhaps would help?
cognus said:
more questions: if we presume/conclude "there is a volume problem even when the speakers are not defective", then two follow-on questions:
1. is it JUST speakers?
2. combo of lousy speakers and a problem with the DSP/firmware/software/etc.... ?
I think it is 2 but I'd love to hear a root cause on the whole issue.
with SOME music sources I can get through the speakers a little bit louder response, at FULL volume max'd - than I can with MX Player on a video with the Player set on Volume Boost [200%].
in the case of MX Player, its basically worthless through the speakers both from a dynamics standpoint [obvious...] and just volume unless you are in a stone-quiet area and are craning toward the device to hear.... and you have acutely good hearing.
Then, if one is unconcerned about warranty: anyone have suggestions on replacement speaker that perhaps would help?
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#2
When I connect the Nexus 7 to my car stereo inline, via the headphone output, I get mixed results. I generally have to crank the car stereo way up, which can cause voltage induction through the 1/8" to RCA connector, if I have the Nexus charging simultaneously.
Now granted, induction of this sort is not something that is a Nexus only problem, and has more to do with the quality of cable shielding. If I move the USB charger so that it doesn't line up with the headphone output wire, the problem is reduced.
However, the issue is more that the headphone output is somewhat inconsistent, so that means that some audio will require me to turn the stereo to a level where the inductance is moot, and sometimes I will have to turn up the stereo to the point where charging and listening to audio through the car stereo is just brutal. Of course, you weren't asking specifically about car audio, but it leads to my theory.
Now, here in lies why I think it's you're "#2". If it were purely hardware, there shouldn't be that great of a difference from the headphone jack, assuming relatively similar reference volumes from the source. So software would seem to be at play here, as well as hardware.
As far as the speakers go, I don't think you'll be able to replace the internals. They're a very awkward shape, which probably doesn't help, and there is very little room in there.
Your best bet would be to find out if there is an external speaker option which can easily work for tablets. I listened to an Ipad 4 last night, and it wasn't good either. I think you have to consider the size of these things. A speaker the size of your pinky nail, can only be asked to do so much. Trying to cram one the size of your thumbnail in there, won't do much more, and just wouldn't fit.
now we're talking real issues. thank you.
yes, compared to any of my other android or pc or apple devices this one is uniquely odd
all as you have noted. inconsistent, output device matters, etc.
I admit I'm skewed by the ipad Mini - if you get a chance, sample that in terms of speaker performance. I have not access to Ipad 4 in my shop.
in my case, there is no distortion that I can observe/detect with my ears - clear enough, but there's not much substance there, oddly except for notifications which are crystal clear at full volume, if not particularly loud [my ancient droid optimus is louder - obnoxiously so which is why I keep it on vibe].
bladebarrier said:
#2
When I connect the Nexus 7 to my car stereo inline, via the headphone output, I get mixed results. I generally have to crank the car stereo way up, which can cause voltage induction through the 1/8" to RCA connector, if I have the Nexus charging simultaneously.
Now granted, induction of this sort is not something that is a Nexus only problem, and has more to do with the quality of cable shielding. If I move the USB charger so that it doesn't line up with the headphone output wire, the problem is reduced.
However, the issue is more that the headphone output is somewhat inconsistent, so that means that some audio will require me to turn the stereo to a level where the inductance is moot, and sometimes I will have to turn up the stereo to the point where charging and listening to audio through the car stereo is just brutal. Of course, you weren't asking specifically about car audio, but it leads to my theory.
Now, here in lies why I think it's you're "#2". If it were purely hardware, there shouldn't be that great of a difference from the headphone jack, assuming relatively similar reference volumes from the source. So software would seem to be at play here, as well as hardware.
As far as the speakers go, I don't think you'll be able to replace the internals. They're a very awkward shape, which probably doesn't help, and there is very little room in there.
Your best bet would be to find out if there is an external speaker option which can easily work for tablets. I listened to an Ipad 4 last night, and it wasn't good either. I think you have to consider the size of these things. A speaker the size of your pinky nail, can only be asked to do so much. Trying to cram one the size of your thumbnail in there, won't do much more, and just wouldn't fit.
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Hello there everyone.
I am working on few of problems faced by Nexus regarding its sound quality and other issues related to hardware and software. One of the device has confused me completely is been addressed at the end of this thread.
Mostly, according to my experience, the sound is very loud compared to its previous model of Nexus 7 2012 which had mono speakers while this is loaded with two stereo speakers. Using it in portrait mode has best sound experience.
However, if you try the surround sound option via Google Music, the sound isnot really loud. Just without it, I have noticed best performance.
Also, in MX Player Pro, I have seen that with good headphones, you can increase the sound upto 30 (rather than normal 15) yet you can not do the same whilst using the speakers. It could be due to codecs.
Overall, the sound is loud in a quite environment but hardly noticed in busy areas with background noises like streets. shops etc even on its full sound.
However, some devices do have a bit low sound which could be increased by modifying files a bit but this is kind of increasing your speakers output more than it is optimised to be used for. Thus, sound may break and might be distorted. I am trying to find a combination where an optimum balance could be achieved but I haven't been successful. (If anyone has these values, please share)
I havenot come across a speaker problem related to hardware where no sound was coming out of it. Although, few devices do have different maximum sound if measured in db (3 to 5 db on same track)
THE DEVICE
The device came without its top speaker working and after opening it up and checking the speakers, both speakers worked. I thought the reason, it was not working was due to software. I tried looking into it deeply through software modification without any luck.
One day, after heavy gaming out of curiosity, I just turned on songs to check if both speakers were working and viola, both were working out of no where without any software modification (I gave up and reset the Nexus to give it for warranty claim the next day).
I was overjoyed and till next day, both speakers were working perfectly until I did some heavy gaming again and the sound vanished after charging it (It got hot again during charging)
This has happened twice and today I was gaming with sound turned on and nothing. The device top speaker didnot turn on for a second even like two times it happened before. Both that time, my device was silent while gaming.
I suspect some wiring issue but still not sure, I am now a bit sceptical to open this Nexus again and void the warranty as I have already have taken the back lid off few times. I do not intend to heat it with soldering Kit as I have damaged Htc Sensation a while back doing that. Any Suggestions about this device in particular?
How have been your experience with sound quality and do share any mods you have find useful and have tested.
Hi all,
Anyone else had major issues with the Joying sound quality? I want to be able to disable the EQ as I believe this may be causing the issues I'm having.
Every time I go over volume 18, the speakers distort, cackle and pop. Here's what I've tried:
1. Turned Loud off, allows me to go to volume 21 but then after that they cackle
2. Messed around with EQ to no end and only if I drop bass to 0 can I put the volume louder but then music sounds terrible
3. Upgraded all speaker cables to oxygen free copper cables with high quality connectors to the speakers (that wasn't fun doing that)
4. Replaced stock speakers with Vibe Slick 5's at the rear and they also experience the same issue
5. Reset stereo to stock countless times
6. Tried a separate amplifier and when I turn the amp up even with the volume low on the head unit, the distortion is still there
Seems like the sound quality is pretty trash from this head unit. Before I totally trash this thing - is there anything else I can try that someone may know?
Has anyone tried a different single din head unit that they can recommend? Not interested in the motorised pumpkin one, it kept hitting my dashboard when the screen came out and the sound quality on that wasn't that much better.
Sorry - the unit is JY-UOS03P2 not the 3P4.
Thanks!
I received an FYT based unit this week that also has horrible sound for AM/FM stereo. Bluetooth seems to work fine, but radio sounds like it's coming through a tunnel.
Surprisingly AM/FM doesn't sound too bad on mine. Everything else sounds trash. Bluetooth is choppy, Spotify app on the head unit with the maximum quality setting sounds terrible.
You're getting clipping of the audio signal...The sound output of these units are horrible. I chased the same issue for quite a long time with my setup, a Joying double-din, JL Audio amp and Alpine speakers on all 4 doors. I had crazy ground noise, horrible distortion, and needed to set gains on my amps crazy high to get any output.
After a bunch of research, I figured out the issue. Most car stereos have RCA pre-outs that supply 4-6 volts to amplifier. I tested all 4 channels on my Joying unit with my multimeter and found a MAXIMUM output of .35 volts. I've heard of others seeing as low as .2 volts. Yea, absolute garbage. Your best bet is to install a 'line-driver', which will sit in between your stereo and amplifier and bump the line voltage up to something your amplifier can actually use. I found an older AudioControl (excellent company btw) unit on ebay for about $40 and recently installed it, bumping all input voltages to my 4-channel amp from .35 volts to 4 full volts. The sound difference is indescribable! I went from having tons of ground noise and completely flat sound, to crystal clear audio and tons of midbass.
just FYI - all voltages were obtained playing a pink noise test track at 3/4 full volume.
@JerseyKzA : It shouldn't be running 6V. Differential line level signals should be running 4V peaks. Single ended should be running 2V peaks. Every amplifier I've seen can either autodetect between differential and single ended, or has a switch or knob on the side to compensate. Most multimeters are NOT well suited to measure audio line level voltage -- they are made to measure CONSTANT peak voltage A/C signals, like high voltage wiring in your home. Analog line level will have amplitudes all over the place, and further, will be running at varying frequency, so it wouldn't surprise me to see a 0.35 volt reading on a 2V SE line, or even on a 4V differential.
Now this discussion of line level to amplifier is really not applicable to this question, which doesn't involve an external amplifier except briefly as a *test*. The one thing you did suggest that may be correct, however, is regarding *clipping*. Clipping is, of course, what you get when the signal amplitude *exceeds* the maximum -- which means that it isn't an insufficient voltage issue at all, rather it may be an *excessive* voltage problem. That describes analog clipping, but there is another form of clipping, which is *digital* clipping. Digital clipping is where the digital representation of a signal is amplified digitally, and portions of it exceed the maximum possible value.
Here is an example; an S16LE PCM sample must fit within the range of a signed 16 bit integer, which means −32,768 (-1 or -2 volt) to 32,767 (+1 or +2 volt). Imagine your current sample is 30,000, and you are trying to amplify it by a factor of 1.1. 1.1 * 30,000 = 33,000, which is greater than 32,768. You can't store that value in an S16, so it gets clipped down to 32,768.
So my guess is that the issue is probably due to digital clipping.
So I've had higher end pioneer, alpines, Kenwood's etc. I just bought an obscure android unit because 1 it was cheap and two it mirrors flawlessly. Here's my question... Across all of these platforms whenever I adjust the frequencies either in the phone os or (now) on the head unit when one, say low 60hz or lower goes up I lose volume on the other end of the spectrum. This has been steady across everything, phone's too LG's, Samsung, HTC 10 my current phone. Also they have all been both rooted and stock, it's becoming infuriating. Is this just a limitation in the hardware not normally noticed or simply overlooked by manufacturers because most people im assuming dont listen at loud volumes over these specific frequencies, ie earbuds and such. Or have I been consistently messing something up? I've tried at least 100 different apps. rooted aftermarket sound mods, bluetooth,aux input. All with the same result. And the tracks aren't necessarily the issue either because I've gone in and re-amatured (sorry) those as well. I searched and searched many a waiting in the car for the wife and found nothing. But I think the search engines hate me. Any input would be appreciated.
I've found the same thing with a lot of EQ's available via the play store.
However, I'd highly recommend a mod that's been around forever called Viper4Android - it does NOT act like those EQ apps you get from the app store, where increasing the bass actually just lowers the mids and treble. Without Viper4Android on my MTCE PX5 head-unit, I would not be happy with the sound quality. With Viper4Android, the unit sounds better than any other headunit I've owned (although, I am using an external amp as well). But even with the internal amp, Viper4Android brings the sound quality to new levels.
I've tried all of the sound-patch MCUs and none of them make anywhere near the difference that Viper4Android does. It has a "real" EQ (10-band) as well as lots of other very cool (and useful) functions.
Some people will tell you that you should leave the EQ on your radio "flat" becuase that is "how the music is supposed to sound", but that is absolutely false. That may be true *if* your car was a recording studio, where everything is optimal for sound-quality, but a car is about the furthest thing from a recording studio. A car radio with a "flat" EQ sounds absolutely nothing like the artist intended because the car environment is an absolutely horrible place for good sound-quality. Viper4Android allows you to correct the issues caused by the car environment *and* tweak the sound to your specific liking.
When it comes to sound-quality, all that *really* matters is what *you* think of the sound (not what someone else tells you it should sound like) - and Viper4Android is the best tool I've found to make the music sound good to *you*.
Just my opinion, of course.
Had it
jtrosky said:
I've found the same thing with a lot of EQ's available via the play store.
However, I'd highly recommend a mod that's been around forever called Viper4Android - it does NOT act like those EQ apps you get from the app store, where increasing the bass actually just lowers the mids and treble. Without Viper4Android on my MTCE PX5 head-unit, I would not be happy with the sound quality. With Viper4Android, the unit sounds better than any other headunit I've owned (although, I am using an external amp as well). But even with the internal amp, Viper4Android brings the sound quality to new levels.
I've tried all of the sound-patch MCUs and none of them make anywhere near the difference that Viper4Android does. It has a "real" EQ (10-band) as well as lots of other very cool (and useful) functions.
Some people will tell you that you should leave the EQ on your radio "flat" becuase that is "how the music is supposed to sound", but that is absolutely false. That may be true *if* your car was a recording studio, where everything is optimal for sound-quality, but a car is about the furthest thing from a recording studio. A car radio with a "flat" EQ sounds absolutely nothing like the artist intended because the car environment is an absolutely horrible place for good sound-quality. Viper4Android allows you to correct the issues caused by the car environment *and* tweak the sound to your specific liking.
When it comes to sound-quality, all that *really* matters is what *you* think of the sound (not what someone else tells you it should sound like) - and Viper4Android is the best tool I've found to make the music sound good to *you*.
Just my opinion, of course.
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Had V4A on my stylo 2+ and didn't sound bad but,and again I was probably using something incorrectly but same deal raise the high end and signal to my subs would fade out and vice-versa. I was hoping it wasn't a hardware limitation but it really seems that way. Best idea I've found it phone and headunit slightly adjusted to define the signals then an active preamp equalizer / crossover to split said freq and supply some of missing wattage from the poor audio chips at least in the Android HU's. But thanks for the input. :good:
I'm sure that not all Android head-units are created equal, but I can say with absolute certainty that with Viper4Android on my Eonon-branded MTCE-WWW Android 8 head-unit, I am definitely not losing low end when I increase the high-end (or vice-versa). In fact, I get the best bass that I've ever had in a head-unit and I'm actually having to go out of my way to sound-deaden and "tighten up" the car interior in order to handle the bass without vibration-related sounds coming from the inteior parts at higher volume levels! The sound is incredible - even from on-line streaming sources such as Pandora and Spotify (I have mine setup to automatically use separate V4A profiles for each music app via Tasker).
However, I do have a small extenral 45Wx4 RMS Kicker KEY180.4 auto-tuning DSP amp and a small Pioneer TS-WH500A under-the-seat subwoofer. Between the EQ and the Convolver in V4A (I personally like the BBE5 convolver .irs file), this thing sounds incredible. I was really concerned about sound-quality with this Android head-unit, but that turned out to be a non-issue with V4A (probably would have been an issue without it).
But even with the stock amp, it sounded really good with V4A (not quite powerful enough for me though). The Kicker KEY180.4 auto-tuning DSP amp definitely helps though. Love that amp. It has a higher noise floor than I'd like, but it sounds fantastic (I originally had an Alpine KTP-445U 45Wx4 RMS amp and the Kicker sounds *so* much better).
I would defintiely give V4A a try if you are looking for better sound quality. I feel that car steroes can benefit from 4VA even more than phones.
I've recently fitted an Xtrons PB88UNVP (MTCE_GS_V2.88_3) PX5 headunit. The speaker power is 4x45W (probably pretty standard on these things) and generally sounds good.
However, it's quieter than my previous WinCE unit and I find I have to run it higher up the volume scale for a decent listening volume.
Sometimes I like my music loud, and I can turn it up to MAX (30) without deafening myself or even experiencing clipping from the headunit's amplifier - output is still clean and undistorted. I'm running the EQ fairly flat and Loudness is set to ON.
My question is - NOT what volume should I be listening at in my car to still hear the engine, traffic around me and be safe on the roads - BUT is it safe to run these headunits at 25-30 (83-100%) continuously/for extended periods? Will it overheat or be damaged by running at this sort of volume?
Thanks
I noticed the exact same thing - again, compared to my previous WinCE units, just like you. These Android units just seem significantly less powerful in comparison. I have a feeling that the 45Wx4 max rating (I know it's not RMS) is a little on the "wishful thinking" side. My WinCE units (18->25Wx4 RMS, 50Wx4 max) seemed considerably more powerful.
I haven't seen these Android units list the RMS power, but I have a feeling it's lower than a lot of the older WinCE units. It also seems like the volume scale is just "different" - it doesn't start getting even somewhat loud until the volume is 2/3rd's of the way up or higher.
It's really hard to say if they are clipping or not in those upper ranges, but I have a feeling they may be - depending on how you have the EQ set - even if you can't hear the distortion.
To me, it seems like you have to sacrifice a lot on the audio side of things for the flexibility that you get from Android.
@jtrosky: I have noticed distortion when the EQ is set to the Rock preset, which is very bass-heavy, and is turned up high. I don't personally like heavily biased EQ profiles and would prefer to run it as flat as possible across the frequency spectrum. A little bit of tuning seems to help these units particularly though. I agree with you that their amplifiers are weak, or rather underpowered. That said, my experience so far is that at medium volumes it sounds alright, to the extent that I didn't notice my sub wasn't working at first.
So do you regularly run yours at two thirds volume or above and do you think they can handle it for a sustained period?
Has anyone ever fried one of these?
Honestly, I connected an amp shortly after installing, so I can't say how they would last over time if used at louder volumes frequently with the internal amp. To me, it seems like they have the volume control setup in a way where it doesn't get very loud until at least 2/3rd's volume - and then every click makes a substantial difference. So I wonder if they just have the volume scale "tuned" differenlty than other head-units? But my point was that the unit can be clipping without you even hearing any distortion - clipping is not always audible. I had a LOC hooked up for testing briefly and it had a "clipping" light - and I was seeing clipping way before any distortion was audible. I think these units use pretty poor quality amps.
I've actually removed the Android head-unit completely and went back to my older WinCE-based unit. Just was not happy with the Android unit (sound quality, noise-related issues, etc).
I've actually removed the Android head-unit completely and went back to my older WinCE-based unit. Just was not happy with the Android unit (sound quality, noise-related issues, etc).
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That's sad to hear. I deliberated for so long before taking the plunge and buying one. I like the Android platform, and the few niggles I have with mine aren't sufficient to make me want to change it... yet.
I must admit though, when I made my first post I had been listening to DAB, which is probably the quietest source. FM is probably 15% louder at the same volume setting, and is the loudest of all the sources. I don't know if there is any way to make this louder, as a USB device, and there is no volume 'boost' option within realzoulou's DAB-Z app (only a <= 100% setting).
FM on full whack does distort a bit, but it's too loud to listen to constantly, so while a bit weak I think the on-board amp should be capable of more.
Better control of volume on different sources within Android would be nice, do you know if this is possible?
You can alter the volume of each source in the Factory Settings, under the "Voice" tab...
If you are coming from a stock radio with stock speakers, the Android head-units may be an upgrade in terms of sound-quality. But for me, coming from an aftermarket, high-quality WinCE unit, the sound quality just wasn't up to par. The WinCE unit I'm referring to (Dynavin N7) has high-quality audio components though (4V pre-outs, "high-resolution Burr Brown 24-Bit Digital to Analogue converters", etc) - so once I got used to the sound quality of the Dynavin (or even the Rosen GM1010 befoer it), it was hard switching over to the Android unit. Believe me, I went to great lengths to make it work, but it just wasn't mean to be, considering the sound-quality downgrade and the noise-related issues I had with the Android unit.
Don't get me wrong - I liked almost everything about having full-blown Android as the OS - it's just the sound quality that I wasn't 100% happy with - which, to me, is very important.