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BT Audio Streaming Sucks on Android Phones! So is USB interface!

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by Thai, Oct 1, 2010.

  1. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    Hey all,

    This is a well-known issue. Links:

    Issue 9888 - android - Poor A2DP sound quality - Project Hosting on Google Code

    Poor quality of music streaming over Bluetooth - Android Forums

    My Samsung Epic (from Sprint) suffers from this...horrible quality! My Itouch (from Apple) BT Audio was perfect!

    So, this sucks. And for the life of me, i cannot get the Prius NAVI/Audio to recognize any music files on my Epic via USB connection. I never had this issue with the Itouch. (And yes, my music is on the microSD card.)

    In addition, with the Samsung phones (e.g. Epic), you apparently cannot access music on your phone via USB drive due to lack of proper driver??!! :mad:

    Although i like the phone, but this is giving me reasons to return the Epic phone! :eek:
     
  2. equake

    equake Member

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    I have a similar problem with the Droid using USB. Its not even recognized with no highlighted TAB on the Prius Nav. However, I didn't have this problem prior to the Froyo 2.2 upgrade but had to set up the phone in Mass Storage mode prior to connecting up the USB. The BT audio sounds fine with my Droid but there is no music selection other than scan up and down and no song titles are displayed because the current Android BT stack does not support metadata.
     
  3. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    Oh great...well, the good news is that i won't be even more disappointed when i get Froyo.... :(
     
  4. cproaudio

    cproaudio Speedlock Overrider

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    I'm a fan of Windows Mobile but I also have respect for Android and other smartphones that's not named after a fruit. People I talked to have always put down Windows Mobile. They think that WinMo is junk then they go back to praise how much they're giving their hard earned money to Jobs. They always ask why I didn't get a robot phone or a fruity phone or a berry phone or a coco nut tree phone or an anti Korean phone. I tell them WinMo have always worked for me. It's like a little PC that I can hack right out of the box. When I got my Prius, I paired my HTC Tilt 2 for the first time. The phone function worked perfectly other than the lockout mandated by Toyota. When I turn on the audio and selected the BT tab, my phone automatically changed to the music tab on the Sense UI. All the music control functions and infos worked exactly they way it supposed to. The sound quality is damn near CD. I thought this is how it supposed to be since a dinosaur OS can do this. Then I started reading threads about people having problems with lack of controls and poor sound quality. I guess not all phones are created equal.
    For USB connection using a phone, the phone itself has to set to mass storage. Some phones will not default to MS instead it defaults to sync. When it's in sync mode, the audio system will not find any music or the BT tab will gray out. When it is in Mass Storage mode, the phone will not have access to the memory card.
    Thai, how's the sound quality when you stream Pandora or videos through BT?
     
  5. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    I don't use Pandora or videos. Unfortunately, i have tried pretty much everything under the sun. Yeah, it is in Mass Storage mode. On BT Audio streaming, it sounds like my tweeter is blown, which it isn't. My Itouch (Apple) functions perfectlly in Bt Audio streaming.
     
  6. adrianblack

    adrianblack Member

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    Audio quality is excellent on my Droid X with 2.2. (Was with 2.1 also.) Make sure you enable the option under bluetooth on the phone "Enhanced Stereo" ... that uses much better compression for the audio and the Prius supports it perfectly. If you don't do this the highs sound horrible and shrill.

    Also, I use PlayerPro instead of the junky stock music app and I can skip tracks from the steering wheel too.

    My phone is recognized fine when it's set to Mass Storage on the USB port and I can play the music.... but I often just charge on USB (set phone for Charge only) and use the BT-Audio that way I can browse genre, playlists, etc. on the phone....

    I seem to recall my phone's NAV audio and Pandora pass through BT-Audio too.
     
  7. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    Problem for me is that i am still on 2.1 due to Samsung's slow updating process. :( I do NOT have the "Enchanced Stereo" option under BT. Where do you find this option? I looked everywhere on my phone!

    I can skip tracks with the stock Music player.
     
  8. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    Woohoo!! I found the problem and fixed it!!

    Ok, we all know that Itunes songs are in MP4 protected format. Even though i could download the songs onto the Epic and listen to it via headphones, i could not get it to recognize in my Prius. So, after months of searching, i found MELODYCAN (http://melodycan.com/). It can convert any format into anything that you want. In my case, i converted all my Itunes songs into MP3 format (maximum compression quality).

    This morning, i tested it...and voila!! my Prius recognize it immediately...ALL MY SONGS!! So, it turns out that the Prius audio interface is fine, but Apple did a number on me!

    Definitely a happy camper with the Epic now!!!!!
     
  9. adrianblack

    adrianblack Member

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    Apple screws a lot of people by doing this. MP4 as the default format for ripping CD's. It's BAD!

    Also, buy music from Amazon -- it's often cheaper and since it's the standard MP3 format will play on everything imaginable.


    .....

    Now this works for you over USB now, right? Since if you stream over BT-Audio then format isn't an issue if the phone can play it.

    I was using my phone yesterday with NAV and my new SVOX-Classic (UK English voice) and it rocks. Playing music and getting the "sexy English lady" voice ... I rigged up a charger so I can keep the phone juiced when using it. BT-Audio does seem to suck down some power .. certainly more than just playing music.
     
  10. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    Well, for me at least, the Android BT Audio streaming causes some "tweeter-blown" sound that ruins music for me. It is a problem on both Samsung Epic that i have...and as noted above, it is seemingly rambant throughout Android devices. I am hoping that the Froyo update will make it better, but i am pessimistic.

    Until then, i am sticking with my new-found joy with the USB connection. I did lose the playlist feature, but that's OK. I love the clear sound coming via USB!

    Edit: i guess that the Droid X's "enhance stereo" feature helps, but unfortunately, no one else has this option. :(
     
  11. web1b

    web1b Active Member

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    What's the fix for USB to be recognized when connecting 2.2 devices?
    I have generic MP3s, so this is nothing to do with iTunes or Apple formats.
     
  12. adrianblack

    adrianblack Member

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    Connect the phone and pick Mass Storage for the USB Mode. (Look in the notification area.)
     
  13. web1b

    web1b Active Member

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    That doesn't work anymore. It was broken with Android 2.2 Froyo at least on the HTC EVO.
    I thought there might be a fix, but it looks like there isn't one.
     
  14. HTMLSpinnr

    HTMLSpinnr Super Moderator
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    I have a Gingerbread device, but don't have a USB interface. Do we know if the head-unit is simply searching (and indexing) the directory tree? Is there a better directory to store music in for mass-storage mode?

    If we're just using Mass Storage mode anyway, wouldn't it be easier to keep an 8-32GB USB fob connected instead?
     
  15. web1b

    web1b Active Member

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    A fob is no good when you are changing the files frequently such as downloading podcasts multiple times daily. The phone updates wirelessly and automatically.
     
  16. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    At this time, i have given up. Hopefully, when Samsung updates my phone (Epic 4G) with Froyo, they will also fix this issue.

    At this time, i am connecting my phone to my Prius via AUX while turning BT phone ON. Although i have no control of songs via steering wheel, i have the PowerAmp app which allows me to skip songs from the locked screen on my phone. When a phone call comes in, i just disconnect the AUX cable and use the BT phone via steering wheel. When the call ends, i just reconnect the AUX cable and my phone goes back to music where i left off.

    I use the Monster AUX cable that is 3 feet long.

    This allows me to have the Itunes music library on my phone and still be able to play it in the car. Otherwise, if i really want to use USB with my phone, then i would have to convert all my Itunes songs via Melodycan (see page 1) into a mess (no playlist, no folders, all mushed together)...yes, the songs play but i have no real control over them nor can i organize them without hours of labor (life is too short to re-organize everything again!). It is annoying that car manufacturers today have not recognized other devices not named Iphone or Ipod! :( Hopefully, as Android platforms expand, car manufacturers won't be so fixated on Apple stuff.
     
  17. Thai

    Thai Prius Neophyte

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    My advice...get an Apple product...use it for music, while your phone is used only as a phone. For me, based on principle, i refuse to do this because damn it, i bought a high-tech phone to use both as a phone and music player! :D

    The Prius system is designed for the Apple stuff...you can get your songs to be recognized by the Prius, but it would require you to use Melodycan (see my post on page 1 of this thread). My wife's Acura won't even recognize my phone via USB! So, we all should be happy that we did not buy a Honda product!
     
  18. HTMLSpinnr

    HTMLSpinnr Super Moderator
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    Truthfully for me, BT music isn't important enough to force the issue. When I want it to work, I can alter the phone settings to accommodate. I typically find myself listening to an FM news station or XM radio most of the time anyway. Having an earlier 2010, I don't have USB built-in and I've never taken the time to upgrade the aux port to include USB - guess I don't know what I'm missing.

    That said, BT audio works ok enough to satisfy when it is in use. The Blackberry worked much better though - including sending titles (profile 1.4 vs 1.1).
     
  19. equake

    equake Member

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    I agree that BT isn't that important since the Android phones don't have the metadata profile in their BT stack. Supposedly its being worked on but since you have Gingerbread I guess it didn't make it in that release. Heres hoping that Honeycomb has it. My BT equipped notebook apparently has the metadata profile and can stream to the headunit without problems and displays title/artist info.