Improve your Call Quality

[rushmore]

OP, you need to caution that when people make this setting, the phone will not make calls in areas that do not support this.

 

[eyc]

I read this in another forum. Some said they get much better quality after they switched while others didn't. I think if you're suffering from poor call quality, it's worth a try. If it doesn't work you can always switch back

I wanted to add my experience.

I made the changes and it has made a tremendous difference. I live and work in the center of the downtown of Chicago, IL (i.e., the Loop). In certain places, especially my office, I've had very bad call quality, which I would characterize as blocky, choppy, and digitized. I read this post, made a call to my friend, talked for 5 minutes, and noticed the same bad call quality. I then made the tweaks with a healthy dose of skepticism and called my friend back. Clear. Not perfect, but very very clear. As clear as my ex-Blackberry.

I'll keep my eye out for any changes to the battery.

 

[paimon.soror]

Question about all this and I'm curious.

When I first got my phone, if you go to Menu>Settings>About Phone>Network. My phone used to say just CDMA. For the past few weeks (it may have been since Verizon fixed my Voice Mail problem). It states CDMA-EvDo rev. A.

Is this normal? Should my phone be this way? I've not changed any settings at all.

Thanks.

Mine has said CDMA-EvDo Rev A since day one of purchase. I am pretty sure that is fine.

 

[Steven58]

CAPT: Tried it yesterday. Seems to help, along with Anonimac's new PRL.

 

[Gorilla*]

This is awesome!

 

[Marlboro]

Does this problem seem to be with everyone you talk to or just some? Does it always sound muffled no matter the location you call from?

Almost everyone I talk to. Funny though, when I call my Voice Mail, that sounds clear usually. And so far, location hasnt mattered. And the problem isnt consistent during a call. It comes and goes during the call. Itll be ok, then get muffled for a second or longer or maybe even sound like the call cuts out at times.

 

[eyc]

I wanted to add my experience.

I made the changes and it has made a tremendous difference. I live and work in the center of the downtown of Chicago, IL (i.e., the Loop). In certain places, especially my office, I've had very bad call quality, which I would characterize as blocky, choppy, and digitized. I read this post, made a call to my friend, talked for 5 minutes, and noticed the same bad call quality. I then made the tweaks with a healthy dose of skepticism and called my friend back. Clear. Not perfect, but very very clear. As clear as my ex-Blackberry.

I'll keep my eye out for any changes to the battery.

I did some more testing and, unfortunately, this is not going to work for me. I cannot receive calls in my apartment. I have no idea why. I can make calls just fine. But, no one can call me. I switched back, and now it's fine -- just bad call quality.

 

[wase4711]

Does this problem seem to be with everyone you talk to or just some? Does it always sound muffled no matter the location you call from?

yes, the problem happens when talking to another person on a cell phone, anywhere; even when calling home, or when home calls me, the sound quality is more like I was used to in 1999; if anyone is old enough to remember "Analog" phone service, it sounds like that..
Muffled voices, broken up and scratchy voices...

And when I call my wife on her incredible from mine, it really sounds poor..
Htc has admitted in 2 emails this is a problem, but no ETA for a fix is ever given..

I guess I will try an EVO, but I hope its not all HTC phones...some of you have posted about great sound from other HTC phones, so I hope that is the case..

 

[coolbone]

And when I call my wife on her incredible from mine, it really sounds poor..
Htc has admitted in 2 emails this is a problem, but no ETA for a fix is ever given..

Did HTC say anything of it being software of hardware related? It's kind of mind-numbingly scary how such a powerful phone sounds like a Fisher-Price telephone.

 

[wase4711]

no, they wont commit to any thing except that alot of people are having the issue, they are working on a firmware update to address it, and they cant give a date when it will be ready, and it may be delayed due to "forces beyond their control" (Verizon)

 

[rushmore]

If the area you are in does not support this change, your phone will not work for calls in that area. Why are people not pointing this out in their posts to do this??

 

[DavidinGA]

What we need now is a map that shows coverage areas in us for evrc-b

 

[upther]

I only really have issues talking to people who are using MetroPCS and Boost Mobile phones, other than that I'm fine. I did this last night and just got off the phone with my MetroPCS friend and the call really did sound much better. Now I'm really close to a tower at the moment so that could have been it too. I'll talk to her when I'm at home tonight and not that close to the tower and see how things sound.

 

[pman219]

Worked wonders for me

Thank you !!

 

[FlyPenFly]

I wanted to add my experience.

I made the changes and it has made a tremendous difference. I live and work in the center of the downtown of Chicago, IL (i.e., the Loop). In certain places, especially my office, I've had very bad call quality, which I would characterize as blocky, choppy, and digitized. I read this post, made a call to my friend, talked for 5 minutes, and noticed the same bad call quality. I then made the tweaks with a healthy dose of skepticism and called my friend back. Clear. Not perfect, but very very clear. As clear as my ex-Blackberry.

I'll keep my eye out for any changes to the battery.

I have the same choppy problem in Manhattan... unfortunately it's random. I've still had a few choppy calls after this mod.

 

[AllezDada]

What we need now is a map that shows coverage areas in us for evrc-b

Agreed - googled for it and couldn't find anything.

 

[auditd0rk]

Made the change yesterday morning and I have noticed an improvement in overall phone call quality.

Even better, I haven't noticed a negative impact on battery life (using the Seidio 1750 mAh battery). Now if only Seidio would release the Innocase, I'll be set

 

[jmwood]

Did it here in CinCinnati, unable to make or receive phone calls..tried to dial out, get a fast busy signal and a pop up..system busy..switched back works fine now..

 

[tranceFusion]

So does that mean the signal strength IS poor and that everyone with bad quality was previously getting the .8 kbps signal (many who are now getting 2kbps)?

 

[veccster]

Is there any benefit to NOT doing this modification?

My concern would be coverage. Even if I were able to have this modification work here at home, there are apparently other locations where my phone would not work. I go cycling often out in the boonies. If I forget how to switch things back I'd be without a functioning phone.

Agreed. I did the modification but also sent the instructions to my gmail account (saved on my phone). I suppose I will switch back if I am in a spotty area or without coverage. If this is the reason I lack coverage, I will keep it stock.

 

[colnago]

So does that mean the signal strength IS poor and that everyone with bad quality was previously getting the .8 kbps signal (many who are now getting 2kbps)?

Depends. There are other factors at work, such as tower congestion, and the phones ability to maintain a consistent signal, based on current surroundings. Even if it was in a location to lock on to the 1/4 rate (2kbit/s), if the tower is "busy", it still may back down to the 1/8 rate (or 0.8kbit/s).

 

[andreezy]

That's a great question... Itworks at hom from my home tower, however, in akron, 30 miles away, it's all for naught. I had to switch back as the dinc did not make calls. it would time out and say the "network is unavailable"

Changing it back to evrc resolved the prob.

If the area you are in does not support this change, your phone will not work for calls in that area. Why are people not pointing this out in their posts to do this??

 

[jamor]

Considering the OP only has one thanks for far, I think it's safe to say this is BS. I'll pass.

 

[colnago]

It's not "BS", so much as it "only helps in certain situations".

 

[upther]

Considering the OP only has one thanks for far, I think it's safe to say this is BS. I'll pass.

Worked for me and I had already thanked the guy who semi-originally brought it to my attention in the Tips and Tricks section.