Help Call quality very sub-par (not signal strength)

[idxman01]

Not sure if this helps, but I've listened to the same voice mail about 20 times now and I think the quality is worse with the phone up to my head. With a 3mm headset I can clearly hear the static, but the "blips" aren't as severe. The speakerphone also does a better job during the blips as well.

Maybe I need to leave myself a few new messages to see if the same pattern arises? I think I'm getting too used to the one from Ms.IBM and know when she's about to cut out.

Signal also doesn't seem to matter. It's been -80 to -104dBm which is really no different than my BB Tour at home.

 

[Nethyr]

It's actually a known fact that if you're close to the phone (especially with your hand cupped around the back) the reception goes down sharply, up to 20dBm. (No really, try holding the phone with two fingers at top and bottom and watch the dBm.) Even still this shouldn't be enough to turn acceptable call quality into horrible.

 

[mapas01]

I'm having the same issues as everyone else, exactly as described. Tried a Hard Reset, hoping it may do something, but still, same terrible incoming call quality.

Does anyone know if this can be fixed with a software update, or does it seem like a hardware issue which warrants an exchange or recall?

 

[Harley51]

Those of you experiencing call quality issues please call Verizon Wireless Tech Support and log an issue.

After almost a week of muffled and choppy calls I finally called Tech Support (Tier 2) and advised them of the issues I was experiencing. Of course, they are quoting the company line that they are unaware of any call quality issues. I must call B.S. on that! They said they would exchange the phone when they are back in inventory or at a store (which all of them are out of stock in the Tampa area). I don't personally believe it's a bad phone. I think HTC spent too much time on the bells and whistles and less time on call quality.

I also called HTC and reported the issue. Guess what? Yep, they've not heard one word about poor call quality. If this isn't Corporate America at its finest - I don't know what is.

Come on Verizon and HTC - step up to the plate. We paid good money for these phones and think we should expect call quality to be part of the experience.

OK - I'm done. And yes, I am returning the phone!!!

 

[colnago]

Not sure if this helps, but I've listened to the same voice mail about 20 times now and I think the quality is worse with the phone up to my head...

Try calling a land line, with known good audio quality, and see if it sounds the same. When I first got my Droid, the first call I made was to Voice mail, unfortunately in a weak signal area, and the voice mail attendant sounded horrible. Subsequent calls to other cell phones and land lines not "as bad". Calling voice mail may not be a good measure as the codec used on the Verizon server may be low (i.e. high compression, poor audio quality).

FWIW, colnago = VoIP engineer

 

[colnago]

...
I also called HTC and reported the issue. Guess what? Yep, they've not heard one word about poor call quality. If this isn't Corporate America at its finest - I don't know what is...

HTC admits customers have Nexus One 3G trouble, not yet blaming the phone | Wireless News - Betanews


http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/22/google-no-longer-investigating-fix-for-nexus-one-3g-issues-ad/

 

[itsTee]

my call quality is incredible..it truly is..no issues with call quality here

 

[idxman01]

Try calling a land line, with known good audio quality, and see if it sounds the same. When I first got my Droid, the first call I made was to Voice mail, unfortunately in a weak signal area, and the voice mail attendant sounded horrible. Subsequent calls to other cell phones and land lines not "as bad". Calling voice mail may not be a good measure as the codec used on the Verizon server may be low (i.e. high compression, poor audio quality).

FWIW, colnago = VoIP engineer

Thanks colnago, will try some landlines and more variation. Basically all the usual suspects I call are out of town and on their cell phones. Also, do you think it makes a difference when I call their work "landlines" if it's VoIP system? (ours is and I think has some periodic bandwidth issues in that location)

 

[colnago]

Thanks colnago, will try some landlines and more variation. Basically all the usual suspects I call are out of town and on their cell phones. Also, do you think it makes a difference when I call their work "landlines" if it's VoIP system? (ours is and I think has some periodic bandwidth issues in that location)

Well, the way I understand with CDMA (I'm not a wireless engineer) but as signal strength decreases, the higher the compression rate on your phone (lower audio quality). If that's the case, then everytime you're in a bad signal area (dBm less than -95 for instance) then you'll have poor quality. Calling other systems introduces a lot of variables, so pick one that you know sounds good.

When we changed our voice mail server from G.729 to G.711 codec, audio quality greatly improved (I know because I had to sit for 10hours with the client to help them re-record their automated attendant systems) as you're basically getting 8x the bitrate.

FWIW, I have a Vonage ATA that supports all the internal wiring in my house, as I'm disconnected from the telco. My $75 wireless Panasonic phone sounds horrible compared to $10 Durabrand "big button" phone that I got from WalMart...go figure.

 

[tonytownsend]

Swithch to sprint you have 30 days to void the contract someone confirmed june 6th for Evo 4 not worth wait for a problem to be fixed that Verizon says is nonexistant

 

[Mikerose]

I found that my call quality was improved by wiping the device back to factory defaults. Takes some time, but well worth it.

 

[idxman01]

Just wiped mine and will test tomorrow. Going to sprint is not really a viable option for those of us with a bunch of devices on a gov account. Suppose I could request, but it would be hard sell without an evo to compare. (assuming we hear a significant difference)

 

[sirius]

I have been with Verizon for several years but INC is only my third phone. I had a StarTac and a Razr and I thought the sound quality on both of those were better.

I have a co worker who has a razr and we did some testing with both phones and land lines and the razr was much better on all accounts.

 

[kwilsonw]

I have been with Verizon for several years but INC is only my third phone. I had a StarTac and a Razr and I thought the sound quality on both of those were better.

I have a co worker who has a razr and we did some testing with both phones and land lines and the razr was much better on all accounts.

I've been with Verizon many years too using a Razr V9M & HTC Pro 2. Both phones had very clear sound.

I called Verizon's Technical Service after getting a replacement which was even worse than the first phone. "Jazmine" said that it sounds like a
"network" problem. She put in a work ticket & asked me to allow 2 to 4 days. I was planning to return it Friday for a third Incredible, but I will give them a chance to fix it. They haven't contacted me but I did get an update about 4:00 this morning. I don't know if that has anything to do with it, but the sound was much better on the other end today. On my end it was a little better but still scratchy and breaking words. I'll let you all know if they determine it's a "Network" problem.

 

[porktorta]

I have been waiting for N1, then HTC Inc to come to Vzw forever. Preordered the Inc and received on 4/29. I am experiencing very similar sound quality issues to those reported in this forum. Person's voice whom I'm talking to gets clipped interspersed with silence at times. I don't believe this is a network issue. Definitely hardware, and it seems to be the earpiece speaker maybe? I've tried adjusting the volume to no effect. Might try a hard reset before I bring it back.
I'd like to return to vzw for a new one if they have any. If that doesn't work it's EVO and Sprint 4 me. Too bad cuz this is a very nice phone despite crappy battery life, hate to get rid of it. Verizon tech support did nothing except tell me to take it to a store. I find it hard to believe that this isn't a widepsread problem with the hw. Coming from AT&T, I am very disappointed with big red. I've been dying to get a 'droid phone and had high hopes for the Inc.

 

[dc006]

Those of you experiencing call quality issues please call Verizon Wireless Tech Support and log an issue.

After almost a week of muffled and choppy calls I finally called Tech Support (Tier 2) and advised them of the issues I was experiencing. Of course, they are quoting the company line that they are unaware of any call quality issues. I must call B.S. on that! They said they would exchange the phone when they are back in inventory or at a store (which all of them are out of stock in the Tampa area). I don't personally believe it's a bad phone. I think HTC spent too much time on the bells and whistles and less time on call quality.

I also called HTC and reported the issue. Guess what? Yep, they've not heard one word about poor call quality. If this isn't Corporate America at its finest - I don't know what is.

Come on Verizon and HTC - step up to the plate. We paid good money for these phones and think we should expect call quality to be part of the experience.

OK - I'm done. And yes, I am returning the phone!!!

Yeah, I got the same story from both. Apparently they did not log my issue in a knowledgebase or anything since I had obviously reported it to them before you did.

I am getting my third replacement sometime this next week. I hope it sounds better. I wouldn't be worried if it was something that could be fixed in a future update, but I fear it is just a poor quality speaker being used and therefore I want to resolve the issue before I run out of the ability to exchange the phone.

I had thought about waiting for the EVO but who is to say it won't have the exact same issue. HTC may use the exact same speaker in it.

 

[idxman01]

I tried some landline calls last night after the reset and FWIW they were all very clear. (both hearing them and their reports of how I sounded) I couldn't really see any patterns with signal/bars as it was -80 to -90dBm and anywhere from 1 to full bars.

 

[tranceFusion]

.. anxiously awaiting reports from those getting replacements in today.

 

[kcstueber]

It's sort of like a "Group Session" in the forums. After enduring the frustration of VZW technical support, this is a place to find comfort. I'm in NE Wisconsin, in a clearly labeled VZW 3G area, but in most the areas, I'm not able to achieve better than -85 - -90DB, no 3G, poor voice quality. Interestingly, my signal strength is better in Extended Network, but still poor voice quality. After 3 VZW techs, I finally spoke to a supervisor, which promptly has sent out a replacement (getting it today), as no stores within a 2 hour radius had any in stock. I'm on the 30 day trial.

In probably 20 different handsets on Sprint, Us Cellular, Cellcom, AT&T (iPhone), the Incredible on VZW is by far the most unpleasant voice quality from a wireless phone, I've ever had.

 

[barrister89]

I went into the VZ store today to have them check out my phone regarding the call volume/voice quality. The tech let me try making calls on two Incs they had in the store and both sounded exactly like mine. Nature of the beast I guess. However, I paired my phone with the BT in my car and the sound was loud and clear, though the I am able to increase the volume using my stereo system. The less than steller sound at the earpiece is likely a combo of the phone amp, the quality of the ear speaker, and the quality of the network connection.

I'm no electrical engineer, but after three days of observing the behavior of this phone, I'm convinced it is managing the power of the radio transceiver and trying to keep the signal stength in some defined "sweet spot." In other words, I believe that if you are in a strong signal area, the phone will reduce the power of the radio and if you are in a weak area it will increase it somewhat. This might explain the erratic behavior of the signal meter. This phone manages power in dozens of different ways and the sophistication of the software and electronics is mind blowing. If I'm right, the power management is likely tweakable by updates which might improve reception and call quality somewhat.

 

[kcstueber]

I just got the replacement phone. Same exact problem. Poor voice quality, lousy reception in an area Verizon has labeled, on their coverage map as 3G. Door County, WI. There are tons of areas with no coverage, and at best, poor coverage, in a 50 mile drive around.

 

[cyclesteel]

I have been having the same issues as everybody else here. Sound quality sounds very compressed. And some mild clipping. I have been using my offices auto attended as a test. I went to the Verizon store this evening and tried 2 demo Incredibles. They sounded exactly like mine. The Motorola droid sounded great. Of course the tech was of no help.
Could this be location related? I can not see How 3 DInc

 

[colnago]

I have been having the same issues as everybody else here. Sound quality sounds very compressed. And some mild clipping. I have been using my offices auto attended as a test. I went to the Verizon store this evening and tried 2 demo Incredibles. They sounded exactly like mine. The Motorola droid sounded great. Of course the tech was of no help.
Could this be location related? I can not see How 3 DInc’s could be bad. Mine was a preorder I received on the 28’th I am in the Philadelphia Suburbs. I am tempted to go back to my Moto Droid but I like the Inc’s form factor much better.

I think it may be worthwhile to see if you can hold get a tier 3 engineer in order to find out if/how bandwidth is throttled based in dBm level. Given that there are different compression levels in the vocoder heirarchy, it could explain the varying call quality being reported.

"Steel is real?"

 

[cyclesteel]

I think it may be worthwhile to see if you can hold get a tier 3 engineer in order to find out if/how bandwidth is throttled based in dBm level. Given that there are different compression levels in the vocoder heirarchy, it could explain the varying call quality being reported.

"Steel is real?"

Steel is real especially Italian steel. I have an Indy Fab Crown Jewel but always wanted a Colnago. I am not a fan of carbon bikes.


I did call customer support earlier today and they just wanted to swap the phone and get me on my way which is why I went to the Verizon store to see if it would make really make a difference. I might try calling back tomorrow and see if I can push the issue to get to the Tier 3 guys

 

[anthonykash]

This is damn bullshit. I"m on my second phone, sometime it sounds fine other times I can't hear anything. I'm not sure whats going on. I'm about to return it for a third, but why bother they all seem like they are having the same problem