Android Auto vs BT(Spotify sound quality)

[chillax]

I don't have Android auto in my 2015 but the BT audio quality while using Spotify is excellent. I was shocked the first time I played something. Much of it may depend on your particular phone.

 

[jimlloyd40]

I don't have Android auto in my 2015 but the BT audio quality while using Spotify is excellent. I was shocked the first time I played something. Much of it may depend on your particular phone.

The phone itself does make a difference. LG phones are known for their high quality DACs.

 

[NopeR]

If you're streaming through Spotify, you're only streaming at 160/320 kbps regardless. That's going to be the lowest common denominator in the quality equation.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A6013 using Tapatalk

Yup. I download all the songs onto my phone(microSD) that's on Spotify and set the download quality to extreme, then play via bt. Sound is great and I'm surprised how it gets the oem fender sub moving.

Tweak your eq settings on your phone will play an impact on how it sounds in the car as well.

Sent from my SM-G965W using Tapatalk

 

[KyACRASH]

The phone itself does make a difference. LG phones are known for their high quality DACs.

The phone does make a difference.

You are correct, the DAC on LG phones is great - but that only applies if using appropriate headphones.

Bluetooth varies from phone to phone.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

 

[username205]

My audio quality is definitely better over Android Auto vs Bluetooth - deeper/fuller bass, clearer mids, more spacious highs. I've been settling for lower quality Bluetooth audio because it has finer volume control. Android Auto is always either too loud or too soft.

okay, let's see if we can improve the quality of AA sound


Here's the part of the gal.json config file in the MIB2 High:

"audio":{
        "source":{
            "dump":{
                # activate audio source dumping by setting "enabled" to "true", otherwise "false"
                #asodump !! don't remove that marker and always keep it before the "enabled":x, line!
                "enabled":false,
                "maxFiles":50,
                # maximum size per dump file in bytes (multiply by maxFiles for maximum dump space occupied)
                "maxFileSize":2097152
            },
            "samplingRate":16000,
            "bits":16,
            "channels":1,
            "nvaudio":{
                # options: "ENT1", "SSE_REC", "MIC"
                "device":"MIC3"
            },
            "asound":{
                "device":"mic1",
                "pluginAware":true,
                "startMode":1,
                "stopMode":1,
                "fragsMin":3,
                "fragsMax":5
            }
        },
        "sink":{
            "dump":{
                # activate audio sink dumping by setting "enabled" to "true", otherwise "false"
                #asidump !! don't remove that marker and always keep it before the "enabled":x, line!
                "enabled":false,
                "maxFiles":50,
                # maximum size per dump file in bytes (multiply by maxFiles for maximum dump space occupied)
                "maxFileSize":2097152
            },
            "media":{
                "freq":48000,
                "bits":16,
                "channels":2,
                # See enum MediaCodecType in protos.pb.h
                "codecType":1,
                "maxUnackedFrames":16,
                "nvaudio":{
                    # options: "MPL6", "MPL1", "MPL5"
                    "device":"MPL6"
                },
                "asound":{
                    "device":"mpl1_int_ent",
                    "pluginAware":true,
                    # DATA=1, FULL=2, GO=3
                    "startMode":1,
                    # STOP=1, ROLLOVER=2
                    "stopMode":1,
                    "fragsMin":3,
                    "fragsMax":5
                },
                "renderer":{
                    # Delay in microseconds until retry is performed if the route is unavailable
                    "retryDelay":50000,
                    # Max. number of retries if the route is unavailable (0 to disable the retry mechanism)
                    "retryCount":3,
                    # Number of frames to be buffered before the playback starts or 0 to disable buffering
                    "framesBufferedMin":4,
                    "framesBufferedMax":6
                }
            },
            # For an explanation of the parameters, see the "media" section
            "guidance":{
                "freq":16000,
                "bits":16,
                "channels":1,
                "codecType":1,
                "maxUnackedFrames":8,
                "nvaudio":{
                    # PIN assignment: UI: "ANN5", Guidance: "ANN6", Voice/Telephony: "ANN7"
                    "device":"ANN6"
                },
                "asound":{
                    "device":"ann1_int_nav",
                    "pluginAware":true,
                    "startMode":1,
                    "stopMode":1,
                    "fragsMin":3,
                    "fragsMax":5
                },
                "renderer":{
                    "retryDelay":50000,
                    "retryCount":3,
                    "framesBufferedMin":4,
                    "framesBufferedMax":6
                }
            },
            "decoder":{
                "decodeBufferSize":1048576
            }
        }

I think we can try to increase the sampling rates and frequencies? At least, switching to a depth of 24 bit could improve the sound a little, although I highly doubt Bluetooth audio has such a high dept.

Did you access this with OBDeleven?

The phone does make a difference.

You are correct, the DAC on LG phones is great - but that only applies if using appropriate headphones.

Bluetooth varies from phone to phone.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

When using same codec with two different phones, would there still be a difference since Bluetooth is digital?

 

[eNon]

I don't see the point of using my phone for music when I can have a 32gb SD card in there all the time.

Everyone's got different needs. If you've already got a high capacity SD card in your phone, and you also listen to music on your phone when you're not in your car, I don't see the point of managing a music collection on 2 different SD cards.

I was actually previously using Plex's music server function to just stream all my digital music files from my home computer instead of having to manage any type of mobile library. Too bad Plex's Android Auto app is total garbage. Doesn't remember where you left off for instance, so if you turn off your car when getting gas, you have to completely start from scratch to find & play music again, even just to go back to the same thing you were listening to before.

 

[KevinC]

The phone does make a difference.

You are correct, the DAC on LG phones is great - but that only applies if using appropriate headphones.

But - if you're connecting your phone via USB, then isn't the digital-to-analog conversion taking place in the MIB unit in the glove box, not in the phone? USB can't send an analog signal, can it? And who knows what kind of $3 DAC is being used by Delphi, TechniSat, or one of the other myriad of suppliers VW uses for the unit.

 

[JS12]

I had a similar experience moving from BT in my MK6 (Dynaudio w/upgraded Focal fronts) to CarPlay in my MK7.5 (Fender). CarPlay was very quiet and less punchy.

It turns out I had Audio Normalization enabled within Spotify’s playback settings which was preserving dynamics at the expense of a lot of volume. Some compression is actually beneficial in a non-ideal environment like a car. Disabling that and the similar “Sound Check” feature in Apple Music resolved any sound quality issues I had with CarPlay.

 

[Chillout]

Did you access this with OBDeleven?

No, I got this from the filesystem of the MIB2, which you cannot reach over OBD.


I'm going to test this with a friend who uses Tidal, and set it to 96Khz

 

[username205]

No, I got this from the filesystem of the MIB2, which you cannot reach over OBD.


I'm going to test this with a friend who uses Tidal, and set it to 96Khz

How did you access it? I want to try a few mods to reduce my Android Auto volume or add more volume steps.

Is anyone able to use any Bluetooth codec other than SBC under developer options?

 

[Chillout]

How did you access it? I want to try a few mods to reduce my Android Auto volume or add more volume steps.

Is anyone able to use any Bluetooth codec other than SBC under developer options?

I have access to the file system of the unit through the developer debug console. It's not for the faint of heart however

I don't think there's a setting regarding volume steps in the AA volume. But... can you check if you have an Android Auto / Google Automotive Link green menu screen somewhere in the mmx section? If so, some versions have a "replace GAL" or "replace Google Automotive Link" screen. That would allow us to replace the config file by one from SDcard and would make life a little easier.

 

[username205]

I have access to the file system of the unit through the developer debug console. It's not for the faint of heart however

I don't think there's a setting regarding volume steps in the AA volume. But... can you check if you have an Android Auto / Google Automotive Link green menu screen somewhere in the mmx section? If so, some versions have a "replace GAL" or "replace Google Automotive Link" screen. That would allow us to replace the config file by one from SDcard and would make life a little easier.

Where is the mmx section? Is that part of the green engineering menu?

 

[Nickva]

To me its the same. Quality over BT is better than via Android Auto. Though for me the answer is simple. I use ViPER4Android, a popular equalizer for rooted phones, and the app controls all devices (hardwired included), but it does not seem to work for me via Android Auto.

So quality is always better for me via Bluetooth because the equalizer actually makes a difference for it.

I also using viper4a. If you go the settings and select compatible mode then skip to the next song, it'll processing for AA. The sound is as good as playing through Bluetooth.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[username205]

I also using viper4a. If you go the settings and select compatible mode then skip to the next song, it'll processing for AA. The sound is as good as playing through Bluetooth.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

I've always wanted to give viper4android a try.. looks like I'll be rooting my OnePlus 6T tonight.

 

[Chillout]

Where is the mmx section? Is that part of the green engineering menu?

green menu, mmx_production