V6J - bass problem on headphones

Hi again,
sorry of duplicate thread, but my V6J is in service with 5 errors and I have question to V6J owners. My V6J is without bass on headphones output. Can anybody confirm this, or your V6J is with normal bass.
And second question, latest drivers and drivers on CD is without any extra settings to sound card (no extre icon, only base windows settings). Drivers have about 3MB. It this normal? You have any extra icon/program to settings your audio?

Thanks.

PS: I hate this machine, this is second visit in service and without guaranty of return full functionally notebook. And sorry of my poor english.

 

It doesn't sound right - It could possibly be a setting (ie...if you don't have low end frequencies turned up)...does it have bass when running through the standard speakers?

Also have you tried plugging in a different set of headphones to make sure it's not a hardware issue (w/ the headphones)?

 

With build-in speakers (unpluged headpohnes) is normal sound, without bass like any other notebook.

Yes, i testing other headphones and this headphones i tested on other notebook (Amilo V1000). Headphones are ok.

 

As I have posted several other times to this, the bass isn't wonderful on the speakers, and but hook up headphones or speakers and they sound just fine. I think you are being too picky.

 

^ I think he's saying bass is fine out of the notebook speakers but not out of his headphone jack.

Keep in mind that unless they're bigger/higher end headphones, they really have small drivers and don't produce much (if any) bass.

That said, I'm really torn as to whether it's a driver or settings issue...

 

Yeah, the speakers have bass, and for a laptop it is certainly above acceptable. However, I think the bass is fine in headphones or external speakers. It could certainly be that the speakers I use at home all the time have wonderful bass, but I don't think there is something wrong with the laptop.

 

Bass issue? Probably a setting you didn't set. Try messing with winamp's equalizer and set it up so you get some low end bass to see if it really is your notebook or just software settings.

 

Could be a fulty headphone socket? how does the sound change as you plug it in, just try it with an mp3 player and you will see what I mean, sometimes if the headphine is not fully plugged in, it gives a flat response.

I have seen this problem in older devices, where the plug either gets bent or where the socket is soldered to the motherboard can come loose after time. so wouldnt expect to see it in a new laptop, unless there has been force used in the socket.

(mind you I had a $1000 MTX Thunder 2 channel 750wat rms amplifier for my 15" Kicker sub in my car and the RCA socket came away from the circuit board) it was only 2 months old.

What best way to check is put your headphones on and plug them in slowly and give it a wiggle and see if the sound changes.

 

As I wroted in another thread, if I increase basses in iTunes or WMP, then sound is out of range (overloaded), but without normal bass.
This same if I do on Amilo V1000 (or any other computer), bass are normal, nice sound without error. My headphones is Koss PortaPro, this phones have little bass as default (except on my V6J).
In my opinion, my V6J have some low frequency filter for internal speakers (before sound amplifier) and maybe if I plug headphones, this filter must be bypassed, but in my V6J is not working this bypass and sound is without bass on headphones output. But this is only my speculation.

 

My V6J is in service now (from 19.4.), I can't test.

 

I know a bit about audio (I used to install car audio eqipment when I was at varsity) and have used my laptop to record, enhance and encode music, and I would have to say that it is highly unlikely that this would be the case, and I would not know any logical reason why anybody would do this.

The reason laptops sound poor is that to achieve bass, you need large speakers and a resonant enclosure both of which are imposible to squeze in a laptop chassis, especially the V6J.

What you describe is a definate problem, and I would think it could be as likely to be a physical fault as much as a software problem.

Any clipping (distortion) that occurs is generally due to over equalizing already normalised tracks, this happens with windows media player, but others have automatic sound leveling to make sure tracks are not overequalised and distorting. but even saying that the sound should be the same from the speakers or headphone jack, and you should expect to have a full sound comming from the jack.

 

I'd also put my money on the a physical problem with the headphone/line-out jack. It's definitely not your porta-pros... those are a sweet set of cans. Gotta love the old-school styling on 'em too...

 

Since we are moving this to a physical problem, try replugging in your headphones, make sure it goes all the way in.

Possible wiggle it a little, not too excessively cos you'll break something.

Also you can hook up your laptop to external speakers, like a 2.1 or 5.1 sound system and test if bass comes out.

Just try on thing related to software, you should see a bass setting in which you can manually increase.

If you can compare trebal (singing word, the music etc etc) between your two laptops, do they sound the same?

Other than that you may have to take it to your retailer and maybe that can do something about it, or quite frankly, send it back to ASUS

Hope this helps

Thanks,

MysticGolem

 

to MysticGolem: As I wrote, now my V6J parking in service and I waiting for result.

 

Any update on this issue, Salko?

I'll be going out to inspect a V6J this weekend, and will be taking some music and my trusty Sennheiser PX200s with me to test the demo machine. I doubt very much if it's a design flaw like you've suggested above, Asus wouldn't do something stupid like use a highpass filter before the feed for line-out.

 

Ok, I try writting.
My V6J now waiting in service for new Baterry. Sound after replace mainboard stay same before replacement. Without bass and weak. Statement of service: this is no error, this is property (attribute) of this model. A hate this notebook and ASUS service (SIL.CZ) and I need give back my V6J to dealer and buy normal machine with normal support (maybe T60).

Short story:

• 
  I bought V6J 16.2.2006
  after 4 days I sending this notebook to service, 3 errors reported (WiFi problem, LCD with dirty points {no death and bright point}, keyboard floating on left up side)
• in service stay 40 days and returned with worse LCD
  
• after next 2 weeks, i sending V6J to service again, reported 5 errors:
• LCD have 1 bright dot and 9 dirty dots
• LCD flicker sometime
• Audio Headphones is weak and without basses
  
• 'whistle' in battery mode
• battery stay time, on dealer web page wroted 4.5 hours, but my small test (LCD=50%, without working, only running) ended after 3 hours and 3 minutes.
  
• on dealer web page wroted, 2x215MB RAM, reality is 1x1024, (without memory DualMode)
• on dealer web page wroted, 1xPCMCIA SLOT type 2...., reality is 1xExpressCard slot. I can't buy Audigy for Notebooks, because Audigy is for PCMCIA slots.

V6J is bad serie and in Slovakia and Czechia have very very very bad service and support. Example: service man testing sound on My V6J with headphones without basses. I have problem to hear basses and he tested 1 week with low-cost headpones. He is proffesional.

PS: sorry of my poor English.

 

I don't understand salko, was it really that bad? I haven't heard of any other V6J owners reporting this problem.

Did you try out software settings and putting equalizers on? Which media player were you using to play music? Try winamp and setting the Equalizer to your desired settings.

I honestly think it is a setting issue and not the unit itself.

I say this because I know how bad sound is from a notebook computer when things are not setup properly. Also, you're not going to get rich bass from a notebook computer unless it has a really good audio chip in it.

When I got my Z70Va and started listening to music I was sooooooo disappointed, but I realized this is just normal, and if you have the realtek audio in that thing, which I believe you do, just open up the Realtek sound effects program that should be in your taskbar and set your equalizer to Powerful. This helps a lot~!

Also if you want even MORE bass, download winamp and then download a plugin called SRS WOW!. On the winamp site it should be SRS WOW Thingy. Yeah weird name. That thing gives you RICH bass that sounds very similar, if not better, than an Audigy soundcard. I kid you not, seriously amazing sound.

This is only for winamp, but if you pay $15 dollars you can unlock that program to provide that rich sound for your whole notebook~!!!

Great deal if you ask me.

Honestly I think you are asking for too much from a generic audio chip in a notebook.

Cheers,
Mike

 

Hi Shampoo,

I using iTunes or WindowsMediaPlayer. As I wroted on my previous posts, sound is feebler than other notebooks and without basses. If I increasing basses in EQ (iTunes or WMP), sound is overloaded (distortion), but without basses. This same if I testing on any other notebook, all is ok, basses are basses. I using same songs, same headphones.
My V6J model is X007P, latest sound drivers have cca 3,2MB. I trying also other drivers for other models, but without normal result. Maybe other V6J models are ok, but X007P is not good. This can confirm service (SIL.CZ), but they only confirm bad and feebler sound, not error (because after replacement mainboard are same result).

As I wroted, my audio drivers have only basic windows settings, withou any effect and extra icon. Basic only. And service (SIL.CZ) reinstalling fresh OS with latest drivers and with same result.

In my opinion, i know two reasons:
1) Maybe Headphones Jack output is pernamently switched to LineOut signal and I can't change this to HeadPhones signal.
2) Maybe, for internal speakers audio processor applying low frequence filter and after I Plug headphones, this filter running further.

I not have problem to pay $15, but if service confirm this bad sound, this need other solution. I know, that this audio processor is good (used in many other notebooks), but in this V6J X007P is not good configured/wired.
I wanted buy Audigy, but i don't have slot.

Small question, witch model you selling? X007P or other? You listening music from V6J on good headpones?

PS: design of V6J is graceful, I love this design. But after 2 months and 2 weeks I hate this notebook, because have only problems. I need buy notebook, plug Koss PortaPro and working. After 2months and 2weeks it is impossible. Only problems.

PS2: similar problem i readed here:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=21399

Same problem, without solution.

Other lowend model, similar problem:
http://vip.asus.com/forum/view.aspx?id=20051230020315187&board_id=3&model=A6R&page=1&SLanguage=en-us
http://vip.asus.com/forum/view.aspx?id=20060106185445997&board_id=3&model=A6R&page=1&SLanguage=cs-cz
Reported on 12/2005 and solution is not exists after 5 months.

PS3: i working with computers from 1989 and last year I installed over 50 notebooks, only this one (my notebook) have problems.

 

News from service.
Taiwan engineers send to service schema to repair sound. Some exchange of SMD parts. After this exchange service man spoke, that sound is excelent, with basses and normal volume level.
Now waiting for new baterry and next Friday I awaiting my lovely V6J.

 

I'm very glad to hear that your sound issues have been resolved. While I was concerned with the problems you were having, since most people love their v6j, it sounds like your service experience has been good.

 

Salko... Result! glad to see the fault was found and fixed, what you were describing was deffinately not normal.

 

Hello All.

Today my V6J arriving from service and sound is OK. With BASS and normal volume level. Maybe new V6J well be with new mainboard revision (with repaired sound).

RESULT: bad sound on V6J (X007P) is not property of V6J, but error. This error can be repaired in service.

PS: tomorrow will be 3 month from buy, 2 months parking in service

 

Congrats Salko! Glad to hear you've finally got the problem sorted out...

From your earlier post, I think it was (uncharacteristic for Asus) a quality control issue during assembly, rather than a design issue for the mainboard... otherwise there would be a LOT more complaints on this issue.

Still, it's frustrating to have had your machine available for 2 out of the last 3 months.