HP Envy 17 muddy sound

I recently purchased an HP Envy 17 with beats audio. I'm finding that the speakers are kind of muddy, a little distorted and generally underwhelming. Headphones seem to be fine, though.

I wasn't expecting external speaker quality, but this doesn't seem quite right.

The drivers are up-to-date, and I can't find any software-related causes. I'm suspecting a hardware problem, but I'd like some opinions. It's been less than 14 days since I purchased it, and I can replace the laptop immediately so long as I do so before the 14 days are up. I also have a 3 year warranty, but the first option is optimal if it comes to that.

Additionally, I've encountered some minor video card problems. A hardware failure caused a restart at one point. It hasn't repeated itself, but it's a little disheartening considering I've only had this thing for a few days.

 

I have the same experience with a Envy 14. Sound from speaker is really sub-par compared to my old Dells from 2006. Does not match the reviews that say the sound from the speaker is better than other laptops. Also I notice no difference when I turn Beats on or off

 

Maybe it's the environment you're in or the music you're listening to? Because I notice a HUGE difference when I turn the bass enhancement on and off.

 

Do you notice it in the built in speakers also?

I mean I tried all different kinds of music + audio from Youtube and I notice zero difference with the speakers.

 

I listen to a wide variety of music, and the speakers sound poor regardless of the music genre. Changing the Beats settings does change the sound, but the quality remains questionable. I suspect a defect with the laptop speakers themselves.

As far as the graphics card is concerned, I've yet to duplicate the issue (I originally thought it may have been a sleep issue), so I'm basing my exchange decision mostly on the sound issue. I will be performing some additional benchmark tests on the graphics card later today though, just to be sure.

The Envy 17 has a lot of nice features at a fairly good price, but defects in laptops is not something that surprises me. Unfortunately, sound problems are kind of hard to to judge at face value. I don't really know how these speakers are supposed to sound.

 

My speakers sound very good.

It's very important to use only one equilizer, preferably form the Beats Audio, and set bass boost. to 80dB and +3.

The treble and bass can be put to max or +3 to both.

 

I don't even see those options in the Beats Audio control panel. I have an equalizer bar in that panel which I can adjust manually or use a couple of presets.

I have options similar to what you're describing in standard sound options.

Bass management doesn't seem to fix the problem I'm experiencing.

It would also seem that this computer isn't recognizing the subwoofer at all. See the second attachment.

 

Subwoofer is not recognized, because this is the way it's set. HP plugged it as an additional regular speaker.

Well if that doesn't help then I don't know what's the issue. The speakers should sound decent, so the only option you have is to RMA it.


EDIT: Make sure you have the mono mix disabled (see attachment)

 

Yeah, the mono mix is disabled. I've tried many different settings and I haven't noticed any substantial improvement.

I'm probably just going to straight exchange this laptop for another of the same model. I don't really have anything to lose. If the speakers are supposed to sound this way and I don't hear any improvement on the replacement, in the end I can live with it. I just don't like the idea of getting any defects in a product I purchased new.

 

Has anyone figured this out yet?

I'm getting the same problem, my new HP Envy 17 1181-NR isn't recognizing the subwoofer at all

I tried disabling the mono, but I'm still not able to see a functional subwoofer.

What else is there to do?

I'm at my witts end here

 

Subwoofer will never be recognized and disabling mono only allows you to see (hear) the difference if the subwoofer is on/off. The mono mix disables the subwoofer, but you will not be able to see in Windows it since, this is the way HP designed the system. It recognizes your speakers as simply a 2.0 system, but the sub still works.

 

OMG Thank you! I was really disliking these speakers in comparison to my old Gateway FX. They now sound MUCH better with the mono option set to off! Still not as good, but loads better!

 

Come to think of it, this evening I noticed some "clicking" and jumpiness in the playback using Beats. I tested with several file sources, some FLAC and CD rips, things I know to be good. Could this also be a result of changing theEQ settings or something? It's kind of annoying. I am intrigued by the BEATS sound properties ... very punchy highs and pronounced bass made almost comical by the "chipmunk punk" sound of the subwoofer. But the effect is not entirely unpleasant. A Bose Wave Radio it's not, but there is still something very pleasant about the sound --- or at least there was until this evening when all this "chatter" began.

Any thoughts, folks?