Latest X220 audio driver issue

Can someone please confirm that with the latest audio driver (8.32.23.0), in the Smart Audio equalizer adjusting frequencies 31-250hz doesn't do anything? If so I'm going to roll back to the previous version since boosting 31hz slightly, dramatically increases volume in these timid speakers.

Even in the previous version, either 62+125hz or 125+250hz didn't do anything, but 31hz is the most important.

Reducing 8+16hz reduces distortion a lot at higher volume.

 

same driver
other seems to be working
only 31hz slider shows no effect
or is it my ears?

 

I can't open Smart Audio at all, no matter which driver I install. I always get the message fail to initialize.

 

Yes Vin, same for me at the 31 Hz setting on the Smart audio equaliser.

Anyhow, I've given up on the weedy speaker output and use this instead via usb:



I did do some testing recently and found that, compared to another PC that I own, sound output level to a USB DAC was more or less the same from the X220- so no problem there thankfully!

However, the same test done from the heaphone socket showed that output was definitely down. This means that if you attach a device, such as external speaker to the audio out, you will have less output and possibly more distortion because your external device won't have enough output to amplify well. Also music files not recorded at full level aren't loud enough even through sensitive earbuds or headphones. Period!

Without doubt, this is a flaw in the X220. It's a real shame because, as Floz pointed out, audio quality of the Conexent chip is damn good.

I just wish someone would complain to Lenovo about it but it doesn't seem to be an issue for most people. We seem to get loads of posts about backlight bleed and trackpad issues but none about this.

Other than that, I love this notebook.

 

Did you try disabling the headphone limiter when you plug something into the audio out jack? It makes the output noticeably louder on a W520.

 

Never heard of that one. Is there a headphone limiter on the X220?

 

Under the Smart Audio control panel, on the first tab, click on the headphone image to the right.

 

There doesn't seem to be any function like that on my version of smart audio (8.32.23.0).

Volume level is the same when using Foobar with wasapi (which bypasses the windows mixer), so I doubt your suggestion would make any difference.

I'm pretty sure there is an issue with Lenovo's implementation of the Conexant driver. If not, of the driver itself.

Like I said previously, issues like a bit of backlight bleed don't bother me too much (it's arguable whether they are even issues) but this volume thing I don't like at all and I think it should be fixed.

 

By headphone image, I mean the huge one.

See this.

 

Crikey, you are right!

 

LOL - wonderful software design.

 

Haha, I should have guessed. Bloody Health and Safety! It's the same on my Samsung phone, which is kept at a similar volume to the X220 by default unless you find a special code.

Doesn't solve the speaker volume but I can live with that, no problem. Many small notebooks have rubbish speakers. Even the latest MBA's are said to have inferior speaker output compared to last year's models, most likely due to obstruction by the backlight keyboard.

Kirayamoto, a big, big THANK YOU! And Lenovo, I forgive you :smile:

 

..........

 

Glad that was solved

The speakers for youtube videos I thought were good enough, I must have disabled them a while back already (the headphone limiter)

 

No problem. Glad I could help.

 

Okay. Here's a little gift to the forum to celebrate the defeat of the headphone limiter. Some laid back, chilled vibes for the summer. Enjoy:

Electric Elephant 2011 - Balearic Mike Friday Beach Bar Set by electricelephant on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free

 

Very nice, thanks for the link.




Have a Magical Day!

 

Pleasure...

 

Oh dear. Looks like disabling the headphone limiter doesn't hold for more than a day or two. You have to keep going back into Smart Audio and re-disabling it.

That's really stupid. If you've already pressed the 'accept' button, then surely that should be permanent? Are Lenovo so paranoid about getting sued for hearing loss?

 

Really? I'm fairly sure that it is permanent, I'm going to go check right now.

Edit:
Pretty permanent for me.

 

I've tried using WMP instead of Foobar and VLC and it still remains enabled after a restart, so possibly one of those latter two were responsible.

Will keep an eye out to pinpoint the cause.

Please keep a watch yourself too. Cheers

 

I use MPC-HC as my main media player. Though, I don't think that the media player used should have any effect on the driver settings.

 

Indeed, it's just happened again and I haven't used any player- I was just clutching at straws on that one anyway.

The only thing that has changed between the time that it went from disabled to enabled has been that I put the machine into standby.

I was hoping it wouldn't be necessary to raise an issue on Lenovo community but.......

 

Edit: Yep, seems to be putting it into sleep that's the cause.

 

I haven't gotten around to do testing on this issue, but did you try the latest drivers on lenovo's site?

Even though the actual driver version is 8.32.23.0, which is same as the last release, there appears to be bug fixes in this new version, dated as an August 3rd release:

http://download.lenovo.com/ibmdl/pub/pc/pccbbs/mobiles/8aad07ww.exe
http://download.lenovo.com/ibmdl/pub/pc/pccbbs/mobiles/8aad07ww.txt

 

Hey, thanks for that Floz. Doesn't seem to stop sleep from re-enabling the dreaded limiter though.

I look forward to finding out if you have the same issue. I aim to install my newly arrived Intel 310 mSATA soon, so will see if that changes things at all.

 

Okay, it's getting weirder. When the limiter is disabled: If I have Smart Audio open on my desktop before I put it to sleep, it's still disabled on resume. If not open on the desktop, the limiter is re-enabled on resume. Lol.

 

Just had a flash of insight. Is your try icon enabled for smartaudio? I'm not in a place where I have a pair of headphones to test! Maybe if you enable the smartaudio tray icon, your settings will keep!

To enable the icon, open the smartaudio control panel. In the upper right hand corner of the window, there is a down icon. Go to settings, enable tray icon.

Let me know if this keeps the setting!!!

 

Looks like you've cracked it, man. Yipeeeee!

 

Yep! I have confirmed the fix, too. {high five}

 

I have to say thanks to all the people here for at least sorting out the headphone issue. I remember reading a lot before a purchase but never came across any mention about low sound which is so far the only disappointment with the laptop.

Is it worth looking at some bluetooth speakers ? I am looking for an improvement over the existing laptop speakers while avoiding clutter from too many wires running around.

Thanks!

 

I consider myself to be an "entry-level" audiophile. Bluetooth speakers are a waste of time, unless you're looking at the convenience factory only.

 

Just get normal ones that plug into the headphone socket and make the most of the pretty good Conexent DAC chip. Either bigger 2.0 or 2.1 pairs that use external power or portable mono ones that use rechargeable batteries*.

As regards the X220's integrated speakers, I think they sound so weedy because they literally cannot handle any more output. Hopefully, Lenovo will allocate a few more cents of their budget towards less pathetic speakers on future models, to better match the IPS screen. With the X220, use an external speaker or speakers unless you actually find the internal ones sufficient. I did find the portable ones linked to below to be a worthwhile improvement, despite being mono.

*eg: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Altec-Lansi...Z77I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1313615826&sr=8-1 or http://www.amazon.co.uk/Generation-...1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1313616042&sr=1-1

 

Thanks for the replies, was looking at this Creative D200 Portable Bluetooth Wireless Speaker | Creative Labs Online Store reviews were positive and say that there isn't any lag due to bluetooth. Thought it would be something that could be left near the bed for some late night movie watching.

But the sound from the headphone out is pretty good after removing the volume limiter so I'm reconsidering and planning to get a pair of decent cans instead

 

FWIW, if you are on a budget, would like a pair you can also fold up easily & stuff in a bag when heading out to the coffee shop, consider the Koss PortaPro's

They look and feel a little flimsy, but sound really good. I have used them since the mid 90's and have never had them break.

Note: They are not noise isolating.


Have a Magical Day

 

Maybe I'm one of the few, but so far I've had no issues with the volume coming out of the jack even with the headphone limiter on. With my Shure E4's, volume any higher than 10-12 is too loud for most things. The only application I have to turn it up for more is MPC-HC, but even that is 21 max.

 

I agree, with material originally recorded at its proper and full level, the volume set by the limiter is indeed loud enough.

It's been set to meet the EN 50332 safety standard in order to safeguard people's hearing because if you listen over a certain dB level for long enough, you will permanently damage your hearing! I agree the masses do definitely need protection because everyone and their dog uses earbuds these days, it seems.

PAL Acoustics Technology ??????

But the limit set by EN 50332 means there is absolutely no headroom and volume can easily be too low if material wasn't recorded at full level, such as recordings from vinyl. A lot of people record at too low a level or don't normalise correctly after they record. Much of my listening these days is to other people's mixes, which is why I seem so obsessed with this issue .

Also, if you use lower sensitivity earbuds or headphones, the volume might be too low.

In the case of the X220 and many notebooks, the integral speakers are rubbish and using external speakers may be a necessity. Tiny PC speakers, of the type I mentioned previously, do not amplify much and distort easily towards the top of their range. If the volume of the X220 has been reduced by a limiter, then the external speakers will need to be doing more amplifying. They might not go loud enough and will distort the sound more easily.

If you find the volume adequate for your needs and equipment- fine! But, for the three reasons outlined above, I think that end-users should be allowed to override the safety settings if they wish to do so, and at their own risk.