Is there a solution to the NP9150 audio quality?

Hi I have a Sager 9150 and the audio quality form the Realtek device is incredibly soft. I've ensured that all the volume settings are at max but it is still so soft that it compromises any experience that outputs sound.

I really wish they allowed for sound card options in their set up, otherwise the laptop runs like a dream.

Is there a solution to this? Do I need to go out and buy an external sound card device or get a headphone amp + headphones to help compensate?

Thanks

 

I have given up really on listening to anything via the built in speakers. The quality of them is so poor, which is quite disheartening as I expected more from the Onkyo branding.

If I want to listen to music via headphones or IEMs, I have been using a DAC. I own two, the Fiio E11 which can be used as a stand-alone DAC and the Fiio E17 which can be used as a DAC and amp.

 

The bass is pretty weak, even in earphones/headphones. I got more bass from my $500 dell laptop.

 

thanks for the input. just wish there was perhaps some kind of driver update that could fix this.

The audio is just terrible. Not even talking about how weak the bass is, the overall volume is so soft and when i plug my earphones in, i have to press them deeper into my ears just to try and make it more audible.

Will go check out the Fiio

 

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I bought one of these a while back and I haven't had any problems with it. It even works on my Mac at work.

Of course, you could just try for any USB soundcard solution as well.

 

I am pretty sure it's a hardware limitation (sub-par audio chipset). I've tried multiple software DSPs by themselves, in a chain, etc. to get good earphone, headphone audio... it was a hopeless cause. While I could almost get the sound to something tolerable with an external receiver, the EQ settings, volume and sound stage setup was so drastically different than the other audio sources that an external sound card was the only practical option (at least on P170HM, but by the sound of these annecdotes I doubt the situation has changed on the EMs).

 

FiiO E17 Alpen DAC & Headphone Amplifier + Free Brainwavz Beta + Free Overnight Fedex to select destinations<-- this will solve your audio probs

 

Make sure THX TruStudio Pro is activate.

 

USB headphones would probably be your best bet as it comes with its own audio hardware.

 

Which Realtek chipset is listed in the Device Manager? It might be worth seeing if any other machines are using the same chipset.

I looked at the driver file, but it lists several models:

ALC882, ALC883, ALC885, ALC886, ALC887, ALC888, ALC889, ALC892, ALC899, ALC861VD, ALC660,
ALC662, ALC663, ALC665, ALC670, ALC671, ALC672, ALC676, ALC680, ALC221, ALC231, ALC260, ALC262,
ALC267, ALC268, ALC269, ALC270, ALC272, ALC273, ALC275, ALC276, ALC280, ALC290

 

One thing I have not seen mentioned here yet: Have you tried going into Control Panel > Sound and then selecting your speakers (double-click) and then click on the Enhancements tab and then check the box(es) for Loudness Equalization (and Equalizer). This should bump up the audio output from your speakers significantly.

THX Audio will only help fine tune the sound clarity more or less, such as increasing or decreasing frequency range on the built in subwoofer to get it to produce what bass it can (given the size of the subwoofer, don't expect it to rattle anything).

 

Any solutions that don't involve headphones? Could we potentially replace the speakers with something of better quality? replace the chipset internally (not likely)? I'd really like to not always have to use headphones with this laptop.

 

The only laptop I am aware of with better quality speakers would be the MSI GT series laptops using the DynAudio speakers.

What sort of issues are you having with the speakers in your laptop?

 

The overall sound quality is terrible compared to other laptops I've dealt with, in particular my work laptop, an HP Elitebook sound much better than my sound.

Tinny would be how I would describe it, absolutely lacking in bass, and overall lower fidelity/quality. I shouldn't have to rely on software to make my laptop sound 'okay' when I have a commercial laptop (HP, my girlfriend's Toshiba) all have much better sound.

Perhaps my bass speaker (3rd speaker?) isn't working? For example when I check my realtek HD Audio Manager it only shows 2 speakers, shouldn't it be 2.1? How can I test all three speakers are actually being utilized? I mean I know for sure sound actually comes out of it, but perhaps the bass isn't focused as much as it should be to that single speaker?

My point being without the THX software the sound is unbearable to me. With it it's still very subpar.

 

Technically it should be 2.1, but as some have reported it may only operate in the 5.1 settings. You can check this thread here http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/673959-p170em-sub-woofer-not-working-2.html for some suggestions for setting the subwoofer frequency and there were some comments on how they were able to test the subwoofer.

 

Is the audio really that bad?

 

Breakaway Audio Enhancer Download

Set it to:

The Regulator
Range: 65
Power: 60
Speed: 65
Bass: +3
Shape: +5

If you select bypass, it's gonna use the normal sound that comes out of your speaker.

 

+1 to this. Many say installing the THX driver from the disc makes a large difference.

 

It's all a matter of opinion. I'm not an audiophile by any means, but I have heard worse speakers and I have heard better speakers too. So long as I can hear a conversation in a movie clearly enough, it works for me.

The THX studio does help in tuning the audio on these laptops, but the DynAudio system in the MSI is better.

I have not had a chance to mess with the Toshiba, Samsung, Acer, etc. laptops in a while though so I can't compare the Sager sound system to the likes of those mentioned.

The Onkyo speakers in the Sager laptops are a step up form what Sager offered in previous gen laptops though, so they are at least making an effort to move in the right direction. I personally like the Onkyo speakers in the Sager laptops, they seem, to me at least, to be a bit better than the Alienware and Asus speakers.

 

Just tried this software.............it surprisingly makes a noticeable difference in the sound quality, though I'm inclined to do some more testing on the settings to see if I can fine tune it for my tastes.

 

I just use my Creative X-Fi Go, resolves my issue when I'm on the go. I know Turtlebeach makes something similar. At home I have a dedicated DAC.

 

ASUS - Multimedia- ASUS Xonar U3

Gives you Dolby Headphone HRTF virtual surround which is superior to Creative CMSS-3D, along with Dolby Digital Live encoding and greatly reduced background hiss interference.

Plus it's only $25 on a number of sites at the moment.