Static heard on all Google Voice calls on OBi202
SteveInWA:
Quote from: Taoman on March 11, 2017, 04:17:59 pm
Quote from: SteveInWA on March 11, 2017, 03:58:15 pm
So, a "HD Audio" phone would not necessarily sound better, since it is limited to G.711, although it might have better quality audio amplifiers, microphones, speakers etc.
It's a gimmick. I've tried the phone. All "HD Audio" means, in this case, is preset equalizer settings. That's it.
I've tested VTech, AT&T, and Panasonic DECT 6.0 phones. I always return to Panasonic.
So essentially, VTech is using a meaningless term, similar to calling a grocery product "all natural". Just to be clear, though, wideband audio, aka "HD Voice", in the telephone industry, usually means that the product supports one or more of the wideband audio CODECs (G722.2 AMR-WB and/or OPUS). The OBi IP phones do so, and the sound quality on a true wideband call (the entire path supports WB), sound fantastic compared to the typical narrowband call.
Wikipedia has a good write-up here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wideband_audio
LotharX:
Quote from: SteveInWA on March 11, 2017, 04:41:35 pm
So essentially, VTech is using a meaningless term, similar to calling a grocery product "all natural". Just to be clear, though, wideband audio, aka "HD Voice", in the telephone industry, usually means that the product supports one or more of the wideband audio CODECs (G722.2 AMR-WB and/or OPUS). The OBi IP phones do so, and the sound quality on a true wideband call (the entire path supports WB), sound fantastic compared to the typical narrowband call.
Wikipedia has a good write-up here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wideband_audio
As it turns out, I think I had a VTech phone all along, so I didn't need to go buy one to follow OBi tech support's suggestion... I did some research and found out that VTech owns the AT&T brand for telephones, and VTech does manufacture at least some AT&T phones. The AT&T cordless phone that I had been discussing above actually does look like a VTech phone, and I hadn't noticed this earlier, but that AT&T's cordless handset is stamped "HD Audio" on the back. So I assume this is actually a VTech-mufacturered phone.
That being said, as I noted earlier, the scratchiness is heard on both my Panasonic and my AT&T cordless handsets. I hear the scratchiness to a much lesser degree using the AT&T's corded handset, but it's really just on the cordless handset that the call becomes difficult to understand.
I tried using a different AC adapter on the OBi202 today. That didn't help with the scratchiness, so I don't think a bad power brick is the problem.
I also signed up for Callcentric today and linked it to the OBi's Phone2 port, leaving Google Voice on the Phone1 port. I still hear the scratchiness on Callcentric calls. Switching my cordless phone's connection back and forth between Phone1 and Phone2 (to compare Google Voice vs. Callcentric), I don't hear any difference. The call quality is equally bad on either service.
I've attached a recording I made, using the OBi202's web interface (using the OBi202's IP address as the URL), calling the echo test number. I recorded it two different ways, one using the AT&T phone's cordless handset (the attached file), and one using its corded handset. The recording sounded exactly the same using either handset, so I didn't bother attaching the 2nd recording.
Note that my own voice sounds pretty clear in the recording, but OBiman's voice is very scratchy. Perhaps this is simply because his voice is not very high-quality on OBi's end, but the scratchiness gives you an idea of exactly what I am hearing even when I am speaking to a live person, using a cordless handset. A live person often sounds at least as bad as Obiman's voice here, if not worse. Some live calls are much worse than others.
I'm curious if anybody else hears OBiman's voice sound noisy like this, when they call the echo test number at **9 222 222 222 ?
I still plan to go buy a 5.8 GHz phone today, as the last thing I can think of to test.
LTN1:
I downloaded your audio file, listened to it--then dialed the **9 to listen to the same exact OBi prompt. I can confirm that what I heard on your audio file was pretty close to what I heard in doing the **9 test on my own OBi202.
The OBi prompt sounded like it was poorly recorded with some background line noise. The voice was OK...but it was over that background noise--somewhat like speaker phone background noise.
The echo test itself, did not have the background noise.
I then took my Uniden Dect 6 (1.9 Ghz of course) and made a call to 800-555-1212. The automated operator was clear but now I was listening for background noise when she didn't speak--and can confirm there is some line noise that could be heard if you listened carefully enough. I then went to an AT&T Dect 6 cordless and found it similar to the Uniden.
Afterwards, I used a Uniden 2.4 GHz cordless and found a bit more line noise when there was silence--but of course, only because I was focused on looking for the "noise."
I also tried a Uniden 5.8 GHz cordless, and it was similar to the Dect 6 phones...maybe a tad better.
I also used a cheap backup pure landline analog phone and when looking to hear noise during the silence, I also found line noise--worse than the cordless.
The clearest connections were from my corded IP Fortinet phone ($350 phone) (almost seems like it had line noise suppression between voices) and from my Verizon Dect 6 cordless phone connected directly to a landline--but of course, I could still find minute traces of background/line noise during the silence if I intently looked for it.
I also found that depending on the phone number I called (assuming the calls were routed through different CLECs), certain connections were clearer and certain had more line noise.
My tentative conclusions thus far are that some CLEC connections are clearer than others--and that is an additional layer of impact on the type of phone you are using--even if you are using the best phone possible. So a person may be calling from your area where the CLEC is using a less than premium line connection--which could impact your call quality. That same call, from another CLEC, in an area that uses a more premium line connection, could sound much better.
I just had some time on Sunday to test these issues...but my testing is from a layman's (non tech professional) perspective. Someone like SteveInWA, a real tech professional, could clarify these things much better, besides correcting my misuse of these terms.
LotharX:
Thanks so much for running those tests, LTN1!
I just called 800-555-1212 myself. The automated operator's voice sounded pretty clear to me, and I didn't notice any substantial background noise in the silent spaces. In fact, whenever I hear the scratchiness that I've been talking about, I think it's only when people are speaking, not during silent spaces between words.
I've also noticed that the scratchiness seems to be much more pronounced with male voices than with female voices. Perhaps that's just a coincidence, and I've just happened to get high-quality connections to some numbers that have female voices, or perhaps the typically lower frequencies of male voices are more susceptible to generating the noise that I hear.
I tried playing around with the various G711U codec settings in the OBi Expert Configuration today, but nothing that I changed had any noticeable effect when listening to OBiman on the echo test number. Perhaps something would have had a noticeable effect when talking to a live person though, I don't know.
I searched the online in-store inventory for all of the Best Buy stores near me today, and none of them sell any 5.8 GHz phones. They're all DECT 6.0. So it seems that I may have a hard time finding a 5.8 GHz phone to test if some sort of radio interference inside my house is the problem.
drgeoff:
@LotharX
1. The Obi records incoming distant audio at a take-off point in the processing chain before the phone connection. That means the phone you use has minimal effect. It is only any sound picked up by its microphone and added in to the mix that affects the recording.
2. Do you find any significant difference between the scratchiness when listening to a recording compared to the live version through the phone? Concentrate on the scratchiness because the tonal balance may be quite different between the speakers or headphones and your phone(s).
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