iPhone 4/iOS 4 bluetooth muffled on other end

Update from Apple: This issue is in fact related to echo cancellation. iOS4 expects the BT headset to send a command to disable echo cancellation on the iPhone if it's going to be handled by the headset. If this command isn't received, the iPhone and the BT headset both attempt to apply DSP for echo cancellation resulting in garbled audio.

Plantronics has acknowledged to Apple that older devices (such as the 925) don't send the 'proper' command while their newer units do. So...

Looks to me like Apple is trying to pass the buck here and while they may have a point (to a certain degree) it would sure be helpful if they stepped up with some assistance such as a toggle in settings to control echo cancellation.

I'll keep pushing on them to do so.

Please do, as many car units have the same issue as well. I own a Sony MEX-BT3700 which worked flawless on iOS 3 and is now experiencing the same muffled issues as everyone else is reporting.

Also, a friend of mine is using a very expensive hearing aid that supports bluetooth (via the oticon streamer). She too now has these issues with her new iPhone 4.

Apple needs to make sure that all Bluetooth devices that worked with iOS 3 also work with iOS 4.

So you can add the Sony MEX-BT3700 and the Oticon Streamer to the list of devices that don't work.

I've had my iPhone 4 for 2 weeks. I used to have a 3GS before and paired it with a stereo bluetooth headset (Sony DR-BT50). I never had any problems with the 3GS phone. With the iPhone 4, however, the music stops periodically when using the headset. I first thought it was some interference but have now tried it in multiple locations and have been able to repeat this problem. I usually place the phone on my desk, right in front of me (less than 2feet from the headset). If I don't move, the music streams just fine with no interruption. If I turn my body, however, I can consistently reproduce the problem. Turning my body away from the phone (even though the distance is about 2feet), stops the music. I then turn back towards the phone and the music continues. The signal is attenuated when I do this. I'm wondering if IOS 4+ is reducing the power of the bluetooth transmitter in order to save battery. Hopefully it's a setting that they can change with an update and not some sort of antenna problem. I also tried enabling and disabling wifi and it made no difference. I could reproduce the problem with or without wifi.

To everybody facing the "muffled of other end" issue with their bluetooth headsets, could you please test under noisy and quiet environments on the OTHER END? Because, as we have found out [in this thread|http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1804116&tstart=0] that's been living for almost two years now, it seems like the iPhone is "muting" the headset's mic when there's sound coming from the OTHER END, hence rendering talking through a bluetooth headset completely non-duplex.

I have tested this. One friend of mine who's an engineer presumed it's noise reduction related, so I've tested in noisy and silent environments, both mics covered or opened: it doesn't seem to be dependent on this.
I guess it's the other thing - bith the phone and the BT are doing noise reduction, therefore the sound gets attenuated too much.

How could I forget, yes most of my calls have the person on the other end complaining bitterly about "echoing" along with muffled, garbled sound. I am currently using a Plantronics 975. So Someone is saying the iPhone is not accepting proper signals from certain headsets. I am shocked that all of the bluetooth issues were not resolved before releasing the phone. What ever happened to QA at Apple? We need to have an announcement from Apple that this too will be addressed, and promptly.

FROM PLANTRONICS:

Re: iPhone 4 poor sound quality with Voyager Pro [ Edited ]
Options
08-05-2010 09:28 AM - last edited on 08-05-2010 09:29 AM

So here is an update from Plantronics, this issue is not being ignored and we are indeed talking with and testing with Apple when we can. We have an NDA which means I am limited to what can be said. I think I know what questions you will have have after reading this message, it is highly unlikely I can answer those questions.

The reports from users are of two mains issues:
[1] muffled sound
[2] lost connections

Item [1] is something Plantronics has only recently been able to reliably reproduce and a solution to this problem will be found and made available.

Item [2] is not something we have ever reproduced. If you think you have problem [2], please look at the Bluetooth icon on the iPhone4, what is the colour of the Bluetooth icon on the phone? is it Blue or Grey and pulsing? The pulsing behaviour is what you will see if the connection is truly disconnecting and reconnecting.

I think many people have problem [1] and describe it as problem [2], right now we have no evidence that [2] is a real problem, if you think you have this problem do you see the pulsing icon on the iPhone, if you do let me know here or by IM.
---
Plantronics Inc.

I have the same issue with the factory bluetooth on my VW Passat, everything works fine with the 3gs on 3.1.3. but cant read the phone book after upgraded to ios4. and now i'm with my iphone 4, same issue with the VW passat, and just tried it on my wife's Audi Q7, no volume control, nor phone book.

I am experiencing the issues outlined in this discussion with my Plantronics Voyager Pro.

I finally am posting and I finally today called Apple Iphone Support (1-800-MyIphone).

I talked to a tech support person to log this issue and then asked to talk to a supervisor/senior support person. That happened and I described this issue and referenced this discussion thread.

The supervisor said and I'll try to paraphrase 'there have been millions of iPhones sold and I have only personally received one call on this topic. I have received calls before from people who reference discussion threads and there are usually 20 or so people on the discussion thread. Even if I multiply that times 100, 2000 people out of millions of people would represent a just a typically defect rate for a product.' And then he recommended they switch out my iPhone.

Soooo, tech support still doesn't recognize this a defect. And of course I called him on my bluetooth so that he could experience the beautiful sound which of course was garbled.

He has arranged for me to trade out my iPhone tomorrow. Based upon others who have received new iPhones and who have reported back that this issue was not fixed, and based upon reports that this is a software issue, this will be completely useless exercise, waste of my time, and waste of an Iphone (I hope they refurbish my and do not destroy it). But I will do it in order to proceed with my support case. I will test the bluetooth issue with the new iPhone and report back to this discussion as well as to Apple support.

Sooo, because Apple continues to base their responses to issues based upon the number of complaints they have received in both discussion forumas and more importantly their support line:

PLEASE REPLY TO THIS DISCUSSION BOARD TO CONFIRM THAT YOU ARE HAVING THIS ISSUE AND MORE IMPORTANTLY CALL 1-800-MY-IPHONE (1-800-694-7466). CALL TOMORROW WHILE YOU ARE IN THE CAR (JUST NOT IN A STATE WHERE YOU ARE REQUIRED TO BE HANDS FREE).

The caps are for people (like me) to realize that Apple judges this issue by the number of calls and responses to this discussion thread.

By the way, I am extremely interested by the revelations about the software issue (which this is right) where the iPhone and the BT head seat are both executing noise cancellation. Hope Apple and the BT headset providers figure this out.

I'm sure this has come up but to confirm: anyone seen a correlation between the BT range issue (not necessarily garbled audio) and wifi usage? i.e. those having difficulty putting the phone in a pocket for example and losing the connection to the BT headset - do you have wifi on (even if not connected to a hot spot)?

My wifi is always off while over BT, but I've also lost BT connection or the voice was garbled while wifi turned on

bmwhd1 wrote:
Update from Apple: This issue is in fact related to echo cancellation. iOS4 expects the BT headset to send a command to disable echo cancellation on the iPhone if it's going to be handled by the headset. If this command isn't received, the iPhone and the BT headset both attempt to apply DSP for echo cancellation resulting in garbled audio.

Plantronics has acknowledged to Apple that older devices (such as the 925) don't send the 'proper' command while their newer units do. So...

Looks to me like Apple is trying to pass the buck here and while they may have a point (to a certain degree) it would sure be helpful if they stepped up with some assistance such as a toggle in settings to control echo cancellation.

I'll keep pushing on them to do so.

Hmmm... Why would the 3gs still be impacted by this, are they implementing noise cancellation on a device that (from what I've read) doesn't have the second mic? Seems like that feature should always be disabled on 3GS IOS4? Or do they do some rudimentary noise filtering on the older phones?

Eitherway, I don't expect that Plantronics (and other manuf) are going to offer a fix for older BT headsets that worked fine before, so I hope apple (or perhaps the community) can enable a toggle somewhere for "legacy bluetooth device compatibility".

This is interesting. I recall when I used to use the Jawbone II, you could, on a call by call basis, disable the noise filter (i.e. turn off noise assassin) for a particular call. Not sure if this option is availabe on the Icon or not. Maybe someone who is using a Jawbone could try to disable the noise filter while on a call and see if that resolves the muffled noise problem. That would be one way of testing this theory assuming that turning off Noise Assassin disables all noise filtering on the headset to allow the iP4 to do the noise filtering instead.

Previously I reported that after doing the fix of reseting the phone to factory defaults had solved the problems.

Although the name in the audio selection panel had changed.

Previously it was "Jawbone Icon"
Then it said "Bluetooth Audio" (Problems seemed to be fixed)

Its not gone back too "Jawbone Icon", and Im now having range issues, although it dont seem to be as bad as before.

I really dont know what the problem is now, or how to fix it.....Im still thinking it Appel OS4.0.1 thats causing the problem.

"iOS4 expects the BT headset to send a command to disable echo cancellation on the iPhone if it's going to be handled by the headset. "

Hmmm. This doesn't make much sense. The phone knows when it's using the headset for communication, right? Why does the phone have to receive a signal from the BT to turn off it's echo cancellation - the handset should never be used for echo cancellation when the BT is active. Otherwise you would never be able to put the phone in your pocket, which is what everyone wants to be able to do.

Also, the 3G/3GS's never had this problem before iOS 4. I'm glad they are working on it, but if it really is the fault of the echo cancellation in the handset, this should be a very easy fix. If the phone is connected and utilizing a BT headset, turn off echo cancellation on the phone. Easy peazy?