How do I turn off noise suppression on Android?

What is Noise Suppression?

Noise suppression is a feature found in many Android phones that filters out background noise from phone calls, voice recordings, and videos. It uses signal processing algorithms to identify non-speech sounds like wind, traffic, crowds, or other ambient noise and mute those frequencies while preserving the main voice audio.

The goal of noise suppression is to improve call clarity by removing distracting sounds that can make it harder to understand the person on the other end of the line. It’s especially useful in noisy environments like outdoors, in vehicles, or around loud crowds. Noise suppression technology has advanced in recent years to become quite effective at isolating the key frequencies of human speech.

Most modern Android smartphones have some form of built-in noise suppression enabled by default. However, the strength of the noise filtering can vary between different phone models. Some apply only minor noise reduction, while others are more aggressive. The feature may be branded under different names by manufacturers like Sony, Samsung, Pixel and others, but serves the same essential purpose.

While noise suppression can improve call quality, some users may wish to turn it off in certain situations, which we’ll cover next.

Why Would You Want to Turn Off Noise Suppression?

There are a few key reasons why you may want to turn off noise suppression on your Android device:

Improve call quality in loud environments – Noise suppression can sometimes dampen all sounds, including your voice. This may reduce call quality if you are in a noisy area. Turning off noise suppression allows the microphone to pick up more audio input, which can help ensure your voice is transmitted clearly. As per a Reddit thread, some users found call quality improved in loud places when disabling noise suppression.

Check if Your Phone Has Noise Suppression

Not all Android phones come with built-in noise suppression features. The availability depends on the phone model and Android version:

• Pixel phones running Android 9 or later have noise cancellation capabilities during calls. This can be controlled through the Sound settings or Phone app settings [1].
• Samsung Galaxy phones running Android 9 or later have options like Voice Focus and Wind Shield to suppress background noise on calls. These are located in Sounds and Vibration or Call settings [2].
• Some Android One phones like Nokia models allow enabling noise cancellation in Sound settings. This uses the microphone to remove noise during calls [3].
• Phones running Android 10 and higher may have a Voice isolation option in Sound settings to suppress background noise on calls.
• Third-party apps like Krisp provide noise cancellation capabilities if not natively supported.

So first determine if your Android model and version supports built-in noise suppression, before looking for settings to control it.

Turn Off Noise Suppression in Your Phone’s Settings

The settings to turn off noise suppression will vary depending on your specific Android phone model and manufacturer. Here are step-by-step instructions for some common Android phones:

Samsung Galaxy

1. Open the Settings app.

2. Tap Sounds and vibration > Sound quality and effects.

3. Toggle off the “Voice focus” option.

Source: https://www.verizon.com/support/knowledge-base-209489/

Google Pixel

1. Open the Settings app.

2. Tap Sound > Advanced.

3. Toggle off “Noise suppression”.

Source: https://support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/9449646

OnePlus

1. Open the Settings app.

2. Tap Buttons & gestures > Alert slider.

3. Select “Ring” for the bottom slider position.

This will disable noise suppression when the alert slider is set to silent/vibrate.

Use a Third-Party App

If you want to disable noise suppression across your whole Android device, using a third-party app is an easy option. Popular apps like Noisy and WavePad give you system-wide control to turn off noise suppression features.

These apps work by modifying your Android device’s audio settings and routing all audio through their own processing. This allows them to apply noise cancellation techniques while also disabling any built-in noise suppression your phone may have.

The main advantage of using a dedicated app is convenience – you can toggle noise suppression on and off with just a tap. However, these apps may impact overall audio quality or have compatibility issues with certain apps. It’s a good idea to test them thoroughly before relying on them.

Popular choices like Noisy and WavePad offer free versions, so you can try them out without spending money. Just make sure to check if the app requires any special permissions that you’re comfortable enabling on your device.

Adjust Additional Audio Settings

In addition to turning noise suppression on or off, you can adjust other audio settings to improve call quality on your Android device.

Open your phone’s Settings app and go to the Sound or Audio section. Look for options to adjust your microphone volume. Turning up the microphone volume can help ensure your voice is picked up clearly on calls.

You may also see options to adjust audio quality or enable HD voice calling. Enabling these can allow for higher-quality audio during calls. According to GoTo Support, HD voice calling provides superior sound quality compared to traditional calls.

Try adjusting these audio settings while on a test call to find the right balance of volume and clarity. Minor tweaks can sometimes make a significant difference in improving call quality.

Test Noise Suppression On and Off

Once you have turned off noise suppression, it’s important to test the audio quality difference with the feature enabled versus disabled. The best way is to make some test calls to friends in noisy environments and compare the audio quality.

Make a call with noise suppression turned on and have a conversation as you normally would. Take note of the background noise and how much of your voice comes through clearly. Then, end the call and turn off noise suppression in your phone’s settings. Call the same person back in the same environment and compare the audio. Listen closely to see if more background noise comes through and whether your voice is less clear and audible without noise suppression enabled.

You may need to repeat this test a few times, in different noisy settings, to fully discern the impact of disabling noise suppression. Pay attention to the subtle differences in sound quality and clarity. If the background noise and interference becomes too distracting without this feature turned on, you may opt to keep it enabled. But if call quality seems similar either way, you can feel comfortable turning off noise suppression for a more natural calling experience.

Testing noise suppression settings directly in real-world use cases is the best way to determine if you want this audio processing turned on or off on your Android device. The impact can be subtle, so carefully compare the calls with it toggled on versus off.

Troubleshooting Problems

If you are experiencing issues with echo, choppy audio, or other problems after turning off noise suppression, here are some troubleshooting steps to try:

• Restart your Android device – A simple reboot can sometimes fix microphone and audio issues related to settings changes.
• Check for app updates – Make sure you have the latest versions of apps like Zoom, Skype, etc. that you use for calls and audio. Updates may include microphone optimizations.
• Toggle airplane mode on and off – This resets all network connections which can clear up some audio issues.
• Clear app cache and data – For calling or voice apps that are still having problems, go into Settings > Apps and clear their cache and data. This forces the app to fully reload which may correct microphone problems.
• Use headphone mode – Try plugging in headphones with a mic and setting the phone to headphone mode during calls. The different audio path can work around echo or choppy issues.
• Adjust audio settings – Go back and disable any other audio effects like “Improve audio quality” that could conflict with the mic.
• Test different microphones – Use your headset mic, rear mic, speakerphone mic etc. to isolate issues with a specific mic.
• Check for hardware issues – Make sure the microphone and headphone ports are clear of debris. If only one mic has problems, it could be a hardware defect.

If you still can’t resolve the problems after trying these tips, you may need to revert back to enabling noise suppression or try alternative apps and solutions.

Noise Suppression Alternatives

While turning off noise suppression in your Android device settings is one option, there are also other ways to reduce background noise during calls or recordings.

Using headphones or earbuds with built-in noise cancellation can effectively block ambient sounds. Premium options from brands like Bose and Sony offer advanced noise cancellation technology to isolate your voice.

For recording clearer audio, devices like the Shure MV88+ Video Kit come with onboard DSP and adjustments for noise cancellation. Portable audio recorders from Zoom and Tascam also have noise reduction capabilities.

If you need noise reduction on-the-go, mobile apps like Krisp and RNNoise use machine learning algorithms to filter out background noise in real-time during calls and recordings.

Using a combination of quality headphones, audio gear, and software can often achieve better noise reduction than relying solely on your phone’s built-in settings.

Summary

Disabling noise suppression on Android phones can improve call quality in some situations, but it takes a few steps:

• First, check if your Android phone has noise suppression enabled in the default settings.
• Open your phone’s Settings app and go to the Call Settings or Audio Settings to look for a Noise Suppression option.
• Turn off or disable any Noise Suppression or Noise Cancellation options.
• You may also need to download a third-party calling or audio app to fully disable noise suppression features.
• Test calls with noise suppression on and off to compare the differences in audio quality.

Turning off noise suppression can make calls sound more natural, but may also increase background noise. Adjust other audio settings like volume boosts if needed. With a few tweaks, you can optimize call audio for your preferences on your Android device.