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The audio quality of the inbuilt microphone on my laptop is much worse in Linux, than on Windows. I've tried some fixes on StackExchange but it doesn't really h

The audio quality of the inbuilt microphone on my laptop is much worse in Linux, than on Windows. I've tried some fixes on StackExchange but it doesn't really help. Has anyone encountered this? And if I buy an external microphone: how do I know it won't have the same problem? Has anyone had good experiences with microphones on Linux (specifically Ubuntu 20.10?) Is it some sort of driver/firmware problem? Nowadays I have to switch to Windows (dual boot) when I have an important presentation or call, which is really annoying. But I've literally had people spontaneously tell me my audio is crap (on Linux) or great (on Windows).

hanikesn 6y ago
I can recommend USB speaker phones/headsets like the Jabra Speak series. Anker recently released their own series as well and there's also beyerdynamic phonum. The big benefit is that noise cancellation is builtin and USB sound is sufficiently standardized that there shouldn't be any issues. Though I went to the trouble recently to configure builtin pulseaudio noise cancellation and got quite good results as well.
ryankrage77 6y ago
Likely just a driver issue. I actually had the opposite situation with Ubuntu 20.04 on my desktop, got a lot less noise from my mic port under Ubuntu for some reason.
- hutzlibu 6y ago
  "just a driver issue" Oh. Just a driver issue on Linux. Well then, problem solved.
  - gkbrk 6y ago
    "Just a driver issue", unless it's a temporary regression in the Linux drivers, basically means the hardware manufacturer didn't use standard interfaces or write a good-enough spec for interoperability. Solutions are calling your manufacturer and filing a support request, or voting with your wallet and picking another manufacturer next time.
    - hutzlibu 6y ago
      How many hardware manufacturers tell you that their device is supported on linux?
      - gkbrk 6y ago
        Lenovo, Dell, Intel, Realtek, nvidia, Logitech, Samsung, AMD and many other big brands tell me clearly on their product spec that their hardware supports Linux. It's not like there is a shortage of choice.
        hutzlibu 6y ago
        Oh, can you tell me then, of a Laptop with Touchscreen, good hardware and Linux support? I have been looking for one since ages.
        gkbrk 6y ago
        Thinkpads and a lot of Dell laptop models both have good hardware and Linux support. I cannot recommend a laptop with a touchscreen, as I have never used nor needed one.
        stevewodil 6y ago
        Dell XPS 15 or 17? I had a Matebook X Pro and it worked really well with Ubuntu but the battery life was terrible in Linux. Maybe it's something that's been fixed or can be tweaked.
        hutzlibu 6y ago
        Battery life on linux laptops can be indeed improved by tweaking, I did so on various devices. But I never came close to windows battery life and I allmost bricked a brand new laptop while doing so (only save was to tear it apart). So beware of what you are doing.
        deleted 6y ago
        [deleted]
  - ryankrage77 6y ago
    Either you can install good proprietary drivers from the manufacturer, or they don't exist and you have to make do with the open source ones.
benkuhn 6y ago
Shot in the dark, but many of my Linux coworkers have a problem where their video chat software sets their mic volume/gain to 100%, which causes horrible sounding clipping. Check your mic gain settings and perhaps disable the automatic volume equalization in whatever video call software you're using.
- taeric 6y ago
  This is killing me right now. :( And I'm not finding a clear "this disables it" setting. For the record, I'm trying to use Google Meets and it seems to be the culprit in what is doing the "push it to 100%".
- justincormack 6y ago
  I ended up buying an audio interface that has no digital volume control, only analog, so applications cant mess up the levels at all. Its amazing how conferencing apps just think that 100% is better.
dsr_ 6y ago
Virtually all microphones are USB, and USB Audio is very, very standard. This is likely to be a mixer settings issue. I've been using a Blue Yeti with Debian for several years now and have no problems at all with that. (It is annoying how often video conferencing problems are solved by reloading a web page or restarting the browser, though.)
hmfrh 6y ago
I've had issues on PopOs 20.04 and 20.10 with microphones connected through the audio jack. Connecting through a cheap jack-to-USB converter eliminated the background noise. There were proposed fixes although none of them worked. Jack-to-USB converters are apparently not recommended[1] due to wildly varying quality though. On PopOs 20.10 I'm currently getting good audio from a ModMic USB. This[2] review is what made me buy the ModMic USB, although I know next to nothing about audio and audio quality. The Audio Technica ATGM2[3] was also considered, but the mounting options for the ModMic USB as well as lower cost in my area won me over. For me a headset mounted mic was a requirement due to space considerations and slightly lower cost, although next time I'm probably buying a very high quality free standing microphone. [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1v1jtHz4C0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1v1jtHz4C0 [2]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qquo2GpSQo4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qquo2GpSQo4 [3]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIeJMdv5jxs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIeJMdv5jxs
andrewzah 6y ago
"Has anyone had good experiences with microphones on Linux" I've not had any issues with external mics and usb interfaces. Onboard mics aren't really that good to begin with; you'll want to get some sort of external lavalier mic, or a condenser or cardioid dynamic. Onboard mics and other omnidirectional mics aren't great because they pick up sounds from all over. A cardioid polar pattern helps a lot with cutting down on sound.

hanikesn 6y ago

I can recommend USB speaker phones/headsets like the Jabra Speak series. Anker recently released their own series as well and there's also beyerdynamic phonum. The big benefit is that noise cancellation is builtin and USB sound is sufficiently standardized that there shouldn't be any issues. Though I went to the trouble recently to configure builtin pulseaudio noise cancellation and got quite good results as well.

ryankrage77 6y ago

Likely just a driver issue. I actually had the opposite situation with Ubuntu 20.04 on my desktop, got a lot less noise from my mic port under Ubuntu for some reason.

hutzlibu 6y ago
"just a driver issue" Oh. Just a driver issue on Linux. Well then, problem solved.
- gkbrk 6y ago
  "Just a driver issue", unless it's a temporary regression in the Linux drivers, basically means the hardware manufacturer didn't use standard interfaces or write a good-enough spec for interoperability. Solutions are calling your manufacturer and filing a support request, or voting with your wallet and picking another manufacturer next time.
  - hutzlibu 6y ago
    How many hardware manufacturers tell you that their device is supported on linux?
    - gkbrk 6y ago
      Lenovo, Dell, Intel, Realtek, nvidia, Logitech, Samsung, AMD and many other big brands tell me clearly on their product spec that their hardware supports Linux. It's not like there is a shortage of choice.
      - hutzlibu 6y ago
        Oh, can you tell me then, of a Laptop with Touchscreen, good hardware and Linux support? I have been looking for one since ages.
        gkbrk 6y ago
        Thinkpads and a lot of Dell laptop models both have good hardware and Linux support. I cannot recommend a laptop with a touchscreen, as I have never used nor needed one.
        stevewodil 6y ago
        Dell XPS 15 or 17? I had a Matebook X Pro and it worked really well with Ubuntu but the battery life was terrible in Linux. Maybe it's something that's been fixed or can be tweaked.
        hutzlibu 6y ago
        Battery life on linux laptops can be indeed improved by tweaking, I did so on various devices. But I never came close to windows battery life and I allmost bricked a brand new laptop while doing so (only save was to tear it apart). So beware of what you are doing.
        deleted 6y ago
        [deleted]
- ryankrage77 6y ago
  Either you can install good proprietary drivers from the manufacturer, or they don't exist and you have to make do with the open source ones.

benkuhn 6y ago

Shot in the dark, but many of my Linux coworkers have a problem where their video chat software sets their mic volume/gain to 100%, which causes horrible sounding clipping. Check your mic gain settings and perhaps disable the automatic volume equalization in whatever video call software you're using.

taeric 6y ago
This is killing me right now. :( And I'm not finding a clear "this disables it" setting. For the record, I'm trying to use Google Meets and it seems to be the culprit in what is doing the "push it to 100%".
justincormack 6y ago
I ended up buying an audio interface that has no digital volume control, only analog, so applications cant mess up the levels at all. Its amazing how conferencing apps just think that 100% is better.

dsr_ 6y ago

Virtually all microphones are USB, and USB Audio is very, very standard. This is likely to be a mixer settings issue. I've been using a Blue Yeti with Debian for several years now and have no problems at all with that. (It is annoying how often video conferencing problems are solved by reloading a web page or restarting the browser, though.)

hmfrh 6y ago

I've had issues on PopOs 20.04 and 20.10 with microphones connected through the audio jack. Connecting through a cheap jack-to-USB converter eliminated the background noise. There were proposed fixes although none of them worked. Jack-to-USB converters are apparently not recommended[1] due to wildly varying quality though. On PopOs 20.10 I'm currently getting good audio from a ModMic USB. This[2] review is what made me buy the ModMic USB, although I know next to nothing about audio and audio quality. The Audio Technica ATGM2[3] was also considered, but the mounting options for the ModMic USB as well as lower cost in my area won me over. For me a headset mounted mic was a requirement due to space considerations and slightly lower cost, although next time I'm probably buying a very high quality free standing microphone. [1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1v1jtHz4C0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1v1jtHz4C0 [2]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qquo2GpSQo4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qquo2GpSQo4 [3]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIeJMdv5jxs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIeJMdv5jxs

andrewzah 6y ago

"Has anyone had good experiences with microphones on Linux" I've not had any issues with external mics and usb interfaces. Onboard mics aren't really that good to begin with; you'll want to get some sort of external lavalier mic, or a condenser or cardioid dynamic. Onboard mics and other omnidirectional mics aren't great because they pick up sounds from all over. A cardioid polar pattern helps a lot with cutting down on sound.