Automattic / Automattic/pocket-casts-android

Volume Boost stops working as it should

Open
#1,449 1 comment 0 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub
[Area] Playback [Priority] Low [Type] Bug
Dominant language
Kotlin
Stars
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Forks
308
Avg merge
1d 13h
Merged PRs (30d)
143

Description

### Description

Using Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 2 I like to enable Volume Boost for podcasts to increase the vocal loudness frequency range without having to max out the media volume slider/rocker on my actual smartphone, but I notice that after 35-40 minutes or so the 'Volume Boost' functionality seems to gradually wear off. In other words the volume ouput simply isn't as loud as it was before.

I know it is not just my ears or my imagination because when I go to the playback effects and toggle the 'Volume Boost' option off and then back on again - doing so restores the loudness intensity back to what you expect from Volume Boost.

This volume inconsistency or fluctuation bug does not happen for podcasts where 'Volume Boost' is disabled, so this feels like a problem with the feature itself.

I'd like to keep using 'Volume Boost' as I find it handy, but the volume softening after 35-40 minutes or so, is quite annoying.

### Step-by-step reproduction instructions

1. Go to Playback Effects
2. Select Volume Boost
3. After 35-40 minutes of playback the 'Volume Boost' starts to become more quite.

### Screenshots or screen recording

_No response_

### Did you search for existing bug reports?

- [X] I have searched for existing bug reports.

### Device, Operating system, and Pocket Casts app version

Oppo R17 Pro, Android 10, Pocket Cast version: 7.48

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

Research direction

Start by reproducing the issue using Playback Effects and Volume Boost on the reported Oppo R17 Pro, Android 10, and Pocket Casts 7.48 setup, then trace the Android playback-effects path. Done means Volume Boost remains at a consistent loudness during extended playback and toggling it is no longer needed to restore the effect.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
android, kotlin
Domain
mobile-dev
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
35/100

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