Audio Troubleshooting and Recommendations

Responsibility for audio quality belongs to both the person broadcasting and the person listening. Allow time before the meeting begins to correctly configure your audio.

As a listener,

  • Do you have a functional USB headset or external speaker set to the appropriate volume?
    • (note that using a headset with a phono plug instead of a USB plug may cause the audio to be "choppy" under certain circumstances).
  • Did you check your meeting connection speed by going to this test link: https://breeze.psu.edu/common/help/en/support/meeting_test.htm? Set your connection speed in the Meeting Menu.
  • Did you quit all other applications and close all other browser windows?
  • Did you run the Audio Setup Wizard and pass each test each time you enter a meeting room?

After you have completed the recommendations listed above and passed the tests, if you can't hear but others in the meeting room can, then try quitting the meeting room and re-entering.

As a broadcaster,

  • Do you have Host or Presenter permissions?
  • Are you using a wired Internet connection?
  • Do you press and hold the talk button only when you want to talk if you don't have a headset?
  • Did you make sure the connection speed for the entire meeting room is set correctly for the current conditions? Meeting room connection options are located in the "Meeting" menu.

Set-Up Recommendations

  • Check your computer periodically to make sure you are running the most recent versions of Flash Player and the Adobe Connect add-in. This can be easily done by going to http://breeze.psu.edu/common/help/en/support/meeting_test.htm.
  • Run the Audio Setup Wizard. Run the wizard (on the Meeting menu) with the mic and speakers you will actually be using, along with the background noise that will actually exist during the meeting. Be aware that the Wizard allows you to advance even if your computer has failed a test.
    • After running the Wizard, microphone volume can also be adjusted during the meeting by choosing "Select Camera" from the meeting menu, clicking the microphone icon, and adjusting the slider.
  • Have participants test their mics. Having people test their mics one at a time as they join the meeting will help to isolate anyone who may be having a problem.

Audio and Video Options

  • Push to talk. If there is a sound quality issue, everyone should press the talk button when they want to talk, instead of using the hands-free button. This helps eliminate excess noise and will also help in identifying if one person's mic is causing the audio problem.
  • Pause the video. If the sound quality issues persist even with just one person speaking, then also try pausing the video or only have the person talking broadcast video.
  • Change the quality. To free up more bandwidth for audio, you can also reduce the video quality. Click the "Option" button in the lower-right corner of the Camera and Voice pod and choose a lower video quality, such as "Slow Images." These settings affect everyone in the meeting.

Audio Quality Issues

  • Audio breaking up. The sound will often break up if more than one person tries to talk at once. If it is important for a number of people to be able to speak at the same time, you may want to consider setting up a telephone conference call instead of using the VoIP built in to Adobe Connect.
  • Connect Pro audio. If you are interested in utilizing VoIP on Adobe Connect, Adobe has some postings available at their Web site (Adobe.com) pertaining to the topic. We have also created a recorded "meeting" where a group of people are troubleshooting audio problems. At the beginning of the recording you can clearly hear audio problems. By the end of the recording, the audio problems have been resolved for the most part. In addition, the recording includes the steps taken to resolve the audio problems. You can view the recording at: https://breeze.psu.edu/p53374683/.
  • Enhancing audio quality. The quality of the VoIP audio can be improved by using a high speed, wired connection and by closing other applications running in the background, including e-mail. Audio quality depends on the amount of bandwidth available and the processor’s speed and capacity. If other running applications are periodically checking the Internet for some reason, those other applications can take up bandwidth and processor resources. The set connection speed for the meeting room and each individual’s connection speed can also affect the audio quality of the meeting. These settings are located under the "Meeting" menu within each meeting room.
  • Check microphone volume. If the speaker's voice is breaking up, try increasing the microphone volume. From the Meeting menu, select "Select Camera," click the microphone icon, and increase the volume by sliding the slider to the right.
  • Reduce background noise as much as possible. If others notice that your mic is picking up breathing sounds, try moving the mic just a bit further away from your mouth and nose.
  • Volume level changes. Unexpected changes in volume when someone jumps into the conversation after being quiet for a time are probably just normal intonations people use. People often speak a little louder when they are jumping into a conversation after a pause.
  • Check the audio gain. If you have problems with the volume suddenly getting louder, try turning off the automatic gain control. Windows users, go through the Audio Setup Wizard (on the Meeting menu), select Advanced Settings at the end of the Wizard, and uncheck the Automatic Gain Control box. Note that there is no automatic gain control setting if you are using a Mac or a PC without the Adobe Connect Add-in installed (see Requirements under Getting Started) or a Mac.
  • Skip the Camera/Voice pod. If you have problems with audio quality, try replacing the Camera and Voice pod with a Share pod displaying a .jpg file of yourself instead of broadcasting paused video. This works because you can have more than one instance of the Share pod on the screen at one time. Using an additional Share pod instead of the Camera and Voice pod reduces bandwidth usage, which, in turn, allows for better quality audio and faster meeting room performance.
  • Other issues. If you have audio issues and you have been using the "pass the mic" feature, try going back to promoting attendees to Presenters or giving them enhanced rights to the Talk button instead and see if your audio quality improves.