Inspiron 1525 - volume problems

Question

I've just received my laptop and have tried playing a DVD but can't get sufficient volume. I've done everything in the users manual. It refers to the Volume control mixer and suggests pressing the 'Help' button but there isn't one there! I'm not technically minded, I just want simple instructions about how to increase the volume! The level is 100 and it won't go any higher. Does this mean I can only listen through headphones? Is it 'limited' like lorries are!!??

DELL-Chris B · Answer

railbrid:

If you are already using the Vista mixer to increase the audio on each application, and main volume, there isn't much more you can do. On the 1525, specifications for the speaker is 1 Watt per channel into 4 ohms, which has generated quite a bit of feedback from customers.

You can use headphones, or external amplified speakers should need, however given the lower watt per channel with the internal speakers, you are more than likely hearing it as loud as it can currently be.

Hope this helps.

CV3 · Answer

Hey railbrid, I had a volume problem and didn't want to replace the sound card.

Did some research and came up with a USB plug in device for $25.

Could not believe the vast improvement in volume and quality. Check out Newegg

for a Turtle Beach Audio Advantage Micro, read the reviews, and my testimony,

I hope this will help......CDV

X-Tek · Answer

I recently bought a 1525 and had the same problem.

Managed to get more volume by doing this:

Start -> Control Panel -> Sound -> Speakers / Headphones -> Enhancements Tab

Then, Tick the "Loudness Equalization" -> Apply / OK

I have also ticked the "Bass Boost and Low Frequency Protection" plus the "Virtual Sound".

The volume is still not great, but definately better than it was.

DELL-Chris B · Answer

X-Tek: Thanks for the tip!

LatinKreationz · Answer

@X-Tek wrote:

I recently bought a 1525 and had the same problem.

Managed to get more volume by doing this:

Start -> Control Panel -> Sound -> Speakers / Headphones -> Enhancements Tab

Then, Tick the "Loudness Equalization" -> Apply / OK

I have also ticked the "Bass Boost and Low Frequency Protection" plus the "Virtual Sound".

The volume is still not great, but definately better than it was.

Wow!! That worked! Thanks for that tip!!

nineball88 · Answer

I too, have made the changes suggested & am still completely dissatisfied with the sound quality!  Head phone quality is fine, however the speakers are terrible.  This really surprised me when I recently received my new laptop because this is my 3rd dell laptop & the others were great when it came to sound.  Over all, this system this time around is thus far scores a 'C-' at best to be honest (and I've had A+ laptops from dell before).  I wish I would of waited a little longer till I saw some more reviews.  My gripes this far are mostly geared to the 'user friendly' controls: Sound quality/volume is horrible, the touch pad for the volume controls (slow reacting and unresponsive), and the touch mouse pad (non-reactive, slow, not accurate to touch even after settings changes, and winds up moving even if you touch outside the box?!?).  May wind up passing this one on to my wife or kid to use if frustration continues.

lakesgirl · Answer

I would agree entirely with nineball88.

In another thread, same subject, DELL- Chris_B suggests that the speakers in the 1525 are only 1 watt RMS and therefore cannot be expected to sound good. I dispute this. The Logitech V20 laptop speakers are each only 1 watt RMS and whilst they cannot be driven hard before distortion becomes excessive, at what most would consider a comfortable listening volume they are quite good. Bass is a little thin but would expect that. In contrast, these things inside the 1525 cannot even be driven to a comfortable listening volume, never mind hard! Furthermore what little volume they do produce is tinny, reminiscent of the miniature transister radios of decades ago. In fact I would suggest that my pda speaker produces as good a sound, however whilst I am prepared to use headphones with it as I use it as an mp3 player, I don't expect to always have to use headphones with a laptop.

I agree that the tweaks suggested above do make an improvement, but overall, the result is still not acceptible.

The output from the headphone jack is excellent.

Do all 1525 suffer from the same symptoms? I read a review of the 1525 that suggested that the sound could be turned up quite loud! Thus, are some different to others? Clearly Dell must know as they must have had innumerable complaints by now. How about a bit of honesty!

DELL-Chris B · Answer

lakesgirl: I never said the speakers 'cannot be expected to sound good'. I was merely explaining why audio was different over multiple systems due to the individual speaker specifications. If you review the thread in question, you will see this. In regards to the external Logitech V20 which you mention, it also has different speaker specifications when compared to the internal speakers on the 1525. So again, the sound between the two is going to be different. As I've mentioned before, we have had feedback in regards to the speaker output on this particular system. Some users are not satisfied with the sound, others are perfectly happy with the output. And what one person considers 'loud', another person may think is rather quiet. While there have been some complaints in regards to the audio, the overall reviews on the 1525 have been quite positive. That said, we do take all feedback seriously. Again, the intention of my original posts on the subject, were only attempts to further explain why our laptops may sound different from one system to the next. If you are looking for a laptop that can ouput higher volume, you might want to check the specifications on some of our other Inspiron or XPS models. Or you can utilize external speakers as well.

lakesgirl · Answer

DELL-Chris_B

Sorry if I read too much into your statement but you were replying to someone who was complaining about the low and poor quality sound on his 1525, and you pointed out, in Dell's defence, that the 1525 has speakers of only 1 watt per channel whilst the 1730 has 5 watts per channel and thus "the sounds between these models are going to be significantly different" The implication is that the sound produced by a 1730 is better. Not always the case, but one would naturally expect higher quality/volume from a 5w speaker as opposed to a 1w speaker! Fair?

I don't intend to get into debate regarding what is loud, or what defines good sound. I agree that sound quality is very subjective. When I say that I simply enjoy pleasant sounding music at comfortable volume levels, I mean I enjoy the same as most people I know. That includes all the people who have listened to the 1525's sound. Without exception all reckoned that the output of the 1525 was awful, even for a laptop.

As you say, I can get external speakers and, sadly, that is the route I will probably take. Having not had this model long, I certainly won't be considering an alternative Dell.

However, whilst there is usually more incentive to criticize as opposed to praise, I would be interested to read of someone who actually gives the 1525 sound quality a positive review. All the 1525 reviews that I have seen are, admittedly, generally positive, as indeed I am, but the sound quality has always been seen as one of its lesser qualities. But what I found most interesting in those reviews and other feedback, eg this forum, is that the sound quality is regarded from poor to unacceptable, which led me to conclude that all 1525's were maybe not equal in that respect, ie some are better than others.

susand60 · Answer

The user is experiencing volume problems with their new Dell Inspiron 1525 laptop. They have followed the instructions in the user manual but cannot find the volume control mixer or a 'Help' button. They are looking for simple instructions on how to increase the volume. The user wonders if the volume is limited and if they can only listen through headphones. Another user agrees that the sound quality on the 1525 is poor and describes it as transistor radio quality. They express frustration with the low volume, lack of bass, and overall sound quality. They believe Dell has failed in this aspect.

lakesgirl · Answer

Thanks for that response Susan. If it is of any help, I now use external speakers, such as those I use with my desktop. But as "normal" powered speakers are not buit for travel, I also purchased a SoundEfinity MiniSpeaker S200 unit. It is small and packs away with my laptop. Power is battery, or can be usb. Each speaker is only 1.25" dia, 1watt. Price was only £11.99 incl delivery from usbnow.co.uk. The sound is not bad at all, thus showing that, contrary to what has been said previously, a reasonable sound output can be achieved using cheap small speakers. Pity Dell do not accept that as otherwise the 1525 is a very nice laptop.

Note that the tweaks suggested previously do provide an improvement, and are worth implementing, but the final result is still unacceptable. Finally if you wanted to pay more the Logitech usb speakers are pretty good too, but are larger and therefore perhaps less convenient.

Rick19152 · Answer

Lakesgirl

I am in complete agreement with you if that helps at all. I just received a new 1525 2 days ago and the first thing I noticed was how poor the sound quality was and the lack of decent volume. The speakers are very tinny sounding. I have a less than 1 year old Vostro 1500 and it sounds great. When I ordered the 1525 for home I never thought the sound would be of any problem. This is a big downgrade from my Vostro 1500 which has very good sound quality and plenty of volume. Unfortunately with reading this forum I’m just finding out now that others aren’t happy and there doesn’t seem to be a solution.

Thanks for the tip on using the USB speakers. The only improvement I found was downloading the itunes player and using their mixer. The “small speakers” option seemed to improve sound quality for me but won’t help the volume.

Does anyone know if the studio or XPS series have better sound than the 1525? Otherwise I really like the 1525 it’s just a shame the sound is a big negative.

susand60 · Answer

The user is experiencing volume problems with their new Inspiron 1525 laptop while trying to play a DVD. They have followed the instructions in the user manual but couldn't find the 'Help' button mentioned. They are looking for simple instructions to increase the volume, as the current level is already at 100 and won't go any higher. They are wondering if they can only listen through headphones. The answer provided is a thank you message for advice on improving sound quality.

jakefr · Answer

I too just bought the 1525 and i am pretty dissapointed in the audio. Is there a sound card (not a usb) that someone can reccomend for use on this computer?   thanks

lakesgirl · Answer

Are you saying that you are disappointed with the 1525's audio in general? Or are you just basing your judgment on the output from the 1525's speakers? Whilst the 1525's speakers are almost universally acknowledged as being rubbish, the audio output from the front of the unit is pretty good if fed into any half decent speaker system. Whilst that is fine if the laptop is used as a desktop replacement; if portability is required then mini-speakers connected to the audio output, battery or usb powered, are required, or alternatively, actual usb speakers, (which in general will be better than mini-speakers, but larger).

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Inspiron 1525 - volume problems

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