Bluetooth mic swap

[CaliTE]

Hi guys,

One of the convenience items that I find really annoying is the bluetooth microphone quality in the 4runner. I have a friend with a 2011 TE and I have a 2013 TE. When he's on his bluetooth, or when my wife is driving the 4runner and talking on bluetooth the quality is horrible. Usually my buddy switches to loudspeaker on his iPhone... and I do the same in my 4runner because the person on the other line can hardly hear me.

I am willing to buy an aftermarket mic and switch it out with the stock one to see if there is an improvement, but I don't know its location. Has anyone done this or does anyone know the location of the mic?

Thanks boys.

 

[eddiebx]

Hi guys,

One of the convenience items that I find really annoying is the bluetooth microphone quality in the 4runner. I have a friend with a 2011 TE and I have a 2013 TE. When he's on his bluetooth, or when my wife is driving the 4runner and talking on bluetooth the quality is horrible. Usually my buddy switches to loudspeaker on his iPhone... and I do the same in my 4runner because the person on the other line can hardly hear me.

I am willing to buy an aftermarket mic and switch it out with the stock one to see if there is an improvement, but I don't know its location. Has anyone done this or does anyone know the location of the mic?

Thanks boys.

No idea how you're gonna swap it, but I think the factory mic is up by the map lights...you should see the little slits where the sound travels to the mic behind the panel.

 

[deejayshag]

Hi guys,

One of the convenience items that I find really annoying is the bluetooth microphone quality in the 4runner. I have a friend with a 2011 TE and I have a 2013 TE. When he's on his bluetooth, or when my wife is driving the 4runner and talking on bluetooth the quality is horrible. Usually my buddy switches to loudspeaker on his iPhone... and I do the same in my 4runner because the person on the other line can hardly hear me.

I am willing to buy an aftermarket mic and switch it out with the stock one to see if there is an improvement, but I don't know its location. Has anyone done this or does anyone know the location of the mic?

Thanks boys.

I don't know if it's the mic quality so much as the mic placement. Ive been told by people I'm talking to that the hands-free sounds great, in fact they typically can't tell the difference between my use of the hands-free vs speaking directly into the handset (I've used both an HTC EVO, and Samsung GS3, with the same sort of results).

On the other hand, when my wife's been in it, it's been tough to hear her clearly.

The difference? When I'm driving, at 6'3", I have the seat all the way back, whereas my wife, at 5'1", has the seat most of the way forward, so I'm pretty sure her head is mostly in front of the mic, while I am mostly talking directly into it.

Although it's not terribly practical, we have found that if my wife looks up while talking via hands-free, she can be heard loud and clear, so it might be worth trying some of your own experimentation to see if speaking a particular direction improves things for you or not (I would definitely suggest to NOT try this while driving, though :doh: ).

Replacing the stock mic with a more sensitive one, in the existing location, could possibly allow the listener to hear you better, but it might also end up picking up more ambient noise (road/wind), so the result could be that you're louder, but so is everything else around you-- probably not ideal, either.

I'm not saying a more sensitive mic won't help, but I would definitely experiment with mic placement first. Heck, with a bit of creative engineering, you might even find a way to relocate the stock mic so that it works better for you.

If all else fails, you could always pick up one of these...
Amazon.com: Bluetooth Smartphone Retro Mobile Handset in Red: Everything Else

Good luck!

 

[Americas High Five]

I've had similar issues but chalked it up to the Bluetooth connection rather then the quality of the speaker. I make sure to have my phone in the front cup holder close to the dash so the radio/phone connection isnt as far. Seems to work, haven't had AS many complaints as when its in my pocket...

 

[deejayshag]

I've had similar issues but chalked it up to the Bluetooth connection rather then the quality of the speaker. I make sure to have my phone in the front cup holder close to the dash so the radio/phone connection isnt as far. Seems to work, haven't had AS many complaints as when its in my pocket...

I usually put my phone right in front of the multi-information display--- the little shelf there fits it perfectly, and my Samsung GS3 is just thin enough that I can still make out the time and temp.