# Volume on the Fire and using external speakers



## larryb52 (Nov 18, 2009)

Maybe its me but the only way I can hear a lot of video or music is turn the volume all the way up & I hope there is an update that would allow it to go louder. I don't want to blast people out but most items only need to go 1/2 way or 3/4 this does not allow any wiggle room...


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Bear in mind that the Fire is a mobile device...I rather doubt they will ever make it be able to be louder or that most would want it to be able to, as the built-in speakers just aren't that great. I have a portable external speaker set that plugs into the headphone jack (I've had it since my first iPod) that works great for listening from a distance.

Here's one set that's highly rated:


Betsy


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## larryb52 (Nov 18, 2009)

good thought I was also going to get a nice headset for it (bose) it is for me to watch when my wife takes over the tv


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## Buttercup (Oct 28, 2008)

I have a set of Bose computer speakers that haven't been used in years, will have to pull them out.


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## legalbs2 (May 27, 2009)

I noticed that the first day the Kindle Fire had great volume and even had to turn it down as it was too loud.  Second day, and I have to turn it full up and the videos full up and still not as loud as the day before.  I am at home and it does not make any difference if WiFi is on or off.  I am thinking there might be a problem developing with the volume.


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## Andra (Nov 19, 2008)

My volume control seems a bit wonky as well.  I can turn it up full blast and on some things I can barely hear it.  And sometimes it's nice and loud.  Then I was playing a game while ago and I put the control in the middle and I could barely hear it...
Very strange behavior.


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## jd78 (Dec 8, 2009)

Volume is actually been about what i expected and is more than adequate IMO. I also used the earphone KSO that came up awhile back to get a pair of earphones to use with the Fire when needed.


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## durphy (Nov 5, 2008)

I may have been the only one who didn't know this, but you can use the headphone hole to plug in a speaker. I couldn't believe how great everything sounds.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Durphy, I don't think you're the only one...we have a thread about sound on the Fire; I'm going to merge this...

Betsy


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Re: volume.  I've noticed it's louder if it's on my desk top or table top, not as loud if I'm holding it against my leg or leaning on a pillow.  Even though the speakers are at the one end.  The material it is physically touching will cause it to resonate more or less, it seems.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I just got my Fire today and the volume is a bit low for me. In order to hear anyone talking in a movie, I have to turn it all the way up. If I put it at the half way point, I can't hear any sound at all.  . It seems like the volume only changes towards the last half of the slider. 
Not sure about this yet. I don't have any speakers or headphones. I would have to buy full headphones as I cannot wear earbuds, they hurt my ears. 

Everything else works great so far on it, so this is a bit disappointing


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

I have noticed that there isn't much volume in the lower part of the slider, come to think of it.  (I almost always use earphones with it anyway, so I hadn't thought much about the volume issues...

Betsy


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I think I need to fine me some earphones. First I need a case, slippery little bugger this one


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## R. M. Reed (Nov 11, 2009)

Maybe some of you have never owned an iPod. There are many external speakers made for them and I'm sure the Fire has the same kind of headphone jack.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Yes, we had a discussion of external speakers earlier in the thread, and somewhere else there's a discussion of headphones...I'll find a link.

Here's the headphones discussion:
http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,92316.0.html

Betsy


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## Annalog (Dec 28, 2008)

I received my Fire almost a month ago. For the first three weeks, the volume levels and control worked perfectly for me. Mid to high settings worked well when not using earphones; when I used earphones the lowest setting was either perfect or a little too loud. I usually listen using earphones either due to background noise or because DH is listing to something else.

I have noticed problems recently when watching videos; I am not sure about music as I do not have much on my Fire. The problem occurs when starting a video. The volume through the earphones is much too loud and not controllable with the slider control. The first time this happened, I switched to using the volume control on the gear menu and that seemed to fix the problem as the video volume controller started working again. However the problem kept occurring and after a few times the gear volume slider stopped changing the volume setting. I rebooted my Fire and the controls worked perfectly again. Since reboot resolves the problem, at least for a while, I am wondering if this is a software problem. I have had to reboot my Fire three times for this problem. My Fire is on version 6.2.2.

Does this match the volume problems others are experiencing? I am getting very tired of ripping my earphones out of my ears because of the volume at an ear-blasting level when I start a video. When I remember, I now put the earphone buds on my shoulders when I start a video until I find out whether the volume will be normal or extremely loud.

If this is still a problem when I get back from vacation, I will contact Kindle support. It would be good to know before I call if others are having this particular problem.


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## Annalog (Dec 28, 2008)

I finally contacted Amazon Kindle Support concerning the volume problem with my Fire.

Problem: The volume on my Fire would sometimes be too loud and the volume control would not reduce the volume, even at the lowest setting. Shutdown and reboot of the Fire would fix the problem for a while. I had only downloaded three apps to my Fire. One was a trial and was removed. One was a game.

Information from Support: Some apps, particularly games, change the volume settings and do not restore them properly when leaving the game. Workarounds to try: Download Volume Manager app, Reset to factory settings, or remove the game.

I decided to remove the game. If the problem does not return in a few days then the game was the cause of the problem. If the problem returns, then I will try the Volume Manager app. I might try that app even if the problem does not return as the volume is sometimes too loud at the lowest setting. I doubt I will need to Reset to factory settings but I will do that if necessary.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Keep us  posted, Annalog!

Betsy


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## Annalog (Dec 28, 2008)

I have used my Fire for more than three days since removing Mahjong Artifacts (previous FAOTD) and have not had any volume control problems or any other reason to need to reboot my Fire.

Currently there are only three apps on my Fire that were not on it when it arrived:
Dr. Web Antivirus - downloaded more than a month ago
ScreenDim Full - downloaded yesterday but I had the trial version earlier
QuickOffice Pro - downloaded yesterday

The only other app that I had downloaded to my Fire was Mahjong Artifacts. It was fun to play but not worth the volume problems it caused. I will download it again on Saturday and do a specific test for volume problems after using it.

I have 36 apps in my cloud, including the 14 or 15 default ones; 14 of these are on my Fire. (I don't know if Gallery is a default app or was included with QuickOffice Pro.) I plan to download them one at a time so that I can test whether the app causes the volume problem.

I will report here when I know for certain about Mahjong Artifacts and also for any other app that results in the problem for me. Also, I plan to let the creators of Mahjong Artifacts know if that was the source of the problem so that they have an opportunity to correct it.

EDIT: I changed default numbers above as I had forgotten that I had removed some of the default apps from my Fire.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

Hmm, I have the Mahjong Artifacts, the paid version and the first one. I haven't noticed any issues with volume I don't think. I don't really watch videos much on the Fire though. I do use a external speaker when I need more volume and a ear thingy, but neither has its own volume control. I need it as the volume in general is not high enough for me on the Fire.

I guess I'll have to play around a bit to see.


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## Annalog (Dec 28, 2008)

Atunah said:


> Hmm, I have the Mahjong Artifacts, the paid version and the first one. I haven't noticed any issues with volume I don't think. I don't really watch videos much on the Fire though. I do use a external speaker when I need more volume and a ear thingy, but neither has its own volume control. I need it as the volume in general is not high enough for me on the Fire.
> 
> I guess I'll have to play around a bit to see.


The volume problem I have with my copy of Mahjong Artifacts is that it seems to set the minimum volume to be loud and the control range is between loud and a bit louder with no mute option. If you keep the volume level set to high, I would not expect a change to be noticed.

My volume problem seems to be the reverse of what most people report as I want less volume, not more. Even when I am using the Fire alone with no external speakers or earphones, I usually set the volume in the middle. When I am using earphones or headphones, the volume is rarely above 1/4. (I somehow got through adolescence and early adulthood in the 60s and 70s with my hearing intact. What many people find acceptably loud, I find painful. I have been known to carry and use earplugs to concerts, amusement parks, and user conferences in order to lower the sound levels to ones I find comfortable.)


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I don't ever use headphones for anything and I cannot use earbuds, they hurt like hades. Has to be over year things.  I don't have a MP3 player or such, I always listen to my music through the stereo so ear thingies are a new thing for me with the Fire. I prefer to use the plug in speaker. I don't like having the sound blast in my ears. It hurts. When I use the ear phones I don't have my volume turned up high, but below halfway. 

I only need the earphones for video and such as I can't hear people talking otherwise. For games I don't really need them, I don't need a lot of sound there. 

I'll play around on the weekend with my Fire and see if I can reproduce what you find with the Mahjong.


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## Annalog (Dec 28, 2008)

The volume problem I thought may have been due to Mahjong Artifacts has not returned. I have tried different combinations of settings and game activites with no impact on video or music volume controls. I do not know what was causing my earlier problems but uninstalling the game seemed to correct the problem. Reinstalling the game has not caused the problem to return.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I guess this will be one of the mysteries of life.  . Sometimes things just work like that. 

But at least we know that some games for whatever reason, can cause some issues with volume. At least there is the option for those having problems to take everything off and start from scratch that way. 

Glad that you don't have the problem anymore.


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