Audio noise-distortion!

[clem21]

For about 1 month I have been experiencing audio distortion on all channels on Fios. Voices, music and sound effects have a scratchy, clipped sound most of the time. This happens through HDMI on both my Fios  boxes, through an A/V receiver,  or connected directly to the tv. Verizon has replaced my cable box, all the inside wiring, the splitter, and the ONT,  but the distortion is still there. There must be some kind of transmission error that leads to this but Verizon techs say they have no idea. Anyone else having this problem? Any solution?

[MArbia]

I have been experiencing the same issue. I noticed this issue a few weeks ago. Lately the issue is only in the rear speakers and only happens some of the time. I am sure calling fios will not result in a resolution. 

[clem21]

Good to know I'm not the only person with this issue. Fios techs think I'm crazy. It seems like they have either excessively compressed the audio, or are sending out a very hot audio signal. As the signal is digital, any clipping results in massive noise, unlike analog. Wish there was something to do about it as it makes watching TV very difficult!

[ChadCMulligan]

Same here, driving me crazy, distortion only with audio via cable box, all other inputs are fine.  Adjusted audio settings to no avail.  I dread calling them about this since it will likely be a wasted hour and service call. 

[clem21]

No joy, new box, ONT, splitter, wire, still have audio distortion. Was told by Verizon their signal is "compliant" and nothing else can be done. Wonder why it was fine for years, now not so. Could it be related to the new 4K rollout?

[clem21]

So still no resolution to the problem. It's definitely something going on with the signal from Verizon as it is audible on all channels, and both my boxes. You can even hear it on my kitchen tv, which is being fed by the analog outputs of the cable box. Tried an HDMI splitter in line with the HDMI feed from the cable box today and thet didn't change anything either, and that is a re-clocking splitter. So the distortion must be baked in before it gets to the house.

Are you listening VERIZON?

Please do something about this.

[LawrenceC]

Hi clem53,

Your issue has been escalated to a Verizon agent. Please check your Private Message Inbox for a message from Verizon_Support. You can find your Inbox by clicking on your username at the top right corner of this page. Please direct all correspondence concerning your issue to the agents who will be assisting you privately.

[clem21]

Just upgraded to Fios 1 boxes and still have same clipped audio distortion problem.  That means it cant be equipment related, has to be signal related from Verizon. None of the tech support people I've spoken to are aware of any issue, or quite understand my description of the problem. So what's next anyone?

[MJM9]

I am experiencing the same issue.  Was there any resolution when this was escalated to a Verizon agent?

[clem21]

No resolution whatsoever. Everyone at Verizon denies an issue. Tried to explain again to another tech who couldnt visualize what I was talking about. Tried to use analogy of cellphone turned up to loud, but he only "sort" of got it. It is ruining my enjoyment of tv viewing it's so annoying.  Are you using an AV receiver? If so which one? Maybe there is some kind of compatability issue here.

[juventino2]

I am having the same issue about 3 weeks now. I reset all my box still audio distortion only on channel 507. any status from Verizon when this will be resolved.

[frankaty]

It only happens when commercial are transmitted

[clem21]

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@frankaty wrote:

It only happens when commercial are transmitted

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That's typical these days. I also have ATT U-Verse, same thing there. Its the way advertisers get your attention. The commercial cant exceed a certain volume level and be legal, so they use compression to bring EVERYTHING up in the commercial to that level. Same thing happening with most music lately to get your attention when surfing the stations. Also when the station broadcasts the program material in an UN-compressed state, the commercials seem that much louder. Other than applying your own compression to bring everything to somewhere near the same level there's nothing you can do except write your congressman to get the laws changed. It really has nothing to do with Verizon, or any cable provider.

[RayyaLioness]

I’m having this issue with a brand new 4K tv!!!! Sound is garbled echo.. I thought it was my hdmi cord but it’s new!!! Any solution Fios or do I need to go back to Xfinity???

[clem21]

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@RayyaLioness wrote:

I’m having this issue with a brand new 4K tv!!!! Sound is garbled echo.. I thought it was my hdmi cord but it’s new!!! Any solution Fios or do I need to go back to Xfinity???

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Try powercycling the box by unplugging it for a minute and plugging it back in. If that doesn't help, look at the audio options menu and try changing it from surround to stereo. Make sure you have just the HDMI plugged in for audio, not both HDMI and Optical.

[DWDennis]

I have the same issue. I only notice it on ABC and only through Verizon.  Total distortion in rear speakers... channel is unwatchable through Fios. If I go through Roku... no issue. The issue came up when I swapped in new boxes.  Can't find any resolution other than using a different service

[Jrebysa80]

Hello. I am experiencing same issue for the past 1-2 months. I have a 5.1 audio setup with a Pioneer Elite receiver. I have had Verizon Fios for 2 years and never had a problem until now. My rear speakers sound distorted during certain programs. One of the worst offenders is Grey's Anatomy - it sounds like static from the surround sound speakers. What happened Fios?? You used to work fine! Nothing has changed on my end. I have tried resetting all of my equipment but nothing has fixed it. Please help!!!

[Nilsa_VZ]

We apologize for this inconvenience. This has been referred internally to our engineering team who is working on figuring out what the issue is.

We will keep you updated.

Thank you.  

[jonnyl1]

I'm having the exact same issue described above and its driving me nuts!  At first I just noticed it on my TV that has surround sound, so I figured it was a problem with Sonos.  But since then I realized its happening on all of my TVs, the rest of which I just use the built-in speakers.    On the TV with surround sound, the buzzing coming out of the rear speakers makes watching ABC (507) unbearable.   I've had about 8 different technicians come out to try to fix this same problem.   First they replaced my DVR, which didn't help.   They've since replaced all of my splitters, replaced my ONT and it's power supply, removed (and restored) the grounding on the ONT's power supply, connected a grounding cable directly to the first splitter and physically moved the ONT further away from my electrical panel (thinking it was interference) - all to no avail.   However, my most recent technician (today) thinks he's narrowed down the cause (which is outside of my house) and has piqued the interest of some other engineering groups within Verizon who are now looking into it.    Anyone else with the same experience should post the details here - the more customer cases this issue has the more attention it will get.    Wishing us all luck!

Here are some videos I recorded that demonstrate the buzzing.  This is on a Samsung TV using just the built-in speakers:   

https://www.dropbox.com/s/2trt0if05rctqpx/verizon%20audio1.mov?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ux7y68jbj9tw9hl/verizon%20audio2.mov?dl=0

[Nilsa_VZ]

Thank you jonnyl, 

I have sent these over to the network team for further investigation. 

We apologize for this inconvenience. The team is troubleshooting this and will let us know their findings. 

We will keep you posted on their findings. 

[KeithBjk]

My mom's having the same issues.  Just spent a couple hours there trying to fix it.  It only happens for ABC / 507 for live tv and dvr recorded shows.  It occurs on all three boxes... 1 hd media server and 2 hd boxes.  The audio plays fine though when viewing the show from On Demand. 

Steps I've tried to fix the issue...

- Tried the set-top box "Fix Fios" troubleshooter. 

- Rebooted the ONT. 

- Changed every single audio setting hoping that maybe it was some random setting. 

- Reset the settings back to default and rebooted the boxes.   

- I changed the audio settings on all three tvs and tried stereo, mono and surround. 

- Reset the tv settings back to their defaults. 

- Tried new hdmi cables. 

- Tried the hdmi cables in different slots on the tv.

- Replaced the splitter and coaxial cables.

- Rebooted the boxes and the ONT... again.

Nothing worked.

It's only one channel and from on-air broadcast so doubt it's a hardware issue in the home.