For context, LDAC is one of the few wireless audio codecs stamped Hi-Res by the Japan Audio Society and its encoder is open source since Android 8, so you can see just how long Windows is sleeping on this. I’m excited about the incoming next gen called LC3plus, my next pair is definitely gonna have that.
Shame about headsets though - has anyone been able to get the mic to work without the audio quality dropping to trash? It is a shame to have to pick between good quality audio and the ability to use your mic.
It’s because all the good codecs (aptX, LDAC, even SBC) all operate over the A2DP Bluetooth profile, meaning your computer’s Bluetooth adapter is running in a particlar mode called A2DP. Unfortunately, A2DP is unidirectional, (ie, not Duplex) it doesn’t support sending audio to headphones and receiving audio from the mic at the same time, due to bandwidth limitations. So when you open Zoom or Teams or something that needs to access your mic, your Bluetooth adapter switches to a different mode like HSP (Handset Profile) and HFP (Hands Free Profile). These profiles do support duplex connection to the mic and headphones, but don’t have fancy high definition codecs. They are designed to be very low bitrate. That’s why you encounter such a big audio quality difference when it switches.
Note, having said that, pipewire on Linux does support some fancy duplex modes that operate outside the constraints of what I explained above. Eg, it gives me the option to enable AptX-LL with duplex, that passes the mic through using whatever little leftover bandwith is on the connection. This doesn’t work with heavier codecs like AptX-HD. I think Android does something similar, that is why you don’t notice the profile swapping behaviour as badly on Android.
I don’t think there are any hifi headset profiles, AFAIK.
And it looks (for me) like on android it just works, so it should be possible… Or maybe it’s just seamlessly switching shit-quality with mic and good quality without? And I didn’t notice during gsm calls?
For sure it sucks on windows too, but well - anything bt-related on windows works just bad…
I think that might be the codecs’ fault. At least for me, my headphones sound terrible in headset mode on all the devices I’ve tried, regardless of whether they’re running Linux, MacOS, iOS, or Android.
It’s the profile, not the codec. The codec just defines how the audio is compressed, the profile defines all the parameters around that like duplex for microphones.
A2DP is the profile used for music by everything, HFP is the profile that is used for calling by most things nowadays.
TIL! Thanks for the clarification.
I feel you there. Personally I just use the earbuds as output and the integrated laptop mic as input. Bluetooth really just doesn’t shine in that regard. However if you’re on Desktop and want everything to happen on a headset, not earbuds x wired stand mic, you should look into things like HyperX Cloud 2 Wireless that employ a USB dongle instead.
You’re gonna need wired or 2.4ghz wireless for that.
Technically, Bluetooth uses 2.4GHz XP
When I try to fiddle with them they just start producing a hellish noise that breaks my ears in a certain configuration, I had that happen both on Jabra earbuds and Soundcore headphones, luckily the latter has a wire option as well so that’s a relief
I ended up buying JBL Quantum TWS in-ears because they also include a USB-C dongle that speaks their own protocol which allows lowlatency duplex audio. Perfect for audio calls and even gaming. Plus, I don’t need to pair them with every device, I can just bring the dongle. (They can also be paired with Bluetooth and you can switch between dongle and BT whenever you want.)