How to fix a Galaxy S6 microphone problem (also applies to Galaxy S6 Edge and S6 Edge Plus)

If you are looking for solutions how to fix a problem wherein the person on the other line is having trouble hearing you, or can’t hear you at all, this post might help.

S5 microphone

Three of our readers shared their #GalaxyS6 microphone problems to us and they all appear similar. We hope that the solutions we provide in this article can effectively help you fix the problem.

If you have any other #Android issue, do not hesitate to contact us by using the link provided at the bottom of the page.

 


Problems:

Hi. I found your forum online and I came across an issue my husband is having with his phone. He just got the Samsung S6 Plus like last week, and making and receiving calls the other party can’t hear him. He’s already restarted the phone several times. It worked maybe the 1st 2 days. And after that, nothing. But others can hear him when he has the phone on speaker.

We won’t be able to take it into the provider until Saturday, but I wanted to see if you came across more of this issue. And double checking to see if you have any solutions.

FYI he doesn’t have a case on the phone and there’s no plastic over the microphone since the other party can hear him when he’s on speaker.

Hope that was plenty of details.

Thanks. — Mary

The issue I have, has been from day 1 which was in July some time. But when making a call, and switching to speakerphone…the other person can’t hear me…I am able to hear them. I have scoured many of my apps, and tools looking at settings, and trying different things, but no luck. My wife has the same phone, and does not have the issue.

I have found mostly the opposite problem listed online forums, in that, the caller can hear you, but you can’t hear them. What gives?? — Tim

Recently bought a Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, about a week ago, and I am having trouble talking on the phone. Sometimes it works normally, but most of the time people complain that my voice seems distant or completely inaudible (as if the phone has turned off; that ‘dead silence’ that the phone makes once someone hits END). I would think it is a problem with the microphone, but again, sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t. I have absolutely no problem with voice recording with WhatsApp or Voice Memos and the calls work perfectly if I put them on Speaker mode.

I have restored the phone, changed SIM cards, verified if the Settings>Accessibility>Hearing>Turn Off All Sounds was off….and nothing.

Thank you in advance for any help you can provide and congratulations on your efforts!! — Carlos

Solution:

Hi Guys. The issues you raise here are more or less similar so the potential solutions we provide here should work on them.

First of all, microphone problems are very rarely caused by firmware so there’s high probability that you may end up having the phone physically checked and repaired. Although there are a lot of similar literature floating around the internet  showing that microphone issues on Android phones is pervasive, there’s hardly any evidence that software or firmware is to blame. Some third party applications may affect how the microphone on an Android phone behaves but it can easily be neutralized by doing a factory reset.

Despite the limited number of cases where software is to blame, this doesn’t mean that you should not do the necessary step of isolating the root of the problem. That said, let’s do the first troubleshooting task.

Boot your S6 in safe mode

As mentioned, some third party apps can control how the microphone behaves (either by corrupting its drives or intentionally doing so for other reasons), so restarting your phone in safe mode may help you verify that. In safe mode, only first party or pre-installed apps will be allowed to run so it’s very helpful in isolating if an app is the culprit. To do it, just follow these steps:

  • Turn the device off.
  • Press and hold the Power key.
  • When Samsung Galaxy S6 appears on the screen, release the Power key.
  • Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume Down key.
  • Continue to hold the Volume Down key until the device finishes restarting.
  • Safe mode will display in the bottom left corner of the screen.
  • Release the Volume Down key when you see Safe Mode.

If the microphone works fine while in safe mode, start uninstalling third party apps that may cause the trouble.

Perform a factory reset

As you may probably known by now, factory reset is an easy way to bring back the phone’s defaults back in minutes. This procedure is always recommended if you suspect that a problem is due to faulty settings, corrupted firmware, or erratic apps. Doing a factory reset will delete everything that’s kept in the phone’s internal memory storage so make sure that you have a backup of your personal data before you proceed.

Here’s how to do it:

  • Power down the Galaxy S6.
  • Press and hold the Volume Up button, the Home button, and the Power button together until you see the Android on screen.
  • Use Volume Down to highlight the wipe data/factory reset option and press the Power button to select it.
  • Use Volume Down again to highlight Yes – delete all user data and press Power to select it.
  • Use the Power button to select Reboot system now.
  • When the S6 restarts it should be completely wiped and ready to set up again.

Unplug any headphone or Bluetooth device connected to your phone

If you use to call someone using a headphone or a Bluetooth peripheral, try disconnecting them to check the state of the phone’s microphone.

Record a simulated call and listen to it

If a factory reset does not change anything, you most likely have a hardware problem at hand. One of the best ways to confirm that is to try to record your own voice or call using a recording app. If your voice sounds faint or hardly audible, proceed to the next step.

Clean the microphone hole

Make sure that the tiny pin hole at the bottom of the Galaxy S6 is free of any visible dirt or debris that can block your voice. Try using compressed air to blow on the hole.

Have the phone checked

If nothing seems to change after doing all of the above procedures, you must have a bad microphone in your device. Have a technician check the hardware so it can be fixed accordingly.

 


Engage with us

If you are one of the users who encounters a problem with your device, let us know. We offer solutions for Android-related problems for free so if you have an issue with your Android device, simply fill in the short questionnaire in this link and we will try to publish our answers in the next posts. We cannot guarantee a quick response so if your issue is time sensitive, please find another way to resolve your problem. 

When describing your issue, please be as detailed as possible so we can easily pinpoint a relevant solution. If you can, kindly include the exact error messages you are getting to give us an idea where to start. If you have already tried some troubleshooting steps before emailing us, make sure to mention them so we can skip them in our answers.

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