[Q] Speaker problems, software or hardware? - Atrix 4G Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

My Atrix worked flawlessly for the last 6 months on Jokersax's ICS rom and CM9. Last month my headphones stopped working, and a work or so ago speakerphone stopped working. 2 days ago the ear speaker went out. The mic is still working fine, I just get no audio whatsoever.
Any ideas?
It's at a repair shop at the moment, but the guy called and said he's not seeing any issues with the speaker itself.
If it is software, what might fix this? I even tried flashing a new rom with no fix.

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My first question is does the headphone out work? I would guess that if the headphone jack audio is fine then you might need to replace or repair the jack on the phone. There is a switch built into it that cuts sound to the speakers when headphones are plugged in. It is unlikely for that to stick, but not impossible. Fortunately. That repair is very easy to do. I have pics of it somewhere. I'll put them online if you need them.
If it isn't that and you can't find audio at the headphone contact points on the board you probably are going to need a new board.

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JdgM3NT4L said:
My first question is does the headphone out work? I would guess that if the headphone jack audio is fine then you might need to replace or repair the jack on the phone. There is a switch built into it that cuts sound to the speakers when headphones are plugged in. It is unlikely for that to stick, but not impossible. Fortunately. That repair is very easy to do. I have pics of it somewhere. I'll put them online if you need them.
If it isn't that and you can't find audio at the headphone contact points on the board you probably are going to need a new board.
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Headphone was the first thing to stop working.

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My ear speaker also stopped working. I tried flashing different roms but apparently the problem won't solve. My first guess is this is a hardware issue. Try do the same as in order to make sure.

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This is exactly what happened to me. All of my audio outputs were shot. But if I whacked my phone against my hand, sometimes the headphones would work, so I'm betting on hardware. I have tried multiple roms but none seem to work. You can try flashing a GB rom, like Neutrino, with a full wipe, just to make sure its not software. GB roms have all of the official drivers needed for this phone, so they would be the roms that most likely fix it, if it is software.
PS: JdgM3NT4L if you could please put those pics of the headphone switch on here or direct me to them, I'd appreciate it. I'd like to see if that makes a difference on my Atrix. Thank You

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akitten007 said:
This is exactly what happened to me. All of my audio outputs were shot. But if I whacked my phone against my hand, sometimes the headphones would work, so I'm betting on hardware. I have tried multiple roms but none seem to work. You can try flashing a GB rom, like Neutrino, with a full wipe, just to make sure its not software. GB roms have all of the official drivers needed for this phone, so they would be the roms that most likely fix it, if it is software.
PS: JdgM3NT4L if you could please put those pics of the headphone switch on here or direct me to them, I'd appreciate it. I'd like to see if that makes a difference on my Atrix. Thank You
Click to expand...
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You know what, I am so sorry that I let this slip. Here are the photos and an observation.
First pic shows the headphone jack from inside of the phone.
I simply removed the battery cover, removed 8 screws and gently pried the back off.
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This photo shows me beginning to remove one of the contacts.
This one shows one of the contacts removed.
And this one shows the camera board where the headphone jack makes contact.
And if you want to simply replace the whole jack it comes out easily, those are available on ebay.
If I was not able to repair your problem by taking those pins out and checking them for breaks, and possibly re-bending them back into shape.
I think that I would consider either a new jack. Or a new camera board, since that is the first point of contact. Also that is where I would check for audio. It would be a little difficult getting the battery in place and manipulating the phone to play while it is apart, but doable with enough resolve.
Please accept my apologies for not responding sooner. I really meant to get to this way before now...