Call quality troubleshooting
Diagnose and resolve call quality issues including choppy audio, delays, echoes, and dropped calls
Overview
Most OpenPhone calls deliver crystal clear audio, but connection or device issues can occasionally affect call quality. This comprehensive guide helps diagnose and resolve common audio problems to ensure optimal call experiences.Call quality issues are often caused by network jitter, device settings, or hardware positioning. Most problems can be resolved with simple troubleshooting steps.
Common call quality issues
Audio is choppy, robotic, or breaking up during calls
Audio is choppy, robotic, or breaking up during calls
Symptoms:
- Audio “breaking up” or cutting out
- Robotic or distorted voice quality
- Intermittent sound drops
- Reset internet router and wait 60 seconds
- Switch from WiFi to cellular data or vice versa
- Close background applications consuming CPU resources
- Try different device (mobile vs desktop)
- Contact support if issue persists with one contact only
One party cannot hear the other during calls
One party cannot hear the other during calls
Symptoms:
- One party cannot hear the other
- Complete audio loss on one or both sides
- Intermittent audio dropouts
- Device permission settings
- Network connectivity issues
- Hardware configuration problems
- Check permissions - verify microphone access enabled
- Verify mute status - ensure neither party has mute activated
- Check hold status - confirm call is not on hold
- Follow network troubleshooting steps
- Complete power cycle of device
Experiencing delayed or out-of-sync audio
Experiencing delayed or out-of-sync audio
Symptoms:
- Noticeable lag between speaking and hearing response
- Conversations feeling “out of sync”
- Long pauses before audio transmission
- Reset router and test connection speed
- Try alternative internet source
- Stop background programs affecting performance
- Test on different device type
- Determine if issue is contact-specific
Hearing echo or feedback during calls
Hearing echo or feedback during calls
Symptoms:
- Hearing your own voice repeated back
- Delayed echo after speaking
- Feedback loops during conversation
- Speakerphone positioning
- Volume levels too high
- Microphone and speaker proximity
- Disable speakerphone - use handset mode instead
- Lower volume - reduce speaker output to prevent feedback
- Uncover microphone - ensure bottom mic is not blocked (mobile)
- Use headset - switch to dedicated headphones/microphone
- Device restart - complete power cycle to reset audio settings
Volume is too loud, too quiet, or inconsistent
Volume is too loud, too quiet, or inconsistent
Symptoms:
- Audio too loud or too quiet
- Inconsistent volume levels
- Difficulty hearing clearly
- Device volume settings
- Hardware positioning
- Microphone sensitivity issues
- Adjust device positioning - move closer/farther from microphone
- Use headset - try dedicated audio equipment
- Disable speakerphone - switch to handset for better control
- Check volume settings - verify system and app volume levels
- Device switching - test with different hardware
Static, crackling, or background noise on calls
Static, crackling, or background noise on calls
Symptoms:
- Crackling or static sounds
- Background interference
- Audio distortion or fuzziness
- Hardware positioning issues
- Environmental interference
- Connection quality problems
- Hardware solutions - use headset, adjust device placement
- Disable speakerphone - eliminate feedback and interference
- Check microphone - ensure clean, unobstructed audio input
- Network troubleshooting - address connection-related static
- Device switching - try different hardware to isolate issue
Calls drop unexpectedly or disconnect frequently
Calls drop unexpectedly or disconnect frequently
Symptoms:
- Calls ending unexpectedly
- Abrupt disconnections
- Frequent call failures
- Network instability
- Software issues
- Device performance problems
- Network stability - reset router and test connection consistency
- Switch networks - try alternative internet source
- Close applications - free up device resources
- Device switching - test mobile vs desktop performance
- Software reset - restart browser or app completely
General troubleshooting steps
Network and internet connection optimization
Network and internet connection optimization
Network optimization:
- Reset router: Power cycle your WiFi router for 30 seconds
- Switch networks: Try cellular data if using WiFi, or vice versa
- Check bandwidth: Ensure adequate upload/download speeds for voice calls
- Reduce network load: Close bandwidth-intensive applications
- Wired connection: Use Ethernet instead of WiFi when possible
- Network quality: Test internet speed and stability
- QoS settings: Configure Quality of Service for voice traffic priority
- Router placement: Ensure strong WiFi signal strength
Device performance and hardware optimization
Device performance and hardware optimization
Performance improvements:
- Close background apps: Stop CPU-intensive programs during calls
- Restart device: Power cycle completely to clear memory issues
- Update software: Ensure latest OpenPhone app and OS versions
- Switch devices: Try desktop vs mobile to identify device-specific issues
- Microphone positioning: Keep microphone clear and at appropriate distance
- Speaker placement: Avoid blocking speakers or causing feedback
- Headset usage: Use dedicated headset for better audio isolation
- Device placement: Position device for optimal microphone pickup
Advanced troubleshooting
Systematic diagnosis to identify call quality patterns
Systematic diagnosis to identify call quality patterns
Isolation testing:
- Contact-specific: Test with multiple contacts to identify patterns
- Device comparison: Try same call on different devices
- Network testing: Switch between WiFi and cellular
- Time-based: Note if issues occur at specific times
- Environment: Test in different physical locations
- Network speed: Regular bandwidth and latency testing
- Device performance: Monitor CPU and memory usage during calls
- Call quality: Track audio quality across multiple calls
- Pattern identification: Document when issues occur most frequently
- Same contact always = Their connection/device issue
- Specific times = Network congestion
- One device only = Device-specific problem
- All scenarios = Account or service issue
Hardware optimization for better call quality
Hardware optimization for better call quality
Audio equipment recommendations:
- Professional headsets: Invest in quality audio equipment for regular use
- USB microphones: Consider dedicated microphones for desktop use
- Audio interfaces: Use professional audio equipment for consistent quality
- Environmental control: Minimize background noise and echo
- Regular updates: Keep all software current
- Storage management: Maintain adequate free space (10% minimum)
- Background cleanup: Regularly close unnecessary applications
- Hardware inspection: Check for damaged speakers or microphones
- Headsets: Jabra, Poly (Plantronics), Sennheiser business lines
- USB mics: Blue Yeti, Audio-Technica ATR2100x
- Avoid: Built-in laptop mics, cheap earbuds
- Best practice: Dedicated quiet space for calls
When to contact support
Information to gather before contacting support
Information to gather before contacting support
Essential details to document:
- Your OpenPhone phone number
- Three recent numbers experiencing issues
- Specific dates and times of problematic calls
- Device type and app version used
- Description of specific audio problems
- Duration of issues (entire call vs intermittent)
- Network type used (WiFi vs cellular)
- Any error messages received
- Steps already attempted to resolve
- iOS/Android: Settings → About in OpenPhone app
- Web: Click profile icon → About
- Desktop: Help menu → About OpenPhone
When issues require support team assistance
When issues require support team assistance
Contact support when:
- Issues persist after trying all troubleshooting steps
- Problems occur with multiple contacts consistently
- Audio quality severely impacts business communications
- Device switching doesn’t resolve issues
- Network optimization doesn’t improve quality
- Specific examples (not just “calls are bad”)
- Pattern details (time of day, specific contacts)
- Network environment details
- What you’ve already tried
- Business impact description
Prevention strategies
Proactive maintenance to prevent call quality issues
Proactive maintenance to prevent call quality issues
Network maintenance schedule:
- Weekly: Restart router and modem
- Monthly: Run speed tests and document results
- Quarterly: Update router firmware
- Annually: Review and upgrade internet plan if needed
- Daily: Close unnecessary apps before important calls
- Weekly: Restart devices to clear memory
- Monthly: Check for app and OS updates
- As needed: Clean microphones and speakers
- Designate quiet space for calls
- Use acoustic treatment if echo is common
- Position router centrally in workspace
- Test lighting and audio in video call areas
Best practices for consistent call quality
Best practices for consistent call quality
Pre-call checklist:
- ✓ Close bandwidth-heavy applications
- ✓ Check internet connection stability
- ✓ Use wired connection if available
- ✓ Test audio with quick test call
- ✓ Have backup device ready
- Minimum: Dedicated headset (not phone earbuds)
- Better: USB headset with noise cancellation
- Best: Professional headset with dedicated base
- Network: Business-grade router with QoS
- Keep call quality log for patterns
- Note time of day for issues
- Document which contacts have problems
- Track improvements after changes
- Schedule regular quality reviews