Blueskysea B1W in a truck

[dash riposki]

That will be hardware, or software update?

Here's another 'audio' example:

B1W:

A119:

I'm not hoping to record the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing '6 Days on the Road..' with the B1W, but the audio needs to be usable.



Otherwise, the B1W is a pretty reliable, simple dash cam.

 

[SawMaster]

For voices you only need the audio range from 300Hz to 3.4kHz; all the rest can be chopped completely. These are the specs land-line telephones operate with Should be in firmware- it would be odd if a mic change was needed though that is a remote possibility.

Phil

 

[dash riposki]

Horns, crash sounds, squealing tires would be nice.
The recorded audio on the B1W is a bit puzzling to me, the rumble or distortion is pretty variable.

Here's a weigh station transponder beeping. The transponder is 3-4 inches from the B1W, and A119:
There are two different tones of beep, and a multicolored LED. This beep is accompanied by a green LED, and means I don't have to stop.
A different toned beep with RED led means I have to pull into the weigh station.

(it's nice to have a record of this, even though the transponder LED blinks with the respective color periodically for an hour or so after it was triggered.)

B1W:

A119:

If the Audio can't be corrected by firmware on the B1W, I'm stuck with a second 'potentially good dashcam with bad/inadequate audio' to accompany the WR1.

 

[SawMaster]

My guess is that only the lowest bass will need to be cut, but this kind of noise can also be caused by vibrations at the mic. One possible solution for that is to let the mic 'float' away from the PCB held only by it's leads instead of being mounted tightly to the PCB. If the mic is mounted to the case then using silicone instead of a harder-setting glue might help. Also might try some extremely soft foam on the face of the mic which is barely compressed when the cam is assembled. "Rumble" interference like this is the toughest to handle if vibration is a major cause unless you've got room to spring or foam mount the mic, which you don't with a small dashcam like this

Just have to wait and see what Blueskysea can do with it There IS hope for an acceptable fix, hopefully via firmware

Phil

 

[Leonauto]

I think I got some more detailed information in the tests of the source of noise that affects the distortion of sound - this is the noise from the tires when driving at high speed or noise when driving along the road with irregularities (gravel, etc.). The main frequency range, which is the source of the overload of the sound path during the motion, is in the range of up to 4,500 Hz.

This may suggest that in the B1W the manufacturer needs to cut the low (to 600Hz) and the average (from 600 Hz to 5000 Hz) frequency range

There may also be a reason in the microphone due to its inconsistencies in performance

Examples of sound in the WAV and diagrams of frequency analysis of sound (only distortion / noise; voice + noise; only voice), I sent to @estore009 .

 

[dash riposki]

FWIW, I'm using aftermarket 3m VHB which is thicker, should have some additional vibration dampening properties, but I don't notice any obvious vibration.

I hope there is a simple solution to this. Otherwise the B1W is very good cam for the price. I've put about 5500 miles of use on it in two weeks.

 

[SawMaster]

I did record a bit of audio with mine in the back of the minivan and it was much cleaner, but all of that driving was around town at lower speeds. You pribably wouldn't be able to physically detect this kind of vibration while sitting in the truck yourself as the whole cab is probably vibrating equally. One way to test for vibration related issues us to dangle the mic (in this case the whole cam) in free air with a weak stretchy rubber-band or to mount it on foam rubber which wil dampen vibrations. Kind of tough to do in your case

When I roadied with a sound studio way back when, we checked for the amount of stage floor 'rumble' by putting a pillow under the mic stands and walking heavily across the stage floor, then comparing that with the mic stands on the floor directly. We could move them forward or back to find a 'sweet spot' where the vibration resonance wasn't as bad, and we had felt and rubber sheeting we added under them too when we needed it, but there was always some 'pinking in' to be done to compensate. Some of our mics were more sensitive to this than others. I really wish I remembered more of those days- I was pretty much wasted most of that time from drugs and alcohol back then Life is much better sober

Phil

 

[dash riposki]

Spot the texter, in Portland, Oregon this morning?

(when they do it in a pickup without window tinting, at night....it's easy.)

 

[dash riposki]

I thought I'd move the B1W to a different mounting surface, and see if any improvement in the audio.
I still suspect resonance/vibration, etc.

I placed it on top of the dash, 3 inches from my Truck GPS. (I've used other cams there with no problems)
Within two minutes of plugging the GPS in, I lose the satellites on the GPS.
Unplug the b1w? Within 30 seconds the GPS works again.
I've tried several power sources, (Including the OEM) and USB cables.
i'm running the b1W off of a powerbank at this point. NOPE. Does it also, but takes about 5 minutes to block Satellite reception.
Unplug it from the powerbank? Signal back in seconds.

Just curious,and wonder if somehow related to the audio problems?

 

[Leonauto]

I thought I'd move the B1W to a different mounting surface, and see if any improvement in the audio.

So, what about testing audio? What results are there?
No, noise in radio frequencies can not affect to audio, these are two different problems

And do you have a FM radio, could you check how the inclusion of B1W affects the quality of radio reception?

Try to screen the case of B1W with foil and check the loss of GPS satellites.

 

[dash riposki]

I'm still working on the audio stuff.

Here's a recorded conversation with a person standing outside my truck, my window is rolled down, I'm in the drivers seat, truck engine is off.
The first voice you hear is the person on the ground, outside of the truck, probably 10 feet away from the B1W, which was mounted at the top center of the truck windshield.

All sounds good, right?

The ability to record clean audio in this situation is a big plus. All ok if the truck is not running.

 

[dash riposki]

Ok, back to the 'moving' audio.
Truck is doing 99-100 KPH.

I just plugged the B1w in, again, and I'm waiting for the 'lost satellite reception' message on the GPS.

You can make it out.....somewhat. The B1W is maybe 4 inches from the GPS.




Now the A119, which is on the top center of the windshield, and 20-22 inches away from the GPS.

Much clearer audio, less road and engine noise.
You can also hear the radio in the background.




The GPS 'issue'. If I move the GPS about 16 inches away from the B1W, the satellite reception problems end.

I also have some electronic toll and weigh station transponders on top of the windshield. I assume they are RFID or something?
No wires, I can move them when I have time, but otherwise don't have any control over them.

 

[dash riposki]

Here's unedited footage, but not sure how much audio processing is done by youtube?
Notice the surges in the rumble and distortion.

Due to the clean audio from the parked video with engine off, and the loudness of the person outside of the truck, (Who was not yelling), is the gain of the mic too high?

 

[SawMaster]

I think you're onto something. I noticed the 'drops' occurred when there were bumps in the road, which would act as 'bass' input (low frequency vibration) which is exactly like an over-driven mic

The GPS RFI is another story. If foil alone doesn't work, try grounding the foil to the cab body or a negative power lead not used for the GPS. If foil does work, metal window screen usually has an equal effect while allowing better airflow (paint it black for stealth)

Phil

 

[dash riposki]

The GPS thing isn't so important, in itself. Just unusual.

The B1W isn't likely to stay in that position on top of the dash. It looks like keeping the B1W at least 16 inches from the GPS 'solves' the problem, anyway. I didn't think to check if it affected the GPS on the A119 when it was a few inches away? I can't really see the GPS info on the screen when driving.

 

[Leonauto]

Here's unedited footage, but not sure how much audio processing is done by youtube?

When playing through the browser, the AAC 128 kbps stream is loaded
So there should be no strong distortion

 

[dash riposki]

I did the two bin file updates. No apparent improvement in the audio.

 

[van1337]

I did the two bin file updates. No apparent improvement in the audio.

Damn, I thought today's update would fix it..That's disappointing.

 

[estore009]

I did the two bin file updates. No apparent improvement in the audio.

Please PM me this download link for these raw videos,and we will have a check again!

 

[dash riposki]

Sent some.
I'm also noticing a modest difference in the distortion levels between the two different trucks I've used the B1W in, when checking some old files.

There may be some electrical interference problems in the current truck.

I put a mobius in the windshield yesterday for the purpose of another cam to compare the audio to.

When checking the files on the mobius, I notice some electric motor whine, not heard on other dashcams.

I am using some daisy chained outlet multipliers, which may be the problem. (the overhead power point I usually use to power dash cams is screwed up on this older truck,)


Here's video from the mobius, and you can here the 'whine' starting up. (Behind the CNY music on youtube)

Roughly same segment from the B1W: