No sound in FaceTime calls with Logitech C615

[arsradu]

Hey guys

 

So..as you can probably tell from the title, I got a Logitech C615 webcam and the main reason why I got this, was to try out FaceTime calls (especially carrier calls routed through the iPhone). Now, if everything would have been ok with this, there wouldn't be a purpose for this thread, would it?

But it isn't. FaceTime carrier voice calls (haven't tried regular ones yet, but I heard it's exactly the same issue for that case, as well) don't work. You can call someone, you can answer a call, but even though you will hear that someone, he won't hear you.

 

First I thought it's the codec (I'm using ALC892). So I went to System Preferences and checked out the Inputs. It was set to Logitech Camera and it was clearly picking up the sound through the camera's built-in microphone. So it's not that.

 

Also, I made Skype calls and they work perfectly, both voice and video.

 

After that, I thought it might be FaceTime not being set to use the camera's built-in mic (in Facetime -> Video). And, although, at first it wasn't indeed set to use the Logitech camera for mic, setting it afterwards didn't make any difference.

 

What's even more interesting is that I don't think this is a hack issue. People with real Macs seem to have it too.

 

And it can't be a Logitech issue either since Skype works fine and the sound is picked up in System Preferences -> Sound. So, right now, I'm thinking FaceTime issues using anything else other than the built-in mic. Which is disappointing, especially since I got this camera especially for this particular feature (FaceTime voice and video calls).

 

So, the reason for this thread is to check out what you guys think/know about this issue. Did anyone of you encounter this issue? Did you manage to fix it somehow?

 

I saw someone suggesting to use a command (sudo killall coreaudiod) to temporarily fix this issue. It didn't fix anything in my case. Moreover, it killed the sound in YouTube videos (probably in other places as well). Interestingly enough, not the system sound effects. But anyway, after that, I had to reboot to have sound again. And, as I said, it didn't fix the FaceTime issue either.

 

So...anybody? Somebody? Suggestions to fix this? Any workaround?

[holyfield]

Have you tested with any other USB mic? Take a screenshot of audio output panel on systems prefs.

[arsradu]

Have you tested with any other USB mic? Take a screenshot of audio output panel on systems prefs.

No, I haven't cause I don't have one. But other people did. And they got the same result. So far, it seems as though FaceTime doesn't reroute the input sound to come from any external devices. It might work with built-in mic. But of course there is no such thing on my hack. And....output panel? Are you sure you don't mean input panel? There is nothing wrong with my speakers. The mic is the problem. And, so far, only with FaceTime.

 

 

[holyfield]

Maybe there is aissue with your audio interface settings. Open Audio-Midi tool and test various settings. Close facetime before making changes and open again after changes. Try switch formats.

 

[arsradu]

Maybe there is aissue with your audio interface settings. Open Audio-Midi tool and test various settings. Close facetime before making changes and open again after changes. Try switch formats.

 

 

Yeah, I already tried that. I came across a post somewhere which was saying the same thing. I guess you did too. So that's actually the first thing I tried. Also, as I said above, people with real Macs got the same issue. Can't be a coincidence. 

But I got a question: did YOU try it? Does it work for you? Do you have a USB microphone or a USB webcam with built-in microphone? Cause I kinda doubt it's gonna work for you, no matter what you choose in your audio device's settings.

 

Update: seems like now it works....for some reason. Last night I got the same issue (no sound) after switching between those formats. And now it works. I'll keep an eye on this, just to confirm it works after a few days of use.

 

Yesterday I also installed a plugin for Hangouts (in browser), but I don't see how could that affect FaceTime calls... As I said, I'll keep an eye on this in the next few days and see how it works (if it still works).

 

Thanks

[holyfield]

Did you try to change iMessage Audio/Video settings before launching FaceTime?

[arsradu]

Did you try to change iMessage Audio/Video settings before launching FaceTime?

Hmm....I didn't even know that iMessage has its own setting for audio/video. So I would say no to that. )

I don't think it has anything to do with iMessage... But who knows? I might be wrong.

 

But as I said, last night it worked. So I'm not sure what exactly made it work. Also, I notice the input level in the System Properties for the Logitech Camera was right in the middle, at 50%, compared to about 85% where I left it before. I didn't even touch it afterwards. I don't want to break it again. )

[luki1979]

Everything non Apple on USB is sometimes flimsy. My USB sound card has to be sometimes unplugged and repluged to work. I use old Apple FireWire iSight and it's working great, but there is no proper Windows drivers for it though. Glad it's working for you now.

[arsradu]

Everything non Apple on USB is sometimes flimsy. My USB sound card has to be sometimes unplugged and repluged to work. I use old Apple FireWire iSight and it's working great, but there is no proper Windows drivers for it though. Glad it's working for you now.

I read somewhere that even with proprietary Apple hardware, people have the same issue. Mine seems to have miraculously disappeared. Well, not really miraculously. But I'm not quite sure what exactly made it work.

I did switch between formats, as holyfield suggested, but I actually did nothing more than switching between them and set it back to where it was. So...I don't know. And I do remember trying this before. And it didn't work.

There are only two things that I did differently.

1. installing that browser plugin for Hangouts... But I don't quite see how could that affect FaceTime calls. Especially voice calls, routed through the iPhone.

2. the sound in Inputs is set exactly to 50% (I didn't set it). Probably when switching between formats, it switched the volume to default as well.

 

UPDATE: So, after some testing, it seems that the thing that causes the issue is......(drumroll), the mic's sensitivity level. Works just fine at 50% (most likely default value). It will work fine at more than that (I brought mine to 75%), but only until the next reboot. After that...it's gonna be the silence of the lambs. So I put the slider back to 50%, restarted and...voila! Everything is back to normal. Hope it helps others as well.