topic Re: Spotify quieter in Desktop (Windows)

Spotify quieter

PythonV2 — Tue, 28 Jan 2025 16:48:18 GMT

Plan

Free

Country

Hungary

Device

Operating System

Windows 10

My Question or Issue

Hi, I copied the root folder to another location, then back, and since then the downloaded app has become quieter, but so much so that what was 30% is now 60% as loud. When I listen from a browser, 30% is 30%, not 60% as in the app

Re: Spotify quieter

PythonV2 — Tue, 28 Jan 2025 17:02:41 GMT

Oh, I forgot to add, I did clean reset (I think that's what its called) twice

Re: Spotify quieter

Novy — Tue, 28 Jan 2025 20:09:48 GMT

Hey there @PythonV2,

Thanks for reaching out!

Just to confirm, are you talking about the folder in which the app is installed or about local files?

If you haven't already, we'd suggest performing a clean reinstall of the app to see if that makes any difference. Also, make sure that the app volume is properly adjusted in the sound mixer.

Keep us posted.

Re: Spotify quieter

PythonV2 — Tue, 28 Jan 2025 21:50:45 GMT

Yes, i forgot to add, i did clean reinstall twice, and yes, I moved the local files back and forth, the sound mixer is good, even in win+g. In browser its good, but in the app no

Re: Spotify quieter

Novy — Wed, 29 Jan 2025 17:41:44 GMT

Hey @PythonV2,

Thanks for getting back to us.

If possible, could you record a video where we can see how things are looking from your end? You can attach it to your next response or upload it to another platform like YouTube or Google Drive and send a link to it. Make sure to hide any personal or sensitive information, and to give it the relevant permissions if you decide to upload it somewhere else.

It'd be also helpful to know the exact Spotify version you're currently running, along with your device's model and make.

We'll be on the lookout for your reply.

Re: Spotify quieter

PythonV2 — Wed, 29 Jan 2025 21:44:48 GMT

Hi, as you can see, the volume is the same, but the app is quieter. If I open it in the browser and then in the app, it's normal, but if I close the browser, it drops down, as you can hear at the beginning. I use PC, Spotify for Windows (64 bit)
1.2.55.235.g5eaa0904
Here is the video about it: https://youtu.be/8msQMrr088k?si=o1a1cqJxq8lmNNC4

Re: Spotify quieter

Yordan — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 07:41:03 GMT

Thanks for the screen recording, @PythonV2!

Just to confirm, have you set the Streaming quality in the Spotify app to High? Make sure to also disable the Normalize volume option - this should increase the overall volume. If you're using the built-in Equalizer, I'd recommend disabling it temporarily as well to see if that helps.

Let us know how it goes 👍

Re: Spotify quieter

PythonV2 — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 12:20:35 GMT

Hi, yes the streaming quality is on high, i tried everything I found in this community and reddit, nothing helped so far. I don't use the equalizer, but tried to turn on-off, then did the same with "normalize volume", but still the same as on the video 😕

Re: Spotify quieter

Yordan — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 13:23:28 GMT

Thanks for testing, @PythonV2 👍

Could you also check if there's a difference when the volume slider for the desktop app and the Web Player are maxed out?

Something else you can do is disable the communication settings, as well as Exclusive Mode and audio enhancements in Windows:

Go to Start > Settings > System > Sound > Sound Control Panel, switch to the Communications tab and set "When Windows detects communications activity" to Do nothing.
Head back to the Playback tab, then right-click your audio output device and select Properties. In the new window that pops up, switch to the Advanced tab and untick "Exclusive Mode" + "Enable audio enhancements".

You also mentioned that you've reinstalled the app. Just to confirm, is it installed in the default location? Depending on the version you're running, it's located in:

Our website: %appdata%\Spotify
Microsoft Store: "C:\Program Files\WindowsApps"

It's also worth installing a different version to see if the issue would occur there as well. If you downloaded Spotify from our website, try the one from the Microsoft Store instead and vice versa.

Keep us posted on this!

Re: Spotify quieter

PythonV2 — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 14:33:21 GMT

Hi, i tried everything you wrote. If i max out the volume slider, the browser is louder then the app, and yes, I installed it into the default location. If I turn off the audio enhancements, nothing changes.

Re: Spotify quieter

Yordan — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 14:43:01 GMT

Hi, @PythonV2,

Thanks for the continued assistance!

Looking at this other thread about another sound-related issue, the users say that disabling Hardware acceleration for the desktop app did the trick for them. Could you give this a try as well to see if it works for you too? You can do this from the app's settings > Compatibility.

As for the Web Player, it's worth checking if using another browser makes a difference.

Cheers 🤘

Re: Spotify quieter

PythonV2 — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 17:23:13 GMT

Hi, i did it, its still the same

Re: Spotify quieter

feniksrawr — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 21:02:16 GMT

its happen to me too its like the last 2 updates broke the spotify (im using microsoft store one with windows 10)
i try to diagnose but i found out the Loudness Squalization on Enhancements not working but if u try it on spotify browser is working
i got temporary fix this but its only good for listening song if u playing some games it will make the game sound quiter (system -> sound -> select your speakers near the top under output -> spatial sounds under "Advanced" near the bottom -> select Windows sonic for headphones)
here the proof the loudness equalization not working https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ohAdLvPGWU
please fix this spotify i already complain on x but still no updates 😕

Re: Spotify quieter

Eni — Fri, 31 Jan 2025 22:36:02 GMT

Hey folks,

Thanks for all the info you've sent so far.

We've passed this info on the right team to be looked into, but we can't commit to a timeframe for when or if it will be fixed. In this case, we suggest keeping the app up to date so you don't miss out on any future fixes or improvements.

Cheers!

Re: Spotify quieter

PythonV2 — Mon, 03 Feb 2025 14:47:53 GMT

Hi, i freshly subscribed to premium, and i clicked on the button "music video" out of curiosity, and it got louder, if I go back to audio, its get quieter, I don't know if its help with this bug search, but here is the link: https://youtu.be/JroM5NQEGfY

Re: Spotify quieter

BjornRoth — Tue, 04 Feb 2025 15:11:19 GMT

Hello @PythonV2, so recently we rolled out a change in the Windows Spotify client: it now uses the WASAPI interface to play audio instead of the legacy DirectSound interface. This was a long-overdue modernisation of the app (possibly delayed because there was nothing particularly broken with DirectSound, it's just deprecated by Microsoft since many years).

Likely the move of your application coincided with this update, and re-installing etc of course then won't change anything back.

With the WASAPI update comes a volume curve that is updated to better match how applications are supposed to behave in Windows. There might be a difference in the middle of the curve compared to before but there is no difference in loudness at 100%.

The web player uses a completely different software stack so may be differences in how audio is rendered there compared to the desktop client. Moving playback back and forth between the web player and the desktop client with volume < 100% might lead to volume jumps. Ideally, this should not happen but if it does this would be the reason.

Likewise, music videos in the desktop client are not applying the same type of audio level normalisation as audio tracks do, nor do they use the same software stack for playback. This is due to technical reasons that hopefully will change in the future.

Re: Spotify quieter

feniksrawr — Fri, 07 Feb 2025 23:40:33 GMT

Hi @BjornRoth Any solution for this?

Re: Spotify quieter

jn15 — Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:04:54 GMT

I've been trying to nail down this issue for awhile so I really appreciate you clarifying.

Does "Windows Sonic for Headphones" use the legacy interface? The sound seems to revert back to the old volume curve with this setting for me. The downside is that other programs (e.g. games) don't work well with this setting - they're quieter.

Thanks!

Re: Spotify quieter

s1erra — Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:19:08 GMT

Hey @BjornRoth thanks for the information. But also my honest critique: the lack of communication about the matter wasted countless hours on anyones end. If Spotify had just communicated the issue straight forward.

Re: Spotify quieter

BjornRoth — Wed, 12 Feb 2025 20:08:28 GMT

The legacy code for DirectSound is gone, we only use WASAPI now.