Echo goes deaf when TV is on

[larryllix]

I can successfully give Alexa instructions from another room if I raise my voice about 50 feet away but if my TV is on almost no manner of yelling at about 2 feet away will get a response.

 

I have found that the Echo likes a deeper male voice and is very responsive at interpreting my voice over most noise

 

However if my TV is on via some large tower speakers, even at a very low volume Alexa just turns a a deaf ear.

 

I am beginning to wonder the Onkyo receiver generates some kind of noise that interferes with it. Perhaps my receiver is generating some sub-sonic noise that is saturating the microphone inputs?

 

 

After setting it up and rehearsing a bunch of commands I attempted to demonstrate the thing to some guests and earned a bunch of Echo enemies in the process. I could see them shaking their heads and saying "what a waste of money" where Alexa wouldn't even take the most basic of commands spoken to her from 2 feet away.

 

I pulled her down from the top of the desk cabinet and put her on the desk for a talk-downto position with a slightly better response but what an embarrassment.

 

Anybody else found a dramatic change in response like this?

[DennisC]

I have not noticed any changes in ours. Our Echo was sitting right on top 7.1 channel speaker connected to the tv and could hear us fine from 15 - 20 feet away even with tv on. In fact, on occasion, Alexa was known to respond to the tv when a character was named Alexa.

 

Dennis

[rccoleman]

I can successfully give Alexa instructions from another room if I raise my voice about 50 feet away but if my TV is on almost no manner of yelling at about 2 feet away will get a response.

 

I have found that the Echo likes a deeper male voice and is very responsive at interpreting my voice over most noise

 

However if my TV is on via some large tower speakers, even at a very low volume Alexa just turns a a deaf ear.

 

I am beginning to wonder the Onkyo receiver generates some kind of noise that interferes with it. Perhaps my receiver is generating some sub-sonic noise that is saturating the microphone inputs?

 

 

After setting it up and rehearsing a bunch of commands I attempted to demonstrate the thing to some guests and earned a bunch of Echo enemies in the process. I could see them shaking their heads and saying "what a waste of money" where Alexa wouldn't even take the most basic of commands spoken to her from 2 feet away.

 

I pulled her down from the top of the desk cabinet and put her on the desk for a talk-downto position with a slightly better response but what an embarrassment.

 

Anybody else found a dramatic change in response like this?

I've seen the same thing with just a Samsung TV using the built in speakers and my new Echo Dot. Even raising my voice and lowering the TV volume wasn't enough - I had to walk right up to the Dot and speak directly at it. Without the TV on, the Dot works fine from across the room. My Dot is next to a window, so I'm not excited about yelling at it and having my neighbors wonder what the heck I'm doing. That TV does seem to have an outsized influence on my Dot.

 

I also have an Echo in the same room with a Denon surround sound system and its able to pick out my commands much better with the TV on. I've also had it spring to life when it heard something Alexa-like on the TV

 

You may be onto something about there being background noise that I can't hear, but messes up the Echo/Dot's recognition.

[Teken]

If your physical speaking location is fixed a simple method to try is cut a small piece of paper and wrap just the back side of the case.

 

It will look like a collar on the unit and will focus the sound to the multi point far field microphones. This simple trick will negate the direct / reflection of reverberation from impacting the system.

Edited June 25, 2016 by Teken

[rccoleman]

If your physical speaking location is fixed a simple method to try is cut a small piece of paper and wrap just the back side of the case.

 

It will look like a collar on the unit and will focus the sound to the multi point far field microphones. This simple trick will negate the direct / reflection of reverberation from impacting the system.

 

Thanks, I'll experiment with that.  Maybe it won't look as goofy with black paper.

[Teken]

Thanks, I'll experiment with that.  Maybe it won't look as goofy with black paper.

 

If your willing to take the time it will reduce the *ghetto* look but not by much. I played with the same method a few months ago and it has worked beautifully in taming Alexa from ignoring my commands.

 

While helping out a friend do the same we played with different arrangements like just sealing the other 3-4 microphones. Whereas another friend we simply secured the black paper at the very bottom so the top curved away but above the ring about 1/2" - 3/4".

 

Both of these installs had the Echo sitting in a open environment unlike mine which was in a corner kubby. For another friend we simply used black custom foam from a Pelco case and cut a circle and then cut that in half which is affixed using just a small piece of double sided 3M tape.

 

The half circle black foam is probably the best method out of them all but you obviously need the material.  

[larryllix]

If your physical speaking location is fixed a simple method to try is cut a small piece of paper and wrap just the back side of the case.

 

It will look like a collar on the unit and will focus the sound to the multi point far field microphones. This simple trick will negate the direct / reflection of reverberation from impacting the system.

How did you know what mics are for what and where they are located?

 

I will have to experiment further with my SANGUNG TV on and my Onkyo playing a different source. Maybe Samsung TV's produce some mind control sounds, for the government, co-ordinated with the chemtrails the jets put out and we just exposed it.

[stusviews]

How did you know what mics are for what and where they are located?

 

I will have to experiment further with my SANGUNG TV on and my Onkyo playing a different source. Maybe Samsung TV's produce some mind control sounds, for the government, co-ordinated with the chemtrails the jets put out and we just exposed it.

 

Which government, Korea?

[larryllix]

Which government, Korea?

Chem trail mind control is a co-ordinated effort between all governments of the world since jets fly over all countries, from all sources. It appears to be working as you have forgotten the leaked documents.

 

Edited June 26, 2016 by larryllix

[stusviews]

Chem trail mind control is a co-ordinated effort between all governments of the world since jets fly over all countries, from all sources. It appears to be working as you have forgotten the leaked documents.

 

 

A man, a plan, Panama papers

[G W]

Which government, Korea?

Which Korea?

 

Best regards,

Gary Funk

[G W]

Chem trail mind control is a co-ordinated effort between all governments of the world since jets fly over all countries, from all sources. It appears to be working as you have forgotten the leaked documents.

 

It doesn't work. I'm living proof.

 

Best regards,

Gary Funk

[larryllix]

It doesn't work. I'm living proof.

 

Best regards,

Gary Funk

They made you believe that.

[stusviews]

Which Korea?

 

Best regards,

Gary Funk

 

Due west of Tokyo or east of Qingdao.

[elvisimprsntr]

As @Teken has indicated, multi path is the most likely issue. Keep the Echo away from hard flat surfaces which will reflect sound waves. There is a reason the Echo tall, mic at the top, and the speaker is at the bottom.

[larryllix]

As @Teken has indicated, multi path is the most likely issue. Keep the Echo away from hard flat surfaces which will reflect sound waves. There is a reason the Echo tall, mic at the top, and the speaker is at the bottom.

My Echo is on the top of a bookshelf type desk topper and a few feet from the ceiling. My first thought was talking up to it and also sound waves resonating between the cabinet top and the ceiling but I brought down to the desk surface and it is only slightly better.

[G W]

They made you believe that.

I made them believe that.

 

Best regards,

Gary Funk

[larryllix]

I made them believe that.

 

Best regards,

Gary Funk

I need to inhale more chemtrail so I can forget this whole thing. I have forgotten who started it now.

[G W]

I need to inhale more chemtrail so I can forget this whole thing. I have forgotten who started it now.

It was Kilroy. He started everything. He's everywhere. Always watching us.

 

Best regards,

Gary Funk

[mwester]

(Re: Original Topic)  I wonder if there's a developer or debug feature that can be enabled to let one listen to exactly what it is that the Echo is hearing from its microphone array?  That might offer some insight into the original problem described here (and might make the cardboard/foam workarounds described here less of a trial-and-error thing to set up) -- it might be worth an email to Amazon's echo support folks to find out (and while you're at it, perhaps they already know of this problem?)

[rccoleman]

(Re: Original Topic) I wonder if there's a developer or debug feature that can be enabled to let one listen to exactly what it is that the Echo is hearing from its microphone array? That might offer some insight into the original problem described here (and might make the cardboard/foam workarounds described here less of a trial-and-error thing to set up) -- it might be worth an email to Amazon's echo support folks to find out (and while you're at it, perhaps they already know of this problem?)

That would be useful. You can go back into the history to listen to what it heard for each instance when it responded, but not if it didn't. The available recordings haven't given me much insight when it doesn't do what I want - they sound perfectly understandable to me.

[larryllix]

(Re: Original Topic)  I wonder if there's a developer or debug feature that can be enabled to let one listen to exactly what it is that the Echo is hearing from its microphone array?  That might offer some insight into the original problem described here (and might make the cardboard/foam workarounds described here less of a trial-and-error thing to set up) -- it might be worth an email to Amazon's echo support folks to find out (and while you're at it, perhaps they already know of this problem?)

The app already displays every word that is spoken as it understands it, if you can get it's attention.

When this happens badly, it doesn't understand it's own name to get it listening.

 

Good idea though. This could help by getting it at the fringe reception zone and then experimenting.

[larryllix]

ANOTHER UPDATE:

A TV program turned on Alexa tonight with the words "The legs are" (English accent). We backed the show up and repeated half a dozen times and Alexa responded every time with confusion.

 

After that, I placed the Echo on top of the offending speakers and it works much better.  I can talk to Alexa successfully with the TV on but needing a bit of a raised level of speech while deep TV show background music is playing, even a very low volume levels.

 

It seems the Echo is very sensitive to bass frequencies and my TV speakers produce a lot of deep bass. Turning the bass tone down on the amp has helped slightly, also.

 

More moving around and sound tailoring is coming, yet.

[zerreissen]

I've seen the same thing with just a Samsung TV using the built in speakers and my new Echo Dot. Even raising my voice and lowering the TV volume wasn't enough - I had to walk right up to the Dot and speak directly at it. Without the TV on, the Dot works fine from across the room. My Dot is next to a window, so I'm not excited about yelling at it and having my neighbors wonder what the heck I'm doing. That TV does seem to have an outsized influence on my Dot.

 

I also have an Echo in the same room with a Denon surround sound system and its able to pick out my commands much better with the TV on. I've also had it spring to life when it heard something Alexa-like on the TV

 

You may be onto something about there being background noise that I can't hear, but messes up the Echo/Dot's recognition.

 

Same problem here with a Samsung TV in our bedroom. When the TV is playing, the bedroom Echo won't respond, we have to pause it and issue a command. On the flip side, if we have Sonos playing in the kitchen, our kitchen Echo hears us just fine. Weird. 

[larryllix]

Same problem here with a Samsung TV in our bedroom. When the TV is playing, the bedroom Echo won't respond, we have to pause it and issue a command. On the flip side, if we have Sonos playing in the kitchen, our kitchen Echo hears us just fine. Weird.

 

Either Samsung is a really popular TV or there is something being radiated from samsung TVs