Manage notifications volume Android 9 Pie

[Cristian Radulescu]

Hi,

I'm trying to find a solution to a simple task that I've been using for a very long time. It refers to managing the notifications volume, which in theory, in Android 9 is linked to the ringer volume.

The idea is that, during the night time, I use a task that aims to activate DND Priority mode and reduces ring level to 1. This way:

- I disable all notifications sounds

- I still keep the phone able to receive calls from important people or from repeat callers, but the phone won't ring to the max (ringtone volume 1)

In the morning, I have a task that disables DND and sets ringtone back to max. However, more often than not, this task is unable to bring back to max also the notifications volume. It makes sound but rather at minimum audible level (which, I assume is correlated to the reduced volume of the ringtone during the night). Sometimes, the task is, however, able to bring back the notifications volume to max. In addition, I used to have, until a few days ago, an action pertaining the Notifications volume, although I had the same outcome so I deleted that action and is not visible in this screenshot.

So, anyone has a clue on how to manage this notification volume in Android 9?

Thanks for any feedback!

[João Dias]

Do you maybe have a different profile turning the volume back down? If it works sometimes and not others it would seem that would be the case.

Thank you for your contact.

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João Dias

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[Cristian Radulescu]

I have only these two other tasks that handles volumes:

I don't think they interfere somehow. I have actually just tested them, I ran them both and verified that the notifications volume is still high afterwards. Is there, maybe, another setting I should try?

I'd like to mention that I use Pixel 3 XL, which doesn't have a separate setting for notifications. Previously I used a OnePlus 5T and the same occurred.

Thanks!

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[João Dias]

Maybe you need to disable restore settings by long clicking profile >Settings?

Thank you for your contact.

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João Dias

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[Rich D]

Maybe you need to disable restore settings by long clicking profile >Settings?

+1

You can also enable and check the run log menu -more- run log. 

And post a screenshot of the relevant part of the run log here. 

 

[Cristian Radulescu]

Sorry, I don't see such setting related to profile:

[Cristian Radulescu]

This is the part from the log that is related to this task. It is scheduled to run every day at 8 a.m.:

The other one that appears there changes the display timeout when certain apps are active.

[Rich D]

Sorry, I don't see such setting related to profile:

That setting is only relevant (and shown in)  profiles with a state context. your contact is being treated as an event because they start and stop times are the same. So that could not be the issue here.

[Rich D]

This is the part from the log that is related to this task.

That run log looks normal. The runlog  will really only be useful after the profile does not behave as expected.

so you would want a view the run log from the time the profile went active to the time when you discovered your volumes are set incorrectly. 

Could you also post the exported description of the profile?

To post your profile or task here...  Long press on the profile or task name / ( 3 dot menu with 4.0+ ) export / export "DESCRIPTION" to clipboard (not XML)

Any linked tasks will be exported with the profile they are linked to..

To be able to export, the profile needs to be named by you (Not the Tasker listed name.  Tasker will list your profile with the context name if you have not given it one). 

On older Tasker versions you might need to disable beginner mode in the Tasker preferences. Beginner mode has been removed from the latest Tasker release. 

[Cristian Radulescu]

Regarding the log, it is relevant because it shows today's activity. Also, today was one of the days the task failed to behave as expected.

Below I send you the exported description of the profile, based on your instructions:

Profile: Workdays@8am (13)
Day: Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu or Fri
Time: 08:00
Enter: DND Normal (12)
A1: Do Not Disturb [ Mode:All ] 
A2: Ringer Volume [ Level:7 Display:Off Sound:Off ] 
A3: Vibrate On Ringer [ Set:On ] 

And also the exported info related to the task:

    DND Normal (12)

    A1: Do Not Disturb [ Mode:All ] 

    A2: Ringer Volume [ Level:7 Display:Off Sound:Off ] 

    A3: Vibrate On Ringer [ Set:On ] 

    

Thanks for looking into the matter.

[Rich D]

Regarding the log, it is relevant because it shows today's activity. Also, today was one of the days the task failed to behave as expected.

Ok.. at what time today did you notice the volume was not set correctly? can you check the run log from the profile activation time to that time and see if anything activated that would set the volume?

Below I send you the exported description of the profile

you can try adding a 2-second wait in between they do not disturb action and the volume set action.

A1: Do Not Disturb [ Mode:All ] 

Wait 2 second 

A2: Ringer Volume [ Level:7 Display:Off Sound:Off ]

If either of those two options don't help the situation. I would suggest monitoring the ringer volume and DND and keeping a log file of it. you can then check to see when your volume And dnd are actually set. 

you can create these profiles below to do that or simply click the link and import the project which has both profiles in it.

    Profile: Ringer Vol Set (888)

    Event: Variable Set [ Variable:%VOLR Value:* User Variables Only:Off ]

    Enter: Log Ringer Vol (889)

    A1: Write File [ File:volume_log.txt Text:%DATE -%TIME - ringer vol - %VOLR Append:On Add Newline:On ] 

    

    Profile: Dnd Set (890)

    Event: Variable Set [ Variable:%INTERRUPT Value:* User Variables Only:Off ]

    Enter: Dnd (891)

    A1: Write File [ File:volume_log.txt Text:%DATE -%TIME - dnd - %INTERRUPT Append:On Add Newline:On ] 

    

https://taskernet.com/shares/?user=AS35m8lnbGhm%2F58jHvsiqVNumDAJZVkcfcE7gQxfcMjrFBCkp6sNKYf3YiK9WVWZBoDf&id=Project%3AVol+Test

[Cristian Radulescu]

Today morning I noticed that the notifications volume is still low, after 8 a.m., when the profile I have should change that. When I posted the message, about 2 hours later, the only other activity on Tasker was related to display timeout that doesn't affect volumes. I even tried to manually run the task a couple of times, with no positive result. I only managed to bring the notifications volume to max by going into Android settings and playing with the ringtone volume.

In the meantime, I added the Wait volume between Ringtone and DND actions, so I'll see what happens the following days. In addition, I did import those profiles in my Tasker, so I hope that helps if the situation doesn't get solved.

I'll get back to you when I notice the same unexpected result, if/when it does. I guess I'm going to need further instructions about that log for which I imported the profiles you set up.

For now, thanks for your support!

[Cristian Radulescu]

Hi,

Today is happening again. I have low notifications volume. In the meantime, I also made a change to the task, by adding a 10 second pause, as you can see below:

In addition, I also attach the volume log that was created by what you sent me. As I see there, Tasker apparently changes the Ringtone volume to 7. And it does, of course, but somehow this setting doesn't manage to change the Notifications volume, as well.

Maybe you have other ideas?

Thanks!

[Rich D]

Could you clarify how you are checking your notification volume? on my device in Android 9 I no longer have a 'notification volume' setting at all.

Are you sure this is not related to the new notification options where you can manage the volume for individual notifications?

I would add %VOLN to the 'log ringer vol' so it logs that as well.

You also said you are able to recreate the issue by simply using the play button for that task in the task edit screen. Is that correct? If so please give the exact details on how you check the notification volume after you run the task that sets the ringer vol to 7. 

[Cristian Radulescu]

Hi Rich,

I can check that the notifications volume is low by using Join in Chrome to send test notifications to the phone. The way I realize the volume is low is by hearing it, no other scientific method. :) However, it is very obvious, once I manage to get it to max it is clearly much louder...

Regarding the individual setting for notifications, I don't know where that is, but my issue affects notifications sound from all apps that fire notifications, not just specific ones. In addition, it always happen in the morning after 8 a.m. simply because in the evening there is another task that sets the ringer volume to 1. Now I wonder if the evening task, the one that reduces Ringtone Vol to 1 is always able to set the notifications volume to 1, as well. Maybe, in some instances, that fails as well.

I added that parameter to another action in your task, as you can see in the attached file.

I can't recreate the issue. I can only play the tasks manually and notice what happens. From recent experience:

- if I had all volumes to max, by manually playing the high volume and low volume tasks, I would get the expected results

- if I had the issue with the notifications volume, like I have right now, by manually playing the task that sets the ringer to 7 volume, the notifications volume would remain low, unchanged

Thanks!

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[Cristian Radulescu]

Actually, I decided to make a manual test. What I did:

1. I played the DND Normal task -> Notifications volume remained low

2. I played the DND Normal task -> Notifications volume remained low

3. I played the DND Priority task -> DND Priority started; Notifications volume remained low (actually it's weird, because DND is set to have no notifications sound, but in this case I heard the sound at low level); Ringer volume turned low

4. I played the DND Normal task -> Ringer volume turned high; Notifications volume turned high

As you can see in the updated attached log, only steps 3 and 4 triggered change in the VOLR and, especially, VOLN parameters.

* DND Normal triggers Ringtone Volume to 7

* DND Priority triggers Ringtone Volume to 1

[Rich D]

That looks correct. the profile will only trigger when the volume level is 'Changed'

Actually, I decided to make a manual test. What I did:

I assume vol=7 here

1. I played the DND Normal task -> Notifications volume remained low

vol is still =7

2. I played the DND Normal task -> Notifications volume remained low

vol is still =7

3. I played the DND Priority task -> DND Priority started; Notifications volume remained low (actually it's weird, because DND is set to have no notifications sound, but in this case I heard the sound at low level); Ringer volume turned low

vol=1  profile triggers

4. I played the DND Normal task -> Ringer volume turned high; Notifications volume turned high

vol=7 profile triggers

I really think your issue is with a dnd setting or a notification setting. try poking around those settings in your android settings. 

[Cristian Radulescu]

Yes, when I started my test, the ringtone volume was at 7 (however, as we agreed, the notifications volume, that is not an actual setting I can change manually in Android, was at 1 at that time).

Regarding DND, I only have basic settings there, I use Tasker to set it to Priority mode which:

- mutes the phone, but allows alarms and media

- allows calls from starred contacts

- no sound from notifications

There aren't many options that I can play with. However, I'll change my two tasks and I'll eliminate the changes in DND mode, just leaving settings regarding Ringtone Volume and Vibrate state. That's the only other thing I can think of to debug this.

I'll monitor what happens.

Thanks!

[Cristian Radulescu]

There is also another question. Tasker has the following modes when it comes to Do Not Disturb:

- None

- All

- Alarms

- Priority

On my Pixel I can only turn DND on or off and, of course, play with its different settings when it is on. How do the two correlate?

[Robert Ryan]

- None - Complete silence, no exceptions 

- All - Everything allowed, DND disabled 

- Alarms - Only alarms and media permitted 

- Priority - User defined 

[manivannan....@gmail.com]

Ringer volume and notification volume are linked. There are various ways to unlink them.

I have a task that sets the notification tone to "none" for certain conditions and to the one I want, on the exit condition. 

Ugly, but it works.

[Cristian Radulescu]

It's a workaround for someone who wants a task that disables the notifications under certain circumstances. However, it would not solve the issue I refer to, because I only use an action of changing the Ringtone Volume to either 7 or 1. The change to 7, sometimes, doesn't trigger the audible change when I receive notifications. If I add an extra action that would change the Notifications Tone to None or back to whatever I use, I imagine this will have no impact on my "problem" with low sound when Ringtone Volume changes to 7 from 1. I do want to have the Ringtone Volume set to 1 during the night. Otherwise, I would just use standard DND settings in Android and I would not need Tasker. :)

[Cristian Radulescu]

Ok, so I decided to remove the DND toggle from my two tasks and now they only control the Ringer Volume and the Vibrate toggle. So far, 5 days later, it seems that the Notifications Volume changes as expected, so maybe, there is a conflict between Ringer Volume and DND toggle in Tasker. I'll go ahead and use the DND scheduler from within Android and see if the problem occurs again.

I'll get back here and write what I notice.

[Cristian Radulescu]

As I mentioned, I decided to activate scheduled DND toggle from Android settings. This morning, the same thing happened, Notifications Volume remained low. DND was set to end at 8 a.m., as well as my volumes task. Later today I decided to change the schedule for DND in order to end before 8 a.m., I'll see if this is an issue (firing at the exact same time).

[Cristian Radulescu]

After I separated the time of DND toggle, as it was set up through Android own settings, from the Tasker Profile time I came to the conclusion that there is an issue with the Notifications volume managed by Tasker when DND is used. Somehow, Tasker manages to increase the Ringtone volume, but under the hood, the Notifications volume remain low (based on my scenario, that, during the night, Tasker sets Ringtone volume to 1 and in the morning it brings the Ringtone volume back to 7).

Maybe Tasker devs can use this information to sort out whatever conflicting issue happens under the hood between DND and Notifications volume under Android Pie.

Thanks!

[Kurt Kaufman]

I don't know if this is of any help whatsoever, but on my phone (Moto G7+), not only are the Ring and Notification volumes linked, but in actual use the Notification volume is dropped by several levels lower than it would be relative to the Ring volume. There is apparently some automatic gain modification by the system (Pie). I have had to modify the Ring tone to lower levels and the Notification tone to higher levels in a sound editor to get it close to where I want them. Again, in my case that would be just another variable thrown into the mix.

[chrisra...@gmail.com]

Well... there are no such settings in the stock Android. The only volume one can play with is the Ringtone Volume that is supposed to also change the Notifications Volume. In practice, we shouldn't even discuss Notifications Volume, as Google decided to keep only one volume setting for ringtones and notifications, which is the Ringtone Volume.

In reality, I guess there are some reminiscent settings from previous Android versions when these volumes were separate and, somehow, Tasker is able, sometimes, to trigger only the change in the former Ringtone Volume, leaving the notifications sound at low levels.

Based on my experiments in the past two weeks, I realize that I can't figure out how to create a task that would trigger the proper change in notifications & ringtone volumes based on time. :(

So, what I wanted to achieve, simple scenario, using Tasker (disclaimer: I'm not a proficient user of Tasker):

• time profile related to hours and days of week
• these profiles would trigger two tasks that change ringtone volume settings, vibrate status, as well as do not disturb mode
• in the evening, Tasker would:
• activate DND
• set ringer volume to 1
• set vibrate to off
• in the morning, Tasker would
• inactivate DND
• set ringer volume to 7
• set vibrate to on

As, in random occasions the notifications would barely hear in the morning, in spite of the ringer volume going to maximum level (i.e. 7 in Tasker), I opened this topic and actively started to play with various scenarios:

• eliminate DND toggle from Tasks
• start using DND schedule from within Android own settings
• unlink the time DND would be toggled on/off and the time ringer volumes would be changed
• get rid of DND toggle in any form

Currently, I don't use DND setting in any way, Tasker only triggers changes in Ringer Volume and Vibrate state. However, today, unfortunately, I still hear the notifications at low volume.

I don't know if that relates to Tasker itself, but with my limited knowledge, that's how I would summarize this. Maybe there is an extra legacy setting that the Ringer Volume action should have added.

Hope a fix will come eventually.

Thanks!

PS: I attach screenshots with the profiles/tasks content, DND settings from Android, as well as the volume_log.txt that @Rich D created for me.

[edmond]

Is there a RUN SHELL COMMAND could controlling :

Notification Volume level

Media Volume level

Ring tone Volume level

At the moment I'm only reply on : RUN SHELL COMMAND --> input keyevent 25

This one I can see it turns only ring Volume.

Thank you !!

edmond.