My mini ITX motherboard doesn’t have as many USB ports as I’d like. I’ve also decided 2024 is the year I try to kill off all my USB micro devices and replace them with USB-C (sorry PS4 controller). So I’m going to go Bluetooth as much as it makes sense (because of the limited USB ports), and use devices that charge over USB-C

For communication during gaming over discord I’ve been using a Logitech g933 for about 8 years with the USB receiver, so that’s on the chopping block.

I’m quite happy with the sound quality for music I currently get out of my Bluetooth headphones. A2DP gives a really great experience. Using those same headphones as a communication device with Discord for both recording and playing audio is really awful though as it kicks back to HFP/HSP. So I was wondering if it’s possible to do a dedicated Bluetooth microphone? And more importantly: does connecting a micrpphone-only device over Bluetooth still need to be in the HFP/HSP profile to work?

To be clear: my goal is to be wires-free for my audio solution, while having both a high quality audio output to hear my beloved gaming companions AND to have a high quality (or at least clear quality) audio input so my beloved gaming companions can hear me. The microphone built into Bluetooth headphones is generally shit and sounds like being on a cell phone call from 1999, even when using it on an android or Windows machine that gave custom Bluetooth stacks that don’t fall back to HSP. That’s why I’m interested in using a dedicated high quality (probably condenser?) microphone, I’m just unsure if that high quality makes it back to the computer when connected through Bluetooth.

From the last couple hours of searching and reading I can only seem to find information regarding Bluetooth recording+playback combined headsets and the A2DP/HSP stuff. I can’t seem to find anything about regarding dedicated microphones quality over Bluetooth.

  • moxEnglish
    5•6 months ago

    Unless something has changed very recently, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group still hasn’t delivered a spec that delivers low-latency, high-quality stereo output and high-quality input at the same time. It’s as though they don’t know gaming exists.

    However, there are two nonstandard Bluetooth features aimed at solving this problem:

    • aptX Low Latency (aptX-LL)
      • This is a Qualcomm technology, I think
      • Creative BT-W2 claims to support it
      • FiiO BTR3 claims to support it
    • FastStream
      • This is a Cambridge Silicon Radio (CSR) technology, presumably acquired by Qualcomm
      • Creative BT-W2 claims to support it

    According to aborne25 on reddit, aptX-LL is better at latency, while FastStream is better at sound quality.

    I think Linux has support for one or both of these, though I don’t know which parts are done in software and which depend on specific hardware. If I were going to research it, I would start by looking at PipeWire and libsbc.

    An overview of Bluetooth audio technologies: https://habr.com/en/articles/456182/

    A (probably incomplete) device/codec support list: https://btcodecs.valdikss.org.ru/codec-compatibility/

    I collected this info a year or two ago, so it’s possible that something newer is coming to market.

    • @bitwabaOPEnglish
      1•6 months ago

      Thanks!

      I’ll keep digging.

      I’m actually not looking for a single device that does audio output and audio input at the same time. I’m happy with my existing Bluetooth headphones in A2DP. What I’m trying to sort out is if I get a standalone Bluetooth microphone will it deliver high quality audio input, or will it still sound like a cellphone call from 1999?

      • moxEnglish
        3•6 months ago

        That makes sense. I don’t know the state of standalone input over Bluetooth, but it seems to me that good input quality should be possible with existing tech. I hope the links I provided can lead you toward an answer.