[SOLVED] On video calls, other person can't hear me if I speak between them

[kaif84]

When I am on a Skype or Zoom call, if the other person is speaking and I speak in between them, that is, if I speak without waiting for them to pause, they can't hear me.

For them to hear me, they have to stop, there has to be a pause, and then I have to speak. This makes the conversation a bit artificial.

I am using Skype and Zoom on my Windows 7 laptop, using the laptop mic and speakers.

A friend suggested that using a USB mic would change this because Skype probably mutes my mic when the other person is speaking. I don't know if this is true, because I don't experience this with every person I do a video call with.

I asked the same question on the Skype community and one of the persons said that Skype does not support "double duplex". But again, I am not sure if "double duplex" is what is required, because I don't get the problem with every person, but only with a few persons I speak to.

I am on an ethernet cable while they are using wi-fi.

What could be causing this - a weak internet connection, or issues with the mic and speaker, or is this just how video calls work, something else?

Would appreciate any suggestions to help this issue.

I asked both persons I spoke to test their internet speeds, and I did the same. Here are the results:

For me:

Ping - 5 ms
Jitter - 5 ms
Download speed - 45 Mbps
Upload speed - 40 Mbps

For the others:

Person 1:
Ping - 34 ms
Jitter - 4 ms
Download speed - 63 Mbps
Upload speed - 82 Mbps

Person 2:

Ping - 32 ms
Jitter - 1 ms
Download speed - 78 Mbps
Upload speed - 106 Mbps

 

[bill001g]

As far as I know this is a skype restriction and has been since it first started. Not sure if after microsoft got it they added any support. The term is actually FULL duplex. This is a issue with many VoIP applications.

Most times the higher the latency between you and the other person the worse this issue is. It also tends to be worse when you have a speaker rather than headsets. There is software that tries to prevent feedback that sometime mutes the mic. I know that is why they used to spend huge money for certain brands of speaker phones for conference rooms where I used to work.

I think google hangout is full duplex but I am not 100% sure.