Speaker suddenly quit while in a call until loudspeaker is clicked.

[BeOhBe]

Weird! Is this not the same speaker? I can not hear the other end talking, unless loudspeaker is on.
The mike seems to be fine, they can hear me either way, but everyone knows there are problems with external noise and feedback while using loudspeaker.
Can't find anything related to phone + speaker anywhere in Settings or Help except volume. Is there something there I've missed, or has something gone wonky?

LG Rebel 4 LTE w/Android 8.1.0 (Orio) model LML212VL; Qualcomm Snapdragon, Chrome 91.0.4472.101.

Phone is a few years old, but seems otherwise perfect, with one exception: (I posted this here but this issue has stayed unsolved) that during a call, only, and only there, the screen goes dark after about 30 seconds, as if the sleep setting for inactive time is at minimum, yet it's set at 5 minutes. Resetting to less, more, or the same didn't help. I have to keep touching the screen to keep it active to See, yet the going dark does not affect any call in progress; to the point where if gone on too long I have to Knock On to be able to see to hit End or Home. I can't imagine how this can be related, especially since that has been in effect for a couple years, (started about end of year one) and this new speaker problem is only a week old.

If there's anyone who has an idea, (or even knows what I'm talking about) I'd be grateful for those replies.

Thanks,
BeOhBe

 

[B. Diddy]

See if it happens in Safe Mode: https://www.hardreset.info/devices/lg/lg-rebel-4/safe-mode/. If so, then the earpiece speaker has probably failed. There's also a small chance the earpiece speaker might just be clogged with debris -- inspect it carefully and clean it out if it looks like there's a lot of stuff jammed in there.

Speakerphone uses the main speaker, not the earpiece speaker, so that can explain why you can still hear people when using speakerphone.

 

[BeOhBe]

Thanks B. Diddy
Already inspected grille for clogs, and I'll try in safe mode, but what happens if safe mode clears it up? Is it possible to get a new phone app on Google store to replace the built-in?

 

[B. Diddy]

If it doesn't happen in Safe Mode, then that means some app you installed is causing the problem. You may have to uninstall apps one by one until the problem goes away. You could start by focusing on apps that have Phone permission.

 

[BeOhBe]

Well I guess phones had it. Safe mode didn't help. And I checked apps permissions anyway, virtually all Google so I can't deny Or delete/uninstall system apps.
Thanks for your time B. Diddy