Last updated on 9 December 2025
Android 8.0 Oreo introduced improvements and changes, one of which was the accessibility volume channel. Before its introduction, TalkBack’s volume was tied to the media volume, and it was impossible to adjust its volume independently of the media volume. With the accessibility channel, the screen reader volume became independent, allowing users to adjust it separately from the media volume and vice versa.
Despite the presence of the accessibility channel, Jieshuo screen reader’s volume is linked by default to the media channel. However, this can be changed in the settings. As is customary, Jieshuo screen reader goes beyond the basics, offering additional volume and volume key-related customizations, such as assigning volume key presses to perform certain shortcuts or open apps.
Table of Contents
Adjusting the Screen Reader Volume While Using Jieshuo
As mentioned earlier, by default, Jieshuo uses the media audio channel. This means that changing its volume also affects media playing on the phone and vice versa. Short-pressing one of the volume keys adjusts the media volume and, simultaneously, Jieshuo’s volume.
To change Jieshuo’s audio channel to accessibility:
- Open “TTS settings”, then “Main TTS engine settings”, and check the “Use accessibility volume” checkbox.
- For those using two engines, a similar checkbox exists in the secondary engine settings.
After enabling the accessibility channel:
- The default behavior of volume key short presses remains to adjust the media volume if no finger is on the screen.
- If a finger is on the screen while pressing a volume key, the accessibility volume is adjusted.
It is worth noting that differences in sound quality between the accessibility and media channels may be noticeable on some devices.
In addition to using the volume keys, Jieshuo includes four volume-related functions that can be accessed through the main menu, activated via the voice assistant, or assigned to gestures. These functions are: two for increasing and decreasing accessibility volume and two for increasing and decreasing media volume. The accessibility volume functions operate based on the active audio channel. If the media channel is in use, these functions also adjust the media volume; if the accessibility channel is active, they exclusively adjust the accessibility volume. The increase and decrease media volume functions are the default actions assigned to short pressing the volume up and volume down keys, respectively.
Volume Reporting and Volume Keys-Related Settings
Open “Screen reader settings” and then select “Operation settings”. From there, activate the “Shortcut keys settings”. Most of the settings in this section are related to volume keys. They are as follows:
- Use Volume Keys: Determines whether Jieshuo intercepts volume key presses. If unchecked, Jieshuo will not intercept these presses, leaving control to the system without interference. While this disables assigning functions to volume keys, it enables other apps to use the keys for their features.
- Show the System Volume Panel When Adjusting Volume: On Android, when adjusting volume using the volume keys, the system volume control panel appears on the screen, allowing you to adjust the volume and expand the panel to show more volume controls. If this option is unchecked, Jieshuo will block the system volume panel from appearing.
- When Reading Long Text, Press the Volume Keys to Adjust the Speech Volume: If Jieshuo is reading long text, pressing any of the volume keys should change the screen reader volume without interrupting the speech. This is particularly useful when the accessibility channel is used because it removes the need to place a finger on the screen to change the volume, preventing the interruption of what Jieshuo is reading. Additionally, when this option is active, volume change reporting should be blocked during reading to avoid interrupting the reading process for reporting the new volume change.
- Use the Volume Keys to Edit Cursor and Change Slider Values: When checked, this option allows Jieshuo to use the volume keys to move the cursor in edit boxes and adjust slider values. When an edit box is focused, pressing one of the volume keys will move the cursor: volume up for the next character and volume down for the previous one. Additionally, when an accessible slider is focused, pressing volume up will increase the slider by 5%, and volume down will decrease it by 5%.
- Simultaneous Press of the Two Volume Keys: This option specifies what happens when both volume keys are pressed together. Note that this is achieved by pressing one of the volume keys, then pressing the other directly afterward, and releasing them together without waiting.
- Short Pressing and Long Pressing of the Volume Keys: These options let you specify actions for both short and long pressing of the volume keys. The behavior for short presses remains the same, regardless of whether the screen is locked or unlocked. However, long pressing the volume keys can be configured to perform different actions depending on whether the screen is locked or unlocked.
- Use the Volume Button Multi-Press Feature: This enables four additional shortcuts to be assigned to volume key presses: double pressing of volume up/down and triple pressing of either volume key.
- Apps where Jieshuo does not handle volume key presses: This option allows excluding specific apps from Jieshuo controlling the volume key presses while using them. Inside the selected apps, Jieshuo does not handle all volume key presses. This is useful for apps that rely on volume keys for in-app functions, to prevent Jieshuo from intercepting the key press and overriding the intended action. An example is an alarm app that allows dismissing alarms using a volume key press. To select an app, double tap its name to check it, and when finished selecting apps, press OK for the changes to take effect. To uncheck a selected app, double tap to toggle the checked state.
- Application Volume Shortcuts: Similar to per-app gesture schemes, this feature enables assigning different functions to volume key presses based on the app in use. To add a new app, tap on “New,” then select the app and assign functions according to your needs. When you are in that app, the shortcuts you assigned to the volume key presses for that app will be used. To delete an app from the list, long press the app name.
Note: It is possible to assign volume key presses to open apps, activate timers, use extensions/tools, and perform Jieshuo functions; however, custom-created functions cannot be assigned to volume key presses. A function must be created as an extension or tool to assign it. Also, assigning a volume key press to “no command” doesn’t mean it will be passed to the system. Instead, it will make pressing the key do nothing.
Another volume related setting is found in the Reading Settings section, under Dynamic Alert Reading Settings, the Read Volume When Changing checkbox determines whether Jieshuo announces volume changes during adjustments.
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