Creative Commons

2007-09-11 17:38:09

Custom Ringtones on Verizon Motorola RAZR2 V9M

My usual stance is, "I hate ringtones!" I do, I really, really do. They're annoying, people pick the most ridiculous songs, and they're so loud. But once I move into my house, my cell phone will double as my house phone. Since I don't intend to have my phone in my pocket 24/7, I need a way to know that someone is calling me when my phone is in the other room.
You'd think this whole process would be easy, but you're forgetting Verizon's motto, "If it's fun, we disable it." Transfer an MP3 via bluetooth... I don't think so! WAV? No. MIDI? No. WTF good is bluetooth then? All you can do with it is transfer pictures. Why do I want to look at pictures on a 2" screen?
So how does one get custom mp3 ringtones that you've created from songs you ALREADY OWN (c'mon Verizon, making me pay for a ringtone of a song I already own...)? Well, here's the quick rundown:
  1. Create a 30 second or less mp3 encoded at a static bitrate, 44khz, 1 channel (mono)
    • They can be over 30 seconds, but if your phone does ring that long, the call will go to voicemail after 30 seconds, so the ringtone will stop playing.
  2. Change the file extension from MP3 to QCP
    • QCP files are Qualcomm's PureVoice format. Why you can copy this type of file and not an mp3, I have no idea.
  3. Using your bluetooth application (I was on a Mac), pair your phone with the computer
  4. Using your bluetooth application, browse the phone and enter the directory "my_ringers"
  5. Send your QCP file
Tada! Now you can set that file as a ringtone on your phone. If you can play the ringtone from the settings menu but it doesn't play when someone calls, reread my list. The file must be mono, 1 channel. I don't care if the phone is also a music player and plays stereo, 2 channel, songs just fine. It doesn't work for ringtones, ok? Get off my case!


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