AI-Powered MOS Testing: Measuring Real Voice Quality in Telecom Networks

In a world of 5G speeds and cloud-native cores, it’s easy to chase throughput and latency numbers. Yet, the most human measure of network quality remains unchanged - how a voice call sounds. A single poor-quality call can do more damage to a network’s reputation than a dozen fast downloads can repair.

As telecom networks evolve from LTE to 5G SA and beyond, voice quality continues to be the clearest indicator of service perception. And nothing captures it better than the Mean Opinion Score (MOS) - a simple 1-to-5 index that reflects how users actually experience a call. Even though voice now forms a smaller slice of overall traffic, its quality still ranks among the top three drivers of customer satisfaction and churn, according to industry research. MOS bridges the gap between technical KPIs - jitter, delay, packet loss - and human perception. It translates complex network behavior into a single, intuitive measure of experience quality.

In RAN environments, MOS reveals degradation from interference, handover delays, or poor scheduling. In the Core, it uncovers transcoding issues and IMS session faults that traditional metrics often miss.
In essence, MOS converts invisible network issues into actionable, user-centric insights - keeping operators focused on what truly matters: delivering clarity users can hear.

The Testing Challenge: From Synthetic to Real

For decades, MOS testing has been performed using synthetic audio samples or simulated network paths. These lab-based methods help establish a baseline but fall short of capturing how real devices behave under variable radio, codec (the algorithm that compresses and decompresses voice data), and acoustic conditions. Add in mobility, hardware diversity, and background noise - and those synthetic results quickly lose relevance.

Industry data shows that standard mobile voice calls typically achieve MOS values between 3.8 and 4.0 -  a good level of quality, but still short of the 4.4–4.6 range associated with HD Voice or VoLTE “toll-quality” experiences (TechTarget). In fact, a 2024 in-situ study found that packet-switched voice (VoLTE) consistently outperformed 2G circuit-switched calls, achieving higher MOS under identical conditions (MDPI, 2024).

This performance gap reinforces a critical truth: voice quality is no longer just a network KPI. It’s a business differentiator. Despite the rise of data-centric services, voice still contributes nearly 70% of mobile operator revenue, meaning even slight drops in perceived quality can directly affect customer retention and brand trust.

That’s why the industry is moving toward real-device, automated MOS measurement - validating voice quality from microphone to speaker across live network conditions. It’s the most reliable way to ensure that what’s tested in the lab truly reflects what users experience in the field.

Where Amantya’s MOS IQ Fits In

As operators and device makers push toward automation and intelligence-led testing, the industry is realizing that the missing piece isn’t another KPI - it’s a way to measure real voice experience at scale.

That’s where Amantya’s MOS IQ comes in. Designed for both lab and field use, MOS IQ enables end-to-end voice quality analysis on real devices, capturing and scoring actual audio across the microphone-to-speaker path. The result is an authentic measure of what users truly hear - not what network emulators estimate.

By automating MOS evaluation, MOS IQ removes manual inconsistencies and delivers repeatable, objective voice quality scores under real network conditions. This makes it particularly valuable for testing teams validating VoLTE, VoNR, and IMS-based services, where even small codec or handover issues can degrade call clarity.

Compact and portable, MOS IQ is built for both lab and field environments, with app-based control and seamless integration into existing QA workflows - enabling faster, more consistent, and scalable testing.

In practice, it helps:

• Operators shorten fault-isolation cycles and optimize voice quality faster.
• QA and device teams reduce testing time, improve reproducibility, and directly correlate network KPIs with user experience.

Real-world deployments have shown that automation can accelerate QA cycles by up to 35% and lower testing costs by roughly 25%, while improving overall Quality of Experience (QoE) confidence.

Essentially, MOS IQ turns MOS from a static, post-event score into a continuous intelligence metric - aligning perfectly with the industry’s move toward data-driven, autonomous network assurance.

Because as 5G and beyond reshape communication, the ability to measure experience in real time isn’t optional - it’s essential.

Final Thoughts

Even as 5G expands the boundaries of connectivity, voice remains the truest test of network quality. A high MOS isn’t just a technical score - it’s proof that every layer of engineering is working in harmony to deliver a clear, reliable, and human connection.

Because in telecom, clarity isn’t optional - it’s trust made audible.

Experience the Difference

Measure what your users actually hear. Discover how Amantya’s MOS IQ enables real-device, AI-powered voice-quality testing across your network - ensuring every call reflects the quality your network promises.

Get in touch, email us at connect@amantyatech.com or visit us at www.amantyatech.com to see how you can build clarity into every connection