Just to be sure, you're getting no external sound at all right? IE can't hear mp3's? Only sound through the ear speaker? I guess it's a hardware thing then.
But if it's not, I'm gonna throw out some noob thoughts...
- the incall and system volume are separate, there's a tab for each when you press the volume key. You prolly knew that but just making sure.
- try installing this? It's a volume increase cab for sprint. I see you're on verizon so maybe won't work, might even make it worse... but if you're gonna replace the phone anyway that doesn't matter.
http://forum.ppcgeeks.com/attachment...0&d=1279411400