I rushed from one headphone to another for a long time until I decided on AirPods Pro. Based on the combination of characteristics and convenience, these are the best headphones for all iPhone owners, without options.
Our chief editor, who has been using AirPods Pro much longer than me, agrees with this. The joy is overshadowed by some defects that he encountered literally in recent months.
And if the heating of the earphone is perhaps a really serious problem associated with the built-in battery, then the appearance of a strange crackling sound is much more difficult to explain.
I was already planning to sell my Airpods. And the other day I had exactly the same crash.
Mysterious crackling noise in AirPods Pro: how does it happen?
The symptoms in my case were exactly the same as with Nikita Goryainov’s earphone: out of the blue, a crackling sound appeared in the left ear. The headphones have not been dropped, have not been filled with water, and have been used carefully.
I drew attention to a combination of factors that caused this problem to appear in my case:
▪︎ you had to move your head or talk with headphones in your ears ▪︎ the noise reduction or transparency mode must be turned on
If at least one condition is not met, there is no cod.
Nikita, having encountered a similar problem with the same symptoms, had already tried to clean the entire earbuds and headphones, and in the end he succeeded.
If you look at your headphones, you will see a black mesh external microphone on the stem.
If anything, it is this microphone that is involved in the operation of noise reduction and transparency mode.
Let's take a closer look at this important part of the earphone.
So why are the first generations of AirPods Pro still cracking?
It’s nice, of course, that the manufacturer didn’t stand aside. But could users be satisfied with this solution to the problem?
Of course not: there was no official explanation, and replacing one earphone, if not both AirPods Pro were cracking, satisfied few people. The reason is trivial: it is not always possible to pair devices with each other after replacement, and the discharge rate of products from different pairs is often also different.
The question arose: why does a wireless headset start to crackle? Everyone did the research. And someone found the answer.
Dirt on the mesh
Thus, most users noticed that a problem with sound (even one with different descriptions) appears when three circumstances coincide:
- the person wearing headphones moves his head (or moves himself);
- The headset has one or both of the noise reduction and/or transparency features activated;
- The crackling sound in AirPods headphones becomes acutely unpleasant at high volumes (especially when listening to bass).
What conclusion can be drawn from this information? That the problem is on the side of the microphone, which is responsible for the noise reduction and transparency modes. It is located on the leg of each device and is hidden behind a long black mesh (it itself is double, and under it there is another level of protection).
Accordingly, the cracking sound may be associated with contamination of this oval mesh or another protective filter (smaller). The latter is located at the very base of the earphone stem (it is located a little further from the microphone, but can also affect sounds).
Even if contaminants are not visible (microscopic skin flakes, for example), this does not mean that they are not there. The secret is that the sensitivity of the speaker is very high, which is why the crackling sound is associated: when a person turns his head or makes any other movement, the particles of dirt stuck in the mesh honeycombs move, and the user hears this sound, only amplified many times over. It turns out that Apple did not make a mistake by offering a defective product, but overdid it by introducing a technique of unique sensitivity.
The good news is that you can clean the screens and the cracking will go away. This is done using a compressed air cylinder without opening or other “destructive” actions.
If at the end of the procedure no cracking noise is heard, then you are lucky and the diagnosis is correct. By the way, in its favor is the fact that when noise reduction or transparency mode is turned off, there are no extraneous sounds; if this is not the case, then purging will not help.
Mechanical problem
The second discovered cause of crackling noise in Airpods is mechanical: a break or tear in the speaker membrane. In fact:
- when installing the device in the ear, the user constantly presses it with his finger, building up pressure inside the mini-device;
- when put on repeatedly, the tiny membrane cannot stand it and begins to tear off;
- To check its integrity, you need to completely discharge the device and try to insert it into your ear while it is turned off, then press it with your finger (if a rustling sound appears, it means that the membrane is coming off and the device must be replaced).
Another assumption: the speaker is worn out due to moisture or dust. This situation is unlikely, but not excluded. And with it, the earphone also needs to be changed.
Software error
After numerous tests and studies, there were those who suggested a banal software defect in AirPods Pro. According to users, the issue is either a conflict between programs in first-generation devices, or defects in the assembly, which, with the settings installed, gives such an unpleasant effect. True, it is impossible to check this without access to headset manufacturing technologies.
Removing background noise in headphones on your phone - instructions:
- First of all, we check whether the problem is with the headphones . We connect to another (known working) source. We connect other headphones to the phone. If they are the problem, solutions are described here.
- Reboot the phone .
Seven troubles - one reset.
