Our headphones and earbuds are everyday audio accessories that many of us can’t live without. These days, big brands like Sony, Bose and Apple have really perfected sound technology, delivering in-ear and over-the-ear products that look great, sound amazing and are built for everything from commuting to working out to work. They come in a variety of varieties, including wired and Bluetooth wireless models, and with features like active noise cancellation (ANC), spatial audio surround sound, and more. But “perfection” is a word that’s muttered with a lot of caution in the world of consumer tech, and no matter how much you’ve spent on your top-of-the-line headphones or top-of-the-line headphones, those top-dollar cans can still be muffled from time to time.
Whether it’s a problem with the sound of your headphones, the way you use them, or what devices you connect them to, we’ve put together this overview of the most common headphone problems we hear about all the time, as well as what you can do to troubleshoot and resolve each issue.
Recharge and update
Before we get started, one of the most important things you can do is make sure your earbuds or buds are fully charged (if they’re wireless, of course). And almost as important is making sure the firmware is up to date (see our detailed post on how to do this for Apple AirPods). Unlike many other devices, the headset doesn’t always have companion apps with available updates or a means to transfer updates from your computer to the headset.
But if you’re using a product that offers automatic or manual updates, it’s a good idea to check every few months for new updates to download and install.
Turn the headphones off and on again
It is IT crowdtarget=”_blank”> favorite solution, but if you have a set of powered headphones, turning them off and on again often solves most problems you might have. You can also reboot the device you’re connecting them to, just to turn it off.
For Bluetooth devices, you can also try turning Bluetooth off and on again to re-pair them. More on this below.
Bose
The headset cannot be paired with your device
One of the best features of your wireless headphones can also become one of the biggest pain points. We’re talking about Bluetooth pairing, and even though we’re many generations into Bluetooth, it’s not uncommon to run into a handshake issue between your headphones and a new or existing device from time to time. Don’t worry, because there are a few different things you can try to get device A to talk to device B.
Step 1: In most cases, pairing a new set of Bluetooth headphones with your phone, tablet or computer is just a matter of pressing or holding a single button to put the headphones into pairing mode. Brands like Apple make the process even easier by allowing a new set of AirPods to automatically pair with your phone by simply opening the case near it.
If your headphones or earbuds won’t pair with your main device, the first thing you should do is reset the headphones and the device you’re trying to pair with. That solution is as tried and tested as they come, because sometimes a hard reset is all it takes to wipe out the problem.
Step 2: If you still have problems, the next thing you should do is go to the Bluetooth settings of your main device to see if your headphones are connected. If they are not, you may need to re-pair them. If they are, but you’re still not getting sound, it might sound funny, but make sure the sound is muted.
It didn’t? OK, whoa. It is also possible that your headphones are paired with another device. Check your other hardware’s Bluetooth settings to see if this is the case.
If your headphones come with a companion app, you may also be able to check which devices your headphones are paired with. You should also be able to disconnect them from here.
Step 3: If your headphones are paired with another device, you can usually force the device to completely forget the pairing, which should force your headphones back into pairing mode. You can do this on an iPhone, for example, by entering the Bluetooth settingsselecting the headset from the list and tapping Forget this device (located at the bottom of the screen). Every device, like Android phones and computers, will have a similar method for doing this
Step 4: If your Bluetooth headset is low on battery, it would be a good idea to charge it before trying to pair it with a new device. While battery life isn’t always a factor, we’ve seen a number of headsets kick in when those milliamps start to drop below 25%. In practice, most modern headphones can be charged relatively quickly, thanks to connections like USB-C.
You’ll also want to make sure the hardware isn’t replacing the software. Many Bluetooth headsets use Bluetooth 5.0 or higher, but that doesn’t mean your old laptop or tablet supports these modern Bluetooth profiles.
Zeke Jones / Digital trends
Bad sound or no sound at all
Our next section of problems and fixes will focus on low sound. Maybe your wireless (or wired) headphones are paired with your phone, but for whatever reason, whenever you start streaming music, you experience sound quality issues, such as stuttering, intermittent sound, or no sound at all. This can potentially be caused by either a poor Bluetooth connection between your device and the headphones or poor internet connection or speeds, be it Wi-Fi or cellular.
Step 1: Make sure you have a good internet connection. Music streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music deliver fairly high-quality streams, but if your device has a poor Wi-Fi or data connection — you might be traveling in a rural area with poor service and, for example, you haven’t downloaded your music for offline listening — this can negatively affect the quality of your stream or stop it altogether.
Step 2: Turn off some features. Many headphones come with companion apps that are packed with all kinds of additional audio features, such as EQ, ANC or transparency mode. If you’ve applied any sound adjustments to your headphones through the app, it’s a good idea to turn those features off. Then, with the presets disabled, play the music to see if the sound quality improves.
Step 3: Check if you are out of Bluetooth range of your main device or if there is something interfering with the signal. Most Bluetooth headsets work best when you’re no more than 35 to 30 feet away from your device, but when you start factoring in obstacles like walls and floors and potential interference from microwaves, clock radios, and other technology, you start to cut down on signal strength .
Try standing closer to your device to see if your sound improves. You can also try turning off any unnecessary components that may cause interference.
Step 4: Check the cable. If you’re experiencing poor sound quality, sudden dropouts, or no sound at all, and you’re using a pair of wired headphones, there’s a chance that the cable itself could be damaged in some way. A good way to test this is to plug the headphones into your host device, play some music, and starting at the end of the device, gently squeeze down the length of the wire.
If the sound returns intermittently or the sound quality improves, you are dealing with a damaged cable. In many cases, you may need to invest in a new pair of headphones, although some brands will allow you to order replacement wires.
Step 5: Clean them well. If you use a set of wired headphones, you probably plug them into the headphone jack or USB connection of your main music device. Unfortunately, normal wear and tear can lead to quite a build-up of raw material in these common ports. If there is too much debris, your device’s port may not be making enough contact with the headphone jack.
Use a toothpick, cotton bud, and/or can of compressed air to loosen and remove any debris that may have been in your Lightning, USB-C, or headphone jack, then try turning the headphones back on.
Michael Bizzaco / Digital trends
Only one headset works
If you’re only hearing sound from one earbud, there’s probably a problem with the connection that both earpieces share with each other. Fortunately, undoing this connection is usually as simple as putting the buds back in the charging case for 10 seconds or so. After removing the headphones and re-pairing them with your main device, they should work again.
Simon Cohen / Digital trends
Wired or wireless headphones: Which is better?
One might think that when it comes to headphones, wired or wireless won’t make much of a difference in the long run, but that’s simply not the case. As with any other device, the more features you start integrating into your technology, the more things tend to go wrong. It’s like how modern smart appliances are often repaired and replaced far more often than traditional washers and dryers with simple knobs and buttons.
If you’re on the fence about whether you should go for wired or wireless headphones, the former should last a bit longer than the latter. Wired headphones use passive transducers that work with whatever amplification your main device gives the headphones, while wireless headphones (and headphones) rely on built-in batteries for power that can fail over time.
In terms of sound quality, the wired headphones are also connected directly to the main device, so things like latency and misfiring audio codecs aren’t something you have to worry about. With wired headphones, you can also take advantage of high-resolution, lossless audio formats such as FLAC and ALAC offered by streaming services such as Tidal, Qobuz and Apple Music, as these formats are too large to send via Bluetooth (currently).
In terms of price, wired headphones are also slightly cheaper compared to wireless options. But that doesn’t mean wireless headphones aren’t amazing.
When it comes to portability, there’s no better feeling than not be tied to a wire. Have you ever pulled an auxiliary cable the wrong way? This can catapult your device from one end of the room to the other or damage the headphone jack, Lightning port or other connection. Additionally, today’s wireless headphones last much longer than models from years past, with seven to eight hours of playtime being about the average playtime you can expect.
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Source: newstars.edu.vn