How to Fix Muffled AirPods

If your AirPods is sounding muffled, you might be left confused about what exactly is going on.

In common scenarios, you might think your AirPod is damaged and you need to get a replacement AirPods

But then, it might be a little issue such as a small software update or dirt that could be causing this muffled sound and you might not be fully aware of that.

And since you’re here, I will be walking you through how to fix muffled AirPods.

Before delving into how to fix muffled AirPods, let’s break down the reason why the AirPods is producing muffled sounds so that you can take note of where the problem might be coming from any time it occurs.

Why your AirPods are Sounding Muffled

Starting from the hardest reasons. The first reason your AirPods is giving a muffled sound is due to the dirt that has clogged up the AirPods holes. Other common reasons include the following.

Stored up Debris or dirt collected in your AirPods.
Weak Bluetooth connection
Outdated device software
Contradicting 8-16kHz and AAC codec
Damaged AirPods
Interference with another Bluetooth connection
Outdated Bluetooth adapter driver

Stored up Debris or Dirt collected in your AirPods

One of the easiest ways to figure out this problem is to take a close look at the inner holes of your AirPods, most especially the speaker area where it is usually inserted in your ear.

If you have been using your AirPods for a while, you might see some debris clogged up inside the speaker area which is usually covered in black. This is something similar I have experienced with my Earbuds.

A great indication of Dirt issues is if your AirPods are sounding quite low than they use to. If it is, it’s a clear indication that something is blocking the AirPods audio from coming out

Weak Bluetooth connection

Another common reason why your AirPods are giving off a muffled sound is a weak Bluetooth connection. Most AirPods usually come with a Bluetooth distance limit of 10 meters. However, if you are using any Apple AirPods version, it comes with a distance limit of 18 meters.

While this might not seem easy to decipher, If you are going far away from your AirPods and you notice the sounds suddenly start to get muffled. You have to retract your steps as you might have exceeded the specified distance limit

AirPods Battery is Low

Apart from the reasons listed above, your AirPods can get muffled if the battery is almost dead. Anytime your AirPods start to give off a muffled sound, check the battery level of the AirPods.

A low battery-activated power saving mode could affected the quality of sounds you are hearing

Outdated device software

Another reason which might not be very obvious at first is a bug issue. These bugs usually affect the device and could intern affect the phone from functioning correctly which could be one of the reasons why you are expecting a muffled sound.

But then, this isn’t the first thing you should check out for if you are looking to figure out how to fix muffled AirPods.

Damaged AirPods

When we talk of damaged AirPods, it usually stems from technical issues. It could come as a result of frequent dropping on the ground and it could also be a result of your AirPods dropping into water.

Recommended: Dropped my AirPods in Water

Interference with another Bluetooth connection

You could be faced with this if you’ve connected a series of Bluetooth devices to your AirPods. And now you are trying to connect one of them to your AirPods but the Bluetooth of other devices are left on.

This issue is not high on the lists since it can only happen with devices you’ve paired your AirPods with before.

Now that you are aware of what could have caused your AirPods to give out muffled sounds, here are the different fizzes you can carry out if you are stuck with this issue.

Charge Your AirPods

One of the first things you should check when figuring out how to fix muffled AirPods is the battery level. If the battery level is low it can affect the quality of sound coming from the AirPods.

If this is the first time expecting this, simply plug your AirPods into a power supply for 30 minutes and give it a try after connecting it to your phone.

Clean the AirPods

This is one I have personally experienced. In a scenario like this, you will notice that your AirPods are stocked with ear debris or dust. Either way, the speaker in the AirPods is dirty.

If that is the case, simply get the AirPods and insert a cotton bud inside the speaker

Use it to clean off any debris or dirt from the AirPods.

When you are done with this, try connecting it to your phone while taking note of the sound that comes out of it.

If it still sounds muffled, proceed to the next troubleshooting step

Unpair Other Nearby Bluetooth Devices

If you have a lot of devices that have been paired with your AirPods nearby you might want to unpaid them before connecting the one you want to use.

While this might not be an issue, it could lead to one of the paired nearby devices trying to connect to your current AirPods.

To prevent this, simply unpair your Bluetooth device that is nearby and pair only the one you wish to pair.

It results in muffled sounds on your AirPods. So, you may consider unpairing your device with other nearby Bluetooth devices.

If you are not sure how to do that, follow the steps below if you are using a smartphone

On iOS and Android

Choose Settings.
Select the Bluetooth option.
Select the Bluetooth device and tap the More information button (i) under the My Devices section.
Select Forget This Device.
Next, tap Forget Device to confirm the choice.

Restart the Bluetooth Connection

If you have not been able to figure out how to fix muffled AirPods try resisting your AirPods. Doing this soft reset the cache memory while clearing any current bugs before restarting the AirPods.

Reset the network Settings on your Device

If your AirPods are giving a muffled sound, you can reset the network which involves the wifi, Bluetooth and other network-related settings.

If you are unsure of how to do that I will be walking you through how you can fix muffled AirPods on different phone types

How to reset Network settings on Android

Navigate to Settings on your device
Locate General management or System
Tap on Reset or Reset options and choose ‘Reset network settings
Now, tap on the reset button.

How to reset Network Settings on iPhone

If you are using a newer version of IOS or iPadOS15 or later follow the steps below to reset your network settings

Navigate to Settings
Tap on General
Tap on Transfer or Reset [Device]
Next, select Reset and tap Reset Network Settings

For iPadOS 14 or the corresponding iOS device and earlier, here is how you can go about it.

Navigate to Settings
Tap on General
Next, select Reset and finally choose Reset Network Settings.

Reset your AirPods

Here is how to reset your Apple AirPods without issues

Get your AirPods and insert them into the charging case
Wait for about 30 seconds before lifting the lids open
GO on your smartphone and remove AirPods from your Paired device list
Get the charging case and press the Setup button at the back of the charging case. Press until it flashes white light.
After doing all this, open the AirPods case and bring it close to your device and follow the on-screen instructions.

Update the device Software

If you’ve tried all the steps listed above to no avail, you should try updating your Device software.

If your device is out of date it can easily run into bugs and other security issues and this issue could affect your AirPods sound.

If you are unsure of how to go about these, will be walking you through how you can do that for any phone type

How to update OS on Android Phone

Navigate to Settings.
Locate and tap on System.
Choose System update. You might see it on the Settings panel for some Android phone versions.
Finally, tap on Check for the update.

How to Update iOS on iPhone Phone

Navigate to Settings.
Next, choose General.
Now, choose Software Update and select Download and Install.
Once the download is complete, type your device Passcode and press Install Now

AirPods muffled after cleaning

If your AirPods muffles after cleaning the dirt from it, you should proceed to try other troubleshooting steps listed above

AirPods sound muffled after water

If your AirPods give a muffled sound after removing it from water, Don’t go plug it to power, simply wipe it dry with a lint-free cloth and dry it for 4-6 hours.

Recommended: Dropped AirPods in Water

Conclusion

By now you should have figured out how to fix muffled AirPods if you are experiencing that, after trying all the steps listed above, the sound isn’t changing contact apple support