During the pandemic, I started using Airpods more often for online zoom meetings, listening to calls or music, and watching movies.
But, within a few days, I noticed that my AirPods kept cutting out frequently.
First, I tried to ignore this, but when Airpods kept cutting out repeatedly, I was annoyed and started looking for solutions.
Although finding the solution was even more frustrating,t I finally figured out exactly why Airpods sound is glitchy, stuttery, or distorted.
Airpods are undoubtedly great Bluetooth wireless headphones with priceless features like ANC, longest battery life, and crispy and rich audio experience.
Apple users are convinced of having Airpods, but the frustrating problem of stuttering or choppy audio even when Airpods are connected properly makes you confused or sometimes drives people crazy about what’s wrong with Airpods.
Why does Airpod Keep Cutting Out?
The cutouts can happen for several reasons. It’s ideal to understand what causes the Airpods to cut the sound in and out before we discuss how to solve this problem.
Unstable connection
Unlike old wired Earpods by Apple, the third-generation Apple Airpods comes with Magsafe charging, optimal reception range, and a comfy design to sit on your ears for hours. But still, the underlying communication technology is Bluetooth, which runs on a 2.4GHz band and can be interfered with by other devices using Wi-Fi that also operates on the same band when you are in a crowded place with a lot of wi-fi activity around.
On top of that, the Bluetooth connection can be weakened when there are obstructions like walls or floors between the source and the destination. Eventually, the connection becomes unstable or breaks.
The optimal range for a strong Bluetooth connection is 30-60 ft which is 10 to 18 meters. When you take the paired iPhone or iPad beyond this range, you will start experiencing distortion, skipping, stuttering, cracked audio, or the audio quality will worsen.
When you are standing next to a poorly shielded cable, microwave oven, wireless speakers system, radio, cordless phones, walkie-talkies, baby monitor, a garage door, or even fluorescent lights, the Bluetooth connection will be unbalanced and audio streaming will be poor with glitchy sound and constant skipping.
If you are streaming audio over Wi-Fi, check your Wi-Fi because unstable streaming can also cause audio to disconnect frequently or cause connection-related problems.
Airpods: using YouTube, Spotify, Netflix, iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Android device, Windows PC,
Music: constantly plagued by disconnection, the sound is glitchy, unbalanced, stuttery, fixed glitchy audio,
Airpods Sensor Issues
Airpods are the iconic wireless Bluetooth headphones, and one of the fascinating features that have become the selling point for Airpods is theautomatic ear detection that pauses audio when you take off Airpods. This feature allows the Airpods to sense when you remove Airpods from your ears and stop the music instantly and when you put the Airpods back, it resumes the audio so that you don’t miss a thing. It works when you remove either one pod or both at the same time.
Sometimes, the sensor failure can cause audio cutouts, and you may experience unusual skipping even though there are no physical obstructions between the paired iPhone and Airpods.
When AirPods are not working due to sensor issues, that’s because Airpods cannot detect that you are wearing them.
Sometimes, the dying battery of Airpods can cause skipping or stuttering leading to disconnection. But that rarely happens because most people can get Airpods low battery alert sound to prepare Airpods for charging. If you miss the alert, Airpods will die, and you won’t be able to hear the audio anymore. Airpods have the best battery life, and the best part is that a fully charged case can charge Airpods again and again at least five times, and each time, you can use AirPods for up to 5 hours.
Outdated firmware version
The older the version of the firmware is, the more issues and problems you will face. Sometimes, the firmware of Airpods or your iPhone is outdated, which means the older version can be prone to experience bugs and issues fixed in the updates. Still, some people turn off or forget to update the firmware, resulting in problems like audio cutouts.
Hardware defect
Suppose you got tricked into buying fake Airpods. In that case, you are likely to experience good connection and disconnection because the hardware in the counterfeit Airpods is not up to the mark and reliable. Other than that, official Airpods can also have a manufacturing defect like in October 2020, when Apple accepted that damaged Airpods are much more likely to experience sound issues, and sometimes the culprit behind the malfunction is dirt and debris, so keeping your AirPods clean is also great advice. ( Airpods cleaning Interlink )
Audio source issues
In some cases, the audio source is causing the sound cutouts while you keep blaming Airpods for that. A lagged iPhone or iPad with many apps can disturb the audio delivery. So, the obvious solution could be to relax your device by closing the unnecessary applications to reduce the load on the device, and you may experience good audio later. Similarly, audio enhancement can be a reason for audio cutouts.
Do This When Airpods keep cutting out
Now that you know theropods keep cutting out le,t’s take a look at the precautions on to from cutting out.
Battery Level
Most of the time, the low battery levels of Airpods cause random disconnection. The more upsetting thing is that there are no indicators for battery level with a depleted threshold. But, there is a way to check the battery life of Airpods before you start using them.
Put your iPhone and the Airpods case side by side and make sure that the Airpods are inside the case.
Open the Airpods case, and the iPhone will show a window showing the battery life of both Airpods.
Monitor the battery status from the battery pop-up and put them on a charge if the battery is on a critical level.
You can also ask Siri to tell you the battery level by saying, “ Hey Siri, What is the battery status of my Airpods. “
Siri will also open a window that will suggest the battery level for both pods; this way, you can keep track of the battery levels of both earpieces.
Bluetooth Settings
Once you have ensured that the Airpods have full battery level, but the problem of cutouts persists, it’s time to pay attention to the Bluetooth settings.
As discussed above, a Bluetooth connection can become unstable or disturbed for several reasons. Follow this approach to ensure Bluetooth is not the leading cause of Airpods cutouts.
Avoid using Airpods when there are physical obstructions or physical interference between Airpods and the audio source because the closer you are to the audio source, the stronger the Bluetooth connection will be.
Most of the time, crowded places can result in Bluetooth-related issues because the Wi-Fi signals usually fill the 2.4GHz spectrum, which is why Bluetooth signals are weakened in such situations. The ideal solution would be to move away from such places to prevent wireless interference.
You can turn off or disable Bluetooth or unpair Airpods from the devices by resetting Airpods. Once you have disconnected Airpods from the phone, unlock your phone, and a popup window for connection will appear. Now you can try to re-establish a connection; chances are Bluetooth will not disrupt your connection this time. We believe the quickest possible fix is to toggle Bluetooth on/off and reconnect Airpods with the phone.
The next method would be helpful if you still encounter spotty sounds or interrupted music.
Disconnect and Reconnect Airpods
What you need to do now is to completely remove the connection of Airpods from your audio source from internal settings, and sometimes, this helps take care of the bugs causing sound cutouts or crackling.
Follow these steps:
Settings > Bluetooth > Locate your Airpods > Click on the “i” icon
Click on Forget this device and confirm it
After a few seconds, the AirPods case is close to the iPhone to make a connection
Open the case with AirPods inside and wait for the setup animation,
If the popup doesn’t come, keep the Airpods button on the case pressed
If you want to connect Airpods with other devices like PC, PS4, Android phones, or any other gadget, then you can also follow our other guide. ( Interlinks: how to connect AirPods to PC, PS4, Android )
( Interlinks: How to reset Airpods )
Reset AirPods to Factory Settings
Reset AirPods to Factory settings is the next recommended step that makes the Airpods like a fresh piece out of the box. The purpose of resetting Airpods is to remove internal bugs and modifications but doing this also results in forgetting all linked devices to iCloud.
Let’s discuss how to reset Airpods to factor settings:
Put the case near the iPhone with Airpods inside, and close the lid
Keep the Airpods case button pressed for at least 15 seconds or wait for the orange light; t; n, the white light will blink.
Now, Airpods are reset, and you can connect them with your audio source by opening the lid and following the on-screen instructions.
This approach has a higher chance of working, but according to the Airpods variant, you must follow different steps because different AirPods variants have different reset techniques. ( Interlinks: How to reset Airpods and their variants )
When you forget and re-sync Airpods with your iPhone, they will be working consistently because all the abnormalities are usually removed after resetting Airpods. But keep in mind that overuse can still lead to sound cutouts.
Disable Automatic Ear Detection
To prevent cutouts, the best approach is to disable automatic ear detection, which means when you wear off the Airpods, the audio will keep playing. To turn off the automatic ear detection feature, follow these steps:
Settings > Bluetooth > Locate Airpods > Hit “i” icon
Toggle off the Automatic Ear Detection
Sometimes, Automatic ear detection can cause interruptions with connectivity because of the defaulter’s in-built sensing technology that leads to incomplete or impartial connections. Therefore, completely turning it off will ensure you don’t get abrupt disconnections and won’t face connectivity issues.
Pay close attention to Airpod’s hygiene because sometimes, the stuck dirt, earwax, or grime can cause AirPods to cut sound.
Clean Airpods and Charging Ports
Another important consideration to prevent sound cutouts can be to clean Airpods and charging ports to remove stuck debris or dirt from the charging port.
You can start cleaning the Airpods using a q-tip ( cotton swab ) and the lint-free cloth to gentle wipe the bottom metal ring gently start cleaning inside the case to remove the accumulated earwax, dirt, or gunk on the ports.
Pay close attention to the Airpods speaker mesh while cleaning, and don’t put too much pressure because the microphone, speakers mesh, and other sensors are sensitive.
Be nice while cleaning Airpods because you can easily scratch or damage the sensitive exterior and components of Airpods. Please do not use too much cleaning liquid because it will end up penetrating inside the Airpods resulting in more damage.
The q-tip is useful for cleaning speaker gaps, mounting putty, and speaker mesh to remove clogged dirt.
There are higher chances that after this approach, your Airpods will no more sound glitchy, and you will experience consistent quality music.
Firmware Update of Airpods
Sometimes, outdated firmware can cause sound cutouts, and by simply updating the firmware of the Airpods, you can eliminate the frequent or random cutting out of Airpods.
Follow these steps to install desired firmware version:
Connect Airpods with iPhone
Apple says that firmware update for Airpods is done automatically TO manually update firmware, go to Bluetooth settings, and press “i.”
Check the Firmware version
Update the latest version of firmware for seamless wireless connection
The firmware is where the programming or Airpods resides, and sometimes, the glitches in outdated firmware can lead to Airpods cutting out.
Airpods Losing Power
If your Airpods are not working correctly, that can be because of the Airpods losing power. Sometimes, the drained-out batteries of Airpods won’t let Airpods transmit audio properly. To overcome this situation, you must be proactive and keep the Airpods charged to prevent the cut-offs due to lower power. With lower power left, Airpods won’t be able to sustain a proper stable connection, and you will likely experience glitches and disconnected sound.
Airpods connecting to new Audio Source
When using the same Airpods while driving the car, the Mac, and then on your iPhone or iPad, Airpods can be confused to remain connected to the one source you want. Therefore, the ideal situation would be to turn off Bluetooth of all other devices in your surrounding to prevent cut-offs.
Broken Airpods
Physically damaged or broken Airpod is much more likely to experience audio cutouts because when the internal hardware is damaged, there is no way for Airpods to work properly, and you should expect Airpods to behave improperly. Sometimes, it can be hard to detect the physical defects with Airpods; the ideal option would be to visit Apple technical store or contact Apple support. For proper solution.
Reset iPhone
Sometimes, the outdated iPhone software version with bugs can result in Airpods cutting out. The solution should be to reset the iPhone because the reboot mostly wipes the errors and problems or corrupts the network and prohibits the device from properly communicating with Airpods.
Now you will see a slide saying power off, and you can slide it to turn off the power of the phone, which will start in a few seconds. Repeat the same process for the Apple watch as well, and there are two buttons on the Apple watch that you can keep pressed to turn it off and restart it.
Turn off Wifi
As discussed earlier, Wi-Fi can sometimes take up a lot of spectrum space, leaving little to no space for Bluetooth signals to transmit; therefore, the audio won’t be able to reach from iPhone to the Airpods.
For that, you can turn off Wi-Fi, reduce the distance between Airpods and connected devices and keep yourself away from obstructions and things that can cause interference and you will be able to experience smooth and reliable audio.
Update iPhone Software
Another big reason for Airpods to cut out can be the outdated software version of the iPhone because the outdated software versions can have abnormalities that can cause issues like audio cut-outs; therefore, you can update the iOS version of the iPhone. The latest software update takes care of the issues, and you will experience smooth audio later. Still, it can be time-consuming, so make sure to schedule it for the night.
Sometimes, there is no problem with Airpods. Instead, the Airpods are just destroyed by the wear and tear of use. But if you can see visible cracks or the speaker is damaged or dead, visit Apple support through messages.
Airpods Cutting out on Mac
If you are connecting Airpods with mac and experiencing cutouts, that means the outdated version of the macOS is causing the unstable connection. You can try updating the macOS, and you will be able to get stable sound from Airpods.
Weak Cellular Reception
Finally, the only reason for the Airpods can be the weak cellular recept. You coherence cutouts when the device streaming the audio receives a call or text like a Whatsapp call, and those radio waves can intercept the Bluetooth signals, which rais rangehnology.
The same problem can occur when you are using portable gaming consoles. So, it all boils down to one thing Airpods still use Bluetooth technology even though the latest version of Airpods is equipped with Near Field Magnetic Induction technology that has no issues like this.
Why do AirPods keep cutting out on calls?
Airpods keep cutting out on calls because when you receive a call or text, the cellular network signals intercept the Bluetooth signals causing interference that results in audio cutouts.
Airpods keep cutting out for a second?
Airpods keep cutting out for a second when there is a lot of network activity around you.
Why do my AirPods keep cutting out on Spotify?
Airpods cutting out on Spotify is a serious problem that can have multiple reasons that we have discussed above.
Airpods keep cutting out on youtube?
If Airpods keep cutting out on YouTube, try updating the firmware of the Airpods or cleaning the Airpods.
Airpods keep cutting out on mac?
When Airpods keep cutting out on mac, try to update the macOS version.
Why does one of my AirPods keep cutting out?
Sometimes, one AirPods keep cutting out, which can be due to the lower battery of that one earpiece because it is not common for both AirPods to have the same charging.
One of the most common problems for apple uses is AirPods keep cutting out, or AirPods are skipping while listening to music. Whether it’s an AirPods or AirPods Pro, you are just facing that blackout for a moment, and it keeps happening again and again.
If that’s what you are facing, this article is for you.
Without any doubt, AirPods are better and more reliable than other wireless headphones. They are intelligent, compact, lightweight, and should quality is also excellent. Plus, you can expect more mileage from AirPods than other headphones.
But, AirPods are also an electric device, and the most common issue you will face is the AirPods connection issue or the audio stutters or skips.
Before digging deep, make sure you are using the AirPods when the iPhone or device they are connected with is in the range of 100 feet. If the distance is more than 100 feet, then there are higher chances of facing a partial disconnection, music skipping, cutting out, or a proper blackout as well. So, reduce the distance, and you are good to go.
But, if that’s not the case, you can read different solutions about how to fix AirPods’ keep cutting out a problem.
Causes or AirPods Keep cutting out.
AirPods are Bluetooth wireless earbuds that connect with your iPhone or Macbook using Bluetooth. When you pair your AirPods with any Bluetooth audio device, that’s when something in the back happens and causes the AirPods to cut out.
The science behind this is that Bluetooth is disturbed by radio waves. Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology commonly used in smartphones, laptops, and gaming consoles.
When you connect your iPhone with AirPods, speakers, headsets, or earphones, you can face connectivity issues. So, let’s discuss different scenarios that can cause the problem with your Bluetooth device and, yes, when AirPods are cut out.
If your smartphone or the AirPods are low on battery, that can be the most apparent reason why the Bluetooth audio is cut or cut out. Or if any of both devices are dead, then the entire connection is removed, and you might be thinking that why AirPods are cutting out. Do keep your eyes on your AirPods case as well when charging, and make sure AirPods are inside the case, not outside the case; you can lose them as well.
Sometimes, incorrect Bluetooth scanning or lack of application permission triggers the Bluetooth to switch off automatically. That also feels like the AirPods are cutting out, but that’s not the issue.
Finally, if you are using an older version of AirPods with the new version of the iPhone or a new version of AirPods with the older version of the iPhone, that can also cause the AirPods to cut out the music.
How to Fix AirPods keep cutting out
Keep the phone and AirPods closer
This seems simple, but obviously, the far you are from the audio source, the weaker the signals will get that will feel like AirPods are cutting out. The moderate distance is 30 feet, but you can experience a patchy audio experience if you increase the distance.
Ensure you have selected suitable AirPods when connecting with your smartphone.
Start songs on your smartphone. Tap the Airplay icon that shows below the song track
Choose your AirPods from the options.
When calling, ensure you select suitable AirPods from the audio options.
When you call, change the audio source by simply tapping the speaker icon
Reconnect AirPods with phone
Sometimes, reconnecting AirPods with iPhone can sort out this problem. You can re-pair AirPods by detaching from your phone and putting them in the casing, and then get them out and connect with your phone and see if they are connected.
Make sure the AirPods have an active Bluetooth setting that is described below:
Control panel > Bluetooth > on
Bluetooth settings > Greenlight/indicator
Sometimes this can happen with Bluetooth enabled.
Wait for some time and turn on the Bluetooth again, and you will see the difference.
Now your AirPods are not linked in this duration, but the connection will be established after a few seconds.
Deactivate Automatic Detection
Automatic ear detection is an excellent feature in AirPods that allows the AirPods to disconnect the audio when the sensor doesn’t detect human air.
You can turn off the automatic ear detection feature from Bluetooth settings and use the AirPods without it if you think this is causing the problem.
Clean AirPods
Sometimes the dirt or grime can get stuck on the sensors to cause the cutting out problem. There are several methods for cleaning AirPods, and make sure to clean them to prevent the sensitive casing from damage gently.
Deactivate Automatic switching
AirPods switch between apple devices in iOS 14 that can cause the cutting out problem, and avoid abrupt disconnections, you can turn this feature off. This can also be down from the Bluetooth settings for each device you possess, like Macbook, iPad, or iPhone.
Use the Same AirPods all the time.
Many people proposed that using one AirPods, either left or right, and leaving the other in the casing eliminates the issue. That can be done through the configuration of AirPods.
Settings > Bluetooth > AirPods > Microphone
Turn off the automatic default option, and this way, you will be able to use one AirPod.
Reset AirPods
IF the random disconnection of your AirPods still exists, the final option left is to reset them. That’s a relatively straightforward process, and all you need to do is put both earbuds back into the casing and keep the case button pressed until the indicator flashes.
It’s time to pair your AirPods with the iPhone again with the hope of no connectivity problem.
Another handy option for you is to reset device network settings to resolve corrupt network settings to prevent properly communicating with AirPods.
Settings > General > Reset and choose the network reset settings
Now connect your AirPods with the smartphone, and you will not face any problem again.
Many people suggested that when they were near a radio, they faced the AirPods glitching problem or distinctive crackle from the audio stream, called Bluetooth interference.
Ear wax can be another alarming problem for your one or both AirPods to cut out, reduce the volume or stop them from working.
The low battery can cause additional disconnections, and for that, you should keep an eye on the Bluetooth battery.
Bluetooth interference is common, and it affects the most common Bluetooth devices that are vulnerable, like Airpods with a short wireless range. Other interferences, like microwave oven waves, cordless phone waves, walky-talkies waves, or sometimes fluorescent light, can cause the AirPods to cut out.
You can switch off the wifi router that uses a 5GHz band rather than 2.4GHz.
Finally, check if your Apple ID logged in to your smartphone because that can cause the airport to cut out.
AirPods use Bluetooth and AirPlay both, and they transmit 2.4GHz bandwidth; for each new connection, the range is scanned for an unused or quiet portion. If there are many devices in the same area, it gets noisy; for example, are too many people shouting in one room. So turning off Wifi and Bluetooth makes everything silent, and when u turn it back on, they scan for a quiet portion. This is the same situation for multiple environments.
Music cutting out all of a sudden is annoying. Well, if you are also tired of trying standard methods like disconnecting AirPods from the sound source, re-pairing again, turning off ear detection, or putting the mobile on the flight mode, then you are at the right place. This article has discussed all of these methods and shared new methods with you. Our favorite method for this problem is turning off the ear detection feature, but if your sensor is out of order, that can be the reason for AirPods cutting out. Just figure that out and turn off the ear detection feature, and your AirPods will be again usable for music.
Conclusion
So far, we have discussed a lot of stuff that can cause Airpods to cut out and how you can solve the problem. There can be a handful of reasons like hardware issues due to physical defects, software issues due to outdated versions for firmware, signal interference problems, low batteries, compromised ports, competing audio inputs, and broken AirPods. So, all the issues and solutions are discussed above so that you can comfortably listen to your desired music or podcasts without any interference or problem.
Robert Smith is a technology lover and loves to write about laptops, monitors, printers, tablets, Apple products and anything that's related to computers and games. He is passionate enough that he maintains this blog regarding tech updates on a daily basis.
Robert Smith is a technology lover and loves to write about laptops, monitors, printers, tablets, Apple products and anything that's related to computers and games. He is passionate enough that he maintains this blog regarding tech updates on a daily basis.
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