Audio Sound Quality on ANC Mode of AirPods Pro

[peetliri]

Hi all,

I've had a really good rummage around here and Reddit and no one else seems to have mentioned this.

But, I think the audio quality when on ANC mode is dreadful. It sounds like I am listening to a 128 Kbps MP3 from 2001. With ANC off, the music sounds like normal Apple Music quality.

I am on my second pair of AirPods Pro, and the issue persists across all my Apple devices. I can't fathom how no one else appears to have mentioned this.

I have done all the usual things to remedy the situation: Downloaded music, made sure it's at high quality, tried Tidal, tried different tips, restarted the devices, updated to iOS 13.3 beta, reset network connections, bought a second pair. My issue isn't with the fit, the sound profile, the ANC – it's solely with what I think is the bluetooth connection, or something ANC mode is doing to the audio quality. It sounds garbage!

I have Sony WF1000XM3s and WH1000XM3s to compare them to. The WF earbuds don't have the best quality over iOS and Apple Music, compared to my WH1000XM3s and FLAC. Of course I would never expect that. But the AirPods Pro in ANC mode are demonstrably terrible, as in sounds like I'm underwater terrible. Honestly, I don't understand, it really sounds like some 64/128 kbps MP3. Really disappointing.

Any other similar anecdotes would be interesting to hear. Thanks!

 

[rmoliv]

Sound quality is pretty crappy either with ANC on or off.

 

[kellte2]

I couldn’t disagree more. When listening critically, of course they can’t compete with TOTL headphones like Ether C Flows, for example, but they hold up just fine at the gym, running, or doing stuff around the house/yard.
The soundstage is where I see them at their weakest, but in terms of clarity, I would never describe the output as sounding underwater.

 

[blairh]

Hi all,

I've had a really good rummage around here and Reddit and no one else seems to have mentioned this.

But, I think the audio quality when on ANC mode is dreadful. It sounds like I am listening to a 128 Kbps MP3 from 2001. With ANC off, the music sounds like normal Apple Music quality.

I am on my second pair of AirPods Pro, and the issue persists across all my Apple devices. I can't fathom how no one else appears to have mentioned this.

I have done all the usual things to remedy the situation: Downloaded music, made sure it's at high quality, tried Tidal, tried different tips, restarted the devices, updated to iOS 13.3 beta, reset network connections, bought a second pair. My issue isn't with the fit, the sound profile, the ANC – it's solely with what I think is the bluetooth connection, or something ANC mode is doing to the audio quality. It sounds garbage!

I have Sony WF1000XM3s and WH1000XM3s to compare them to. The WF earbuds don't have the best quality over iOS and Apple Music, compared to my WH1000XM3s and FLAC. Of course I would never expect that. But the AirPods Pro in ANC mode are demonstrably terrible, as in sounds like I'm underwater terrible. Honestly, I don't understand, it really sounds like some 64/128 kbps MP3. Really disappointing.

Any other similar anecdotes would be interesting to hear. Thanks!

Yes, the APP with ANC have mediocre SQ. It's noticeably better with ANC disabled. I wouldn't go as far as saying it sounds like you are underwater, your music should still be coming in clear, but the music itself is not impressive with APP in any mode.

The WF1000XM3's offer far superior SQ compared to the APP when the EQ is tweaked to your liking.

 

[zhy3213]

The spectrum response of APP is a bit weak in high frequencies, so it may sounds like a lower quality MP3 file since the lower bit rate of MP3 cuts down those frequencies.
But you may also check out that whether your app or your connected device is using APP's mic, when mics are turned on, the sound quality will dramatically drop down.

 

[Otflyer]

I think they sound good. Not WF1000XM3 quality but, good.

 

[perezr10]

I Have noticed that ANC mode is “bassier”. But to me that’s a positive.