AirPods Audio Balance Shifting left and right - Update from Apple

[Parowdy]

I really thought I had posted a thread about this previously.
For about a year now I’ve had issues with my AirPods Pro 2 (3 pairs in total), where the audio shifts from center to the left or right, sometimes randomly.

There have been many reports over the years of users who’s AirPods Pro 2 became affected by this and similar conditions.

More details on my specific problem (you may skip):

• This only happens with either a Listening Mode or Spatial Stereo or both enabled, never with the „Off Listening Mode“ and Spatial Stereo turned off.
• Headphone Accommodations don’t affect this issue, how it happens or when it happens (I have Headphone Accommodations tuned for „Balanced Tone“ and set it to „Slight“ as this removes perceived dampness of the original AirPod Pro 2 sound while adding detail in the mids and highs)
• It feels like the seal is suddenly not good on either side and using Head Tracked Spatial Stereo at the same time as if you’re (sometimes slightly) turning your head.
• I do not ever use Head Tracked Spatial Audio.
• This effect may switch sides at any point or only happen on either one.
• This happens mostly in public transit vehicles at higher speeds or during strong winds. It seems linked to changing air pressure around (me,) the listener, but can occasionally happen while walking or moving one’s head.
• Eventually, the sound will return to the center, it doesn’t stay on either side for longer than 10 seconds at a time.

After having noticed the same behavior on 3 separat units (all still in use, genuine and updated to the then respective latest version (all this started with my first pair in January 2025)
I decided to bite the bullet with one pair and turn on Beta Updates and Analytics Data (something always turning off itself after an iOS beta update… for me) and report on said issue.

What I didn’t expect was to see that there have been other reports about it and that an investigation was launched.

Unfortunately, that investigation apparently won’t lead to a fix… according to the info provided by Apple themselves, which seems very odd.
I mean, I’m 1. glad other people reported the issue too (not so much that they encounter a similar problem) and 2. happy it’s on Apple‘s radar, but to read that the issue can’t be isolated and no fix will be issued feels weird.
Does that mean they can’t fix it? It is, according to my observations, a software issue only present when at least one of the two major sound processing options (Listening Mode and Spatial Stereo) are in use, and to me it seems like there could be an algorithm making sure the sound stays centered, even when the pressure is changing around the ears, but apparently not? I mean, the AirPods obviously react to something, but that something can’t be pin pointed? That’s unexpected.

By the way, here is my explanation of the issue in the report itself, for anyone interested.

Anyway. I just wanted this to be available to anyone scouring the web for reports of other people experiencing this issue.
You’re not alone, Apple knows about the issue, they just can’t fix it (for the time being).
It’s not you, it’s not just your pair of AirPods.

Edit:
(1) I also couldn‘t exchange them under warranty. See my comment below for more information, but don’t let it discourage you from trying it yourself!
(2) Apple has, multiple years after introducing the Pro 2‘s, interestingly, made a cleaning tutorial available on YouTube on how to clean the meshes on the buds. I did that and it didn’t change anything.
But it might work for you.

 

[xJohnyyx]

Just noticed this happening recently. My APP2 are still in warranty. You're saying getting them exchanged won't help?

 

[Parowdy]

Just noticed this happening recently. My APP2 are still in warranty. You're saying getting them exchanged won't help?

There seems to be variation in how any unit may be affected.
Each of my 3 pairs behaves differently under similar conditions (tested all three on the same line on many occasions).

Personally I couldn’t get them exchanged under warranty as the issue couldn’t be physically diagnosed.
I got an appointment at the only Apple certified store around in the Support app.
The technician had a case from Apple that is specifically designed to test all AirPods in a sound proof enclosure, using an iPhone (7 in my case) as the microphone, playing different sounds at different levels, one Pod at a time I suppose, perhaps with a dedicated software tool that toggles the different listening modes. After all, you have them connect the Pods to their diagnostic iPhone for the test and to pull analytics.
The technician understood what kind of problem I had, but couldn’t do anything about it as long as the test came back without any errors, which of course it did, because it’s a different thing ENTIRELY to put an AirPod next to an iPhone microphone in a sound proof box instead of it being stuck in a small and airtight cavity that may move, just like the air around it…

Anyway. You should still try to have them exchanged and see if the issue persists. That way Apple has one more datapoint and you maybe a better unit.
Maybe one that’s worse 🤷‍
I wish I could help you any better, but I can’t.
You can always try a factory reset beforehand though.

Since when do you have your Pro 2‘s and when did this first start happening if I might ask?

 

[xJohnyyx]

There seems to be variation in how any unit may be affected.
Each of my 3 pairs behaves differently under similar conditions (tested all three on the same line on many occasions).

Personally I couldn’t get them exchanged under warranty as the issue couldn’t be physically diagnosed.
I got an appointment at the only Apple certified store around in the Support app.
The technician had a case from Apple that is specifically designed to test all AirPods in a sound proof enclosure, using an iPhone (7 in my case) as the microphone, playing different sounds at different levels, one Pod at a time I suppose, perhaps with a dedicated software tool that toggles the different listening modes. After all, you have them connect the Pods to their diagnostic iPhone for the test and to pull analytics.
The technician understood what kind of problem I had, but couldn’t do anything about it as long as the test came back without any errors, which of course it did, because it’s a different thing ENTIRELY to put an AirPod next to an iPhone microphone in a sound proof box instead of it being stuck in a small and airtight cavity that may move, just like the air around it…

Anyway. You should still try to have them exchanged and see if the issue persists. That way Apple has one more datapoint and you maybe a better unit.
Maybe one that’s worse 🤷‍
I wish I could help you any better, but I can’t.
You can always try a factory reset beforehand though.

Since when do you have your Pro 2‘s and when did this first start happening if I might ask?

Thanks! They're from about a year ago and I've noticed it happening more in the last few weeks. I had another pair before that for about 1.5 years and don't really recall having this issue. But I did also experience this with the APP1 where it started after a few years of use, although with them the issue was much more frequent and consistent.

 

[Parowdy]

Thanks! They're from about a year ago and I've noticed it happening more in the last few weeks. I had another pair before that for about 1.5 years and don't really recall having this issue. But I did also experience this with the APP1 where it started after a few years of use, although with them the issue was much more frequent and consistent.

Sorry to hear that. I really like AirPods, but this is such an annoying and discomforting issue to experience.
Can you pinpoint under what conditions this happens?
For me, I know that on a specific ~1.5 kilometer long stretch of my commute to my home town (I go there about twice a week to see my family and don’t have a car) it will happen eventually.

 

[Dust-by-Monday]

Always been an issue with my APP2 and now my APP3

 

[Loopwithairpods]

Had the APP2 for years and never noticed this issue until a few months ago. Absolutely nothing fixed it and putting the balance slider to -0.01 made it uncentered the other way.

I just got the APP3 for my birthday a few days ago and was disappointed to hear the exact same unbalanced sound. Literally nothing I can find solves this problem and is ruining AirPods for me in general. Hardly anyone is talking about this problem and this is the only real conversation I can find on the internet.

I am not sure though if we have the exact same issue. For me the sound is centered slightly to the right constantly. Regardless of whatever setting or mode I have on or off. It’s constant. Doesn’t matter if I’m using Spatial Audio or not.

The weird thing is that both ANC and Tranparency mode sound perfectly centered. And is the only reason why I’m using them at all.

Hopefully someone know a fix or Apple silently fixes it soon.

 

[Lab34]

Hi,
My APP2 are 2.5 year's old, and since a few weeks, the balance is sometimes shifting from one side to the other, in adaptive mode mainly, but sometimes in ANC. And the ANC itself seems not as good as before.
I thought it was a firmware thing, but after reading all your posts, I searched a little bit and after seeing this video, I decided to clean them with some Zeiss Lens Wipes I bought to clean my Mac keyboard.
This morning, it seems to be OK, but maybe a placebo effect.

 

[Parowdy]

Had the APP2 for years and never noticed this issue until a few months ago. Absolutely nothing fixed it and putting the balance slider to -0.01 made it uncentered the other way.

I just got the APP3 for my birthday a few days ago and was disappointed to hear the exact same unbalanced sound. Literally nothing I can find solves this problem and is ruining AirPods for me in general. Hardly anyone is talking about this problem and this is the only real conversation I can find on the internet.

I am not sure though if we have the exact same issue. For me the sound is centered slightly to the right constantly. Regardless of whatever setting or mode I have on or off. It’s constant. Doesn’t matter if I’m using Spatial Audio or not.

The weird thing is that both ANC and Tranparency mode sound perfectly centered. And is the only reason why I’m using them at all.

Hopefully someone know a fix or Apple silently fixes it soon.

I’ve had that problem, too. For me it sounded like the sound was ever so slightly louder on the right, which then resulted in me using my AirPods for almost half a year with a -0.01 balance, which was weird because my right ear actually hears worse than my left one.
Anyway. At some point I noticed the opposite and put the balance back to 0.00. It’s been fine ever since. But this happened on 2 of my 3 pairs at different times.

The problem I’m talking about in this thread is the balance shifting left or right for a short while.

Does this only happen to you with the Off listening mode or when?

 

[Loopwithairpods]

I’ve had that problem, too. For me it sounded like the sound was ever so slightly louder on the right, which then resulted in me using my AirPods for almost half a year with a -0.01 balance, which was weird because my right ear actually hears worse than my left one.
Anyway. At some point I noticed the opposite and put the balance back to 0.00. It’s been fine ever since. But this happened on 2 of my 3 pairs at different times.

The problem I’m talking about in this thread is the balance shifting left or right for a short while.

Does this only happen to you with the Off listening mode or when?

Yes even on off listening mode it’s still unbalanced. Doesn’t matter if I have ANC or Transparency mode on or off. The actual media playing in the AirPods is shifted slightly to the right. And putting the balance slider on -0.01 makes it noticeably shifted to the left. It’s driving me nuts. I tried turning on beta firmware but the problem persists.

 

[Parowdy]

Hi,
My APP2 are 2.5 year's old, and since a few weeks, the balance is sometimes shifting from one side to the other, in adaptive mode mainly, but sometimes in ANC. And the ANC itself seems not as good as before.
I thought it was a firmware thing, but after reading all your posts, I searched a little bit and after seeing this video, I decided to clean them with some Zeiss Lens Wipes I bought to clean my Mac keyboard.
This morning, it seems to be OK, but maybe a placebo effect.

Properly cleaning your buds and the case goes a long way towards helping the longevity of them.
I’m glad you wiping seems to have helped.
I’ve once followed through with Apples tutorial and surprisingly didn’t break anything with brushing 2 separate liquids into the headphones, but it also didn’t change anything about the sound, unfortunately.
But then again, I wipe my buds every time (not wet) before I put them in their case, so that helps.

 

[Parowdy]

Yes even on off listening mode it’s still unbalanced. Doesn’t matter if I have ANC or Transparency mode on or off. The actual media playing in the AirPods is shifted slightly to the right. And putting the balance slider on -0.01 makes it noticeably shifted to the left. It’s driving me nuts. I tried turning on beta firmware but the problem persists.

Have you tried cleaning them and a factory reset?

 

[Loopwithairpods]

Have you tried cleaning them and a factory reset?

There’s no cleaning to be done because they are brand new. And yes I already did a full reset of the AirPods and the problem is still there.