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A limited but increasing number of iPhone X owners claim to be experiencing so-called "crackling" or "buzzing" sounds emanating from the device's front-facing earpiece speaker at high or max volumes.

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Over two dozen users have said they are affected in a MacRumors discussion topic about the matter, while similar reports have surfaced on Twitter and Reddit since the iPhone X launched just over a week ago.

On affected devices, the crackling sounds occur with any kind of audio playback, including phone calls, music, videos with sound, alarms, and ringtones. The issue doesn't appear to be limited to any specific iPhone X configuration or iOS version.

"Love the phone but I was wondering if anyone has had any issues with the speakers slightly sounding a little crackling whenever max volume," said one MacRumors forum member with the alias ShadowYYZ. "Noticeable on certain songs and even my ring tone which was bought from the iTunes Store."

For those unaware, the iPhone X's earpiece doubles as a speaker that combines with the traditional speaker at the bottom of the device to deliver stereo sound. Both the iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 series also have stereo speakers.

MacRumors hasn't been able to reproduce the issues described. Apple didn't immediately respond to our request for comment on the matter.

While the sounds could be the result of distortion, especially since they occur at higher volumes only, several users are convinced that there could be a bigger software or hardware issue affecting the earpiece.

"I listen to a lot of music on the speakers of the iPhone X and I noticed the slight crackle right away," replied another MacRumors forum member who goes by the username Benz63amg. "Since so many of us seem to experience this crackle then my assumption is that it's software related rather than hardware."

A few months ago, several iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus owners experienced a similar "static noise" issue with the earpiece during phone calls. Apple acknowledged the issue and fixed it in iOS 11.0.2.

Since the crackling sounds on iPhone X don't appear to be limited to phone calls, it's unclear if the issues are related.

Apple has been replacing affected iPhone X units free of charge, according to customers who contacted the company. Apple also appears to be collecting diagnostic information so that its engineers can investigate the matter, as it routinely does with any potential software or hardware issues.

Like the green lines affecting some iPhone X displays, this is an isolated issue affecting a very low percentage of the millions of devices being manufactured. The majority of iPhone X owners do not appear to be affected.

If you experience this problem, we recommend booking a Genius Bar appointment with the Apple Support app or contacting Apple via phone, email, online chat, or Twitter to have your iPhone X replaced. Apple is known for providing good customer service, and it is often genuinely helpful in these situations.

Article Link: Several iPhone X Owners Experiencing 'Crackling' or 'Buzzing' Sounds From Earpiece Speaker



Have these people considered TAKING OFF THE PLASTIC COVERING when they receive the device...
 
So the crackling I have noted is while the phone is connected via blue tooth in my car, and when connected via my blue tooth Bose headphones the volume differential can be reproduced as is similar to when I am listening to it via just the phone’s speakers. Of course there is little need these days to use the phone’s speakers alone - except to troubleshoot this issue.
Crackling is intermittent - and is sometimes positional. Depending upon what you are listening to, it can be hard to discern when you are listening to both speakers equally, which is the default setting on the phone.
I don’t have the original protective covering on, and even if I did, blue tooth connections would not be impacted.
Still hoping someone in this thread will figure out how to fix it - short of returning the phone.
 
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My sister's X has this issue. My X didn't have it. I have to go to get a replacement for mine today for another issue I'm having, hope the replacement doesn't have it
Ah, I thought at first reading that the distortion was the normal kind I’ve always heard maxing out tiny speakers. But if one phone has this and another does not, it does seem to be some sort of flaw. Thanks for clarifying and best of luck to you with your replacement. And to your sister if she decides to replace hers.
 
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Love some of you saying you shouldn't turn up the volume to the max...........hardcore fan boys
Not fanboys, just some of us are people with experience of older sound systems and radios that would distort and make all manner of ungodly racket at maximum volume. I’m 51 and a youth spent listening to old tinny transistor radios has ingrained in me the habit of NOT turning sounds up to maximum volume unless I wanted distortion.

It took me a bit of reading in this thread to catch onto what the problem is.
 
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Not fanboys, just some of us are people with experience of older sound systems and radios that would distort and make all manner of ungodly racket at maximum volume. I’m 51 and a youth spent listening to old tinny transistor radios has ingrained in me the habit of NOT turning sounds up to maximum volume unless I wanted distortion.

It took me a bit of reading in this thread to catch onto what the problem is.

Speakers do distort, but not this quickly. Unless u spend lengthily hours at max volume always,
 
Those of us from a different generation with a different experience of older radios and sound systems are used to speakers distorting and crackling at maximum volumes. Until I saw this thread I didn’t really know it’s now expected that you can play these little tiny cell phone speakers at full volume and not expect to hear a hot mess.
 
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But TimMAY said there was no FM chip in iPhones so how could there be static? :D

Poor attempt at the Cook comment and your FM Chip Post has no correlation to the article. This is not an issue caused by interference by a poor signal or reception. This is software related.

The crackling is caused the Speaker at max volume, which can occur during any Audio being transmitted through the Speaker itself.
 
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No worries a software update will fix this problem. They’ll just turn off some frequency and tone down the others that way you can no longer hear them. Same thing with that line coloration they’ll just turn the pixel off along that line and your good to go. Majority of the users wouldn’t even notice and it’s all good.
 
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I can also agree on that issue. First I thought it would be me having paranoia or some placebo (like forcefully trying to find the “fly in the ointment”.

What do you suggest guys? Gonna get replaced or rather wait?
I don’t want Apple to repair my phone, it’s not even 1 week old. Don’t want them to screw around an almost nearly bought phone. Also I have Apple Care Protection Plan.
(How high is the possibility of them replacing the device if I go into an Applestore?)

But yea idk if I should going for a replacement now or maybe wait until new charges are out
 
During a phone call the phone speaker should be able to go to max . That I agree and I've done that . Watching a movie , no.
Understood.
However your personal use case is irrelevant in regards to someone else's personal use case and has no bearing on whether there should be distortion or crackling or hissing at max level on iPhone X.
The question shouldn't be " Why are you using max volume?'
The question should be "Why is this happening and is this normal for a mobile phone, is it normal for Apple?"
Once that is addressed and answered from a recognized authority there may be some satisfaction for some.
That's not the angle I'm coming from, I've got lots of high end audio equipment, and I've never seen the need to turn it up to max, actually while my gear does not distort , it's far too loud to be enjoyable .
What you do with your high end audio equipment is your business and anecdotal.
Again this irrelevant as to whether a device should have issue at max volume.
 
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You can just buy another one and hope it's fixed, while at it buy some aapl stocks, win win!
 
Thank you for beta testing this average phone, I really appreciate it. Please buy next years too, until Apple perfects it. :)

So it is acceptable to encourage Apple to produce:
a phone with a notch,
to rip us, the loyal customers, off by charging £1k when the phone only costs £300-£400 to make,
Remove Touch ID where other companies provide both,
Crackling sounds,
Green lines,
Lists goes on...

So yes we will continue with the “obnoxious” comments, I could say the same about you aka sheep. If Apple produced the worst product and charge £2k, you would still say it’s amazing and buy it. You give us Apple fans a bad name.

I do like Apple products but not the iPhone X, it’s below the Apple Standard and price is ridiculous.

Just because you consider it average, surprisingly not everyone will share your opinion, I certainly don’t.

There will always and forever be a percentage of any product that ship to end users with faults. It’s simply not possible to manufacture with a 0% failure rate, especially with complex devices.

As for charging 1000 when it costs 300-400 to make, are you actually serious?
Perhaps it does cost around 400 bucks to manufacture. But the key word there is manufacture.

You’re conveniently forgetting the (at least) four years of development time and the costs involved there. Not to mention the vast piles of cash they spent buying up companies who’s tech was then evolved for the phone.

Oh and there’s the wages paid to a massive workforce involved in designing, developing and making the device. The costs of shipping millions of devices around the world. The costs involved with replacing the small percentage of faulty devices. Advertising costs and so on and so on. There’s a hell of a lot more to putting a product out than just how much it costs to manufacture. And after all of that’s taken care of they like to make some profit, not being a charity, so that they can continue to develop these devices and the software you get for free.

At the end of the day no-one is forcing you to buy an X, so you probably haven’t. There’s a huge volume of alternative devices out there to cater to everyone.
Personally, having owned and used the X for almost two weeks now I’m delighted with it. It’s easily one of the best phones Apple have put out so far. But that’s just my opinion, like yours I don’t expect everyone to agree with it.
 
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