Bluetooth audio volume limited after iOS 14 update

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Level 1

9 points

Bluetooth audio volume limited after iOS 14 update

Hello everyone!

I have a JBL bluetooth speaker that worked perfectly until the update. Now the volume is limited by software. I tried:

unpairing / pairing
played with settings in Sounds & Haptics (safety on and off, with limit at 100 decibels)
factory reset my phone

The volume on the phone is set at maximum, if I try to increase it from the speaker, it peaks to a higher level for a second and then comes back down by itself.

Same speaker on android phones still works fine.

Does anyone have the same issue?

Thanks for your time,

Marco

Posted on Jan 25, 2021 5:20 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

TonyCollinet

Level 7

24,044 points

Jan 28, 2021 5:03 AM in response to mrccmtl

If you update to 14.4, you can set the speaker to a speaker rather than headset in bluetooth settings. Then it should not change the volume.

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Answer 2

Jan 27, 2021 7:33 AM in response to mrccmtl

Hello mrccmtl,

Welcome to Apple Support Communities. It sounds like you're having trouble with volume on your Bluetooth speaker. We are happy to share information that may help.

First, check for any available updates for your iPhone: Update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. You'll want to have a current backup prior to updating.

Next, restart your iPhone and the speaker: Restart your iPhone.

Also toggle off Bluetooth under Settings > Bluetooth and toggle it back on again.

Remove any cases or covers from your iPhone.

Ensure your speaker has the latest version of firmware installed.

Take care.

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Answer 3

Jan 27, 2021 7:11 PM in response to mrccmtl

Hello mrccmtl,

Thank you for following up with us and for providing those additional details.

A few other options you may want to try are as follows. You'll want to test the issue after each step.

Remove any case from your iPhone.

Temporarily disable Wi-Fi in Settings (not Control Center).

Temporarily disable Wi-Fi Calling in Settings > Phone, if it's enabled.

Temporarily disable Cellular Data in Settings > Cellular.

Check for any sources of interference: Resolve Wi-Fi and Bluetooth issues caused by wireless interference.

Take care.

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Answer 4

mrccmtl Author

Level 1

9 points

Jan 27, 2021 10:02 AM in response to melissa_m77

Thanks for your kind response. I tried all of the above unsuccessfully. What's even weirder is that I have 2 iPhones, an SE and an SE 2nd Gen. Same iOS version on both, the first one works perfectly fine with my bluetooth speaker!

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Answer 5

mrccmtl Author

Level 1

9 points

Jan 28, 2021 5:00 AM in response to melissa_m77

Thanks again for your further instructions, still it's not increasing the volume.

If I raise the volume from the speaker, it goes up for a fraction of a second and the comes back down automatically on iPhone SE 2nd gen.

iPhone SE 1st gen still works just fine.

It must be some kind of restricted limit they've put on new iPhones...

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Answer 6

mrccmtl Author

Level 1

9 points

Jan 28, 2021 5:08 AM in response to TonyCollinet

Hi Tony! Thanks for your suggestion. Tried that too.

Funny enough when the setting is toggled on headphones (even though I'm using a speaker) the volume is stuck on 80dB even with the limit disabled, 87dB with the limit at 100dB.

If I change the device toggle to "speaker" the volume is still stuck, I'd say at 80dB. The older iPhone is much louder.

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Bluetooth audio volume limited after iOS 14 update

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