Airpods sound quality inferior to wired earbuds

After oweing a pair of Airpods Pro for over a year I put on a pair of wired earbuds that came with a previous iphone purchase, the difference in sound quality is shocking, the wired being much better, rich in bass and well balanced. I remember spending hours and hours trying to adjust the Airpods before finally giving up - they were never able to match the sound quality of wired earbuds, Apple brand or otherwise, especially in the Bass end. I wonder if anyone in the community has the similar experience. I have not just bought one set but two, each falls short when compared to a wired pair of earbuds.

Posted on Mar 31, 2023 7:07 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Apr 4, 2023 4:18 PM

Hi txzhou,


A good example of the difference between wireless and wired headphones is illustrated in the Apple article About lossless audio in Apple Music which states:


  • "AirPods, AirPods Pro, AirPods Max, AirPods (3rd generation), and Beats wireless headphones use Apple AAC Bluetooth Codec to ensure excellent audio quality. However, Bluetooth connections aren't lossless."


as well as:


"You can listen to lossless on an iPhone or iPad updated to the latest version of iOS or iPadOS using:

  • A wired connection to headphones, receivers, or powered speakers
  • The built-in speakers"


Based upon that article, Lossless audio can be played over wired speakers and headphones, but not wireless or Bluetooth.


Regards.

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1 reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Apr 4, 2023 4:18 PM in response to txzhou

Hi txzhou,


A good example of the difference between wireless and wired headphones is illustrated in the Apple article About lossless audio in Apple Music which states:


  • "AirPods, AirPods Pro, AirPods Max, AirPods (3rd generation), and Beats wireless headphones use Apple AAC Bluetooth Codec to ensure excellent audio quality. However, Bluetooth connections aren't lossless."


as well as:


"You can listen to lossless on an iPhone or iPad updated to the latest version of iOS or iPadOS using:

  • A wired connection to headphones, receivers, or powered speakers
  • The built-in speakers"


Based upon that article, Lossless audio can be played over wired speakers and headphones, but not wireless or Bluetooth.


Regards.

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Airpods sound quality inferior to wired earbuds

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