Why are my AirPods Max not detecting my head?

My experience exactly. They were no help at all. I have a lot to of Apple products that "just work." This is the only one I've had that does not. It's very frustrating and I'm mad because these cost a lot of money. The Genius Bar didn't even do any trouble shooting. They looked up the serial number, told me it was out of warranty and declared it would be $300 to send them in. I use them daily--after five or ten minutes of plugging, unplugging, resetting, etc. I'm very unhappy that these $550 headphones only worked right for a year.

This has happened twice for me now (today is the second time).

The first time, I managed to use my AirPods Max close to a year with no issues. Fortunately this was one of those products I decided to get AppleCare+. Went to the Genius Bar and they managed to send it in to fix for “free”, I believe I got a totally new set a couple of days later (different serial number from my original pair - take note this new pair did not come with the MP packaging but a brown box instead, no ear cushions though as the Genius Bar staff told me to keep my cushion and case)

That second pair worked great for about 3 months and now I’m facing it again. Prior to it failing a couple of days ago though, I would periodically hear a loud high pitch sound on the right cup when in use for 2 days straight, it somehow disappeared before this failure.

And yes I have tried to clean the headset by removing the headband method to no avail. The only way workaround for both pairs is to hard reset it. That only fixes it for that instance though, the moment I remove it from my head and not use it after a couple of minutes, the problem resurfaces.

I am not too eager to get a third pair this time even still being under AppleCare+. This has become a very sour experience for me, which saddens me as I have pretty much have the whole Apple ecosystem and enjoy the rest of it.

You can try removing the speakers from the headband and cleaning the contacts.

If you take your iPhone sim card tool, there is a hole underneath the mesh ear covers that will release the headband from the speaker by inserting the sim tool.

the contacts look like mini lightning ports and after cleaning them with a microfiber cloth and reattaching the speakers, my connection issues have resolved.

I've experienced this over the past few weeks. The best solution I've figured out to fix this is to put the headphones in the carrying case, close the flap, wait a few seconds, and then put them back on. 75% of the time that fixes the issue. 25% of the time I have to repeat the process 1 to 2 times again.

I had the same issue.

The solution which worked for me was:

1- Removing the headband and cleaning the contacts.

2- Cleaning the sensors of head tracking (the black dot on each side, which can be cleansed after removing the earpads).

3- Charge the Airpod max above 50% and then reset it.

Remember to use Alcohol containing liquid (Apply it with a piece of cloth or tissue paper).

I've tried that repeatedly over the last few months. Sometimes it works and mostly it doesn't. it has occurred to me that putting them back in the case may not the best approach. Now I'm leaving them out of the case so they don't go into a deep sleep and I seem to be having better luck with that. Clearly there is something that goes wrong for some of us after about a year and, frankly, I think that is pretty disgraceful on the part of Apple not to do anything about it. (The other big problem is the mesh on top stretching out of shape after about a year so the frame of the headphones rests directly on your head making them unusable after an hour or so. This is a poorly designed product and far from the premium experience I expected for $550).

Exactly, one of the few apple products that just never works

Same issue, doesn't recognize head, and can't even reset it to factory settings. After I pressed both buttons the light goes amber but never white. Per several posts here, I tried cleaning the headband connectors as well as the ear sensors but nothing worked. Tried putting it in the case. Nothing. Can't pair them, can't reset them. They are basically dead after less than 2 years. I've had Bose QC 35 for 6 years and work flawlessly and they cost me less than what Apple wants to charge me for fixing these duds!

Also, the mesh in the AirPods Max headband is totally loose now, so the metal is basically against my head, which is very uncomfortable. All in all, a poorly design very expensive Apple product.

That worked! Thanks for the tip

I want to second (or 5th or 6th) Ken's comment.

My headphones went from barely functional for months (from a device connection and head-detection perspective) where I was constantly rebooting them to get them to work ... to working perfectly for the last 10 days after simply removing the earpieces and cleaning the contacts on the band.

I can't believe Apple doesn't have a support article covering this. I had tried everting ... including multiple calls to Apple support and a trip to the repair facility where they were deemed 'in perfect working order'.

I’ve got the same problem. What fixed it?

AirPods Nax, firmware 6A324. Problem with "head detection". Doesn't work outside, but works well at home.

iPhone 13, iOS 17.3.1. I reset the headphones and still doesn't help. Please tell me what to do?

This was exactly the issue I had. For the last year my connectivity was insane and I had to hard reset my AirPods, almost 2 or 3 times a day and it was insane and I want to give up and literally yesterday I unplugged the speakers from the headband and clean the port and I have zero connectivity issues anymore. Apple was completely pointless and was not able to help but randomly this form saved me. in Canada, these are $900 and they worked fine for six months, and I had issues longer than a year for them…

Hi prodiguy,

Given the steps you've taken, we'd recommend confirming the reset steps were the ones below:

• How to reset your AirPods Max - Apple Support

"To restart or reset your AirPods Max:

• First, charge them for a few minutes.
• If you're experiencing issues with your AirPods Max, you can restart them. Press and hold the noise control button and the Digital Crown until the LED flashes amber.
• You can also reset AirPods Max to factory settings. Press and hold the noise control button and the Digital Crown for 15 seconds, until the LED flashes amber, then white.
• After you reset your AirPods Max, you can connect them to your iOS or iPadOS device, or connect them to your Mac or other device.

AirPods Max can be associated with one Apple ID. If you want to use AirPods Max that someone else has used, they need to first remove them from their Apple ID."

Take note of the factory settings reset, if you have not already, we'd advise that specific step.

If the issue persists after that, contact Apple Support as the headphones may need further inspection.

• Get Support

Take care.

In Australia they are $900, imagine my frustration when these failed and found it was a systemic problem and Apple have not been replacing them under warranty.

I have a 16 inch M1 max with 64 gig ram and 2 Terrabite hard drive, The apple watch ultra and AirPods max, my wife has apple pro 13 inch. I have had my MacBook pro fixed and extensively had items replaced under warranty or apple care.

I expect in Australia I may get help with the AirPods max as the support is amazing but the design problem is a worry when I hear you guys saying you are left high and dry with an item that is nearly a thousand dollars in Australia.