Sonoma with apple silicon vs aptX

Question

Level 1

8 points

Sonoma with apple silicon vs aptX

Hello, I have a question regarding macOS Sonoma and support for the Bluetooth aptX codec.

The situation is as follows - I connect my Edifier W800BT Plus wireless headphones to my MacBook Air M2 via Bluetooth. The headphones support two types of Bluetooth codecs: SBC and aptX. The optimal codec selection is supposed to occur at the moment of connection, but no matter what options I try, every time I pair my MacBook with the headphones, the active codec is SBC.

I've tried terminal commands:

sudo defaults write bluetoothaudiod "Enable AAC codec" -bool true

sudo defaults write bluetoothaudiod "Enable AptX codec" -bool true

sudo pkill bluetoothaudiod

sudo defaults read bluetoothaudiod

The terminal response:

{

"Enable AAC codec" = 1;

"Enable AptX codec" = 1;

}

Then I reconnect the headphones - the active codec is still SBC. I reboot the MacBook, reconnect the headphones - still SBC. Additionally, I monitor the data in the Console application and see information indicating the use of the SBC codec - "Bluetooth A2DP configured at 44.1 KHz. Codec: SBC, Bitpool: 53 (327 kbps). 7 frames * 119 bytes = 833 per RTP (max=879) every 20.32 ms." I downloaded Additional Tools for XCode and used the PacketLogger application, which also confirms that the SBC codec is currently in use.

I tried downloading earlier versions of Additional Tools for XCode to access the BluetoothExplorer app, but it either crashes or doesn't work correctly. In the BluetoothExplorer app, I wanted to use the "force use of aptX" function. Have Apple discontinued support for BluetoothExplorer, and are there alternative applications or terminal commands available to enable "force use of aptX"?

I've read a lot of information online about using aptX with macOS and understand that it should be possible, but why don't I have this capability with my MacBook? Please help me understand this issue and enable aptX pairing.

Device details:

MacBook Air M2 macOS Sonoma 14.4 (23E214)

Edifier W800BT Plus headphones with aptX support.

Additionally, I've contacted Edifier support, but they couldn't help me because "Regarding the method of enabling aptX on MacBook devices, since we do not have an in-depth understanding of MacBooks, we are unable to provide relevant setting references."

MacBook Air (M2, 2023)

Posted on Mar 14, 2024 1:50 AM

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Answer 1

k_vrazek Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 18, 2024 12:43 AM in response to k_vrazek

Thank you leroydouglas for being the only person to respond to my question and offer a solution, but unfortunately it is not currently functional in macOS Sonoma.

I am extremely disappointed with Apple's support, in the sense that there is no way to directly contact support if you do not have an active warranty. It raises the question - are they too busy there, and can't they allocate a proper channel for communication for ordinary people? Taking money from users of your products - always welcome, but organizing proper quality post-warranty user support - no chance.

Secondly, I am extremely disappointed that there is no decent human description anywhere of which Bluetooth codecs can be activated in macOS at the moment.

Thirdly, while digging into my question, I discovered that the previously existing tool for forced management of Bluetooth codecs has simply been removed from Sonoma, and there are no explanations as to why Bluetooth Explorer is not currently available to users.

Fourthly, the Apple community is not a solution to users' complex issues, and in my opinion, not all questions can be left to the advice of other users. It would be logical to find employees within Apple who could monitor activity and questions within the community and, in case of contentious issues, provide feedback on behalf of the company.

In the end, a lot of time was spent trying to find a solution to my question, but all in vain, and as I understand it, it is all due to software limitations on the Sonoma side. Instead of a thousand curses and curses towards Apple engineers, I'll leave a simple human advice to Apple - if you release a product on the market, do it as user-friendly as possible.

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Answer 2

Apr 18, 2024 8:27 AM in response to k_vrazek

k_vrazek wrote:

Thank you leroydouglas for being the only person to respond to my question and offer a solution, but unfortunately it is not currently functional in macOS Sonoma.

I am extremely disappointed with Apple's support, in the sense that there is no way to directly contact support if you do not have an active warranty. It raises the question - are they too busy there, and can't they allocate a proper channel for communication for ordinary people? Taking money from users of your products - always welcome, but organizing proper quality post-warranty user support - no chance.

Secondly, I am extremely disappointed that there is no decent human description anywhere of which Bluetooth codecs can be activated in macOS at the moment.

Thirdly, while digging into my question, I discovered that the previously existing tool for forced management of Bluetooth codecs has simply been removed from Sonoma, and there are no explanations as to why Bluetooth Explorer is not currently available to users.

Fourthly, the Apple community is not a solution to users' complex issues, and in my opinion, not all questions can be left to the advice of other users. It would be logical to find employees within Apple who could monitor activity and questions within the community and, in case of contentious issues, provide feedback on behalf of the company.

In the end, a lot of time was spent trying to find a solution to my question, but all in vain, and as I understand it, it is all due to software limitations on the Sonoma side. Instead of a thousand curses and curses towards Apple engineers, I'll leave a simple human advice to Apple - if you release a product on the market, do it as user-friendly as possible.

The best I can advise further—

You can ask to escalate the issue up the chain of command —

Call Customer Support (800) MY–APPLE (800–692–7753)

or on line https://getsupport.apple.com/

Outside the USA—Contact Apple for support and service by phone

See a list of Apple phone numbers around the world.

Contact Apple for support and service - Apple Support

submit your Apple Feedback here: http://www.apple.com/feedback

Contact the corporate office Contact - How to Contact Us - Apple

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Answer 3

Mar 16, 2024 6:29 AM in response to k_vrazek

k_vrazek wrote:

Hello, I have a question regarding macOS Sonoma and support for the Bluetooth aptX codec.

The situation is as follows - I connect my Edifier W800BT Plus wireless headphones

I've read a lot of information online about using aptX with macOS and understand that it should be possible, but why don't I have this capability with my MacBook? Please help me understand this issue and enable aptX pairing.

Device details:

MacBook Air M2 macOS Sonoma 14.4 (23E214)

Edifier W800BT Plus headphones with aptX support.

Additionally, I've contacted Edifier support, but they couldn't help me because "Regarding the method of enabling aptX on MacBook devices, since we do not have an in-depth understanding of MacBooks, we are unable to provide relevant setting references."

Why do I see no— no model for this information provided on the support page(?)

view current setting:s:

sudo defaults read bluetoothaudiod

disable AAC:

sudo defaults write bluetoothaudiod "Enable AAC codec" -bool false

enable aptx:

sudo defaults write bluetoothaudiod "Enable AptX codec" -bool true

verify changes:

sudo defaults read bluetoothaudiod

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Answer 4

k_vrazek Author

Level 1

8 points

Mar 17, 2024 11:27 PM in response to leroydouglas

Thank you for the response. I also tried your advice to disable the AAC codec via terminal:

{

"Enable AAC codec" = 0;

"Enable AptX codec" = 1;

}

However, I still receive messages in PacketLogger indicating that the SBC codec is being used:

Mar 18 09:13:15.889 A2DP Audio Send 0x000B EDIFIER W800BT Pl SBC (Payload Not Logged) - Sequence 90 - Size: 846 (0x34E) - Frames: 7 - Bitpool: 53

This is also confirmed in the Console app:

A2DP configured at 44.1 KHz. Codec: SBC, Bitpool: 53 (327 kbps). 7 frames * 119 bytes = 833 per RTP (max=879) every 20.32 ms

Regarding the support for the Edifier W800BT Plus model, it is not searchable on the global version of the website in the support section if "Edifier" is specified in the search. However, if only the model name is searched, one result will be offered: [https://www.edifier.com/global/support-search?keyword=w800bt%20plus](https://www.edifier.com/global/support-search?keyword=w800bt%20plus)

The page about this model on the same global manufacturer's website is: [https://www.edifier.com/global/p/over-ear-on-ear-headphones/w800bt-plus](https://www.edifier.com/global/p/over-ear-on-ear-headphones/w800bt-plus)

As I mentioned earlier, I am interested in how to activate the aptX codec in Sonoma, as all the instructions found on the internet regarding this matter do not yield results in Sonoma.

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