iPhone 17 Pro speakers crackle/distort on multiple devices
Title: Persistent Crackling/Distortion Issue on iPhone 17 Pro Speakers (Multiple Devices Tested, Diagnostics Clear)
I purchased my iPhone 17 Pro on 12th April and noticed a crackling/distortion sound by 14th April while playing certain audio, especially at higher volumes and in a specific frequency range (roughly 2–3 kHz), most noticeable in songs with instrumental elements. One clear example is the song “Phir Se” from Dhurandhar 2, where the distortion can be heard within the first 10 seconds.
To make sure it was not just my device, I first contacted Apple Support. The representative guided me through all the standard troubleshooting steps and also ran remote software diagnostics. Since the issue still persisted, I was advised to visit an authorized service center.
On 16th April, I visited the authorized Apple service center in Jaipur. They performed both hardware and software diagnostics and told me that no fault was detected in any component of the phone. A factory reset was also done there. Although they offered a speaker replacement as a precautionary step, I declined because the device was brand new and no actual fault had been identified in diagnostics.
For my own verification, I tested the same song and audio section on multiple devices under the same conditions. I compared it with another iPhone 17 Pro owned by my friend, and I also tested it on a brand new iPhone 17 Pro Max at the service center. In both 17-series devices, I could hear a similar crackling/distortion. However, when I tested the same audio on an iPhone 16, the sound was clear and did not show the same issue.
I also checked online discussions, including Apple Discussion forums and Reddit, and found many other users reporting similar crackling/distortion behavior on the iPhone 17 series. Some users mentioned that even after replacement of the full device or replacement of the speakers, the issue still remained. This made me more confident that the problem is not specific to just one unit.
Because:
1. the issue is reproducible on multiple iPhone 17 series devices,
2. Apple diagnostics found no hardware fault,
3. the same audio plays normally on an iPhone 16,
4. and many other users seem to be reporting the same thing,
I strongly believe this is likely a software/audio processing or tuning issue rather than a manufacturing defect in my phone.
I have already explained this same situation to multiple Apple customer care representatives, and they gave me the same general advice. I also contacted senior customer care, and they suggested a part replacement route, but I feel uncomfortable doing a hardware replacement on a new device when the issue appears to affect multiple iPhone 17 series units and may be software-related.
I am posting this here to document the issue and ask Apple to please investigate it seriously, especially from the software/audio tuning side. If it is a known issue, I would appreciate confirmation and, ideally, a future iOS fix. If needed, I can also share more details about the exact song, the frequency range where the crackling is most noticeable, and the troubleshooting steps already completed.
Lastly my device is currently running on ios 26.4.2.
iPhone 17 Pro, iOS 26
