Headphones – Batteries Global Blog

How to Fix It When Bluetooth Headphones Keep Cutting Out in Windows 11

When Bluetooth headphones keep cutting out on Windows 11, it’s usually due to interference from other wireless devices. This issue can also be caused by outdated drivers for the headphones, poor signal strength, low batteries, and choppy audio quality can even occur if you’re using the wrong Bluetooth profile.

What Causes Choppy Bluetooth Headphones Audio in Windows 11?
Choppy Bluetooth headphones audio in Windows 11 can be caused by a lot of things, but interference is the most common issue. Anything that causes radio interference can cause Bluetooth headphones to cut out, and you can also experience interference from Wi-Fi networks and other Bluetooth devices.

Bluetooth audio problems can also be the result of driver issues, Windows 11 settings, and even the headphones trying to use the wrong Bluetooth profile. To determine exactly what is causing choppy Bluetooth audio, it’s necessary to check each of these potential issues.

How to Fix It When Bluetooth Headphones Keep Cutting Out
If you’re experiencing choppy audio from your Bluetooth headphones, or other Bluetooth devices keep cutting out, try these fixes:

1.Turn your Bluetooth off and then back on again. If your computer is having a temporary issue with Bluetooth connectivity, switching it off and back on can fix the problem.
Click the Battery, Network, and Volume icon on the taskbar, click the Bluetooth button to switch it off, then click it a second time to turn it back on.

2.Turn your Bluetooth device off and then back on again. Switching your Bluetooth device off and then turning it back on will force it to reestablish a connection, which can fix problems where headphones are cutting out.
You may also need to unpair the device and then pair it again.

3.Run the Bluetooth troubleshooter. Windows 11 has a built-in troubleshooter wizard that can fix a lot of Bluetooth problems, including connectivity issues and audio that cuts out.
To run the Bluetooth troubleshooter: Open Settings > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters, then locate Bluetooth, and click Run. The troubleshooter will automatically look for problems and fix them if possible.

4.Run the audio troubleshooter. If your other Bluetooth devices work fine, and it’s just your audio that cuts out, then try the audio troubleshooter. This is an automatic wizard as well, and it’s found in the same place as the Bluetooth troubleshooter.
To run the audio troubleshooter: Open Settings > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters, then locate Playing Audio and click Run.

5.Make sure you’re using the right Bluetooth profile. Some Bluetooth headphones are capable of functioning as headphones for listening to music, or as a headset for communication. When used with the latter profile, audio quality can be quite bad.
To prevent your headphones from using the wrong Bluetooth profile: Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > More devices and printer settings, then right-click your headphones and select Properties. Click the Services tab, deselect Handsfree Telephony, and click OK.

6.Disable other Bluetooth devices. To check for Bluetooth interference from other devices, try switching them off or unpairing them from your computer. If that doesn’t work, try disabling Bluetooth on your phone and any other nearby devices.
If switching something off causes your headphones to work correctly, the device you switched off is causing interference.

7.Change to a different Wi-Fi band. If your router supports 5GHz Wi-Fi, try switching to that, as Bluetooth uses the same spectrum as 2.4GHz Wi-Fi. You can also try switching the channel of your Wi-Fi network, or even temporarily shut off your Wi-Fi network to see if your Bluetooth problem goes away.

8.Remove other sources of interference. Anything that causes radio interference, even things like microwave ovens, can cause Bluetooth audio to drop out. Make sure there aren’t any sources of interference in the area, and check to see if your headphones work.

9.Disable audio enhancements. Windows 11 is capable of enhancing audio in a few ways, which can sometimes cause problems with Bluetooth audio. Try switching off the enhancements, and see if that fixes the problem. You can then leave the enhancements off, or switch them back on to see if the problem comes back.
To disable audio enhancements: Open Settings > System > Sound > More sound settings, then click your Bluetooth headphones > Properties > Enhancements > Disable all enhancements and finally click Apply.

10.Reinstall your Bluetooth drivers. If you have a corrupt or bad Bluetooth driver, removing and reinstalling the drivers may fix the problem.
To reinstall your Bluetooth drivers: Right-click the Start button (Windows icon), select Device Manager, then click the > next to the Bluetooth listing. Right-click on your Bluetooth headphones, and select Uninstall device.You can then restart your computer, and wait for it to rediscover your headphones. Alternatively, you can click Action > Check for hardware changes in Device Manager.

11.Restart the Bluetooth Support Service. The problem may be with your computer’s Bluetooth connectivity, in which case restarting the Bluetooth Support Service can get things working again.
To restart this: Press Windows key + R, type services.msc, and click OK. Then locate Bluetooth Support Service, right-click it, select Stop, then select Start. Then right-click it again, click Properties, and select Automatic from the Startup type dropdown menu.

12.Lower roaming aggression. This setting adjusts the behavior of your computer’s Wi-Fi network adapter. Try setting it to the lowest value, and see if that fixes the problem. If it doesn’t, or it adversely affects your Wi-Fi connectivity, set it back to a higher level.
To adjust your roaming aggression: Right click Start (Windows icon), and select Device Manager. Then click the > next to Network adapters, right-click your Wi-Fi adapter, and click Properties. You can then select Advanced > Roaming Aggressiveness, set it to Lowest, then click OK.

13.Reposition your Bluetooth adapter. If you use a USB Bluetooth adapter, use a USB cable to move the adapter away from your computer. It may be experiencing interference, or it might just be too far away from your headphones.

5 ways to squeeze more battery life out of your wireless earbuds

Wireless earbuds are an essential EDC (everyday carry) item for most of us. We use them daily when commuting to work or travelling. They keep us entertained and help block out unwanted distractions. Some even enhance our listening experience by delivering hi-fi, theater-like sound in the smallest design possible. As much as we love them, we also have that one complaint: not enough battery life.

Not all the best wireless earbuds come with lengthy playtimes. In fact, the industry standard for battery life on true wireless models is about 5 to 6 hours per charge and 24 hours for the charging case. Talk about small numbers compared to what the best wireless headphones get you, which is anywhere between 25 to 70 hours, depending how you use them.

As frustrating as it is to recharge your buds almost every other day, there are solutions to optimize battery life for longer listening and talk times. Best of all, none of them require carrying around a power cord or portable charger.

Here are 5 simple tips to get more battery life out of your wireless earbuds.

Partially charge your buds
It feels liberating to walk around with fully charged buds. At the same time, you could wind up doing more damage to the battery in the long run by fully charging it every time. Wireless earbuds have a much smaller battery cell than wireless headphones, smartphones, and portable gaming consoles, which would explain their short lifespan.

On top of that, the longer your buds charge, the more heat they’re exposed to. This degrades the battery faster and reduces maximum charge capacity. Anyone with a high-powered Windows laptop or MacBook certainly knows this struggle.

Partial charging is the key. What does that even mean? Simple: power up the buds to about 80 percent, then discharge. Also, monitor the temperature on your charging case because it can often overheat when charging for long periods of time, especially on wireless chargers.

Turn off all high-end features
Active noise cancellation (ANC) sucks up the most power and models with hybrid ANC suck up even more since they utilize multiple microphones and two circuits for feedback and feedforward cancellation. Adjustable noise cancellation affects power too – setting your buds to the highest intensity drops battery levels quickly. Another detail worth knowing is that ANC works harder (20% – 30% more usage) in loud environments, so monitor the noise levels in your vicinity before turning on the feature.

Some of the latest wireless earbuds boast high-bitrate Bluetooth codecs (LDAC, LHDC, aptX Lossless), which enhance wireless audio greatly, but reduce playtimes since more data is being encoded and decoded simultaneously. Most buds run the most advanced codec by default, so if you’re trying to preserve power, you can change this on the backend of your mobile device (Android only). Enter the Settings, tap on System, select Developer options (make sure it is turned on), and choose your preferred option. We suggest switching to a low-bitrate codec like SBC.

Do the same with spatial audio. iPhone users can disable Apple’s 3D audio platform in iOS, while most Android users can toggle the feature in their buds’ companion app, which has several other battery drainers. These include an equalizer, Find My Buds function, Soundscapes mode, and voice activation; the latter means your buds are always listening for the wake word phrase before turning on.

Lower the volume
Blasting music at max volume won’t just deteriorate your hearing, but also your battery. The more audio being output, the more power that’s required to sustain higher volume levels. This applies to most portable audio products and not just wireless earbuds.

Experts believe that setting volume between 50% to 70% will increase your battery’s life span. If you need more convincing, investigate how some wireless earbuds makers rate battery life on their models. Apple indicates on their website that playtimes for the AirPods 3 and AirPods Pro 2 are determined based on volume being set to 50% and having ANC on. Some brands will even disclose that high volume affects battery life in a footnote on their model’s product page or spec sheet. That’s all the proof you need.

Sidenote: Doctors at Harvard Medical School state that listening to media at 70 decibels is unlikely to cause any significant damage to the ears.

Utilize mono mode
This is one of the more underrated features found on most wireless earbuds. Mobile users who spend lots of time on the phone likely know about mono mode, which lets you use either bud independently. Doing this will preserve talk/listening time on the secondary bud that isn’t being used. You can also have it recharging in the charging case when disabled.

Mono mode is clutch for when you don’t have access to a power source and need to squeeze every minute out of the battery. Keep in mind that mono mode automatically disables certain features to save battery life, specifically ANC, which is engineered for use with both buds.

Limit pairing to one device
We’re seeing more wireless earbuds support Bluetooth multipoint, a feature that allows users to pair their models with two devices at the same time. It makes switching between audio sources a breeze, but also drains the battery more quickly since it requires more power to maintain dual connectivity.

Here’s the best solution: turn it off when both connected devices aren’t being used. It sounds silly to say, but just remember how often you leave the Bluetooth setting enabled on your iPhone. Then remind yourself of the disappointment that follows when seeing your battery levels drop to 10 percent all because you forgot to turn off Bluetooth.