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Condensation in AirPods Max after long usage

ssong

ssong

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 3, 2015
675
463
London, UK
After having had these for some time and wearing them extensively every day, I can’t say with certainty that the condensation has had an impact on performance.

The noise-cancelling did seem to be confused briefly after a couple of sneezes, not really high pitched or abnormally loud but the mics defo get confused for a bit where one or both sides will have differing levels of noise cancelling applied, went away within a dozen seconds, removing the headphones and putting them back on helped as well.

The left ear up has developed a very faint but noticeable high pitched noise that sounds pretty similar to coil whine but I’d imagine that’s relatively standard with many noise cancelling headphones as they do tend to have a bit of that static type noise.

I have had a couple instances where the ear detection was off, but oddly it wasn’t after long usage / condensation. But more felt like a classic macOS sleep/wake Bluetooth issue. Would leave it out of the case for a while, come back, put it back on, and it has issues connecting to a device / detecting my ears to play sound (it would connect, I’d press play, and it would auto stop cos it thinks I’m not wearing it). Putting it in the case for a 4-5 seconds then trying to pair again helps, and sometimes pairing to the original device that it was set up on helps as well (iPhone in my case).

But given that all of these issues have happened at different times, and I have checked for condensation when I had issues, I can’t really say I noticed anything concrete so far that leads me to believe the condensation issue has had a profound impact.

All in all, I did get AppleCare just as a precaution, and I still enjoy them as headphones
 
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kirk.vino

macrumors 6502a
Oct 27, 2017
667
1,013
ssong said:
After having had these for some time and wearing them extensively every day, I can’t say with certainty that the condensation has had an impact on performance.

The noise-cancelling did seem to be confused briefly after a couple of sneezes, not really high pitched or abnormally loud but the mics defo get confused for a bit where one or both sides will have differing levels of noise cancelling applied, went away within a dozen seconds, removing the headphones and putting them back on helped as well.

The left ear up has developed a very faint but noticeable high pitched noise that sounds pretty similar to coil whine but I’d imagine that’s relatively standard with many noise cancelling headphones as they do tend to have a bit of that static type noise.

I have had a couple instances where the ear detection was off, but oddly it wasn’t after long usage / condensation. But more felt like a classic macOS sleep/wake Bluetooth issue. Would leave it out of the case for a while, come back, put it back on, and it has issues connecting to a device / detecting my ears to play sound (it would connect, I’d press play, and it would auto stop cos it thinks I’m not wearing it). Putting it in the case for a 4-5 seconds then trying to pair again helps, and sometimes pairing to the original device that it was set up on helps as well (iPhone in my case).

But given that all of these issues have happened at different times, and I have checked for condensation when I had issues, I can’t really say I noticed anything concrete so far that leads me to believe the condensation issue has had a profound impact.

All in all, I did get AppleCare just as a precaution, and I still enjoy them as headphones
Click to expand...
That sounds interesting. Luckily, I have not experienced a single issue you describe here. I’ve had them since launch. I do see moisture and droplets on the drivers after about 2 hours. It evaporates pretty fast and after 1-2 mins with magnetic cushions removed, the drivers look completely clean/dry.
Maybe you have some other hardware issues that are not even related to this.
 
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Schizoboi

macrumors newbie
Dec 28, 2020
16
14
Ryanoceros said:
Quick thought. Is it possible that most closed, over-ear headphones accumulate condensation like this with long periods of use and that since this is an Apple product it's simply being scrutinized to a much higher degree than other products (as is almost always the case with Apple)? Additionally, I think it's worth noting that most headphones do not allow for such simple and easy removal of the ear cushions. I never removed my ear cushions on any of the previous Bose ANC headphones I owned to merely inspect the internals.

For what it's worth, I've had my APM's for 11 days and have worn them pretty extensively almost every day, and I have yet to see any condensation. Obviously, this doesn't mean other people aren't having this problem. But if it's not happening to everyone, we don't really know how big of an issue it is yet. Especially if the internals were designed to be protected from condensation (which we don't know yet, I realize that).
Click to expand...
Me too luckily don’t have any issues and been using them everywhere I go, to the point that watching netflix or prime on tv I still wore them even when cooking still wore them and going outside even when snowing a bit chatting with neighbors ??now waiting for my hard case for my apm not the waterfield though ???
 
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JuDREDDge

JuDREDDge

macrumors newbie
Jan 3, 2021
10
7
amartinez1660 said:
Hey man, if you can poke us back with any updates regarding this. I have condensation issues on my side too... ANC/Transparency button stopped working, it would sometimes switch modes on/off on its own at times, then had difficulties connecting and detecting when they are wore in head, then stopped emitting any sort of sound.
I received an express replacement pair today and it’s of course working like the original pair was working on day one, however I’m worried about two things: 1. Apple charging me or voiding me the replace because of it being “water damage” even though I put them nowhere near water. 2. This happening again later on this new pair.

A shame because I seriously like these headphones, best pair I have ever had in my lifetime convenience, ease of use, quality, integration, etc... I’m no audio nor headphone expert though.
Click to expand...
The issue I had with the microphone, I do not believe was moisture related. The second set that I now have is working flawlessly but still showing mist / moisture in the ear cups if worn for about 2 hours.
 
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doolar

macrumors 6502a
Nov 25, 2019
644
1,128
537635 said:
I'm sorry, English is not my first language. Condensed sweat.
Click to expand...
Doesn’t have to be nor is it probably the only source of the condensation. Cold surface, warm air and relative air humidity. Do the air inside of your ear cup only contain water vapour from your body?

Colder air can’t hold the same amount of water vapour as warm air. When the humid and warm air in your ear cup meets the colder aluminium surface, the air gets cooled down, can’t keep the water vapour and it is turned to its liquid state. Same thing that happens on a inside window at home on a cold day.
 
5

537635

macrumors 65816
Mar 7, 2009
1,154
1,041
Slovenia, EU
doolar said:
Doesn’t have to be nor is it probably the only source of the condensation. Cold surface, warm air and relative air humidity. Do the air inside of your ear cup only contain water vapour from your body?

Colder air can’t hold the same amount of water vapour as warm air. When the humid and warm air in your ear cup meets the colder aluminium surface, the air gets cooled down, can’t keep the water vapour and it is turned to its liquid state. Same thing that happens on a inside window at home on a cold day.
Click to expand...

For practical debate, earcups seal the ear from the surrounding air and sweat is the ONLY source of condesation. There is some initial water vapor inside (same as in surrounding air), but any new water vapor is sweat vapor. Simply no way around that, even if you think it's gross :).

Condensation happens on or near cold(er) objects, where local relative humidity spikes above 90%. Think cold walls, cold windows and also metal parts of the earcups, which are thermally connected to the outside air.
 
C. Robert

C. Robert

macrumors 65816
Oct 1, 2013
1,377
974
Baltimore
Heat is taken from your skin to evaporate the water on your body. Evaporation is a cooling process. Latent heat of condensation is energy released when water vapor condenses to form liquid droplets. An identical amount of calories (about 600 cal/g) is released in this process as was needed in the evaporation process.
 
JuDREDDge

JuDREDDge

macrumors newbie
Jan 3, 2021
10
7
It’s simple weather science... cold meets warm and condenses any humidity present into droplets. The variables are level of humidity in the air, how cold is the Max and some people must give off a bit more heat than others.

www.thoughtco.com

What Causes Condensation and Evaporation?

Condensation and evaporation aren't just for the kitchen and chemistry lab―they're also key processes that shape our everyday weather.
www.thoughtco.com www.thoughtco.com
 
5

537635

macrumors 65816
Mar 7, 2009
1,154
1,041
Slovenia, EU
SBruv said:
Sweat is already, by definition, condensed. So you’re just saying it’s sweat, which it obviously isn’t.
Click to expand...
Really? What definition is that? Sweat is made by liquid secretion of sweat glands inside our skin. Water never changes the state of matter.

Seriously, where do you think the water inside the headphones comes from?
 
janezblond

janezblond

macrumors regular
May 15, 2013
143
84
537635 said:
Really? What definition is that? Sweat is made by liquid secretion of sweat glands inside our skin. Water never changes the state of matter.

Seriously, where do you think the water inside the headphones comes from?
Click to expand...
I think people are taking issue with you calling it condensed sweat, which it is not. What it is, is condensed water from sweat. What it isn’t is sweat with all of its minerals, since they for the most part remain on your skin (which is why if you have ever sweated during a workout and then let yourself dry out by letting the water evaporate your skin remains salty).
 
5

537635

macrumors 65816
Mar 7, 2009
1,154
1,041
Slovenia, EU
janezblond said:
I think people are taking issue with you calling it condensed sweat, which it is not. What it is, is condensed water from sweat. What it isn’t is sweat with all of its minerals, since they for the most part remain on your skin (which is why if you have ever sweated during a workout and then let yourself dry out by letting the water evaporate your skin remains salty).
Click to expand...
If this is the issue, then I misunderstood.
 
D

doolar

macrumors 6502a
Nov 25, 2019
644
1,128
537635 said:
Really? What definition is that? Sweat is made by liquid secretion of sweat glands inside our skin. Water never changes the state of matter.

Seriously, where do you think the water inside the headphones comes from?
Click to expand...
What are you on about? Water DO change state of matter. Gas, liquid, solid. Water do keep its chemical composition of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom in all states. Water is the only natural substance that can exist as all three states of matter in “normal” temperatures.

There is water in the air encapsulated between your body and the headphone. Air humidity, water carried in the air. This water will condensate on a surface colder than the air temperature around it. Your sweat can add to make the relative air humidity higher, causing even more condensation, and your body heat warm the air even further, making the difference in temperatures between the air and the (in this case) colder aluminium even greater.

When you put an ice cold beer can outside in the sun, where do the water drops on it come from? Your sweat or the air?
 
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kirk.vino

macrumors 6502a
Oct 27, 2017
667
1,013
doolar said:
What are you on about? Water DO change state of matter. Gas, liquid, solid. Water do keep its chemical composition of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom in all states. Water is the only natural substance that can exist as all three states of matter in “normal” temperatures.

There is water in the air encapsulated between your body and the headphone. Air humidity, water carried in the air. This water will condensate on a surface colder than the air temperature around it. Your sweat can add to make the relative air humidity higher, causing even more condensation, and your body heat warm the air even further, making the difference in temperatures between the air and the (in this case) colder aluminium even greater.

When you put an ice cold beer can outside in the sun, where do the water drops on it come from? Your sweat or the air?
Click to expand...
That’s an extreme example with the beer can, as you don’t keep your APM in a fridge.
As someone who has been using them since launch, I can tell that it’s mostly sweat. Also, the aluminum that covers the cans is never really that cold. When you start using them, the aluminum gets warm pretty fast.
 
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yticolev

macrumors 6502
Sep 27, 2015
298
274
amartinez1660 said:
It was close to $900 CAD (which is even worse because the average salaries here are even less than in the US dollar for dollar... double whammy)
Click to expand...
Irrelevant. You get healthcare and a rational functional government. Covid rates a quarter of ours. Effectively the same cost or lower than the US "low" price. Personally I think Canadians have an overall annual cost advantage.
 
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