For me, AirPods Pro aren't as good as AirPods 2.0

[Sill]

I was blessed with a great wife who gave me the AirPods Pro for Christmas. I'd been wanting those for months, due to the Spatial Audio. I currently have AirPods 2.0.
After a few hours of playtime I do believe this will be one Pro that'll be going back to the minor leagues.

Reasons:

1. Poor/fatiguing fit. I can't get a seal on the left ear no matter which eartips I try. The left pod fails the seal test. Sometimes the right will also fail even though it stays in my year while I mess with the left. Yawning, chewing gum, or eating will cause the left pod to fall right out, and the right side isn't far behind.
2. The fidelity isn't as good as AirPods 2.0. For the first few minutes of a given album there's no soundstage at all, and instead it sounds exactly like what it is - a speaker pointed into each ear. A very clean speaker, but very directional nonetheless. The stage opens up after a while but it doesn't sound as good as the 2.0. I just switched back to AirPods 2.0 while listening to an album, and the clarity and soundstage is far better.
3. The controls are a jumbled mess. It seems as if every exposed surface on each pod is some kind of control. While I was trying to readjust the right pod, it disconnected a call. When I wasn't on a call and had no music playing, trying to adjust either pod usually ended up with some kind of chirp or beep coming out of nowhere. Aside from tapping the right pod on my Aipods 2.0 to end or answer a call, I've never noticed any random activation of a control (and I've never read the instructions so I have no idea what else those things can do).
4. These things are a pain to handle. Whether I'm taking them out of the case, placing them in my ear, or trying to put them back in the case, I struggle to handle these things. I've dropped them numerous times. Changing the ear tips is a struggle too.
5. Damn that noise cancellation. I don't like noise cancellation. There's a growing number of people in my field who believe that NC is contributing to hearing loss. I turned it off when I first put the AirPods Pro into service, and it keeps turning itself back on.
6. Random weird behavior. If I want music playing, I'll hit play. These things start playing whatever album I had on last, whenever they feel like it. I stop the music, and run a seal test, it starts playing music as soon as I'm done with the test. I quit the music app, and music started playing as soon as I completed another seal test.
7. Spatial audio works if I do things I don't want to do. The big reason I wanted these was that I'd be able to watch TV at night and not disturb my wife. Then I find out that AppleTV doesn't support Spatial Audio. It was my understanding that even if the soundtrack wasn't Atmos the centering effect would still work. It doesn't. Its only for watching movies and playing games on iOS. I have a home theater, I'm not going to sit in front of an enormous wall screen and watch movies on an iPhone X. And I don't play games.
8. Bone conduction amplification. I notice that walking anywhere with the Pro in my skull will amplify my footsteps. Honestly, it sounds like a bass drum getting kicked every time I take a step. Tossing my shoulders up and down, clapping my hands, or playing Tarzan and hitting my own chest sounds the same. Even lightly knocking my own forehead with my knuckles sounds like Godzilla walking through the neighborhood. I couldn't imagine wearing these while horseback riding- it would sound like a bunch of atom bomb detonations.

Things I like about the AirPods Pro:

1. Better bass. Far better. I'd rather have spatial audio though, or just the next level of better sound than the AirPods 2.0
2. Better Bluetooth. These things hand off across my many devices far better than any BT product I've ever owned.

Questions:

1. Is there a break-in period? As I mentioned above, the sound does seem to be getting better, but its not perfect. I know through my very lengthy experience with real hifi equipment that a break-in period usually helps the sound. Is that the case here?
2. Is there anything that can be done for the ear seal on the left side?
3. Will the Apple TV ever natively (not app-specifically) support Spatial Audio on these Pros?)
4. Could these be defective? I notice reading some of the posts that plenty of people had issues early on. Cracklling and dropouts mostly but also some seal issues.

 

[TinyChip]

Sounds like the AirPod Pros aren’t meant for you.

 

[liquidsuns]

Hmm I don’t think I’ve had a single problem or complaint that you’ve listed and I like ANC a lot. I’m sorry they aren’t working for you.

 

[richard371]

Different strokes for different folks.

 

[FHoff]

I have none of the issues you are having. Sounds to me like they need to be retuned and you continue to use the 2.0s

 

[7thson]

It’s possible you have a faulty pair, but it honestly just sounds like these aren’t for you. They weren’t for me either, having preferred the 2.0’s fit and function. I didn’t keep my APP long enough to see if there would be a wear in period, but I wasn’t bothered by the fit. Mostly I found I didn’t need ANC and preferred the tap to play/pause/etc over fidgeting with that stem. For you, it sounds like the spatial audio being limited to iOS for now could be the deal breaker. Don’t sweat it. If that changes in the future just buy them then. See what the next iteration brings and keep enjoying the 2.0’s.

 

[Moyapilot]

"5. Damn that noise cancellation. I don't like noise cancellation. There's a growing number of people in my field who believe that NC is contributing to hearing loss. I turned it off when I first put the AirPods Pro into service, and it keeps turning itself back on"

This is pretty much completely the opposite of logic and expert advice. A non-sealing, non-anc headphone like the regular Airpods will be far worse for your hearing in loud environments, as "sound masking" makes you turn up the volume to unsafe levels to compensate, damaging your hearing. ANC and sealing headphones are actually the best for hearing protection, and you end up listening at a lower overall volume because its is easy to hear the sound clearly.

The ANC does take some getting used to, but after a while, I don't really notice it, except how quiet everything gets. Some people never get used to it though.

Personally, I find that the APPs sound better and more balanced in my hears with ANC on. Must be the auto-eq, or the lower noise floor, or both.

 

[Ralfi]

1. Poor/fatiguing fit.

This is where it all goes wrong - If they don’t fit well, then you’ll encounter other issues.

2. The fidelity isn't as good as AirPods 2.0

See #1 ^. Poor fit severely impacts the audio quality.

3. The controls are a jumbled mess.

I don’t find this. Got used to them very quickly. They’re more customisable than prior AirPods & are more logical imo.

I have my left press-hold (faster speed in settings) to switch between Transparency/NC, & the right press-hold for Siri.

4. These things are a pain to handle

This is minor & just a muscle-memory issue. You get used to quickly. Even after 2 years with the AirPods 1, I got used to them within a week, so much so, that when I started to use the AirPods 1 at home recently (to save battery longevity of the APP), I dropped them for the first time, a number of times.

Placing the APP into your ears is a twisting process, so the silicon tip manoeuvres itself into your ear canal. You also need to wipe the face of the APP that makes contact with your skin, as oils will build up & increase the chance of them slipping out, especially with constant jaw movement. If they don’t fit well to begin with, you’ll be adjusting them constantly.

5. Damn that noise cancellation

Handiest feature of them & widely regarded as best in class.

6. Random weird behavior

I get the odd occasion where the press-hold function ceases to work, but it’s very rare.

If you’ve media playing recently when you do the fit test, then it’ll it may resume.

I just ran a fit test on my iPad, when I haven’t used media for hours & nothing resumed to play following the fit test.

I find the accidental taps are reduced on the APP compared to earlier AirPods since you need more force to activate them.

7. Spatial audio works if I do things I don't want to do

Yep, it was known that Apple TV didn’t support Spatial Audio, so only smaller screens work for now.

8. Bone conduction amplification

This seems to be dependent on the individuals sensitivity to this sensation. It’s fine for me, but not for others.

Is there a break-in period?

Not for audio quality to improve. But your ears may adapt & the fit could improve over time, if you’re lucky.

Is there anything that can be done for the ear seal on the left side?

People mention Comply Tips - foam tips that fit on the APP. Not cheap apparently.

Will the Apple TV ever natively (not app-specifically) support Spatial Audio on these Pros?)

Let’s hope...The upcoming Apple TV may support it, but I’m hoping the current Apple TV4K will have it added also.

Could these be defective?

I don’t think so. I think that fit is ruining your experience & giving you a false impression.

 

[Sill]

"5. Damn that noise cancellation. I don't like noise cancellation. There's a growing number of people in my field who believe that NC is contributing to hearing loss. I turned it off when I first put the AirPods Pro into service, and it keeps turning itself back on"

This is pretty much completely the opposite of logic and expert advice. A non-sealing, non-anc headphone like the regular Airpods will be far worse for your hearing in loud environments, as "sound masking" makes you turn up the volume to unsafe levels to compensate, damaging your hearing. ANC and sealing headphones are actually the best for hearing protection, and you end up listening at a lower overall volume because its is easy to hear the sound clearly.

I'm not talking about loud environments, and I'm not talking about turning up the source to overcome anything. I'm talking about NC itself being harmful.
In the cockpit I have to wear a headset for ATC communication. The common pair of Clark's doesn't cut it for me - I honestly can't understand the person in the 2nd seat, never mind the tower - so I paid for a top shelf ANR headset (at the time). One of the support people I know warned me against it, but I thought he was just being "old school". The first time I flew with those my ears were irritated, itching and burning. And it seemed to aggravate my tinnitus to the point where it can't be ignored anymore without a helpful distraction. Until someone comes up with a voice-enhancement headset that attenuates everything outside the speech frequencies I'm stuck with what I have, and I believe the ANR is causing the issues. That makes me wary of anything with noise cancellation.

The ANC does take some getting used to, but after a while, I don't really notice it, except how quiet everything gets. Some people never get used to it though.

Personally, I find that the APPs sound better and more balanced in my hears with ANC on. Must be the auto-eq, or the lower noise floor, or both.

I nearly forgot to mention - for home use I have some fairly decent JBL over-ear monitors with ANR-type cancellation. I get the same reaction as the headset I mentioned above, unless I shut off the cancellation.

 

[Jordan921]

Hmmm the APP have been good for me with no problems. I had the first generation AirPods also.

 

[Sill]

This is where it all goes wrong - If they don’t fit well, then you’ll encounter other issues.

I would agree. My problem-solving urges are probably going to override my desire to fling these into a return envelope, and I'll start with the fit.

I don’t find this. Got used to them very quickly. They’re more customisable than prior AirPods & are more logical imo.

I have my left press-hold (faster speed in settings) to switch between Transparency/NC, & the right press-hold for Siri.

Is there any way to defeat all of that? I don't need to control audio tracks (selection or volume), and I'm never going to turn the ANR on or go to Transparency, I just want the control to answer the phone or hang it up. Its just too convenient.

This is minor & just a muscle-memory issue. You get used to quickly. Even after 2 years with the AirPods 1, I got used to them within a week, so much so, that when I started to use the AirPods 1 at home recently (to save battery longevity of the APP), I dropped them for the first time, a number of times.

I hope thats what it is. But I think I've only dropped an AirPod once or twice in two years, until these things came along.

Placing the APP into your ears is a twisting process, so the silicon tip manoeuvres itself into your ear canal. You also need to wipe the face of the APP that makes contact with your skin, as oils will build up & increase the chance of them slipping out, especially with constant jaw movement. If they don’t fit well to begin with, you’ll be adjusting them constantly.

I noticed that, and I've been wiping them even more than my 2.0, which get the full treatment when I put them away.

Handiest feature of them & widely regarded as best in class.

I'm sure its excellent, for those who want it. Its not for me.

I get the odd occasion where the press-hold function ceases to work, but it’s very rare.

If you’ve media playing recently when you do the fit test, then it’ll resume.

I thought thats what was going on, but I stopped the song, and even quit the app before I went back into the Ear Seal test, and it would just wake up the music as soon as the test was done.

I find the accidental taps are reduced on the APP compared to earlier AirPods since you need more force to activate them.

Not in my experience. I can accidentally activate random functions very easily, but I tried one of the designated functions - I can't remember which - and it took several tries and different finger positions and amounts of pressure to get it to "work".

Yep, it was known that Apple TV didn’t support Spatial Audio, so only smaller screens work for now.

I'm probably retroactively imagining this, but I remember these being pitched by Apple as AppleTV accessories for exactly the reason I mentioned (late night TV), and that they could handle Atmos and they used internal gyros or accelerometers to gauge head position and then hold the source in place when the wearer moves, just like if they were facing speakers and then turned their head.

 

[Ralfi]

and it took several tries and different finger positions and amounts of pressure to get it to "work".

You are aware that the flat spot on the stem is the ‘button’? It’s the only area that’ll trigger commands.

but I remember these being pitched by Apple as AppleTV accessories for exactly the reason I mentioned

You probably heard “AppleTV+”.

Is there any way to defeat all of that? I don't need to control audio tracks (selection or volume), and I'm never going to turn the ANR on or go to Transparency, I just want the control to answer the phone or hang it up. Its just too convenient.

Well then, I’d just stick with the AirPods 2. You’re wanting to take away basically what you’re paying the extra money for, so it seems these aren’t suited to both your needs & fit.

but I stopped the song, and even quit the app before I went back into the Ear Seal test, and it would just wake up the music as soon as the test was done.

I just played/paused some music, re-did the fit test & it didn’t resume the song.

I’m thinking this is an IOS bug on your combination of Music App/device. Maybe a gremlin that a ‘forgetting’ AirPods & iPhone hard reset will fix.

 

[turbineseaplane]

About where I ended up

I actually still use my gen1 airpods right now.

I gave APPs two full tries for multiple weeks each time and it’s just not the product for me.
All good.

I just hope they always keep the more open “rest in your ear” design on one of the models at least.
I would be devastated if all new airpods were only the “ear plug” style.

 

[Sill]

You are aware that the flat spot on the stem is the ‘button’? It’s the only area that’ll trigger commands.

No, I wasn't aware of that. At first I'd assumed that the controls had stayed the same, and probably included the ever more invasive Siri assistant in some way. After I found that securing the Pods could cause a call to drop I read up a bit on the controls - which I've since forgotten - and found that the controls weren't responding properly. I don't recall if that involved the flat spot or whatever.

You probably heard “AppleTV+”.

Could be, but I tend to go get a snack whenever Apple drones start talking about that. I remember this in the context of "we brought Atmos to the AppleTV and now with the new AirPod Pro we're bringing it to your personal listening experience" or similar pitch.

Well then, I’d just stick with the AirPods 2. You’re wanting to take away basically what you’re paying the extra money for, so it seems these are suited to both your needs & fit.

Well thats not entirely correct - I wanted these because of the promise of Atmos compatibility with Apple TV, and nothing to do with ANR. Apple pulled that rug out from under me.

I just played/paused some music, re-did the fit test & it didn’t resume the song.

I’m thinking this is an IOS bug on your combination of Music App/device. Maybe a gremlin that a ‘forgetting’ AirPods & iPhone hard reset will fix.

Thats entirely possible, but I've just updated most of the front-and-center devices in my house to their respective current OS versopms, so I doubt it. I don't want to do a hard reset on the iPhone though, because that'll end up turning on all the iCloud services that I don't want to use.

Have you ever had that happen, where you do a reset, or an iOS update, or even something simple like turning iCloud off and back on, and a bunch of iCloud switches get flipped to 'on'? A few iOS versions ago that started happening to me. The only thing I have turned on is Mail, nothing else. I updated to whatever iOS it was, maybe 8 or 9, and I started reviewing my settings to see what new features showed up. I found that Notes, Calendar, and something else was turned on. I turned it off. When the next major upgrade showed up, I checked my settings to see if anything weird happened. This time it was Contacts, Reminders, and Find My iPhone. I turned that all off, and actually the last one fought me. Then another upgrade, and iCloud Photo Library, and something else was on. iOS 10.3 would keep turning stuff back on, I would find that when I checked periodically. And it was different stuff each time.

The worst one of all was signing out of iCloud and back in, to try to fix something wonky. ALL of the sliders went green. I lost it, trying to flip everything off before all my stuff went to iCloud. So I'm concerned that a hard reset will cause the same problem.

 

[haruhiko]

Non-pro AirPods can't even stay in my ears. Enough said.

 

[Peter K.]

You probably heard “AppleTV+”.

Could be, but I tend to go get a snack whenever Apple drones start talking about that. I remember this in the context of "we brought Atmos to the AppleTV and now with the new AirPod Pro we're bringing it to your personal listening experience" or similar pitch.

I, too, was shocked to learn that spatial audio doesn’t work with Apple TV. Same as you, I thought I heard an Apple TV - specific pitch.

Also, just to add my two cents, my right side AirPod Pro has begun failing the ear tip fit test and nothing seems to remedy this. I got them for Christmas, so we are only talking about a few days here.

 

[Ralfi]

I don't want to do a hard reset on the iPhone though, because that'll end up turning on all the iCloud services that I don't want to use.

Are we referring to the same type of ‘hard reset’?

What I meant was to press the volume up/down buttons, & then hold the sleep button until the white Apple logo appears. I don’t think this has ever changed my iCloud toggles.

I wanted these because of the promise of Atmos compatibility with Apple TV, and nothing to do with ANR. Apple pulled that rug out from under me.

Maybe the upcoming ‘Non-Pro/Non-ANC’ model will allow every AirPods owner to make use of Spatial Audio/Atmos. They’re be in-ear types though, so the fit may not suit, & unfortunately the in-ear seal may be what makes Spatial Audio/Atmos possible.

 

[Sill]

I, too, was shocked to learn that spatial audio doesn’t work with Apple TV. Same as you, I thought I heard an Apple TV - specific pitch.

Also, just to add my two cents, my right side AirPod Pro has begun failing the ear tip fit test and nothing seems to remedy this. I got them for Christmas, so we are only talking about a few days here.

I mentioned yesterday that I've been able to get a seal on the right pod but not the left. I should have mentioned, and didn't, that I tried to re-seal many times and I can now tell if I have the seal or not just by being sensitive to "leakage" - its slight but evident. I put the APP in this morning and readily noticed the leakage. I ran the test anyway, and this time both Pods showed a seal failure. Readjusting did nothing to help.

 

[Sill]

Are we referring to the same type of ‘hard reset’?

What I meant was to press the volume up/down buttons, & then hold the sleep button until the white Apple logo appears. I don’t think this has ever changed my iCloud toggles.

Ah, I used to call that the 'freeze reset', but you're right, its a 'hard reset'. I haven't used that since I got my iPhone X. I thought you were talking about a 'factory reset'. No, I never saw any iCloud wonkiness with a hard reset.

Maybe the upcoming ‘Non-Pro/Non-ANC’ model will allow every AirPods owner to make use of Spatial Audio/Atmos. They’re be in-ear types though, so the fit may not suit, & unfortunately the in-ear seal may be what makes Spatial Audio/Atmos possible.

Could be. If thats the case I'll be resigned to not having Atmos headgear.

Since were discussing the fit, bone conduction, the music app zombie behavior, and ANR yesterday, I wanted to update you on a couple of things. I mentioned the fit above in my response to Peter, but here's the rest of it:

Yesterday I did mostly seated work while I wore the Pros, but today I did a lot of moving around. Every footfall was massively loud in my head. I couldn't wear them for longer than 30 minutes, so I basically got through one phone call and that was it. Walking from my desk to the office kitchen and back was a miserable experience. I couldn't imagine exercising with these things, and I know multitudes are doing exactly that, so this has to be on me, and my physiology.

While I was on that call I noticed the seal was good enough to where I had difficulty hearing my own voice, the stage monitor issue, so to speak. It was like the worst case of sinus and eustachian congestion in the history of congestion. I tried the 'transparency' setting instead of 'off', and that helped greatly, but the transition from congestion to adequate monitor exposed how artificial the transparency sounded. I knew that I was hearing a rebroadcast of my voice instead of hearing it directly from the source. I've never left my hifi roots, so I'm sensitive to stuff like that, and it was a little disorienting at first. Still, it wasn't music - just a phone call - so I was able to be distracted away by the conversation enough to disregard the effect. On its own it wouldn't be enough to get me to return these.

After I ran the seal test I was thankful to find that the Music app didn't wake up and start playing again. But shortly after that the left Pod started to loosen up when I moved my jaw, so I readjusted it. I used my left hand, put my thumb on the bottom of the stem and my index and middle fingers at the top near the grille, so I didn't go near the flat spot. And the music started playing again.

I told my wife yesterday that I'll most likely be returning these, and I've all but made my mind up to do that now. The Spatial thing is disappointing enough, but that bone conduction issue is really, seriously bad.

For anyone who would like to understand what I'm talking about, try an exercise: place your palms over their respective ears in such a manner that you get a suction-seal to your ear canals. Then go for a walk in a quiet room over a hard surface. Let me know if you hear a 'boom' every time you take a step. Its more evident if you purposefully heel-strike when you do this. For me, its not as bad as what I get when I wear the AirPod Pros.

 

[CookieFlow]

I don't agree on your whole list, but I felt very similar about your points 1 and 5.

I bought APP twice and sold them twice. I also had the same issue where they fall off my ears when I eat, yawn etc.

I realised a few things.

I hate in-ears.
I hate NC.

I really hope that the next regular AirPods will not be in-ear.
I will try to give the APM a try, but I feel it will be even worse. I am pretty sure the ANC and clamping force will surely give me huge headaches (that's what the XM2 did for me, and was my last pair of ANC headphones).

 

[Sill]

If I were to buy actual, proper headphones ("cans" in the hipster audiophile world) I'd most likely look for an open or semi-open back design, like the BeyerDynamics offerings. Unfortunately those aren't good for telecom on the go.

I'm with you on the in-ear trend ("in-ear monitors", according to those hipsters - and thats a term that really makes me laugh). I really don't care for it at all. The earlier wired earbuds provided with the iPod started out really bad in their first version and ended up mildly-inconvenient in their final one. The AirPods were the first ones I felt comfortable with, though I'm not a big fan of the bare plastic stuck in my ear. I hope Apple just keeps improving the regular AirPods and doesn't go all-in on this Pro/seal thing, or else I'll be looking outside the brand.

 

[CookieFlow]

The problem is that afaik there are basically 0 wireless openback cans.
There is some over-ear weird Grado and that's the only ones I think.

I have been looking for wireless Openback for years now and the only ones I can find besides the Grados are the very old Sennheiser RS 185 that require a base station that is powered by AC, clearly not a portable solution.

I'm not an audiophile at all, most stuff is good enough for me.

 

[Deliro]

Pros are incompatible with my ear shape, particularly the left. It never got a seal and would always feel like they’re slowly slipping out. I tried all sizes and even the foam tips. Nothing worked. Happy with my normal AirPods and if Apple does adopt the pro form factor on the AirPods my current will be my last pair. And seeing as though they only keep a decent charge 2-3 years I’ll have to find another brand.

 

[perezr10]

Same here. I’ve gone back to my 2nd Gen AirPods cuz they don’t go in my ear canals. I only use my Pros when I mow the lawn.

 

[Runs For Fun]

Non-pro AirPods can't even stay in my ears. Enough said.

Same! I thought I might be the only one because whenever I say this people never believe me!