Why is My Headphone Volume so Low: 8 Best Solutions to Fix

Are you frustrated with why is my headphone volume so low? If you are, then this post is for you. We will be discussing why your headphones may seem too quiet and why that’s happening.

There are various reasons why this could happen, including the type of device, how loud it is in your environment, or something more severe like hearing loss. In the end, we’ll give some solutions to fix your problem!

Why is My Headphone Volume so Low?

The reason your headphone volume is low maybe because the hardware inside of your device has been damaged. Several reasons may cause this, including dropping the headphones in water or dropping a liquid spilled on the headphones.

If their casing cracks and breaks due to heat exposure during use, receiving them wet from the rain outside after leaving them in your car, or if they are just worn out and do not function correctly.

Here are some crucial reasons for a low headphone volume:

EQ settings Problem on Headphones

The headphone volume will be below if you cannot change the EQ settings on your device. If there is a problem with the hardware, it may prevent you from changing these settings and, therefore, can result in a lower than usual sound output or volume level of the audio coming out of your headphones.

Headphones Not Being Unplugged From Device

If you are playing an audio file through your headphones and they suddenly go off, it may be because you failed to unplug them from your device. Make sure when not using or listening with your headphones, remove them from their connection point. This ensures that no extra power is sent into the headphone hardware, resulting in a lower than usual audio level.

Dirty Headphones

Ensure that you clean your headphones with the appropriate cleaning solution and cloth to ensure that they do not build up with any bacteria or germs. This can do by taking off all visible dirt from the device’s exterior using an electronic cleaning solution. Ensure as well that you use a different cloth from the one used to clean your screen.

Charging During Use

If your device is not charged enough to run correctly and you are using the headphones while charging, it can cause a lower headphone volume. Ensure that when playing audio files through your headphones, they have been fully charged for maximum sound output and quality of music or other sounds coming from them.

Device Not Powered On

If you find no sound coming out of the headphone jack on your device, this may be due to a failure to turn it on correctly or check if it has been turned off before using headphones. Ensure that volume controls are not muted, and they should also respond when you try to adjust them.

Damaged or Broken Cabling

When your headphone cables are for some reason damaged and broken, this can result in a low volume output as well. Therefore, it is important that all hardware on both ends, including the input/output headphone jack connected to the device, are in working order before using it again.

MP3 Not Supported by Device or Software Malfunction

Playing audio files of a different format to what your device can support may cause an issue with hardware and software compatibility, resulting in lower than usual volume output. Ensure that you have installed any drivers needed for the device to work correctly with the file formats.

Muted or Speaker Setting on Device

If you find no sound coming out of your headphones and ensure all volume controls are enabled, it may be due to a user error such as having them muted or another device set up for playback through its speaker instead of the headphone jack.

Device not Connected Properly to Digital Audio Player

If you are using the correct device for playing an audio file through your headphones and it still plays back with low volume, there may be nothing wrong with either the hardware or software but because of a physical connection problem between them. So make sure to connect them properly before using them.

Volume Control on the Device

If you are using your device, whether it is a laptop or cell phone, do not turn the volume up to its maximum level because this can result in distortion within your headphones and cause them to be less effective than they should be at the emitting sound. Rather, you may want to reduce the volume of your device to prevent this from happening.

Background Noise

Using your headphones to block out background noise, such as other people talking or music playing in the room, can cause a lower than normal volume output. Make sure that any sound is turned off, and there should be no reason why they would not work properly while listening through them.

Digital Device Not Supported by Headphone

Playing an audio file on a digital device not supported by the headphones you are using can cause lower than standard volume output, even if it’s turned up. Ensure as well to make sure drivers for such devices have been correctly installed and updated.

Connections that have been disconnected or broken

If the wiring of your headphones has been damaged, this may cause a loss in volume. This may be because of damage to the wires themselves or their connection points with one another.

Use a different pair of earphones to determine whether this is the case. If you hear sound from them, then there is likely no problem with your hardware, and the problem is in the wiring of your headphones.

If you hear no sound from them either, it is likely that both headphones and earphones are damaged and need to replace.

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How to Fix Headphones Low Sound?

Headphones are an essential piece of technology for any music lover. But if you find that the sound is low or not sufficient, there may be a few things you can do to fix this problem.

1. Adjust your EQ settings on your phone

Headphones are an essential piece of technology for any music lover. But if you find that the sound is low or not sufficient, there may be a few things you can do to fix this problem.

One way to improve the sound quality of your headphone is by adjusting your EQ sound settings on your phone. This will allow you to customize how much bass and treble are in their music, depending on what they like best!

Another option would be to adjust the volume at which they listen because sometimes people believe that their headphones are too quiet when it’s just set too low. If these two methods don’t seem to work, then it might be time for a new pair of headphones!

2. Adjust the volume on your source

The sound quality is coming through your headphones is determined by the volume of your source. This means that if you are playing music too softly or at a level that you cannot hear, the quality will suffer.

To fix this problem, adjust the volume at which you play your music and see if that fixes the issue! Also, if you’re experiencing sound quality issues with your headphones, it might be time for a new pair.

3. Check the volume settings on your device

You can resolve this problem in a few different ways. First, check the volume settings on your device to make sure it’s not just at a low level. If that doesn’t work, try adjusting how loud you listen to your source or switching to music made explicitly for headphones.

Finally, if all else fails and there’s still not enough sound coming through your headphones, take a look at how well they’re plugged in and whether the wires are working correctly.

4. Increase the volume in your music app

You can turn up your tunes on a streaming music app. But some music apps give you more ways to adjust the sound levels of your songs. If you would like to increase the volume of a song on either Spotify or Tidal, here’s how to do it:

Spotify

If you want to turn up the volume in Spotify, find your music in the app, then tap on it. You should see a slider next to the song’s cover art.

Drag that slider up to turn up the volume of your music, and drag it down to lower the volume of your song.

But this is only one way you can adjust the sound in Spotify without changing any settings in your app. You can also tap on the Equalizer setting under any song, album, or playlist to adjust sound levels.

You will notice that the equalizer has four settings: Loudness, Bass Booster, Treble Booster, and Acoustic.

By tapping on one of these settings, you can experiment with different ways to control the sound of your music without adjusting anything in your Spotify app.

Tidal

If you have Tidal, there are even more ways to adjust sound without changing anything in your settings or changing any other apps on your phone. For example, to turn up the volume:

1. On the left side of the home page, tap “Playlists.”

2. Scroll down until you see “Albums,” then tap on “Albums.”

3. Locate the song you want by selecting the album.

4. Find the three dots next to your song’s cover art or title, then tap it. You’ll have to scroll down a bit to see them because there are so many songs on the list.

5. Once you tap on the three dots, you can adjust the volume of your song by sliding up or down on the sound waves that appear next to your song’s cover art or title.

You can also turn up or down the bass and treble with two sliders right underneath those waves. This is one of many ways to control sound in Tidal without going into your settings or adjusting other things on your phone.

Pandora

On the Pandora app, you can switch to the Higher Quality Audio feature to increase the volume of your songs if you have a Pandora account. This includes both music tracks and radio stations. To do this:

1. Click “More” along the bottom of your screen, then click “Settings”.

2. Scroll down to “Pandora Quality” and tap it. It should read “Automatic.”

3. Tap on “Higher Quality Audio” to switch to this feature while using Pandora. This will only work while using the Pandora app, but you can switch between these two settings.

Now, you can turn up the volume of your favorite streaming music app to enjoy louder songs without adjusting any other settings on your phone or changing anything else about how you use your phone’s apps.

There are more ways to control sound in Tidal and Spotify, but Pandora users only have one way to do it without changing other settings. With the Higher Quality Audio feature, you can turn up your music to enjoy it just a little bit louder than before.

5. Low Power Headphones

A recent trend in headphone design is to lower the impedance of speakers. This results in an increased current needed from the source to power it. If you get a low current output from your phone, there can be some distortion and lack of volume.

To resolve this mismatch, buy new headphones with high resistance or purchase an amplifier for your phone/device capable of providing enough output to power your speakers.

Another common reason is the iOS volume limit. iOS limits the maximum volume for EarPods and other headphones connected through the headphone jack to prevent accidental damage to hearing.

To disable this, go into Settings > Music > Volume Limit and change it from “Restrict Maximum Volume” to “Never.”

6. Check your Ear Fit

The main reason headphones sound different when you increase or decrease the volume is how well they fit your ear. Outside noise will get in if the headphone tips aren’t entirely sealing off your ear canal. Unfortunately, that means you won’t be able to hear the music very well.

The best way to check if your headphones fit correctly is to play a song and then use the opposite hand to block off your ear. As your ear canal is blocked off, you should notice a significant volume change.

If this happens, readjust the headphone hardware, so it’s covering more of your ear opening. Also, if you have an older style where the speakers are touching your ear, you may want to take it off and see any cotton or spongy material around them.

This can be removed to make the speakers fit deeper into your ear canal, which will mean less outside noise getting in.

7. Audio Settings

Check the audio settings on your device to ensure that your headphone is selected as the default output device. Most devices have a section called “audio” or “sound” where you can choose the audio source you want to listen to.

Checking Audio Settings on Android

1. Select the Menu button from the home screen of your device.

2. Select “Settings.”

3. Select “Sound & Display”.

4. Scroll down to “Device Audio” and make sure it is set correctly.

5. If you do not see a Device Audio option listed under Sound & Display settings or if the Device Audio is set to “Silent” or “Vibrate”, tap on that option and select your headphone as the device.

Checking Audio Settings on iPhone

1. On your home screen, press the Menu key on your device.

2. Select “Settings”.

3. Click “Music”. The Music settings will appear.

4. Make sure your headphone is selected under “My Headphones”.

5. If you do not see the My Headphones option, select “Ringtones” and ensure that your headphone is selected as the default Ringtone.

Checking Audio Settings on Windows

1. Click on the Windows key on your keyboard to open the Start menu.

2. Click “Control Panel”. The Control Panel will appear.

3. Choose “Hardware and Sound”.

4. Click “Manage Audio Devices” under the Sound section. You will see the Manage Audio Devices window.

5. Make sure your headphone is selected as the Default Device.

Checking Audio Settings on iPad

1. On your home screen, tap on “Settings”.

2. Click the “General” button.

3. Scroll down to the bottom and select “Audio”.

4. Make sure that your headphone is selected under Output Device. If you do not see an Output Device option, ensure that your device is set correctly with Apple’s External Speakers.

After checking your audio settings and ensuring that you have selected the correct device as the default, try listening to music again and check if your volume is fixed. If not, continue reading to troubleshoot further.

Checking Audio Settings on Macbook

1. From your screen, click the Apple logo in the top-left corner and then select “System Preferences”.

2. Select “Sound” under System Preferences. The Sound section will appear.

3. Make sure that your headphone is selected as the Audio Output Device and also check to see if the balance slider is centered or not.

4. If the Output Device is not set to your headphone or the balance slider cannot be centered or moves continuously, select “Output” and choose your headphone as the device.

If you followed all steps and your volume still isn’t fixed, try rebooting your computer and reconnecting your headphone to see if your operating system has recognized it.

If the audio is still low after rebooting, it might be a hardware problem. By this point, I advise you to take your device for servicing.

8. Issues with Bluetooth Headphones

Bluetooth Headphones are great because you can get them wet since they are wireless, making them perfect for the gym or other activities. In any case, Bluetooth headphones with low volume can be very frustrating to use.

The good news is that there are a few easy things you can check to ensure that your volume is working correctly.

1. Check your device’s decibel settings

Every smartphone and tablet has different options for how high you can adjust the volume, so the first thing you’ll want to check is your decibel settings. If you can’t find it, try googling your specific device to find out where the decibel settings are.

2. Check the volume level on your headphones

Most Bluetooth Headphones have a series of lights that indicate when the headphone’s volume is low or needs recharging. If your headphone’s indicator light shows that you’re on low volume, turn up the decibel sound settings on your device.

3. Check to make sure your headphones are fully charged

If you do not think it is the decibel settings on your device or the headphone themselves, use a different pair of headphones to see if the issue is with the Bluetooth Headphones. If it isn’t, then it is most likely the charging port on your headphone or device.

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FAQs

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Conclusion

After reading this article, you should have a clearer understanding of what is causing your headphones to provide low volume levels.

We hope that by providing some possible solutions in the conclusion section, we will help you get back to listening to music at volumes that feel safe and fun again!