Many second-generation AirPods Pro users are complaining that they’re experiencing audio drifting and audio sync issues. The users have taken to Reddit and other online forums to complain about the issue. As reported by 9to5Mac, the issue occurs even when Apple’s features like Spatial Audio and dynamic head tracking are disabled.
Audio drifting is an issue where the sound shifts between each side of the two earbuds. The audio moves back and forth between earbuds and can also get out of sync with videos, leading to audio being out of sync with the video being viewed.
Affected AirPods Pro 2 users say they are experiencing a combination of audio drifting and shifting. Volume levels also randomly increase or decrease.
One user explains on Reddit:
This is my second pair of AirPods Pro 2 and the audio still seems to shift/drift all over the place sometimes it can compress the volume of a song and than randomly raise the volume. No, it’s not head tracking or spatial audio I have turned those off.
Another AirPods Pro 2 says the issue most often rears its ugly head in the YouTube app:
I’ve had a similar issue with my APP2. I’m using spatial audio and watching YouTube, and for almost videos, after an ad plays, the AirPods go out of sync with each other. As if one is slightly lacking behind the other. I ti sounds like the voice of people in videos are right at my ears instead in the middle of my head like it’s supposed to sound. The only way I’ve been able to combat this is to turn off and back on spatial audio which seems to re-sync up the airpods. Pretty annoying.
Other users have also chimed in, with similar experiences. Many say they experience these issues, even when they have the Spatial Audio and dynamic head tracking feature disabled.
Apple hasn’t yet acknowledged this issue, so it is uncertain whether it’s a software or hardware flaw. Hopefully, it can be resolved with an AirPods firmware update.