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Why Do Your Airpods Max Keep Disconnecting?

Why Do Your Airpods Max Keep Disconnecting?

The Apple AirPods Max combines the company’s innovative technology with the traditional headphone. Its many features are strengthened by noise cancellation, transparency, and a robust 20 hours of listening time. However, this can feel frustrating when your AirPods Max refuses to work and continues to disconnect from your device. So, why does this happen, and what can you do about it?

Typically, a disconnecting AirPods Max issue can happen due to problems with your connection with your device. This problem can also occur due to interference or because you have not been updating the AirPods Max regularly. Finally, the issue can also occur due to software glitches. Fortunately, you can resolve it with a hard reset, so your AirPods Max is back to its factory settings. 

To learn more about how you can accomplish each of these fixes, keep reading our article, where we explain in detail how you can resolve each issue. 

Resolving Disconnecting Issues With the AirPods Max

There can be many issues that cause your AirPods Max to disconnect from your other devices abruptly. In that case, you need to try a couple of different methods to troubleshoot and identify the core issue at hand. Usually, the following solutions will resolve your problem.

Reser Bluetooth Connection

The easiest fix you can try in order to resolve this issue is to think of the Bluetooth connection. Since the AirPods Max will connect using the Bluetooth route, you want to make sure that the point of contact is solid and stable enough to keep the device going. Simply reset the connection to check whether the current Bluetooth connection is the issue. 

  1. In your phone (or other device’s) settings, tap on Bluetooth
  2. Switch off the Bluetooth completely, or go into Airplane mode. 
  3. Switch Bluetooth back on after a few seconds, and connect to the AirPods Max again.

Resetting the Bluetooth should create a more stable connection with your AirPods Max for most fundamental issues with Bluetooth connections.

Bring AirPods Max Closer

Once again, your AirPods Max needs a Bluetooth connection in order to work. One of the limitations of a Bluetooth connection is that it is dependent on distance to establish stability. Over large distances, your devices are likely to drop in and out between the connection. Bringing your AirPods closer to the device in question can sometimes resolve the issue. 

Keep Devices Updated

With every version of the iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, there are changes to the operating systems that can address and fix bugs in previous versions. Aide from this, all of Apple’s accessory devices, such as the AirPods, get new features through firmware updates. Checking for the latest updates can usually resolve any issues with AirPods

Unlike your iPhone, iPad, and Mac devices, there is no manual way to check for updates for an AirPod. However, you can make sure regular updates make their way to your device with the next few steps:

  1. Establish a connection with your AirPods to any of your devices
  2. Connect to the Internet on your device.
  3. Connect your Airpods to a lightning cable so they can charge. 

If any firmware updates are available, the AirPods can now detect and install them, so you have the latest firmware version.

Disable Automatic Head Detection

Automatic Head Detection is a feature of the AirPods Max that allows you to control where sound plays when it is connected to a device. If you have the AirPods Max on your head, the device automatically plays through the AirPods Max. However, if you take them off, you will hear sound through the device itself. 

Photo: Apple, Inc.

If you aren’t too attached to this feature, you may want to consider disabling it. At times, the internal software might be struggling to identify if the headphones are on or off at any given time, causing it to sputter out. You can disable this feature by:

  1. Connect your AirPods Max to the device in question.
  2. Open up the device’s settings, and tap on the Bluetooth option.
  3. Click on the information button and disable the ‘Automatic Head Detection’ option.

Disable Automatic Switching 

Another feature provided by Apple is the Automatic Switching option. With this feature, you can connect your AirPods to multiple devices. The AirPods will then play on the device you use and automatically switch to it. However, this can be problematic if you use more than one device at a time. 

Related: Why Do Your Airpods and Airpods Pro Keep Flashing White?

As most people tend to use multiple devices simultaneously, this can cause the audio to stop abruptly and the connection to switch over to the nearest device. In this case, you need to disable the feature to be able to continue using your AirPods as intended. 

  1. Connect your AirPods Mac to your device.
  2. In the Settings App, tap on Bluetooth.
  3. Next to your AirPods Max, tap on the information button. 
  4. Tap ‘Connect To This iPhone.’
  5. If ‘Automatically’ is selected, switch over to ‘When Last Connected To This iPhone’ instead.

Now, the AirPods Max cannot switch to the iPhone automatically. You can always enable this feature back again at any time by selecting ‘Automatically’ to restore Automatic Switching. 

Reset Your AirPods Max

One of the available options is a hard reset for your AirPods Max. While this shouldn’t cause significant issues, the reset will delete all data of your AirPods from previously known devices. It will need to be set up with your account as if it were a completely new device. Here’s the process to reset your AirPods Max:

Photo: Apple, Inc.
  1. Connect your AirPods Max to a lightning cable and charge them for a few minutes before starting.
  2. Hold down the Noise Control and Digital Crown Button together for at least 15 seconds. 
  3. Wait until the LED light blinks, first to amber and then white. 
  4. Once the color has switched to white, the AirPods Max is now reset.
  5. Connect to your iPhone, iPad, or Mac device and follow instructions to complete the setup. 

Conclusion

When it comes to troubleshooting, these are the top things to try and fix the issue of disconnecting AirPods. In some cases, these may not be effective due to the damaged product. In that case, please get in touch with customer support or visit a service center.