AirPods Pro 3 - static / white noise / hissing

I have been an AirPods Pro user since the 1st gen. I was excited to upgrade from my 2nd gen to the new and “everything is better” AirPod pro 3. I quickly noticed that there is a constant low volume white noise / static / hissing type sound, whether I am in transparency or ANC mode. It is less apparent with media playing but still there. It is such an obvious difference from my AirPod pro 2 that at first I thought there was a fan on nearby or it was raining outside. Quick search online shows I am not the only one experiencing this issue with the new AirPod Pro’s 3.

Did all the troubleshooting steps with support to no avail (different ear tips, resetting / re-pairing device etc etc). Others online have mentioned they already did an exchange with no change. I am open to suggestions.

It seems like a possible software issue fixable with a firmware update, until then I will return my pro 3 and go back to my pro 2’s.

Posted on Sep 23, 2025 8:01 AM

Top-ranking reply

stefromcolorado springs Author

Level 1

27 points

Posted on Oct 8, 2025 9:53 AM

Apple Tier 2 and the “engineers” had me do a multi day troubleshooting which included; replacing the AirPods, changing settings, sending them a recording of the sound and trying different tips. The conclusion was that it is “normal” and “expected behavior” and the tier 2 rep told me that the AirPod pro 2 might be better suited for me!

I am beyond disappointed, especially at this price point as my expectations were to at least be a slight improvement over the AirPod pro 2’s. The constant noise make them unusable for extended periods for me.

Ultimately, I ended up following the Apple reps advice and returned the AirPod pro 3’s and bought a new pair of AirPod pro’s 2.

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23 replies

Oct 10, 2025 12:05 AM in response to stefromcolorado springs

Have the same issue. Constant low level noise, which I assume is connected to ANC. There is no option to turn this off! Only ANC, Transparency or Adaptive. In the dead of night, listening to podcast quietly, the hiss is louder than the spoken word! Totally unacceptable.

Oct 13, 2025 1:25 PM in response to georgeminors

@georgeminors

This makes sense if you are hearing high-pitched sounds otherwise as earwax can often cause tinnitus like symptoms. I'm not discounting that for some percentage of people there may be underlying tinnitus (or a blockage leading to it), but for the swath of people who don't have any other underlying ear isssues (myself included, as I recently had ears/hearing checked a month ago and confirmed nearly zero wax) it seems like this is related to ear physics causing sensory processing from the different ANC anti-wave. Ear wax is also an ear physics/sensory processing problem that you resolved by removing the wax, but for some ear shapes I'm willing to bet this has either been unaccounted for or just won't be acknowldged by apple.

Anygreg

Level 1

26 points

Sep 28, 2025 12:10 AM in response to stefromcolorado springs

I have the exact same issue with my 3 day old AirPod pro 3’s. Low level hiss/white noise. I’ve commented here to make a record of this issue with apple and link to this thread.

the hiss is there regardless of mode weather ANC is activated or not.

these things ain’t cheap, let’s hope there’s a fix soon as it’s rather annoying and kind of defeats the whole noise cancelling experience.

Oct 4, 2025 10:09 PM in response to stefromcolorado springs

I'm having the exact same issue. Static background noise when in Transparency/ANC mode. My first experience with ANC earphones & I'm not happy at all. I've scouted around online and tried the suggested fixes - toggling conversation boost, resetting the earphones, turning custom transparency settings on & off - nothing helps. I really wish I hadn't bought these things.

Oct 8, 2025 6:43 PM in response to stefromcolorado springs

Yeah I’m seeing so many reviews of the AirPods and non of them mention it, I started to wonder if I was the only one hearing it. I already bought another pair but it still has the same problem. I love the noise cancellation and the sound quality of the AirPods but the floor noise/static noise is such a bummer especially when these AirPods are almost 300 dollars.

aleeqss

Level 1

14 points

Oct 5, 2025 5:22 AM in response to stefromcolorado springs

Same for me. Got them friday and since I can hear this white noise/hissing/static noise in both airpods,equal.

Hope to be a firmware issue and not an hardware one!

Oct 9, 2025 4:31 PM in response to wArch

I have tired resetting them and I’m sure most here have too. I can say from my experience that resetting them and updating them to the latest software did not work.

joão253

Level 1

8 points

Oct 10, 2025 12:32 AM in response to stefromcolorado springs

I have the Same Problem it is always doing a acute Sound in the canceling Mode… Hope you guys fix it otherwise ill Go back to Sony xm6…

AirPods Pro 3 - static / white noise / hissing