topic Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise in Portable Audio

WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

skk02911 — Wed, 17 Oct 2018 12:31:10 GMT

There is a cracking/popping noise in the left side of the headset, this gets worse when shake the headset around by moving my neck or walking etc. This continues even when the headset is off. And there wasn't any physical force applied to the headset. Anyone having similar problems?

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

EdwinaU — Sun, 21 Oct 2018 12:22:55 GMT

Hi there,

Please try the tips here to see if it helps with the noise. Let us know how you get on.

Best wishes,

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

gadbois — Mon, 22 Oct 2018 08:25:21 GMT

Have this to, a ticking noise in the left earcup when I'm on the move, e.g. riding a bus or train or walking. The ticking stops when I'm still but can easily be reproduced simply by wiggle the earcup with my hand. Doesn't matter if the headphones are on or off so I suspect something mechanical is causing this.

Anyway, once you hear this noise it's super irritating and the headphones are useless.

I took mine back to the delaer, who fortunately was aware of this from other customers. They would have exchanged the pair but didn't have stock so they are sending the phones back to Sony for repair as I was out of my return period.

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

gadbois — Thu, 15 Nov 2018 15:29:53 GMT

OK, so Sony took forever to repair my 1000xm3 headphones and eventually my dealer received new stock and simply gave me a pair from the shelf.

Happy to say these seem to be free of ticking/clicking noise in the earcup. Might be a new batch from Sony as these came with firmware 2.0 preinstallad - my previous pair did not. Also, there's a couple of new "Google assistant" stickers on the box.

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

mofo911 — Tue, 20 Nov 2018 10:14:48 GMT

I have a pair of WH-1000XM2 and I have the the excact same problem, and it is driving me insane. I already had my replaced once because of excesive white noise, so this really annoys me. I only have the problem with my left ear cup and to me it also appears mechanical, although it seems to come and go (it was there when I put them on this morning, but now its gone, and I havn't moved from my desk in the meantime).

Did it help help in the long run to have your headphones replaced or did the problem come back?

Morten

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

gadbois — Tue, 20 Nov 2018 11:11:14 GMT

Yes it did, the irritating ticking is completely gone with this new pair of 1000xm3!

And, as a bonus, they are much better with calls as I'm now able to make and receive calls on the bus/train without the microphones picking up and enhancing background noise. They are actually now on par with my previous Bose QC35, which were really good with calls.

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

evilaliv3 — Sat, 08 Dec 2018 13:13:08 GMT

I confirm to have the same exact issue with the tick of the touch controller on the right.

I gueees it is too sensitive ant it seems to activate at every every movement.

Were is it possible to apply for replacement?

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

evilaliv3 — Sat, 08 Dec 2018 13:28:53 GMT

It seems a lot of people is experiencing this: https://www.reddit.com/r/sony/comments/9if168/sony_wh1000xm3_poppingclicking_sound/

Is it possible to get it fixed with the next firmware update?

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

octoman — Tue, 18 Dec 2018 01:18:56 GMT

Same issue here, replaced them with a different pair from my retailer, but the problem in the second one was even more severe. Looks like a mechanical issue with the materials/assembly to me.

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

octoman — Tue, 18 Dec 2018 01:23:19 GMT

@gadbois wrote:
Yes it did, the irritating ticking is completely gone with this new pair of 1000xm3!
And, as a bonus, they are much better with calls as I'm now able to make and receive calls on the bus/train without the microphones picking up and enhancing background noise. They are actually now on par with my previous Bose QC35, which were really good with calls.

Curious as to what the first 4-5 digits of your serial number are (of the newer set with no issues)? Suspect that I had two from an earlier batch but they seemed to be separated by 130,000 of units, if the serial numbers are sequential and don't skip any numbers.

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

gadbois — Tue, 18 Dec 2018 05:59:08 GMT

@octoman wrote:
Curious as to what the first 4-5 digits of your serial number are (of the newer set with no issues)? Suspect that I had two from an earlier batch but they seemed to be separated by 130,000 of units, if the serial numbers are sequential and don't skip any numbers.

Serial's first four digits are 5206 but I think serials are random. Manufacture month/year is 10/2018, and as I said, they came with firmware 2.0 already installed and the box had a "Google Assistant" sticker on the front.

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

yauster — Tue, 18 Dec 2018 20:43:53 GMT

I have this issue as well. Aside from there being a clicking noise whenever I press my right earcup when ANC is turned on, my music also gets noticeably louder for a brief moment.

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

brunomen — Fri, 21 Dec 2018 13:46:44 GMT

Confirm. I'm having the same cracking sound on the left hand side. It's a shame because I really like these hedphones but I'm contemplating a replacement for the Bose.

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

Steviemo — Sat, 22 Dec 2018 18:25:08 GMT

I had the same problem when on NC mode with no music playing , I only had them a week so was able to return them to the Sony centre for replacement the guy in store could clearly here it , it also hilighted a problem with the instore display pair they had a high pitch hum , even my new pair have a faint hiss from them when nothing is playing ,so I've tried 3 pairs on and have heard 3 different noises from them still it's better than crackling in one ear

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

yauster — Sat, 22 Dec 2018 18:52:44 GMT

I ended up exchanging my pair for a new one and the new pair don't have this issue. I'm 99% sure that the clicking sound was a mechanical fault that was amplified by the ANC.

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

fhritzkie — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 22:30:51 GMT

same issue here. My problem is I purchased it on Gatwick Airport and I am from the Philippines. Did you have it replaced to a store where you bought it?

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

fhritzkie — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 22:31:51 GMT

@Steviemo wrote:
I had the same problem when on NC mode with no music playing , I only had them a week so was able to return them to the Sony centre for replacement the guy in store could clearly here it , it also hilighted a problem with the instore display pair they had a high pitch hum , even my new pair have a faint hiss from them when nothing is playing ,so I've tried 3 pairs on and have heard 3 different noises from them still it's better than crackling in one ear

same issue here. My problem is I purchased it on Gatwick Airport and I am from the Philippines. Did you have it replaced to a store where you bought it?

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

Steviemo — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 22:41:16 GMT

Yes that is correct , I had them replaced at the store I bought them from , sorry to hear about your troubles

Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

aconnell03 — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 15:23:02 GMT

I just bought the WH-1000XM3 headphones and yesterday (first day wearing them) I start getting a loud rattling/crackling noise in the left ear while listening to music on the bus. Tried all different settings and followed reset steps shared by Ed on this chain, but nothing resolved it. Seems to be a hardware issue? I'm so frustrated! Found a thread on Reddit that suggests that tons of people have this issue, which is ridiculous - a number suggested slapping/whacking the left ear hard can resolve the rattle, but it seems absurd to have to do that to $300+ headphones. All 75 people in my Burning Man camp were going to buy these headphones, so at least I'm glad that two of us got them now and tested (the other person hasn't had this issue and loves his).

Re: WH-1000XM3 Cracking/popping noise

cjshort1 — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 13:40:01 GMT

Have you contacted Sony about this? What was their response?

I've just raised a ticket today so waqiting to hear back. It's unbelievable that a pair of £300+ headphones have such poor build quality!!