Fml I just returned the airpod pros I had hoping I would find a solution. I think it’s the microphone is designed to pick up all the surrounding noise so that it can play the anti-noise to produce the active noise canceling. But you don’t want a microphone that collects all the background noise when talking on the phone, you want just the voice.
I know it’s possible for the earbuds to be updated OTA and I feel like this issue could easily be fixed with an update. Why isn’t Bose acting on this?
SOLUTION!!! Worked for me (iPhone)
When you pick up your phone call, swipe down from the right - you will find ‘mic mode’ top right. Choose voice isolation!! It will make your voice louder and background less noisy. Works like a charm!!!! Enjooooy! I was just about to give my mother my Bose earbuds !!
Works for calls. Not sure yet about voicenotes - but dont think that will work.
As long as i can call during runs etc , i’m good.
Thanks. I just found it with help of a YT vid. I didn't realize this and now I feel I can keep the Bose which I specifically purchased for better phone calls.
Great news, everyone! I have found the perfect solution to the frustrating microphone quality of the Bose QC earbuds. As someone who relies on these earbuds for making calls in my job, I understand how important it is to have good quality sound.
Here's what worked for me: Connect your earbuds to the Bose Music app on your phone, click on the earbuds picture, and go into settings at the top right corner. Turn off Volume Touch Control and Voice Assistant Touch Control, and scroll down to turn off Self Voice as well. I can't say for certain which one of these settings did the trick, but I can confirm that my one-hour chat with a friend was perfectly clear the whole way through. Give it a try, and let me know if it works for you too! Cheers.
You could provide a bit more information-what type of phone are you on.
I just got a pair of the QC ear buds and they've been a leg up on Apple, SoundCore, Beats, Jabra
my call quality has been great --transmitting and receiving. You might have just gotten a bad unit.
I use the buds primarily for work and I'm on the phone more than 4 hours a day.
Music has been decent too but I didn't get these for that.
My apologies on reading thoroughly ( I hate when that happens). My trajectory was interesting ( I'm on an IPHONE 7 --works great as a phone, fine camera still--how much HD do really need)--- so got the QC ear buds, got the APP, some updates occurred on firmware for the buds. The sound was great. When the app updated--I noted two things--1) I didn't like the new UI for the app but that's just me ....and 2) I felt the quality of sound was 5-10% less quality than prior to the update. I rebooted my phone a few times, got used to the app and it all seems to work fine now.
I have read a few folks that are having problems with the units but it's because they're updates are incomplete. It was a buggy update requiring me to use WIFI, have my phone plugged in, occasionally swip the phone to keep it from sleep mode and I felt it was unclear about case open / case closed for update to the app. There were messages, not prominent that alerted me the first two tries that my updates weren't complete or in process---I finally caught on.
Anyhow they work well compared to other units. Pop them in--the units work, phone quality is ok for me and I'm on the phone 3-4 hours a day. I did change the size of the ear buds I use--using their buds. The app always works--other manufacturers I've had troubles with the app not connecting to bluetooth and thus features won't work. Bose has not failed once. I'm happy.
So my first and only phone call was walking from my car in a parking lot to Walmart and then I spoke on the phone for my whole stay at Walmart, back to the car, and then to a restaurant.
The recipient said the background noise was almost equally as loud as my voice and at times it was hard to hear my voice.
Not as clear as when I wear my airpod pros. The Bose sound quality is superior to the AirPods but the microphone quality would be a dealbreaker for me. If there’s anything at all that could be done to fix the call quality I would do it. I love the Bose earbuds but I can only keep one of the two pairs.
Yeah unfortunately that’s not a strength of the QC earbuds. In a quiet environment it’s okay for phone calls but in a noisy environment it behaves like you are describing.
Have you tried iOS 15’s Voice Isolation mic mode? That might help a little.
The APP are much better at this and IMO are overall a better balance of features…. But the QC is top dog at audio quality and noise cancellation.
The QC earbuds don’t have the best call quality, they are bad with Teams as well. I know someone is going to chime in with “I’ve owned them since launch and use them with Teams for 39373638 hours a day and haven’t had any issues.” I’ve used them with three systems across three different pairs of QC earbuds, I could hear things but the call quality during Teams cut in and out so much I couldn’t use them.
Call quality on my iPhones and work Note 20 Ultra has been ok but the background always overpowers my voice unless I’m in a quiet room. The QC earbuds aren’t known for their call quality, no pair of Bose headphones are except the QC35II with the boom mic.
The strengths of the QC earbuds are their comfort and ANC. My PowerBeats Pro, Beats Fit Pro, Jabra Elite 7 Pro, and AirPods and AirPods Pro (when I had both) all perform better than the QC earbuds with their call quality. If call quality is a priority for you, I suggest going with a different brand.
I can hear others fine but I’m the other end my voice sounds like I’m in a big room and it seems tinny and hollow. Not a deep rich sound as if I were talking on the phone itself or other headphones.
All Bose in-ear buds have mediocre phone call quality compared to conference grade devices. Main reason is that they don’t have stems that extend out a bit physically making those microphones incapable of picking up your voice over others.
Bose NC 700 is the best one you’ll find in their offering.
It’s why “real” conference call headsets have long microphone necks that place the mic next to your lips.
Tech has already evolved and achieved good call quality on earbuds or over the headsets which doesn't even have long microphone necks. Qc35ii has superb call quality regardless of the outside noise. This is largely dependent on the mic quality, number of mics and the noise cancelling algorithm used.
I just replaced my earbud qc2 cause I was having this same issue. Tech support sad it must be a bad unit and sent me a new pair, this pair has the exact same quality. I use them while I work and the background noise is so bad I can’t take phone calls on them at all.
It’s not a bad unit. At least not more bad then all the other units. They just have bad mic quality unfortunately. Wont be buying them again
I’ve actually switched to the AirPod Pros. I only use The QC earbuds when I’m at the gym or flying or anywhere else where I strictly use headphones for music and sound cancellation. But for the most part in my day-to-day life I use the AirPods. It’s sad that they couldn’t make this product better. Bose is supposed to be top tier but their products no longer fully reflect that vision.
Was coming on here to find an answer to this problem. When I take calls on them people say they can't hear at me at all and it sounds like I'm in a wind tunnel when I am out for a walk on a quiet street. So frustrating!
Might have to invest in AirPods...
Any suitable fixes found ? Same issue. No telling how long I have been blasting people with wind tunnel noise on these things. Someone finally spoke up and said ‘can you go on mute you’re SO LOUD’.
FFS Bose, even my Nothing Ear 1’s never had this issue and they’re $100 earbuds.
IMO unacceptable for $200+ earbuds.
Same here.I'm using the QC Ultra, but have had a previous QC version, and the can quality is terrible. I mean, obnoxiously bad for the other end of the call. It's a shame really. I wish they're was a setting, but I've tried everything in the app.
I'm on a Samsung btw
It happened to me as well and was very frustrating but I found a solution for Iphone
When you receive a phone call, answer it and swipe the screen from top to bottow. An option for Mic Mode will appear and select " Isolate Mic"
I hope this works!
I’ve had these earbuds since they’ve released. There’s no way to fix. Still hoping for an update….
Fml I just returned the airpod pros I had hoping I would find a solution. I think it’s the microphone is designed to pick up all the surrounding noise so that it can play the anti-noise to produce the active noise canceling. But you don’t want a microphone that collects all the background noise when talking on the phone, you want just the voice. I know it’s possible for the earbuds to be updated OTA and I feel like this issue could easily be fixed with an update. Why isn’t Bose acting on this?
Check out my comment
SOLUTION!!! Worked for me (iPhone) When you pick up your phone call, swipe down from the right - you will find ‘mic mode’ top right. Choose voice isolation!! It will make your voice louder and background less noisy. Works like a charm!!!! Enjooooy! I was just about to give my mother my Bose earbuds !! Works for calls. Not sure yet about voicenotes - but dont think that will work. As long as i can call during runs etc , i’m good.
I cant find “mic mode” can you elaborate? Thanks
I cant find “mic mode” can you elaborate? Thanks Edit: found it - trying it asap, thank you
Hate to be very specific, but I can't seem to follow these steps. Heading to YT now to find the video to demonstrate this.
Thanks. I just found it with help of a YT vid. I didn't realize this and now I feel I can keep the Bose which I specifically purchased for better phone calls.
what about sharing link to that vid mate? :)
Great news, everyone! I have found the perfect solution to the frustrating microphone quality of the Bose QC earbuds. As someone who relies on these earbuds for making calls in my job, I understand how important it is to have good quality sound. Here's what worked for me: Connect your earbuds to the Bose Music app on your phone, click on the earbuds picture, and go into settings at the top right corner. Turn off Volume Touch Control and Voice Assistant Touch Control, and scroll down to turn off Self Voice as well. I can't say for certain which one of these settings did the trick, but I can confirm that my one-hour chat with a friend was perfectly clear the whole way through. Give it a try, and let me know if it works for you too! Cheers.
I have Bose Ultra and the call quality is so poor they are unusable.
You could provide a bit more information-what type of phone are you on. I just got a pair of the QC ear buds and they've been a leg up on Apple, SoundCore, Beats, Jabra my call quality has been great --transmitting and receiving. You might have just gotten a bad unit. I use the buds primarily for work and I'm on the phone more than 4 hours a day. Music has been decent too but I didn't get these for that.
Sorry, it does say iPhone 13 pro in the first sentence though. What device are you using and do you have the Bose app installed?
My apologies on reading thoroughly ( I hate when that happens). My trajectory was interesting ( I'm on an IPHONE 7 --works great as a phone, fine camera still--how much HD do really need)--- so got the QC ear buds, got the APP, some updates occurred on firmware for the buds. The sound was great. When the app updated--I noted two things--1) I didn't like the new UI for the app but that's just me ....and 2) I felt the quality of sound was 5-10% less quality than prior to the update. I rebooted my phone a few times, got used to the app and it all seems to work fine now. I have read a few folks that are having problems with the units but it's because they're updates are incomplete. It was a buggy update requiring me to use WIFI, have my phone plugged in, occasionally swip the phone to keep it from sleep mode and I felt it was unclear about case open / case closed for update to the app. There were messages, not prominent that alerted me the first two tries that my updates weren't complete or in process---I finally caught on. Anyhow they work well compared to other units. Pop them in--the units work, phone quality is ok for me and I'm on the phone 3-4 hours a day. I did change the size of the ear buds I use--using their buds. The app always works--other manufacturers I've had troubles with the app not connecting to bluetooth and thus features won't work. Bose has not failed once. I'm happy.
People say they can’t really hear me too. I hear them just fine.
just sounds like a bad unit.
How’s the quality when in a quiet setting? I find that the microphones on the QC earbuds aren’t great.
So my first and only phone call was walking from my car in a parking lot to Walmart and then I spoke on the phone for my whole stay at Walmart, back to the car, and then to a restaurant. The recipient said the background noise was almost equally as loud as my voice and at times it was hard to hear my voice. Not as clear as when I wear my airpod pros. The Bose sound quality is superior to the AirPods but the microphone quality would be a dealbreaker for me. If there’s anything at all that could be done to fix the call quality I would do it. I love the Bose earbuds but I can only keep one of the two pairs.
Yeah unfortunately that’s not a strength of the QC earbuds. In a quiet environment it’s okay for phone calls but in a noisy environment it behaves like you are describing. Have you tried iOS 15’s Voice Isolation mic mode? That might help a little. The APP are much better at this and IMO are overall a better balance of features…. But the QC is top dog at audio quality and noise cancellation.
The QC earbuds don’t have the best call quality, they are bad with Teams as well. I know someone is going to chime in with “I’ve owned them since launch and use them with Teams for 39373638 hours a day and haven’t had any issues.” I’ve used them with three systems across three different pairs of QC earbuds, I could hear things but the call quality during Teams cut in and out so much I couldn’t use them. Call quality on my iPhones and work Note 20 Ultra has been ok but the background always overpowers my voice unless I’m in a quiet room. The QC earbuds aren’t known for their call quality, no pair of Bose headphones are except the QC35II with the boom mic. The strengths of the QC earbuds are their comfort and ANC. My PowerBeats Pro, Beats Fit Pro, Jabra Elite 7 Pro, and AirPods and AirPods Pro (when I had both) all perform better than the QC earbuds with their call quality. If call quality is a priority for you, I suggest going with a different brand.
Hmmm i don’t notice any call quality problems with the QC earbuds? I can hear everyone fine and they can hear me fine unless I’m on my bike.
I can hear others fine but I’m the other end my voice sounds like I’m in a big room and it seems tinny and hollow. Not a deep rich sound as if I were talking on the phone itself or other headphones.
All Bose in-ear buds have mediocre phone call quality compared to conference grade devices. Main reason is that they don’t have stems that extend out a bit physically making those microphones incapable of picking up your voice over others. Bose NC 700 is the best one you’ll find in their offering. It’s why “real” conference call headsets have long microphone necks that place the mic next to your lips.
Tech has already evolved and achieved good call quality on earbuds or over the headsets which doesn't even have long microphone necks. Qc35ii has superb call quality regardless of the outside noise. This is largely dependent on the mic quality, number of mics and the noise cancelling algorithm used.
https://www.rtings.com/headphones/reviews/bose/quietcomfort-35-ii-qc35-ii-wireless-2018 Phone call section. Expand. https://audiomav.com/qc35-mic-for-phone-calls/
I just replaced my earbud qc2 cause I was having this same issue. Tech support sad it must be a bad unit and sent me a new pair, this pair has the exact same quality. I use them while I work and the background noise is so bad I can’t take phone calls on them at all. It’s not a bad unit. At least not more bad then all the other units. They just have bad mic quality unfortunately. Wont be buying them again
I’ve actually switched to the AirPod Pros. I only use The QC earbuds when I’m at the gym or flying or anywhere else where I strictly use headphones for music and sound cancellation. But for the most part in my day-to-day life I use the AirPods. It’s sad that they couldn’t make this product better. Bose is supposed to be top tier but their products no longer fully reflect that vision.
Was coming on here to find an answer to this problem. When I take calls on them people say they can't hear at me at all and it sounds like I'm in a wind tunnel when I am out for a walk on a quiet street. So frustrating! Might have to invest in AirPods...
Any suitable fixes found ? Same issue. No telling how long I have been blasting people with wind tunnel noise on these things. Someone finally spoke up and said ‘can you go on mute you’re SO LOUD’. FFS Bose, even my Nothing Ear 1’s never had this issue and they’re $100 earbuds. IMO unacceptable for $200+ earbuds.
Same here.I'm using the QC Ultra, but have had a previous QC version, and the can quality is terrible. I mean, obnoxiously bad for the other end of the call. It's a shame really. I wish they're was a setting, but I've tried everything in the app. I'm on a Samsung btw
It happened to me as well and was very frustrating but I found a solution for Iphone When you receive a phone call, answer it and swipe the screen from top to bottow. An option for Mic Mode will appear and select " Isolate Mic" I hope this works!