iPhone Audio Playback (NOT talking on phone) drops

TidBITS Talk
1

My wife likes to listen to a playback of one of her favorite movies at night to sleep (yes, I see what she is saying but can’t hear what she is showing me ….). It helps her sleep. She plays it through a pillow speaker which means it has to be at a high volume for her to hear it. She has never had a problem with the sound level, it has remained consistent. Suddenly the phone is reducing the volume significantly and the phone indicates an analysis of her volume use of the earplug exceeds safety levels. She says when she explains this to the phone it pays no attention to her lol.

She has reset the phone and there is no change in this behavior. It has happened through several updates of the iOS but she has been running iOS 26 since it first came out and there was no problem (she has iPhone 15 iOS 26.3.1, settings: Built-in Speaker/Limit Maximum Volume not turned on).

She is a technophobe so this is driving her crazy. I’ve have. no idea of what else she can do. Any suggestions will be GREATLY appreciated.

2

Since the sound is playing through the pillow speaker, the “Built-in speaker” setting probably isn’t relevant. My iPhone has Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Headphone Safety > Reduce Loud Audio, which might be the right place to look. (But my iPhone is running iOS 18 still, and I’m in the UK, and this setting might vary per region.) See Headphone notifications on your iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch - Apple Support

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3

The settings have not changed, they are as I listed them. The problem has just suddenly appeared. Nothing she has done is different, that is the problem. The movie is a download from our Apple TV subscription and has been on her phone for years. I appreciate your suggestions. I already went to Apple Support searching for info but there is nothing there to explain why it is acting this way. Thank you for responding.

4

I think once Apple tries to limit headphone volume, there’s not much to be done. So maybe the best thing would be to add an in-line amplifier to increase the volume? Something like this maybe: Neoteck Portable 3.5mm Headphone Amplifier Two-Stage Gain Switch, 16-300 Ohm, Aluminum Matte Surface.

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5

Disable the audio “safety” check altogether. I had to do that on my iPod Touch for similar reasons - it complains about my listening to music at maximum volume for extended periods of time, when I have that headphone jack connected to the line-in on my car stereo.

Here’s what I did on that iPod (iOS 15.8.6):

  • Settings → Sounds → Headphone Safety. Disable “Reduce Loud Sounds”.
  • Settings → Accessibility → Audio/Visual. Disable “Headphone Notifications”.
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6

I looked that up. Interesting. Perhaps that will be the answer. Thank you!

7

I think she tried that but I will double check it. Thank you.