Sony WH-1000XM3 - v4.1.1 firmware failure?

[GapsOfTheGod]

Having updated my 1000xm3's over the wekeend, there seems to be an introduction of hiss and a background noise of what sounds like distant traffic (even though I can hear nothing at all without the headphones on) when using Active Noise Cancellation, which was previously stellar. The potency of the noise cancelling is noticeably weaker since updating (I'd estimate around 40% less). Familiar auditory environments which were previously rendered almost entirely silent are now notedly audible. I've checked that the noise cancelling slider is left-most, and indeed it is.

I'm also disappointed to find I can't ask Alexa to play music from Spotify, and I press the button and just say "Play Metallica", it responds with "Shuffling music by Metallica on Amazon Music", yet nothing plays at all.

This update is very much a downgrade as it stands.

[Ninyu4]

@bmgoau then how come that some users do not have any issues with the firmware 4.1.1 and others do? 

[bmgoau]

@Ninyu4Combination of 1. Listening conditions/Background Noise Levels/Noise frequencies 2. Listening methodologies 3. Ear sensitivity.

Also, it's not like ANC has stopped working completely, its just degraded.

Hundreds of users are having this issue, and over a hundred have signed a petition in the last week.

[GapsOfTheGod]

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@Lasse_K wrote:

Hi!

I might have a solution!

So I went back to the store to return the headphones. The seller agreed with me that the noise cancelling was off. As I was about to return them we actually found a solution that worked!

Step 1. Turn the headphones off

Step 2. Press the power button and ambient button to at the same time until the headphones are reset to factory default.

Step 3. Go to your Bluetooth settings and forget the headphones.

Step 4. Uninstall the app on your phone.

Step 5. Turn on the headphone and pair it with the phones.

Step 6. Download the app on your phone and connect to the phone.

Now I know we all tried this so far but here is where I think might fix the glitch or at least it solved my problem.

Step 7.  Make sure your button is set for NC/AMBIENT.

Step 8. Instead of using the app on the phone - use the _button_ to cycle through the different modes. 

I'm pretty certain this did the trick for me. It is almost as if the phone was stuck on some lower setting and the app could'nt override it but the button could.

Now I'm not sure If this glitch is realted only to my device or if it might be a solution for others but I guess it might be worth posting it anyway as it may help someone else.

Good luck!

Regards.

L

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I'm glad you've sorted your issue, however this makes no difference for me. Did it just remediate your NC, or the white noise / slight hissing also?

[simonweppe]

This also made no difference to me. As someone said before the Noise Cancelling is working, it just doesn't cancel the noise as much as before. The drone of a bus doesn't seem to be affected but all higher pitched noises are affected. 

I find the best way to know whether or not you have an issue is to open a packet of crisps with them on (on NC mode) and you'll see that you'll hear everything loud and clear. This wasn't the case before. 

The issue is with the software ON the headphones, not on the app. The latest firmware has somehow locked in 'focus on voice' which is why we're hearing all the high pitched noises. 

[Liersi]

To Ninyu4: I updated through Android, but you don't need everyone's info. Any one user in iOS with the issue would disprove the theory. Is there one?

To Lasse K: thanks for the idea man. Sadly, it didn't work for me either. Did exactly as you described.

Someone asked me a while ago under which specific conditions I could hear a difference. I just replicated this today in a store with a display model. The main sounds were the massive air con close by, an escalator and general store noise (voices). The display model sounded very different from my pair. Background noice sounded hollowed out more completely. There's still some of everything left, but more faint or distant. On my pair frequencies in the mid-high spectrum came through more prominently, sounded closer and richer in volume. I swapped quite a few times to make sure, and the difference was marked. Easily double-blind testable. This was also after the reset for Lasse K's idea, and running the optimizer in store, and checking every setting several times.

[Lasse_K]

If I close my eyes and listen and I can hear a very slight hiss / white noise but I've always thought it was due to the ANC-funktion. It's so faint I dont notice it if I dont listen for it.

I'm starting to draw the conclusion that this in reality is a mix of several different issues. Some users seem to be affected more than others. This might also explain why Sony (seems) to have a difficulty to adress this issue.

My main issue was some kind of glitch between how the app and headphone communicated which seems be solvble.

I'm on IOS by the way as someone wondered. Perhaps the next firmware will be the solution?

On a different note. Is there a way to maninpulate the optimization to increase ANC? For example not having the headphone on your head and then start the optimization for max effect?

Kind regards,

Lasse

[selkess]

I tried the fix also but no change for me 

sony is igrorant   maybe they did this just to have people move over to m4 when it/if arrives

[Ninyu4]

>The latest firmware has somehow locked in 'focus on voice' which is why we're hearing all the high pitched noises. 

Could it be that the problem is still the app? Perhaps having changed any of the settings of the app prior to performing the firmware update 4.1.1 messes up the functions? 

Another idea, perhaps uninstall the app first, reset the headphones, remove the pairing data, then install the app and perform the firmware update, turn off the headphones, reset the headphones again, uninstall the app again, remove the pairing data again, pair the headphones without the app [BT only], test the NC/Ambient button, thereafter install the app may solve the issue?

Anybody willing to try?

So Lasse_K is on iOS and has similar issues [white noise, hissing?!] but the NC is fully restored. Thus this would refute my speculation that the issue is Android exclusively. 

[Ninyu4]

> optimization to increase ANC? For example not having the headphone on your head and then start the optimization for max effect?

I think you need to use the NC optimizer in a noisy environment so as to increase the NC algorithm. 

I did it once in a quiet venue and it seemed to have lowered the NC. After a reset the NC was back to its original better NC level. 

[davidbfranks]

Sony is a joke, this firmware has been out 2 months now with no resolution to the issue!

Have they even officialy acknowledged it yet?