5 reasons your portable speaker could be sounding muffled, and how to fix it

Portable Bluetooth speakers are such a blessing, right? Think about it. Whether it is working in the study, or to cook dinner in the kitchen, or even on a hike on a Saturday morning with your friends, you can carry them, and your tunes around with you everywhere.

However, just as any other gadget in your arsenal, your portable Bluetooth speakers are also prone to developing the occasional niggles, which may hamper your listening experience. Especially if you happen to be an audiophile.

One such niggle happens to be your speaker suddenly beginning to sound a little muffled, for no apparent reason. It is annoying, to say the least. Well, to help with just that, we’ve put together this little list of five reasons this could be happening, and fixes for the same. Read on.

1. Dirt or debris accumulation in the speaker grille

Over time, dust or other bits of dirt and debris could accumulate in your speaker drivers, and block the same, which may cause the sound to be a bit muffled. This is more often than not, the most common reason for the same.

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In such a scenario, try cleaning your speaker with a soft brush, or maybe use a low-capacity vacuum cleaner to suck out all the dirt. Alternatively, if the debris doesn’t seem to be coming off, you could consider using a pair of tweezers as well. Be careful though. Ensure you don’t puncture any parts of the speaker grille, or worse, allow any water to enter the same.

2. Bluetooth interference

Interference from any Bluetooth devices connected to your phone, such as your earphones/headphones, or your smartwatch, or even any physical obstacles between your phone and Bluetooth speaker could cause the latter to sound a little muffled at times.

To avoid this, consider disconnecting any other such devices that may be connected to your smartphone, and also ensure that the latter is always in close proximity to your speaker. This helps ensure a strong, stable connection, and crisp and clear audio quality.

3. Low battery or power issues

Sometimes, muffled sounds could be caused simply because your speaker is low on juice. Low battery may often cause disruptions to the power supply of the speaker, which could occasionally hamper the sound output as well.

In such cases, all you have to do is charge up your speaker, and crank up your favourite tunes again! Alternatively, if this doesn’t fix the issue either, it may be time to consider changing your speakers’ batteries again, or perhaps, investing in a new speaker itself.

4. Incorrect equaliser settings

Sometimes, particular tracks or are optimised towards particular equaliser modes and settings. If the sound from your speaker sounds muffled, it could simply be a case of mismatched equaliser settings.

Try and tinker with the equaliser settings on your preferred music streaming app on your smartphone, and play around with different modes such as Rock, Pop Jazz, or even live to figure out which one suits your preferred genres of music best. This, more often than not, could help make all the difference!

5. Regular wear and tear/physical damage

Your Bluetooth speaker, akin to all your other devices, is prone to the usual wear and tear over time. This may of course, cause it to sound muffled at times. Moreover, should you happen to drop your speaker somewhere, or if something pierces the speaker grilled, or if the speaker is maybe subjected to an accidental spill/splash of water, this may cause it to sound muffled as well.

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In such scenarios unfortunately, you don’t have much of a choice but to consider changing your speaker. Fret not, though. Bluetooth speakers today, with a decent sound output large enough for spaces such as your living room, aren’t too heavy on the pocket. A few such options you can consider investing in are the Marshall Emberton II 20W portable Bluetooth speaker, or even the BoAt Stone Ignite 90W Bluetooth speaker.

Well, there you have it. With these quick and easy fixes, you can ensure you have an unhindered and uninterrupted auditory experience at all times!