Can't hear the caller, or they can't hear you: speaker and microphone

You can barely hear the caller, the sound crackles, or people keep saying "hello, I can't hear you". Half of these problems can be solved without a repair.

Can't hear the caller (earpiece)

1. Clean the grille above the screen with a soft dry toothbrush, no water or alcohol. Dust and skin oil collect there and make the sound quiet.
2. Check whether a screen protector or film covers the grille.
3. Try speakerphone: if it's fine, the problem is the earpiece.
4. Turn off Bluetooth: the phone may have connected to earbuds or a car.

Quiet or crackling main speaker

• The grille at the bottom is clogged with dust or sand (common after the beach).
• There was water: the sound gets muffled and raspy. See phone fell in water.
• The speaker is blown, from loud music at maximum or after a drop: it crackles at any volume.

People can't hear you (microphone)

1. Record a voice memo and play it back. Then record video with the front and rear cameras: iPhones have several microphones, and this shows which one has failed.
2. Clean the microphone holes at the bottom and near the camera with a soft brush, no needles.
3. Take off the case; it may have shifted and covered the mic.
4. Check permissions: Settings → Privacy → Microphone.

When you need a technician

• Cleaning didn't help.
• The sound went after a drop or water.
• The speaker crackles at any volume.
• None of the microphones work.

Usually it's a speaker, microphone or bottom cable replacement, a relatively inexpensive repair.

How we help

First we clean the grilles, which is sometimes enough. If not, the technician finds the cause and gives you the price before the repair: a phone inspection is free, and if board diagnostics are needed they cost 100 ₾, only if you decline the repair. More: speaker and microphone repair.

Read also

• Phone fell in water: what to do in the first 10 minutes (and why not rice)
• Phone dropped in the sea: why salt water is worse than fresh water
• IP68 water resistance: can you swim with your phone?
• Cracked glass but the screen works: can you replace just the glass?