You make a call, but you can't be heard. Or they hear you, but with crackling, as if you're speaking from a tin can. Sometimes, the person on the other end sounds quiet, barely audible. These are all symptoms of a large group of iPhone speaker issues, and here at iClub, we see such cases every week.
The earpiece and the bottom speaker are different things
The first thing to understand is which speaker is causing the trouble. An iPhone has at least two: the earpiece at the top — the one you hold to your ear — and the loudspeaker at the bottom, for music and speakerphone. If you can't hear the person well during a regular call, the problem is likely with the top one. If there is crackling during music or video playback, it's the bottom unit. Diagnostics begin with this distinction.
Why sound crackles or disappears: common causes
Clogged speaker mesh
The most trivial but very common story. The meshes — especially the earpiece mesh at the top — get clogged with dust, pocket lint, and cosmetics. The sound starts struggling to get through this "filter," crackles, and loses volume. We had an iPhone 12 Pro brought in where the owner suspected a burnt-out speaker, but it turned out the mesh was completely clogged with face powder. Five minutes of cleaning, and everything worked.
Moisture ingress
Even in water-resistant models with IP67 and IP68 ratings, speakers remain a vulnerable spot. After swimming, being in the rain, or just from sweat in your pocket, the membrane takes in water. A characteristic symptom is gurgling or muffled sound immediately after getting wet. It usually goes away on its own in a few hours, but if the phone has been in salt water or submerged for a long time, the membrane can be permanently damaged.
Mechanical damage to the membrane
Dropped it — now it crackles. A classic. Upon impact, the speaker membrane can tear or shift. In this case, the crackling is constant and does not depend on the volume level. The bottom speaker suffers more often as it is closer to the corner of the housing, which takes the impact first.
Software glitch or settings
Sometimes sound disappears after an iOS update or a settings reset. Check: is mono audio mode on, is the ringer volume slider turned down to zero, or are there volume limits in "Screen Time"? It's funny, but every month we have phones brought in with a "broken" speaker that was simply turned off by settings.
Wear and tear of the flex cable or the speaker itself
Over time, contacts oxidize, and the flex cable can break — especially in older iPhones or those that have already been repaired. This is a hardware issue that cannot be solved without opening the device.
What you can try yourself
- Check volume and settings: "Do Not Disturb" mode, mono audio, and the ringer slider in "Sounds & Haptics."
- Carefully clean the speaker mesh with a soft toothbrush. Needles, pins, and sharp objects are a definite no-go.
- If the phone got wet, let it dry at room temperature for a few hours. No hair dryers, no rice. Just time.
- Restart your iPhone and update iOS to the latest version.
- Reset settings via "General → Transfer or Reset iPhone → Reset All Settings" — your data won't be deleted, but the sound sometimes returns.
When you definitely need a technician
An iPhone 13 was brought to us — the owner dropped it in the sink, and the speaker crackled for three days. We cleaned and dried it with professional equipment, but it didn't help. The earpiece membrane turned out to be damaged. The replacement took about 40 minutes and cost 1,200 rubles. The phone works like new.
You should see a specialist if:
- crackling or silence appeared after an impact or drop;
- the sound didn't return a few hours after getting wet;
- self-cleaning and settings adjustments didn't help;
- the problem is gradually getting worse for no apparent reason.
Don't delay. A crackling speaker isn't a catastrophe yet, but moisture and mechanical damage tend to progress. The sooner you get it checked, the cheaper it will be.
If none of the above helped, come to iClub at 35 Kommunisticheskaya St. Diagnostics are free, and in 15 minutes we will tell you exactly what the cause is and how much it costs to fix.