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How to improve noise canceling on Google's Pixel Buds Pro
Although my Pixel Buds Pro might not sound nearly as good as the Denon PerL Pro earbuds (which sound exponentially better than any earbuds I've tested to date), they do have a few tricks up their sleeve that make me keep coming back as my go-to for calls and when I want to listen to music and require a bit of Active Noise Canceling (aka ANC).
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The Pixel Buds Pro earbuds have probably the best noise canceling I've ever experienced. If you insert your buds and find it to be lacking, there's a simple reason for it. What's most likely happening is the seal between the earbud tips and your ear isn't quite right. But how do you know if that is the case?
Fortunately, Google has a trick up its sleeve to help you with that.
Let me show you how to fix that seal.
How to improve ANC on Pixel Buds Pro
What you'll need: To make this work, you'll need a pair of Pixel Buds Pro and a Pixel Phone. You might also need the extra silicon tips that were shipped with the earbuds, in case the selection you originally made wasn't correct for your ears. When I ran the test, I was surprised to find that the size of tips I typically choose wouldn't allow for a proper seal to get the most from the noise cancelation.
That's it. Let's run that test.
1. Insert your Pixel Buds Pro
The first thing to do is pull out your Pixel Buds Pro and insert them into your ears.
2. Open Settings
Next, open Settings by pulling down the Android Notification Shade twice and tapping the gear icon in the bottom right corner.
You can also access Settings from within the Android App Drawer.
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3. Open Connected Devices
Within the Settings page, tap Connected Devices.
If you haven't pulled your Pixel Buds from their case, do so now.
4. Open the Pixel Bud Pro Settings
On the resulting page, you should see your Pixel Buds Pro listing. Tap the associated gear icon to open the settings app for the device.
Your Pixel Buds Pro should have a unique name in the listing.
5. Open Sound Settings
Below Touch Controls, you should see a listing for Sound. Tap that entry.
You can also customize the Touch Controls for your Pixel Buds Pro earbuds.
6. Open the Eartip Seal Check
On this page, you should see Eartip Seal Check. Tap that entry to open the test page.
You've found the gateway to the test.
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7. Start the test
Make sure your earbuds are snug in your ears and tap Start to begin the test. The test will begin and play some pleasant music for about 20 seconds.
Tap start to begin the ear tip seal test.
8. Check your results
At the end, you want to see Your earbuds sound great! on the results page. If you see anything else, something is wrong. What can go wrong is that you've either not snugged the earbuds in tight enough or you have the wrong tips attached to the earbuds. I would suggest you first reseal the earbuds and run the test again. If it fails a second time, change the tips and rerun the test.
If your seal doesn't pass the test, you'll have to reseal and try again.
It shouldn't take much adjustment to get this test to pass. However, if you want to get the most out of the Pixel Buds Pro ANC, you'll want to make sure you pass this test, otherwise, the noise canceling won't be nearly as effective.
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And that's all there is to improving the active noise cancellation for your Pixel Buds Pro earbuds. You'll know when you get this right because the earbuds will not only be better at ANC but they will sound so much better. With a better seal, you'll get a better bass response, which will give whatever you're listening to more depth.