Audio Cuts out for Split Second while listening to music

[Terry]

Thank You for bringing this up. I bought a 2022 Bronco Sport Badlands a few days ago and have been having this problem. I have the B&O 10 speaker system. I have had two Escapes with the sync system and I know this is not normal. Exactly as you said, sometimes it skips often - maybe 2 times per song, and some days it only skips once in a while. It happens weather I am playing my music on my Iphone or streaming apple music.

On a good note, I found this forum because of the problem.

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[BADLANDSBEAT]

One more important thing I came across is that the cord you are using will make a difference. I had a Samsung S20 ultra & recently traded it in for the new 22 Ultra it came with a new cord in which i did not use for a few weeks. When I used the new cord that the new phone came with it sounded so much better , I mean a big difference, if you talk to any audiophile they will mention that you have to plug in to get true lossless codec, I am running Tidal Master & Hi-fi tracks & they sound Excellent on the B&O system.

 

[21Broncosaurus]

Update: Master Reset fixed Bluetooth cutting out and phone disconnecting for about a week or so but now it’s back.. it doesn’t do it as often as before though.

 

[Ford Motor Company]

Update: Master Reset fixed Bluetooth cutting out and phone disconnecting for about a week or so but now it’s back.. it doesn’t do it as often as before though.

Hello! Send us a private message with your VIN and the name and location of your local Ford dealer. I’d be happy to see what I can do to assist with this audio concern on your Bronco. Thanks!

 

[Bron Swanson]

My 2022 Big Bend (Jan 2022 build) does this as well.

I use Android Auto via a USB-C to USB-A cord that I bought brand new so that it was very short (I keep my phone in that little cubby under the radio). I plug it in to the USB-A port that is under the cubby. As I am typing this, it occurs to me that I haven't tried a USB-C to USB-C connection yet, though I would be surprised if that is the culprit, as others report it happens to them wirelessly.

In any case, as others have reported, it happens randomly. Sometimes I get it once a drive, sometimes four times. Today I got it within five seconds of my radio being on, but I didn't receive it again after that.

Most of the time I am listening to Spotify, though when I got it today I was listening to a podcast app (so no insane volume spikes).

I believe it was this site where I saw someone post about the idea that maybe it is related to cell tower signal switching when driving from one area to another. Obviously I don't know where various towers begin or end, but it is an interesting thought. When I got the issue today, I was still in the bay where I park. That bay is right on the edge of the apartment Wi-fi, so it is possible that my phone was switching from Wi-fi to cell signal when it happened.

Based on what others have posted here, this seems like it could be a "do this, then this, and if this, then this, but it might come back again randomly" situation. My last vehicle had its own radio issues, and I don't want to go down the rabbit hole of resetting things if I can help it (especially considering how much time it took to get my new phone working with Android Auto).

Assuming it doesn't get worse, for me it isn't enough of a headache to worry about. One of the benefits of coming from a vehicle that had a busted radio and a dash that buzzed like a hive of angry bees is that I have much more patience for smaller issues on a new vehicle .

 

[Meanderthal]

I do believe that when you are streaming audio (music or podcast or otherwise) that your phone will buffer a certain amount of data to carry through usual interruptions, like the passing from one cell tower to another. If you happen to drive through any tunnels, you will notice that the audio will continue for some distance into the tunnel and takes a few seconds to come back once you are out of the tunnel. Some tunnels you can make a game of it and try to get through the tunnel before the audio cuts out.

Also, some have noted here that it also happens when listening to AM/FM (does anyone listen to AM any more?), so it's not just about streaming and cell service. Also someone who listens to stuff from a thumb drive, so no possibility of it being broadcast/signal related.

 

[Gartallica]

My 2022 Big Bend (Jan 2022 build) does this as well.

I use Android Auto via a USB-C to USB-A cord that I bought brand new so that it was very short (I keep my phone in that little cubby under the radio). I plug it in to the USB-A port that is under the cubby. As I am typing this, it occurs to me that I haven't tried a USB-C to USB-C connection yet, though I would be surprised if that is the culprit, as others report it happens to them wirelessly.

In any case, as others have reported, it happens randomly. Sometimes I get it once a drive, sometimes four times. Today I got it within five seconds of my radio being on, but I didn't receive it again after that.

Most of the time I am listening to Spotify, though when I got it today I was listening to a podcast app (so no insane volume spikes).

I believe it was this site where I saw someone post about the idea that maybe it is related to cell tower signal switching when driving from one area to another. Obviously I don't know where various towers begin or end, but it is an interesting thought. When I got the issue today, I was still in the bay where I park. That bay is right on the edge of the apartment Wi-fi, so it is possible that my phone was switching from Wi-fi to cell signal when it happened.

Based on what others have posted here, this seems like it could be a "do this, then this, and if this, then this, but it might come back again randomly" situation. My last vehicle had its own radio issues, and I don't want to go down the rabbit hole of resetting things if I can help it (especially considering how much time it took to get my new phone working with Android Auto).

Assuming it doesn't get worse, for me it isn't enough of a headache to worry about. One of the benefits of coming from a vehicle that had a busted radio and a dash that buzzed like a hive of angry bees is that I have much more patience for smaller issues on a new vehicle .

I brought up the towers and still think it's the culprit. I also notice it at times near emergency vehicles, toll stations, etc. I drove 130 miles today and it "skipped" my audio on both Amazon Music and Pandora. Annoying, but oddly nostalgic from the CD-player-through-cassette-deck days.

 

[Flash]

Mine doesn't do this at all.

 

[Bron Swanson]

I brought up the towers and still think it's the culprit. I also notice it at times near emergency vehicles, toll stations, etc. I drove 130 miles today and it "skipped" my audio on both Amazon Music and Pandora. Annoying, but oddly nostalgic from the CD-player-through-cassette-deck days.

I have done a bit of experimenting since my last post, as I now treat this as a puzzle to be solved.

- Turned off Wireless in the BS, no change
- Turned off silent notifications in AA, no change
- Turned off Bluetooth in the BS, no change
- Turned off various settings (one at a time) in AA, no change
- Went through notification histories on my phone to make sure no phantom notifications were coming through, no change

With the above said, I have been trying to make mental notes whenever a skip happens. So far, it has happened at slow speeds, fast speeds, on flat ground, and on hills. Weather doesn't seem to affect it, nor does the time of day. Likewise, it doesn't seem to matter if I am in a crowded part of town, or a fairly open area (in a city sense).

The more I try to figure out the issue, the more I lean toward power lines and/or cell signals. I don't know how in the world those would matter when people get the issue from every source including USB drives and FM radio. Yet, the vast majority of the time I notice it happens near a lot of power lines, or at my bay when I am pulling in at home. That bay not only is right where the Wi-fi border is, but there are also power lines about 20 feet above it.

In terms of "is this just a coincidence?", it has happened three times pulling into the bay in the last two weeks (one of which was while I was on a call), and twice pulling out.

Likewise, twice in the last week it happened within 500 feet of the same spot on my normal drive home. One of these times was on a hill, while the other was at the bottom of the same hill.

Even when it happens randomly in a new area, it normally seems to happen when I am near power lines in particular.

Earlier I was watching a video earlier called "7 Things I Would Change About The Ford Bronco", and the guy in the video had a segment about data versus charging ports in the full-size Bronco. He mentioned how he uses CarPlay, and his audio sometimes skips around like a scratched record. At around the 9:17 mark, he says something like "it has been told to me in the comments on previous videos that it is some cell signal strength issue, but that just doesn't make sense to me..."

Duder has a lot of videos, so I couldn't find the comments he was referring to. Still though, it is interesting to hear a full-size Bronco driver mention something wonky in this regard.

If it isn't power line or cell signal related, the only other seemingly recurring factor I can find is that it has happened a few times right around when the Auto Start/Stop has come on or gone off (though it has also happened when I have Auto Start/Stop disabled).

 

[Mark S.]

If it isn't power line or cell signal related, the only other seemingly recurring factor I can find is that it has happened a few times right around when the Auto Start/Stop has come on or gone off (though it has also happened when I have Auto Start/Stop disabled).

You do not seem to have considered aliens.

Seriously, it appears you are doing all the right things to track down the cause. I think if you continue to monitor and document the incidents you will eventually figure it out. I applaud this kind of detective work!

 

[Bron Swanson]

You do not seem to have considered aliens.

Seriously, it appears you are doing all the right things to track down the cause. I think if you continue to monitor and document the incidents you will eventually figure it out. I applaud this kind of detective work!

Indeed! Aliens are as good a guess as any at this point

Another odd thing happened today, and I am curious if it is related...

A few times before when I was on a call while driving, it sounded like the call volume was softer than it should have been. Then, seemingly for no reason, the call volume would increase and stay at a higher level. I have checked every setting I can think of on my phone, on the BS, etc., and I can't see where any sort of volume limiting or auto adjustment is turned on. (I know for a fact the speed to volume BS setting is turned off).

With that said, while driving home earlier I was on a call and the same thing happened. However, this time, I got a sort of static "pop" before the volume raised. About 15 seconds later, the volume was low again, and then I heard another "pop" before the volume went up and stayed up. Not a blown speaker pop, more just like an electrical spike maybe?

(Random note: For the music dropping I don't get any "pops"...I just have a brief moment of the audio going out.)

If this were some sort of electrical issue, would it make sense for the volume to increase after the pop? I would think it would be the opposite if the issue is some sort of overage / power safety thing.

Beyond all of that, right after one of the pops, the person I was speaking with said "Hello? Hello?". I replied that I was still there, and he said "Weird, I heard a dial tone for a second like the call had dropped". (Are dial tones even a thing on cell calls? )

This is all very weird

 

[Meagan1]

Hi everyone, I was wondering if anyone had this issue that I am facing now. Whenever I listen to music through my radio, FM, Sirus XM, Android Auto, Bluetooth, Etc, the audio will intermittently cut out for a split second. There is no regular period to it happening, sometimes it happens every 5 minutes, other times 20 minutes, other times not at all throughout the entire ride. I have some footage from my dashcam which records audio of when it happens. It happens at about 3 seconds in and about 8 seconds in. I took it to the dealership and they said that they were going to order a new APIM module for it. I hope that fixes the issue! It is super annoying to have the audio cut out randomly while jamming out. Please reach out if you have had similar issues to this, I am curious if I am the only one.

Did you ever find out what was wrong?

 

[BroncoNomad]

Drove ~24+ hours past few week.
2022 Bronco Sport Badlands, Fully loaded (B&O audio etc)

Audio skips like a 90's cd player - sometimes couple times per song.
No bluetooth, 100% Carplay, 100% apple music app. Older iPhone 8.
Appears to be vehicle specific, havent had this issue in other cars w/ carplay yet.

Don't have time to dig into this but my two cents in the pile might be a codec or high bitrate issue. I'm testing with Apple Music, with quality settings set to Lossless or high-res lossless - I can't say for sure but some of my lower quality content seems to be less impacted.

 

[Petroph]

I took delivery of my BL just a few days ago and noticed the skipping after I registered the vehicle on Ford Pass this morning. May not be the culprit. But noticed it today after the registration, didn't think I had this same issue playing same songs for the past few days before registration. Mainly listen to Spotify via Bluetooth. Havnt listened to FM radio to see if the issue is bluetooth.

 

[missOutsyder]

Hi everyone, I was wondering if anyone had this issue that I am facing now. Whenever I listen to music through my radio, FM, Sirus XM, Android Auto, Bluetooth, Etc, the audio will intermittently cut out for a split second. There is no regular period to it happening, sometimes it happens every 5 minutes, other times 20 minutes, other times not at all throughout the entire ride. I have some footage from my dashcam which records audio of when it happens. It happens at about 3 seconds in and about 8 seconds in. I took it to the dealership and they said that they were going to order a new APIM module for it. I hope that fixes the issue! It is super annoying to have the audio cut out randomly while jamming out. Please reach out if you have had similar issues to this, I am curious if I am the only one.

I literally picked up my new BS OBx today and thought that this happened on two songs I played from my iTunes playlist through Bluetooth. Noticed it both times but didn’t think much of it. And now I come here and read this…

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