Sony headphones
Mac troubleshooter
Pick the problem that matches yours. You get the few checks that fix it most often, in the order to try them, and the guide with the rest.
Short answer
Choose the group that fits (connecting, sound, microphone and calls, or the app) and then the symptom closest to yours. Try the checks from the top; each one rules out a cause. If they don't help, the linked guide goes further.
What's going wrong?
Connecting and pairing
My Mac can't find the headphones
- Put them in pairing mode: power for about 7 seconds (MDR-1000X to WH-1000XM4), power for about 5 seconds (WH-1000XM5), or the Bluetooth button for about 5 seconds (WH-1000XM6, WH-1000XX).
- Turn off Bluetooth on your phone so it can't grab them first.
- Look under Nearby Devices in System Settings → Bluetooth and click Connect. The passkey, if asked, is 0000.
- Still nothing: restart the Mac, then reset the headphones.
I'm pairing them for the first time
- Turn the headphones on; new headphones go into pairing mode by themselves.
- Open System Settings → Bluetooth and click Connect next to them.
- Choose them under System Settings → Sound → Output if the sound doesn't switch.
They keep disconnecting
- Move closer to the Mac and away from USB 3 hubs and drives.
- Turn off Bluetooth on your phone for a while to see if it's taking them over.
- Check Automatic Power Off and the battery; the WH-1000XM4 and WH-1000XM5 also stop working while charging.
- Forget them in System Settings → Bluetooth and pair again.
They connect to my iPhone instead of the Mac
- Check whether your model can connect to two devices: the WH-1000XM4 and WH-1000XM5 need Connect to 2 devices simultaneously turned on; the MDR-1000X to WH-1000XM3 can't.
- Without two-device connections, disconnect them on the iPhone, then click them in Control Center → Bluetooth on the Mac.
- On newer models that report it, use Pin to this Mac in Open Sound Connect to keep playback on the Mac.
Sound
Connected, but no sound
- Select the headphones in Control Center → Sound or System Settings → Sound → Output.
- Check the output setting inside the app you're using, such as a video-call app.
- Pause playback on your phone or other computer.
- Switch the output to the Mac's speakers and back, or reconnect the headphones.
The sound stutters, skips or crackles
- Move closer and clear the line between you and the Mac.
- Move USB 3 devices away from the Mac and use 5 GHz Wi-Fi if you can.
- Set Bluetooth Connection Quality to Stable Connection in Open Sound Connect, if your model offers it (the headphones reconnect briefly).
- If it only happens in calls, it's the call mode: see the microphone group below.
It's too quiet
- Turn up the Mac's volume with the headphones selected as the output.
- Turn up the volume in the app and on the headphones.
- Check the Balance slider under System Settings → Sound → Output.
- Try a flatter equalizer setting; cuts make everything quieter.
I want LDAC or lossless on my Mac
- macOS plays Bluetooth audio over AAC or SBC; LDAC isn't among the codecs it supports.
- Bluetooth audio on a Mac isn't lossless.
- For the best wireless sound, keep the headphones in listening mode by using the Mac's microphone for calls.
Microphone and calls
People can't hear me
- Choose the headphones under System Settings → Sound → Input and check the input level moves when you talk.
- Choose the headphones as the microphone inside the call app too.
- Make sure the app is allowed under System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone.
- If you're using the 3.5 mm cable, the headphones' microphone isn't used; use the Mac's.
Audio turns muffled when a call starts
- This is Bluetooth's call mode: quality drops while the headset microphone is in use.
- To avoid it, choose the Mac's built-in microphone under System Settings → Sound → Input.
- After a call, quit apps using the headset microphone, then select the speakers and the headphones again in Control Center → Sound.
I want a good setup for meetings
- Decide which microphone to use: the headphones' for convenience, or the Mac's for better listening quality.
- Set the speaker and microphone in the meeting app, not only in System Settings.
- Use ambient sound or Speak-to-Chat (on models with it) to hear the room without taking the headphones off.
The app and controls
Music plays, but the app shows no headphones
- Turn on Open Sound Connect under System Settings → Privacy & Security → Bluetooth.
- Check the headphones say Connected in System Settings → Bluetooth.
- Choose Connect in the app (⌘K), or Try Again if it couldn't reach them.
- Quit any second copy of the app.
The app says Bluetooth Access Is Off
- Choose Open Privacy Settings in the app's window.
- Switch on Open Sound Connect in the Bluetooth list.
- Quit and reopen the app.
Music pauses by itself
- If it pauses when you take the headphones off, that's Pause When Taken Off (WH-1000XM4 and newer).
- If it pauses or drops when you talk, that's Speak-to-Chat; turn it off on the Voice page.
- If another device is connected, it may have started playing.
The headphones turn off by themselves
- Check Automatic Power Off on the Wearing page, under Wearing & Power.
- The WH-1000XM4, WH-1000XM5, WH-1000XM6 and WH-1000XX turn off after about 15 minutes of not being worn; the WH-1000XM5 also after about 15 minutes without a connection.
- Check the battery level.
How to use it
Each answer starts with the most likely cause and the quickest fix, and ends with the more involved steps. Most problems turn out to be one of a few things: the headphones connected to another device, the wrong sound output on the Mac, or the call mode that Bluetooth switches to when the microphone is in use.
The troubleshooter doesn't connect to or scan your headphones. It's a set of questions and answers that works for all seven supported models (the MDR-1000X and WH-1000XM2 to WH-1000XX) and, for the macOS steps, for most other Bluetooth headphones too.
Pairing problems and app problems are different
Your Mac's audio and Open Sound Connect's controls use separate connections. If you hear nothing, or the Mac can't find the headphones, start with Connecting and pairing or Sound. If music plays but the app doesn't show the headphones or a setting is missing, go to The app and controls: the fix is in Open Sound Connect or its Bluetooth access, not in the pairing. How headphone control works on a Mac explains the difference.
If nothing here matches
- Open the Activity page (⌘7) in Open Sound Connect. It lists what your headphones reported, every change the app sent and whether it was applied, and any error, such as a timeout.
- Choose Export… to save the log.
- Report the problem on GitHub with your model, your macOS version and the exported log, or look through the existing issues for the same symptom.
The support page lists the other ways to get help.
Common
questions
Does the troubleshooter work for Sony headphones the app doesn't support?
The macOS checks (pairing, sound output, microphone input) apply to most Bluetooth headphones. Steps that use Open Sound Connect apply only to the seven supported models.
Do I need Open Sound Connect to use these fixes?
No. Most checks use System Settings and the headphones' own buttons. The app adds a few, like the connection-quality setting and the Activity log.
Where to next
- Sony headphones not connecting to MacPairing mode, a competing device, a stale pairing, the Mac's Bluetooth and resetting each model, in order.
- Headphones connected but not detectedAudio works, but the app shows no headphones: permission, the control connection and what each screen means.
- Microphone not working on a MacFix a Sony headphone mic that doesn't work on a Mac: input, permissions, the meeting app and the cable.
Put your headphones
in the menu bar
macOS 15 or later · Apple silicon and Intel