AirPods Pro 2 ANC got worse after 8A358 firmware update — anyone else?

After updating my AirPods Pro 2 to firmware 8A358, the ANC quality dropped a lot — it now lets in background chatter and fan noise that used to be completely blocked.

I’ve tried resetting, cleaning, and turning off Adaptive Audio, but no change.

Feels like ANC is only half as strong as before.

Anyone else noticing this after 8A358? Could this be a firmware bug or intentional tuning change?

Can anyone suggest any solution

AirPods Pro (2nd generation)

Posted on Oct 25, 2025 7:45 AM

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4 replies

Nov 5, 2025 2:46 PM in response to ayuushhh


The ANC on the AirPods pro 2 since firmware update 8A358 is absolutely terrible! It’s like Apple is purposefully making the ANC worse so that users are forced to upgrade. This does NOT seem to be a mistake. Apple is a trillion dollar company that applies rigorous testing to all its products and software. This isn’t a mistake. The marketing for the AirPods Pro 2 showed someone walking through traffic and taking the subway while listening to music. Well guess what, that isn’t the case anymore. I can barely wear them on the train without double checking whether ANC is on. The AirPods were capable of blocking all outside noise and that’s the reason I bought them. They were great until, well, this year (and yes this is after performing all their troubleshooting steps - cleaning, seal test, etc). Common Apple, please revert the ANC back to its normal level instead of forcing users to upgrade. I’d love to test a pair of AirPods with the original firmware to confirm my suspicions. 

AirPods Pro 2 ANC got worse after 8A358 firmware update — anyone else?

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