Stuttering and distorted sound after a few seconds with Apple Watch 9 and AirPods Pro 2

Hi!

I have an Ultra 2 and i'm desperate with this...

In my case the music stops after 3 o 4 seconds:i can control the music(pause,forward...) but there's no sound.

I have Airpods and Iphne 15 Pro max.

It's curious that when i purchased the Ultra in November i can hear music without problems...

It's very disgusting because i use the watch to go the gym without the Iphone and now i'm using a Xiaomi headphones because Airpods are useless :(

Same issue here. Restarting apple watch fixed it. Hoping apple can address this in future software updates.

Hi! I had the exact same issue that you had. After talking to Apple Support and ruling out many different reasons for the issue, they suggested forgetting the watch and setting it up again. To my surprise, this worked for me! I first tried setting it up freshly, but later figured out that it still worked after resetting it again and restoring it from the backup. It now works just as intended and I’m so happy that there is a solution. I thought I’d share it here and hopefully this works for others having this issue.

What worked for me was resetting the watch (i.e. removing it and setting it up like it’s completely new). In my case, I could still restore it from backup so no settings are lost. I was thrilled that it worked for me, hopefully it does for you too! 🤞

Update

After experiencing some problems again after posting my previous replies, I think that I've now found a definite solution. After resetting my watch the first time, the media playback worked as intended for the first couple of days, before the same problem returned. I later tried to reset the watch again (and restoring from backup, like the first time), and the same scenario played out again. It initially worked well, before the problem returned after a few days. Both times, it worked for a couple of days before the issue returned. I'm not certain, but I think that connecting another Bluetooth speaker or pair of Bluetooth headphones seemed to reignite the issue regarding playback on the AirPods. Initially, I hadn't connected any other Bluetooth devices than the AirPods to my watch, but, both times, after I had connected my Bluetooth speaker, the problem returned. Maybe connecting another Bluetooth device to the watch can cause this issue?

The third time, I once again reset my watch, and this time set it up freshly (i.e. not restoring from backup, like the previous two times). Playback initially worked properly, and this time, I did not connect my speaker to the watch again. Since doing this about three to four weeks ago, the media playback from AW to AirPods has worked properly and I haven't experienced the issue anymore.

I'm not sure whether not connecting another Bluetooth device or setting the watch up freshly solved the problem, but I don't want to find out by testing. I'm not sure whether both measures were necessary, but I'm pleased that it's now working properly and I hope that it will continue to do so, and that this maybe can help others experiencing the same problem.

I had the exact same issue using my AirPods Pro 2nd Generation and my Apple Watch Series 9 while listening to the Audible app. After a few seconds, the audio would stutter so badly it was physically painful to listen. Rebooting my watch seemed to work, but having to reboot every day is a giant pain.

After reading all the replies here and elsewhere, I disconnected the watch from my Bose Ultra Quiet Comfort headphones (in the Bose app). That seems to have resolved the issue. Apparently, having the watch listed as an ongoing device in the Bose app causes the Bluetooth connection (from the AirPods, the watch, or the headphones I'm not sure, but they all use Bluetooth 5.3 so they should be compatible) to oscillate, causing the interference.

I would suggest that if you have any third party devices connected to the watch via bluetooth that you tell the watch to forget those devices to see if that helps.

I'm hoping either Apple or Bose (probably Bose) will soon have a fix to resolve any further communication issues between all three devices.

I do have the same issue with Apple Watch 9 cellular and BeatsX.

Strange things: While not looking at the watch screen, it does work more (or lets say less distortion), but when I do look at the watch face during running, the stuttering starts.

I can even hear the music speeding up, like it needs to catch up the missed timing. Unpairing etc. did not help at all.

Do you mean forget airpods in the Watch without forget in the iPhone?

Thanks a lot for the advice 😊

I experience the same problem with Apple Watch Ultra, AirPods Pro 2 and very often with Audible app on the watch

Rebooting the Apple Watch solves the problem every single time

Audible app with Watch Series 9 and AirPods Pro 2 here too. Audible is physically painful to listen to. Rebooting the watch works every time, but what a pain. I'm hoping for a real solution soon.

Have you sorted the issue I have the same issue with my Apple Watch 7 and AirPods