Learn how to turn on and use the Conversation Boost feature on your iPhone to better hear conversations in noisy environments when wearing AirPods Pro.
Conversation Boost is Apple’s marketing name for an ambient noise reduction feature for folks with hearing problems. As of now, this feature is restricted to a single AirPods model — AirPods Pro (1st and 2nd generations).
Apple says this accessibility feature can help people with mild hearing disability stay more connected in conversations. It boosts the voice of the person speaking in front of you, and you can adjust the amount of ambient noise cancellation. Of course, you don’t need to suffer from hearing problems to use Conversation Boost and enhance face-to-face interactions.
Turn on Conversation Boost
- Make sure you’re wearing your AirPods Pro and that they’re connected to your iPhone.
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone and go to Accessibility > Audio/Visual > Headphone Accommodations.
- Turn on Headphone Accommodations if it’s off. Then, scroll to the bottom of the screen and tap Transparency Mode.
- Enable Custom Transparency Mode from the top and then turn on Conversation Boost.
Add Conversation Boost button to Control Center
With the Conversation Boost feature enabled, you’d be wise to add its button to Control Center for fast access to the feature from anywhere in iOS, including the Lock Screen. Simply edit your iPhone Control Center and add the Headphone Accommodation or Hearing control to it. After that, you can tap the Headphone Accommodation/Hearing icon > Transparency Mode > Conversation Boost to boost face-to-face conversations whenever you want.
Use Conversation Boost
Conversation Boost should work automatically on your AirPods Pro after you turn it on. You can also adjust the amount of ambient noise reduction and other audio filters for Conversation Boost either through Control Center or via your accessibility settings.
Return to the Transparency Mode screen in iPhone Settings app or tap the Headphone Accommodation/Hearing button in Control Center and adjust these:
- Amplification: Amplify the audio picked by your AirPods Pro microphone
- Transparency Balance: Set to left (L), right (R), or leave in the middle for a neutral balance
- Tone: Set the overall audio feeling between Darker and Brighter
- Ambient Noise Reduction: Control the amount of noise cancelation
Keep in mind that changing the values for amplification, transparency balance, tone, and ambient noise reduction won’t just affect Conversation Boost but also the regular noise-canceling Transparency Mode feature on your AirPods Pro.
Conversation Boost vs. Live Listen: What’s the difference?
You could argue that Conversation Boost sounds an awful lot like Live Listen, another accessibility feature from Apple, and you’d be right. While at the core, both features make it easier to hear conversations in noisy situations, they’re not the same.
With Live Listen, your iPhone acts as a remote mic that sends audio wirelessly to your AirPods. Conversation Boost doesn’t relay audio picked up by the iPhone’s microphone to the AirPods in your ear. Instead, it takes advantage of the beam-forming microphones inside the earbuds to better focus on and amplify the voice of the person who’s talking in front of you.
On a related note: