Accessibility - hearing and speech
Mono Audio and Balance
Most people call this sending the same sound to both ears, and adjusting left and right.
Mono Audio plays the same signal in both channels, and the balance slider shifts volume towards one ear.
This setting is present on your iPhone.
- We have this path on file but have not yet confirmed it against an official source.
Where to find it - iOS 13 and later
- Settings
- Accessibility
- Audio & Visual
What it does
In stereo recordings, some content appears only in one channel. If you hear in one ear, you miss it. Mono Audio combines both channels so nothing is lost, and the balance slider compensates for uneven hearing.
What changes
When it is on
Both ears receive the same combined signal.
When it is off
True stereo separation returns.
Should you turn it on?
Good reasons to turn it on
- Nothing is lost when you only hear on one side.
- Useful when using a single earbud.
Good reasons to turn it off
- Music loses its stereo image.
- Spatial audio effects stop working properly.
Battery
No real change
Privacy
No real change
Performance
No real change
Cellular data
No real change
Storage
No real change
Out of the box: Off, with balance centred.
Questions people actually ask
- Why is sound only coming from one side?
- The balance slider under Accessibility, then Audio and Visual, has probably been moved. Centre it.
If it is not working
- If audio sounds like it is only on one side, check the balance slider has not been dragged.
- Headphone Accommodations offers finer tuning for supported headphones.