Noise cancellation

This tweak unlocks listening mode switching for Beats Studio Buds via Control Center on firmware prior to iOS 14.6

Apple device users responded positively to AirPods Pro and their tight integration with the iOS and iPadOS mobile operating systems. More specifically, users appreciated being able to switch listening modes directly from Control Center, which includes Noise Cancellation mode, Normal mode, and Transparency mode.

These features were once exclusive to the AirPods Pro, but fast-forward to today, and those same features can be enjoyed on AirPods Max and even certain Beats headphones like the Beats Studio Buds. One caveat, however, is that users must be running iOS or iPadOS 14.6 or newer to enjoy this functionality with the Beats Studio Buds.

Sonyfy lets jailbreakers toggle noise cancellation mode on certain Sony headphones via Control Center

Apple’s AirPods Pro sent a shockwave through the earbud industry when they became some of the first wireless earbuds to support active noise cancellation. Fast-forward to today, and even Apple’s newer AirPods Max over-ear headphones support this feature along with transparency.

But Apple isn’t the only brand pumping out earbuds and headphones with active noise cancellation and features similar to that of the AirPods Pro and AirPods Max. Sadly, the company limits iOS’ native controls to the first party audio consumption devices — requiring the use of third party apps to control third party accessories (eww).

Crystal brings volume-based active noise cancellation toggling to AirPods Pro for jailbreakers

AirPods Pro

Apple’s AirPods Pro quickly rose to become one of the market’s most popular active noise cancellation-equipped wireless earbuds. Out of the box, they isolate users’ ears from their surroundings via active noise cancellation; and in the event that you need to hear somebody, they support transparency mode, which allows a person’s voice to pass through the AirPods Pro’s microphone and into the user’s ear canal as audio.

One thing worth noting is that when using the AirPods Pro, the user must manually switch between active noise cancelation mode and transparency mode with a gesture when either feature is desired. With that in mind, iOS developer Litten devised a way to make this behavior more autonomous based on the user’s circumstances, and as such, a newly released and free jailbreak tweak called Crystal was born.