Echo or robotic audio

If the caller sounds like a robot, or chops in and out, or you hear your own voice coming back, you're hitting one of a handful of repeat offenders: a Bluetooth conflict, a microphone too close to a speaker, a network problem, or a poorly-tuned audio device. This article works through them from most-common to least.

Quick checks (try these first)

If your headset is Bluetooth, confirm it's connected via its manufacturer USB dongle, not your laptop's built-in Bluetooth. We don't support audio issues that come from built-in Bluetooth. Switch to a dongle, a wired headset, or a DECT headset.
Pop the headset off and put it back on, making sure the microphone boom is pointing at your mouth, not your shoulder.
End the call, reopen Audio Settings, confirm the right devices are picked, and call back.

Robotic or chopping audio

This sounds like the caller dropping out every second or two, or sounding like a robot voice.

Most common cause: built-in PC Bluetooth. Your headset is paired to the laptop's built-in Bluetooth instead of (or as well as) the manufacturer dongle.

Plug the dongle in and pair the headset to it.
On Windows, check Bluetooth and other devices settings and remove the headset entry if it's listed by name. Keep the dongle entry.
On macOS, open System Settings → Bluetooth and disconnect the headset from built-in Bluetooth.
If you don't have a manufacturer dongle for your headset, switch to a wired or DECT alternative for the calls that matter. We don't troubleshoot beyond this step on built-in Bluetooth.

See Bluetooth headsets for the longer story.

Second most common cause: network. If your internet is slow or jittery, voice packets arrive late and Cradle has to fill in the gaps, which sounds robotic.

Switch from Wi-Fi to ethernet if you can.
If you're on Wi-Fi, move closer to the access point.
Close other apps that might be using bandwidth (video calls, large file uploads, streaming video).

You hear yourself echoing back

Echo means your voice is being picked up by the caller's microphone (from their speakers) and sent back to you.

If it's a one-off, it's their setup, not yours. If it happens with everyone you call, something on your side is leaking.

Use a proper headset rather than your laptop's built-in microphone and speakers. The microphone picks up the speakers when both are open at the same time.
If you must use speakers, turn the volume down. The quieter the speakers, the less the microphone picks up.
If the echo is short and machine-like (every word repeats once), check for an audio-routing app like Loopback or Krisp that might be sending output back to input.

Distortion or clipping

Distortion sounds like crunchy, overdriven audio, like a speaker pushed too loud.

In Jabra Direct, set Audio Protection (SafeTone) to Basic protection rather than the full default. The default is sensitive enough that it can clip louder voices.
Lower the microphone gain in your OS sound settings. The microphone may be amplifying you too much, which clips on the loud parts.
Lower the speaker volume in your headset.

Diagnose by platform

Windows

Most echo and robotic-audio tickets on Windows resolve when the customer moves off built-in Bluetooth onto a Jabra Link dongle, a cable, or a DECT headset.
Windows controls audio volume and per-app output device routing, not Cradle. The Volume Mixer (right-click the speaker icon in the taskbar) shows which output device each app is using, and lets you pin Cradle to a specific device. See Audio and headset issues on Windows.

macOS

AirPods produce echo and pickup more than wired headsets do, even when they sound fine to you.
Audio-routing apps (Loopback, Krisp, etc.) are a common echo source. See Audio issues on macOS.

Linux

PipeWire's small default buffer can cause robotic audio on busy systems. Open pavucontrol and check device routing. See Audio issues on Linux.

Still stuck?

If you've tried the steps above and audio is still wrong, send us a recording or a clear description.

Email help@cradle.io with your OS, headset model, and what the audio sounds like.
Cradle support hours are 8:30 am – 5:00 pm New Zealand time, Monday to Friday.