You put your new NL25s in, walked outside and, nothing. Cars roaring, wind blowing, the neighbor's dog barking. ANC on or off, makes no difference. Transparency mode doesn't seem to change anything either. Now you're wondering if the earbuds are broken or if ANC was just marketing talk all along.
It's neither. But there are a couple of things to check before you write the earbuds off as defective.
Why doesn't ANC seem to work?
By far the most common cause is a bad seal in your ear canal. ANC works by having microphones listen to outside noise and the earbuds produce an inverted sound wave that cancels it out. If there's a gap between the tip and your ear, outside noise leaks straight in and no amount of clever electronics can save you. It's a bit like trying to hold water in a bucket with a hole in the bottom.
Second common cause: ANC isn't actually on, even though you think it is.
How to fix it
1. Try different tip sizes
This is the important part. The NL25 comes with both memory foam and silicone tips in multiple sizes. The right tip seals your ear canal properly, and the difference is huge.
- Try each size in turn. The right tip feels snug but not uncomfortably tight.
- Memory foam tips usually seal better than silicone. Compress the foam tip before inserting it and let it expand into place.
- Good test: put the earbuds in without playing any music. If outside noise already drops noticeably just from the tip's seal, you're on the right track.
2. Check ANC's current mode
A single press on the left bud cycles the mode: ANC → Transparency → Off. So it rotates between three modes. You'll hear a short tone or notice a change when you press. If you don't notice any difference between modes at all, the problem is probably the seal (see point 1).
3. Update the firmware
The NL25 doesn't get firmware updates, so no need to keep checking for that. If ANC still doesn't work after trying different tips and a reset, it's probably a hardware issue: get in touch.
4. Do a factory reset
- Put both earbuds in the case
- Leave the lid open
- Hold the case button down for 5 seconds
- Reconnect the earbuds to your phone
The reset clears the settings and fixes random software glitches.
5. Check the fit in your ear
Earbuds often need a slight twist after insertion to seat properly. Try rotating the bud gently into different positions.
What can you actually expect from ANC?
In the interest of honesty: earbud ANC doesn't create total silence. It's effective against steady, low-frequency noise like plane engines, bus motors, and AC hum. Sharp, individual sounds like speech or a car horn only get partially reduced. That's true for every pair of earbuds, including the expensive ones.
The difference between Transparency mode and Off is more subtle in earbuds than in over-ear headphones. It lets ambient sound through via the microphones, but if the seal is bad, it's hard to notice any difference, since the sound is leaking in either way.
If nothing helps
If you've tried every tip size, updated the firmware, done a reset, and ANC still isn't doing anything, drop us a line at info@valco.fi. Include your order number and a short description of the issue. Rarely, it's a microphone fault, and in that case our repair guys in Kajaani will sort it out.
But seriously, try the foam tips first. Nine times out of ten that's the whole fix.
