Why are podcast episodes muting at beginning of next episode?

[Greekish]

I have a problem for several weeks. I am listening to any podcast and when an episode finishes and moves on to the next episode it is playing, but appears muted. My temporary fix is to hit the 15 second fast forward button and then the sounds comes through. After this I move it back to the beginning to start the episode over.
It happens every time, every day without fail. I have only tried this on my phone, which includes plugging it into my car and the issue still exists.

[Billy-J]

Hey @Greekish, thanks for reaching out to the Community!

As this only happens with podcasts, can you let me know if this happens with a specific podcast(s), or it happens to all podcasts you listen to? Also, if you haven't, try a clean reinstall of the app following these steps. These steps are more thorough than the simple reinstall and can solve common issues.

And if you're still having trouble, can you let me know the make and model of the device you're experiencing this on?
Let me know how everything goes!

[ks95]

This has been happening for a few months on my Android device. Another workaround is to pre-download episodes - the problem only seems to occur when streaming the content.

[Eni]

Hey there @ks95, 

Thanks for getting in touch about this and welcome to the Community!

Could you let us know if the same happens while using a different network? You can create a hotspot on your phone and use that.

If so, would you mind performing a clean reinstall as @Billy-J suggested previously? If after the clean reinstall you're still experiencing this issue, would you mind asking a friend or a relative to log in to their account on your device to see if they can replicate this behavior?

We'll be on the lookout.

[ks95]

I'm able to consistently reproduce it while connected to my home wifi and its intermittent when connected to a mobile network. 

I performed the clean install and its still happening.

My husband has been able to reproduce this on his iPhone while connected to a mobile network

[OscarDC]

Hey @ks95,

Thank you for keeping in contact and for the info shared.

In order to look into this further with the relevant teams, let us know the following info:

- Your device info (make/model) and OS version

- Exact Spotify version

Also, and if possible; could you record a short video where we can take a better look? You can attach it to your next response by using the Insert Video option in the post editor. You can also upload it to YouTube or Google Drive and share the link with us (make sure the video has the permissions for anyone to see it).

We'll be on the lookout.

[ks95]

Spotify version: 8.9.46.426

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5

Model: SM-F731B

Android version: 14

I've tried to screen capture the issue but haven't been able to reproduce it with the screen on/actively using the app

[MihailY]

Hey @ks95,

Thanks for your reply.

Can you name a few podcasts where this happens? We're still trying to reproduce this on our end, but so far, we weren't able to. Also, are the episodes in a playlist or you're starting the playback from the podcast page? Are you connected to a Bluetooth device?

You've mentioned this happens when the app is not in focus. In this case, we'd suggest following the steps from this site to make sure that the app is not being restricted in any way.

Keep us posted.

[CatelinaMolan]

I am having this same issue on an iPhone SE (iOS 17.5.1, but it’s been happening for the past several updates). 

I don’t listen to a ton of different podcasts, so I don’t know how widespread it is, but specifically, it’s been a problem very consistently when listening to Distractible, but NOT when listening to Smosh Reads Reddit Stories.

[OscarDC]

Hey @CatelinaMolan,

Welcome to the Community and thank you for joining the conversation.

We couldn't replicate the behavior you're mentioning with the podcast "Distractible". So in this case, if you have already performed a clean reinstall (as suggested by @Billy-J) and it keeps happening, would you mind checking on a different device (using your own account) to see if the podcast gets muted as well? If you don't have another one available, you can borrow one from a friend or family member to test it out. 

If persistent, it would be great if you could have someone log in with their account on your iPhone (it could be the same friend or family member) to see if it makes any difference.

Lastly, include in your next response the Spotify version you're currently running to continue investigating the case.

We'll be on the lookout.

[GothamWitness]

I am also experiencing this problem. I listen to the podcast Distractible as well and it happens on every episode. I’ve had it going on for a couple of weeks now. Before I was just closing the app and reopening it but as stated above hitting the back 15 seconds button does work in making the sound come back on.

I normally listen on my iPhone at work with the app in the background. 

I did manage to screen record it happening. Sorry if it’s too long but I wanted to show the end of one episode as it goes into the next episode.

This is not happening when I listen on iPad or my PS5 so far it’s only happening on my phone.

Device: IPhone SE

IOS: 17.5.1

Spotify Version: 8.9.48.455

Link to video in google drive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sa-T4WN5B3Jx13VnOfYwbAHlQ3ne239H/view?usp=drivesdk

[OscarDC]

Hey @GothamWitness,

Welcome to the Community and thank you for joining the conversation.

We appreciate all the info you've included in your post. Just to make sure we've covered all the basics, could you check if this happens with other different shows or is it just with "Distractible"? If so, could you include the link to it?

Also, it would be great if you could have someone log in with their account on your iPhone, such as a friend or a family member, to see if it makes any difference? This will help us understand if it could be account-related.

We'll be on the lookout.

[chrispooley11]

Hi, has a solution to this issue been found?

I also have this problem, I am using an iPhone 13 on iOS 17, and an iPod Touch on iOS 15.

I have tried the following to fix it (based on the advice in this thread):-

• Uninstall and reinstall the app
• tried a different device (tried the iPod instead of the phone)
• tried my daughters account

I have also tried other podcasts, this happens when I listen to the History of the Crusades podcast. It doesn't happen on some other podcasts, Parcast Tales and Parcast Mythology (I am not listening to anything else at the moment). It also only happens of the crusades podcast when an ad plays, when there is no ad, the next episode plays fine.

The 15 second back fixes it, it just means I can not fall asleep listening to a podcast.

Not bothering with the screen grab or screen recording, as the podcast tracker (the line with how many seconds the podcast is running for) counts just fine, so the screen recording will have everything looking fine.

Thank you,

[Joannerose]

I'm having the same problem on all the podcasts I listen too, I have to close the app and reopen it, it's very annoying 

[Maria]

Hey there folks,

Thanks for joining the conversation! 

@chrispooley11 - kudos for doing further investigation about which podcasts and app actions that works for you. Would you mind letting us know what Spotify version you're currently running as well?

@Joannerose - just to confirm, have you tried the troubleshooting steps mentioned earlier in the thread? If so, it would be great if you could let us know the details mentioned by @OscarDC here.

We'll pass these details onto our tech folks, so that they can look into this too.

Cheers!