How do I use Spotify equalizer on Android?

ByJael Lawler

An equalizer allows you to adjust the sound levels of various frequency ranges to customize the listening experience. Using the Spotify equalizer can enhance your music by boosting bass, enhancing vocals, or adjusting highs. There are several reasons you may want to enable and adjust the Spotify equalizer on your Android device:

  • Boost bass for more impactful and fun listening
  • Attenuate bass to reduce muddiness or distortion on bass-heavy tracks
  • Enhance vocals and mid-range for clearer words and instruments
  • Reduce high frequencies like cymbals if they sound overly bright or harsh
  • Customize preset options like “Flat” for neutral sound or “Concert hall” for spaciousness
  • Tailor the sound based on your headphones, speakers or personal taste

Using the built-in equalizer can make a noticeable difference in Spotify’s audio quality. The ability to tweak the sound opens up more possibilities to get the most out of your music.

Check if Your Android Device Supports Equalizer

The first step is to check if your Android device has a built-in equalizer in the settings. Not all Android devices come with an integrated equalizer, so you’ll need to verify this first.

To check if your device has an equalizer, go to the Settings app and look for “Sound & vibration” or “Audio settings.” Tap into this menu.

Scroll down and look for an “Equalizer” option. If you see it, tap into it to open the equalizer settings. This confirms your Android device has a built-in equalizer you can customize.

If you don’t see the “Equalizer” option, your device likely doesn’t have an integrated equalizer. You’ll need to download a third-party equalizer app from the Google Play Store instead.

Some Android manufacturers that often include equalizers are Samsung, LG, Sony, HTC, and Huawei. However, it’s still worth double checking on your specific model.

You can also try searching your device model and “equalizer” to see if others report it having one before assuming it doesn’t.

Download Latest Spotify App

Before you can use the equalizer, you need to make sure you have updated to the latest version of the Spotify app for Android that supports this feature. Older versions may not include equalizer capabilities.

Go to the Google Play Store on your Android device and search for Spotify. If there is an Update option, tap it to download the latest version. If you already have the latest version, it will say Open instead.

According to Spotify’s support article Equalizer, you need at least version 8.6.18.XXX of the Spotify app to be able to use the built-in equalizer. This feature is supported on both Spotify Free and Spotify Premium accounts.

Once the app finishes updating, you can then access the equalizer feature within the Spotify app. Make sure to fully close out of the app and re-open it if you were already running Spotify before updating.

Open Spotify App and Enable Equalizer

Here are the steps to open the Spotify app and enable the equalizer option:

  1. Open the Spotify app on your Android device.
  2. Tap on the settings icon in the top right corner that looks like three horizontal lines or dots.
  3. Scroll down and tap on “Settings” in the menu.
  4. In the Settings menu, tap on “Music quality.”
  5. Under “Music quality settings,” toggle on the “Equalizer” option. This will enable Spotify’s built-in equalizer.

Once you have enabled the Equalizer option, you will be able to access and customize Spotify’s equalizer while playing songs. The equalizer allows you to adjust audio frequency levels to suit your preferences.

If you don’t see the Equalizer option under Music Quality settings, your Android device may not support Spotify’s built-in equalizer. You can try downloading a third-party equalizer app instead in that case.

Choose a Preset Equalizer Setting

Spotify comes with several preset equalizer settings that optimize the sound for different music genres. Here are some of the common presets:

Pop – Emphasizes treble and bass to bring out vocals and drums. Great for pop, dance, and electronic music. According to SoundGuys, pop is one of the best equalizer presets for Spotify.

Rock – Boosts mid and high frequencies. Ideal for rock, metal, and guitar-driven music.

Jazz – Reduces bass and highlights midrange for clear brass and vocals. Perfect for jazz and acoustic music.

Electronic – Boosts bass while maintaining clear vocals. Great for house, trance, techno, and synthesized music.

Piano – Slight bass reduction and mid boost to emphasize piano melodies and vocals.

Spoken Word – Optimizes speech by reducing music interference. Good for podcasts, audiobooks, and talk shows.

Trying out the presets is a quick way to get started with equalizing on Spotify. They provide a one-click option for common music types. However, creating a custom setting is best for fine-tuning the audio to your preferences.

Create a Custom Equalizer Setting

You can customize the equalizer in Spotify by adjusting the levels of different frequency bands. Here are the steps to create your own custom equalizer setting on Android:

  1. Open the Spotify app and tap on the “Settings” icon in the top right.
  2. Go to “Audio quality” and tap on “Equalizer”.
  3. Tap on “Create new”. This will bring up the custom equalizer with frequency sliders.
  4. Drag the sliders up or down to boost or reduce the levels of each frequency band. For example:
    • Drag the “32 Hz” and “64 Hz” sliders up to boost deep bass.
    • Reduce the “4 kHz” and “8 kHz” sliders slightly to soften sibilance.
    • Boost “16 kHz” to add crispness and clarity.
  5. You can tap on the “Presets” dropdown to compare your custom settings with other presets.
  6. Once you are happy with your equalizer settings, tap “Save” in the top right corner.

The key to a good custom equalizer is subtle adjustments and balancing across the frequency spectrum. Don’t boost too many highs or lows. It takes some experimentation to find the right equalizer for your music taste and listening setup. Save your custom preset so you can easily switch between it and other presets as needed.

Save Custom Equalizer Setting

Once you’ve customized the equalizer to your liking, you can save the settings for easy access later. Here’s how to save a custom equalizer setting on Spotify for Android:

  1. Open the Spotify app and tap on the settings icon in the top right.
  2. Go to Equalizer and tap on a preset option like “Flat”.
  3. Adjust the equalizer bands to create your desired sound profile.
  4. When finished, tap Save in the top right and give your equalizer setting a name.
  5. Tap Save to confirm. Your custom equalizer setting is now saved and can be accessed again later.

To apply your saved equalizer setting, simply go back to the Equalizer menu and select your custom setting from the list. You can create and save multiple custom equalizer presets this way on Spotify for Android.

Apply Equalizer to Specific Playlists or Songs

One useful feature of the Spotify equalizer on Android is the ability to apply your custom EQ settings to only certain playlists or tracks, rather than having it apply globally to all music played through the app. This allows you to tweak the sound profile for particular genres or moods.

To enable this granular control, open the Spotify app and tap on a playlist or album to start playback. Tap the “Now Playing” bar at the bottom of the screen, then tap the three dot menu icon in the top right corner. Select “Sound Settings” then scroll down and toggle on “Apply to This Playlist Only.”

This will make your current equalizer settings apply only when playing that specific playlist. Other playlists will retain their default sound profile unless you also enable the setting for them individually.

You can take the same approach for individual tracks. While a song is playing, tap the three dot menu icon and choose “Song Sound Settings.” Toggle on “Apply to This Song Only” and your custom EQ will only affect that individual track.

This targeted equalizer approach allows you to really customize the sound for particular musical genres, artists, or situations. For example, you could boost the bass on your hip hop playlists or add brightness to acoustic tracks. The options are endless!

Troubleshooting Tips

If you experience issues using the equalizer on Spotify for Android, here are some troubleshooting tips:

If the equalizer causes distortion or decreases audio quality, try resetting the equalizer to default settings. You can also try adjusting the preamp level down to prevent clipping or distortion [1].

Check that Spotify has permission to access your phone’s storage and modify audio settings. Go to Settings > Apps > Spotify > Permissions and enable all options [1].

If the equalizer is missing in the latest version of Spotify, try uninstalling updates and reverting to the factory version. You may need to enable app downgrading in your device settings [2].

For issues after an Android OS update, check if Spotify is compatible with the newer Android version. You may need to wait for Spotify to release an updated compatible app [3].

As a last resort, uninstall and reinstall the latest version of the Spotify app from the Google Play Store or Spotify website.

Conclusion

Using Spotify’s built-in equalizer on Android provides several key benefits. By adjusting the equalizer settings, you can customize the sound output to suit your preferences for different genres of music. The preset options allow you to quickly switch between sound profiles optimized for pop, classical, rock, and other styles. Creating a custom EQ setting gives you even more fine-grained control over the listening experience.

Applying equalizer adjustments per playlist means you can tune each playlist uniquely based on the type of music it contains. This allows for an optimal listening experience no matter what you’re playing from your Spotify library. Overall, the equalizer gives Android users more flexibility and personalization over their Spotify audio output.[1]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *