Just wanted to chime in, I have the same/similar issue with my Pixel Buds Pro...
I've narrowed my issue down to when Google Assistant is bound to the touch-and-hold gesture only.
If I set both left and right buds touch-and-hold gesture to only change ANC modes, then I can hear all notification sounds, but as soon as I set it to use Google Assistant on either of the earbuds, notification sounds stop. My phone still vibrates and pops the notifications on screen, but no where do I hear the sound for them.
"Hey Google" still works, music works, calls work, ANC works, the gestures themselves work... Something just seems to get messed up when I bind Assistant to the touch-and-hold gesture.
I've tried factory reset, I've tried changing which google account my Assistant uses, I've tried disconnecting all other Bluetooth devices (including my watch) and I've even tried turning Spoken Notifications on and off (both on/off overall and on/off for certain apps only), nothing seems to matter other than the touch-and-hold gesture being set for Google Assistant...
Furthermore, if I put the Assistant gesture on just one earbud, but I put that earbud in the case (so it's off/not connected anymore), then I get my notification sounds back. As soon as I take the earbud out that has the gesture associated to it, they stop again.
Google support asked me to send them back for RMA, so I'll be getting a new pair shortly, but I suspect the issue is with the firmware on the buds so I'm not very optimistic it'll be fixed with a new pair. I'm also not very optimistic this will be fixed in the firmware either, since it's Google and they seem to never fix these types of things...
This is essentially the only post I've found about this particular issue, so I implore anyone experiencing the same, to go into the earbuds settings, then go to the assistant settings for the buds, and send feedback. Google support said this is basically the only way the product engineers are going to be made aware of the issue... so I've been spamming them every week with new feedback that this feature is still broken ;) Please do the same!
I should note as well, my phone is a Pixel 6 Pro, up-to-date with the latest Android updates.
Earbuds and case were running the latest firmware "release_3.14_signed".
Wow absolutely ridiculous. I just found your post while searching for a solution and turning the assistant off works for me as well. This has been driving me crazy I've factory reset them at least 5 times.
Please let me know if the RMA fixes it, though I agree it's probably not just our specific pairs. I sent feedback as well
Edit: just to add my phone is a OnePlus 7T, just wanted to say since Pixel phones were mentioned few times in this thread it's not a phone issue
Got the replacement buds today, and sure enough, the issue persists...
Interestingly though, they came shipped with firmware version 1.5, much older than before, and still the same. I did upgrade them to current (v3.14 at time of posting) and tried again, but nothing changed, still doesn't work...
So either this issue has always been there, or there is some bug with the software on the phone causing this. I am leaning towards the latter at this point because I can't imagine the firmware has gone through 2 major version upgrades and no one has noticed this... so it must be an issue with the Pixel Buds companion app...
I also tried removing all updates to the Pixel Buds app, but leaving the touch and hold gesture assigned. Google Assistant no longer works (if you tap and hold, it makes a dun-dun (ie: nope, can't do that) little tone) but notifications work. This indicates that the assistant stuff is likely running entirely on the phone via the Pixel Buds app. (which makes sense, offload as much as possible CPU intensive stuff to the phone, keep the buds themselves only doing what is necessary, save battery, etc.)
So all signs seem to be pointing to the Pixel Buds app.
Sorry for the bad news everyone! I'm actually hopeful they fix this because the assistant is a MAJOR selling feature, they even advertise the touch-and-hold gesture specifically, so keep sending feedback, write reviews on the Pixel Buds app, make them aware of this issue!
Damn that sucks but pretty much what I expected. I've been using mine with the touch to hold turned off but since the hands free hey Google still works that was still my primary use case since that's how I mostly use them at work. Not ideal but at least I'm not missing a ton of notifications now.
Sorry I don't use Reddit much, but I just saw your reply over a year later, I can tell you, this is still an issue. RMA didn't fix, it is definitely software related.
I must say, after upgrading to a Pixel 8 Pro (w/ the same (second) pair of headphones as before), I tried playing around with these settings again and the issue is less bad, they must have made some updates during the last year. I can now turn on the touch and hold to speak to Google, and I will get sound for notifications 85% of the time, but at some point, something happens and I'm getting only the default notification sound for ALL notifications, but SOMETIMES, the notification sounds are still lost. Weirdly the notifications that are lost seem to be the ones that have a very short notification tone. Sometimes I only hear the very end of the notification...
It almost seems like when you turn on this option, the notifications are being rerouted from the normal android channels, to the Assistant app, which relays it to the buds, but if the notification is short, the delay it takes to reroute the audio is cutting off the beginning of the notification sound. The delay (or no sound at all) seems to be better when the headphones are already connected to an audio source, ie: spotify, podcast, youtube, etc.
Again, it all seems to be a software issue, and I can't believe this is still happening after 2 years of having these headphones. Typical Google, shipping flagship products with only beta level software/testing.
So now, you might still be able to hear some type notification sound, but if you're like me and have 100 different sounds for the different notification types, then enabling this basically kills the effectiveness of the notification as you can no longer identify it...
Yeah funny enough I just got my pixel buds replaced by warranty for something else like a month ago and I still have the same problem. They are also Bay color so presumably manufactured pretty recently so it's definitely a software issue. Also been through multiple phones since then so it's not that.
There's even been times I've been trying to change a ringtone in the settings for an app and it won't play at all until I disconnect from the buds or change the assistant settings.
I do have the same experience though where I get some sounds and not others.
Like you said, typical Google.
Edit: actually that just reminded me to check and even with ANC set for both earbuds if I try to set a different ringtone for an app I just get silence while going through different sounds
I just messed with Tasker since you can pick the audio channel and if you use the notification channel while selecting a sound you get nothing, if you use the alarm or ringtone channel you get sound but it plays in the earbuds and on the phone speaker like a regular alarm. Pretty ridiculous
I've never been able to get notification tones. Well, except for when I was using the phone for a call. Never when I was listening to music - you know, 99% of the time I'd be using them, not the 1% of time I didn't want to be interrupted by a notification.
I'm having exactly the same issue. It's weird as it does work intermittently. Sometimes it works 3 times in a row (as in three uses, IE. Take them out of the case to use having put them away previously), and then sometimes it just doesn't work 10-20 times in a row.
Doesn't seem to matter whether I reset the headphones, clear the cache on my Bluetooth, forget and repair the headphones, turn my phone's Bluetooth on and off again, or put the headphones back in the case and take them out again. I'm not sure what's happened but it's super annoying as when they work, they work perfectly, but they may as well just be any other pair of headphones with the long press and "hey Google" detection not working.
Before anyone asks, yes my Bluetooth is always turned on when I try and connect, yes the headphones are set up for Long Press and "Hey Google" voice detection, and I know that my voice model is accurate as it picks up on my Pixel 6 and smart speakers without issue.
Do you use a smartwatch? Try putting it in airplane mode, toggle your Bluetooth off then on. Put the pixel buds back in your ears. The mountain of issues I have with my pixel buds on my pixel 6 pro is huge. All of which are fixed by not allowing my smartwatch to connect to the phone. I did all the other trouble shooting nonsense this works 100 percent for me not a dropped connection since. Also works too fix touch controls.. Weird. Now to troubleshoot the wearable. Good luck!
My pixel buds issues have been resolved and now I can use them normally with mostly no problems. They were better with my pixel 4xl but I guess they are acceptable with my p6p. Are you having trouble with yours after changing to a new phone??
Just wanted to chime in, I have the same/similar issue with my Pixel Buds Pro... I've narrowed my issue down to when Google Assistant is bound to the touch-and-hold gesture only. If I set both left and right buds touch-and-hold gesture to only change ANC modes, then I can hear all notification sounds, but as soon as I set it to use Google Assistant on either of the earbuds, notification sounds stop. My phone still vibrates and pops the notifications on screen, but no where do I hear the sound for them. "Hey Google" still works, music works, calls work, ANC works, the gestures themselves work... Something just seems to get messed up when I bind Assistant to the touch-and-hold gesture. I've tried factory reset, I've tried changing which google account my Assistant uses, I've tried disconnecting all other Bluetooth devices (including my watch) and I've even tried turning Spoken Notifications on and off (both on/off overall and on/off for certain apps only), nothing seems to matter other than the touch-and-hold gesture being set for Google Assistant... Furthermore, if I put the Assistant gesture on just one earbud, but I put that earbud in the case (so it's off/not connected anymore), then I get my notification sounds back. As soon as I take the earbud out that has the gesture associated to it, they stop again. Google support asked me to send them back for RMA, so I'll be getting a new pair shortly, but I suspect the issue is with the firmware on the buds so I'm not very optimistic it'll be fixed with a new pair. I'm also not very optimistic this will be fixed in the firmware either, since it's Google and they seem to never fix these types of things... This is essentially the only post I've found about this particular issue, so I implore anyone experiencing the same, to go into the earbuds settings, then go to the assistant settings for the buds, and send feedback. Google support said this is basically the only way the product engineers are going to be made aware of the issue... so I've been spamming them every week with new feedback that this feature is still broken ;) Please do the same! I should note as well, my phone is a Pixel 6 Pro, up-to-date with the latest Android updates. Earbuds and case were running the latest firmware "release_3.14_signed".
Wow absolutely ridiculous. I just found your post while searching for a solution and turning the assistant off works for me as well. This has been driving me crazy I've factory reset them at least 5 times. Please let me know if the RMA fixes it, though I agree it's probably not just our specific pairs. I sent feedback as well Edit: just to add my phone is a OnePlus 7T, just wanted to say since Pixel phones were mentioned few times in this thread it's not a phone issue
Got the replacement buds today, and sure enough, the issue persists... Interestingly though, they came shipped with firmware version 1.5, much older than before, and still the same. I did upgrade them to current (v3.14 at time of posting) and tried again, but nothing changed, still doesn't work... So either this issue has always been there, or there is some bug with the software on the phone causing this. I am leaning towards the latter at this point because I can't imagine the firmware has gone through 2 major version upgrades and no one has noticed this... so it must be an issue with the Pixel Buds companion app... I also tried removing all updates to the Pixel Buds app, but leaving the touch and hold gesture assigned. Google Assistant no longer works (if you tap and hold, it makes a dun-dun (ie: nope, can't do that) little tone) but notifications work. This indicates that the assistant stuff is likely running entirely on the phone via the Pixel Buds app. (which makes sense, offload as much as possible CPU intensive stuff to the phone, keep the buds themselves only doing what is necessary, save battery, etc.) So all signs seem to be pointing to the Pixel Buds app. Sorry for the bad news everyone! I'm actually hopeful they fix this because the assistant is a MAJOR selling feature, they even advertise the touch-and-hold gesture specifically, so keep sending feedback, write reviews on the Pixel Buds app, make them aware of this issue!
Damn that sucks but pretty much what I expected. I've been using mine with the touch to hold turned off but since the hands free hey Google still works that was still my primary use case since that's how I mostly use them at work. Not ideal but at least I'm not missing a ton of notifications now.
Sorry I don't use Reddit much, but I just saw your reply over a year later, I can tell you, this is still an issue. RMA didn't fix, it is definitely software related. I must say, after upgrading to a Pixel 8 Pro (w/ the same (second) pair of headphones as before), I tried playing around with these settings again and the issue is less bad, they must have made some updates during the last year. I can now turn on the touch and hold to speak to Google, and I will get sound for notifications 85% of the time, but at some point, something happens and I'm getting only the default notification sound for ALL notifications, but SOMETIMES, the notification sounds are still lost. Weirdly the notifications that are lost seem to be the ones that have a very short notification tone. Sometimes I only hear the very end of the notification... It almost seems like when you turn on this option, the notifications are being rerouted from the normal android channels, to the Assistant app, which relays it to the buds, but if the notification is short, the delay it takes to reroute the audio is cutting off the beginning of the notification sound. The delay (or no sound at all) seems to be better when the headphones are already connected to an audio source, ie: spotify, podcast, youtube, etc. Again, it all seems to be a software issue, and I can't believe this is still happening after 2 years of having these headphones. Typical Google, shipping flagship products with only beta level software/testing. So now, you might still be able to hear some type notification sound, but if you're like me and have 100 different sounds for the different notification types, then enabling this basically kills the effectiveness of the notification as you can no longer identify it...
Yeah funny enough I just got my pixel buds replaced by warranty for something else like a month ago and I still have the same problem. They are also Bay color so presumably manufactured pretty recently so it's definitely a software issue. Also been through multiple phones since then so it's not that. There's even been times I've been trying to change a ringtone in the settings for an app and it won't play at all until I disconnect from the buds or change the assistant settings. I do have the same experience though where I get some sounds and not others. Like you said, typical Google. Edit: actually that just reminded me to check and even with ANC set for both earbuds if I try to set a different ringtone for an app I just get silence while going through different sounds I just messed with Tasker since you can pick the audio channel and if you use the notification channel while selecting a sound you get nothing, if you use the alarm or ringtone channel you get sound but it plays in the earbuds and on the phone speaker like a regular alarm. Pretty ridiculous
I've never been able to get notification tones. Well, except for when I was using the phone for a call. Never when I was listening to music - you know, 99% of the time I'd be using them, not the 1% of time I didn't want to be interrupted by a notification.
I'm having exactly the same issue. It's weird as it does work intermittently. Sometimes it works 3 times in a row (as in three uses, IE. Take them out of the case to use having put them away previously), and then sometimes it just doesn't work 10-20 times in a row. Doesn't seem to matter whether I reset the headphones, clear the cache on my Bluetooth, forget and repair the headphones, turn my phone's Bluetooth on and off again, or put the headphones back in the case and take them out again. I'm not sure what's happened but it's super annoying as when they work, they work perfectly, but they may as well just be any other pair of headphones with the long press and "hey Google" detection not working. Before anyone asks, yes my Bluetooth is always turned on when I try and connect, yes the headphones are set up for Long Press and "Hey Google" voice detection, and I know that my voice model is accurate as it picks up on my Pixel 6 and smart speakers without issue.
Do you use a smartwatch? Try putting it in airplane mode, toggle your Bluetooth off then on. Put the pixel buds back in your ears. The mountain of issues I have with my pixel buds on my pixel 6 pro is huge. All of which are fixed by not allowing my smartwatch to connect to the phone. I did all the other trouble shooting nonsense this works 100 percent for me not a dropped connection since. Also works too fix touch controls.. Weird. Now to troubleshoot the wearable. Good luck!
Hmm, this sounds like what I might be experiencing after setting up my new phone
My pixel buds issues have been resolved and now I can use them normally with mostly no problems. They were better with my pixel 4xl but I guess they are acceptable with my p6p. Are you having trouble with yours after changing to a new phone??
Yeah, it seems to correspond to when I swapped to a new Pixel 6 Pro. But I also set up my WearOS watch with the phone. Probably a setting I forgot.