If you use your iPhone’s text-to-speech feature regularly—whether for dyslexia support, speed-reading, or just to avoid reading on the go—you might’ve run into a common problem: the voice is too hard to hear in some cases.
Maybe it sounds muffled in your AirPods, too quiet in a noisy place like a subway, or just unclear if you have any hearing challenges. But there’s a hidden fix built right into iOS that most people never think to use: Headphone Accommodations.
What Are Headphone Accommodations?
Headphone Accommodations is an iOS accessibility feature that helps people with mild to moderate hearing challenges by adjusting the audio output for better clarity. It’s mostly promoted as a hearing support tool, but here’s the secret:
It works beautifully with text-to-speech, Siri, and all spoken audio—including apps that read for you.
It can make voices sound:
- Louder, without distortion
- Sharper and more intelligible
- Balanced for your specific headphones or hearing profile
Why This Matters for TTS Users
Whether you’re using:
- Spoken Content to read screen text
- VoiceOver or Speak Screen
- Siri for multitasking
- Or a powerful voice-reading app like Speech Central
…you can use Headphone Accommodations to dramatically improve clarity, volume, and balance of the speech—especially with AirPods or Beats.
Enhance It Further with Noise-Canceling Headphones
For even better results, consider pairing Headphone Accommodations with noise-canceling headphones. These can help you focus on the voice reading by blocking out background noise—especially helpful on commutes, in shared spaces, or when dealing with auditory distractions.
This tip works complementarily with the Headphone Accommodations setting—they don’t cancel each other out. In fact, using both together can create a dramatically clearer TTS experience.
For more on this, check out our in-depth guide on how to get the best TTS performance using AirPods and noise-cancelation.
How to Enable Headphone Accommodations for Better TTS
- Open the Settings app
- Go to Accessibility > Audio/Visual > Headphone Accommodations
- Turn it on
- Tap Custom Audio Setup to go through a brief hearing check
- Or manually adjust:
- Tone: Balanced, Vocal Range, or Brightness
- Boost: Slight, Moderate, or Strong
- Apply to: Choose Phone and Media
💡 You can preview the impact on speech using the built-in audio samples.
Take It Further with Speech Central
If you’re serious about voice-reading text on your iPhone or iPad, Speech Central takes things to the next level. It’s built for people who:
- Read a lot and want to save time
- Prefer listening to news, documents, or books
- Need advanced options for ADHD, dyslexia, or hearing support
Speech Central lets you:
- Organize and manage reading from web pages, emails, PDFs, Word docs, and more
- Customize voices, speed, and playback options
- Use Headphone Accommodations to improve clarity on any spoken content
Download Speech Central on the App Store and unlock the full potential of text-to-speech on iOS.
Bonus Tips for Faster, Clearer Reading
- Adjust speaking rate: Go to Settings > Accessibility > Spoken Content to speed up or slow down voice reading.
- Choose premium voices: Alex, Eloquence, and others handle fast reading better with less distortion.
- Enable Speak Screen: Swipe down with two fingers from the top of the screen to read any page aloud.
- Pair with Focus Modes: Silence alerts during listening sessions for better concentration.
Who Should Try This?
This small setting—combined with the right app—can make a huge difference if you:
- Have ADHD, dyslexia, or autism and rely on audio to process text
- Have mild hearing loss or use hearing aids or earbuds
- Read in loud environments like trains or open offices
- Want to improve comprehension or reading efficiency with voice
The Overlooked Accessibility Combo
Accessibility features on iOS are even more powerful when used together. Headphone Accommodations + Speech Central is one of those hidden combos that turns a good experience into a great one.
This isn’t just about disability—it’s about making your device adapt to you.
Try Speech Central today and hear the difference for yourself.