Hi folks,

I'm running into a painfully frustrating problem.

I'm using the Spotify app on my Android Pixel 5 phone (running Android 11, latest updates) and connecting the phone via Bluetooth (aptx) to an Aluratek ABCD54F bluetooth receiver (within a foot or two of one another, no obstructions).

Spotify audio playback, when pushed through the Aluratek ABCD54F, has started generating sporadic glitching, skipping, stuttering, popping and micro-pauses in the resulting audio. The frequency of these errors varies, sometimes as frequently as one or two per second, sometimes one every few seconds, and sometimes only one error every 30-45 seconds. It makes the service basically impossible to listen to. I've been using this hardware setup for over a year and it seems like this only started happening in the last few months.

Listen to the attached audio file for an example of what this sounds like.

None of the other media applications on my phone have this problem when playing back audio through the Aluratek ABCD54F. Local media played back with VLC, YouTube, Bandcamp, SoundCloud, web browsers, locally-recorded video playback: these all sound fine. Spotify is the only app that's giving me this trouble. I am solidly connected to my home wifi at the time with no connection problems.

The phone's bluetooth connection to other devices works just fine (Shure bluetooth earphones and my car's bluetooth audio adapter). 

Things I've tried that DO NOT FIX THE PROBLEM:

• placing the phone next to the bluetooth receiver (they literally sit a foot apart from one another, but moving it closer does not help)
• playback from the phone via the battery
• playback from the phone plugged into power
• clearing the Spotify app cache
• reinstalling the Spotify app
• reinstalling the Spotify app (after removing cache and all local settings manually)
• turning on data-saver options
• turning off data-saver options
• turning on auto-quality-adjustments
• turning off auto-quality-adjustments
• NEW: removing the saved bluetooth connection to the Aluratek ABCD54F and re-adding it
• NEW: using a different phone to connect to the same Bluetooth receiver and speaker (on the same paid Spotify account)
• NEW: using the phone's "Reset Wi-Fi, mobile and Bluetooth" option to wipe all existing network settings
• NEW: trying a different speaker (a JBL Boombox 2)

Things that seem to work just fine:

• Connecting to the Aluratek ABCD54F and speaker and playing audio from apps besides Spotify.
• Connecting to the Aluratek ABCD54F and speaker and playing audio from other devices (laptops).
• Connecting to the Aluratec ABCD54F and speaker from a different phone, using a new (unpaid) Spotify account, but using all the same Spotify and Bluetooth configuration options as the phones that did not work (which were using paid Spotify accounts).

I've also asked Aluratek if this is a problem they've heard of, and they've said no; the bluetooth receiver is a pretty simple device, and one they rarely see problems with, and have heard no iss

Plan: Premium

Country: United States

Device: Pixel 5

Operating System: Android 11