Ubuntu – Ubuntu 16.04 won’t output sound to Bluetooth headphones

16.04bluetoothheadset

I'm trying to use mt SONY MDR-XB950BT headphones on Ubuntu 16.04 but not having any luck. I've managed to get them connected but it doesn't seem like I can actually listen to music/videos out of them. I tried setting the audio output to the headphones, but sound keeps coming out of the speakers instead. I also installed Pulse Audio Volume Control, but that doesn't seem to make a difference. I briefly managed to get it so that the test sound would play through the headphones, but when I tried to watch an online video, the video wouldn't even play until I changed the sound output device.

Does anyone have any advice/experience with this kind of thing? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Best Answer

I solved this problem by installing blueman.

To install blueman, open a terminal and type sudo apt-get install blueman. Once it's installed, you can run it by typing blueman or you can search for "bluetooth manager" in the Applications menu. Once blueman is running, you can lock it to the launcher.

Now, inside the blueman application, Right-Click on the headphones icon and select 'audio profile' -> 'High Fidelity Playback'.

There are other profiles available as well, but this is the one that works for me.