Quran player: verse-by-verse English playback could cut short some verses for one reciter, and the translation clips carried a faint background tone

In the Quran player on gablvm.org and in the GABLVM iOS app, available to testers through TestFlight, playing a surah verse by verse with the English translation switched on could cut short the end of some verses for the reciter Abdurrahman As-Sudais before the translation started, most noticeably in the short surahs. During the investigation we also found that the English translation clips carried a faint background tone in the pause before the narrator speaks. Chapter playback, other reciters, and playback without the translation were unaffected, and no data was affected. Both issues trace to how the source recordings were cut into per-verse clips rather than to a failure of our systems. The player is being changed to keep together the verses this reciter recites in one breath, and the translation clips are being re-cut with the tone removed. These issues have been present since verse-by-verse English playback was introduced.

• Posted: Sep 15, 2026, 08:25 UTC
• Resolved: Sep 16, 2026, 08:11 UTC
• Duration: 23h 46m

Timeline

1. resolved

   Sep 16, 2026, 08:11 UTC

   This incident has been resolved. Build 28 has been confirmed on a device: verses for this reciter play complete and without a gap, and the English translation follows each group of verses. The change on gablvm.org has been in place since 15 September.

2. monitoring

   07:58 UTC

   A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. The re-cut English translation clips and the continuous clips for each group of verses are live, and build 28 of the GABLVM iOS app, which plays them, has been delivered to testers through TestFlight.

3. identified

   02:36 UTC

   The cause has been identified: the app plays each verse clip as a separate item and cannot join two clips as seamlessly as the website does. Each group of verses is being prepared as one continuous clip, and the English translation clips are being re-cut with a shorter pause.

4. update

   02:22 UTC

   This incident has been reopened. Testing of build 27 in the GABLVM iOS app found that a short gap could still be heard inside a group of verses for this reciter, and that the pause after each English translation clip was longer than on gablvm.org. The website was unaffected.

5. resolved

   02:08 UTC

   This incident has been resolved. The re-cut English translation clips and the change that keeps this reciter's verses together are live on gablvm.org, and the GABLVM iOS app carries both in build 27, delivered to testers through TestFlight.

6. monitoring

   Sep 15, 2026, 10:21 UTC

   A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results. The re-cut English translation clips are live on gablvm.org, and the change that keeps this reciter's verses together is available there for testing. A visitor who still hears the old clips can reload the page. The GABLVM iOS app receives both changes in its next TestFlight build.

7. update

   10:12 UTC

   We are continuing to work on this issue. The change to how the player groups verses is in place on gablvm.org for testing, and the re-cut English translation clips are being prepared. A further update will follow once they are live.

8. identified

   09:05 UTC

   The issue has been identified and a fix is being implemented. During the investigation a faint background tone was also found in the English translation clips, and it is being corrected at the same time.

9. investigating

   08:25 UTC

   We are currently investigating a report that, in verse-by-verse playback with the English translation switched on, some verses for the reciter Abdurrahman As-Sudais end abruptly before the translation starts.

Permalink: /incident/88