Q. I worry about my children’s hearing from blasting music through their phone earbuds at high volumes. Is there a way to lower the universal volume?

A. Depending on the device, you may have built-in controls to limit the volume, or you may have to find an app that you like to do the job. With either approach, you can override and lower the phone’s default maximum audio level and decrease it, say to 75 or 80 percent of what the phone can actually produce.

Google’s Android operating system (which often warns users when the volume is set too high) comes in many versions across the various phone and tablet models, so the controls you have will vary. Some Android versions do come with their own tools, like recent Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy Note gadgets, which include a setting to limit the maximum volume.

Image Volume Limiter (Limit & Lock) is one of the apps that can control the maximum sound output on an Android device. Credit... The New York Times

To use Samsung’s controls, go to the Apps screen, open the Settings icon and select Sound and Vibration, and then Volume. (Menu names may vary based on Android version.) There you can set the default volume for many of the phone’s functions, including ringtone, system alerts and media. To lock the levels, tap the three-dot More options menu on the screen and choose Media Volume Limiter. Once you enable the feature, you can set a custom maximum volume level and secure it with a PIN code.