Picture of the top front of the JBL Pulse 3 speaker with rainbow color patterns displaying.

How to Factory Reset JBL Pulse 3 Speaker

Covers how to factory reset the JBL Pulse 3 party speaker to its default settings. Factory resetting returns this speaker to default state. It can also clear up pairing errors, and it erases any earlier linked Bluetooth devices from its memory. Clearing these stops the Pulse 3 from connecting to any nearby Bluetooth devices afterwards. Furthermore, you might factory reset your speaker to get it ready for sale or re gifting, or to stop it from pairing with devices you no longer wish it to pair with.

How to Factory Reset the JBL Pulse 3 Wireless Speaker

1. Turn It On First

Press and hold the Power button until it lights up.

Picture of the Power button on the speaker back. How to Factory Reset JBL Pulse 3.
The Power button on the speaker back.

Find the Power button, as shown in the last picture above.

Then, the Power button lights up along with the battery power scale, as shown next.

Picture of the glowing Power light.
The Power lamp glowing.

In our case, since we’ve paired the speaker with Bluetooth devices since the last reset, it does not enter discovery mode. We know that because the Pairing Status button is dark, rather than flashing.

Picture of the dark Pairing Status light on a running JBL Pulse 3 speaker.
Here the speaker is running, but has a dark Pairing Status lamp.

2. Wait for the Power Up Sound

The Pulse 3 makes a rising electric guitar strum sound when it powers up. The Pulse is ready for use after this sound ends.





3. Press the Volume UP and Play-Pause Buttons Together

See the next picture to find the Play-Pause and Volume UP buttons.

Picture of the -Volume UP- and -Play-Pause- buttons.
The -Volume UP- and -Play-Pause- buttons.

The speaker then runs its factory reset routine, as we in the next picture. Note that all lamps light up for a couple seconds as the routine executes.

Then after a short pause, the speaker turns off. All the lights go out, and it makes the power-down guitar sound.

Picture of the dark lights on the powered OFF speaker.
The speaker powered OFF with all lamps dark.

4. Check that the Factory Reset of the JBL Pulse 3 Did Occur

Next, switch on the speaker again, as we detailed in step 1 above.  Press and release the Power button.

Now this time, after factory reset, our speaker comes up in Bluetooth pairing mode, as we see in the next picture. Note that the Power button blinks white  to tell us this. When it flashes or is dark, the Pulse 3 is not currently paired. indeed, we expect it not to pair to anything after a factory reset.  And, not pairing to anything nearby is a sure sign that the reset did indeed complete successfully.

Picture of the glowing Pairing Status light on the JBL Pulse 3 speaker.
The JBL Pulse 3 speaker Pairing Status lamp glowing.

A factory reset also reverts the selected color lightshow pattern back to default… a sort of rising horizontal color bands pattern.

5. Done with How to Factory Reset the JBL Pulse 3 !

The reset is now done. You may now pack the unit up for sale, or pair it again with your favorite Bluetooth devices. The Pulse 3 will no longer automatically connect with any previously paired source device that is in range. So to restore auto pairing, manually sync this speaker to a phone or tablet or other mobile wireless device. Then after that, any time that both speaker and that device have Bluetooth turned on, pairing with automatically happen again.





Other Posts About the JBL Pulse 3

  1. JBL Pulse 3 Firmware Update Instructions

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References for How to Factory Reset the JBL Pulse 3 Speaker

  1. JBL Pulse 3 Bluetooth Speaker Official Product Page at JBL.com

Revision History

  • 2022-08-05: First published.