How to Make Sony XB31 Discoverable

To pair your SRS XB31 Sony Extra Bass speaker with a Bluetooth device for the first time, or to refresh stale linkage data in that device, you need to understand how to start up discovery mode on this unit. Now in discovery mode, the speaker digitally announces its name and connection data over Bluetooth, so that nearby devices can find and join with it. Then once connected, the source device can stream audio to the speaker, which apparently is something that so many like to do. So in this post, we show you how to make the Sony XB31 discoverable, to let you link it with phones, tablets, computers, and smart speakers.

How to Make Sony XB31 Discoverable, Step by Step Guide

1. Turn On the XB31

Firstly, turn on the speaker by rapidly pressing and releasing its Power button.

E.g. See this button, pointed out by the arrow, in the next picture.

Picture of the -Power- button on the Sony XB31. — Sony XB31 -Power- button.

The speaker then starts up.

Picture of the -Power- lamp glowing. How to Make Sony XB31 Discoverable. — The Sony XB31 -Power- lamp glowing.

Now if the speaker has never connected with a device since its last reset, then it automatically makes itself discoverable. But if it has paired with a phone or other mobile device since the last reset, then you must manually put it in discovery mode now, in order to pair it with a new device now.

2. Press and Release the Power-Pairing Button for a Half Second

Secondly, to do that, you press and release the Power-Pairing button. E.g. See the location of this button in the last picture. You needn’t hold it in for long for the action to register.

The speaker then plays a rising sequence of beep tones and announces “Bluetooth pairing…” in a female voice. So at this point, the unit is now discoverable by other BT devices.

Note also that putting the speaker in discovery mode does not clear its prior stored connections. Discovery mode just allows you to connect to and add new devices to its memory, but does not delete any.

Now if the speaker is misbehaving and will not go into discovery mode, you can try resetting it and see if that solves the problem.

3. Done with How to Make Sony XB31 Discoverable

Screenshot of the iPadOS Bluetooth Settings page, showing the Sony XB31 as Discovered. — The iPadOS Bluetooth Settings page, showing the Sony XB31 as Discovered.

Finally, while the Bluetooth Status lamp is fast flashing ON and OFF, you should see the XB31 on any in-range cell phone, computer, tablet, or smart speaker assistant, that is within several feet of it, as we see in the last picture. The speaker appears as “SRS-XB31” there.

References

1. Official Sony XB31 Support Page
2. Where to Buy the Sony XB31

Revision History

- 2023-03-23: First published.