Front View of the JBL Go 3 Bluetooth Speaker.
Most JBL Bluetooth speakers, including this Go 3 mini, offer truly portable operation by way of their lithium ion batteries. And when these batteries die, you can recharge the speaker with a charger adapter. Sometimes though, you might find that the JBL Go 3 Speaker is not charging fully, or at all, even when you attach the adapter. So to correct that, we’re here to help.
You can tell that the speaker is not recharging, by reading the status lamp on the side of the speaker. This light may change from white to pulsing red during play. This alerts you that the battery is running low.
But there’s a problem if this flashing keeps on, even when you connect the charger. Why? Because the lamp should change to solid red at this point. This means that the speaker is getting some power at least. But if the lamp keeps blinking, then correct recharging is likely not happening.
You can also feel the adapter’s side panel ten or fifteen minutes into the charge cycle. At that time, it should feel a trifle warm. Note also that the Go 3 itself may heat up a bit as well as normal recharging progresses. But if you detect no warmth, then again, the JBL Go 3 is likely not charging.
Moreover, the status light normally shows battery recharging status. I.e. As long as charging continues, this lamp also keeps glowing red. And this light either changes to white or goes out when charging ends. But if that light stays on solid red after several hours, then chances are, recharging is not going well. Or, it’s going too slowly.
Thus when the speaker does not recharge, you’ll want to figure out what’s wrong and how to fix it. So in this post, we offer reasons why the JBL Go 3 may not charge when connected to power. Then we give potential fixes for this typical failure.
As we stated earlier, it’s normal that the power status lamp pulses red when the battery inside is about dead. But again, the light should switch to a solid red glow when you apply the charger.
Normally though, without a charger present, this lamp only glows or flashes white.
Or, once recharging ends, it goes dark.
Indeed the light may not not change to a steady red glow when you connect the charger. If not, then several problems might cause this. We list these below thus.
The adapter may not output any juice because it is not getting any to begin with. This can happen due to a defective AC or car circuit or tripped breaker. Also, a blown fuse, faulty wiring, or common power failure may be the cause.
Check that your receptacle has power by plugging in a lamp or other device. Then, reset circuit breakers if tripped. And if the outlet has a light switch that controls it, then toggle that switch ON. Or, simply try a different receptacle.
The JBL Go 3 not charging can also happen because the adapter is providing SOME but NOT ENOUGH amperage.
Now as adapters age, their output energy can fall over time. So this power supply might not deliver the correct amount if it is very old. Thus the status lamp on the speaker may turn solid red. But then it never turns back to white or never goes dark. Note that this speaker needs 1 amp at 5 volts to fully recharge in the 2.5 hours spec time. However, charging will likely not go this fast if the charger and cable cannot deliver on these requirements.
Replace the adapter. But be sure to get one with a USB-C plug. Plus it should deliver 5 volts at 2 amps (10 watts). Many common USB power supplies meet these requirements.
The Problem
As lithium ion batteries grow old, they lose their ability to fully recharge. And the characteristics of the charging current they draw, changes with age. Normally, as a battery charges, it draws less current as it fills. But when these cells fail, the speaker may draw too many or too few amps. This therefore may confuse the charging circuits. They might react as though no charging is occurring. So the status lamp shows this. It either never stops its steady red glow. Or it never turns solid red when you connect the charger.
To repair this, replace the battery. But realize that you can’t easily get the old one out of the Go 3. Indeed, changing the battery means that you must take the speaker apart, and this is an intricate task.
Also note that doing this likely breaks the moisture seal. So the speaker will no longer be safe to use, should you expose it to water afterwards.
Breaking this seal may diminish the sound quality as well. So get someone to replace the battery who knows how to pick the right replacement for the Go 3. They should also be able to restore the seal to as it was, as they reassemble the speaker. A good battery should fit well inside the speaker and provide 2.775 watt-hours. But we suggest using only JBL certified batteries for this speaker.
Even if you have the proper power supply, the current reaching the battery may be low or high. This can occur when the battery management circuits in the speaker fail. Note that these systems read the battery status, and switch off the charging current when they deem the battery full.
But when they go haywire, the battery might see no power at all, though the charger itself is fine. Thus, the speaker never charges even when you connect the adapter. Again, in this case, the status lamp might never stop blinking. The speaker may also not play as long before dying. Or it might not play at all.
The best answer here, is simply to get a new JBL Go 3. Why? Because the electronics in this unit are quite small. Thus unless you can replace these printed circuit board(s) yourself, we suggest just buying another speaker.
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