Front view of the JBL Xtreme 3 speaker, showing the red light ON in the battery meter.

JBL Xtreme 3 Charging Light Blinking, How to Fix

Many JBL speakers, including the Xtreme 3, have a light that flashes red when the battery is about dead. This is the low battery warning.  Then, when you connect a charger, that same light changes to blinking white. it then shows progress of recharging.  Now in the case of the JBL Xtreme 3, we find this lamp in the battery gauge on the front. Sometimes though, it blinks red for long periods.  E.g. It starts flashing during play and does not stop, even when you connect a charger. This is a problem that can prevent proper charging. Thus in this post, we offer reasons that charging light blinking happens on the JBL Xtreme 3 speaker.  Then we give possible fixes.

 JBL Xtreme 3 Charging Light Blinking: Reasons and Fixes

It’s normal that the gauge shows a blinking red light when the battery is very low.  But this lamp should turn white, when you connect the charger.

Front view of the JBL Xtreme 3 speaker, showing the red light ON in the battery meter.
JBL Xtreme 3 speaker front view, showing the red light ON in the battery meter.

Normally though, this gauge only shows white lights.  The number of these glowing lamps tells how full the battery is.

Picture of the battery meter almost fully glowing.
The battery meter almost fully glowing.

Once recharging completes, all lights in this gauge go dark.

 

Picture of the dark battery gauge.
The dark battery gauge.

If the red glow does not change to white when you connect the charger, then several things might cause this. We list these below therefore.

1.The AC Outlet May Not Be Live

The Problem

The adapter for the JBL Xtreme 3 may not deliver any power. Why? Because perhaps it is not getting any. A defective AC or car circuit or tripped circuit breaker might cause this. Check also for blown fuses, faulty wiring, power failure, and the like.

The Fix

Check that your outlet has power by testing it by plugging in a lamp or other device.  Reset circuit breakers. And if the outlet has a switch that controls it, then be certain that that switch is ON.

2. Power Supply is Not Working Well

The Problem

The JBL Xtreme 3 charging light continues blinking perhaps because the adapter provides SOME but not ENOUGH current. Its output energy can fall over time. So it might not deliver the correct amount if it is old.  Note that this speaker requires 3 amps at 20 volts to fully charge in the spec time of 4 hours. But an older charger might not deliver this.

Picture of the JBL Xtreme 3 charging.
The JBL Xtreme 3 charging.

The Fix

The solution is to replace the adapter, preferably one that delivers 20 volts at 3 amps (60 watts). We recommend ordering a replacement directly from JBL for quickest yet safest charging.





3. JBL Xtreme 3 Charging Light Blinking: The Battery is Bad

The Problem

As lithium ion batteries age, they lose their ability to fully recharge. Furthermore, the characteristics of the current they draw changes as well.  Now normally, as a battery recharges, it draws less current as it fills. But in battery failure, it may draw the wrong amount. So this can confuse the charging circuits. Thus they might react as though no charging is occurring.  So, the red lamp keeps blinking.

The Fix

To solve this, replace the battery. But remember that you can’t easily get to it in the JBL Xtreme 3. But changing the battery means that you must take the speaker apart.  Also note that doing this likely breaks the moisture resistant seal.  Thus the speaker will no longer be safe to use, if you get water on it.

Breaking this seal may also change the sound quality. So get someone to replace the battery who knows how to pick the right battery product. 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 and provide 7.26 volts and at 5,000 mAh (36.3 watt-hours). But we suggest using only JBL certified batteries for this speaker.

5. The Speaker Might be Defective when the JBL Xtreme 3 Charging Light Keeps Blinking

The Problem

Even if you have the correct power supply, the current that reaches the battery may be too low or high.  This can happen when the battery management circuits inside the Xtreme 3 fail.  Note that these systems read the battery status. Then they shut off the current when they deem the battery to be full.

But when they fail, the battery might get no power at all.  Thus, it never recharges.  Again, in this case, the light might never stop blinking, even with the charger connected. You may also see that the speaker doesn’t play as long before going dead. Or it might not play at all, except when you’re charging it. Or, the speaker may go dead even though connected to the charger.

The Fix

The best solution here, is simply to get a new JBL Xtreme 3.  Why?  Because the circuits in this model are rather small and fragile.  So unless you can safely replace the system board(s) on your own, just buy another speaker.

Other Posts About the JBL Xtreme 3

    1. How to Turn On the JBL Xtreme 3
    2. How to Turn On Bass Mode
    3. Checking Battery Life
    4. Hard Reset Routine
    5. How to Tell if This Speaker is Charging

References 

    1. JBL Xtreme 3 Official Product Page at JBL.com
    2. Where to Buy the JBL Xtreme 3