JBL Xtreme Not Showing Up on Bluetooth

JBL Xtreme portable Bluetooth speaker, right front corner view.

When you find the JBL Xtreme Not showing up on Bluetooth, this likely means one or more things.

1. The device and speaker are too far away from each other. Out of range. So move them to within a few feet of one another before attempting to pair.
2. Charging is not working correctly. So the battery is not strong enough to run pairing mode. This can result from a faulty charger. So get a new one. One that you know to be good. Then recharge the speaker, and try again.
3. The battery no longer recharges due to age or heavy use. Thus, you need to replace the battery.
4. The speaker is defective and is beyond repair. So you might just have to buy a new one.
5. Service mode a.k.a. secret or weird mode is active.

So we assume here that all the hardware and software is okay. Thus we cover the last possibility in detail. How to get your JBL Xtreme out of service mode.

JBL Xtreme Not Showing Up on Bluetooth: Service Mode Details

Fen in this (often called ‘weird’ or ‘secret’) mode, the JBL Xtreme does not power ON without a charger. Thus, it will not run on the internal battery while in Service mode. Furthermore, when you do apply power, it powers up without pressing the Power button.

Further, you cannot turn it OFF while it is in Service mode. Not without disconnecting external power. And then, it powers off without pressing the Power button. So when this service mode is active, the Power button appears to not work.

Indeed, none of the buttons seem to work in Service mode, except for the ones needed to exit it. Thus the speaker won’t pair with any devices. Furthermore as mentioned, the Power button does not switch it OFF either.

How to Turn ON Service Mode

This is what you may have accidently done prior to the Power button not working. So to turn on this Service mode, do the following.

1. Power up the speaker first.
2. Then press the Connect+ and Volume UP buttons at the same time.
3. Hold them in until the speaker powers OFF, which usually takes ten seconds or so.
4. Power ON the Xtreme again. At this point, normal operation should return.

Note that you can enter this mode as long as the speaker is ON. So it doesn’t matter whether you connect external power or not.

Also note that these buttons are very close to (beside) each other. So it’s easy to press them both by mistake. That’s especially the case when the Volume Up button is such a popular control.

Top view of the JBL Xtreme. Showing the -Connect- and -Volume UP- buttons.

JBL Xtreme Not Showing Up on Bluetooth: How to Exit Service Mode

Now you can restore proper operation by disabling this mode. But note that when this Service mode is in effect, then you need external power. Why? Because when in Service mode, the JBL Xtreme won’t come on without it. But you can’t change modes without powering up the unit first. Thus, you need the power adapter to make this fix.

1. So, connect your speaker to AC power and turn on the speaker.
2. Then, with the speaker Power button glowing, press the Connect+ and Volume UP button combo. Then hold those in for ten seconds or so, until the unit powers off.
3. Then, the next time you power ON the speaker, normal operation should return.

Finally, at this point, the Power button should work again, whether or not you connect the AC adapter.