Most Sony Bluetooth speakers, including the XB31, offer truly portable operation via their lithium ion batteries inside. And when said battery dies, you can recharge the speaker with an AC or car adapter. Sometimes though, the Sony SRS XB31 is not charging fully, or at all. This can happen even when you connect the adapter. So to solve this, we’re here to help.
Sony SRS XB31 Not Charging: How to Tell This
Read the Status Light
You can tell that the XB31 is not charging by reading the orange battery status lamp on the back. Now this light is normally dark. But it starts flashing orange during play, when the battery runs low.
But there’s a problem if this flashing keeps up, even when you attach the charger. Why? Because the lamp should change at this point though, to solid orange, when you apply charging power. When the light stops flashing, this means that the speaker is getting some power from the adapter. But if the orange blinking continues, then correct recharging is likely not happening.
Moreover, the status light shows battery charging status while recharging. As long as charging continues, this lamp also keeps glowing. Then it goes out when charging ends. But if that CHARGE lamp keeps glowing after several hours, then chances are, charging is not going well.
Feel the Heat
You can also feel the power supply’s side panel ten or fifteen minutes after connecting it to the 31. At that time, it should feel warm. But if you detect no warmth, then again, the Sony SRS XB31 is likely not charging.
Thus when the speaker does not recharge, you’ll want to determine what’s wrong and how to fix it. So in this post, we offer reasons why the Sony SRS XB31 speaker may not charge. Then we give possible fixes.
Sony SRS XB31 Not Charging: Reasons and Fixes
As we stated above, it’s normal that the CHARGE lamp pulses orange when the battery inside is about dead. But again, the light should switch to a solid orange glow with the charger present.
Note that when the speaker is running, the Power button also blinks when the unit needs charging.
Or, once recharging finishes, the CHARGE light goes dark.
Now the light may not switch to a steady orange glow when you connect the charger. If not, then several things might cause this. We list these below thus.
1.The Power Outlet May Not Be Live
The Problem
The adapter may not output any power because it is not receiving any to begin with. This can happen due to a defective circuit or tripped breaker. A blown fuse, faulty wiring, or general power failure may also be the trouble.
The Fix
Check that your outlet 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 flip that switch ON. Or simply, try a different outlet.
2. The AC Adapter is Defective or Too Small
The Problem
The Sony SRS XB31 not charging can also happen because the adapter is outputting SOME but not ENOUGH amps.
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. So you may see the speaker’s status lamp turn solid orange, but never never go dark.
This speaker needs 1.5 amps at 5 volts (7.5 watts) to recharge in the spec time of 5 hours. Yet charging will likely not go as fast as this if the charger cannot meet these requirements.
The Fix
Replace the adapter. Buy one that has a USB-A plug and delivers the maximum 5 volts at 2 amps (10 watts). Many common USB supplies meet these requirements.
3. The Battery in the XB31 is Defective
The Problem
As lithium ion batteries age, they lose their ability to take on a full charge. Plus the characteristics of the charging current they draw, changes as they get older. Normally, as a battery recharges, it draws less current as it fills. But in the case of cells aging out, they may draw too many or too few amps. This can befuddle the charging circuit. They may behave like no charging is occurring. So the CHARGE lamp shows this. It either never stops glowing orange, or it never turns on when you connect the charger.
The Fix
To repair this, replace the battery. But realize that you can’t easily get the old one out of the 31. Indeed, changing the battery means that you must take the speaker apart, and this, rest assured, is an intricate effort.
Also note that doing this likely breaks the moisture seal. So the SRS XB31 will no longer be safe to use, should you expose it to water afterwards.
Also, breaking this seal may alter the sound quality too. So get someone to replace the battery who knows how to pick the right replacement battery. 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 7.4 volts at 3 amp-hours, or 22.2 watt-hours. But we suggest using only Sony certified batteries for this speaker.
4. The Speaker Might be Defective when the Sony SRS XB31 Is Not Charging
The Problem
Even if you have the proper power supply, the current that reaches the battery may be too low or high. This can happen when the battery management circuits inside the XB31 go amiss. Note that these systems read the battery status, and switch off the charging current when they deem the battery full.
But when they go bonkers, the battery might see no power at all though the power supply itself is okay. Thus, the speaker never charges. Again, in this case, the Power lamp might never stop blinking, even with the charger connected. The speaker may also not play as long before going dead, until you connect the charger. Or it might not play at all, even with the charger present.
The Fix
The best answer here, is simply to get a new SRS XB31 speaker. Why? Because the electronics in this unit are quite small. So unless you can replace the system board(s), just buy another speaker to save a bunch of tension.