JBL is a much-loved audio company that makes headphones, speakers, and amplifiers. Not only do their products sound great, but they’re reasonably priced. Especially when compared with other market leaders such as Apple (Beats) and Sony.
But, like all electronic products, they don’t always work perfectly 100% of the time. A common issue many users encounter is their JBL speaker randomly turning off – even when it has a fully charged battery.
So if you’re experiencing this issue, and you want to know how to fix it, you’re in the right place!
Table of Contents
Why Your JBL Speaker Keeps Turning Off
Pinpointing the exact reason why your JBL speaker is turning off can be tricky. Usually, it happens because of a problem with the battery, Bluetooth connectivity, or a software error.
It can also happen because your speaker is overheating – possibly because it’s been turned on and in use for a long time, or it’s placed in direct sunlight.
Sometimes, even if your speaker has a fully charged battery, there may be some internal error that is causing the speaker to think it’s about to die. This would cause it to shut itself off.
It may be that the internal battery is no longer holding charge, in which case, the speaker is doing exactly what it should by shutting itself down. If your speaker is working fine when connected to a power source but turns itself off when running on battery power, this may be your issue.
Similarly, if your JBL speaker’s Bluetooth is not functioning correctly, the speaker may disconnect from your device, fail to connect, or make an unstable connection. All these things may cause your speaker to shut itself down, as it is designed to do when turned on without a connection for an extended period.
Finally, your speaker may shut down randomly if its firmware is outdated. Updating the firmware to the latest version should prevent this from happening.
How to Fix a JBL Speaker that Keeps Turning Itself Off
Let’s start with a list of the fixes that are most likely to stop your JBL speaker from turning itself off.
Fully Charge Your Speaker
This may seem obvious, but it’s an important step that is often overlooked. To ensure you can rule out any problems with the health of the battery, fully charge your JBL speaker then disconnect it from the power supply and try to use it.
If it continues to turn itself off, then you should try some of the fixes listed in this article. If none of those work, it may be time to replace the speaker or contact JBL for a battery repair or replacement.
However, you may find that you were just using your speaker without enough charge to keep it going for long enough. It sounds unlikely, but if you use your speaker a lot, and you don’t have an established routine to ensure its charge is frequently topped up, this could well be the root of your issue.
Reset Your JBL Speaker
The easiest and fastest way to ensure your JBL speaker stops turning itself off is to reset it. This will clear out any runtime errors that have accumulated in the speaker’s firmware which may be causing it to malfunction, hence the random shutting down.
Think of this process as similar to turning your computer off and on again if it crashes. The process, known as power cycling, works with many electronic devices including Wi-Fi routers, headphones, and TVs.
The actual process for resetting your speaker will be different, depending on which exact model you have, so be sure to check the user manual that came with your device, or search for specific instructions online if you’ve misplaced it.
Meanwhile, I’ll run through the reset procedure for a few of JBL’s most popular speakers below:
JBL Charge
Press the Volume up and Bluetooth buttons at the same time and hold for 5 – 10 seconds. The lights around the buttons should illuminate. Power off the speaker to complete the reset.
JBL Clip
Press and hold the Power and Play/Pause buttons for 30 seconds. The speaker will turn itself off after the reset.
JBL Link
Press and hold the Mute button for 15 seconds. The speaker should turn itself off after the reset.
JBL Go
Press and hold the Volume down and Bluetooth buttons for 5 – 10 seconds. The speaker should turn itself off after the reset.
JBL Flip/JBL Xtreme
Press and hold the Volume up and Play buttons for 5 – 10 seconds. The speaker will turn itself off after the reset.
As you can see, the reset process is super simple and pretty similar across the range of JBL speakers.
To test if the rest has been successful, simply power on your speaker and see if it connects automatically to your devices. If not, and you have to pair your device again, then your speaker has been successfully reset.
Recalibrate JBL Speaker’s Battery
If you suspect that your speaker is turning off due to a failure to recognize the battery level, then recalibrating the battery can help to fix this issue.
This is a relatively simple fix, if a little time-consuming. Simply charge your speaker to maximum capacity, then turn it on, connect your device, and play music (or podcasts – any audio) until the battery dies.
Then, fully charge it again, and use it as normal. If you did have a problem with the battery, this recalibration should reset any battery drain issues, and hopefully stop your speaker from turning itself off.
Update JBL Speaker Firmware
All wireless speakers run on hardware-specific software known as firmware. This is a type of software designed for specific devices, which needs to be regularly updated to keep that device functioning properly.
AirPods and cell phones also run on firmware that will update automatically under a set of specific circumstances, such as being connected to power or Wi-Fi.
When it comes to your JBL speaker, you may not realize that your firmware needs updating, with the only symptoms of outdated firmware being performance issues, such as random shutting down.
To update your speaker’s firmware, you can use the JBL Connect app, which is available for both Apple and Android devices for free from the respective app stores. Simply install the app, connect your device to your speaker, and follow the in-app instructions to update the firmware.
Alternatively, you can connect your JBL speaker to a PC or Mac and visit the JBL website to find the latest firmware version and install it on your speaker.
Avoid Overheating
JBL speakers, and other speakers from other manufacturers too, are at risk of overheating if used for too long or placed in a hot or poorly ventilated space. This could make the speaker shut down to prevent any catastrophic burn-outs that could damage it irreparably.
To avoid this happening, keep your speaker in a well-ventilated place, out of direct sunlight, and be sure to turn it off every now and then to allow it to cool down.
Final Thoughts
The many problems that can arise with electronic devices are irritating at the best of times, and infuriating at the worst. When your speaker keeps turning off, it can get incredibly annoying very fast – especially if you’re in the midst of a party and the music keeps dying!
If they haven’t, then it might be worth taking your speaker to an expert, or if it’s still relatively new, you may be able to return it to JBL under warranty.
At some point, though, as with all things, your speaker will break for the last time, and be unfixable. It might be time to consider a new speaker if you find yourself in this situation.
Now you’ve tried these fixes, hopefully, one of them has worked, and you can listen to your music, podcasts, videos, or whatever, without interruption!
