JBL Flip 4 Troubleshooting

The speaker will not respond or show any sign of powering up.

If your micro USB cable shows any kind of wear, try using another micro USB cable that works. Some of the internal wires may have frayed.

If the micro USB charging port is deformed or loose, it may not be able to connect with the charging cable well enough to charge effectively. Please refer to our USB Port Replacement Guide to find out how to replace a damaged charging port.

If the speaker works when it is plugged in, but does not work when it is not plugged in, the speaker may have a faulty battery. To replace the battery, please refer to the Battery Replacement Guide.

This is a hard issue to diagnose. If previous solutions did not work, the issue may be a faulty circuit board. Accessing the main circuit board, however, requires destruction of parts of the speaker.

The buttons on the speaker either do not light up or are unresponsive.

The speaker may be in a different (programming?) mode entered by mistake. Even power cycling the speaker by removing the battery doesn’t exit this mode.

Symptoms:

• It will only turn on by attaching power, and it immediately turns off when removing power, making the power on and off sounds
• None of the buttons do anything if not showing the current power level
• Charging works
• Audio via jack port works, when powered

How to fix it:

• Attach power and disconnect immediately: the speaker should stay on
• Press “JBL connect” and “Volume Up” together for ~5 seconds

The speaker should reset and then work normally.

Because the JBL Flip 4 is sealed very well, it is unlikely any debris would be blocking the buttons. The main cause for unresponsive buttons would be a faulty control board. To access the control board under the buttons, please refer to the Controls Board Replacement Guide. Unlatch the wire that is connected to the circuit board, and then plug it back. If the lights on the board do not flash, replace the circuit board. If the lights on the board flash, the speaker should be working again.

Your speaker does not hold a charge or turns off immediately after unplugging it.

If the battery does charge but loses the charge very quickly, this may be because the usable capacity of any battery decreases as the number of its discharge/charge cycles increases. Thus, new batteries hold much more power than older ones. You can find instructions to replace the battery by referring to the Battery Replacement Guide.

Your speaker will not connect to a device using bluetooth while powered on.

If another phone, TV, or computer that has connected to your speaker in the past is within bluetooth range, it may have already connected to your speaker, thus not letting your preferred device to connect. The JBL Flip 4 can only connect to one device at a time. To fix this, try to find this intercepting device and disconnect the speaker from that device.

If you cannot find the intercepting device, try to isolate the speaker and your preferred device. For example, you can try going in a closed room far away, to physically disconnect the speaker from the intercepting device. Turn off the speaker and turn it back on and allow your preferred device to be the first device the speaker finds to connect with.

There is a chance that a device near your speaker is sending signals with the same frequency that your speaker uses to connect via bluetooth. These devices usually include wifi routers, baby monitors, or another wireless speaker. To fix this problem, move any barriers around the speaker that could be interfering, or restart a device that could be causing the interference.

Sometimes bluetooth devices have trouble connecting to computers because the computer does not have the software required to use bluetooth. Most computers should have the standard bluetooth audio driver that the JBL Flip 4 uses, but if your computer seems like it does not, you may need to refer to your computer’s manufacturer to download the audio drivers required.

While playing audio through the speaker, your speaker starts making unusual crackling or static noises.

The connected device could be too far away from your speaker. The effective bluetooth range is around 30 feet. Any walls or similar obstacles may reduce this range. To fix this, place the connected device closer to the speaker.

If the abnormal sounds do not sound electronic or if they happen at certain audio pitches and/or volumes, the speaker’s driver themselves could be damaged. To replace the individual speakers, you can refer to the Front Active Speaker Replacement Guide.

If the previous solution did not work, poor electrical connections inside the speaker may be causing the issue. Unfortunately, these poor electrical connections, ranging from failing solder joints to loose plugs, can be incredibly hard to find. Additionally, accessing the main circuit board requires the destruction of parts of the speaker which will significantly decrease or impair the performance of the device.