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Roam Won't Turn On... I've tried the "hold the button for 12 sec"


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I read the whole thing:

 

charge it

hold the button on the back for 12-15 seconds

 

This doesn’t work. 

 

When I am charging it, the orange light is indicated on the front of the speaker

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Best answer by ctweichmann 5 January 2023, 19:16

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Saying not using a PD charger or a charger with a higher capacity than Roam requirements can cause damage is scaremongering and not true (except that it could be said ‘any’ charger could be faulty and cause ‘damage’) - yet you said both.  Contrary to what you say above, I never suggested asking if a PD charger was being used was scaremongering, that’s a silly twist of words to suit.

No - it’s merely a case that a PD certified charger from version 1.0 to 3.1 will work to charge the Roam - The 5v (@ 3A) is one of its dedicated voltages, (now upto a 240w capacity in the latest version) - so it should work - that’s the point. It’s not a twist at all.

I’m not ‘reading’ into anything - the other aspects were responding to points you wrongly made imho - especially the irrelevant Google, Apple assertions etc. to justify PD when Sonos has no need of it.

Yes although what I said is true, it is perhaps irrelevant and off topic in relation to the thread… but the justification is that a PD certified charger should work in every case to charge the Roam, unless of course it just happened to have a fault, or the cable is faulty. The discussion here though is pointless, as the charger being used was the proprietary Sonos charger anyway.🤷‍♂️ A good alternative however, is to still use a PD certified charger as it ‘will’ work in its place. There are other chargers that may not.

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Saying not using a PD charger or a charger with a higher capacity than Roam requirements can cause damage is scaremongering and not true (except that it could be said ‘any’ charger could be faulty and cause ‘damage’) - yet you said both.  Contrary to what you say above, I never suggested asking if a PD charger was being used was scaremongering, that’s a silly twist of words to suit.

I’m not ‘reading’ into anything - the other aspects were responding to points you wrongly made imho - especially the irrelevant Google, Apple assertions etc. to justify PD when Sonos has no need of it.

I think you’re missing the point of my posts @sjw the Sonos Roam mentioned by @Laney0620 was not actually charging in their case - Not personally realising initially that they were using a Sonos charger, I simply asked them to post the charger power-output - Had it been a PD charger, as I highlighted, it should have been charging okay. So I think you’re reading too much into things here. There’s no scaremongering at all, other than I guess if the wrong voltage is used with a proprietary charger, then it might cause damage and some lesser-quality imported chargers may spike too, I guess.

Note too that I also asked if they were using the original cable that came with the Roam, that’s important here also, as that will not support todays PD chargers as the one end is USB Type A - so that’s all I was trying to discover.

A USB-C PD charger should work ‘for sure’ was the point being made. Some PD certified chargers also come with both USB-C and USB-A ports - I would have gone onto recommended trying the PD certified port instead as in my experience the USB-A port can (on some chargers) be underpowered, particularly if multiple devices are connected to the charger.

I have not gone into replying to every aspect of your post, as I think it’s mostly irrelevant to the purpose of the thread and is not relevant to me wanting to know if a PD certified charger was being used on this occasion when attempting charge the speaker. If you see that as scaremongering then I’m afraid that’s very much your own issue and certainly not my intention.

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Which proprietary chargers may not work or cause damage as the latter especially is a potentially serious issue?  They will all supply a minimum of 5V as per USB spec and the Roam should draw what is needed.  Nowhere does Sonos mention or even suggest the use of PD chargers which is specifically what we’re discussing.  If they had any concerns or recommendations, they would detail them.  In fact, as above, they have explicitly stated there is no issue with higher rated chargers so I don’t think unnecessary scaremongering regarding the use of non-PD chargers is at all helpful.

As far as Roam is concerned, there is nothing at all ‘more universal’ in a PD charger as it’s not at all interested in chargers that can deliver 20+V.

What do you mean by PD is the standard adopted by “Google, Apple. Amazon, Microsoft etc.”?  Simply that they (and every other USB device there is?) can use them?  Their devices can use it because PD supports a multitude of charging rates - but so do other chargers and they can be used just fine too if they meet the minimum spec.  Maybe you are confusing cause and effect?

Can you show me something saying Google won’t certify products without their chargers using PD?  Most devices (Google’s included!) don’t even come with a charger so how can they insist the charger needs to be PD certified if it doesn’t exist?  Google released their own Pixel 8 phone a couple of days ago -  where do they mandate this as their newly released phone that also doesn’t come with a charger (like most others) charges just fine with a normal, non-PD charger?  Including their own previous gen non-PD charger that was for the Pixel 7 - as everyone would expect!  It will just be slower.

Why is it relevant that an older Apple charger of 5V x 1A will not bee seen to charge a Roam - it is below the recommended supply written by Sonos.  From Sonos: “While Roam is capable of charging with a 5V/1.5A (7.5W) USB power adapter, you may experience slower charging times.“

I also have a PD charger capable of charging two devices really quickly (it’s GaN too) that charges my wife’s phone at a speed we hadn’t even seen on the display before (I think it was ‘Super Fast Charging’) when using Samsung’s own ‘fast charger’.

PD really is the future (and the now too for some) even though it’s been around some time in reality, but it’s just not really relevant for devices with such low charging requirements of 5V and 2A such as the Roam.

Adding my name to the list of people who had a Roam die like this.

Hi @Ken_Griffiths , I’m not sure why you keep mentioning PD chargers though,

I mentioned PD chargers here, because some proprietary chargers may not work with the Roam, they may even cause damage in some instances, whereas a PD charger is much more universal and designed to work with devices, like the Roam.

It is the standard adopted by Google, Apple. Amazon, Microsoft etc. In fact Google will not now certify any Android tablet, or mobile product for use with Google services if its charger is not PD certified. Furthermore  some older Apple 5v x 1A mobile device chargers will not be seen to charge a Roam as their power output is simply too low. 

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Hi @Ken_Griffiths , I’m not sure why you keep mentioning PD chargers though, it’s just a (fast) charging standard and every other ‘quality’ charger that can deliver at least 10W will be fine.  It doesn’t matter that the output of the Sonos charger is below what is shown on the base of the Roam - which isn’t a ‘limit’ related to what should be connected at all - it’s simply the limit the Roam will charge at.  Connecting chargers with outputs higher (PD or not) is completely irrelevant (and safe) as it will support 5V - the Roam takes what it needs and no more.

PD as a standard is able to safely deliver pretty high power output - and the Roam doesn’t need a fraction of this.

Hopefully Roam 2 will have much quicker charging speeds and be able to take advantage of these higher outputs - the Roam is a good way from those with a limit of 15W.

@sjw 

The Sonos Roam charger is LPS (limited power supply) and its power output is 2.1A x 5V (10.5 Watts only) well within the 15W limit shown on the base of the Roam.  It’s designed for use with the Roam, unlike PD chargers that are for use with different devices and different power outputs - That said, I did not realise, earlier in this thread, that @Laney0620 was using the Sonos charger anyway (I missed that point in their earlier post) and was just checking to see if the Roam had been used with a charger that was not PD certified and/or not intended for use with the Roam. It might have explained why it was not charging the Roam.

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PD may a preferred standard from your personal point of view Ken but Sonos makes no distinction or recommendation and the one they sell is not PD either.

Quoting scare articles such as the one linked to is not right for me and, dodgy Chinese fake chargers aside, there should be no issue whatsoever in using other non-PD chargers - such as the one Sonos themselves or pretty much any other phone company supply - as long as the minimum specifications are met.  Issues with Roams are highly unlikely to be related to the use of non-PD chargers.

I would not otherwise personally recommend using a power adapter that can perhaps exceed the maximum power stated on the bottom of the Roam 3A x 5V (15 watts) because if the non-certified charger does (ever) spike and exceed that limit, it may cause some damage to the speaker. The PD chargers are designed to prevent that from happening...

Sonos themselves (rightly) have no issue at all with using chargers above the spec required by the Roam and explicitly state there is no issue with using them.  ‘Any’ charger can have an issue but equally, reputedly branded non-PD ones also have circuitry to protect against such instances.

The vast majority of people use USB chargers they have from old devices or use the one that comes with a device.  PD is (hopefully) the future but totally not an issue without it.

it’s the charger that comes from SONOS and the cord I’ve stated this. Regardless it’s not working. The same cord and plug 🔌 aren’t working that worked fine last week! 

I would perhaps go onto contact Sonos Customer Support and see if they can assist. Here is the usual link to get in touch with them:

https://support.sonos.com/s/contact

it’s the charger that comes from SONOS and the cord I’ve stated this. Regardless it’s not working. The same cord and plug 🔌 aren’t working that worked fine last week! 

There is no Sonos recommendation of needing to use a PD charger so should not be relevant. PD may give better results but any charger giving 10W or more (5V, 2A) should be fine.

The PD certification is just a desired ‘standard’ to use, as outlined in that article I linked to earlier - I would not otherwise personally recommend using a power adapter that can perhaps exceed the maximum power stated on the bottom of the Roam 3A x 5V (15 watts) because if the non-certified charger does (ever) spike and exceed that limit, it may cause some damage to the speaker. The PD chargers are designed to prevent that from happening and can go upto 240W and be used safely with all sorts of devices. See their various power outputs for compatibility with the Sonos Roam.

If the USB_C charger is not PD certified (all my own USB chargers are) - and a device connected to it perhaps had power failure issues. I would be concerned to the extent that I would never personally use that charger in my Home again. 

My PD certified chargers are capable of charging two Sonos Move speakers at the same time, for example, or just a single Roam etc. 

It sometimes ‘may’ possibly be the charger that can cause problems with the connected device, so I would not overlook that as perhaps being a cause of the problem in some cases.

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There is no Sonos recommendation of needing to use a PD charger so should not be relevant. PD may give better results but any charger giving 10W or more (5V, 2A) should be fine.

It’s been on usb port charger and plug from Sonos. As I stated it was charged and working fine 9/23. The Sonos qi charger died a month ago. It’s been on USB with a 30w plug for 48hrs. The red light on. White light was on and blinking for a bit yesterday then I tried to turn it on and has not coke back on. 

Can you perhaps post/attach an image from the power adapter(s) you have been using, showing their actual power-output in terms of Amps x Voltage (Watts). It maybe handy to check/ensure they are actually compatible. Note if using a non-certified PD charger, or the cable supplied, it ‘may’ cause damage to a device in some instances, as the output power could spike etc. See this link:

https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/usb-pd-power-delivery-charger/

It’s been on usb port charger and plug from Sonos. As I stated it was charged and working fine 9/23. The Sonos qi charger died a month ago. It’s been on USB with a 30w plug for 48hrs. The red light on. White light was on and blinking for a bit yesterday then I tried to turn it on and has not coke back on. 

I’m experiencing this too. Odd because I have a play one and that still works to this day but the room I’ve had for 18 months and now it’s dead. It’s usually charged in acts as a group speaker in the house but I decide to take it with me to New York and it never had enough power. Once I unplugged it it was really weird it was working fine when I left, I was just listening to music surround sound and then like five hours later after packing and it stopped working and has not been charging since like the light came on the white light came on once or twice but as soon as I take it off, it has not come back on. Does bums me out because I was going to get my family one but not if it’s going to be a waste of money.

Which charger have you been using to charge the Roam - is it PD certified, is it a USB, or a Qi charger and what’s its power output Amps/Volts?

Thanks for the reply Ken. It’s simply not been my experience. I’ve tried to charge my roam now on several PD certified charges and frankly it’s dead, I get an orange light and no combination of button presses and charge time makes a difference. 
 

judging by the multitude of threads on several websites on this topic I’d say you should feel blessed you haven’t had an issue. 
 

And FWIW I’ve not had one minutes issue with my Move. Like you I’ve left mine outside and it’s been bulletproof. My Roam is faulty. I’ve no doubt about it. 

Clearly I (or many other users here) cannot rule out a fault with any Sonos product as we don’t have the tools, or access, to check such things… that’s an issue you would need to take-up with Sonos Support etc.

My post here earlier, is based on the experience the Wife and I have had with our Roams, but just to add my grandson has a Roam too and he’s not had any issues. Statistically, I’m sure some small percentage, of the many hundreds/thousands of Roams sold maybe faulty, but that’s where the warranty cover (or extended warranty cover) comes into play.

Many of our home electrical devices are covered for Five years here anyway, as I’ve been ‘bitten’ in the distant-past with a Bang & Olufsen TV that failed shortly out of warranty - so I tend to shell-out a little extra cash these days, for that extra peace of mind… if the Roam is within warranty, then speak with Support via their usual LINK.

I’m experiencing this too. Odd because I have a play one and that still works to this day but the room I’ve had for 18 months and now it’s dead. It’s usually charged in acts as a group speaker in the house but I decide to take it with me to New York and it never had enough power. Once I unplugged it it was really weird it was working fine when I left, I was just listening to music surround sound and then like five hours later after packing and it stopped working and has not been charging since like the light came on the white light came on once or twice but as soon as I take it off, it has not come back on. Does bums me out because I was going to get my family one but not if it’s going to be a waste of money.

Same issue here. Couldn’t agree more with all of your disappointment with this product.

I also own several other SONOS speakers and never experienced an issue. Roam is clearly a faulty product.

similar issues here, on multiple roams unfortunately, both times ~13 months after purchase, so 1 month after warranty. The first time Sonos was kind enough to replace out of warranty, but not this time. I’ll try to replace the battery myself to see if that does anything. Very unfortunate that there’s so many issues with the Roam, and that Sonos refuses to help fix these. Doubly so because they made the right moves with the Move- user-replaceable battery that they sell on the site, and seemingly pretty durable because I’ve had my Move for years and haven’t had any issues. But now 2 of my 3 Roams have broken Just out of their paltry 1 year warranty.

 

A very, very sad move coming from a company that positions itself as environmentally-friendly with its sustainable packaging, ota updates to speakers, etc. Selling $200 speakers that break after 13 months is absolutely abysmal, and is a rare misstep from this company.. I have over 20 sonos speakers around the house, and generally have great experiences with all but my Roams. unfortunately, the Roam is the only small, battery-powered speaker they have. In fact it’s the only thing small enough regardless of battery for me to justify putting in the bathroom.

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@Skyhawk 

Very interesting… seems that the initial charging power has to be higher if the battery is drained very deep. 
I usually charge my Roam with the original Sonos wireless charger for Roam. But each time the battery is drained to 0% putting Roam onto the wireless charger doesn’t start charging. The LED shows nothing… even after waiting for about 10 minutes. 
If I connect Roam via USB C the LED immediately shows charging status and the battery is charging. 
After about 2 minutes Roam powers on automatically. 

Tried resetting by holding the power button for 12 seconds and then hitting the power on for 2 seconds, no luck. Then I tried resetting by holding the power button for 12 seconds and then I plugged the power USB-C cord in and then hitting the power button for 2 seconds, no luck. Then I tried holding the power button for 12 seconds and then I plugged the  USB-C cord in using a stronger Anker USB C 736 Chargerand then hitting the power button for 2 seconds, no luck. Then I tried holding the power button for 12 seconds and then I plugged the  USB-C cord in using a stronger Anker USB C 736 Charger and also set the roam on the Qi (wireless) charger and hit the power button for 2 seconds, SUCCESS, the white light finally came on. The app then told me it need an update, which I did and I am so glad this worked, Try using the double charging method, it seemed to make it work. Hope this helps!

Posting this in case anyone stumbles across this thread with the same issue. 
 

I chose to buy a replacement battery off Amazon and some cheap tools. Took about 45 mins following a YouTube Teardown video of the Sonos Roam (look for Shaks Hacks) but I was able to swap out the battery and it jumped back to life. 
 

Been two days. It’s working perfectly and has been able to be topped up on charge. I’ve zero experience or skill in doing this kind of thing, I’m happy to have fixed my Roam vs create more landfill. 

 

Posting this in case anyone stumbles across this thread with the same issue. 
 

I chose to buy a replacement battery off Amazon and some cheap tools. Took about 45 mins following a YouTube Teardown video of the Sonos Roam (look for Shaks Hacks) but I was able to swap out the battery and it jumped back to life. 
 

Been two days. It’s working perfectly and has been able to be topped up on charge. I’ve zero experience or skill in doing this kind of thing, I’m happy to have fixed my Roam vs create more landfill. 

The same thing happened to mine.  Dead.  I got the same message from Support.  I complained that it was just over a year old and they sent me a new one instead of the 30%.  The new one lasted one day. 

I will never buy a Sonos again.  I bet it was the firmware update.  Great way to force obsolescence.  

So what happened to the replacement Roam that lasted one day? It would certainly have been within warranty, as a band new device - even refurbished products carry a Sonos warranty.

The same thing happened to mine.  Dead.  I got the same message from Support.  I complained that it was just over a year old and they sent me a new one instead of the 30%.  The new one lasted one day. 

I will never buy a Sonos again.  I bet it was the firmware update.  Great way to force obsolescence.  

 

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