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Contributor I
June 6, 2023
Answered

Yet another solid orange light defective Roam that won't turn on

  • June 6, 2023
  • 90 replies
  • 77072 views

Has anyone figured out a way to get these things working or am I just screwed for being a loyal customer and early adopter with a first gen roam thats out of warranty?

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Best answer by GuitarSuperstar

Charge the Roam for about an hour using the supplied USB-C cable and a 5V/2A (10W) USB power adapter. Then reboot the Roam by following these steps:

  1. Disconnect Roam from charging cables and remove it from wireless chargers.
  2. Hold the button on the back of Roam for at least five seconds until you hear the power-off tone and the light above the Sonos logo turns off.
  3. Wait 10 seconds.
  4. Press the button on the back of Roam to turn it back on.

If this doesn’t work, submit a diagnostic and contact Sonos Support.

90 replies

Lyricist II
December 12, 2023

I disagree.  I rarely interact in this community, this is only my second time.  Its been years and both times my location was not relevant to the discussion, as it isn’t relevant here either.  You were able to point out I was looking at the wrong terms of service without knowing where I am, which was the solution to my question.  I am not always in the same country and putting a location in my profile for 2 or 3 years down the road when I didn’t even remember that I put that in my profile and may give erroneous context to others would be worse than just not knowing.  So thank you for your advice, but no.

Stanley_4
Grand Maestro
December 12, 2023

so if you don’t put it in your profile remember to mention it when it may impact forum answers.

 

Lyricist III
December 28, 2023

I’m confused, people are talking about a 1-year warranty, but the terms and conditions according to https://www.sonos.com/pdfs/policies/2023-terms-of-sale-en.pdf clearly state a 2-year warranty on their products in section 10a.  Is this a recent change so that products bought before 2023 only have a 1-year warranty?  I’ve got 2 sonos roams, both with this behavior, or rather lack of behavior.  Neither will turn on, using the same chargers from the very beginning.  Its been about 18 months.  My problem is I’m now in another country and returning them will be very difficult.  Don’t know that I’m going to even bother.

I’m in the same boat. I would prefer if Sonos just sent me the 30% discount code/coupon and I could just use it wherever I am in the world and not require me to return my defective unit(s). If they are worried about being scammed, I’m sure they could just blacklist units by serial number to not work.

Lyricist I
January 2, 2024

same problem here. suddenly bricked for no apparent reason

Ken_Griffiths
January 2, 2024

same problem here. suddenly bricked for no apparent reason

If you’ve tried the ‘usual’ steps mentioned, including checking the power-output of the adapter as being 5v and between 10W-15W ..and also tried the power-reset advice, then it maybe best to submit a Sonos system diagnostic report from within the Sonos App, note it’s reference and then contact/chat with Sonos Support Staff via this LINK and see what the Staff can perhaps suggest to resolve the matter.

Prominent Collaborator I
January 5, 2024

I have successfully repaired multiple Roams that seemed dead (like the title here says).   The typical symptom is no signs of life, but when plugged in to a USB-C power supply, the charge light would come on…. but no matter how long left like that it was dead when the power cable was removed.

The issue is bad lithium-ion cells.  Unlike some devices, Roam devices will not work even when plugged in to a beefy power supply, if the battery is defective.  They simply will not run from wired power supply without a working battery.

To repair this requires replacing the two lithium-ion cells inside.  It’s not an easy repair.  Just getting the device opened without damaging it is difficult.  First step is to remove the end caps (they are glued down well - use a spudger around the perimeter of each cap).  After that, there’s 4 screws (2 under each endcap) to remove the grille.  Then 6 to remove the speaker assembly (one connection to the charge/power circuit board).  Then 4 screws to remove the logic board (one wifi cable that is very well glued down and two ribbon cables to remove).  Then 4 more screws to remove the battery assembly (one connection to the charge/power circuit board).  The batteries then need to be carefully removed from the assembly, and new cells need to be installed.  Lithium-Ion cells have inherent risk and can self-ignite if not handled properly.  The cells are not soldered -- they are spot welded to nickel strips, making this step beyond many DIY toolkits.  When put back together, it should work.  Be careful re-gluing the end-caps so that the buttons (on the top) and Qi charger (on the bottom) don’t get covered in glue.

I don’t know what causes bad cells in what often seems like a short time (eg under 2 years).  It may be poor quality cells, or maybe it’s related to constant charging or physical environment (eg heat).

Of note, Sonos sells replacement battery packs for the Move speakers, and those are end-user installable.  There is no such option available for Roam speakers, making them disposable once the batteries die.

 

Contributor I
January 27, 2024

I had the same problem described here so I’ve just replaced the dead battery on my 2+ year old Roam (bought July 2021), was a fairly simple fix and it now works OK. I followed a youtube video showing the steps clearly. Bought a replacement battery off Amazon for about £25 so thats the cost of the fix. Apart from the new battery all you need are 2 torx drivers T6 and T10 sizes and a couple of bodgers to prize the bits apart. Just be careful undoing the cable clips (one for the speakers and one for the battery), there is a tag to depress to remove the plug from the board.

THis was the tube video I watched -

 

Lyricist II
February 10, 2024

Same issue. Bought the Sonos roam fron Costco 2 Christmas's ago, to pair with our play 5s. Hardly used it compared to the other speakers. Now it will light up orange when plugged in, but does absolutely nothing else. Extremely let down. 

 

 

I also bought my Roam at Costco.  January 19, 2022 so mine lasted just over 2 years.  Same symptom.  Solid orange charging light using Sonos charging block and Sonos provided USB cable.  No response to power button or response to factory reset.

 

Contributor I
February 10, 2024

I also bought my Roam at Costco.  January 19, 2022 so mine lasted just over 2 years.  Same symptom.  Solid orange charging light using Sonos charging block and Sonos provided USB cable.  No response to power button or response to factory reset.

 

if you don’t have success getting it replaced, have a look at my post above yours.

Lyricist I
February 19, 2024

There is really no need to weld lithium cells together for this fix…there are plenty of suppliers on Amazon that sell the battery pack with the pin connector already attached and all sealed up, so as long as you can get the Roam all taken apart, you can just pop one of these battery packs in the plastic holder and put it all back together and have a working Roam again.  Sonos has such good products…I mean I have had some of my speakers and other Sonos devices for over a decade and ALL of them still work.  They really should create a battery replacement flow for the Roam…it isn’t really acceptable to just give you a 30% off coupon to spend another $100+ to get a brand new speaker when a battery replacement is all that is needed.  And I don’t want to just give up on my Roams…I have Moves too, but they are definitely not as portable as the Roam is.