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

Forum|Forum|3 years ago
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:

Disconnect Roam from charging cables and remove it from wireless chargers.
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.
Wait 10 seconds.
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.

Show previous replies

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roboliv

Lyricist I

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.

I suspected that this was my issue too with mine. I was worried my Anker Qi charger wore the battery out early. I appreciate your post, it’s confirmed my suspicions and I’ll look for a new battery as I’ve seen some online. Thanks.

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roboliv

Lyricist I

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.

100%. I’m sure someone like ifixit would totally facilitate something like this. They now have some really good guides up on Roam teardown/troubleshooting

https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Sonos_Roam

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johncrowther1

Lyricist I

Very disappointing to find my Sonos Roam doesn't charge properly. I can't turn it on at all despite having been on charge and connected to a 3A USB charger. I have a cheap old JBL clip which has never missed a beat over 5 years of heavy use. I just took it for granted that a device like this would just turn on and off with the push of a button and charge fully when hooked up to a charger. There's no sign that charge is getting low either, it just drops out and won't turn on again unless it's been on charge for over an hour. Sort yourselves out Sonos!

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tpernas

Lyricist I

I purchased 3 Sonos Roam SL speakers. 2 of them bricked - won’t charge, solid amber light only when plugged in, and won’t turn on/can’t be reset. I’ve only had them for about 1 ½ years. I planned on purchasing more products but this experience has caused me to reconsider. 3 Roam speakers with charging stations cost $800 dollars and 2 of them didn’t last 2 years. I shouldn’t have to pay for extended support when spending that much money. Is there an design flaw in the Roam speakers?

Bumper

I purchased 3 Sonos Roam SL speakers. 2 of them bricked - won’t charge, solid amber light only when plugged in, and won’t turn on/can’t be reset. I’ve only had them for about 1 ½ years. I planned on purchasing more products but this experience has caused me to reconsider. 3 Roam speakers with charging stations cost $800 dollars and 2 of them didn’t last 2 years. I shouldn’t have to pay for extended support when spending that much money. Is there an design flaw in the Roam speakers?

I wouldn’t let your Roam speaker experience dissuade you from purchasing DIFFERENT Sonos speakers. Roam is unique IME as the only POS speaker in the Sonos lineup. Hopefully Sonos helps you out but there’s no way I would replace them with new Roams.

I don’t know if there is a design flaw, but scrolling the community or other places where owners talk about Sonos and anecdotally there doesn’t seem to be any other speaker that gets as much hate as Roam, not even close IMO.