Charge it first, then pair it
- Using a Sony SRS-XB100? Charge it for more than an hour, with it switched off, before you use it for the first time.
- For one speaker, turn it on and press the Bluetooth button once (skip that if the blue light is already double-flashing), then pick SRS-XB100 on your phone or computer.
- For two, update both, link them to each other with Bluetooth/ST PAIR, then pair your phone with the speaker whose blue light is flashing.
- A notification sound and a steady blue light mean you're connected. The USB-C port is for charging only, not music.
We'd plug the speaker in before you open any Bluetooth menu. The first charge should run for more than an hour with the speaker switched off, and it needs a good charge whenever you pair it.
These steps are for the SRS-XB100, on its own or as a Stereo Pair of two XB100s. Other Sony models, mixed-model pairs and bigger groups need their own instructions, which you can look up through Sony support for the Americas (opens in a new tab).
Charging it and reading the orange light
With the speaker and the cable dry, charge it with the USB-C cable that came with it and a store-bought USB wall adaptor rated 5 V that can deliver at least 0.5 A (500 mA). The orange CHARGE light stays on while it charges and goes out when it's done.
Then unplug the cable and close the cap firmly with nothing caught in it, since the cap is what keeps water and dust out of the speaker. Even with the cap shut, the speaker isn't built for shower-strength water pressure, and pouring hot water or aiming a hair dryer at it can wear down that protection.
A slow orange flash means the battery's running low. A fast flash means the speaker has detected a problem with its internal temperature or battery, so turn it off, unplug the USB cable, wait a while, then restart it by holding the power button for about 8 seconds.
If it keeps flashing fast, contact Sony support for the Americas (opens in a new tab) or your nearest Sony dealer.
It's normal for the speaker to get warm while it charges. Keep it between 5 °C and 35 °C (41 °F and 95 °F) for charging and playing, because outside that range charging stops and the speaker may switch itself off to protect its circuits.
If charging stops because of the temperature or because it ran too long, unplug the cable and plug it back in once the speaker is within that range. Heat can also turn its volume down to protect the battery.
To play, give it a flat, level, open spot so it can't vibrate itself off a slope, away from flames, direct sun and other heat.
Pairing one speaker with a phone or tablet
- Stop any music and turn the volume down on the speaker and your phone, so nothing blasts out when they connect. Keep the phone within 1 m (3.2 ft) and turn the speaker on.
- If the blue Bluetooth light is double-flashing, the speaker is already in pairing mode. If not, press the Bluetooth button once. You'll hear “Pairing” and the light starts double-flashing.
- In your phone's Bluetooth list, choose SRS-XB100. Enter 0000 only if the phone asks for a passkey, then confirm the connection.
- A notification sound and a blue light that changes from flashing to steady mean you're connected. Start playing quietly and turn it up from there.
A steady blue light before you pair means the speaker has already reconnected to a device it knows. Press the Bluetooth button to add a new phone, or turn on Bluetooth on a phone you've paired before and it may reconnect by itself.
Your phone or tablet needs a Bluetooth music profile such as A2DP, and some devices still won't connect or work properly. Devices with a built-in radio or tuner (opens in a new tab) can't connect at all, because broadcasts can pick up noise.
The speaker remembers up to eight devices, replacing the earliest one it connected to when you pair a ninth, and it plays from only one device at a time.
Pairing with a Windows PC or a Mac
These menus match Windows 11, Windows 10 and macOS Monterey 12.6. They aren't tested on every computer and don't apply to home-built PCs, so if your screens look different, follow your computer's own Bluetooth instructions.
Wake the computer and unmute it first, because a muted computer sends nothing to the speaker. Then put the XB100 in pairing mode, with the blue light double-flashing.
On Windows 11, go to Start, Settings, Bluetooth & devices, turn Bluetooth on, choose Add device, then Bluetooth, and select SRS-XB100. On Windows 10, go to Start, Settings, Devices, Bluetooth & other devices, turn Bluetooth on, choose Add Bluetooth or other device, then Bluetooth, and select SRS-XB100.
Enter 0000 only if you're asked for a passkey. Connected music or Connected voice, music on the screen means it's paired. If SRS-XB100 doesn't appear, press the speaker's Bluetooth button and search again.
On macOS Monterey 12.6, open System Preferences, then Bluetooth, select SRS-XB100, click Pair and follow the prompts. Then choose SRS-XB100 under Output Device in the speaker menu at the top right of the screen, so the Mac's sound goes to the speaker.
Paired but silent? Check that the computer is awake, unmuted and playing something, with its sound output set to the Bluetooth speaker.
Two matching speakers pair with each other first
Stereo Pair takes exactly two SRS-XB100 speakers, both on the latest software. We'd do both updates near an outlet before you take the speakers anywhere, because an update won't run on battery power.
Sony's update steps (opens in a new tab) use the Sony | Music Center app, with the speaker plugged into a USB wall adaptor the whole time. As with charging, make sure the speaker and cable are dry before you plug in.
- Stop any music, turn the volume down on your phone and both speakers, put the speakers within 1 m (3.2 ft) of each other and turn both on. If one reconnects to an old phone and its blue light goes steady, turn off that phone's Bluetooth or turn the phone off.
- On the first speaker, hold Bluetooth/ST PAIR for about 2 seconds. After the notification sound its Bluetooth and ST PAIR lights flash, and the ST PAIR light stays on after about 5 seconds.
- Within 1 minute, hold Bluetooth/ST PAIR on the second speaker for about 2 seconds. You'll hear Left and Right, both ST PAIR lights stay on and the second speaker's blue light goes out. Miss the minute and the first speaker cancels its Stereo Pair setting.
- On your phone, choose SRS-XB100 to pair with the speaker whose blue light is still flashing. A notification sound and a steady blue light confirm it.
- Play at a moderate volume. The volume buttons on either speaker change both, and the speaker with the lit blue light plays the left channel.
Stereo Pair switches both speakers to the SBC codec automatically, so there's no codec setting to change.
When it won't pair or play
Speaker missing from your phone's list? Check that the phone is on with Bluetooth enabled, bring it within 1 m (3.2 ft) and make sure the blue light is double-flashing, pressing the Bluetooth button once if it isn't. Still missing? Turn Bluetooth off and back on at the phone.
Pairing mode ends after about 5 minutes and the light drops back to a slow flash, unless the speaker has no pairing information yet. Press the Bluetooth button again and pick the speaker.
Connected but no sound? Check that both devices are on and something's playing, and turn the volume back up on both after lowering it to pair.
Stereo Pair won't link? Check that both speakers have the latest software, sit within 1 m (3.2 ft) of each other and aren't playing anything. Link the two speakers first, then pair your phone with the one whose blue light is flashing.
We'd leave initializing out of your pairing fixes. It deletes every pairing the speaker has saved, and your phone may not reconnect afterwards until you delete the speaker from its Bluetooth list and pair again.
If these checks don't get you connected, contact Sony support for the Americas (opens in a new tab) or your nearest Sony dealer.
Disconnecting, or ending Stereo Pair
To disconnect, turn off Bluetooth on your phone, turn the phone off, or turn the speaker off. A notification sound confirms it.
Turning off one speaker in a Stereo Pair turns off the other too, but they stay set up as a pair. To use them together again, turn on the second speaker within 1 minute of the first.
To end Stereo Pair, hold Bluetooth/ST PAIR on either speaker for about 2 seconds, until you hear the notification sound and the ST PAIR light goes out. Only want to use one of them? Turn it on and hold Bluetooth/ST PAIR until the notification sound ends Stereo Pair.
If you've already restarted or initialized either speaker while they were paired, press Bluetooth/ST PAIR on the other one to end Stereo Pair. It's a press here rather than the 2-second hold, and skipping it can leave you with connection failures or sound dropouts (opens in a new tab).
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