Bose SoundLink speakers are one of the most convenient portable speakers thanks to their extended battery life, quality sound, and ease of connecting to other devices. Additionally, you can connect the speakers and improve the audio output by enabling features called Party mode and Stereo mode.
Most Bose SoundLink speakers follow the same connection procedure, and once they are connected to a device, you do not have to keep reconnecting them. Below is a general outline of how you can connect your Bose SoundLink speakers to each other or other devices and get a great listening experience.
Key Takeaways
- If the speaker does not power on when you press the power button, chances are, it is in battery protection mode. You can get it out of this mode by connecting the charger to a working power outlet and letting it charge for a while.
- When powering the speakers for the first time, some models will prompt you to select a language then they will default to the pairing mode.
- Other models not equipped with multiple languages will automatically default to pairing mode.
- You can also initiate pairing mode on the speakers by pressing and holding the Bluetooth button for at least three seconds, and the Bluetooth LED will start blinking blue to show the speaker is ready to pair.
- After enabling the pairing mode on the speakers, you should enable Bluetooth connectivity on the source device and scan for available Bluetooth devices.
- You will know the Bose speaker from the list of available devices as it will be identified by the model’s name, e.g., SoundLink Mini.
- If prompted to enter a PIN during the pairing process, use 0000 or 1234.
Bose SoundLink Speakers
Enabling Bluetooth Pairing Mode on Bose SoundLink Speakers
The first step is to ensure that the SoundLink speaker is in pairing mode. You can do this by following the steps below:
Press the power button once to power the speaker on. If this is the first time you are using the speaker, it will default to pairing mode.
However, the speaker might first prompt you to select a language, and you can scroll through the available languages using the volume up (+) and down (-) buttons.
When you find the language you want, press and hold the multifunction or pause/play button, depending on the model, until you hear a beep or the speaker notifies you it is ready to pair.
If you have already connected a device to the speaker and want to connect a new device, press and hold the Bluetooth button on the speaker for two to three seconds until you hear a voice prompt/tone notifying you the speaker is ready to connect.
To initiate pairing, press the Bluetooth button on the speaker for 2-3 seconds (until it starts flashing Blue or until you hear a voice prompt)
You will know the speaker is in pairing mode when the Bluetooth LED flashes blue. When the LED is flashing white, it means the speaker is connecting to a device.
The above procedure works for the following SoundLink speaker models:
- SoundLink Flex
- SoundLink Revolve
- SoundLink Mini II
- SoundLink III
- SoundLink Flex SE
- SoundLink Revolve+ II
- SoundLink Revolve+
- SoundLink Color
- SoundLink Wireless Mobile
- SoundLink Micro
- SoundLink Revolve II
- SoundLink Mini
- SoundLink Color II
- SoundLink Mobile II
How to Pair Bose SoundLink Flex with Your Phone
Enable Bluetooth Connectivity on the Source Device
After getting the speaker in pairing mode, the next step is to enable Bluetooth on the device you want to connect the speaker to, i.e., the audio source device.
To enable Bluetooth on most devices, you have to open the settings menu and, go to the Bluetooth option, then toggle the switch to on.
Bluetooth
You can find detailed instructions for Windows, iOS, and Android devices on their respective websites. You can also find the appropriate instructions in a device’s user manual.
Things You Should Know:
- A steady white LED indicates the speaker has successfully connected to a device, and you can commence playback.
When the speaker is paired with your phone, the light next to the Bluetooth button will be solid white
- On some SoundLink models like the SoundLink Wireless Mobile, the Bluetooth LED flashes on and off approximately every one to three seconds to show that the speaker is ready to pair or is pairing. The LED will indicate a solid color to show the speaker is connected to a device.
- You can press the Bluetooth button once to know which device is connected to the speaker through the voice prompt for SoundLink speakers capable of voice prompts. It is, therefore, important that you leave the voice prompt feature enabled.
- Suppose you press the Bluetooth button again within three seconds; the speaker will switch to another previously paired device. You can keep doing this until it notifies you that it has connected to the device you intended it to connect to.
- For other SoundLink speakers without voice prompts, like the SoundLink Mini, the speaker will switch to another device previously connected to the speaker. The speaker will go into pairing mode if the devices are out of range.
- The speaker can actively connect to two devices simultaneously and have up to eight or six devices stored in the pairing list.
- You can clear the pairing list on the speaker if you press and hold the Bluetooth button for ten seconds, and a voice prompt will notify you that the list has been cleared. You will also notice the Bluetooth LED will start blinking Blue to indicate it is ready to pair.
Connect Using the 3.5mm Stereo Cable/ Micro USB Cable
You can also connect to other devices using a 3.5mm auxiliary cable.
You can do this by purchasing the cable and connecting one end to the speaker’s 3.5mm jack/AUX connector and the other end to your source device/ the device you will be playing audio from, e.g., laptop or phone.
AUX audio input
Then press the Input mode button (labeled with a circle with an arrow partially going through it or labeled AUX) until the speaker notifies you it is on the AUX audio input. You can now play audio through the speaker.
Press the Input button to switch between Bluetooth and AUX input
If the speaker does not have the input button to change inputs, it will automatically enter the AUX input mode.
If you want to use a USB cable, connect it to the speaker’s charging port and your computer/laptop’s USB port and press the Input mode button until the speaker is on the USB Audio input.
Pairing SoundLink Speakers with Each Other
You can also pair some SoundLink speakers with each other and listen to audio in Stereo mode, where one speaker is the left speaker, and the other is the right one. The speakers can also be paired in Party mode where the audio comes uniformly out of both speakers, with no separation of left and right channels.
To connect in Party mode:
- Ensure both speakers are turned on and connect one to a source device.
- On the speaker connected to a source device, press and hold the Bluetooth and Volume + buttons.
- When you hear a voice prompt, go to the second speaker and press the Bluetooth and Volume – and wait to hear a tone. A few seconds later, a voice prompt from both speakers will notify you that the speakers are in Party mode.
Enabling Party/Stereo Mode on a Bose SoundLink Micro
To connect in Stereo mode:
- After putting the speakers in Party mode, press the Bluetooth and Volume + buttons simultaneously.
- Release the buttons when the speakers state they are in Stereo mode.
Enabling Party/Stereo Mode on a Bose SoundLink Revolve
You can now press and hold the Bluetooth and Volume + to shift between the two modes. You can disable the feature by switching off one of the speakers or by pressing and holding the Bluetooth button on one of the speakers.
You could also use the Bose Connect app to enable either of these features.
Pairing SoundLink Wireless Music System
Unlike the other Bose SoundLink speakers, the Wireless Music System comes with a remote and a SoundLink USB key that facilitates wireless connections to your PC without using the PC’s built-in Bluetooth radio.
Bose SoundLink Wireless Music System
When using the speaker for the first time, ensure you connect it to a power outlet and charge it, as the battery could be in a protection mode due to extended periods of inactivity for the speaker.
Once the speaker is charged, the battery LED will stop indicating red and go off to show that the battery is full, and you can commence connecting the speaker to your PC. Note that Bose recommends charging the battery for at least ten hours.
Before you start the connection process, close all music apps and websites that play audio on your PC.
Connect the SoundLink USB key to your PC, raise the antenna to a vertical position, and ensure the wireless source LED on the front of the speaker is flashing. If not, press the wireless button (located below the Play/Pause button) on the remote, and the LED will start flashing.
Wireless button (located below the Play/Pause button) on the remote
Also, ensure the LED on the USB key is flashing; if not, press the power key on the USB stick, and the LED will start flashing. The LED and power key are on the USB stick’s free end.
Wait as the USB key connects to the speaker, and you will notice the LEDs on both devices start blinking rapidly and then stop and become steady, indicating the speaker has been connected to your PC. You can now play audio on your PC, and you will hear it on the speaker if you cannot restart the PC.
Alternatively, you can connect the speaker to your PC or phone using the 3.5mm connector stereo cable. Connect one end of the cable to the speaker and the other to a device with a 3.5mm jack.
Then press the AUX key on the remote and increase the volume on the connected device, and you should hear audio output from the speaker. If not, increase the volume on the speaker using the remote or the speaker’s touch volume control buttons on the right side.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Question: How do I put my Bose SoundLink in pairing mode?
- Answer: The speakers automatically go into pairing mode when setting them up for the first time; however, some models might require you to select a language first. If you wish to enable pairing mode on a SoundLink speaker that has been in use for a while, press and hold the Bluetooth button for two to three seconds.
- Question: Can you pair Bose SoundLink speakers together?
- Answer: Yes, you can use the buttons on the speaker or the Bose Connect app.
- Question: Which Bose SoundLink speakers can be paired?
- Answer: The following Bose SoundLink speakers can be connected to each other:
- SoundLink Micro
- SoundLink Revolve+ Bluetooth Speaker II
- SoundLink Flex Bluetooth Speaker
- SoundLink Color II
- SoundLink Revolve Bluetooth Speaker
- SoundLink Revolve+ Bluetooth Speaker
- SoundLink Revolve Bluetooth Speaker II
Conclusion
If you encounter problems during the connection procedure, consult the user manual relevant to your SoundLink speaker for further assistance. The manuals are also available on Bose’s support page in PDF format. You can access them by selecting your speaker model and clicking on the PDF download option.
