Audio on my sense2 suddenly not working properly

[Little_Thistle]

All of the sudden, the audio on my sense2 is muffled. Totally inaudible, even in a silent room, with the speaker aimed directly into my ear! It wasn't great volume before but I could certainly hear it clearly enough in a silent room to know Alexa heard me correctly. It's at max volume, unmuted, cleaned my watch and make sure there was nothing physically obstructing the speaker, rebooted, disconnected Bluetooth and rebooted again.... Nothing. It sounds like someone's holding a pillow (or several) over the speaker no matter what I do, it was fine last night... No, it wasn't hit, dropped or otherwise rough up between last night and now, either... 

Open to suggestions but after chasing Fitbit to fix several other (as yet unresolved issues) since several months after getting my watch, I'm about done! The features I use most on the Sense2 are crashing, one by one and it's about to be transferred to the doorstop department. Highly disappointed, especially for the ridiculous price and absolute lack of customer service (effective or not), they rarely even reply when you contact them directly.

Anyone have ideas about how to keep this bloody thing out of the junk pile...?? 

[Guy_]

Hi @Little_Thistle - could it possibly have got wet? If so dry it, or place in rice for some time.

Did you also reboot the phone? In case it is not a watch problem at all.

Also bear in mind if the battery level is low it may struggle to deal with audio and the volume may need to be increased, possibly each time, as the volume setting may return to default.

[Little_Thistle]

Hi,
Thanks for the reply.

First, it's a waterproof device, it gets wet regularly, and dried
thoroughly, it's never caused any issue. As per the manufacturer, it can
get wet, even submerged, without harming it, so I'm not sure why you might
recommend putting it in rice.... But, as I mentioned, it is totally clean
and dry.

Yes, I did reboot the phone while attempting to troubleshoot the issue, but
the device volume can only be adjusted on the device itself. There's not
way to adjust it from the phone / app, and therefore no settings that could
be changed, even unintentionally. I'm not sure how the phone could affect
the device volume or speaker. But yes, I did...

My battery was, and still is, nearly full but I will keep that in mind. The
volume setting on the device however does not change after rebooting. I
checked after each attempt and the volume level was still at max.

I appreciate the suggestions.

Kaitlin Ness

Sent by SkyNet

[Guy_]

@Little_Thistle - even though it can be used in water it's not unheard of that water can get in the speaker hole, causing sound to muffle, and while dry on the outside it may still have water in it which is difficult to dislodge due to surface tension.

Drying with rice which is a cheap desiccant is often a good way to extract the residual moisture.

Similarity getting water in your ears can be annoying but due to the larger orifice is easier to clear (but don't put rice in it to clear it! Lol)

[Little_Thistle]

Yes, water does lodge in the speaker hole sometimes, a little shake
typically dislodges it but I also have cleaning tools specifically intended
for delicate things like that, ear buds, etc... It's clear.

I am familiar with using rice as a desiccant. I will try it if the sound is
still not working in the morning. Can't hurt... Unless it's a really heavy
bag and I drop it...

I promise not to put rice in my ears! Lol. I'll just roll around in it
after the pool... 😆 More fun than a towel!


Kaitlin Ness

Sent by SkyNet

[Guy_]

@Little_Thistle - thanks, made me smile.

Was going to suggest using centrifugal force, but there is a risk you might let go and it fly into space!

Have had success starting the mower with a hair drier. You might try applying gentle heat as the warm air (absorbs more moisture) may dry it quicker than rice.

Let us know if it helps.

Ref: mowers don't start so well cold. It did make the onlooker laugh! Wonderful thing physics!

[Rich_Laue]

Dirt lodged in the speaker would also mute the sound. Water would evaporate, dirt would not. 

[Little_Thistle]

Thank you, but I believe I mentioned the hole for the speaker is clean &
dry.

Kaitlin Ness

Sent by SkyNet

[Little_Thistle]

@Guy_ 

🤣Physics is awesome!

The sound did come back, as spontaneously and it went... I'm guessing there was some water in there somewhere but it wasn't in front of the speaker mesh... 🤷🏻‍

I'll see your cold mower and raise you a cold diesel tractor... Those aren't so happy to start either and a hair dryer definitely won't cut it... Enter, glow plugs! Lol. 

Just got a t-shirt that says "Never trust an atom, they make up everything!".🤣

[Guy_]

Thanks for the funny feedback, it made me smile @Little_Thistle - your T-shirt is great. Humour makes the world round!

Our Fordon had separate petrol and paraffin tanks to make it easier to start.

Glad speaker is working again.