Battery for Pono

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Ephi82, Oct 9, 2018.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. Ephi82

    Ephi82 Still have two ears working Thread Starter

    Location:
    S FL
    hi fellow Pono owners. Can anyone guide me to a source for a replacement battery for the player?

    I know how to replace it, just need the battery. Google of no help....
     
  2. Ephi82

    Ephi82 Still have two ears working Thread Starter

    Location:
    S FL
    Bump?
     
  3. thegage

    thegage Forum Currency Nerd

    You have seen the Pono Player Teardown page? It gives the battery details. I suspect you’ll just have to find a standard LC18650 and kludge the old wiring onto it. They now make 4000 mAh versions (check Amazon), so you might get more playing time.

    John K.
     
  4. rjp

    rjp Senior Member

    Location:
    Ohio
    come on, are you guys saying that there are no batteries available for a $400 machine that went under?

    if this is true shame shame shame on you neil young shame on you.
     
  5. DyersEve726

    DyersEve726 Schmo Diggy

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
    If @thegage is correct, it's just a 3.7v 18650...no different than what I use in my vape and available all over the internet.
     
  6. Ephi82

    Ephi82 Still have two ears working Thread Starter

    Location:
    S FL
    Hi John. What does LC stand for? I assume I want a lithium ion battery?
     
  7. Ephi82

    Ephi82 Still have two ears working Thread Starter

    Location:
    S FL
    Note: I pulled and replaced the micro sd card. It looks like I have battery power again, but still want to find a replacement.
     
  8. deadcoldfish

    deadcoldfish Senior Member

    Location:
    Santa Rosa, CA
  9. DyersEve726

    DyersEve726 Schmo Diggy

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
    @Ephi82 I belive the "LC" stands for "Lithium Cobalt". There are different combinations that you can use to make a Li-ion battery. As far as I know, the combinations just give you different properties, ie, larger capacity, higher discharge rates, etc. In my opinion, if it's an 18650, it should work.

    Edit: it looks like using that specific part number on Amazon, however, has wires already attached, saving you some work, but me personally, I'd use a higher capacity battery and affix the appropriate cables myself.
     
    Last edited: Oct 10, 2018
  10. DyersEve726

    DyersEve726 Schmo Diggy

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
  11. Tommy SB

    Tommy SB Forum Resident

    Location:
    Santa Barbara, CA
    Additional video at 1:05 for battery tear-down info...

     
  12. bigtyke66

    bigtyke66 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles CA
    Very useful. Thanks!
     
  13. Ephi82

    Ephi82 Still have two ears working Thread Starter

    Location:
    S FL
    SandAndGlass and BGLeduc like this.
  14. Ephi82

    Ephi82 Still have two ears working Thread Starter

    Location:
    S FL
    Thanks, you don’t want to see me with a soldering iron!
     
  15. Ham Sandwich

    Ham Sandwich Senior Member

    Location:
    Sherwood, OR, USA
    The battery used in the PonoPlayer is a standard sized cylindrical battery. Not exactly proprietary. But I believe it also has a small circuit board spot welded on the battery that has something to do with power management. That circuit board part isn't part of the standard battery. I recall reading posts about people needing to reattach that circuit board to replacement batteries. You'll need to find out what's going on with that circuit board and how to deal with that when getting a replacement battery for the PonoPlayer.
     
    SandAndGlass likes this.
  16. The sum total of the world’s Pono knowldge now resides here:

    RESono-Community

    Note that the original Pono web site is still live, but for how long no one knows.
     
    SandAndGlass likes this.
  17. Ephi82

    Ephi82 Still have two ears working Thread Starter

    Location:
    S FL
    I thought power management was on the players board? Well I guess I’ll have to deal with that when I open it up. Thanks for the suggestion.
     
  18. ishmaelk

    ishmaelk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Madrid
    Hi. I'm about to replace the battery in my Pono, and I was wondering how your experience was.
     
  19. BayouTiger

    BayouTiger Forum Resident

    I’m listening in as my Pono died suddenly when I was plugging in a new SD card. Haven’t tried the battery but was considering it.
     
    SandAndGlass likes this.
  20. Ephi82

    Ephi82 Still have two ears working Thread Starter

    Location:
    S FL
    Well I have a battery but I haven’t done the repair yet. My Pono, as is, has very short battery life, but I use it mostly with an AC supply in the house and in the car. (Car has a DC to AC inverter).

    I am not sure I have the soldering skills and equipment to change the battery with the need to solder the power or temperature management chip/board. I may take it to an electronics repair shop and pay for an hour of labor.

    As an aside, I still love the sound of this great little DAP. 24/44.1 files sound great and the hi res ones sound even better.
     
    SandAndGlass and BGLeduc like this.
  21. Vinylsoul 1965

    Vinylsoul 1965 Senior Member

    Epi, the battery you bought had a jack on it - was it a 3 pin jack? I have two Ponos and the used one I bought needs a replacement battery. I don't think the soldering looks that difficult. Am I missing something important here?
     
  22. chrisomaha

    chrisomaha Member

    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    Was anyone successful with a battery swap? I was thinking about doing the same because I found a much higher capacity battery. I actually purchase batteries a while ago from Walmart that were 18650 3.7V 6000mAh, but couldn't find the wiring with a three pin connector, and didn't want to destroy the good battery that I had. (I found that the battery drain issue resolved when I unplugged the battery for an hour or so, and then plugged back in.) It seems to have been over two months since anyone has commented, so I'm wondering if anyone has had luck with this. I got the two batteries for a total of $6, so I'd be willing to part with one of them.
     
  23. Brando4905

    Brando4905 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Marion, NC
    Just a heads up on lithium batteries, particularly the 18650’s, be vary cautious using the cheap ones you’ve sourced from Amazon. There are soooooo many fake (copies of well known brands), poorly made, dangerous and miss labeled butteries on the market today it’s overwhelming. I’ve been using different devices that use the 18650 for a long time and I’m very, very cautious where I get my batteries. Not only because these ARE the ones that blow up, but because I want authentic products, not fake rip off copies that claim really high mah numbers. An 18650 with 6000mah is questionable. Half that is more likely to be a safe battery.

    I’m a Pono user and haven’t had the need to replace my battery yet. I feel for you guys that need to, but it looks pretty straight forward.

    Here is one reputable supplier of 18650’s, not affiliated at all other than a satisfied customer.
    18650 Battery-26650 14500 16340 Quality Li-ion Cells | ORBTRONIC

    No sense in replacing your battery in the beloved Pono and it catching on fire afterwards. :)
     
    chrisomaha likes this.
  24. youngcortez

    youngcortez Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    Bump just to see if anyone has actually went through with replacing their battery... Would love to spring more life into the Pono, but afraid to open it up. Does anyone have a link to a battery with the 3 pin connector already attached (previous Amazon link looked like it was just 2 pin)? The Orbtronic page looked like it was just the battery itself, and I don't know enough to solder the original 3 pin to the new battery (unless anyone has any sage advice). I can take it to an electronic place, but he was weary of doing anything dangerous (he had not seen / heard of a Pono before).
     
  25. ishmaelk

    ishmaelk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Madrid
    Another bump. I'm interested too.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine