Bose Soundbar 700 Remote Won’t Pair? – Complete Fix Guide

Wondering why Bose Soundbar 700 remote won’t pair? We got you covered!

Bose Soundbar creates a home theater-like experience, and you can operate it by using the remote control.

Sometimes things go out of our expectations, and suddenly the Bose remote becomes unable to connect to the Bose sound device.

Let’s learn why?

The Bose soundbar 700 remote will not pair due to dead batteries or the IR signal being obstructed. In other situations, the soundbar remote could start glitching so we need to perform a reset to solve the problem.

There is much more to learn about the problem than just this, so let’s jump right in!

How To Fix Bose Soundbar 700 Remote Won’t Pair?

To identify and solve the problem with the Bose soundbar’s remote, we need to target ALL of the possibilities individually.

We’ll start by learning the correct way to pair the remote and then start excluding potential causes one by one. 

Solution #1 Pair The Bose Remote (Correctly)

To be able to pair the remote to the Bose soundbar you need the device connected to your network router and download the Bose Music App.

If you can’t use your WiFi, then connect the Bose soundbar to the router via an Ethernet cable.

When you have the app installed, follow the steps below.

1. Open the Bose Music app.
2. Tap on Pair New Remote.
3. Insert batteries into the remote.
4. If you already have batteries installed, reinsert one of them.
5. Press the Volume Up button.
6. Tap Done, to complete the pairing.

In case the remote does not get paired, unplug the Bose soundbar’s power cord for 30 seconds and reconned the device after.

When you’re ready re-attempt to pair the remote again!

Solution #2 Power Cycle Remote & Soundbar

When the Bose remote won’t pair with the soundbar it’s important to perform a power cycle, which will refresh the connection.

There are a couple of specific things to do so follow the steps!

1. Turn OFF the Bose soundbar.
2. Disconnect the power cord from the outlet.
3. Remove the batteries from the remote.
4. Press each button on the remote twice.
5. Insert the batteries and plug your soundbar into power.

When you’re ready with the power circulation, scroll up and use the steps from the previous solution to re-attempt pairing the remote.

Perhaps that’s all you need for your remote to get paired to the soundbar. In case the problem is persistent, proceed with the next step!

Note: Allowing the soundbar to discharge for longer also helps the device cool down!

Solution #3 Inspect For An Interference!

All electronic devices, when emitting frequencies, can pick up the IR signal from your Bose remote, and prevent the device from connecting.

All you have to do is to unplug the devices, whether it is microwaves, lights, laptops, or Bluetooth devices.

In addition, remove any obstructions in front of your Bose soundbar’s receiver.

Make sure that the soundbar and remote are in a clear line of sight. Also, check whether your internet connection is currently intact and if your Bose soundbar is connected.

Note: Attempt to pair your remote with the Bose soundbar using Solution #1.

Solution #4 Replace Remote Batteries

If your remote is still not pairing with the devices after following all the above methods, then the fault is in the remote batteries.

All you have to do is replace the batteries with 4 x AA units.

Keep in mind that you need to replace all 4 batteries and just some of them since, when one of the units is empty, the entire remote won’t work.

Here is how you can set up new batteries in Bose remote:

1. Remove the remote battery compartment.
2. Replace the batteries.
3. Close the back compartment of the remote. 
4. Using the camera on your mobile phone, aim at the remote’s IR eye.
5. Click the buttons on the remote.
6. You will notice a blinking light from your remote’s eye. 
7. This indicates that the remote is working. 
8. Follow Solution #1 to re-attempt to pair the remote.

Note: Use only fresh batteries to replace the old ones in your Bose soundbar remote!

Solution #5 Clear Bose Remote Cache

After replacing the batteries, if your Bose remote is not paired, then you need to clear the Bose remote cache.

Because by doing this, the remote will free up all saved data and remove all pairing connections until now.

Alert: The bose remote will be removed from all connected devices after clearing the cache! 

Here is how you can clear the Bose Soundbar remote cache:

1. Open the Bose Music app. 
2. Go to the app Settings. 
3. Tap on Universal Remote.
4. Click on Advance, and then tap on Remove Pairing Memory. 
5. Press and hold the Navigation (<) and Volume down (-) buttons at the same time.
6. Hold them for at least 5 seconds. 
7. Come back to the app, and tap on Pair Remote. 
8. Remove any one of the batteries from the remote and place it back in. 
9. Press the Volume up (+) button from the remote. 
10. Wait until the remote pair with the Bose Music app. 
11. Tap Done to finish the process. 

To remove the pairing memory of the soundbar as well, hold the Action button for 5 seconds!

Then you can re-attempt to pair the Bose remote to the soundbar using Solution #1.

This time the remote will get paired and you’ll start interacting with your soundbar, remotely.

Solution #6 Check Internet Connection

The Bose remote might frequently disconnect from the soundbar when the mobile application loses connection.

In that set of thoughts, we need to inspect whether everything with the internet is intact.

We can do so by targeting different factors such as the ones below:

1. Reboot Network Router/Modem.
2. Disconnect other devices from the WiFi.
3. Carry out a speed test online!
4. Reconnect the Ethernet cable.
5. Reconnect your Bose soundbar.

In case you’ve identified issues with your network, it’s best to deal with the first.

When you’re ready, re-attempt to pair your Bose remote to the soundbar using Solution #1. In case the process continues to fail, jump to the next solution!

Tip: Call your ISP in case you’ve identified internet problems!

Solution #7 Reset The Bose Remote

In case your Bose Soundbar 700 remote not pairing, you have the most powerful solution available.

This is the method that is most likely to solve the problem.

Here we’ll learn how to reset your Bose remote and by doing this, the remote will get all its functionalities back.

Then we’ll be able to freshly reconnect the device to the soundbar and forget that there was a problem.

Let’s learn more!

Here is how you can reset your Bose remote in easy steps!

1. Press and hold the Source button from the remote (TV, CBL-SAT).
2. Wait until the other six source buttons glow up. 
3. Release that source button as the lights glow up. 
4. Press 981 from the remote, and a light will come up on all source buttons!
5. This is what indicates that the reset process is complete.
6. Reprogram the remote again by following Solution #1.

Note: Resetting the remote will delete all connected devices' information!

Quick Recap:

Thus, whenever the Bose 700 remote won’t pair to the soundbar, ensure that there is no interference and clear the remote’s cache. In case that does not help, check your internet connection and reset the Bose remote, which in most cases turns out to be helpful.

Wrapping Up:

In this guide, we have learned how to fix when Bose Soundbar 700 remote won’t pair.

We now know that the Bose soundbar uses IR signals to communicate with the remote and the path between both devices should be clear.

In addition, the remotes within the remote should be replaced, especially when the problem won’t disappear!

Good Luck!