Batteries are a bit like people: when they're young they can party for three days straight, but after a few years they're knackered just walking to the sofa. The VMK20's 1050 mAh battery lasts about 45 hours of listening when new, but lithium-ion batteries wear out with use. That's physics, not a design flaw. Still – if the battery died yesterday and again today, something else might be going on.
Why does the battery drain?
The most common reasons for the VMK20's battery draining quickly:
- ANC stays on. This is a classic. The VMK20's active noise cancellation runs on a separate circuit with its own button. When you turn off the headphones with the MFB button, Bluetooth shuts down – but ANC doesn't necessarily switch off. If the green LED is glowing on the left ear cup, ANC is busy fighting an empty room and munching through your battery. Press the ANC button separately to turn it off before you put the headphones on the shelf.
- The headphones don't turn off properly. You need to hold the MFB button down until you hear the shutdown sound. A short press just pauses the music. If the headphones stay on and keep searching for a Bluetooth connection, the battery will drain dead in a couple of days.
- The battery has aged. A lithium-ion battery lasts about 300–500 charge cycles before capacity starts to noticeably drop. If you've been using the headphones daily for a couple of years, the battery has simply lived its life. This is normal for all lithium-ion devices – phones, headphones, electric toothbrushes.
- The charger or cable is faulty. A dodgy USB-C cable can charge slowly or incompletely. Try a different cable.
How to fix it
- Turn off ANC separately. Press the ANC button on the left ear cup. The green LED turns off. Always do this before turning off the headphones.
- Turn the headphones off properly. Long-press the MFB button on the right ear cup until you hear the shutdown sound.
- Charge fully and test. Plug in a USB-C cable, let it charge for 2–3 hours. Then use them normally and see how long they last. If you're getting close to 40+ hours, the problem was a shutdown issue.
- Try a different USB-C cable. Sometimes the fault is in the cable, not the headphones.
- Reset the headphones. Plug a 3.5mm AUX cable into the headphones and unplug it. This disconnects the Bluetooth circuit and resets connections. Simple, but works surprisingly often.
If nothing helps
If the battery only lasts a few hours from a full charge, the battery has most likely reached the end of its life. Good news: we'll replace it. At Valco, headphones get repaired, not binned.
Drop us an email at info@valco.fi. Include:
- Order number (if you can find it)
- A photo of the headphones (just for identification)
- A short description of the problem
Our service team in Kajaani will swap the battery, and your headphones will come back good as new. If the device is within the warranty period (24 months), it's covered under warranty. Outside warranty, the battery replacement is available as a repair package.
Every repaired pair of headphones is one less pair in a landfill – and another tiny step closer to that Death Star.
