VMK20 button stuck down?
A stuck button is annoying. You press and press, but nothing happens – or worse, the button is jammed down like you're stuck in an endless customer service queue. Usually it's the Vol- (volume down) button on the right earcup. There are a few possible causes, and most of them can be sorted without a repair.
Why does the button get stuck?
On the side of the VMK20's right earcup, there are three buttons: Vol+, MFB (aka the "mudafukin button" – power/play/pause), and Vol-. They're mechanical buttons, so they can take a beating – but not everything.
The most common causes:
- Dirt or crumbs under the button. Headphones that live in your pocket collect everything imaginable. Breadcrumbs, sand, dog hair. Life is messy.
- Liquid damage. Sweat, rain, or that knocked-over coffee cup. Liquid dries inside the button mechanism and glues it shut.
- Mechanical damage. The headphones took a fall, someone sat on them, or the dog used them as a chew toy. The button may be physically bent.
- Software glitch. Less common, but sometimes the Bluetooth chip thinks the button is being held down even when it's not.
How to fix it
Try these in order:
- Reset the headphones. Plug a 3.5mm AUX cable into the jack on the bottom of the headphones. This disconnects the Bluetooth chip. Unplug the cable and power the headphones back on. Simple, but it works surprisingly often.
- Clean the button. Blow around the button with compressed air – or use your own lungs, though compressed air works better than your breathing apparatus. You can also rapidly click the button several times in a row. Sometimes the stuck debris breaks free from the mechanical movement.
- Check for liquid damage. If the headphones got wet, let them dry properly. At least 24 hours in a warm, dry place. Not a sauna. Not a microwave. Room temperature will do.
- Feel the button. Does it feel mechanically different from the other buttons? If the button doesn't move at all, or feels loose and floppy, you're probably looking at physical damage.
- Test with an AUX cable. Plug in the cable and see if the headphones work in wired mode. This helps narrow down the problem: if the button doesn't work even in wired mode, the issue is mechanical.
If nothing helps
If the button is physically stuck, bent, or none of the above did the trick, it's time for a repair. Here at Valco, we fix things – we don't chuck them in the bin.
Send us:
- A photo of the broken button (close-up of the right earcup)
- Your order number or the email associated with your order
- A short description of what happened
Drop us a message at info@valco.fi or through our support page. Our repair team in Kajaani will go through the unit and fix the button. If the headphones are within the warranty period (24 months) and it's a material or manufacturing defect, the repair won't cost you a thing. If the button broke because you sat on your headphones after one too many pints – well, we've got a repair package that'll sort it out anyway.
The Death Star won't build itself, but your headphones will definitely get fixed.
