Life gets wet sometimes. Headphones get left on the patio, forgotten in a pocket on the way to the sauna, or – as one customer described it – drunkenly abandoned in the yard at the mercy of the rain. We get it. But the VMK20 isn't a submarine, even though it overachieves in pretty much every other department.
Why water and headphones aren't mates
The VMK20 is designed to handle everyday life: sweat, drizzle, and the occasional splash. However, they don't have an official IP water resistance rating. The fabric cover soaks up water like a sponge, and once that water makes its way to the electronics, things get dicey.
Water causes short circuits on the PCB, corrodes connectors, and can destroy the drivers or the Bluetooth chip. Sometimes the damage is cosmetic, sometimes it's permanent. It all depends on how long the headphones sat in water and how quickly they were dried.
The uncomfortable truth is that water damage is not covered by warranty. The warranty covers material and manufacturing defects, not acts of nature or human blunders. But don't worry – there are still options.
How to try and save them
If your headphones just got soaked, act fast:
- Do not try to turn them on. This is the most important point. Sending power through wet electronics is the surest way to kill them for good.
- Shake out the excess water gently. No need for a centrifuge, your hands will do.
- Remove the ear cushions by twisting them off. This lets air circulate better.
- Place the headphones in a dry, warm spot for at least 48 hours. A radiator shelf, drying cabinet, or warm room works great. Not a sauna, not an oven, not a hair dryer – too much heat will melt the plastic parts.
- The rice bag thing is a myth, but silica gel packets (those little ones from shoe boxes) actually work if you happen to have some lying around.
Once 48 hours have passed:
- Try charging the headphones via USB-C. If the red charging light comes on, the battery probably survived.
- Try turning them on by pressing the MFB button on the right side.
- Also try with an AUX cable – plug in a 3.5mm cable and unplug it, this resets the Bluetooth chip. If sound works through the cable but Bluetooth doesn't, the issue is likely in the wireless circuit.
If that doesn't help
If the headphones won't come back to life after drying, the electronics have probably sustained permanent damage. Here are your options:
- Repair service: Send the headphones to our service centre in Kajaani. Jasse and the crew will have a look and see if they're salvageable. Drop us a photo of the headphones and your order number at info@valco.fi, and we'll let you know the repair cost upfront.
- Repair cost: Since this is user damage and not a warranty case, the repair is paid. But it's still cheaper than buying new headphones – and means less junk in the landfill.
We repair, we don't throw away. That said, sometimes repair just isn't possible. If the PCB is toast, we'll tell you that straight up.
And next summer: bring the headphones inside before you crack open that third beer on the patio. Or at least the fourth.