bluetooth disconnect on Catalina

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Level 1

31 points

bluetooth disconnect on Catalina

I have a 2018 mini. I also have a 2013 MacBook Air. Both have Catalina.

I have a Logitech H800 Bluetooth headset. Today, I tried to connect the headset to my mini. Catalina searched for & found & recognized the headset. I connected the headset. It immediately disconnected.

I tried the same thing on my MBA. Same results.

I turned bluetooth on & off several times.

I didn't have any problems using Bluetooth on the headset with Mojave.

On the MBA I deleted the bluetooth plist & restarted the MBA. I also reset the bluetooth module. I checked & the bluetooth plist was recreated. Now Catalina isn't even finding the headset!

I googled Catalina bluetooth & apparently it's a common problem with Catalina.

What must I do to get both computers to recognize the headset?

Posted on Jan 19, 2020 2:53 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Henderson_86

Community Specialist

Jan 19, 2020 4:22 PM in response to macnerd48

You mentioned multiple devices have this issue. This would begin to further think maybe the Bluetooth device itself. I would try to pair them with a non Apple device and see if continues. If the issue remains, contacting the manufacture would be good. Also testing the issue while launching the Mac in Safe Mode may help isolate as well? Use safe mode to isolate issues with your Mac - Apple Support

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Answer 2

TheLittles

Level 10

195,717 points

Jan 20, 2020 5:12 AM in response to macnerd48

macnerd147 Said;

“bluetooth disconnect on Catalina: I have a 2018 mini. I also have a 2013 MacBook Air. Both have Catalina. I have a Logitech H800 Bluetooth headset. Today, I tried to connect the headset to my mini. Catalina searched for & found & recognized the headset. I connected the headset. It immediately disconnected[...].”

Reset your SMC and NVRAM:

Sometimes system settings are changed and then settings for particular items (Bluetooth in this case) become manipulated, technically. So, reset both the SMC and the NVRAM. All should work as intended.

Use these Two Links:

How to reset the SMC of your Mac - Apple Support

Reset NVRAM or PRAM on your Mac - Apple Support

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Answer 3

macnerd48 Author

Level 1

31 points

Jan 20, 2020 4:01 AM in response to donv_the_ghost

Catalina recognizes the headset & pairs with it & then immediately disconnects. It's a Logitech H800. There's a switch on the headset with a green LED next to it. When I switch to the bluetooth position on the switch, the light starts blinking. I would think that after pairing, the light would turn a steady green. It doesn't. It keeps blinking. So, I wonder if the bluetooth part of the headset is malfunctioning.

I screwed up something on my MBA. I deleted the bluetooth plist file & reset the bluetooth module & now the MBA can't find the H800 even when it's right next to the laptop. What did I screw up & how do I fix it?

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Answer 4

macnerd48 Author

Level 1

31 points

Jan 20, 2020 4:07 AM in response to Henderson_86

I tried pairing the headset with my Android smartphone. The phone recognizes the headset but when I played a YouTube video, the sound came from the phone not the headset.

It's a logitech H800. There's a switch on the headset with a green LED next to it. When I move the switch to the bluetooth position, the light starts to blink. I would think that the light would turn a steady green after the headset is paired. It doesn't. It keeps blinking. So, I'm thinking that something is wrong with the bluetooth function.

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Answer 5

Jan 20, 2020 4:13 AM in response to macnerd48

Have you tried pairing anything else since you "deleted the bluetooth plist file & reset the bluetooth module?" You might try doing so to see if you've fouled something up badly. If other things can be paired, then maybe you have isolated the problem to the headset.

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Answer 6

macnerd48 Author

Level 1

31 points

Jan 20, 2020 4:25 AM in response to donv_the_ghost

I tried pairing the headset with my Android smartphone. It recognized the headset but when I played a YouTube video, the sound came from the phone not the headset.

I'm thinking that there's a problem with the Bluetooth function on the headset. The green LED keeps blinking after pairing. I would think that the light would turn a steady green but it doesn't.

What did I screw up on my MBA? Catalina can't find the headset even when it's right next to the laptop. How do I fix the problem?

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Answer 7

Jan 20, 2020 4:35 AM in response to macnerd48

I meant have you tried pairing anything else with Catalina > Bluetooth. You might try doing so to see if you've fouled something up badly. If other things can be paired, then maybe you have isolated the problem to the headset.

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Answer 8

macnerd48 Author

Level 1

31 points

Jan 20, 2020 1:51 PM in response to donv_the_ghost

I think that the problem is the headset. Bluetooth won't pair at all. The green LED keeps blinking instead of turning solid green. The USB nano receiver doesn't pair at all. The green lite keeps on blinking. I'm about to toss the headset in the trash. I'm also corresponding with Logitech.

I don't have any bluetooth devices to try out. Unless my smartphone would be recognized by Catalina. I haven't tried it with my mini. Would Catalina Bluetooth on my mini recognize my smartphone?

I screwed up something on my MBA.

It's not a big deal that I screwed up the Bluetooth on my MBA. I got the Logitech H800 wireless headset because I didn't want to deal with a USB cable connecting the headset to my computer. I guess reinstalling Catalina on my MBA would fix the Bluetooth problem. Maybe I'll do that. Not a clean install. I haven't yet tried resetting NVRAM & SMC on my MBA.

It's a 2013 MBA. I'm guessing that it won't be compatible with 10.16, whatever it will be called. That gives me an excuse to get a 2018 or 2019 laptop.

I do have an additional Logitech headset - with a USB cable! I can plug it into my mini & MBA.

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Answer 9

Jan 20, 2020 2:00 PM in response to macnerd48

I think your phone likely would pair with the mini/Catalina combo. Probably more likely if it is a more or less recent iPhone. Reinstalling Catalina in-place is a good idea. That should take care of any problems you created. And, why not try resetting NVRAM and SMC first. If Catalina works on the MBA, I'd guess the next system iteration would too. Good luck with it all.

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Answer 10

Feb 16, 2020 3:29 AM in response to donv_the_ghost

I have the same issue with MacBook Pro 16-inch. I cannot connect to Airpods Pro and cannot unlock with Apple Watch. The bluetooth sometimes working when use Airdrop. I have tried Safe Mode, reset SMC, reset NVRAM/PRAM, and updating to 10.15.4 to no avail.

The Bluetooth explorer shows : "updatechainpower error : 3903"

Are you familiar with this issue? Thanks

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Answer 11

Jan 19, 2020 4:03 PM in response to macnerd48

Oops, I misread your post. Sorry.

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Answer 12

Jan 19, 2020 4:20 PM in response to macnerd48

Is the headset still shown in System Preferences > Bluetooth on either computer? If yes, have you tried removing the headset and re-pairing?

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bluetooth disconnect on Catalina

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