Before you get started troubleshooting, let's make sure you are reading the correct support page. To identify your True Wireless product, the product name will be printed either inside the charging case on the underside of the lid OR on the back body of the charging case.
THERE IS UPDATED FIRMWARE AVAILABLE FOR GRIND FUEL!
IMPORTANT: ENSURING THAT YOU HAVE THE LATEST FIRMWARE ON YOUR GRIND FUEL EARBUDS WILL ALLEVIATE THE MAJORITY OF TROUBLESHOOTING ISSUES.
There may be updated firmware available for Grind Fuel. You can update Grind Fuel firmware via the Skullcandy App. For more information check out the Skullcandy App Help Page HERE
You can download the Skullcandy App on the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
INITIAL SET UP & PAIRING HELP:
QUICK START VERSION: (EASIEST 1ST TIME PAIRING, EARBUDS REMAIN IN CASE)
IMPORTANT* IN SOME CASES YOU WILL SEE TWO PRODUCT NAMES IN THE AVAILABLE DEVICE LIST, BE SURE TO SELECT THE PRODUCT NAME THAT’S ALIGNED WITH THE HEADPHONE ICON AS SEEN BELOW. THE OTHER OPTION WILL NOT PAIR YOUR EARBUDS, THIS IS YOUR BLE (BLUETOOTH LOW ENERGY) SIGNAL THAT IS USED TO LINK WITH THE TILE™ APP AND ACTIVATE YOUR TILE™ FINDING TECHNOLOGY.
1ST TIME PAIRING AFTER UNBOXING WHEN REMOVING EARBUDS FROM THE CASE:
PAIR TO A NEW DEVICE: (AFTER 1ST TIME PAIRING, WHILE EARBUDS ARE CONNECTED)
PAIR TO A NEW DEVICE: (AFTER 1ST TIME PAIRING, WHILE EARBUDS ARE NON-CONNECTED)
QUICK START DEFAULT USER CONTROLS
Out of the box, GRIND FUEL’s default media controls are ready to keep you connected and in control of your Bluetooth enabled device.
We’ve also incorporated a simple feature that allows the user to hear each time they have pressed the button on their earbud, and when pressing more than one time in sequence, you will hear ascending tones to give you better control of your media. They are very subtle and do not disrupt your listening, easy to hear even while playing music, and the button response tone will help you quickly learn your way around the controls on your device.
AUTO POWER ON & POWER OFF:
MANUALLY POWER ON: EITHER
MANUALLY POWER OFF: EITHER
PLAY/PAUSE: EITHER
ANSWER/HANG UP CALL: EITHER
REJECT INCOMING CALL: EITHER
VOLUME UP: RIGHT BUD
VOLUME DOWN: LEFT BUD
SPOTIFY TAP™
We’ve partnered with Spotify to create an instant path to your music through a simple button press right out of the box.
Once you’ve paired your earbuds to your device, press and hold your LEFT bud for 1 second, you’ll hear an ascending tone and will have instant playback through your Spotify APP.
SPOTIFY TAP™: LEFT BUD ONLY
Once paired to the Skullcandy APP and Hands-Free Voice Control is activated, you will also be able to launch Spotify and immediately begin streaming by saying, “Hey Skullcandy, Spotify”.
SHARE AUDIO:
Easily share your music or media with a friend, anytime and anywhere through our new Share Audio feature.
To Share Audio, both users must have SKULLiQ enabled products, be in Stereo Mode (using both earbuds), and be within Bluetooth range. For best results, we recommend both users stay within 5 meters (about 15 feet) during an Audio Share session. Please also note the audio share between users may take up to 5 seconds to sync.
The person that wants to share their audio must have their earbuds connected to a device. They will press and hold the button on their RIGHT earbud for 3 seconds. A voice prompt will notify the user that they are now “Sharing Audio”. Only the user sharing audio will still maintain their ability to utilize their Hands-Free Voice Control functionality and track controls.
The person that wants to join will press the button on their LEFT earbud for 3 seconds, and they can be in either a connected or non-connected state. A voice prompt will notify the user they are now “Joining Audio”. Once connected, the user joining will not have voice control or track control functionality.
Once the share is complete, audio will begin to stream automatically and each user will have the ability to adjust their volume independently through their earbuds.
Either party can disconnect from the Audio Share by placing their earbuds into the case and closing the lid, powering the earbud off manually, or repeating the 3-second hold you used to share or join the stream.
To continue the Share session if either user is disconnected, both parties will need to start over.
SHARE AUDIO:
SKULL-IQ & THE SKULLCANDY APP
To unlock all of the incredible Skull-iQ features, scan the QR code on the front of your packaging or in your Quick Start Guide to quickly download the Skullcandy APP.
Once you have paired your earbuds to your device, open the Skullcandy APP and you will automatically link. You now have the ability to enable hands-free voice control, customize your control settings, access user guides, and update new features when they become available.
It is very important to be sure you’ve updated your earbuds to the latest firmware release to ensure the best performance and user experience. You will be notified when an update is available, but please don’t forget to take this time and improve your product with the most up-to-date upgrades and features.
HANDS-FREE VOICE CONTROL
For both Android and iOS, the Skullcandy App is required.
Once your earbuds have linked with the Skullcandy APP, Hands-Free Voice Control will be enabled each time you power on and pair your device. You may also disable this feature in the APP at any time if desired.
Your voice controls will continue to work if the APP is in the background, even when the phone is locked. Generally, iOS users will simply need to link to the APP once and leave running in the background, and android users can link to the APP and utilize voice controls with or without the APP running in the background.
A few special cases exist as follows:
For iOS users, voice controls will work as long as the app is running in the background (This is also how Tile, Google Assistant, and Alexa work in iOS). Once installed, if the app is closed while the earphones are connected, voice controls will stop working. However, when the user disconnects, and then reconnects the earphones again (e.g., places them in the charge case and removes them later), the app will automatically launch when the earphones reconnect, and voice controls will work as expected. Only in the case where the app crashes, or the user quits the app while the earphones are connected, will voice controls stop working until the user manually relaunches the app, or disconnects/reconnects the earphone.
For Android users, once the app has been installed, and has run at least once, voice controls will continue to work even if the user closes the app. If the phone is restarted, the user will need to restart the app to re-enable voice controls.
WAKE WORD AND VOICE COMMANDS:
Once you’ve turned this feature on in the SKDY APP, these simple commands will activate your hands-free voice control.
THE USER WILL FIRST SAY “HEY SKULLCANDY”, AND YOU WILL RECEIVE AN AUDIBLE TONE TO INDICATE SKULL-IQ SYSTEM IS LISTENING, AND YOU WILL QUICKLY FOLLOW THIS UP WITH ONE OF THE FOLLOWING COMMANDS. ONCE THE EARBUDS RECOGNIZE THE COMMAND, YOU WILL ALSO RECEIVE AN AUDIBLE TONE TO CONFIRM THIS ACTION. (YOU WILL BE ABLE TO SAY THE WAKE WORD + COMMAND TOGETHER NORMALLY, OR WITH A SLIGHT PAUSE BETWEEN THEM.)
COMMANDS:
IN ADDITION, WHEN THERE IS AN INCOMING PHONE CALL, THERE IS NO NEED TO USE THE “HEY SKULLCANDY” WAKE WORDS, YOU CAN SIMPLY SAY, “ACCEPT” OR “REJECT”.
INCOMING CALL:
ACTIVATE YOUR ASSITANT HANDS-FREE:
“HEY SKULLCANDY, ASSISTANT”
This is a massive feature benefit, allowing the user to activate their default device assistant (for example Siri, Google, Alexa) to send a text, make a call, set a timer, or confirm the speed of light, anything at all, hands-free while your phone is in your pocket or backpack.
WHERE DOES VOICE CONTROL WORK BEST AND WHAT FACTORS THAT CAN IMPACT VOICE CONTROL:
Voice control is an amazing, freeing experience. Imagine plopping your phone in your backpack, and then controlling your music and answering a call, all without ever taking your hands off the handlebars of your bike. Like any technology, it also has some limitations and will work better under some conditions than others.
For example, voice control will generally work very well in quieter situations like your home office, or when running, hiking, or riding on quieter streets or trails. Even the noise of a passing car or average office noise is not usually a problem. Some testers have reported that even while riding a bike on the busy streets of Munich, voice controls worked surprisingly well. Your mileage may vary.
Generally speaking, walking or running along very noisy streets, or sitting in a bustling café will reduce the ability of the earphone to “hear” you when you speak, and may reduce accuracy of voice commands. You may also experience a higher incidence of “false triggers” where the voice control triggers even though you didn’t speak the wake words “Hey Skullcandy”.
In noisier environments, you may have to speak the voice commands more loudly or may need to repeat them. If your environment becomes loud enough, voice controls may not respond regardless of how loudly you speak. How loud is too loud? Likely, if you have a hard time hearing someone else speak to you, it’s probably going to be hard for the earphone to hear you, too.
Wind also creates intense aerodynamic turbulence that can overload the microphones needed to pick up your voice. Voice Control will generally work in winds up to 8MPH, but you may have to raise your voice. Voice control success in winds higher than 8MPH will depend on wind direction and other factors, like which earphone is being used as the microphone for voice control.
For example, running an 8-minute mile in calm conditions produces the equivalent of an 8MPH headwind. Racing downhill on a mountain bike is much higher, and voice control may not work in these cases, or when you are in a windy situation.
CUSTOM BUTTON ACTIONS
You can personalize your earbuds through the Skullcandy APP by customizing your UI controls
SOME DEFAULT ACTIONS AND OTHER UN-ASSIGNED BUTTON ACTIONS CAN BE RE-CONFIGURED THROUGH THE SKULLCANDY APP.
CUSTOM BUTTON ACTIONS FOR BOTH THE LEFT AND RIGHT EARBUDS:
Here are the customizable button actions that you can configure to your preferred control settings.
CUSTOM BUTTON FUNCTIONS DURING IDLE OR STREAMING MEDIA:
Here are the controls that you can assign to the above button actions.
TAKE PHOTO
The Take Photo feature allows your earbud to act as a wireless remote for your device’s camera!
All you need to do is set one of the custom button actions to the Take Photo feature in the SKDY APP, and then open the camera on your device. As long as your earbuds are paired with the device and linked to the SKDY APP, your custom button action will take a picture on command.
For best results, use the earbud as the remote in your hand, or leave them in and set the timer in your camera’s settings so there are a few seconds delay before snapping the photo, this way you’re not caught with your hand on your earbud in every photo.
STAY AWARE MODE
On/Off switch in APP (default OFF)
GRIND FUEL Stay Aware Mode can be activated through hands-free voice control, in the Skullcandy APP, and as a customizable button action.
Stay-Aware Mode makes it easier to hear what’s going on around you without having to remove an earbud, so you can enjoy your music in stereo and stay in touch with your surroundings.
PRESET EQ + CUSTOM 5 BAND EQ
To help you get the best sound quality from your content, GRIND FUEL features 3 preset EQ modes + 1 CUSTOMIZABLE 5 BAND EQ (Custom EQ Mode):
TO SWITCH BETWEEN EQ MODES, HEAD INTO THE SKULLCANDY APP AND SELECT YOUR PREFERRED AUDIO SETTING.
Your default EQ setting is “Music Mode”, which is great for general listening.
Podcast Mode removes most of the bass response and is great for podcasts or audio books.
Movie Mode boosts dialog and detail in your audio, creating an enhanced immersive experience.
You also have the ability to create your own Custom EQ Mode. This is a 5 band Equalizer that allows you to adjust the low, mid low, mid, mid high, and high sound frequencies to your preferred levels, personalizing your sound experience.
GRIND FUEL PERSONAL SOUND
Personal Sound technology allows you to tune the earbuds to your unique hearing.
It’s like having prescription glasses for your ears — it will allow you to hear your music EXACTLY as it was meant to sound.
In the Skullcandy app, open GRIND FUEL and toggle on Personal Sound. Now follow the prompts to begin the audio test.
This audio/hearing test will require a simple button press and hold while you hear a tone in the background. You will complete this test for both ears to fully customize your sound profile.
After you’ve completed the test, the app will create a personal sound profile that’s matched perfectly to your individual hearing. There will also be a slider tool in the APP that allows you to increase or decrease the amount of tuning in your personal sound profile.
Many people report being able to hear sounds and layers in their music that they’ve never heard before.
You can turn your Personal Sound Profile on or off in the app any time, but you can only create 1 Personal sound profile at a time on each paired device. Though please note that you can also delete your profile and retake the test to create a new profile.
ADD NEW FEATURES AND UPGRADES AS THEY BECOME AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SKDY APP
Instead of buying new earbuds for the latest features, your Skull-iQ-enabled earbuds allow you to add new features as they’re developed.
This means that over time, we’ll add more hands-free voice controls, including the ability for deeper user customization and other totally new features — all delivered through firmware updates via the Skullcandy App.
It is very important to always be sure your earbuds are updated to the latest firmware release to ensure the best performance and user experience, so please don’t forget to take this time to improve your product with the most up-to-date upgrades and features.
HOW IT WORKS:
Occasionally, you’ll receive notifications through the SKDY APP that your product is ready for a firmware update.
FOTA (Firmware Over-The-Air) updates will be prompted on the home page of your linked product, and you will simply press the “Update” button for more detailed information before getting started with your upgrade.
After reviewing the firmware improvements and or feature upgrades, swipe forward and get ready to begin your update. This will take about 5-10 minutes, and please note that both earbuds will need to have a battery capacity over 25% to begin. Once you’ve pressed the “Start the update” button, be sure to maintain a constant WIFI or cellular service, keep your earbuds and device powered on and close together to maintain the Bluetooth connection, and do not exit the SKDY APP (this can update in the background, but the APP must continue running).
Once the update process has finished, you will be notified that your firmware update was successfully completed.
CHARGING:
WHEN FULLY CHARGED, THERE WILL BE UP TO 9+ HOURS OF PLAY TIME IN THE BUDS AND YOU WILL GET 31+ HOURS IN THE CHARGING CASE, REACHING UP TO 40+ TOTAL HOURS OF PLAY TIME.
EARBUDS:
CASE:
GRIND FUEL
YOU MAY ALSO CHARGE YOUR GRIND FUEL WIRELESSLY BY SETTING THE CHARGING CASE ON A WIRELESS CHARGING PAD OR WIRELESS CHARGING POWER BANK (SUCH AS THE SKDY STASH FUEL).
SOLO MODE AND A FIX:
To use Solo Mode and you’ve previously paired to your earbuds, simply remove either earbud from the charge case and this solo earbud will function with both phone calls and music, as well as your hands-free voice controls. Please note the Stay Aware Mode feature will not work in Solo Mode*.
If you are initially pairing only one earbud, simply follow the same pairing steps above normally and you’re good to go.
To use both earbuds again, simply remove the other bud from the case at any time, you will hear the power on “pling” tone, and your audio begins to seamlessly stream back into Stereo mode.
Although, if you’re having any challenges using either bud solo, you may follow the above simple steps to trouble shoot and ensure ease of use when pairing and switching between Solo and Stereo Modes.
FIND YOUR LOST EARBUDS WITH THE TILE™ APP
To make sure you never lose your earbuds, we’ve built Tile technology into GRIND FUEL.
The Tile® Finding Technology is really easy to set up and will allow you to locate either one of your earbuds if you’ve misplaced them or if they’re ever taken.
When searching for missing earbuds, you can also use the Tile™ APP to sound a tone from your buds to help you locate them. You can sound a tone from one earbud or both.
First, you’ll need to download the Tile™ APP for this feature to work. Once you’ve downloaded the Tile app follow the on-screen instructions to connect each earbud individually so they are both trackable.
FIT:
GRIND FUEL fit comfortably and securely in your ear. Here’s how to get the best fit.
First, place the bud in your ear at an angle, then rotate minimally to the front or back to secure in place. Your earbud should feel comfortable and stable.
For optimal acoustic performance, you also want to be sure your ear gel creates a nice seal just inside your canal.
GRIND FUEL comes with 3 sizes of ear gels to help you find the best fit. Try each size of the provided ear gels to see which fit works best for you.
HAVING TROUBLE? DON’T RETURN TO THE STORE AND LET US HELP!
NO AUDIO IN ONE EAR?
Let’s re-sync your earbuds by first placing both of them into the charge case and closing the lid for 2 seconds to ensure they fully power OFF. Then simply remove both earbuds together, if the stereo audio stream hasn’t been fixed, please follow the two options below.
STEP ONE:
IF THIS STEP FAILS, OR YOU ARE HAVING PAIRING ISSUES, PLEASE PROCEED TO STEP TWO
PAIRING ISSUES? RESET YOUR EARBUDS WITH THE FOLLOWING STEPS.
STEP TWO:
BUDS NOT CHARGING IN CASE/CASE LID NOT CLOSING PROPERLY?
ISSUE: Not seeing the LED indicator on the buds when you’ve placed your GRIND FUEL back in the charging case?
SOLUTION:
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
NEW FEATURES AND SKULLIQ
Please note that SKULLiQ and the SKDY APP will only be supported on your mobile devices, and will not have APP support with your PC, iPad and MacBook.
Additionally, always be sure that you have updated your earbuds to the latest firmware release to enjoy the best performance upgrades, user experience, and the latest new features.
LINKING WITH THE SKDY APP
I’M HAVING TROUBLE LINKING MY EARBUDS TO THE SKDY APP, WHAT SHOULD I DO?
FIRMWARE UPDATES WITH THE SKDY APP
I’VE ATTEMPTED TO COMPLETE THE FIRMWARE UPDATE IN THE APP, BUT THE DOWNLOAD FAILED…WHAT CAN I DO?
SPOTIFY TAP™
DO I NEED TO BE LINKED WITH THE SKDY APP FOR THIS FEATURE TO WORK?
DO I NEED TO HAVE THE SPOTIFY APP DOWNLOADED ON MY PHONE FOR THIS FEATURE TO WORK?
SHARE AUDIO
DO I NEED TO BE LINKED WITH THE SKDY APP FOR THIS FEATURE TO WORK?
HOW DO I SHARE MY AUDIO WITH ANOTHER SKULLIQ USER?
CAN I CUSTOMIZE THE ACTION BUTTONS FOR THE SHARE AUDIO FEATURE?
DO BOTH USERS STILL HAVE FULL MEDIA CONTROLS AND VOICE CONTROL?
WHAT IS THE SUGGESTED BT RANGE FOR THE OPTIMAL AUDIO SHARE EXPERIENCE?
IF THE SESSION DOES DISCONNECT FOR ANY REASON, CAN I REJOIN THE SAME SESSION?
HANDS-FREE VOICE CONTROL
WILL VOICE CONTROL WORK RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX?
DO I NEED TO ALWAYS KEEP THE SKDY APP OPEN FOR VOICE CONTROL TO FUNCTION?
SOMETIMES I HEAR THE TONE THAT INDICATES VOICE CONTROLS WERE “LISTENING”, IS THERE SOMETHING WRONG WITH MY PRODUCT?
DO I NEED TO SPEAK LOUDLY FOR THIS FEATURE TO WORK?
WILL MY VOICE CONTROLS ALWAYS WORK PERFECTLY?
CAN I ANSWER PHONE CALLS HANDS-FREE?
WILL MY ACCENT IMPACT VOICE CONTROL PERFORMANCE?
IF I SWITCH DEVICES FROM MY PHONE THAT HAS LINKED TO THE APP, TO A DEVICE THAT DOES NOT HAVE THE SKDY APP, DOES MY HANDS-FREE VOICE CONTROL STILL WORK?
CUSTOM BUTTON ACTIONS & FUNCTIONS
HOW EASY IS IT TO CUSTOMIZE MY EARBUD CONTROLS?
CAN I CUSTOMIZE ALL EARBUD FUNCTIONS?
WILL MY CUSTOM BUTTON ACTIONS/FUNCTIONS BE SAVED EVEN IF I POWER OFF/RESTART MY DEVICE?
IF I GET A NEW PHONE AND NEED TO RE-DOWNLOAD THE APP, WILL MY CONTROLS BY SAVED?
IF I SWITCH DEVICES FROM MY PHONE THAT HAS LINKED TO THE APP, TO A DEVICE THAT DOES NOT HAVE THE SKDY APP, DO MY CUSTOMIZED BUTTON FUNCTIONS STILL WORK?
TAKE PHOTO
I DON’T UNDERSTAND, WHAT THE H*CK IS THIS?
DO I NEED TO SET UP THIS FUNCTION AS A CUSTOM BUTTON ACTION?
DO I NEED A SPECIAL CAMERA APP FOR THIS TO WORK?
PERSONAL SOUND – GRIND FUEL
WHAT IS THE PERSONAL SOUND FEATURE FOR GRIND FUEL?
DO I NEED THE SKDY APP TO ACCESS THIS FEATURE?
IS THIS FEATURE ALWAYS ON AFTER COMPLETING THE HEARING TEST AND CREATING MY PERSONAL AUDIO PROFILE?
IF MORE THAN ONE PERSON USES THE SAME MOBILE DEVICE, CAN WE CREATE MORE THAN ONE PROFILE?
GENERAL
PLAYTIME / BATTERY LIFE & CHARGING:
BATTERY LIFE AND PLAY TIME IS VERY IMPORTANT TO ME, HOW LONG DOES THE GRIND FUEL LAST?
WHAT IS THE TOTAL CHARGING TIME FOR GRIND FUEL VIA USB-C CHARGING CABLE?
DOES THE GRIND FUEL HAVE WIRELESS CHARGING IN THE CASE?
DOES GRIND FUEL HAVE SOME SORT OF FAST CHARGE?
CAN I CHARGE GRIND FUEL WITH MY SKULLCANDY POWER ACCESSORIES/PC/LAPTOP/?
HOW DO YOU CHANGE BETWEEN EQ SETTINGS, AND WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?
WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO USE STAY AWARE MODE, AND HOW DO I TURN IT ON AND OFF?
WHAT IS THE TILE® TRACKING FEATURE AND HOW DOES IT WORK?
CONNECTION:
DOES THE GRIND FUEL LINK WITH SKULLCANDY APP?
WHAT IS THE BLUETOOTH RANGE OF THE GRIND FUEL?
CAN I CONNECT GRIND FUEL TO A COMPUTER?
CAN I USE GRIND FUEL WITH A PS4/XBOX ONE/SWITCH?
WHICH VERSION OF BLUETOOTH DOES GRIND FUEL USE?
WHEN ON A CALL OR LISTENING TO MY CONTENT, WILL I HEAR AUDIO IN ONE OR BOTH EARBUDS?
CAN I USE SIRI/GOOGLE ASSISTANT/ALEXA WITH MY GRIND FUEL?
CAN I USE GRIND FUEL FOR SPORTS OR WORKING OUT?
WARRANTY:
Please be sure to reach out to customer service before filing a claim, we can likely help you quickly trouble shoot and solve your problem!
WHAT HAPPENS IF MY EARBUDS BREAK?
