Amazon explains the red light in its guide to Echo speaker lights and its guide to turning the microphones off and on. The steps below use those pages and Amazon’s Echo Studio (2019 release) setup page.

What This Problem Means

Amazon’s lights guide says solid red means the microphone is off and Alexa isn’t listening. It’s a privacy setting that you switch on and off with a button. While the microphones are off, Amazon says Alexa doesn’t respond to voice commands, but the Alexa app still works. On the Echo Studio (2019 release) it shows on the light ring, which Amazon’s reset page for this model also refers to.

Common Symptoms

• A solid red light ring
• Alexa doesn’t answer the wake word
• The Alexa app still controls the Studio
• The red light stays on after a restart

Safe Checks You Can Try

1. Press the Microphone Enable/Disable button once

Amazon’s microphone guide says to press the microphone button again to turn the microphones back on. On the Studio (2019 release), Amazon calls it the Microphone Enable/Disable button. Press it once and the red light ring goes off.

2. Say the wake word to test it

Say the wake word. When Alexa hears you, a cyan spotlight on the blue light ring shows she’s listening, according to Amazon’s lights guide. A brief glimmer means she heard the request and is processing it.

3. Know the other light colours

Amazon’s speaker lights guide, which covers Echo speakers in general, lists the other colours: a cyan spotlight on blue means Alexa is listening; teal blue means she’s ready to hear you without the wake word; slowly spinning teal and blue means starting up or restarting after a software update; orange means setup mode or trying to connect to the internet; pulsing green is an incoming call and spinning green an active call or Drop In; purple means Do Not Disturb is on (or, during setup, Wi-Fi problems); white shows the volume level as you change it; and a slow yellow burst every few seconds means a message or notification. Amazon has separate pages for a yellow light and a green light that won’t turn off.

4. Use the app while the microphones are off

Amazon says the Alexa app still works with the microphones off, so you can still control music and settings from the app. Turn the microphones back on with the button whenever you want to use your voice again.

5. If the light stays red

Check you’re using the power adapter that came with the Studio, as Amazon’s not-responding guide advises. Then restart it. Unplug the Echo Studio (2019 release), wait 10 seconds and plug it back in. That’s the wait Amazon gives on its Echo Studio (2019 release) reset page. Press the button again once it has started up.

6. If Alexa still doesn’t respond

If the red light has gone but Alexa still won’t answer, work through Amazon’s not-responding steps: check the internet, move the Studio away from walls and background noise, and check the wake word at Devices > your device > Device Settings > Wake Word in the Alexa app. Our not-responding guide for the Studio, linked below, has every step.

When To Contact Support

If the red light won’t go off after a restart, or the button doesn’t respond, contact Amazon customer service and say which steps you have already tried. Amazon’s Echo Studio support page, which covers the 2019 and 2025 releases, lists its other help articles for the Studio.

Last resort: factory reset. If nothing else works, Amazon’s last resort is a reset, done with the buttons on the Studio; Amazon’s reset pages give no Alexa app path for it. Start with the reset that keeps your smart home connections: press and hold the Action button for 20 seconds. If that doesn’t help, do a factory reset: press and hold the Volume down and Microphone Enable/Disable buttons for 20 seconds. Amazon says the light ring turns off and on again, and the Studio enters setup mode. Amazon says a factory reset “erases all your personal information and any device and smart home connections”. Then set the Studio up again in the Alexa app. The full steps are on Amazon’s Echo Studio (2019 release) reset page.