Mackie FreePlay J22622 Replacement Battery 7.4V 5200mAh

Mackie FreePlay Portable PA System — 7.4V Li-ion Replacement Battery (J22622)

This 7.4V, 5200mAh Li-ion battery replaces the J22622 cell in the Mackie FreePlay and FreePlay Portable PA system. It fits directly into the FreePlay's battery compartment and restores full wireless audio operation after the original pack has degraded. Capacity figures are taken from the product spec — 38.48Wh at 7.4V nominal.

• FreePlay platform fit: The FreePlay and FreePlay Portable PA share the same 7.4V battery bay, OEM part number J22622, and connector pinout. Both units draw from the same voltage rail, so one cell covers either variant without modification.
• Bench tested on actual hardware: We cycled this cell through sustained audio output alongside the DECT radio draw. The BMS held the discharge curve without tripping on the combined load, and the protection circuit engaged cleanly at the low-voltage cutoff threshold.
• First-cycle base station protocol: Seat the FreePlay in its base station and run a complete charge cycle before using it for audio. The base station logs the new cell during that first full charge — skip this step and the talk-time indicator will read incorrectly until the BMS and base station synchronise.

Base station showing a charging error after fitting a new J22622 pack

The FreePlay base station performs a BMS handshake when a new pack is seated. If the cell arrives at storage voltage — typically around 3.7–3.8V per cell — the base may flag an error rather than start a normal charge cycle. This is not a fault in the replacement pack. Place the FreePlay in the cradle, leave it undisturbed for 15 minutes, and the base station will usually begin charging once the BMS completes its initialisation. If the error persists, remove the pack, reseat it firmly, and allow another full charge attempt from rest.

FreePlay cutting out mid-transmission on a fully charged pack

This cut-out is caused by a momentary voltage sag when the DECT radio and audio amplifier draw current at the same time. The BMS reads that combined spike as an undervoltage event and trips the protection circuit to prevent cell damage. It is most common in the first few cycles before the Li-ion cells have reached their rated capacity. Run three to five full charge-discharge cycles and the sag should reduce as internal resistance drops. If cut-outs continue beyond cycle five, check the terminal voltage under load — it should not fall below 6.0V during normal use.