Zen V plus not functioning at all.

[eskimo]

Alright here is my dilemma. My Zen V plus hasn't been responding, the screen is black. I thought the battery needed to be charged, so I plugged it into the computer and my computer does not find it. The screen is black, however the lights flash blue, so I left it.. About 4 days later, the Creative logo appeared, but did not move or when I pressed any button nothing would happen. I tried recovery mode, but no luck

THEN, after numerous attempts of trying to get it into recovery mode, the player doesn't turn on again. I thought that if I charged it again, got the battery up I could try recovery mode again. BUT this time, when I plugged it into the computer a little bubble comes up, and also the noise which means that a device is connected to a computer. The bubble says "Found New Hardware - STMP3600". I clicked it and it said to insert my installation CD. So I inserted the Creative Zen V plus installation CD. Then it installed something - something called "Player Recovery Device Class". I thought to myself "HOORAY!" .. BUT after the installation was completed, the player connection was nowhere to be found. And now the lights don't even flash blue

But when I disconnected the player from the computer, the computer makes that disconnection 'da-dun' sound. And when I reconnect it, it makes that connection sound again. BUT IT DOESN'T SHOW UP ON MY COMPUTER

How can I fix this problem?!

[CrowdAds]

[drusstw]

hmmm....sounds fishy...did something unsual happen to ur zen? "stmp3600" means that ur pc recognised ur player as a removable flash disk.normally,it should say "My zen" or something

i'd send it in to get it checked out

[drusstw]

did something unsual happen to ur zen?

as in,did you drop it in water or something

[eskimo]

nope, never dropped it in anything.
i took good care of it .. but i was searching through other threads and found something called deep discharge or something, like i use the battery til it dies out, then i recharge it .. that's what i did T_T i didnt know that it was bad.
might that be the problem?
guess i'll have to get it fixed, or buy a new one
thanks for yor help

[zoneout]

I'm having the same problem as the original poster and it's very fustrating. I'm almost positive it has something to do with the deep discharge problem previously mentioned.

I've only had my 4gb zen v plus for about 4 months now. I forgot to recharge the battery and let it die out. After a few weeks the v plus is unable to charge up. When i connect the usb adaptor the blue lights flicker on and off. I've tried pushing reset and turning on but nothin happens. Eventually the blue lights stop appearing meaning it's not charging/recognized by my computer. Is there anything i can do?

This has really been a morale killer. I may have to go back to apple

[boadiccea2]

I had been trying to use my Zen V on a usb hub. Turns out this is why it wasn't working. I went to the creative zen site and found that they recommend NOT using a usb hub. I took it off of the hub and connected it directly to the usb on my computer and it started charging immediately. I am charging it for 6 hours before I test it again.

[Memor]

I'm having the same problem.

My 4gb Zen V Plus froze today during listening. It has done that once before, but back then I could pass it by by just pushing the reset-button.

Now, I tried the same, and the screen went black. I tried to restart the player, but the screen just remained black. I noticed the blue lights lit up when I pushed the power-button, but after I released it they didn't remain lit.

I got to my computer and it's the same story. STMP3600. Yay.

Do you think warranty will cover it?

[Desdemona2u4u]

I've read several sites.
There is an issue with Windows XP not recognizing your device.
You plug it to a USB and XP gives a message "unable to load drivers or device not found"

Don't spend countless hours reinstalling XP or the Creative Zen Software.
Here is what I did to get XP to recognized my ZEV V.

1. Make sure you load the Creative Zen Software like you normally do, if you want to use all the software.
2. Shutdown and connect your device.
3. Reboot and log into Windows, you will get message cannot find drivers.
4. Go through the adding new hardware, and just add your ZEN V as a "MTP" device, which is a generic Windows Portable Media Device driver.
5. Windows will give you a message stating your device may not work as expected, or similar verbiage, but your player will work.
6. Zen V Media Explorer and all the other utilities for the ZEN V will work.

* If you want to charge your device using a regular wall jack, you can order one from Amazon or ebay for cheap.*

[BobbyRS]

Originally Posted by eskimo

But when I disconnected the player from the computer, the computer makes that disconnection 'da-dun' sound. And when I reconnect it, it makes that connection sound again. BUT IT DOESN'T SHOW UP ON MY COMPUTER

Does Device Manager show any conflicts related to the Zen, USB, or MTP devices? If it is making the audio alert sound for inserting and removing, then it looks as though the power may be fine (however, the battery may be on its way out). The reason why it may not be charging is because the drivers for it have not been loaded properly. I believe the device drivers need to be loaded properly before the USB device charge code can be sent back to the USB host to begin charging the USB device.

[BobbyRS]

Originally Posted by eskimo

but i was searching through other threads and found something called deep discharge or something, like i use the battery til it dies out, then i recharge it .. that's what i did T_T i didnt know that it was bad.
might that be the problem?

Yes, this can be bad for Lithium-Ion batteries. They do not like to be drained too low. They have a low voltage protection circuit built on that will engage if the voltage drops below, usually around 3.0-3.2 volts. Below this voltage level Lith-Ion batteries are considered discharged. Getting this circuit to reset can be hard to do. It usually will take a special charger to do so (which requires service by Creative) or a replacement battery. Sometimes using a wall charger will get it to begin charging again since they usually output more amperage than the USB ports.

See the Zen FAQ in my sig and scroll down to the Battery section for more info.

[pannayar]

The same thing has happened to me. The last two days I kept it plugged in most of the time though it was fully charged. If it was plugged in and the battery indicator was showing full, I dont think my battery depleted. Now the screen is blank and the player is not responding at all. When I initially bought the player, I liked it a lot, but not anymore. I was a fan of creative products, but now I am shifting to Sansa...

[BobbyRS]

Originally Posted by pannayar

The same thing has happened to me. The last two days I kept it plugged in most of the time though it was fully charged. If it was plugged in and the battery indicator was showing full, I dont think my battery depleted. Now the screen is blank and the player is not responding at all. When I initially bought the player, I liked it a lot, but not anymore. I was a fan of creative products, but now I am shifting to Sansa...

Your issue sounds different completely. His battery appears to be low and having issues holding a charge. You claim yours was charged and showing full. His is showing signs of life, yours isn't. Have you tried starting a new thread asking for help with your Zen or have you given up on it?

[pannayar]

I don't know what to do at this point. I have sent a mail to Creative asking for help and if I can do a RMA. Mine is 5 months old now. I checked the warranty on Creative website -- it says 3 months (labor) and 12 months (parts). I am somewhat confused by it and am not sure if my 5 month age would qualify for repair/replacement.

It is indeed completely dead now (even after hours of being connected to a wall charger) -- so that probably rules out the dead battery.

So much for leaving it plugged in continuously for about more than a day... quite disappointing.

[BobbyRS]

Originally Posted by pannayar

It is indeed completely dead now (even after hours of being connected to a wall charger) -- so that probably rules out the dead battery.

If it is completely dead, how does that rule out a dead battery?

[pannayar]

That was a incorrect conclusion. After I plugged it into my laptop and pressed the reset button, it jumped back to life suddenly (with the battery full). I have no idea why it was dead for a day. Though I am glad it is working now, I am thinking of selling it while it works!

[BobbyRS]

Ok, good to hear it is working now.

[blueboy2419]

I also had this problem but have solved it. I put my Zen on charge overnight using a charger for my Sat Nav, same voltage output with a higher amp rate 1A rather than 500ma.

The following day I reconnected it to my computer and it recognised it as a standard USB device. Then reloaded the Zen Software from installation disc and run the MP3 recovery program from the Creative site.

This worked for me.

[BobbyRS]

Welcome blueboy2419. Good to hear. Thanks for posting.

[krugal]

Love the player, but this January (1.8 yrs old) it stopped accepting charge fom the wall charger. Now the only thing that seems to work is the usb on my desktop pc.

Strange.

Just this afternoon, had it plugged into the wall and the play and back keys were flashing blue. i was not able to turn it on till I plugged into my pc.

[BobbyRS]

Hello krugal. Welcome. I would begin quesioning if the wall charger is working correctly anymore.