COMPLETELY black screen; dead MP4 player; iPod Nano clone
 

I posted once before...got a LOT of views, but NO replies.

I am sitting here with a dead MP4 player. I have the unit disassembled. My computer has recognized the device, and assigned it a drive letter. I have just reformatted it. The current firmware version is apparently wrong. I have 9.0.48 installed on the player. Once I had installed this version of firmware, the screen changed from the blue screen with the hourglass to a completely black screen. The player has not been dropped, or otherwise damaged.

These are the numbers I have gotten from the internal components of the player:

SAMSUNG 728
K9G8G08U0M
PGB0
FEF107BBC

There is something engraved in a TINY chip, but I cannot even HOPE to read what that says.

I need to know which version of firmware I need to restore my player, based on the information given above. I am going to attempt to try different ones and see what happens.

ProxyBiohazard , was the v9.0.48 version the original installed firmware before you flashed anything?

If so, then likely your player would be the ATJ209* series, and you'll be needing the v9.xx firmwares here http://www.mympxplayer.org/actions-9...ware-dc37.html

It is not possible to identify which particular firmware would work with your player fully, so you'll need to try all of those for your screen size until you get one working. Good luck.

I didn't check to see what the original firmware version was when I got the player, or when it died. I couldn't even access the player.

I HAVE made a bit of progress. I followed the dead player recovery guide, installing ver. 9.0.48 firmware. I then loaded a dump.bin ver. 9.0.50, which caused my player to go from a black screen to a white screen, but once I do that, the computer unassigns the drive letter for the player, and the utilities program refuses to detect the player. I then have to move it to another USB port on the computer. Right now, I have a drive letter ( letter J: ) assigned to the player, but I cannot find a dump.bin for 9.0.48 version firmware that will work.

Re: COMPLETELY black screen; dead MP4 player; iPod Nano clon
 

Lattesurf, here is the full information for my player. I had to scrape off a sticker that was on the other chip, but I have ALL of it now.

Board Information:

LH-036AK KEY V.02
2007.05.07 ZH


Chip Information (second largest chip on the board):

ACU7503


Chip Information (largest chip on the board):

SAMSUNG 728
K9G8GO8UOM (could also be K9G8G08U0M)
PCBO
FEF107BBC

Maybe this will help SOMEONE to figure out which version of firmware and which dump.bin file I will need to recover my player.

ProxyBiohazard , based on the processor chip ACU7503, your player would be using the newer v9.xx series firmwares, which are available in the link i've given above.

The problem you have encountered where the drive letter disappears was due to flashing an incompatible firmware.

This whole player recovery process is really a trial & error method. You'll just need to keep trying 1 firmware after another.

However, as the current firmware extraction tool only supports upto v9.0.43, other users with working players are unable to dump their firmware for you to try.

I would suggest that you also search the CD that came with the player, sometimes the firmware might be inside. And to contact your seller to see if they have the firmware file to send to you. If all else fails, you might want to consider getting an exchange if it is still under warranty.

Lattesurf, thank you for the information. However, my MP4 player is a hacked player sold to me by known scammer "hailitele" on eBay. The MP4 player did not come with a CD. He claims that he didn't send the CD because "the firmware was rather out of date, and the disk would not be compatible with XP". Therefore, I do not know what the original version is. Also, the player came with a VERY limited warranty...a week, if I remember correctly. The player died after almost two weeks. I have made several attempts to contact "hailitele" to see about a replacement player, but all attempts of contact have gone unanswered. I even tried to contact eBay regarding this, but have gotten no reply from them either.

I think the firmware version I need for an upgrade is 9.0.51, which means I get to search all over the internet. I found a 9.0.51 dumpfile, which I uploaded to my player, but I still get that annoying white screen.

I am also going to try to find firmware and a dump.bin file for version 9.0.43, since that is the latest version the upgrade tool supports.

If you can help me find websites that contain the correct version span of firmware (9.0.43 to 9.0.60) with dumpfiles that are in English, I would greatly appreciate it. I don't even care at this point if the firmware has been modded or not. I just want my player to work. I've been at this for over a month now with minimal success, and I'm getting frustrated.

ProxyBiohazard , i only know of 1 more site with supposedly v9.xx firmwares here http://download.impn.net/soft_list/mp3_mp4_firmware/

However, the site is in Chinese, and apparently some of the downloads do not work, which i randomly tested last week.

Re: COMPLETELY black screen; dead MP4 player; iPod Nano clon
 

I already checked out that site, Lattesurf. And seeing as how I cannot read Chinese, nor will my computer translate to English...especially since you have said that some of the downloads do not work...I don't think I will be using that site.

How do I find out who manufactured my MP4 player? The case has no information on it. Maybe if I could get that information, I could check their website (IF they have one!) to see if they happen to have firmware for download.

I am currently trying to get my computer to assign my player a drive letter again so I can reformat it and try some of the firmware I downloaded last night. I am going to start with 9.0.43 and work my way up from there.

Question for you about firmware (.FW) and dumpfiles (.BIN). I know they are two separate things, but can I revive my player with just a dumpfile, or do I need both the firmware file AND the dumpfile? Also...if, for example, firmware version 9.0.43 works, do I need a dumpfile for that version, or would a different version work? I got my player to show the white screen by uploading firmware 9.0.48, then a dumpfile version 9.0.50, so I am not sure.

ProxyBiohazard , depends on what state your player is in. If the MP3 Utilities Upgrade Tool can detect your player, then all you need is a dump file (.bin) or a full firmware (.fw) would work too.

If your player can no longer be detected, and needs to be shorted like in the Dead Player Recovery guide. Then after the ADFU has been installed, you'll need to flash a full firmware (.fw) first followed by a dump firmware (.bin).

All these versions do not make any sense. As manufacturers find cheap alternative components, they change the hardware, but do not change the version, ie no versions control. So usually most v9.0.43 or v9.0.48 or v9.0.50 do not match with those even with the same number.

Your particular player's hardware might have compatible firmware even at all the 3 versions.

Re: COMPLETELY black screen; dead MP4 player; iPod Nano clon
 

I have same problem. Can you help me :?: I tried all 9.x.x. firmware from this site. Thanks. Greetings from Russia.

when u get white screen and drive letter. that mean ur firmware version is correct but not compatible with LCD only.

Re: COMPLETELY black screen; dead MP4 player; iPod Nano clon
 

I have decided that I will use the player as a Mass Storage Device...especially since Christmas is now less than a week away, and I know for a fact that I am getting a pink 2nd gen iPod Mini that definately holds 4GB of music files, but also holds podcasts, e-books, textfiles, pictures, and video clips.