Zen vision m firmware problem

Dear All this problem is caused if the computer has windows media player 11 installed. I googled this for days trying to fix it - & was relieved when i finally sorted it - it's very easy. Just do the following.
Use a computer that has XP (either pro or home edition) (forget about vista....). go to add/remove programs - uninstall windows medi player - on my PC it does a roll back to WMP version 9. There's also a program called "Windows media format runtime 11" which comes with WMP11 & you need to uninstall this too - otherwise it still won't recognise the player.

Then restart your PC. Then make sure you have downloaded the lastest firmware version - just google it - trying to find the right one on the creative website is not easy - their website is poor - there are quite a few other places you can download it from.

Then I clicked the "reload firmware" option in the recovery mode (I had already deleted it 4 days ago). Then when your PC has restarted plug in your Zen, it should come up something like "MTP device recognised". Now when you double click on the firmware downloaded to install - it it will recognise the player & you can click the upgrade button. It does the upgrade & puts the firmware back on the ZEN. I got a message saying "firmware upgrade failed" at the end although when I started the player - it booted up as normal & I was able to reload & play my music.

This sure beats the "send it back to John Lewis, pay 60 quid & wait 6 weeks for it to come back " option - if like mine it's out of warranty

Make sure you have media player 11
If you can, the best test is to try your player with another PC, to see if you still have the problem. This localises whether the problem is with the PC (most likely the USB) or the player. See the link below (search on "connection problems") for a lot more troubleshooting on this.
Download recovery tool off creative's website.
go to my computer > click on hardware tab >
click on device manager button > in the is next screen on the bottom should have>>universal serial bus controllers
(write these down just in case it cant find them)
right click on them and uninstall
reboot let windows reinstall them
Also told Microsoft hotfix causes this problem try uninstalling the last hotfix
If that doesn't fix it try the USB cable

good luck
please mark the post with a fixya

Hey. I had the same problem with my ZVM's firmware reloading.Here's what I did:
First, make sure that you have the latest version of zen vision: m firmware and the right version for the OS you're using. Download it at http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/welcome.asp?action=next
Make sure that your zvm isn't connected to your computer. Turn on your zvm. It should boot to the restore menu and will say there was a problem with the firmware. Now that its on, choose reload firmware. It should say it's erasing the current firmware. After that is done, it will show a message saying that you should upgrade the firmware by USB. At that point, connect the zvm to your computer. That's when the player should be recognized by your computer (unlike before). Next, on your computer, run the zen vision m firmware upgrader. Begin the upgrade and if it asks you if you want to upgrade even though the firmware version is the same, say yes. Once the upgrade has begun, your zvm should also say that it's upgrading. By the end, [on my computer] my zvm froze and the firmware upgrader froze also. The upgrading firmware message on my zvm also disappeared. At this point, disconnect your zvm from your computer and reset it using the reset button. On your computer, the upgrader should say the player is rebooting. When you start up the zvm again, it will start rebuilding and it should work again.

~Hope this helps. Thats exactly what I did when this happened to me and my player works again.

Stone it against the wall hard, that should solve your problem.

My zen does the same and i could get the connection with another computer... but then it says that the "Firmware upgrading failed" :s What can I do then??? please help, it's terrible that that (nearly) my best friend is dead!!!

I had a similar problem where my computer could see the zen but the firmware update couldn't, what ended up being the problem was windows media player 11. I had to uninstall it and install windows media player 10. Then thing worked just fine.

I struggled with the stupid Zen Vision M 30GB for over six months, spending hours uploading, downloading, installing, uninstalling etc...and got absolutely NO WHERE! The problem started when things were deleted and i was down to hardly any music. Then i could not get my MP3 player to read in WMP 11, and couldnt add songs or synchronize it with my computer. Then i deleted my firmware, but could not reinstall it because it kept saying my device was not connected! It showed up in My Computer as Zen Vision M, but wouldnt read it to upload firmware. It turned out, all i had to do was install the firmware from another computer, you dont need the installation CD or anything, just go to the other computer and click on the latest firmware upgrade or this link:

http://support.creative.com/downloads/welcome.aspx?nDriverType=4&showdetails=1&bLatest=1

and click download, and open. Be sure to connect your MP3 device to the computer, and presto it should install the new firmware NO PROBLEMO!!!! I tried everything except another computer, and now i regret it, because i have all this **** on my computer, but oh well!

Step 1: Clean Disk
Step 2: Download the New firmware (if you cant just skip to step 3)
Step3: Hit Format all in recovery mode. It'll delete everything in your Zen , i no it sucks but at least it'll work
Step 4: hit reboot in recovery mode n it shud work

The creative zen will only work in combination with Windows media player 10.

make sure any other windows media player version's are removed and install 10

will definitly work.

I am having a similar problem. I have Vista 64 bit. I try to install firmware and it says failed. ZVM will only load into recovery mode.

hello guys... i guess i have the solution but its not a permenant one ...
when i connect my zen vision m to my pc, it does not become docked nor it charges...
i tried many solutions but all were useless....
but finally... heres what i tried...
I reset the player then quickly pluged it with the USB cable to the pc ...
it says rebuilding...
now its docked and charging ....
when i remove it... it stays docked and charging ...
ireset it again ... and now it works ok ...
but the battery doesnt last longer i dunno why although i charged it for like 6 hours..

I've had the same problem for a day or so now. Went to Creative.com, followed the relevant links, downloaded the new firmware and hey presto, back to life!

i reboot my zen and it jus comes up with firmware problem.
and it wont change from that..?
and if i plug it into the computer it wont register..?