20 Most Recent Creative Labs ZEN SLEEK MP3 Player - Page 9 Questions & Answers

There are many causes for the freezes all of which I have found so far to be operator error. Except for the firmware upgrade. Follow all manufacturers instructions for resets and reinstalls (read throughly before proceeding) and all will be well again. We have 2 sleek photos I found the users to main the problem (2-teenages). Corrupt files (pics & audio)cause freezes. Find them and delete them. Regular cleanup from the utilities menu)helps alot these units are mini-computers but they do not multitask well- cant push them.

http://www.anythingbutipod.com/forum/showthread.php?t=961

Try uninstalling and re-installing the software and drivers that comes with the device. The player thinks it's docked but it's not communicating properly to the software because the data on your computer has probably become corrupted from the freeze. If you have lost the software and drivers (or if you'd like to update your firmware) you can find the files here: http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/download.asp?MainCategory=213&nRegionFK=&nCountryFK=&nLanguageFK=&sOSName=Windows+XP®ion=1&Product_Name=ZEN+Sleek&Product_ID=13599&modelnumber=&driverlang=1033&OS=10&drivertype=0&x=14&y=12

You have to hit the reset button. You stick the end of a small paperclip or even the wire part from those garbage bag twist-ties into the reset button which is the hole on the bottom of the player. As you push the paperclip into hole you must hold down the PLAY button. This should put it into the Recovery screen or else it will just say "Rebuilding Library". If it goes into the Recovery screen you select CLEANUP and then YES. After it goes through cleanup which can take forever then it will will usually reboot on its own or if it goes back to recovery screen hit REBOOT after you have done CLEANUP.

ok, first you will need to let it rebuild as far as it will go without interuption. Then once it gets stuck... take a a clothes pin or a real slim piece that will fit into the reset hole. The reset button is near where you would normally plug it in for data transfer or power supply. Now your player will restart, you shouldn't lose any infomation at all by doing this. After you do this, you need to try and press the power button so you can power the system down. If you are able to power the system down, that is good... then after it is off, you will need to plug it into your computer to charge... or plug in your wall charger in order to charge the system. Once plugged in... leave on charge over night. The next day... unplug the system from the power supply. Try to let it sit for a few moments before you do anything to it... After letting it sit, try powering it on... If it starts to try to rebuild the library, then while it is doing so, lay it on a desk and do not move it until done. After that... if it comes on as normal... it is fixed. However, this is a problem I have had with mine too! So if it does not work after that... you may try to contact me at [email protected] Thanks and I hope I was able to help you with your Creative product!

ok! easy solution for you^^ 1) Make sure your Zen is powered OFF. if the blue light is on and won't turn off, here's what you do: set the hold button at the top of the player to the ORANGE position, then hold your power button for 3 seconds. the keypad will flash and your player will power down. 2) push in the reset button with a pin or other fine implement. the reset button is located on the bottom of the unit, right next to the connector. your player should power up as normal now. charge it fully! your computer should be able to read it during it's charge as long as you leave it powered on^^ I hope this helps you^^

lol I'm not Dr. Zizmor but I can give it a try for you^^ Power down your Zen, if the power key is un-responsive, select the hold button at the top to the ORANGE position and then holdyour power button for 3 seconds, the keypad should flash and your player should power down. under the zen, right next to the connector is a tiny black hole, take a needle, something small and pointy and press it in there slowly. this should power on your zen if it's just a glitch due to being dropped. if this solutions does not work, my only advice is for you to contact Creative themselves. If your product is still under guarantee, you may get it repaired free of charge (Postage and other mailing costs will not be refunded however.). If your product isn't under guarantee, then you may ask them how much the repairs would cost and if it is really worth it, sometimes it's often cheaper just to go and buy a new product. I hope this helps

ok, sounds like a problem I had when I was working out the software! The easiest way to create a playlist with the Zen, is doing it over your PC, if you don't have the software it is available for FREE download at the official creative Zen site, just choose your model and region then hit download- simple! (You won't need Zencast with sleek photo model) ok! install your software blah blah blah, once it's gone through that process, restart your pc and then plug in your zen. the software should instantly recognise that your player is connected, so now, you can open up the software via desktop shortcut or start menu. From here, you've got a whole ton of options, whether to add to your library, create playlists etc etc. Choose create playlist and the process is easy. Left side of the screen is navigation of your Library, right side is navigation of current playlists. Create a new list, then name it. From the top left of the screen, select a folder on your library to open, the lower left displays what's in the folder you are viewing. move tracks over accordingly, holding down ctrl while you click is a fast and easy way to select more than one track at a time. hit add in the center of the screen to move stuff over to your new list. when you're done, save it. when you exit the software and unplug your zen, it should take a minute to update itself, sometimes you may need to restart Zen also to get the playlists updated. I hope this helps!

I'm not sure if mine is having the exact same problem as yours, but i have had a few firmware CD's that have been bad, and wouldn't download right, even though it said it downloaded. I am searching under google, and i found a driver that says it should work, if it works, i will post the link on the next solution. My computer has windows Xp Home edition, so i don't know if it will work. If you get the problem fixed, would you PLEASE post another solution under mine? that would be awsome. thanks. Ihope it works for both of us!!!

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It only sees the player if you are using Windows Media Player 10! Try a fresh computer. Get it to see the Zen Sleek by updating the driver. Load Media Player 10 (Not 11) and try the update firmware program again. Best of luck

well have you tried a new battery or it could be a faulty wire ! hope it helps ...

try disabling the firewall and / or anti-virus on pc

The same thing happened to me and i had no idea what to do. I tried e-mailing the creative headquarters but they wouldnt give me any advice. Finally i realized that there is a reset button on the botom of the player that i never noticed before. If you hold in the play/pause button, hit the reset button, and then release then play/pause button it should take you to a screen where it gives you options on what to do with your player. What i did was reboot it and nothing happened. Whatever you do, DO NOT hit format, or else you will lose all of your picture and music files. I got really frustrated with this problem so glad i could help out.

Behind the on/off switch is a little hole. Inserting the end of a paperclip will reboot the device. Then seek out the latest software from the creative site and install it. It is sometimes a glitch caused by an early version of the software.

I think I found it for you: http://uk.europe.creative.com/support/downloads/welcome.asp?nRegionFK=&nCountryFK=&nLanguageFK=&action=next&MainCategory=213&SubCategory=214&Product_ID=14259&Product_Name=Zen+Sleek+Photo&x=24&y=7

Why does technology make you work for what you already paid good money for? Have you tried going into Recovery Mode? You do this by holding down the Play/Pause button while triggering the Reset button. Once there, you have four options. Try selecting Disk Cleanup and then Reboot. You might need to re-Sync a few things but it's worth a shot. Good luck.

Hi, I had the same problem with my Zen Sleek. The problem turned out to be caused by a loose connection to the hard drive. I opened up the device, and saw that the cable was loose, so I attached it firmly, put it back together and all was well again. To take it apart; First peel off the front panel - the one with the slider and buttons. It's only glued on, it should come off easily. Then using a knife or small screwdriver, pop off the end panel - the one where you connect the cable to the pc, not the one with the power button. When this comes off you will see a silver panel held in place by two tiny screws - philips-head type. Unscrew these and this panel will come off, and the whole device should slide out easily. Now that you have it out of the shell, it should be pretty easy. The slim silver piece attached to the green circuit board by two wires, one red and one black, is the battery. Make sure it's firmly connected. The other thing, probably surrounded by blue plastic and with an orange cable connecting it to the circuit board, is the hard drive. In my case this was loose, and just had to be re-connected. I'm sure that doing all this voids some warranty or other, so don't do it unless this is a last resort and you're about to throw the thing in the bin. :-)

Try taking a toothpick, and at the bottom of your mp3 player, there is the usb insert port thing, but then there is this little hole to the right...it's the reset button. After you hit the reset button, just let it charge.