). And it was ALL about the loose headphone jack on the Zen line. If you guys have a Zen Micro, can you please say if it has been replaced or if you haven't returned it (it is still fully working). Can you also state what colour you have, the first 6 numbers of your serial code and how long have you had it? Trying to see if the jack problem actually affects certian Zen Micros or if it is just the luck of the draw.
Full Version: Creative Zen Micro...
Well, there is a on going thread in the creative forums (around 54 pages ). And it was ALL about the loose headphone jack on the Zen line. If you guys have a Zen Micro, can you please say if it has been replaced or if you haven't returned it (it is still fully working). Can you also state what colour you have, the first 6 numbers of your serial code and how long have you had it? Trying to see if the jack problem actually affects certian Zen Micros or if it is just the luck of the draw.
). And it was ALL about the loose headphone jack on the Zen line. If you guys have a Zen Micro, can you please say if it has been replaced or if you haven't returned it (it is still fully working). Can you also state what colour you have, the first 6 numbers of your serial code and how long have you had it? Trying to see if the jack problem actually affects certian Zen Micros or if it is just the luck of the draw.
I had mine replaced but because the "Back" button wouldn't work if the headphones weren't in. I discovered the serial numbers played no part in whether you got one that worked or not.
I got a black unit back in December (first bunch w/ extra battery offer & different touchpad), ran into the headphone jack issue after about two weeks, returned it early February and Creative sent me a brand new package around late February. The new unit has been working fine since then. 
QUOTE(OPaul @ May 19 2005, 22:47)
I had mine replaced but because the "Back" button wouldn't work if the headphones weren't in. I discovered the serial numbers played no part in whether you got one that worked or not.
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OPaul, did you get your ZM replaced or just fixed?
QUOTE(Cabizzle @ May 20 2005, 02:51)
OPaul, did you get your ZM replaced or just fixed?
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Replaced
mine is fully working
[COLOR=blue][FONT=Courier][SIZE=7] I have the same problem with the loose headphone jack, i was delivering papers this afternoon when it started. looking to find a way to open it myselg, i realised that my warranty sticker was ripped, i think that happened putting the battery in place, and cuz of that i probably won't be able to send it to creative labs. And like that was not enough, there seems to be a wrong contact inside the mp3 player due to the headphone jack, cuz when i have headphones pluged it and i move the cable a lil bit too much, the mp3 player sends me a shutting down message and it does shut down. i have that "limited edition" package and it's silver.WHAT SHOULD I DO!!
QUOTE(thepunisher713 @ Jun 1 2005, 17:22)
[COLOR=blue][FONT=Courier][SIZE=7] I have the same problem with the loose headphone jack, i was delivering papers this afternoon when it started. looking to find a way to open it myselg, i realised that my warranty sticker was ripped, i think that happened putting the battery in place, and cuz of that i probably won't be able to send it to creative labs. And like that was not enough, there seems to be a wrong contact inside the mp3 player due to the headphone jack, cuz when i have headphones pluged it and i move the cable a lil bit too much, the mp3 player sends me a shutting down message and it does shut down. i have that "limited edition" package and it's silver.WHAT SHOULD I DO!!
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Contact Creative and explain the situation.
Yeah, but i think you will have to pay to get the ZM replaced as the warranty is voided
I dont own a zen micro but have fixed my friends. What i had my friend do is bring me his zen micro, I took it apart (not all the way) and stuffed some paper between the jack and the actually player. Re-assembled the player and it hasn't moved since and i made dam sure that the warranty label wasn't hurt and it looks good.
Thought id throw that out in the air for those of you having this issue. Theres also a few guides on the net to dissasmble the micro.
Other than that if you got a store warranty id return it, or send it back to creative them selfs. Ive also noticed my local wal-mart and circuit city have gotten a revision model and im thinking just maybe they have fxied it.
Thought id throw that out in the air for those of you having this issue. Theres also a few guides on the net to dissasmble the micro.
Other than that if you got a store warranty id return it, or send it back to creative them selfs. Ive also noticed my local wal-mart and circuit city have gotten a revision model and im thinking just maybe they have fxied it.
sorry for this stupid question
What happens with the headphone for it to get that problem?
What happens with the headphone for it to get that problem?
Its mostly from people disconnecting their headphones too much from the unit. The jack could be better, but its by no stretch as bad as people make it out to be. The easiest thing to do to prevent the problem is to buy an extension or set of earbuds that have a 90 degree bend on the jack. It provides less torque on the headphone jack that would otherwise make it move around.
I've had my player (silver) for several months and haven't had any problems. Don't jiggle your jack around, disconnect the headphones every time you pick it up, or any other dumb things and you won't run into the problem. Its cutting edge tech, take care of it.
As noted, the serial numbers don't play a big part in the case. Not that I've read up to this point at least.
I've had my player (silver) for several months and haven't had any problems. Don't jiggle your jack around, disconnect the headphones every time you pick it up, or any other dumb things and you won't run into the problem. Its cutting edge tech, take care of it.
As noted, the serial numbers don't play a big part in the case. Not that I've read up to this point at least.
QUOTE(OPaul @ Jun 1 2005, 18:00)
Contact Creative and explain the situation.
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i will, i'm just waiting to find my bill to get the purchase date. and if their anwser is negative i'll probably open it and fix it myself.
here it's done, i'll keep you up to date as soon as i get a reply from them. anyways, g2g to bed, i have exams 2morrow, bye!
okay, i got creative's e-mail, here's what it looks like :
so i guess they know it really is their fault. if you have this problem, go to the shop where you bought it if it's still under warranty, if not, send an e-mail to creative labs (there's a RMA section on their website to do that) and get it replaced.
QUOTE
With regards to your enquiry, you might like to try connecting another
pair of earphones to your player. Did you encounter any issue?
If issue persists, we can conclude that your product may be having some
issue. If possible and if the product is in-warranty, try exchanging the
product for another from the vendor, for this will be much quicker and
easier than having an RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) issued. If
this is not possible, do reply back to me and an RMA will need to be
arranged to have your product tested for repair/replacement.
Please note that you are subjected to the return policies of the place
of purchase.
pair of earphones to your player. Did you encounter any issue?
If issue persists, we can conclude that your product may be having some
issue. If possible and if the product is in-warranty, try exchanging the
product for another from the vendor, for this will be much quicker and
easier than having an RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) issued. If
this is not possible, do reply back to me and an RMA will need to be
arranged to have your product tested for repair/replacement.
Please note that you are subjected to the return policies of the place
of purchase.
so i guess they know it really is their fault. if you have this problem, go to the shop where you bought it if it's still under warranty, if not, send an e-mail to creative labs (there's a RMA section on their website to do that) and get it replaced.
whats the problem with the jack? i got a zen mirco and aren't sure what your on about. is the bit where the headphones plug into loose, so they fall out easier or what?
QUOTE(sharpy2k4 @ Jun 3 2005, 16:39)
whats the problem with the jack? i got a zen mirco and aren't sure what your on about. is the bit where the headphones plug into loose, so they fall out easier or what?
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It is the bit where the headphones plug into which has come loose.
I'm actually facing the software problems but usually get resolved after taking out the batteries and placing them back.
I have a few friends who also got it and had tones of problem with the headphone jack and the touchpad. I'm not facing any just yet. I got my set for 2-3 months already.
I have a few friends who also got it and had tones of problem with the headphone jack and the touchpad. I'm not facing any just yet. I got my set for 2-3 months already.
This headphone-jack thing happened to me a couple weeks ago. I got the RMA from Creative, but realized that if I was going to pay a hundred bucks for an out-of-warranty repair anyhow, i might as well try to fix it myself. (All this refers to the 5 gig model, and don't sue me if you try this and it breaks. I didn't tell you to do this. This is for entertainment purposes only, and it'll void your warrantee.)
Here's what I did:
Take the back battery cover off.
Take the battery out.
Set the player's on-off switch on "lock" i.e. all the way toward the headphone jack.
Take a jeweler's flat-head screwdriver and use it to gently pry off the plastic top plate that surrounds the headphone jack etc. You do this by pushing the screwdriver blade into where the on-off switch slider is, and prying in the "on" direction. This top faceplate is just held with a little contact glue, and won't even need to be reglued when you put it back.
When you pry that off, you see two little screws, philips as i remember. Take those out and don't lose them.
Now hold the Zen right-side-up in both hands, with the open battery compartment facing you. Put your two thumbs on the metal back of the compartment, and pull down. The metal will slide down about 1/4". This releases all the catches that hold the damn chinese box together. (This is where you just voided your warrantee.)
Now gently pry the back and the front apart.
You see that there are two units here: the main unit, and then a small unit that stays with the white plastic back, and carries the jack and the on-off switch. This is the part that is badly designed and's causing all the trouble. It's held on to the casing with two little screws--remove those and take the unit out.
See, the headphone is soldered to the little motherboard, and then unfortunately they've added another layer of chips right over that spot for miniaturization purposes. So it's no good hoping to resolder it; you'd have to detatch the top layer of electronics first, which is insane.
You could either get Creative to send you this whole headphone-jack unit as a spare part (I had no luck finding a phone number for that), or else do what I did and epoxy the jack back to its motherboard where it was coming loose.
You see that there's some play in the headphone jack. There shouldn't be. That's what you want to fix, by firmly and permanently fastening the jack to its little motherboard.
There is a metal plate with two screws that cover the jack and the plug. Take those screws out, but there's no need to remove the plate. You'll just be prying at it a little bit later on.
Get some two-ton epoxy (as opposed to the quick-drying kind that doesn't hold as well, you don't want to do this twice do you?). Mix it up. Pry gently at the jack so it's coming away from the motherboard slightly. Using a toothpick or something, apply epoxy very carefully to the gap. Notice that the jack is kinda perforated in places: you DON'T want to get epoxy inside the jack, or you'll never be able to get a plug into it afterwards.
Find all the spots you can along the inside edge of the headphone jack that you can reach for this gluing.
Then pry up the metal plate from the top, just enough so you can fit a shim in there. Your shim can be a bit of paper folded 4 or 6 times, for instance. The idea is that when you refasten the metal cover, it and the shim will be pressing down on the jack assembly and tending to force it into the motherboard where it's supposed to live. This also will make a nice clamp for the epoxy while it's drying.
So put the paper shim in there and re-attach the two screws that hold the metal plate on. Nice and tight. Then you can actually just reassemble everything by reversing these steps. Be careful when you put the two parts of the Zen back together, since as you can see, the back and front communicate with each other using two rather fragile sockets, and you don't want to damage them.
But it's all pretty easy, and for me it's resulted in a free permanent fix (so far!)...whereas if Creative replaces it, how do we know the same thing won't happen again?
Here's what I did:
Take the back battery cover off.
Take the battery out.
Set the player's on-off switch on "lock" i.e. all the way toward the headphone jack.
Take a jeweler's flat-head screwdriver and use it to gently pry off the plastic top plate that surrounds the headphone jack etc. You do this by pushing the screwdriver blade into where the on-off switch slider is, and prying in the "on" direction. This top faceplate is just held with a little contact glue, and won't even need to be reglued when you put it back.
When you pry that off, you see two little screws, philips as i remember. Take those out and don't lose them.
Now hold the Zen right-side-up in both hands, with the open battery compartment facing you. Put your two thumbs on the metal back of the compartment, and pull down. The metal will slide down about 1/4". This releases all the catches that hold the damn chinese box together. (This is where you just voided your warrantee.)
Now gently pry the back and the front apart.
You see that there are two units here: the main unit, and then a small unit that stays with the white plastic back, and carries the jack and the on-off switch. This is the part that is badly designed and's causing all the trouble. It's held on to the casing with two little screws--remove those and take the unit out.
See, the headphone is soldered to the little motherboard, and then unfortunately they've added another layer of chips right over that spot for miniaturization purposes. So it's no good hoping to resolder it; you'd have to detatch the top layer of electronics first, which is insane.
You could either get Creative to send you this whole headphone-jack unit as a spare part (I had no luck finding a phone number for that), or else do what I did and epoxy the jack back to its motherboard where it was coming loose.
You see that there's some play in the headphone jack. There shouldn't be. That's what you want to fix, by firmly and permanently fastening the jack to its little motherboard.
There is a metal plate with two screws that cover the jack and the plug. Take those screws out, but there's no need to remove the plate. You'll just be prying at it a little bit later on.
Get some two-ton epoxy (as opposed to the quick-drying kind that doesn't hold as well, you don't want to do this twice do you?). Mix it up. Pry gently at the jack so it's coming away from the motherboard slightly. Using a toothpick or something, apply epoxy very carefully to the gap. Notice that the jack is kinda perforated in places: you DON'T want to get epoxy inside the jack, or you'll never be able to get a plug into it afterwards.
Find all the spots you can along the inside edge of the headphone jack that you can reach for this gluing.
Then pry up the metal plate from the top, just enough so you can fit a shim in there. Your shim can be a bit of paper folded 4 or 6 times, for instance. The idea is that when you refasten the metal cover, it and the shim will be pressing down on the jack assembly and tending to force it into the motherboard where it's supposed to live. This also will make a nice clamp for the epoxy while it's drying.
So put the paper shim in there and re-attach the two screws that hold the metal plate on. Nice and tight. Then you can actually just reassemble everything by reversing these steps. Be careful when you put the two parts of the Zen back together, since as you can see, the back and front communicate with each other using two rather fragile sockets, and you don't want to damage them.
But it's all pretty easy, and for me it's resulted in a free permanent fix (so far!)...whereas if Creative replaces it, how do we know the same thing won't happen again?
Well I own one for about 1 month and I'm not having any issue with the headphones jack... The only problem I'm having and it's a known issue it's the unabillity to delete contacts once they are transfered into the ZM...
QUOTE(k2doggo @ Jun 7 2005, 17:44)
This headphone-jack thing happened to me a couple weeks ago. I got the RMA from Creative, but realized that if I was going to pay a hundred bucks for an out-of-warranty repair anyhow, i might as well try to fix it myself. (All this refers to the 5 gig model, and don't sue me if you try this and it breaks. I didn't tell you to do this. This is for entertainment purposes only, and it'll void your warrantee.)
Here's what I did:
Take the back battery cover off.
Take the battery out.
Set the player's on-off switch on "lock" i.e. all the way toward the headphone jack.
Take a jeweler's flat-head screwdriver and use it to gently pry off the plastic top plate that surrounds the headphone jack etc. You do this by pushing the screwdriver blade into where the on-off switch slider is, and prying in the "on" direction. This top faceplate is just held with a little contact glue, and won't even need to be reglued when you put it back.
When you pry that off, you see two little screws, philips as i remember. Take those out and don't lose them.
Now hold the Zen right-side-up in both hands, with the open battery compartment facing you. Put your two thumbs on the metal back of the compartment, and pull down. The metal will slide down about 1/4". This releases all the catches that hold the damn chinese box together. (This is where you just voided your warrantee.)
Now gently pry the back and the front apart.
You see that there are two units here: the main unit, and then a small unit that stays with the white plastic back, and carries the jack and the on-off switch. This is the part that is badly designed and's causing all the trouble. It's held on to the casing with two little screws--remove those and take the unit out.
See, the headphone is soldered to the little motherboard, and then unfortunately they've added another layer of chips right over that spot for miniaturization purposes. So it's no good hoping to resolder it; you'd have to detatch the top layer of electronics first, which is insane.
You could either get Creative to send you this whole headphone-jack unit as a spare part (I had no luck finding a phone number for that), or else do what I did and epoxy the jack back to its motherboard where it was coming loose.
You see that there's some play in the headphone jack. There shouldn't be. That's what you want to fix, by firmly and permanently fastening the jack to its little motherboard.
There is a metal plate with two screws that cover the jack and the plug. Take those screws out, but there's no need to remove the plate. You'll just be prying at it a little bit later on.
Get some two-ton epoxy (as opposed to the quick-drying kind that doesn't hold as well, you don't want to do this twice do you?). Mix it up. Pry gently at the jack so it's coming away from the motherboard slightly. Using a toothpick or something, apply epoxy very carefully to the gap. Notice that the jack is kinda perforated in places: you DON'T want to get epoxy inside the jack, or you'll never be able to get a plug into it afterwards.
Find all the spots you can along the inside edge of the headphone jack that you can reach for this gluing.
Then pry up the metal plate from the top, just enough so you can fit a shim in there. Your shim can be a bit of paper folded 4 or 6 times, for instance. The idea is that when you refasten the metal cover, it and the shim will be pressing down on the jack assembly and tending to force it into the motherboard where it's supposed to live. This also will make a nice clamp for the epoxy while it's drying.
So put the paper shim in there and re-attach the two screws that hold the metal plate on. Nice and tight. Then you can actually just reassemble everything by reversing these steps. Be careful when you put the two parts of the Zen back together, since as you can see, the back and front communicate with each other using two rather fragile sockets, and you don't want to damage them.
But it's all pretty easy, and for me it's resulted in a free permanent fix (so far!)...whereas if Creative replaces it, how do we know the same thing won't happen again?
[right][snapback]586031635[/snapback][/right]
Here's what I did:
Take the back battery cover off.
Take the battery out.
Set the player's on-off switch on "lock" i.e. all the way toward the headphone jack.
Take a jeweler's flat-head screwdriver and use it to gently pry off the plastic top plate that surrounds the headphone jack etc. You do this by pushing the screwdriver blade into where the on-off switch slider is, and prying in the "on" direction. This top faceplate is just held with a little contact glue, and won't even need to be reglued when you put it back.
When you pry that off, you see two little screws, philips as i remember. Take those out and don't lose them.
Now hold the Zen right-side-up in both hands, with the open battery compartment facing you. Put your two thumbs on the metal back of the compartment, and pull down. The metal will slide down about 1/4". This releases all the catches that hold the damn chinese box together. (This is where you just voided your warrantee.)
Now gently pry the back and the front apart.
You see that there are two units here: the main unit, and then a small unit that stays with the white plastic back, and carries the jack and the on-off switch. This is the part that is badly designed and's causing all the trouble. It's held on to the casing with two little screws--remove those and take the unit out.
See, the headphone is soldered to the little motherboard, and then unfortunately they've added another layer of chips right over that spot for miniaturization purposes. So it's no good hoping to resolder it; you'd have to detatch the top layer of electronics first, which is insane.
You could either get Creative to send you this whole headphone-jack unit as a spare part (I had no luck finding a phone number for that), or else do what I did and epoxy the jack back to its motherboard where it was coming loose.
You see that there's some play in the headphone jack. There shouldn't be. That's what you want to fix, by firmly and permanently fastening the jack to its little motherboard.
There is a metal plate with two screws that cover the jack and the plug. Take those screws out, but there's no need to remove the plate. You'll just be prying at it a little bit later on.
Get some two-ton epoxy (as opposed to the quick-drying kind that doesn't hold as well, you don't want to do this twice do you?). Mix it up. Pry gently at the jack so it's coming away from the motherboard slightly. Using a toothpick or something, apply epoxy very carefully to the gap. Notice that the jack is kinda perforated in places: you DON'T want to get epoxy inside the jack, or you'll never be able to get a plug into it afterwards.
Find all the spots you can along the inside edge of the headphone jack that you can reach for this gluing.
Then pry up the metal plate from the top, just enough so you can fit a shim in there. Your shim can be a bit of paper folded 4 or 6 times, for instance. The idea is that when you refasten the metal cover, it and the shim will be pressing down on the jack assembly and tending to force it into the motherboard where it's supposed to live. This also will make a nice clamp for the epoxy while it's drying.
So put the paper shim in there and re-attach the two screws that hold the metal plate on. Nice and tight. Then you can actually just reassemble everything by reversing these steps. Be careful when you put the two parts of the Zen back together, since as you can see, the back and front communicate with each other using two rather fragile sockets, and you don't want to damage them.
But it's all pretty easy, and for me it's resulted in a free permanent fix (so far!)...whereas if Creative replaces it, how do we know the same thing won't happen again?
[right][snapback]586031635[/snapback][/right]
thanks for telling everyone, it really is the thing to do cuz i've done it last week and it worked. kinda unexpected from creative tought, having to put paper in the headphone jack!! ans by the way guys, if you want to do it, i aproove these instructions!
Yes, thanks for the info k2doggo... And welcome to Neowin!
QUOTE(k2doggo @ Jun 7 2005, 21:44)
You see that there are two units here: the main unit, and then a small unit that stays with the white plastic back, and carries the jack and the on-off switch. This is the part that is badly designed and's causing all the trouble. It's held on to the casing with two little screws--remove those and take the unit out.
[right][snapback]586031635[/snapback][/right]
Hey k2doggo, those two little screws holding the board to the plastic frame...are those the same screws that hold the metal plate over the jack and usb plug? I only see 2 screws, but in your instructions, you say to remove the screws to remove the board them remove the screws that hold the plates over the plugs. Can you clarify?
I'm so nervous about this!!!
Here is a nice guide with pictures on how to open your zen micro:
http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view....=9&id=1331&pg=1
http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view....=9&id=1331&pg=1
QUOTE(Jim2386 @ Jun 12 2005, 16:56)
Hey k2doggo, those two little screws holding the board to the plastic frame...are those the same screws that hold the metal plate over the jack and usb plug? I only see 2 screws, but in your instructions, you say to remove the screws to remove the board them remove the screws that hold the plates over the plugs. Can you clarify?
I'm so nervous about this!!!
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I'm so nervous about this!!!
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well, when i wrote that, it'd been a week since i'd done the operation. so i could have gotten that detail wrong. if the two screws that hold the metal cover over the jack are also the screws that hold the whole assembly to the plastic frame, then just take the screws out. my screws were gooped up with some blue loktite gel, but don't worry about that. just take out the screws, and remove the board, but as i said there's no need to remove the metal cover altogether. and don't be nervous. it'll work i hope!
Just last week I had the similar problem with the headphone jack. I follow the above procedures in order to open the ZM. Although I lost my warranty but I have successfully fixing the headphone jack by inserting a piece of folded paper to fill the gap between the headphone jack and metal covering. At first when I put the parts back together my ZM was not even turning on power. I thought I have done something wrong. Then I took a careful look at the pins that connect between the unit and the board where the headphone jack attached to. The pins were bent! With careful fix to pins...I managed to straighten the pins and put back together and it finally works! The headphone jack is also working fine as new. I proud what I did...thanks to the guide above. In order to prevent more damages to headphone jack, I unplug the headphone everytime I finished using it and put it back on whenever I am using ZM.
Thanks for the breakdown on how to fix (this extremely annoying!) problem with the Zen Micro. I have had my Micro since February of this year, the 5 gig model, and the headphone jack problem started up two weeks ago. Not realizing it was an internal issue, I bought new headphones thinking that one side of my headphones had simply given out (as headphones usually do after a while). The new headphones revealed that the problem was not corrected, so I looked around online and discovered that this headphone jack issue is common to the Zen Micro. Anyway, following the great directions posted here, I was able to completely fix the issue and now the player is as good as new!
I have no clue whether my warranty is expired or not, but since it's about 6 months since purchasing the player (and considering that I have filled it to capacity), I decided to just go ahead and fix it myself, this way.
I did come across a few unexpected things. The rubber microphone cover (black half-ball thing) came off, but I just stuck it back on, and the two little mettle "used staple-like" springs fell off the plastic case, but I put those back as well.
In all, it took me about 10 minutes to get the unit apart, the folded postcard piece I put in between the metal casing over the headphone jack and the jack itself in place, and the whole thing put back together. Much better than waiting weeks (I'd imagine) for the unit to be serviced or replaced by Creative.
No more sound issues!
My next "big endeavor" with the Micro will be to "bling it out" (ok, so shoot me) with Swarovski crystals so I can be as cool as Paris Hilton!
AndyNYC
I have no clue whether my warranty is expired or not, but since it's about 6 months since purchasing the player (and considering that I have filled it to capacity), I decided to just go ahead and fix it myself, this way.
I did come across a few unexpected things. The rubber microphone cover (black half-ball thing) came off, but I just stuck it back on, and the two little mettle "used staple-like" springs fell off the plastic case, but I put those back as well.
In all, it took me about 10 minutes to get the unit apart, the folded postcard piece I put in between the metal casing over the headphone jack and the jack itself in place, and the whole thing put back together. Much better than waiting weeks (I'd imagine) for the unit to be serviced or replaced by Creative.
No more sound issues!
My next "big endeavor" with the Micro will be to "bling it out" (ok, so shoot me) with Swarovski crystals so I can be as cool as Paris Hilton!
AndyNYC
The Zen Micro is warrantied for a year.
http://us.creative.com/support/warranty/warranty.asp
http://us.creative.com/support/warranty/warranty.asp
meh, i have had no problems with mine. It is from the fist batch ever made (i ordered it the day it was released) all i can say is, if you really want ot get rid of your micro with a headphone jack problem, RMA it, and then sell the new one on ebay, you might make money...
QUOTE(OPaul @ Jul 24 2005, 20:24)
The Zen Micro is warrantied for a year.
http://us.creative.com/support/warranty/warranty.asp
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http://us.creative.com/support/warranty/warranty.asp
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But only three months labor.
Anyways, I have had three issues with the Zen Micro, and I am done with that POS. First off, right out of the box, the stock headphones were broken. Then, 3 months later, the headphone jack goes bad. Now, on a brand new Micro replacement, the headphone jack has gone bad AGAIN. I'd stay away from this product. I loved it, but too many issues to make it worthwhile.
Now I have an iRiver H10 20GB.
QUOTE(MixMasta @ Jul 30 2005, 14:12)
But only three months labor.
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[right][snapback]586298377[/snapback][/right]
You never have to pay for labor, they just replace the whole unit.
Hey guys, first time poster, I just wanted to say thanks to the guy who recommended just slipping a piece of paper between the jack and the player.. I didn't have to unscrew anything or void any warranty and it has worked 100% like a charm!! thanks so much!!
Chris
Chris
But i think that the paper in between the jack/player is only a temporary solution to it.
Hey, THANKS HEAPS for this fix. I lost my receipt, couldn't have gotten warranty service, and wouldn't have had a clue how to fix this myself.
I registered just to say THANKS!
I registered just to say THANKS!
QUOTE(tinman02 @ Aug 14 2005, 20:12)
Hey, THANKS HEAPS for this fix. I lost my receipt, couldn't have gotten warranty service, and wouldn't have had a clue how to fix this myself.
I registered just to say THANKS!
[right][snapback]586377684[/snapback][/right]
I registered just to say THANKS!
[right][snapback]586377684[/snapback][/right]
You're welcome. But I have to confess that in my case, my "fix" only lasted a month or so. I mean, think about it--you've got a broken solder connection, and you're trying to just mechanically hold it together with glue. It's destined to fail.
But I then returned it to Creative Labs, even though I'd blown the warrantee, and to my surprise they didn't charge me for a replacement.
BUT, then the new one failed in two weeks! Same headphone jack problem. So now I'm trying to negotiate with them--I don't want yet another sample, and as we've learned (in a gigantic discussion of this over on the Creative forums), there is no redesign of this feature, and all of them regardless of serial number are equally likely to fail.
So good luck with your Micro, but just know if it fails, you may at least be able to get Creative to give you a new sample. Whether you then use it or sell it on Ebay is up to you...!
i am now methodically going around every chat room telling everyone that zen micros are completely unreliable. I got my first player in december and it broke after 4wks. It then took Creative a month to send me a replacement, which then developed the dreaded headphone jack problem about a month later. My third player then lasted for about 3months before that too developed the same fault.
We tried to get a refund but they won't let us have one because i had the player for over 30 days. It doesnt help that we cannot contact anyone except through email. Apparantly i can chose another creative product now though instead. Does anyone know anything about the creative sleek 20gb mp3 player? If i go for that will it just develop the same fault all over again.
arg. i should have just been a sheep and got a damned ipod! so much for giving something else a chance!
We tried to get a refund but they won't let us have one because i had the player for over 30 days. It doesnt help that we cannot contact anyone except through email. Apparantly i can chose another creative product now though instead. Does anyone know anything about the creative sleek 20gb mp3 player? If i go for that will it just develop the same fault all over again.
arg. i should have just been a sheep and got a damned ipod! so much for giving something else a chance!
The Creative Zen Sleek looks good, get it
The Zen Micro wasn't that unrealiable when i had it (even though i had a defective 'back' button) i didn't get the headphone jack problem
The Zen Micro wasn't that unrealiable when i had it (even though i had a defective 'back' button) i didn't get the headphone jack problem
Ok just wondering. Does anyone have a Zen Micro for longer than 5 months and not encounter the problem?
My headphone jack is as tight as a vir...lol,nm
Had Zen Micro for about a month... Is this an issue due to wear and tear?
Had Zen Micro for about a month... Is this an issue due to wear and tear?
lol erm 
But its a weak soldering point that makes the jack not function. But wear and tear on the jack can cause the problem to arise faster.
But its a weak soldering point that makes the jack not function. But wear and tear on the jack can cause the problem to arise faster.
QUOTE(PaulCabby @ Aug 21 2005, 03:39)
Ok just wondering. Does anyone have a Zen Micro for longer than 5 months and not encounter the problem?
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To be honest, my first zm had the phone jack problem. After getting a replacement around late January, I haven't had any such issues with my unit.
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Lol. Didn't want to wait for a replacement, plus my zm's already 5 months old. So I pried it open and jammed a piece of paper between the jack and the metal casing. No problems yet. One thing though, something came out. It was like a bent metal piece, like a twisted stapler. Not sure where it fit, so I put it one side. IS this something critical?
i've got the zen micro since 14-15 months now with no problems until a few weeks ago.
Now i have both the headphone problem and the battery super drain.
i think this is due to the many falling of the zen.
that's ok anyway, after one year and a half i can change it with no regrets.
Now i have both the headphone problem and the battery super drain.
i think this is due to the many falling of the zen.
that's ok anyway, after one year and a half i can change it with no regrets.
Quote - (Acid @ Jun 1 2005, 18:15) [snapback]586001812[/snapback]
Its mostly from people disconnecting their headphones too much from the unit. The jack could be better, but its by no stretch as bad as people make it out to be. The easiest thing to do to prevent the problem is to buy an extension or set of earbuds that have a 90 degree bend on the jack. It provides less torque on the headphone jack that would otherwise make it move around.
I've had my player (silver) for several months and haven't had any problems. Don't jiggle your jack around, disconnect the headphones every time you pick it up, or any other dumb things and you won't run into the problem. Its cutting edge tech, take care of it.
As noted, the serial numbers don't play a big part in the case. Not that I've read up to this point at least.
Wrong, the headphone jack comes loose because of poor engineering, plugging the headphones in and out of the player only plays a small roll in failure. The soldiering points of the original micro's (not the microphoto) headphone jack were very poor to say the least. I've had my micro for almost two years now, i use a staple to keep the headphone jack connected to the board.
I use mine daily, and have yet to experience any problems... aside from the occasional freeze, but thats nothing.
Never had a headphone jack problem, but maybe thats just me.
Never had a headphone jack problem, but maybe thats just me.
The only people I know who didn't have any problems are those who "lab test" their products. Most people like to put stuff like this in their pockets. The "lab testers" are the only people I know who had their DAP last more than 2 years. They also usually have no scratches at all or dust problems.
The headphone jack problem of the Zen Micro was even worse because the remote connects through the same plug meaning if your jack gets damaged it can easily short circut causing your player to reset if your jack recieves slight pressure while running. I brutally destroyed my Zen after it started to reset and I'm wondering if I'll ever purchase Creative DAP again. The best way to make headphone jacks suitable for pockets is the way Sony does with their "remote controls" like on the PSP, it has 2 pins instead of 1 eliminating almost all of the pressure from the soldering.
It's just like AK's VS M-16's... in lab testing M-16 beats AK-47 in most tests but in real life M-16 is difficult to use under tough situations because it was only "lab tested"
Oh and people this is an ancient thread.
The headphone jack problem of the Zen Micro was even worse because the remote connects through the same plug meaning if your jack gets damaged it can easily short circut causing your player to reset if your jack recieves slight pressure while running. I brutally destroyed my Zen after it started to reset and I'm wondering if I'll ever purchase Creative DAP again. The best way to make headphone jacks suitable for pockets is the way Sony does with their "remote controls" like on the PSP, it has 2 pins instead of 1 eliminating almost all of the pressure from the soldering.
It's just like AK's VS M-16's... in lab testing M-16 beats AK-47 in most tests but in real life M-16 is difficult to use under tough situations because it was only "lab tested"
Oh and people this is an ancient thread.
I just bought one of these and have a major problem I dont know if I can return this or not, but maybe you guys can help.
Windows 2000 service pack 4
Wont detect?
It wont install the software nor will it let me see the micro.
I have winodws media player 9.
Please help. Dont want to give it up. tried installing the drivers aswell and i Guess the MTP is the problem. There a way to get around this?
all of creatives plaers are awesome but the micro and nomdad jukebox these two players are horrid. the rest are awesome... especially the zen vison m but the micros just not agood player if your gonna get one get a sleek sleek photo or microphoto or zev v
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