Player says "restarting" but never restarts

When mine did this it meant the firmware inside had gotten corrupted. It started working again when I reinstalled the firmware. The official firmware is available at the official website, and wikipedia promotes an unofficial firmware that provides more features.

For either of them, plug the unit into the USB port of your computer, then run the utility to upgrade the your Forge.

(Eventually, my Forge's internal memory storage died - it still play music from card memory, but every time I turn it on I have tell it my language is english etc.)

I hope that helps.

http://www.digitalnetworksna.com/support/rio/product.asp?prodID=215

Go here and download the firmware.

First Reset your player, Do not turn back on. Plug it into your usb cable. Download your updates then run them.

Do not touch your player till your done.

It worked for me. Right now it started to charge. I

I went here for a solution. Then ended up providing one. He he he. Good Luck.

Hi Allyson,
This is a problem which I have encountered alot with my Rio Carbon.
A solution which always works for me is to hold the player face down in my left hand and then slap the back of it with my right palm a little harder than I would if I was winding a baby.
Best wishes, I hope this works for you as it does for me.

http://www.digitalnetworksna.com/support/rio/product.asp?prodID=213
Download firmware update ( same for ALL Forge players)
Install upgrade (run program from your desktop)

When this happens to me (it does every few months), I re-flash the software following the instructions that come with it. Then the annoying "upgrader" message goes away for another few month. I use version 1.33 in my 512 forge.

Had this trouble 2 times.. remove battery and let it sit for about 30 min...

Then install battery if no better than reinstall firmware.. V 1.33

I had the same problem and, after scouring the internet in search of a solution, found nothing. So I started messing around with things. About 5 minutes ago I came up with something that worked for me! I'm still in 'testing' mode but it's playing some ACDC now so I'm happy. ;-)

My first step was to download a firmware 'update'. I'm not sure if it's newer or older than the firmware that I already had in there, but it works so what the heck. It's version 1.16 and is available for download here:

http://www.opendrivers.com/downloaddriverlink.php

Filename is 'RioForgeFlash_116.exe'

To update the firmware, I connected the player via the USB cable. It will power itself up automatically - make sure you have a fresh set of batteries in it. Once it powers up, turn it off but leave it plugged in via USB. Then, power it up again but press and hold the mode button (the small button on the face, to the left of the main navigation buttons. It's the one you use to select different play modes etc.). It will power up and display 'UPGRADER'. From this mode, run the udate file (RioForgeFlash_116.exe); it will update the firmware in the Forge.

Once completed, my Forge interacted normally with the Rio Music Manager and I was able to upload music to it again. I did lose all the music that was in there and on the storage card, but that's better than having a useless MP3 player!

Best of luck!

UPGRADER is a mode that purges the firmware from the Rio player prior to flashing the unit. Firmware is basically the operating system for the player, so if it is corrupted any number of things can occur. You can enter UPGRADER mode to update the firmware on your player by holding down the MENU button when you power the Rio ON. Flashing the player in this mode erases all content. Try the following to get the unit out of UPGRADER mode, if powering OFF the unit will not correct it. ALL PLAYERS - If you accidentally entered UPGRADER mode, turn the unit OFF and then back ON again. - Download the latest version of the firmware for your player and upgrade the unit. Visit http://www.digitalnetworksna.com/support/rio - It may be necessary to run the firmware update more than once. - This process may erase content from your player. - If the player is detected by the computer, it is recommended that you format the player, which WILL erase content from the player. - Macintosh user's try flashing the player on a PC. FLASH MEMORY PLAYERS - Remove the battery and replace it, this will reset the unit. The Rio Forge, Rio se510, Rio Cali [Black Rio Stick], and Rio Chiba [Black Rio Stick] can lock up causing the player to be unresponsive. If this occurs there are two things that need to be performed to resolve the issue. First you want to remove power from the player this includes the battery and a USB connection for 20 minutes to reset the player. There is a capacitor on the player that stores a charge that holds the player in the locked state. By waiting the duration the capacitor will discharge and the player should function as normal. Second you will want to upgrade the firmware to the latest version and format the player to prevent future occurrences. HARD DISK DRIVE PLAYERS - If you have a Carbon, Nitrus, Eigen, or Karma, use a paper clip to reset the unit. Your Rio will power off automatically when it has been reset. It may be necessary to connect the player to AC power and then reset the player if it will not turn on. If you are still unable to have the player exit UPGRADER Mode, then try it on another computer. UPGRADE FIRMWARE - Connect to the internet - Go to http://www.digitalnetworksna.com/support/rio/ - Click on the appropriate player - Click on the FIRMWARE tab [showing by default] - Click on the latest firmware file [example: RioForge_firmware_133.exe] - Click SAVE when prompted - From the SA

I've had the same thing happening and have been scanning the net for help. I finally got the player up and running, although I've lost aaaaaaaaaall my music....but at least I can stop shopping for a new player (for now). It was suggested on another site I plug it into the wall and keeep hitting reset and power in any random order. I would get strange things happening but it finally went back to normal and is now working again. There was no formula, just keep playing with the power and reset while it's plugged into the wall. I hope this helps.

Sorry for reverting to the basics, but have you tried taking the batteries out of it? That should revert it to its basic configuration.