JBR V2 Won't load Rockbox

[danzaid]

I am having zero luck getting this Jukebox Recorder V2 to run Rockbox. From what I understand you extract a .ZIP to the root of the unit or run the handy dandy installer. It seems simple enough. I can see the .rockbox directory and ajbrec.ajz files in the root of the drive in Win XP. I remove the drive "safely" & shut down the JBR. I restart it and it goes about loading the ROM V 1.40a & not the updated ajbrec.ajz in the disk root. I presume the ROM looks at the root to determine if a disk based firmware file is newer and loads it. It doesn't. I tried to use the F1 key trick which I probably am equally confused over. I now beleive this F1 key trick is to revert to the ROM firmware. Every time I hold it down and power up I get the same result, OS v 1.40a. I have used Partition Magic to recreate a Basic, Active FAT32 formatted disk. I can get to the partition in windows and drop the necessary files in place they just don't do squat. And now I have a vendetta and a cache of weap..... Sorry, innappropriate & tasteless. PLEASE HELP!!!

[danzaid]

Is there any tests I can perform other than the disk diagnose feature in the Archos? Is there anything I can do to the bare disk drive like FDISK /MBR or whatever to get this puppy to boot from disk? Do I need a hammer?

[LinusN]

Sounds really weird. Which version of Rockbox are you using, and are you absolutely sure that you use the V2 variant of Rockbox and not the FM recorder or V1?

[danzaid]

It's an Archos Jukebox Recorder. On the back of the chassis is "Model JBR V2". The part number is 400028. There is a label on the PCB: JBR-FM V2.2. I am stumped. Is there a way to program the ROM without having Rockbox resident? Is there another application that I can try running on the Archos to see if anything will execute? I really appreciate your help!

[danzaid]

Also, to answer your question I downloaded the 2.5 installer as well as individual .ZIP files. I've tried several archived versions too.

[Bagder]

It's an Archos Jukebox Recorder. On the back of the chassis is "Model JBR V2". The part number is 400028. There is a label on the PCB: JBR-FM V2.2. I am stumped. Is there a way to program the ROM without having Rockbox resident? Is there another application that I can try running on the Archos to see if anything will execute? I really appreciate your help!

If in doubt, you could easily just unzip the FM version and try that if the V2 version doesn't work. The "JBR-FM" label certainly implies FM to me...

And no, I don't think there are any other custom firmwares for these players.

[danzaid]

I had already attempted the FM version but I did just extract "rockbox-2.5-fmrecorder.zip" to the unit after wiping it and checking it for errors. Again it simply boots the ROM. When you press the power button briefly, should the Jukebox fire right up? I am curious if the fact that I have to hold the on button for 4 seconds to turn on if this normal. Why yes, I am grasping at straws. I think I've got a boat anchor. I really thought a JBR V2 would be a safe bet to run Rockbox. Is it worth a try connecting the harddrive to my PC with an IDE to laptop harddrive adapter to format and write the Rockbox files? I remember reading a thread about the scrambling or encoding of the binaries had to be redone in a flavor to support the Jukebox Recorder. The problem was similar to mine, the files were simply ignored on startup. So if I am totally not getting my Rockbox on, is the JBR V2  able to deal with a 100 Gig drive upgrade? I remember reading that I'd need Rockbox to support this size drive. Thanks!

[Bagder]

I really thought a JBR V2 would be a safe bet to run Rockbox

It really is to everyone else, or at least has been...

Is it worth a try connecting the harddrive to my PC with an IDE to laptop harddrive adapter to format and write the Rockbox files?

No, that wouldn't make any difference. When you access the Archos over USB you replace/control the exact file contents already anyway.

I remember reading a thread about the scrambling or encoding of the binaries had to be redone in a flavor to support the Jukebox Recorder.

The recorder v1, the FM and the v2 all have different scramblings and that's one reason why only the correct version would work for you when unzipping it.

is the JBR V2  able to deal with a 100 Gig drive upgrade?

Yes, the player, v1, v2 and FM are all capable to upgrade to at least 120GB drives. And all 2.5" 9.5mm parallell ATA disks work.

[[IDC]Dragon]

v1.40a is indeed the "classical" known firmware for a V2 recorder. An FM recorder would have up to v1.30j or so.

I have no idea why it doesn't load firmware from the disk, if the partitioning is correct.