I have encountered exactly the same issue and still wait for someone to come up with a working solution. Can’t believe that tech support has not picked this up, yet.
I added the .hex file and then my player updated the firmware all the way up to 90% then stuck there. Did a reboot now it won’t turn on at all. Computer wont recognize it either.
This situation is a bit challenging to resolve. I am hoping Tapeworm, our SanDisk Senior Guru, will soon provide some expert advice. While we are waiting try these quick ideas:
1. Player not connected to PC, press the large oval button for 20-25 secs and see if the player starts up.
This solution worked for me. It allows one to use a separate program to force a firmware onto the device then you can copy the latest version 1.43 upgrade.hex file to the root directory and update the entire system. Worked like a charm for a clip sport mp3 player that was completely dead and unresponsive to any of the conventional reset methods. https://sandisksportfirmware.wordpress.com
@beauchot78 wrote:
This solution worked for me. It allows one to use a separate program to force a firmware onto the device then you can copy the latest version 1.43 upgrade.hex file to the root directory and update the entire system. Worked like a charm for a clip sport mp3 player that was completely dead and unresponsive to any of the conventional reset methods. https://sandisksportfirmware.wordpress.com
I went to the website but the requiered files are no longer available (the website is from 2016). I have tried to find them but no luck. Did you get them recently from that website or did you find them somewhere else?
Charged/Updated Firmware–everything seemed fine… Powered off. Tried to turn device back on and it won’t boot (just SanDisk logo on black screen 'till it powers itself off!)
Computer won’t recognize device anymore…
…If I use volume up while plugging in USB (to get “FW Updating…Don’t Disconnect” screen) computer chirps but device is only discoverable/listed as “Actions USB 2.0 (HS) WinUSB Device”
This solution, which you can find at https://sandisksportfirmware.wordpress.com 99, proved effective for me. By using a separate program to force a firmware onto the device, you can then copy the latest version 1.43 upgrade.hex file to the root directory and update the entire system. This method worked perfectly for reviving a Clip Sport MP3 player that was completely unresponsive to conventional reset methods. I highly recommend following this link if you encounter a similar issue; it could be the solution you need.