Introduction This User Guide details the features of your Creative ZEN® MX. Creative ZEN MX is a music and video player, alarm clock, recorder, and radio*, all rolled into one. To increase your player's data-storage capacity, insert a memory card in the SD Memory slot. For setup and installation instructions, refer to the printed Quick Start leaflet that comes with your player. *The FM Radio feature is available on selected models only.
Your Player at a Glance This section introduces your player and its parts. Click the numbered labels for more information.
Turning Your Player On and Off 1. To turn on your player, press and hold until the display screen lights up. 2. To turn off your player, press and hold until the Shutting down... message appears.
Selecting Menus and Options Your player has several menus and options from which you can select an item. Menus are categories for contents, features, or player information. Examples of menus include Music and Settings . Options are actions you can perform on a menu item. Examples of options include Play and Seek To . Click each screen on the diagram below for more information.
Navigating a List Quickly When you have a long list of items, the alphabet bar helps you to move quickly from one part of the list to another. Use the Direction Pad to move the cursor along the alphabet bar, and to switch between the alphabet bar and the track list. The alphabet bar appears in selected menus.
Locking Your Player Locking your player temporarily disables the functions of all buttons on your player. This feature is useful when you do not want to accidentally activate functions on your player, such as when your player is in your pocket or bag. To lock your player Press and select Lock from the options. The Lock icon appears on the top right corner of the display. To unlock your player When your player is locked, press any button and select Yes to confirm. See also Enabling Auto Lock .
Playing and Managing Media This chapter tells you how to obtain, play, and manage different media files on your player.
Ripping Music When you rip music, you convert music tracks (often from CDs) into a format suitable for playback on your computer. You can easily rip music with applications such as Creative Centrale or Windows Media® Player. 1. Make sure the audio CD you want to rip from is placed inside your CD drive. 2. Start Creative Centrale on your computer. 3. In Creative Centrale, click the Rip button. Follow the instructions on the screen. button. 3.
Tagging Your Audio Tracks Every audio track (MP3 or WMA file) has a set of properties that contains information such as song and album title, artist name and genre. Using these properties, your player organizes your music library into categories such as albums, artists and genres, enabling you to browse your huge collection of audio tracks quickly and easily.
Transferring Files to Your Player You can use Creative Centrale to transfer files to your player. Make sure that the files you want to transfer are located in folders that are specified in Creative Centrale's Watch folders . For more information, refer to the application's Help file. Warning! Avoid disconnecting your player from your computer while file transfer is in progress. To avoid data loss and damage to your player, disconnect your player properly.
Creating Playlists A playlist is a set of selected tracks. On your player, a playlist first resides in the Selected Music view. You can keep a playlist in Selected Music view indefinitely, but the playlist may become too long and unmanageable. To better manage your playlists, save your playlists and create new ones periodically. To create a playlist in Selected Music view 1. On the main menu, select Music. 2. Select any submenu with audio tracks, for example, All Tracks. 3.
Entering Selected Music View 1. 2. 3. 4. On the main menu, select Music > Now Playing. Press OK. In the Now Playing view, the progress bar changes to a rating bar. Press OK. If an Album Art is available, it will be displayed on the screen. Press OK again to enter the Selected Music view. 4. Else, if no Album Art is detected, the player enters the Selected Music view immediately after Step 3. 5. To exit, press OK.
Playing and Managing Music Tracks You can search for music tracks by album, artist, or genre. If you have combined tracks from various albums, and saved them as playlists, you can also search your tracks by playlist. See Creating Playlists . 1. Press and hold to return to the main menu. 2. Select Music. 3. Select a category, such as Albums or Playlists. 3. If you want to search by track title, select All Tracks. 4. Select the track you want, and press . For effective searches, tag your tracks properly.
Adjusting volume While a song or video is playing, the volume bar appears when you press to adjust the volume. It disappears shortly after adjusting. or To limit the maximum volume level on your player, see Enabling Volume Restriction.
Shuffling and Repeating Tracks Set the Play Mode to specify the playback sequence of your music files. 1. In the main menu, select System > Audio Settings > Play Mode. 2. Select one of the following items: Normal Plays your selected tracks in sequential order. Repeat Track Repeats the current track. Repeat All Repeats all selected tracks. Shuffle Plays all selected tracks in random order, once only. Shuffle Repeat Plays and repeats all selected tracks, in random order.
Searching for Similar Tracks While a song is playing, you can do a quick search for other song titles from the current artist. Press and select Lookup Artist . The Lookup Artist option is also available from the Entering Selected Music View.
Rating Tracks Rate how much you like a track, so your player's DJ (see Being Your Own DJ ) can automatically play your favorite tracks. Choose from one to five stars. 1. On the main menu, select Music > Now Playing. 2. Press OK. 2. In the Now Playing view, the progress bar below changes to a row of stars. 3. Press or to rate, then press OK.
Removing Tracks On your player, to remove tracks means removing from the Selected Music view only. The tracks are still on the player and can be accessed from submenus like Artists or Albums . To permanently remove tracks, use the Delete Track function. See Deleting Tracks . 1. On the main menu, select Music > Now Playing. 2. Press OK. In the Now Playing view, the progress bar changes to a rating bar. 3. Press OK again. The Selected Music view appears. 4. Press or to select a track. 5.
Deleting Tracks This action permanently deletes tracks from your player. To only remove tracks from the Selected Music view, see Removing Tracks . 1. On the main menu, select Music > All Tracks. 2. Press or to select a track. 3. Press and select Delete Track.
Using Bookmarks A bookmark marks a point within a track, so you can return to it at a later time. For example, if you are listening to your recording of an interview, insert a bookmark if you need to stop. When you want to continue listening from where you left off, go to this bookmark. You can use up to 10 bookmarks at any one time. To insert a bookmark 1. Play the track you want to bookmark. 2. In the Now Playing view, while the track is playing, press and select Set Bookmark. 3. Select a bookmark number.
Searching Within Tracks Within a track, you can specify where you want to begin playing, even up to the exact second. For example, if you want to start playback one minute into the track, you can 'seek to' the one minute position and then begin playback from there. 1. While a song is playing, press and hold to return to the main menu. 2. Select Music > Now Playing. 3. Press and select Seek To. 4. Press or to move back or forward within the track. 5. Press OK.
Being Your Own DJ Instead of selecting tracks yourself, let your player's DJ pick out tracks for you. 1. On the main menu, select Music > DJ. 2. Select one of the following: o Album of the Day o Plays any album. o Random Play All o Plays all tracks in random order. o Most Popular o Plays frequently played tracks. o Rarely Heard o Plays rarely played tracks. o Highly Rated o Plays tracks that you have rated highly. o Yet to be Rated o Plays tracks you have yet to rate. 3. Press OK.
Playing Audible Files You can search and play Audible files the same way you search and play music tracks. See Playing and Managing Music Tracks . In addition, you can also skip sections within Audible files. To skip sections within an Audible track 1. If you are not in the Now Playing view, press and hold to return to the main menu, then select Music > Now Playing. 2. Press OK until the progress bar is divided into sections. 3. Press or to skip sections.
Listening to the Radio This section applies only to ZEN MX players with the FM Radio feature. Players with the FM Radio feature can store up to 32 predefined FM radio stations called "presets." The FM frequency range on your player is set to "International" by default. Most regions in the world receive FM broadcasts in this range. If you are using your player in Japan, make sure you have selected "Japanese" as your player's default language before selecting your FM region. 1.
Performing an Autoscan and Autosave 1. 1. 2. 3. 4. Connect your earphones to your player. The earphones function as antennas and must be connected to your player for signal reception. In the main menu, select FM Radio. Press and select Autoscan. When prompted to start autoscan, select Yes.
Performing a Manual Scan 1. 1. 2. 3. 4. 4. 5. Connect your earphones to your player. The earphones function as antennas and must be connected to your player for signal reception. On the main menu, select FM Radio. Press to go to Manual Scan view. On your display, the word 'preset' disappears. Press and hold or to scan for the next available radio station. Press or to fine-tune the frequency. Press and select Save as Preset.
Naming or Renaming a Radio Preset 1. 2. 3. 4. On the main menu, select FM Radio. Select a preset. Press and select Name Preset. A virtual keypad appears. Use the Direction Pad to select characters to name your preset. Press sets and symbols. 5. When you have finished, select OK on the keypad.
Deleting Radio Presets 1. On the main menu, select FM Radio. 2. Select a preset. 3. Press and select Delete Preset.
Viewing Your Presets 1. On the main menu, select FM Radio. 2. In FM Radio view, press OK. The list of presets appears.
Recording with the Built-in Microphone 1. 2. 3. 4. 4. 5. 5. On the main menu, select Microphone. Place your player as close as possible to the source you are recording. Press to start recording. To pause the recording session, press and select Pause. To resume, press . To end the recording session, press . The player automatically saves the recording. The track is named "MIC", followed by the date and time of the recording (YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS).
Playing Recordings 1. On the main menu, select Music > Recordings. 2. Select a recorded track and press .
Viewing and Managing Photos View photos individually or as a slideshow on your player. Your player can also play music tracks while performing the following tasks: Viewing Photos Displaying Photo Folders Viewing Slideshows Your player displays photos in the JPEG (.jpg) format only. Expect a short interval before the photos you select are displayed. Your player is preparing to load and display the photos.
Viewing Photos 1. 1. 2. 3. 4. On the main menu, select Photos > Pictures. Folders of photos appear. If your photos are not yet organized into folders, thumbnails appear instead. Proceed to step 3. Select a folder. The photos from that folder are displayed as thumbnails. Select a thumbnail. The photo appears in full screen. You can do several things while viewing photos. Press and select one of the following: Rotate to turn the photo 90° clockwise. Zoom In to zoom in on a photo.
Displaying Photo Folders You can display your folders in a list or in rows. To change the folder's display orientation, select a folder, press and select Switch View . You can choose not to display selected folders. For more information, see Hiding Video or Photo Folders.
Viewing Slideshows 1. 2. 3. 3. On the main menu, select Photos > Pictures. Select a folder or thumbnail, and press . To stop the slideshow, press . During the slideshow, you can press for additional options. See Viewing Photos. You can play music while viewing a slideshow. Just play tracks before starting your slideshow.
Playing and Managing Videos Use Creative Centrale to transfer videos to your player. It automatically converts your videos to a format supported by your player. For information on transferring videos and other media files with the use of Creative Centrale, refer to the application's Help file.
Playing a Video 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. On the main menu, select Videos > Video. Select a video and press . To pause the video, press . Press again to resume playback. To stop the video, press . You can do several things while playing videos. Press and select one of the following: Seek To to specify, in minutes or seconds, where you want to start playing a video. Press or to move back or forward within the track. Volume to adjust the audio volume. Lock to temporarily disable your player's buttons.
Deleting a Video 1. 2. 3. 4. On the main menu, select Videos > Video. Select a video. Press and select Delete Video. Select Yes.
Hiding Folders You can hide video and photo folders containing content that you do not want your player to display. 1. Press and hold to enter the main menu. 2. For video folders, select Videos > Video, and then select a folder. 2. For photo folders, select Photos > Pictures, and then select a folder. 3. Press and select Protect. A Protected Content icon appears on the folder. 4. Press and hold to return to the main menu. 5.
Setting a Password for Protected Folders You can use a password to secure your Protected Content setting. 1. Press and hold to return to the main menu. 2. Select System > Player Settings > Protected Content Password. 2. Use the Direction Pad to enter a 4-digit numeric password. 3. Press OK to select the checkmark . 4. Press OK again to confirm the password. 4.
Disabling or Changing the Password 1. To disable the password feature or change your password, select System > Player Settings > Protected Content Password. 2. Use the Direction Pad to enter your current password. 3. To disable the password, use the Direction Pad to enter 0000. 3. To change the password, use the Direction Pad to enter a new password. 4. Select the checkmark to confirm your settings.
Reading and Managing eBooks Your player supports eBooks in TXT, HTML, and HTM formats. When you load eBook files, be sure to put them inside the player's Ebook folder.
Reading eBooks 1. 2. 2. 3. On the main menu, select EBook. If you want to select a recently opened eBook file, press Otherwise, select a file from the list or from a subfolder. To navigate through the file, refer to the table below. To Scroll up or down Go to the next or previous page Go directly to the end of the file Go back to the start Go to a certain section and select Recently Browsed. Do this Press or . Press or . Press and select Goto Bottom. Press and select Goto Top. Press and select Jump to.
Setting Bookmarks Set a marker on an eBook file, and you can return to that particular section at a later time. This is helpful on occasions such as when reading a long chapter, and you want to later on continue exactly where you left off. 1. On the eBook file, scroll to the page where you want to put a bookmark. 2. Press and select Set Bookmark. 2. Your player bookmarks the first line on the screen. 3. To return to this location later, press and select Goto Bookmark.
Auto Scroll Settings You can set your player to automatically scroll down one line at a time or to automatically flip to the next page of the eBook file. This feature is useful if you do not want to keep on pressing buttons when reading a selection. 1. Open any eBook file. 2. Press and select Auto Scroll. 3. To turn on or off the Auto Scroll feature, select Auto Scroll: On or Off. 4. To set the interval time, scroll to Interval and press OK. 4. Press or to set the time, and press OK. 5.
Display Settings You can select the text color and the background properties to suit your preference. 1. Open any eBook file. 2. Press and select Display Properties. 3. To set the text color, select Font Color. On the color palette that appears, use the direction pad to scroll through and highlight a color, and press OK. 4. To set the background color, select Background. Select a color from the color palette. 5. To set the background transparency, select Transparence.
Deleting eBooks 1. On the main menu, select Ebook. 2. Scroll to an eBook file or folder. 3. Press and select Delete File or Delete Folder.
Reading and Managing RSS Feeds On your player, you can directly update and read the latest RSS feeds from your favorite Web sites. Connect your player to your computer and double-click the RSSSynchronizer.exe file in the player. This starts the Creative RSS Synchronizer. Use this program to load and manage RSS feeds on your player. For detailed instructions on using this software, refer to the RSS Synchronizer's Help file.
Reading RSS Feeds 1. On the main menu, select My RSS . 2. Select a feed from one of the RSS folders. 3. To navigate through the file, refer to the table below. To Scroll up or down Go directly to the end of the file Go back to the start Do this Press or . Press and select Goto Bottom. Press and select Goto Top. A circle icon beside a folder or file indicates unread RSS feeds.
Deleting RSS Feeds 1. On the main menu, select My RSS. 2. Scroll to a folder or RSS file. 3. Press and select Delete Folder or Delete RSS File. You can also use Creative RSS Synchronizer to delete RSS feeds on your player. For more information, refer to the Creative RSS Synchronizer Help file.
Managing Organizer Data Your player can store your contacts, calendar events, and tasks from organizer programs such as Microsoft® Outlook. For information on synchronizing your organizer data with your player, refer to Creative Centrale 's Help file.
Viewing the Calendar 1. In the main menu, select Extras > Organizer > Calendar. 2. Use the direction pad to select a month and day.
Viewing Today's Tasks 1. In the main menu, select Extras > Organizer > Tasks. 2. Use the direction pad to select a task.
Viewing Contacts 1. In the main menu, select Extras > Organizer > Contacts. 2. Select a name in your contact list to view the contact details.
Customizing Your Player Your player can be configured in various ways to suit your needs and preferences.
Assigning Menu Shortcuts You can directly access a function or a feature by assigning it to your player's My Shortcut button. On the main menu, select System > Player Settings > My Shortcut Button. Select the menu shortcut that you want.
Configuring Your Player's Menus You can personalize the main menu by adding, removing, and re-arranging menu items. For example, if you usually search for songs by album, you can add Albums to the main menu so you can access the Albums view more conveniently. To add/remove menu items 1. Press and hold to enter the main menu. 2. Press , and select Configure Menu. 3. Press or to highlight a menu item. 4. Press OK to select items that you want to appear on the menu. 4.
Setting the Menu Language 1. On the main menu, select System > Language. 2. Select the language that you want.
Changing Audio Settings Using Equalizer (EQ) Enabling Volume Restriction Enabling Smart Volume Enabling Bass Boost Page 59
Using Equalizer (EQ) EQ is the player's collection of equalizer settings, which you can use to enhance the quality of your audio tracks. You can select an equalizer preset or customize your own settings to suit the genre or style of your music. To select an equalizer preset 1. On the main menu, select System > Audio Settings > EQ. 2. Select one of the EQ menu items. 2. When an EQ setting is selected, appears on the Now Playing view. To customize equalizer settings 1. On the EQ screen, select Custom EQ. 1.
Enabling Volume Restriction Listening to audio at high volume for prolonged periods may damage your hearing. To protect your hearing, control your player's maximum playback volume. To enable volume restriction 1. On the main menu, select System > Audio Settings > Restrict Volume. The volume bar appears. 2. Press or to set the maximum volume that you prefer, then press OK. You will be prompted to set a password. 3. Use the direction pad to set a numeric password. 3.
Enabling Smart Volume Smart Volume keeps the volume level within a specified range, so when you listen to a track, some sections will not be too loud or too soft. On the main menu, select System > Audio Settings > Smart Volume .
Enabling Bass Boost Enabling bass boost enhances the quality of some audio. On the main menu, select System > Audio Settings > Bass Boost .
Changing Display Settings Changing the Theme Setting the Backlight Duration Setting the Display Brightness Page 64
Changing the Theme You can change your player's display color by selecting a different theme. 1. On the main menu, select System > Display Settings > Theme. 1. The current theme is displayed. 2. Select the theme that you want.
Setting the Backlight Duration 1. On the main menu, select System > Display Settings > Backlight Time. 2. Select the duration that you want before your player's backlight dims.
Setting the Display Brightness 1. On the main menu, select System > Display Settings > Brightness. 2. Select the settings that you want.
Changing Player Settings Setting the Idle Shutdown time Enabling the Sleep Timer Enabling Auto Lock Page 68
Setting the Idle Shutdown Time The Idle Shutdown Time refers to the period that your player is inactive before it automatically turns off. This feature helps save battery power. 1. On the main menu, select System > Player Settings > Idle Shutdown. 2. Select the setting that you want.
Enabling the Sleep Timer You can specify a fixed period of time before your player automatically shuts down during a continuous and uninterrupted playback. 1. On the main menu, select System > Player Settings > Sleep Timer. 2. Press or to set the duration that you prefer. 3. Press OK.
Enabling Auto Lock The Auto Lock feature automatically locks your player after the display has dimmed for about 10 minutes. On the main menu, select System > Player Settings > Auto Lock. This feature is not applicable while your player is performing the following activities: Video playback Photo slideshow Microphone recording Building or rebuilding a library Importing files Battery charging. See also Locking Your Player .
Changing Clock Settings Setting the Date and Time Setting the Alarm Displaying the Time Page 72
Setting the Date and Time 1. On the main menu, select Extras > Date & Time. The current date and time are displayed. 2. Press and select Set Time or Set Date. Use the direction pad to change the time or date settings. 3. Press or to select a date or time field. 4. Press or to change the values, and press OK.
Setting the Alarm 1. 2. 3. 4. On the main menu, select Extras > Date & Time. The current date and time are displayed. Press and select Set Alarm. Select Time, and use the direction pad to change the time settings. To change other alarm settings, select the setting you want, and use the direction pad to set the values.
Displaying the Time 1. On the main menu, select System > Clock Settings. 2. Select Clock in Title. 3. Select Digital if you want the time to be displayed on the top left corner of your player screen. Otherwise, select Disable.
Resetting Your Player You can reset your player to its original settings. On the main menu, select System > Reset Settings .
Using a Memory Card Your player only supports memory cards formatted with FAT16 or FAT32 file systems. To ensure that your memory card is of the correct format, use a 128 MB or higher capacity memory card.
Inserting and Ejecting a Memory Card Inserting a Memory Card Correctly Make sure that the memory card is properly aligned with the slot, then gently push to lock it in place. Ejecting a Memory Card Correctly Push to eject the memory card, then gently pull it out from the slot. Warning! To avoid damage to your memory card: Do not force the memory card in the slot. If it does not fit properly, gently remove and try again. Do not shake the memory card when removing.
Playing Media from a Memory Card You can play media contents from SD memory cards in a similar manner as when you play contents from your player's internal memory. When you insert a memory card in the SD card slot, your player automatically builds a separate music, video, and photo library for the memory card. Select Memory Card, and then select Music, Videos, or Pictures .
Transferring Files to and from Your Memory Card The memory card in your player is considered by your computer as a removable disk drive. This means that on your computer, you can use familiar Windows® Explorer operations to transfer files to and from your memory card. Use Creative Centrale to transfer media files (such as videos) to your player or memory card. Creative Centrale automatically converts media files to a format that is supported by your player. See also Transferring Files to Your Player .
Importing Photos and Music to Your Player This operation transfers all photos or music files from your memory card to your player. 1. Insert your memory card in your player's SD memory slot. See Inserting and Ejecting a Memory Card. 2. On the main menu, select Memory Card. 3. Select Import All Music or Import All Pictures. 3. Your player creates a folder according to the date and time settings. For example, if you transfer files on August 13, 2009 at 6:30:35 PM, the folder name is 2009-08-13 18H30M35S. 4.
Creative Centrale Creative Centrale is your complete media experience in one software. Use it to easily rip, tag, transfer, and organize all your media files. For a complete and easy guide for using this software, start Creative Centrale and click the Help button. Your player came with a Starter Pack that includes the Creative Centrale software.
Frequently Asked Questions This section covers questions you might have while using your player. For further assistance, you may consult our self-help tool "Knowledge Base". Visit www.creative.com . Can I transfer Digital Rights Management (DRM) protected WMA files to my player? Yes. Your player supports Windows Media® DRM (WMDRM) 9 file format. To transfer media files to your player, use Creative Centrale or Windows Media Player. I cannot play DRM-protected WMA files on my player.
5. When the cleanup is complete, select Reboot. Your player restarts and rebuilds its music library. Your player's firmware is reset to default settings after you cleaned up your player's memory. To format your player in Recovery Mode If your player is still performing erratically after you have cleaned up your player's memory, format your player. 1. Turn off your player. 2. Press and hold to turn on the player. 3. When the Creative logo appears , press and hold until the Recovery Mode screen appears.
Declaration of Conformity According to the FCC96 208 and ET95-19, Manufacturer/Importer's Name: Creative Labs, Inc. Manufacturer/Importer's Address: 1901 McCarthy Boulevard Milpitas, CA. 95035 United States Tel: (408) 428-6600 declares under its sole responsibility that the product Trade Name: Creative Labs Model Numbers: DVP-FL0011 has been tested according to the FCC / CISPR22/97 requirement for Class B devices and found compliant with the following standards: EMI/EMC: ANSI C63.
License and Copyright Information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Creative Technology Ltd. No part of this manual may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, for any purpose without the written permission of Creative Technology Ltd. ZEN and the Creative logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Creative Technology Ltd.
