NW-A35 - Database creates each time the player is started

[roadcone]

This is a new purchase a few days ago. I have updated the firmware to v1.2 and added files to the internal memory by using drag-and-drop in Windows Explorer. Everytime I start the player it goes through the "creating database" process. This is frustrating enough, but when I put in a 128GB micro SD the time it takes to do that each time makes the player unworkable. I have forced a database creation manually both with and without the micro SD fitted but nothing changes. Can anyone offer any guidance please?

Clive

[Anonymous]

Hi there

It might be the case of its got a lot of music to go through and its not fully creating the database for whatever reason?

I did find this however:

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/new-sony-nw-a30-series.815843/page-35#post-13048173

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/new-sony-nw-a30-series.815843/page-35#post-13049478

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/new-sony-nw-a30-series.815843/page-36#post-13050565

Cheers

[roadcone]

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

I think I have established that the behaviour is by design. With a
player re-set to factory settings, there are three sample files on the
internal memory and no SD card. Boot time to "creating database" is
consistent at 44 seconds. With three files, the database creation is
over in a second. With around 400 files on the internal memory, the
database creation phase is around ten seconds. With an almost full 128GB
SD card, the database creation is around 1 minute 15 seconds, taking the
total boot time to over two minutes. Some posters on the forum you link
report times as high as over 300 seconds.

Sony recommended formatting the SD in the player and that would resolve
the problem - I did that, it didn't; it added eight seconds to the boot
time.

I've returned the player.

[roadcone]

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

I think I have established that the behaviour is by design. With a
player re-set to factory settings, there are three sample files on the
internal memory and no SD card. Boot time to "creating database" is
consistent at 44 seconds. With three files, the database creation is
over in a second. With around 400 files on the internal memory, the
database creation phase is around ten seconds. With an almost full 128GB
SD card, the database creation is around 1 minute 15 seconds, taking the
total boot time to over two minutes. Some posters on the forum you link
report times as high as over 300 seconds.

Sony recommended formatting the SD in the player and that would resolve
the problem - I did that, it didn't; it added eight seconds to the boot
time.

I've returned the player.

[Sonyvores]

yes it is by design, it has always been like this in case you added new files to be detected. Only way to avoid that is not to turn off the player. Why do you turn it off anyway? Battery is very large and last very long for a music player and charge is fast so virtually you never need to turn it off especially if it bothers you that much :S

[roadcone · Accepted solution]

1. It does bother me, otherwise I would not have gone to the trouble of posting a help request.

2. The help I have had from Sony is limited to telling me to reformat the card. Given that the action is by design, this advice is misleading. Surely the designers of the player know that it is by design and surely they could have told me, but they didn't.

3. My expectations are driven by the NWZ-A15 I have. With the same card, containing the same files, it boots in under one second. I am at a loss to understand why this player takes in excess of two minutes.

4. There is no need to create the database "just in case of a change" each time. It is a very simple matter for a 'fingerprint' file to be created each time files are added, and for that file to be checked. If it is the same as preevivously (so no new files have been added), the database create instruction is by-passed.

5. It would be remarkably simple to allow a user setting to make database creation at start-up a manual or an automatic process.