Why is the Kemper so fussy about USB sticks

    I had to buy a new USB stick because the Kemper won't recognise the stick I already had, despite it working in everything else I tried it in.


    Luckily the new one I bought worked. However I managed to lose that one. Went out and bought another one today and surprise it won't recognise it. It works fine plugged into my laptop.


    So sodding annoying.

    Saying 'no problem here' isn't really helpful is it. How can I format them in the kemper when the thing doesn't seem to know there's a USB stick stuck in it. It's clearly a problem - searching the forums reveals a lot of problems getting them to recognise the USB sticks.

    Thanks for the additional details - have you tried formatting the offending USB drive in a computer, using the format specified in the manual? does it recognize it at that point?


    I'll be glad when we can do updates directly from a computer - while I've had no specific Kemper problems with USB sticks, I've had sticks fail over the years. I'll be glad when they are no longer needed at all.

    I hadd a stick I had been using suddenly come up as not being recognized . The Kemper still asked me If I wanted to format it. I answered the yes prompt ans it has been working again. Are you not able to see a small prompt at the top of the screen asking to format the stick?

    It's an 'integral 8gb' from Argos. I can send you it if you like, I have no use for it.


    And yes, when I say 'then kemper isn't recognising it' I mean it behaves as though there's no stick. The soft buttons don't change in browser mode.


    I'll buy another one of the same brand that worked and try that. If it doesn't then I imagine I'll have to raise a support ticket. That would be annoying as I don't understand why it can see some sticks and not others.

    I pulled a few sticks today just to see if I could get one to fail. The closest I got was interrupting a format process, where the system didn't recognize the stick afterwards. Though one thing I noticed was the system requires you to remove and reinsert the stick after formatting... so it was my bad for thinking I'd interrupted the format process, but I actually hadn't.. :) Still, there is the possibility of corrupting a memory stick by interrupting it during a read/write.


    The system worked well, although a little lag time in menu responses, and successfully recognized all the sticks. Also, I never had an issue with backing up and restoring from a previously used stick that hadn't been reformatted. of course, it's much easier to get around on a KPA formatted stick since its cleaned up with the appropriate directories.


    "There can always be a problem with the flash memory and Integral recommends reformatting in the case of a system no recognizing the memory stick. also they stated: The Integral USB Flash Drives only have pin contacts on one side of the USB connector.


    When you plug the device into the USB sockets of you PC make sure that the contacts are matched up so that the device is plugged in the correct way. If the Integral USB is not recognised, turn it 180º, so it is the other way around in the socket."


    I'm with paults, "I'll be glad when we can do updates directly from a computer - while I've had no specific Kemper problems with USB sticks, I've had sticks fail over the years. I'll be glad when they are no longer needed at all."

    Gettin' funky up in here..

    I've used 4 different sticks and they all worked fine, of course you have to format them in the KPA first, but after that, they work on PC and Mac with no issues. I've used various differing companies too, one is even a Lego block!


    Now I wish I could same the same thing for my Roku3...

    hello horribleman, I'd be interested to check that particular stick over here and take a look what goes wrong. Would you mind contacting me by PM? I think we can work something out regarding expenses etc.

    horribleman, great forum name. I've been using a simple Sandisk 4GB drive without problems. Sometimes it doesn't recognise instantly, in which case I unplug it and reconnect. It's important to remember that if the USB is plugged in before the Kemper is on, it won't read it. How I would approach it is turn on Kemper, switch to browse mode, plug in USB stick, press soft button. Are you doing it the same way? Or are you plugging it in beforehand?

    This is all very interesting. My Kemper will not recognise the USB stick unless it is already in before I switch it on!


    Anyway, I 'fixed' that stick by squishing the metal a bit towards the pins, so maybe it wasn't quite sitting properly in the Kemper. That in itself is weird, as it's pretty snug. Maybe there's a dodgy connection in my Kemper - I wish there was a way to tell without sending it back to Germany.


    Anyway, I do still have another stick that the Kemper definitely doesn't work even if I squish it a bit. I will arrange to send that.

    my first lunchbox had all kinds of issues with memory sticks. At times it wouldn't recognize them. I'd have to turn it off and then turn it on with the stick or I would have to reformat it and start again.


    A lot of this must have been corrected due to firmware updates, etc.


    My new powered rack has not had one issue with this at all. I'm using a micro usb stick with mine and it has worked perfectly every time.