When a Compact Flash (CF) card recorder stores new files, it squeezes them into any bits of space it can find. As a result, the data winds up scattered all over the hard drive. When the data from one song file, for example, is stored in many locations within the card memory, the card is said to be fragmented. When the recorder plays back a file from a fragmented card, it has to grab a little piece from here, another piece from there and so on. This is much harder than playing one continuous chunk of data from a single card location. This can slow things down unacceptably and lead to errors during playback, recording and/or any other function in the recorder.
Fragmentation is a naturally occurring process for a card used with any computer or recording device. CF cards that record audio are especially prone to fragmentation due to the start-and-stop nature of recording.
We recommend backing up all of your data and then initializing the CF card to clear out this normal fragmentation. To avoid receiving errors and/or problems, initialize the card every 3 months if the unit is being used constantly or every 6 months if the unit is being used only occasionally. The following steps will guide you through the Song Backup, Card Initialize and Song Recover procedures:
Song Backup:
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Connect the BR-900CD to your computer via USB.
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Press the UTILITY button.
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CURSOR to "USB" and then press ENTER.
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Use the TIME VALUE dial to select "BACKUP" and press ENTER. The BR-900CD begins to communicate with your computer.
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Windows—a window appears on your computer with the files and folders from the BR-900CD's memory card. If this window does not appear, click on the Windows (or Start) icon on the bottom-left of your computer screen and then select "My Computer" (or "Computer). The BR-900CD (or "Removable Disk") icon will be in Devices with Removable Storage.
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Mac OS X—double-click on the "BR-900CD" (or "Removable Disk") icon that is added to your computer's desktop.
Select the "Roland" folder in the BR-900CD's memory card and copy, or drag, the "Roland" folder to your computer. This can be your Desktop or a backup folder that you have created.
Caution: Do not change the names or locations of any files or folders. Doing so will cause the backup to be non-recoverable.
After the copying has completed, properly disconnect the BR-900CD from your computer:
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Windows—Use the Safely Remove Hardware icon in the Windows task tray to un-mount the USB memory.
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Mac—Drag the Drive icon of the USB memory into the trash in the dock.
Press EXIT twice on the BR-900CD.
Card Initialize:
Caution: Initializing erases all contents on the memory card.
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Press UTILITY.
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CURSOR to select "INI" and then press ENTER.
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CURSOR to select "CARD" and then press ENTER twice.
Song Recover:
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Connect the BR-900CD to your computer via USB.
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Press the UTILITY button.
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CURSOR to "USB" and then press ENTER.
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Use the TIME VALUE dial to select "BACKUP" and press ENTER. The BR-900CD begins to communicate with your computer.
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On your computer, select the backed up "Roland" folder that will be loaded (recovered) into the BR-900CD. This is the "Roland" folder that you previously backed up in the "Song Backup" portion of this article.
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Drag the backup "Roland" folder into the “BR-900CD” (or “Removable Disk (*:)”) icon on the computer.
NOTE: You may encounter messages verifying that it is all right to overwrite certain files—you should select “YES” in every instance.
WARNING: This will erase all of the contents in the BR-900CD's memory card and replace them with your backup files and folders. -
After the recovery has completed, properly disconnect the BR-900CD from your computer.
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Press EXIT twice on the BR-900CD.