DJM A9 Firmware Update

Dear Pioneer DJ / AlphaTheta Technical Support Team,

I am contacting you regarding a firmware update issue with my Pioneer DJM-A9 mixer.

The mixer is currently running firmware version 1.19, and I am attempting to update it to version 1.22 using the official firmware downloaded from your website.

The main issue is that the firmware update never actually starts.

When entering firmware update mode and connecting the USB flash drive, the mixer displays:

* Current firmware: Ver 1.19
* Target firmware: Ver –.–
* Update progress: 0%

The progress remains at 0%, with no indication that the firmware installation has started.

After a prolonged waiting period, the mixer eventually displays error E-01.

The target firmware version is never displayed, and the update process does not advance beyond 0%.

The mixer otherwise powers on and operates normally.

Troubleshooting already performed:

1. Tested multiple USB flash drives.
2. Used a Kingston DataTraveler 3.0 64 GB USB flash drive, which successfully completed a firmware update on my Pioneer CDJ-3000.
3. Reformatted the USB drive using Rufus with:
    * MBR partition scheme
    * FAT32 file system
    * Non-bootable configuration
    * 32 KB cluster size
4. Downloaded the official DJM-A9 firmware version 1.22.
5. Extracted the firmware and copied only DJM-A9_122.upd to the root directory of the USB drive.
6. Verified the USB drive configuration using Windows PowerShell.
7. Compared the SHA-256 hashes of the original firmware file and the copy on the USB drive. Both hashes matched exactly.
8. Repeated the update procedure several times, with the same result.

Firmware file details:

* Filename: DJM-A9_122.upd
* File size: 19,472,609 bytes
* Current mixer firmware: 1.19
* Intended firmware: 1.22

Based on these tests, the firmware file is present on the USB drive and has been copied correctly. However, the mixer does not appear to recognize or initialize the firmware update.

Could you please clarify the following?

1. What does error E-01 specifically indicate when the firmware update never starts and remains at 0%?
2. Why does the mixer continue displaying Ver --.-- instead of recognizing firmware version 1.22?
3. Is this a known issue with DJM-A9 firmware 1.19 or its USB firmware update mechanism?
4. Is there a recommended recovery procedure, alternative update method, or diagnostic process?
5. Could this behavior indicate an issue with the USB communication interface or firmware update bootloader?
6. Are there any additional troubleshooting steps that can be performed before sending the mixer to an authorized service center?

I would particularly appreciate technical guidance beyond the standard USB formatting recommendations, as I have already tested multiple USB drives and verified the firmware file integrity.

I can provide photographs of the update screen, the error message, and the USB configuration tests.

The DJM-A9 is part of my professional DJ setup, so I would appreciate your assistance in resolving this issue without unnecessary equipment downtime.

Thank you for your time and technical support.

Best regards,

Bogdan Popoviciu
Romania