Anthem AVM 20 v2.2x Upgrade Problem! Please Help!

Hello Everyone,

I recently purchased a used AVM 20 in absolutely mint condition on Ebay. And I mean not a scratch on it. When I received it, I powered it up and it turned on just fine. I pressed the "Status" button on the front panel and it indicated on the display that it was version 2.11. The latest version of this processor is v2.21, so I decided to download the current version from Anthem's website and upload it to the AVM 20 via its RS-232 port. In order to do this, however, I needed a Serial-to-USB adapter, because my Dell XPS15 laptop doesn't have a serial port.

I initially purchased a Prolific 2303-based Serial to USB adapter made by Microconnectors, Inc. (MI) at Fry's Electronics. This adapter indicates that it is Windows WHQL-approved, which is what the Anthem instructions required for this type of adapter. So, I followed Anthem's instructions for the upgrade verbatim. When I started the upgrade, the MI adapter immediately recognized the AVM 20 and it correctly identified its processor, the Motorola 56367. It then powered down the AVM 20 (as it was supposed to do) and began uploading the v2.21 software. In the middle of the upload, it stopped and I got the message, "Upgrade Failed, Try Again," which I did several times after that but to no avail.

After that message, I could not get the AVM 20 to turn back on or respond to anything. After unplugging everything and trying to do the procedure over again, I got the message, "Warning: Unable to locate AVM 2/20/30/Statement D1 on any serial port. Check cable connections." Looking into the vents of the AVM 20, I could see two LEDs that were on on the motherboard: one was blinking (identified as "Loader" on the PCB) and the other one was steadily lit (identified as "Standby" on the PCB). So, it appears that power is going to the unit, but it's acting like it's in a coma.

The next day I called Anthem Tech Support and explained my problem. Anthem's tech support guy (Andrew) said that the only Serial to USB adapter they recommend using to perform upgrades via the RS-232 port is Tripp Lite's USA-19HS. He also said that the LEDs I saw that were on were a good sign. He suggested that I try using the Tripp Lite USB adapter to see if that would do the trick. It didn't. I still get the same message about the Installer program not being able to locate the AVM 20.

My question to anyone who has possibly experienced a similar situation with their upgrade of the AVM 20, is there any way to perform a "processor reset" or hard reboot by pressing a certain sequence of buttons on the front panel or remote and, if so, what is the procedure? I've owned other audio receivers and processors that had this capability, but have not seen anything published by Anthem that indicates that this can be done.

Thanks in advance for any help or advice you can give.

Thanks for the advice. I did speak to Anthem Tech Support, so I know that all my settings on the USB adapter/computer are correct. I didn't however, turn off my anti-virus, but the first time I did the uploading of the v2.21 software, it started out okay, but the program failed in the middle of uploading it to the AVM 20. I would have expected some kind of anti-virus window to pop up if that were a problem. Usually, if the anti-virus detects what it thinks is a virus, it lets you know, right? The other factor in this is that I wasn't using what I later found out through the grapevine is the "recommended" Serial to USB adapter (i.e., Tripp Lite). I was using one made by Microconnectors, Inc., which advertises it to be Microsoft WHQL approved, but still might not have been the best one to use on the Anthem, apparently. Another factor is that the AVM 20 will not turn on, so at this point, messing around with computer settings probably isn't going to help much.