Yes, but you will lose all the playlists you created (if any), and lose any edits to the tag data you made on the player (if any).

If you keep your PC organized the same way as the player is organized, then reformatting the player isn't a big deal.

The procedure I outlined above, while more complicated, is faster than reloading the whole player from scratch. It's not as tough as it looks, as long as you follow those steps carefully.