No problem. I didn't mean to sound like I was putting down your suggestions, Tony, so I hope I didn't come off that way - in fact I greatly appreciate your input. I was just seeing if you concurred that under the circumstances the likelihood of it being caused by a bad MP3 file seems very remote.

For that matter, the exact circumstances of the shutdown are different from the known one caused by the bad cable (in that case it froze up at the boot logo, not when searching a track as in my case). So if it is indeed the cable, it has manifested itself in a new way as compared to the other person's experience (which I suppose is not at all impossible). I guess I'll see what Empeg says when they get back to me and see if they want me to pop it open and look at the cable. (Hate to do it without their okay as it's a brand new unit.)