hi,
yes the av100 series can read any memory card. you will need an adapter a little like a card reader but with a cf connection to plug into the archos, archos make one but any will do for example this one (picked at random)
http://www.card-media.co.uk/Memory+Stick+Adapters.htm
regarding your fault, I'm not
necessarily saying this has happened to yours but its a
relatively common problem.
I would upgrade the firmware and try as many cards as you can.
To see if it is a
mechanical fault (board flexing and causing the problem apposed to the card
drawing too much power or the hard drive
drawing too much power as they tend to do when getting old and the memory card pushing it over the edge) with the board insert the card first then power up the archos and see if you have a greater
success
I have never seen this problem
specifically but I have seen many of the high capacity av400 mother boards develop bad contacts which cause it to shut down. It often happens after a battery has failed (which
usually means its
swollen and bent the mother board) with the higher power requirements (of the higher capacity models over the 20gb version) they also run far hotter which could also contribute to mother board failure.
So if its happening on all your cards not just one it very much sounds like the mother board is flexing as you insert it and causing a problem or the hard drive may be on its way out. I would check the battery for swelling, although it may be a bit late for this one if it has already. I have spent many hours
re-soldering these boards (I've many in the scrap bin) and never managed to recover one.
Give me a shout if you need any further help
best of luck