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Windows 10 installation (Net MD): 1) Download the files in description 2) Double click on "SS43_Ultimate.exe" and install the "SonicStage" program. 3) Go to Program Files (x86) -> Sony -> Personal Audio Drivers -> Sort by type -> Highlight all the ".inf" files, right click on one of them and hit install. 4) Unzip the second attached file "sony-net-md-drivers-win764.zip" and open up the folder "Sony Net MD Drivers". 5) Right click "NETMD760.inf" and hit install. 6) Go to Program Files (x86) -> Sony -> SonicStage-> Right click on "Omgjbox.exe -> Click on Compatibility -> Under the Compatibility tab, click the box and select "Windows XP (Service Pack 3)" Launch SonicStage, plug in your Walkman and a "NET MD" tab should show up in Sonic Stage. If the "NET MD" tab does not show up for you, then you need to find the correct driver for the individual Microdisc player You may receive an error when starting it, just click "next" and agree" and open it up a 2nd time without problems. Learning how to use SonicStage is very easy. SS43_ULTIMATE.exe sony-net-md-drivers-win764.zip

Since the "Ultimate" 4.3 version seems to have gained quite a popularity, and appears to be less glitchy than any previous one, I decided to build a second release. This is purely a cosmetic update. What's changed from the first release: 1. Updated Registry Information Setup is used now. This doesn't affect minidisc functionality in any way, but may add support for some newer ATRAC phones (you still need to provide the respective drivers). 2. The link to Minidisc Community Forums in the Help menu is replaced with a link to Sony Insider Forums. 3. Installation package extraction path is no longer saved to registry. 4. Windows Installer 2.0 distribution package is not included. The complete list of changes from the official VAIO version (including changes introduced in the first release): 1. System prerequisites from Microsoft (Windows Installer 2.0, DirectX 9.0c, Windows Media Format 9, Windows Media Format 9.5, Data Access Components 2.5) are not included. 2. OpenMG Secure Module version 5.0 with the respective Registry Information is used instead of the original patched version 4.7. 3. Sony CONNECT Store support is no longer installed. 4. SonicStage Security Update is installed automatically. 5. Latest Personal Audio Drivers for SONY devices are installed automatically. 6. The VAIO support link in the Help menu is replaced with a link to Sony Insider Forums. NOTE: If you have applied the experimental SonicStage patch 4.3.02 for Vista/Windows 7, you'll need to re-apply it after installation. Download links: SonicStage 4.3 "Ultimate" Release 2 for Windows 2000/XP/Vista (you must register at Sony Insider forums to download) Mini-mode skins Recommended PxEngine update

Hello everyone! I'm new to this forum, and let me say that I love to see the love and conversation about MiniDisc keep going on I'm popping in just to let you know that I've recently released an app for NetMD devices. I wrote the app mainly for myself, but I thought it might be useful for some of you too! So, and here's the link to use it -> https://stefano.brilli.me/webminidisc/ And here's a short demo of how app works Any feedback is welcome! Stefano

As promised in one of my previous posts, here is the trailer for 'The Field Recordist' which features some of the mini disc recorders, together with recorded tracks: UPDATED - HERE IS THE COMPLETE FILM: Best heard with headphones.

Hello! Just thought I'll report it here, if you're trying to create an account without a connection with an already existing account like Google or alike, it's simply impossible to do so, because of incorrectly loaded reCaptcha. To make this account I had to rewrite the part of the site responsible for the captcha. If anyone else is experiencing the same difficulties, here are the steps I used to create my account: Go to https://forums.sonyinsider.com/register/ In devtools, open the `head` tag and remove all the scripts that mention recaptcha Add a new script, with `src="https://www.google.com/recaptcha/api.js"` Execute the following JavaScript code: const captcha = document.querySelector("[data-ipscaptcha]"); const parent = captcha.parentElement; captcha.remove(); const newCaptcha = document.createElement("div"); parent.appendChild(newCaptcha); grecaptcha.ready(() => grecaptcha.render(newCaptcha, {sitekey: "6LdgERMTAAAAAC4kTmm7BH1laShX3teATAV_6FIY"})); After that, you should be able to click on the captcha and create your account by executing the following JS code (the submit button is broken): document.querySelector("form").submit();

Finally, my homebrew laser power meter is put together. It cost $3 worth of surface mount components, a used disc sacrificed for the shell, a piece of pcb, and some other stuff I found in the back of my drawer. Initially I tested it with my digital multimeter hooked on those test terminals, but then I found this neat little five-digit Volt-meter I bought some time ago on ebay, I think it was five bucks or so with free shipping from China. Without much fine tuning, I popped this little probe into all the decks I had at hand, and measured the laser power. From the mV readings and the nominal laser power values I calculated the mV-to-mW multipliers, and I took the average of a unit I trusted the most, a 940. Using this sole multiplier as the "calibration", I recalculated the measured mW figures and compared to the factory recommended range. Most of the other units were nicely within specification, but this 530 in question, that immediately popped out, being near 40% below the necessary values, i.e., 0,55 mW and 4,32 mW versus 0,9 mW and 7,0 mW respectively. Now, it might be that easy, but before changing anything, I want to check the IOP, to see, whether that meets the specs, and set the measured value for further adjustments. For this I will need that rig connecting to the drive, currently waiting for the special connector to arrive. So much for now, I will update the thread as I progress. Some photos attached below, just for fun.

I received a similar, albeit slightly smaller, mix of boxed and unboxed discs today too 🙂

Which sort of cases are you after? You used to be able to buy the basic hinged jewel cases from Amazon but I've not seen them on there for a few years now: If you're UK based Retro Style Media sell them: https://www.retrostylemedia.co.uk/product/clear-minidisc-case Price per case varies depending on how many you buy. Note that the quoted price is ex VAT so you'll need to factor that in as well. They also sell the larger cases that pre-recorded discs used to come in back in the 90s: They come in a variety of colours but are a lot more expensive. You can find them here: https://www.retrostylemedia.co.uk/shop/minidisc-cases That website also has templates to download for the inserts etc. There's a bit more info (and a video) here:

Don't worry about it - I got myself a Sony LAM for testing and ended up falling in love with the whole LAM series of devices. I have 3 now, so I use that functionality regularly 😆

Over the past couple of months, I've been bitten by the MD bug again. I hadn't visited this forum in a VERY long time. I've used one of my MZ-NH900s at my work desk on almost a daily basis for 10+ years. It sits it's original cradle, powered from the AC adapter because the battery long since gave up the ghost. I have about 20 disc's (a mix of Hi-MD and standard MD My other NH900 has been broken for years after it fell out of my pocket and a disc got jammed. Was able to get the disc out by disassembling the recorder but when I all went back together the buttons were no longer responsive... So I put it in a storage box with my other MD stuff that wasn't used anymore. FF 1month ago, I was digging thru some things and came across my box MD recorders. Pulled out the NH900 and took it apart again. Long story short, it's had been returned to service! While looking for info on repair, I came across this site and an intro to Reddit MD. My interest stoked again, burned some new disc's, reorganized some of my favorites, and am trying my hand at labeling. I've also managed to buy a couple of new Hi-MD blanks and some used standard MDs. It's always fun to go thru used disc's from someone else to see what's on them 🙂 My MD arsenal consists of: MZ-R500, MZ-N707 (eprom nodded), MZ-N920, IM-DR420, MZ-NH600D, 2-MZ-NH900s, 2-MZ-RH10s (both with bad displays), and a MZ-RH910. 150ish standard MDs and 15 Hi-MDs. Most of my standard disc's are Hi-MD formated and most of the music is burned in ATRAC3plus @256k. I simply LOVE this format!

Nice to see SIF back up. Why was it down? It was quite a long time. I think many people have given up on it. That http://www.minidisc.wiki has turned out pretty nice btw. Still has a ways to go, but it has data on some devices not found anywhere else in English.

I don't have a question, just wanted to post a brief homage to my Sony MZ-R90 which I got, unexpectedly, as a birthday present in 2000. It transformed portable audio for me, but unfortunately, six short months later, my MZ-R90 was stolen by an opportunistic thief. Not long after that, I moved on from MD to MP3 players, but just recently I've been reminiscing wistfully about that beautiful little piece of music technology. I had the black version, and I think the industrial design is really magnificent.

Back in 1997, long before MP3 was anything more than a concept, I was serving in the Air Force and frequently deployed overseas. Some guys on the squadron introduced me to a strange format for making music portable. MiniDisc. I soon got to learn that those tough little discs survived the rough-and-tumble of life in a kit-bag. We each bought portable players, and would ‘pool’ our discs together to make little music libraries, would trade discs with one another, and would copy CD’s for one another back home. No matter where we were in the world, AA batteries were easy to obtain, and just a handful of batteries would literally last weeks. It was a pocket-sized bit of luxury that we could carry with us, and I loved it. ......then, along came MP3 players and the ubiquitous ‘iPod’. Suddenly we could carry all of our music in a small space, and it seemed that the MiniDisc was dead. Within about 3 years everyone I knew had ditched the format and were literally giving away their discs and players, as were oil-rig workers, fishermen, and other locals who worked away from home for extended periods. I too, confined my MiniDisc collection to a box in the loft, and bought an iPod Classic. Fast-forward to 2005, and I deployed for a 4-month tour to Iraq. My iPod came with me, and I had the small luxury of my music collection to fall back on, OR SO I THOUGHT. By the second week I had the sickening ‘Sync Reset’ display (which of course was impossible without my PC) and in one fell swoop I lost my music. Other guys had problems with the portable power-generators cooking their wall-plug chargers, and soon quite a few of us had lost the use of our players, just when we would have appreciated them the most! Back home, and I was quickly falling out of love with my iPod. It seemed that whenever I updated my collection there would be issues with mixed/missing title-tracks and artwork. Any albums entitled ‘Greatest Hits’ would become an amalgamated mess, and whilst the battery-life seemed to get ever shorter, the demands for a ‘sync reset’ increased. The love was fading. I noticed something else, too. My listening habits were changing. My seemingly endless access to music made me a lazy listener, and I would frequently jump from album to album, track to track, and would often skip mid-way through a track. My days of listening to an album the way that the artist intended, had gone. This wasn’t music enjoyment. ....and so, by 2008 I was back to my MiniDisc, and what I revival it was! Equipment that had previously been prohibitively expensive was now dirt-cheap, and I was living the hobby like a millionaire! I soon had units for every occasion with Sony JA20ES and JA50ES decks for hifi use, numerous portable players, and a Pioneer MEH P9000 head-unit for the car. I could afford to be extravagant with discs, and my well used dozen or so swelled up to over 1,000. That was 10 years ago, and nothing much since then has changed. I still indulge in the childhood enjoyment of putting a ‘mixtape’ together in real-time, copying music from my CD’s and vinyl to Type-R SP to listen to in the car, or out walking the dog. Because space is at a premium my playlists are more carefully considered, and I listen to each track in full. My listening-habits are back to where they should be. In 20 years I can count on one hand the number of corrupted discs I’ve suffered, only ever having to re-copy one album. I keep discs and a spare player at work, in the summerhouse and in the car, and I have a physical, tangible connection with my music collection again. MiniDisc as a commercial format is dead, and I’m OK with that. It continues to live on in my household, and probably will do for years to come, maybe even for another decade or more. I continue to love the ‘forgotten format’, and those robust little discs give me everything I need.

Hi Folks, Long time no post, busy with child rearing. :-) I do stop by to read up on new posts and topics. I ran across this video on YouTube yesterday, sorry to post if everyone has already seen it but it was good to see and I wanted to share with all. Cheers!

It is currently admitted that the MZ-RH1 has the best DAC, ergo the best sound. I prefer however the sound of QS and ES Sony decks.

Hi all! So I've started a little project for myself. Minidisc never really caught on too well in canada so I won't be stmbling on any racks at the thrift shop anytime soon. I've been looking for storage solutions, haven't been a big fan of the wine box idea, generally I haven't seen anything that really caught my eye. For some reason it never dawned on me in the last year to 3D print some racks... I'm not sure why, I've been 3D printing everything else for years.... So I designed these up yesterday with some spare time. They're very rough still and very utilitarian. The larger one holds 10 discs and is meant to stack vertically (and has holes for nesting feet, and holes for screws). The smaller one to the right I haven't tested yet but I am thinking of a wall unit that makes the discs look like they are floating out of the wall. Edit wise I'm going to shrink the width by 2mm and perhaps put the discs at a slight downard angle rather than 90 degree so that if they were on an uneven surface, they'd still stay in the rack. What do you guys think? Feel free to toss any ideas my way! (also, for curiosity sake, the larger one took 8 hours to print! 3d printing is pretty cool but it's still a very slow process.) (The render) and printed

I got the drivers installed on my computer. I recommend watching this youtube video thats how i did it.

In case anyone is interested... I´ve written a review of the Sony MZ-R 50. http://marlene-d.blogspot.de/2013/07/the-legendary-sony-mz-r-50-review.html

I just wanted to say that it is nice to have some new members who are clearly MD lovers around to join in on the discussion and add new thoughts, ideas and opinions. Welcome all. :-)

Buy LIP-4 battery. First open all the cover of LIP-4. then you can small PCB. just remove the PCB using soldering iron or else. Do the same things with LIP-3 batteries. take the small PCB from LIP-3 and put to LIP-4 battery cell use soldering iron. Then cover you new battery, make sure it won't have electronics shortcuts. You'll have a new long lasting battery. It works on my MZ-N10.

I have a Sony MDS-JE780 for sale. It is silver and in mint condition as it has been hardly used. It is based in Wolverhampton so can be collected, or can be posted at additional cost. (I estimate about £7 with recorded delivery) £80 ono. Spec taken from the Sony website: Hybrid Pulse D/A Converter ATRAC DSP Type-S Long Time Recording and Playback (LP2, LP4) Pitch Control Scale Factor Edit NetMD Control A1 Keyboard Terminal 1 x Optical & 1 x Coaxial Input & 1 x Optical Output Available inblack and silverSee the link for more info.... http://www.sony.co.u...=TechnicalSpecs

MiniDisc is not useless; it's obsolete. There is a key difference. Nothing as multifaceted as a MiniDisc recorder can be said to be useless. That said, I think that even if Sony had marketed MiniDisc successfully, it would be obsolescent today because its competitors are more feature-rich. I have difficulty following some of the logic in this thread. MiniDisc and MP3 players both have shuffle functions. It's up to the user whether or not to use them, and absolutely nothing about an MP3 player compels one to do so. It SHOULD go without saying that either is just as capable of playing entire albums chronologically. You're arguing against your perceptions of MP3 users' supposed preferences, which are likely exaggerated and unfounded. The issue was the native functionality of the devices and which better suited the questioner. I still have my MiniDisc players, though I almost exclusively use my MP3 player (and never on shuffle). I may be returning to reporting soon and thus would use my MiniDisc to record, even though my MP3 player has a voice recorder. I also take out MiniDisc sometimes just for nostalgia. Whereas many of you are exalting album listening, I actually got into MiniDisc because it facilitated playlists, but now MP3 players do this better because the track need not be re-uploaded to form the playlist. Album listening has its advantages and purposes, but playlists demonstrate the user's creativity and make for great time travel. In my moments of nostalgia, I can call up playlists of the songs that defined eras I miss. It's a beautiful thing. One of you said you found MP3 players useless because they could not do all the things a MiniDisc player could. That depends on the MP3 player. (Further, it's a bogus statement because any mass storage device that plays music clearly has a twofold desirable purpose.) I actually can edit titles and move files on the go, but let's be honest: It is rare that such an act is of such pressing import that it can't wait until one gets home. My MP3 player is an Archos 5, which, like many MP3 players, has great sound quality, radio, a 250-gigabyte hard drive, a voice recorder, Wi-FI, Web radio and TV, DVR, picture display, and video. Useless because it's an MP3 player? Oh, brother. Much of this stems from your zeal to vindicate the MiniDisc, which I love. Another example is the citation of an intangible such as "cool factor," which lies in the eye of the beholder. Consider that being in the in-crowd like an Apple user can be said to be cool. Also, cool as in different just means anything opposed to the leading product, and that doesn't necessarily mean a MiniDisc. A lesser-known MP3 player can turn heads, but turning heads is not where the joy in product use lies. It is also flawed logic to assert that one likes MiniDisc because one prefers to carry around just a few albums. One can choose to listen to just a few on an MP3 player, first of all. The mere presence of all the other tracks you have neatly stored on the hard drive will not weigh heavily on the mind. Second, both MP3 players and MiniDiscs are mass storage devices. That's like one compulsive overeater defaming another because the other is even worse. That does not make you the icon of restraint; rather, you prefer a lesser example of excess. I do believe there still are real advantages to MiniDisc that relate to its native functionality. It's durable, sounds great, and records. It edges out MP3 in battery life, line-in recording, and usually voice recording. Actually, recording is where its greatest strength is now. Another strength is that different models are tailored to different uses; some have radio, some record and others have a digital amplifier, for instance. I love that my MP3 player works with Windows Media Player, which keeps track of the tracks you have and have not added to the device. Syncing automatically adds the new tracks. If I went back to MinDisc, I'd have to guess where I left off as I tried to upload all the music I have purchased since then to MiniDiscs. Also, I don't have to be bothered with SonicStage or ATRAC anymore, and I am glad. I don't have a second-generation Hi-MD player, so I can't put MP3s on them.

I have an N510 and a DN430. Both sound really good. I also have some S1's which, I know, are type R. They both sound excellent to me. I figured I'd take the (possible) slight noise quality hit and lack of remote for bombproof (especially in Orygun) performance of the S1. I can say those DN430's sound just fine. I think you can find that model with a radio too

Hi there ! I'm looking for a template (ideally a photoshop PSD file) for a full face label like the one you see in this video... Anyone has this here ? I could ask the guy from the video but first i'm not that much into typing my email in a youtube comment, second i don't know if he's around to answer to it... BTW, i'm planning to print a really full faced sticker label, unlike his that has this hole for the sliding piece. Thanks if anybody can help...!

OK well finally back with a report of success with the Drive B encoder. Did the connection reversal for pins A and B of the encoder (1 and 3 on the PCB diagram from the service manual). No need to cut the tracks as both solder ring pads had been lost but I still had to undo the track repair. Also, in the process of de-soldering the encoder for the nth time, the solder pad for pin 4 also came off, so had to make a new bridge connection for that. Another figure of the rather messy repair: hairs on the area were from cotton buds during cleanup. Pink stuff is nail varnish remaining from the earlier track repair. Anyway after covering the area with Kapton tape and reassembling the rewired PCB back into the front panel, all functions of the encoder were exactly as anticipated (clockwise + counter clockwise) and the push-button switch works fine. Earlier worries about the amount of force needed to push the switch were allayed and it is not so forceful as to move the whole deck. With the above success I revisited the left-sided encoder (Drive A) of the W1 and rewired it according to the principle above, which is a much more solid repair as all the legs can be soldered to the board and the bridge wires added. It's a different wiring layout, which I can include in a repair section of the MD Wiki as requested. Thanks everyone, especially of course @kgallen for all the advice.

The MDW80Ts seem to drift in and out of stock at Amazon.co.jp, at least as far as sellers prepared to ship to the UK are concerned. Noticed they were back in stock today so placed an order. Worked out at £2.93 per disc including delivery. Must. Stop. Buying. More. Blanks. 🤦‍♂️ These also popped up whilst I was looking around the site: https://www.amazon.co.jp/-/en/Recording-80-Minutes-Piece-3mdw80rh-Original/dp/B016QJJVOO/ Reminded me of some of the artist MDs that @Richard posted recently. Not sure if "Red Hot" were a Japanese band or whether the photo card is for something completely different.

Hi! Thanks for the kind words, if you have any suggestions or bugs to report, please let me know :). I got into MD for the first time in 2016 thanks to the first Techmoan MD video ("Minidisc: An appreciation" I think it was called), when I got myself an MZ-R3, that died a few years later with error 40. Now I own 5 MZ-R3s - 1 working and 4 dead. If you know any fixes for that dreaded error 40, please let me know - I'd love to fix it one day.

I just wanted to update this forum on my solution so maybe it MIGHT help someone else in a similar situation. I went ahead and carefully took apart the unit. I was able to release the front display ribbon connector cable from the main circuit board and very gently clean the contacts with some 99% isopropyl alcohol. This is kind of dangerous as apparently (I learned about this later), that the contacts are leaded. If you clean them too much, you might simply "wipe" the contacts away and ruin the connector. Well, I did use a light touch and when I put it all back together, my LCD was back in business. So in my case, it was definitely an issue with oxidation. Unit is now back to its former glory

Ha-ha, lot of questions :-) ! I try my best answering them, but again, I might be subjective (and wrong too) here and there, so I expect others to share their view. - "Is the KMS-260E a later model, and thus probably superior to KMS-260A?" - This I really cannot answer properly. I guess a Sony engineer would know the "secret". They did the upgrades for a reason, that is sure, but the reason can be just as simple as a new spec diode, for example. My statistical base is small, I can speak about only 100-120 decks I had my hands on for repair. This is certainly not representative, but I could not find any evidences for one type of laser being better than the others. To me, they are all good, and proper settings are the most important. - "I found these inexpensive lasers" - this was not a question, one note here though: it may worth to double check with the seller, what they actually sell. Most Chinese sellers use the same photos from their wholesalers (or taken from their fellow sellers), as well as titles/descriptions. Most cases they just list all suffixes like compatible versions, but only sell one and only one type. As I saw, most of them sell 260E lasers (funny enough, sometimes pulled from non-Sony devices, as their photo shows), few of them sell 260B (for almost twice as much), and I have not recently seen any 260A versions (not if I wanted one). - "should I take it to a tech to make sure the laser is properly calibrated?" - It does not hurt to perform a "sanity check" on the laser status. I'd expect though the tech knowing that they do, and having all the necessary test gear. - "Do they [the lasers] drift over time?" - Heat can cause some drifting in actual laser power vs. given settings. But this is different from the changes that occur as the laser ages. Over time, the power of the emitted laser beam decerases, this is normal. Checking it regularly - depends on the use. If you record live performances, that are one-time kind, you may want to (as well as to use at least one mirror device recording for back up). If you do your CD or vinyl complations, your deck "will tell", when to replace its laser, and the most you can lose is the very last recording (that you can redo hopefully). - "What causes the MD disc to not run true?" - Many things, actually. Just to name a few: manufacturing error, disc dropped to the floor, disc left on a hot place for long (car dash, top of the amp), etc. And you bet: it is rare, but drive mechanism can also be a cause - see my post here, for "fun" :-) . - " On that topic, can I lubricate the drive mechanism myself?" - Sure you can. Do it carefully, and use the proper grease, developed for these fine mechanical devices. There are several known brands and products, the most important thing is that the two main components (the oil that lubricates and the "soap" that carries the oil and keeps in place) must not be separating with time, thus the grease will not dry out and harden. Two more notes: 1) never use silicon grease in these devices, and 2) before applying the fresh grease, always clean the parts completely from any residues of the old lubricants. - "I'd read somewhere it was better for capacitors and other electronics to leave them powered on than to leave them off for extended periods" - Yes, but let me make some differentiation here. 1) Inside unused caps the chemical complex can change with time, therefore switching unused electronics on regularly might help as these caps sort of "reformatting" themselves, that can limit these irreversible chemical changes. However, leaving the electronics always on will not stop their caps from drying out (it is actually the opposite, especially, if these caps are located close to other parts, that generate heat, like a power resistor, heat sink, etc.). Electrolytic caps do dry out over time, and if left in that state with the device powered down for an extended period, caps can disintegrate (with a "puff" sometimes) when powered on again. 2) What electronics do not really like is frequent switching on and off, for the transients that may cause damage. This much is true (and I did not say one should pull the AC cord after each disc played or recorded). If you never switch off your electronic device, you may save it from these transient shocks (provided the device is plugged into at least a surge protected AC outlet, or running on an UPS). But this will not save them from ageing. Having the "Standby" function on most electronics is exactly there for this reason, it keeps only the least minimum needed circuits running, and shuts of the rest, to save power and device lifetime. - "Those photos are horrible. How on earth did it get so dirty? Was the laser or mechanics damaged from that?" - I have no idea, I was surprised too. The deck came with "usual" C13 error, and after completing a full strip-down/clean/rebuild circle it worked again flawlessly. I saw a similar one the other time, and that laser was already dying, thought that deck had already run more than 2000 hours, so that could count as well. - "I am guessing that this loading mech was built by Tascam and is not a Sony. Any suggestions on where I can find parts?" - I am sorry, not only my experience is limited, but is restricted to a few Sony decks only, so no clue here. Pfhew ... now it begins looking like I was writing a book :-) . If you reached down here with reading, you deserve a beer or your favourite drink :-) .

Me too!! and I like Italian coffee too! Thanks for your answers, Stefano. Greetings to you in Italy, we are watching you closely from the UK to see what's coming next for us corona-wise... Your app is almost the best thing coming out of Covid-19 for me! (no, that would be a little sad! I live in the countryside and the air quality and peace-and-quiet quotient has gone up massively - birdsong is my only soundtrack now - and I am still just about able to go out for long walks without meeting many people. I'd like to bottle that feeling - and maybe sell it to make some much-needed money!!). But your App is a Godsend. Several years back I made a special 'Leopard' drive for my Mac just so I could continue to use Sony's MD app for Mac - but then it just packed up and wouldn't work at all and Sony just abandoned MD users altogether, so this new possibility is great. It would be amazing if you could make it work for Hi-MD. I'd recommend finding an MZ-RH1 to play around with, although they're expensive (€200 and more) when you can find one on eBay or similar, but it's a fantastic little piece of kit. Just a shame that the OLEDs tend to die after a few years, which makes seeing what's going on difficult or impossible. I shall run some tests this afternoon.

I'm wayyy off topic here, but if you like my waffle... These days (since early 1990s) we do the logic design with specialised software languages like SystemVerilog or VHDL, generally known as Hardware Description Languages or HDLs. This description can't be "anything and everything" you like in these languages, you have to use particular constructs in particular contexts to "infer" meaningful structures like combinational logic or flip-flops (an abstraction we call Register Transfer Level, or RTL). Then we use a process called logic synthesis which converts the HDL description into a logic netlist (AND, OR, NAND, NOR gates, flip-flops etc). This logical netlist then has to be "layed out" onto silicon by taking the transistors of each gate and mapping them onto silicon and defining the layers that are needed in the silicon (wells, channels, contacts), then these transistors have to be wired together by creating metal interconnects that join silicon contact to silicon contact in the required circuit topology. We also have to add power meshes and clock distribution networks and fix the timing of the circuit (setup and hold). Once the physical design is complete and the layout meets all of the logical and physical design rules, the design can be sent to the silicon foundry at a point we call "tape out". The foundry do the magic chemistry steps to actually fabricate our design onto a silicon wafer. Then there is test and packaging assembly and a whole load of qualification testing to be done before the device can be released as a production part. This is a design cycle that is typically between 1 and 3 years depending on the complexity and size of the design. That's an extremely brief and simplified overview, but I'm sure you could google for more detail! Back to FSMs we wouldn't usually (ever?) use a ROM style implementation on a custom chip, we'd use an HDL to infer "random logic" to build the next-state logic. The ROM method used in the project you are looking at is a clever way to implement "random logic" in one off-the-shelf chip - couple it with a bank of flip-flops (like IC9) and you have yourself the building blocks for your FSM. The clever bit now is to work out the ROM contents which is how you define the logic of your FSM and hence its function/behaviour. There are a couple of flavours of FSM, Moore and Mealy. These terms describe how the state and outputs are a function of the inputs (Moore -> outputs are only a function of the current state, Mealy -> outputs are a function of the current state and the current inputs). Your copy-bit killer is probably a Mealy machine (the output SPDIF flop stage is not part of your FSM state because it doesn't feed back into the EPROM). Anyway that's enough from me for one night!

It's just a standard mini USB connection afaik. Physically, at least. I've never actually tried connecting mine to a PC. I suspect Sony were just advising people to use the supplied cable as they knew it was fully wired. There's an FAQ covering it here: https://www.sony.co.uk/electronics/support/portable-music-players-minidisc-portable/mz-n710/articles/00203564 I mam sure someone here will have connected theirs to a PC though and will be able to confirm.

For MDM-7 variant drives, I've been using the 17mm belts from eBay seller chn_03 (Charles Holt) in the UK. I've repaired 3 decks (MDS-JE440, MDS-JE480, MDS-E10) with these recently. (Charlie was very helpful and sold me a multi-pack of just the 17mm size). https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/17mm-Rubber-Drive-Belt-for-Cassette-Deck-Player-CD-ROM-DVD-Player-etc/192420535089 It's about a 5 minute job to replace these: Unplug Remove lid (4 side screws, maybe 1 rear screw) Remove the drive from the deck 4 mount screws Two ribbon cables from the main PCB Maybe a chassis earth in some units to unclip from the main chassis Use tweezers to lift off the vertical tensioner spring on the left (drive opening facing you) - careful to not let it ping away!!! Ease apart the vertical slider at the rear, left gently and slide to the left the upper part of the disk load frame - and you're in for an easy belt change. Refit is the reverse, keeping the ribbon cables square as you gently reinsert into their sockets on the main PCB.

Hi Bob Shade, more details here : http://www.minidisc.org/part_Sony_MDS-JE520+S39.html Maybe you had recorded all your live music with a MDLP portable unit, your " Sony Minidisc Walkman" (this is generic name for ALL Sony portable units : CD, MD, MP3, etc). All SP only decks (what us we call 1st generation), like the JE520 cannot read MDLP format as said Stephen (sfbp). The good news is that there are plenty of decks or portable units which play MDLP on the web markd is MDLP, then Net-MD, then Hi-MDet. Minidisc.org will give you their model names. To be complete, the best you can get is MDLP with "type S". Do you want to know more about MD portable units history ? https://sites.google.com/site/crazyforminidisc/

I think what sfbp says is true. The PCLK allows MD titling, control, and editing functions from your PC—not upload. Here's a decent description of what it does:https://www.hifix.co.uk/sony-pclkmn20-usb-pc-link-kit Doing a real-time transfer from PC to MXD-D40, that's somewhat simpler. You'll need either a sound card with optical out OR a device that converts USB to optical (like this one [DG2]...there are others): http://www.dansdata.com/xitel.htm Note too, that getting digitally recorded files off an MD and into a computer has always been a pain, unless you're using Hi-MD. It's not clear to me how the UC222 would be used to route a digital signal from the D40 to a PC....but I suppose it could be possible, given the necessary H/W I/O. My own situation is that I go from MD > CD-RW > iTunes. This is time-consuming but works well for me. FWIW, I have an MXD-D40 & an MXD-D400. The latter has optical out.

Well if I wanted average quality I could just stick wtih the old player. The Sony deck sounds amazing, even compared to a similarly spec'd and priced Pioneer from the same era. And I've got some good speakers, and despite my old age I can still hear and appreciate the high end. I'm really very aware of quantization in the high end, which is why I'm using MDs instead of, say, 320kbps MP3s. The difference between LP2 and SP might not be noticeable, but the difference between music recorded via optical input and music encoded by SonicStage and transferred over is -massive-. Whatever SS is doing doesn't work nearly as well as the NH900. Now whether that's because of the DSP, or flaws in my testing (which was done a while ago and I may have done something silly and forgotten) I don't know. But I find it relaxing to create a disc the old fashioned way. Creating a good playlist and recording one track at a time is a soothing thing. tl;dr - it works and I like it. =) Holy crap, you're not kidding about the JA333ES. O_o The S50 requires the weird PC-Link thing, is that a hassle compared to the relatively easy NetMD with Sonic Stage?

Battery - Lip-8 contains a very standard 14650 (and readily available) battery - easy to fit in the empty case - I just worked a blade around the seam, separated the case and pulled off the spot welded terminals with care (snipe nosed pliers did the trick for me). inserted new 14650 and reassembled the case around it (a snug fit, the lack of solder tabs didn't pose a problem). - Usual disclaimer about safety - Please note that I am only describing what I did, not how to do it yourself - Lithium batteries need special care.

Well, this is all a bit embarrassing. Yesterday our youngest son logged on to the windows 7 lap top remotely. One of the first things he tried was to run the unpacked set-up file in ss/English as administrator. Sonicstage installed OK. Did the same thing on the Vista desktop and that worked OK. Am sure that this was tried a good while ago. Will now stop fiddling. However, all's well that ends well. Many thanks to inquisitor and kalkie for the many suggestions.

"The market" determines their worth? Well, "the market" usually has no idea about quality - because in this case it consists of a few dumb people believing in a myth. The TDK significantly colours the sound and is far away from the original sound. But I´ll give you advice regarding your "market": you should extend shipping to Europe. Here in Germany for example, Sharp's last MD recorders with 1-bit technology are highly sought items, fetching rather extreme prices (and they too are not worth their money). The same goes for any HiMD device and the accompanying HiMDs. Happy? If so, stop using this forum to extract information on how to exploit others!

AVLS (Automatic Volume Limiter System) is there to control the volume, so to protect your hearing. Maybe you record in a MDLP mode with your new player, then try to listen on your old "SP only" player ?

Good evening, I was wondering if someone could please upload or provide a link to the voidmp3fm program? All links I have tried are dead. Much thanks

SOLD to Enzo Heavenly!

Not expensive for a pro MD blank but why paying that much for a MD blank if it is not a beauty like a TDK Bitclub or Wa disc ? Hi-MD blank discs : eBay is the best way to find them.

The only guy who could in theory do better than you (I mean even taking pictures of his own desks) is Pierre "100 decks" Nogez in France, who still have 80 decks in stock.

Sorry to dig up an old topic, but I thought I should update it! Not long after posting this thread, I talked myself into buying a NetMD. I picked up a Sony MZ-N710 on ebay for around £30 - the exact same model I had years ago... The battery doesn't charge any more - as can be expected from such an old piece of kit - but it still has all the original accessories, including the external AA battery adaptor. Damned glad I did: the sound quality, even on LP2, far surpasses anything I've ever heard out of my phone or any of my iPods... I don't mind the fuss involved with real time recording, either; it forces me to think about what I actually want to listen to, rather than just dumping a pile of music onto an SD card and hoping that there's something there that I'll listen to. Sadly not, I remember throwing it out some years ago; I knew I should have kept it, but was under the influence of one of my girlfriends cleaning sprees!

Hi all; I have decided to test some md for their LP2 (MDLP) playing ability. LP2 is a widely accepted format and plays on all units made after about year 2000. It has a comparable bit rate to many digital broadcast sources that advertise as “near CD quality”. So there is interest in listening to different portable units’ ability to sound good playing this format. I have a large collection, of which this is a (hopefully) representative selection. The list is (ordered as in the picture): First row: Sony mz-n505 year 2002 Sony mz-e10 year 2002 Sony mz rh710 year 2005 Sony mz-rh10 year 2005 Second row: Sony mz-n910 year 2003 Panasonic sj-mr230 year 2002 Sharp md-ds70 year 2003 Sharp im-dr80 year 2003 Not pictured: Sony mz-rh1 year 2006 I recorded a MD TDK “ M” 80 min with rh1 in LP2 mode. So we do not depend on the recording ability of different units. Some tracks of classical music are sent to me already encoded as LP2 by sfbp, mostly by direct recording of digital sources through optical input to a Sony full-size MDLP deck: Those tracks were then uploaded, emailed, and downloaded. This means that the bit pattern (once recording is made) is transferred to the disk exactly. Berlioz – Roman Carnival Overture Mozart – Piano Sonata in C. K.545 Bach – Christmas Oratorio Part 1 Stanford – Magnificat in C Bach – Wachet Auf Organ Prelude BWV.645 Scriabin – Piano Conc No.1 in F# 1st movement Some are recorded by my CD collection, using Sony’s Simple Burner: Rimsky-Korsakov – Scheherazade Oregon – Beyond Words – Chesky Records Brad Mehldau – Songs – Warner Bros Arne Domnerus – Antiphone Blues – Propius Richard Galliano – New York Tango – Dreyfus Steve Grossmann – Michel Petrucciani – Dreyfus Autunmn in Seattle – Tsuyoshi Yamamoto - FIM Ella Fitgerald and Louis Armstrong - Verve Some tracks of Mina My choice of kind of music isn’t accidental. It is not about judgement, to say one genre is better than another. However in Classical and Jazz music, you can easily hear a solo musical instrument – this is a good test for our comparison purpose. I have also included some wonderful singing. In my philosophy: 1. the sound of a machine must be well-sounding with no equalization applied to the output circuits by the user.2. The sound must not be fatiguing to the ears. Fulfilling these conditions means that the design of these circuits has been excellent. Corrections of various types can allow a sound improvement under certain conditions. I seek to control the tone, the sound image, overall the sense of good sound. But not for today! The less electronic items are interposed in the signal path, the cleaner the sound. So I tested these portable MD units without remote, connected directly to a AKG K340 headphones. This also means we eliminated any variations in the remote, although sfbp assures me that the signal path for these remotes to the ‘phones is a pass-through. The Sony MZ-E10 needs to be connected by remote, we have no choice there. As reference for the quality of the recordings I used my sound system: CD Player Naim CDX 2 <a href="http://www.naimaudio.com/hifi-product-type/563">http://www.naimaudio.com/hifi-product-type/563 Pre-amp Klimo Merlino http://www.klimo.com...ent/merlino.htm Audiophile tube amp Klimo Kent http://www.klimo.com/content/kent.htm Loudspeaker Tannoy Turnberry SE I cannot compare directly the portable mds with a hifi amplifier with cost 100 times more and have a weight 1000 times more; this is from a different planet; but hearing the CD samples on my HiFi reminds me what the full sound of a given piece is supposed to be. Unfortunately I cannot reproduce the samples from sfbp through this amp reliably, as I do not have an MDLP deck with optical out – nor do I have an optical input to my amplifier. He says they’re good. Results: My overall impressions are coloured by my expectations, of course. I was unable to do a blind test where I did not know which portable was being played. I expected there to be an improvement in sound as this technology evolved over several years; and to me it is clearly audible. I also expected the more expensive units to perform better; they did. PART 1 - Classical First I listened to classical music SONY (by order of year of manufacture) MZ-N505 The sound is flat, muddy, slightly acidic. Hard to differentiate orchestral colours, especially in full orchestra. Acute piano, violin too acute. Entry-level machine aimed, in my opinion, to people with few financial resources and few requests. Significantly better with MegaBass 1, but for this test we are ignoring that. This is the only Sony unit we tried that is Type-R, all others (below) are Type-S. MZ-N910 The sound set is good but not very precise. Solos are beautiful, piano, violin and also vocal. Good stereo separation. This unit uses the same optical head as the later HiMD units. MZ-E10 (using the unit’s remote!) Sound very crisp, good tonal balance. Full orchestra well balanced. Piano very "alive"; violin solos beautiful. However the sound is very airy and neutral with a feeling of "coldness". The remainder of the Sony units were HiMD. However it has been commented that the HiMD units reproduce MDLP better than MDLP units (since the technology continued to evolve) – hence their inclusion. All HiMD units include Type-S. MZ-RH10 Clear sound with accurate tonal range. Voice well reproduced. Full orchestral balance is excellent. Good piano, very nice violin. Powerful bass without thumping. Stereo image very good. This is a second-generation HiMD unit. I did not test the first generation (NH7/8/900) yet. MZ-RH710 Good overall, no problem with the full orchestra. Clear and well balanced. Excellent vocals, piano and violin both beautiful. The tonal range seems better than the RH10. Overall the sound is interesting and most engaging. Addictive, the ear desires more. This unit has not been sold in North America. A pity. MZ-RH 1 (same as MZ-M200) I cannot define the RH1 on the same level as the other devices. Suddenly I lose any feeling that I am listening to a "compressed" sound. This is IT. This technology has evolved so well. Where is Sony continuing its evolution? . SHARP MD-DS70** Well balanced sound, full orchestra is a little short on bass register. Instruments well differentiated. Piano, well defined, but a little opaque. Violin good. Vocals beautiful. IM-DR80** Overall the sound is identical to the DS 70. Some evolution – I noticed more spatial separation and better reproduction of the violin. As well, using the headphones 4-pole Sharp, sound is considerably better, near the best tested. So there is a problem eliminating other influences for purposes of these comparisons. PANASONIC SJ-MR230 Sound muddy, narrow tonal range down. Piano opaque little violin and voice. Has trouble with balance of full orchestra. Not a particularly desirable experience. (comment from sfbp, who is editing this: even the N505 sounds better than most Ipods. How much of that is the ATRAC codec vs MP3 is unclear, although recent Sony MP3-capable units such as PCM-M10 are very good. Earlier MP3-capable units such as RH10 are less good, but we are not trying to test MP3 today). Part 2: Jazz Music SONY MZ-N505 Slight improvement on classical music The sound still sound muddy. Lack of spatiality. Piano weak. Accordion acid Organ clear Saxophone clear MZ-N910 Full sound, even if the "cold" Instruments are not perfectly reproduced. Fair playback treble and bass. Good dynamic. Good sound stage. Accordion slightly annoying. Organ clear Saxophone clear. MZ-E10 * Excellent sound overall. Slight lack of definition of the instruments. Good dynamic. Excellent sound stage. Accordion excellent Organ clear Saxophone good. * Note: Sony mz-e10 must be connected by remote MZ-RH710 Beautiful sound. Very good definition of instruments. Slight lack of bass. Great feeling of space. Good dynamic. Sound stage "alive". Accordion excellent Organ good. Saxophone good. MZ-RH10 Good overall sound setting; looks beautiful Very good definition of instruments. Great feeling of space and dynamics Sound stage well defined. Accordion excellent Organ good. Saxophone good. MZ-RH 1 We can define a reference point. The only problem: I have the European version and the volume is too low. SHARP MD-DS 70** Good general approach of the sound, nice, better than classical music on this unit. Good definition of instruments. Great feeling of space and dynamics Sound stage slightly muffled. Accordion well. Organ acceptable. Saxophone good. IM-DR 80** Good general approach of the sound, comparable to the DS 70 Good definition of instruments. Great feeling of space and dynamics Good sound stage. Accordion well. Organ good. Saxophone good. ** Note: A clarification, using the headphones 4-pole Sharp (special design), sound is considerably better, near the best tested. PANASONIC SJ-MR230 Sound mixed, smooth, with little dynamics and low bass response. Sound stage not focused. Accordion poor. Organ unclear. Saxophone acceptable. GENERAL COMMENTS Voice Voice reproduction levels any difference between devices. In the N505 during the duets the voice appears mixed. In the MR230, the vocals seem "flat" without character. In the N910 voices are not perfectly clear. In E10 voice is somewhat "incomplete". RH 10, RH 710, DS70, DR80 the voice is good, listenable, with no obvious deficiencies. The RH1 is still “IT”. Conclusions To end the test I listened my wife's iPod touch. I hear sounds, not music. It is flat, soulless. The two channels are different, but as if I hear two different songs. Having to give a score to various devices: 4.0 Ipod 6.0 MZ-N505 6.5 SJ-MR230 6.5 MZ-N910 8.5 MZ-E10 MD-DS70 IM-DR80 9.5 MZ-RH10 10.0 MZ-RH710 MZ-RH1 As expected, you can follow an improvement in sound over the passing years as the technology improves. Obviously the original selling price may affect the characteristics, as high end models will tend to have better components. Using headphones, 4-pole Sharp, the vote of rises 1 / 2 - 1 point by placing them among the best. RH1 is wonderful, recommended for those who want a sound "monitor"; always impeccable. RH710 is not as clean but "feel" sound in my opinion the best, most engaging. RH10 has a sound very similar to RH1, although not so well calibrated. The two models of SHARP have a sound "sparkling, cheerful" that does not tire of hearing, certainly there are fans of this sound. Sergio (with some help from Stephen)

It was among some random crap in a bag at value village, it was marked at $25, came with 2 80minute MDs! It works Perfectly and only has few minor wear and tears. Heres a pic of it! (next to my R500) Left: R500, Right: N510 And I also got a Xitel PCLink box without cables For $4, but I had em lying around.

Thx for the replies. Is an output of 0.7A for a charger considered high for a Sony battery? I asked this because I've heard somewhere that the charge should be around 200-400 mA.

[edit] Forget it. It seems to work now - apparently it´s because some of the tracks were recorded using a different recorder. Those I recorded, I apparently can delete. I leave the post as is, but disregard it. [/edit] (Sorry if this is the wrong forum, but the thread seems to fit) I´ve got a problem with my MZ-R900 - whenever I try to erase a track, I get TR PROTECT - even though the track was recorded a minute ago, using the optical cable and the optical output of my DVD-Player, playing a (original) CD. I have yet to read the manual entirely, but searches through it, or the web, didn´t find anything useful. Even here I didn´t find much I could use. These tracks obviously are protected - but why? And how can I erase them? Is it possible that it´s merely a disc-failure? I´ve checked the write-protect tab, but it´s fine - I could record as long as there was empty space. Should I discard the disc as write-only, or is there a simple solution(i.e. not buying additional hardware)? BTW, the disc wasn´t new or empty - some tracks have been written on it, by using a non-portable(bookshelf?) unit. Can this be the reason?