sfbp

Here's another one. I held off because it's NOT clear to me that it will force 44.1Khz on output. http://cgi.ebay.com.au/7-1CH-USB-2-0-External-Optical-Sound-Card-Audio-Adapter_W0QQitemZ280403228946 For some reason the magic trick seems to be to look in Australia. Weird.

One word comes to mind immediately - "Extigy". (EXTernal version of the audIGY) There are probably others (eg from NAD, Sinclair) but I bet this is the most affordable (it is/was by Creative). There's also that Aussie gizmo that (I think) Sony adopted, when they didn't have NetMD ready, called a Xitel MDPORT. The one you probably want is the MDPORT-DG2, if you can find one. Here it is, $11 Aus, what a deal I'll almost get one just for the heck of supporting my laptop some day. http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Xitel-MD-Port-DG2-sound-card-w-Optical-Cable-MP3-Music_W0QQitemZ140392830704 There - I just did it.... they've got lots. Stephen

Completely off the top of my head, I'd make a wild guess (without knowing ANY of your detailed setup on the new machine, software-wise) and say probably some Antivirus program is doing this to you. That or Vista or W7 not yet properly configured or running on too little memory, causing thrashing of the OS and/or application code that is relevant. Yes, strongly recommend a sound card with optical in and out. But I don't think that (lack of a sound card with digi-io) is the cause here. Pickup of bad noise from the line in or out, perhaps. But completely dropping out... I seriously doubt it.

Well then, Avrin's idea about codecs must be right. I have no idea how SS decides which codecs it will use with MP3. I've never seen the problem you relate, though I have only tried a few rates. Could it be something to do with variable versus constant bitrate? Or perhaps you installed some new application that changed all the "normal" codecs for MP3? Horrors, is it just possible that the OLD sonicstage had better (more) codecs than the NEW one??? Stephen

Not the attribute. The ACL dialog (Sharing and Security).

Ahhh,,, I just found something really nifty. Looks like SS is leaving files open by mistake (at least that's my conclusion). I was trying to upload a file, and had joined two fragments together using the little-known "Combine" function of SonicStage. Problem was, I forgot to decrypt them both first. I set the File Conversion Tool going, and it skipped over the joined file. After that it got curiouser and curiouser. I tried to delete the file (checking the "delete music from this computer" option you are now familiar with!) and it said it had done so, but NO SIREE, it had not. All attempts to actually delete the file with Windows Explorer failed until I rebooted the computer ("another program has this file open"). So THERE (I think) is your answer. SS is (or can be) naughty about open files. This is going to take some very patient work to get to the bottom of. Now it's possible that when I attempted to play said joined file with MediaPlayer that it was MediaPlayer's fault. Another thing to check, don't run any players on any of the MP3 files or ATRAC files you are trying to get rid of, and REALLY REALLY make sure something you deleted via SonicStage is really gone. We might be onto something here. Stephen

Looks like I wasted your time. Sorry. I recall some horrible problems like this. Make sure you can see the file names in the My Library display. Maybe this will give you a clue. Somewhere some file is not allowed to be created or perhaps accessed. <puts on Peter Falk pork pie hat> One more thing..... did you make that folder WRITE accessible? Added: I just had a first... SS crashing on my new laptop which is running XP SP3. Routine operations like renaming files on a HiMD. No idea what's going on yet.

Huh? Now I'm lost. The MZ-N710 doesn't play mp3's. The file conversion tool is for uploads (FROM md to pc). Not sure it does anything with imports. If you downloaded from Amazon don't you get a second chance? I have never done it.

Wait a minute. You purchased an MP3, correct? You directly xferred this to listen on a second-gen HiMd, or you converted to ATRAC? If you converted to ATRAC there's no way that SonicStage should have been able to mangle your file BEFORE conversion. So it should be safe on the HD as an MP3. I presume Windows doesn't stop you copying it first. If so, forget about the ATRAC file. Yes, that was Sony's intention, don't let them make copies. Didn't work (as an overall strategy***), and lost them the market, so it goes. But you can generate it again, no? Stephen *** there at least 2 ways I know to deal with the copying issue 1. Sell it (say 1 copy) without copy protection. Of 100 illegal copiers, 10 (9 more) are generally willing to buy the product if they really like it. Whereas if you protect it successfully you lost those 9. 2. Bundle it with something (usually hardware) that people cannot get out of paying for. This is the Microsoft solution. What's annoying about this one is that it encourages the perception that software is "free". It isn't. Usually the cost in blood, sweat, toil and tears (WSC) not to mention $$$.

I'm concerned about copyright, but I will PM you what I posted on my own site. Cheers

Maybe they're not there at all. PLAYING them is where ever you imported them FROM. Downloading them is wherever SS decided to convert them TO. It's the downloading function that fails, and there is all sorts of nasssty code that deals with those conversions, code which Sony strove vigorously to protect, apparently with all sorts of anti-reverse-engineering tricks. Probably some service logged on to do the "music server" part can no longer access the files under the user tree, where in earlier versions it could. One more thing.... right click the column headers in the main library display and show File Path. You might have to rearrange the display (dragging of col heads, resizing etc) to see what you need. Another more thing.... fix the option to rename files when titles are edited in SS. It helps sometimes.

0K, we're getting there... more information now. You cannot import because something doesn't have the right (write!) access to the folders under the user tree. First make sure you are either always logged on as either a Power User or an Administrator. If that fixes it we are done (until the next round of MSFT paranoia). OK time to create a new folder called "SonicStage\Imported Sound" on the root of a disk (if this direction confuses you we can take it slower) to which you and all users have full access. You will need exactly one visit to the access control dialog "security and sharing" on the properties sheet for the new SonicStage folder to accomplish this access. You can make the whole disk or just the folder accessible correctly. As a nerd I usually do the whole disk but you can do just the folder, especially if it happens to be on C: you are better to do only the folder. Permissions propagate downwards by default I think. Now go to the dialog that controls the location of the imported files under SS. T(ools->O(ptions->Location to save imported files Fix the dialog box to point to the new accessible location you just created. At some point you might like to copy all the files from where it WAS pointing (under some user tree no doubt) to the new place, folders included, and re-import everything. Probably not that complicated (you sound reasonably ok with puters). Rather an inflexible design, they should have consider moving the db properly. There's probably a way to move the actual MS Access DB files, but what I just described will work. Avrin probably knows a nice way to do it. I honestly don't recall why the problem arose but it most likely is an option during installation of the new package of SS. If you can afford to go back deinstall and reinstall SS Ultimate you probably will find there's a way to set the library in a place that is not the default. Sadly I've run out of XP machines that I can try it on, and I don't have a virtual machine setup running at the moment to try it out on, sandbox-wise.

At this point I might start to do a few things with a single non-behaving MP3. a. does it play (and does it play without getting modified) in normal players other than SS? b. can you install another SS on another PC and import that one file there? I realise that's a problem for many people. c. Have you checked that the library is stored on a medium where there is lots of WRITEABLE storage before doing the import? The fact you have several "optimized files" folders suggests to me that you have stored the db under a single user (and maybe for several users). Consequently it will be inaccessible to other users through Windows AC lists. I would consider carefully the benefits of having only a single place for SS database, NOT under your My Documents tree. Did you upgrade to SP3? Rumour has it that some of the Vista UAL stuff got snuck in there in the interests of "security". Sony has always insisted you have to be more than a plain-joe user when running SS. Perhaps you got away with it but now restrictions on access are being enforced. Yup, time to start looking at ACL's. Sorry. oh yes, one more thing. Time to talk to the resident genius Avrin. The db is a real Microsoft Access db. Somehow maybe the permissions got munged?

Well on top of that, you still have the best broadcasting radio in the world

I still have a project queued to attempt to add optical out to HiMD. It got a bit set back (I got all the bits I needed, I think) because my e-guru friend with the scope has been way too busy to come over and help me tinker for a half a day on it. I have been intrigued by a PS3. However I have in the meantime discovered another way to get optical from HiMD to my stereo with the decent speakers - a HTPC with HDMI (or if I needed it, optical) out. If they had made a PS3 with a HiMD drive I would have led the stampede (at least on Boxing Day) to Curry's/Dixons or its equivalents over here. (There's one remaining problem which has nothing to do with anything we care about, and seems to occur randomly on different sources and sinks on the entire system. I can get rid of it by turning off the TV, so it's probably a ground loop problem, which will eventually go away if I ever upgrade my CRT to something more modern).

If you looks at my post higher up, you may see that I don't *quite* agree. It's when Sonic Stage TRANSCODES the music from a different bitrate (probably because the LP4 uses a different mechanism to the others eg LP2) to LP4 that Sonic Stage messes up. If you record on the unit, upload to PC (must be the RH1!) the resulting ATRAC file can not only be moved around but is untouched if transferred to HiMD. Just a clarification - being able to put "about" 6 5-hour programs on a 1GB disk is really quite nice. You can do a similar thing with an ATRAC CD, only it will be more like 4 instead of 6, useful for driving across that prairie!

I love the Ipod one.. a virtual Ipod - now that I could live with

Summary: your database is messed up. As long as these are MP3 files (or WAV) ie not copy-protected ATRAC, you haven't done anything wrong. Note that PLAYING some MP3 files in some players will modify the file (I seem to recall Real Player might do this), so any file that got changed will no longer be recognised by SS. If they were ATRAC files to begin with, you're screwed unless you can go back (via System Restore) to an earlier point in time. This means you lose any uploads since that point, forever. Don't try any of this (trying to get ATRAC files back) unless you need to. Next, find where Sonic Stage puts your optimized files (my guess is some directory called "Optimized Files" somewhere near where SS keeps your imported files). Delete all the files there. Also there's a couple of things in the "Options" section of SS - delete the temporary files (probably the same as what you just did), and optimize the database (nothing to do with optimized files!). Stop SS, reboot Windows (just for the heck of it), and try again. I'm assuming NONE of this helped. If it did, then Hallelujah. Now you have a tedious job. You have to delete all the songs that won't transfer (finding out is tedious too!) FROM SonicStage (make sure you never check the box telling you to delete the music file from the computer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). Now re-import them (the file menu) and all will (I hope) be well. That's the tedious part, re-sorting them. You might do well to keep one song in each album (say the first or the last) and do it after you have imported all the others. That way you don't lose the folder and artist information. Sometimes SS also gets confused if you had ATRAC and converted to MP3 and both files are showing in the SS display. But what typically leads to the above scenario is that an ATRAC file is generated (in Optimized Files) from your MP3 (or WAV) and then it gets deleted or goes out of date (see the comment about realplayer above, though it's not exactly applicable, I speak in generalities) and now the database says "the right file ain't there". I hope this helps. And yes, as long as you don't have any files terminally protected with Sony digital paranoia, SS4.3 (especially Avrin's nice updated version "Ultimate") is much better. I believe there might be some weird data rates that I have never used in the earlier versions but unless you know you need them, fuhgeddaboutit If you do have ATRAC files after all this that are protected, you should remove the copy protection. I suspect in 3.4 this means converting them to 4.3 (SOMEONE PLEASE CONFIRM THIS, I DON'T WANT TO MESS THIS POOR CHAP UP). In 4.3 it's a simple matter of running the File Conversion Tool and unchecking the Copy Protect dialog checkbox. You should always do that with your precious recordings anyway. Good luck Stephen

Yeah. Some of the more *advanced* USB-equipped portables will allow you to erase files (earlier ones simply say "track protect" I strongly suspect) and store what they have erased, presumably on the Medium, not in the player. Weird, eh? Normally when you put such a disk in and connect up the USB, SS knows about this and automatically fixes track counts. It can be a right royal pain if you deleted a jillion songs and don't need the rights any more, because it really wastes a lot of time doing it. In fact I don't think I have ever up or down loaded a song with restricted number of transfers - that's all in pleistocene times. If you FORMAT the disk I think it doesn't bother. Not sure exactly under what circumstances it is necessary to do it by hand but I am sure some sufferer of the early versions of NetMD will be able to come up with a scenario where it is necessary to invoke it.

I think one reason I wouldn't care if they turned off FM at least here in Canada is that the quality is craparola. I did some air-to-MD recordings (and analysed the signal) and knowing what I now know about DSP, I'd say it (the signal) is not worth saving. But then I would want my satellite radio, and that is still close as ever to financial extinction. So it's the internet or nothing! The cable companies not bad, but they also have no schedule you can check in advance. Interestingly the best recording I saved from the 1980's came off of FM radio. Good enough to convert the cassette to CD. Things have got much much worse since then. All our stuff is compressed, relayed by satellite/internet and then played back. And the quality is dreadful as a result. Agree about the quality (of the LP4's you tried). But for background (anathema to "proper" musicians like my wife) music, is quite good enough.

I am thinking the same thing I heard (probably exactly what stopped me too from using LP4 on operas) might be some weirdness from a MONO commentator. (Meaning that if you are using "difference from Mono" to encode the stereo, that some strange stuff might happen when the most prominent sound ie the announcer, really is mono)

Could it be as simple as that Sonic Forge (sic) is applying the right digital filters that don't exist in hardware, for the particular conversion you needed?

Absolutely. However, importing CD quality by Sonic Stage has some problem (at least to my ears) which may be the ripper. The converse problem seems to exist. Sometimes genuine WAV files are flagged as protected (untransferable) by SS. Ugh! Then your only choice is to delete them and re-add. Problem: you lost the titling info. Here's a small tip, start your names with the Composer (or if you prefer Artist, for non-classical) then a space-hyphen-space and now magically lots of things work right on the re-import, or burning to Nero (there's an undocumented convention that this delineates artist from title, somewhere around). I'm sure others have found better ways. Another thing when doing as you describe is to leave ONE song as a placeholder from an Album, and process it when you've done all the rest. That saves you retyping all the album details if they came from CDDB.

Excuse me for butting in, but it is/was a very solid machine. Sounds like the connector needs repairing, and probably worth a shot. Unfortunately I got mine second hand as it happened to be the only model in my local drugstore when I finally went looking, and they wanted almost $400 Canadian for it, ouch.

The major reported fault on the 707 seems to have been the overwrite head wires dying. So, some become play-only machines (with the ability to toast your MD in about 5 seconds). [rant] The other fault is the major reason IMHO Sony isn't in the MD business any more. It's the reason I refused to buy portables until the RH1 (actually I got an NE410 "by mistake" naively thinking all were alike), and it could have made MD absolutely dominant. This fault is in the DESIGN. MD portables needed optical out. [/rant]