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BTW msteeln, 200 bp is not $200 US. It's more like $300 US plus international shipping, import duty, bla, bla. The Canadian store is called Pause Play Stop formerly Minidisc Canada.

Nice find Albert. Too bad Beach doesn't have md batteries or discs. But, that's a great price for a factory new M200 and no shipping charge. I've ordered video items from them before. I can't quite understand the resistance expressed for two domestic and reliable retailers selling a factory fresh M200, which is identical to the RH1 but, w/ an accessory mike, for $373 and $350. Sure, order one from Canada for $412 plus $20.00 shipping. ???, -ja

Go to www.markertek.com, it's a brick and mortar store in upstate NY, absolutely reliable. They have the MZ-M200 for $373.59 and the Hi-MD discs for $5.35 ea. Shipping cost is minimal as well. You can also do a search on craigslist.org using Google's advanced search. Put in HI-MD minidisc for the search term and for the forum (at the bottom of the advanced search window put in craigslist.org. You will see all current and unfortunately expired adds for Hi minidiscs from all States. I recently got an almost unused RH1 for $325. You have to check almost daily to catch a deal but, it can be worth it. Also search using just minidisc to pick up a few additional Hi-MD listings but, more to wade through. Best, -ja

Point well made. You know a lot more about the technical specs. of this equipment than me. True enough, my issues with low volume are related to my own live recordings. I have learned the hard way to err on the side of caution and set my manual levels low enough so as not to risk distortion. For me it's usually these recordings that require some boosting when I'm listening on the go. Especially during my subway commutes. For this issue, I have found the tiny yet powerful FiiO E5 a dandy solution. Thanks for the clarification on my Grados. And congrats on that pair of 325i phones that you no doubt enjoy immensely. Cheers, -ja

I don't know these headphones you are going to use so I can't comment directly about them. However, I use Grado SR60i and SR80i headphones which are fairly high impedance when on the go with my RH-1. To compensate for the weak output signal , I use a tiny headphone amplifier called a FiiO-E5. It's 1.5 inches by 1.7 inches and only .5 inches thick and weighs about as much as a quarter. It will show up in a Google search. Easily obtained for about 15 or 20 bucks. Check it out, it works great, very clean amplified signal. It has an internal battery that charges through USB and holds a charge for a pretty long time under use. It's small and light enough that I usually clip it to my headphone cord. That's my solution. Best, -ja

Make sure that you uninstall Sonic Stage and all it's components and reboot your computer before installing SS again. Try uploading tracks from a different disc as a test to see if the problem is really with the software?

So, you're not getting any error messages and you're following the same procedure you've used in past uploads. Possibly it's an issue with the disc itself or the content. Is it a 1 gig Hi-MD disc? Is it a live recording made with a micrpophone? How many tracks are recorded and in what mode was it recorded? Can you play the disc on your RH-1 through headphones or speakers?

Hi, I not an expert by any means but, I'll at least try to get the discussion started. Have you 'uploaded' tracks from your RH1 to Sonic Stage before or is this the first time you are atempting to do this? -ja

It's not like an addiction PPK, it is an addiction. I've got four G750s, one of which I modified to do TOC cloning, three NH-900s, three RH1s, something called a MZ-DH710 that I haven't even taken out of the clam shell yet, an NH1 and others I can't even remember. Oh yea, and a JE520 deck.

I hit 'send twice' sorry....two left thumbs on the keyboard yet, I coordinate four limbs on the drum kit... go figure.

What do you mean by "record INTO it's TOSLink/SPDIP optical socket"? I'm intrigued. ja

It's a really nice model. I just got one a few months ago on Craigslist as well. It's one of 6 or 7 models that you can add some advanced features to by way of a well documented hack in minidisc.org by going into service mode...http://www.minidisc.org/mzr700_to_mzr900.html I've preformed this hack on several of the listed models and it works like a charm and is quite easy. It seem Sony included the circuitry for these advanced features in several models but, didn't active them except on a more expensive model, the 900 if I recall correctly. But, a very nice and elegant machine at any rate. ja

What do you mean,"record INTO its TOSLink/SPDIF optical socket? I'm intrigued. -ja

I concur, one can't have too many. I've got three RH1 or M200 units (I'll gladly give away that little mike that came with the 200) and multiple units of two other models plus singles of several models. And always looking for more

Ok now...good to start hearing from some fellow State-siders. You guys should have a really good experience doing business with this outfit. They are well established and have a brick and mortar store. I've seen slightly lower prices for Hi-MD discs occasionally on my GOOGLE shopping searches but, the sources are somewhat shady and excessive shipping charges negate the teaser discount price. Same happens on e-bay. Markertek also has tons of other interesting electronic stuff and accessories often at really good prices. -ja

I mentioned the international shipping because I have read some posts from users outside the States commenting on how difficult to find and expensive Hi-MD discs are becoming. I guess many don't know about your HK source. Now, as well I'm wondering if I'm the only US located member on the forum any more. I would have expected some responses about my domestic find for five dollar Hi-MDs. Or did I post in the wrong section? 'Hi-MD' seemed logical. Oh well, my intentions were good. -ja

Good that it all worked out. A hitch in SS...you'll probably never know what was preventing uploading with that original installation. $440AUD for an RH1...that's almost $400 USD. It is like and addiction. I got my most recent RH1 (my third) from Craigslist for about $250 thought they often are asking $300 on CL in the States. Is Craigslist a viable forum to purchase from in Australia? I for one never go near E-Bay except to browse out of curiosity. On CL I search the entire domestic forum by going through GOOGLE Advanced Search. There is a window at the bottom of the Advanced Search page that let's you put in a particular forum to search, so I jut put 'craigslist.org and get all the "Hi-MD minidisc" or just 'minidisc' posts across the entire country. Cheers

Hello All Hi-MD Users, I hope this is the best place to post this. I have found an established electronics distributor located in Upstate NY called Markertek that carries minidisc media including HI-MD discs in their regular stock. They seem to have a steady and reliable source for Hi-MD discs and sell them for $5.35 per. Any in stock are shipped out the same or next day and any additional that have to be back ordered are shipped within 5 days. Shipping is pretty cheap as well by UPS Ground. I just purchased 30 discs along with some mike cable and a video tripod. They had 14 discs in stock which I received two days later with the other items and the additional 16 discs were shipped 3 days business days later. Shipping for the entire order was $8.00 and some change. No additional shipping charge for the back order items. They don't charge sales tax unless you live in New York State. Too bad for me 'cause I do. Still for me the discs were less that 6 dollars a piece. Look for the category "Expendables" in their list of internal links on the left of the home page and click on "Discount Recording Media" www.markertek.com Mailing Address: Markertek Video Supply 1 Tower Drive PO Box 397 Saugerties, New York (USA) 12477 Toll Free: 800-522-2025 (USA, Canada, Mexico, Carribbean) International: 845-246-3036 Fax: 845-246-1757 Hours: 8:30AM to 7:00PM M-F EST Sony HMD-1G High Capacity 1 GB Mini Disc High Capacity Mini Disc 1GB storage for data or music Record up to 45 hours of music on just one Hi-MD dis ... Sony Recording Media Our Part# HMD-1G Our Price $5.35 SONY Mini Disc 80 Minute Gold EACH Discs are sold individually High level of performance Portable and unshockable Holds up to 80 minutes of mu ... Sony Recording Media Our Part# MDW-80PL-5H Our Price $2.05 Happy Shopping, James P.S. They do ship international with a minimum $100 order. I enquired and the shipping to the UK wood be by US Postal and cost $48.25 There is a Markertek UK site but they don't list minidiscs. I e-mailed Markertek UK and was told that a 1gb disc would cost "

Hey Coral, I'm glad that worked for you. I hope it helps out others as well. Those are expensive little machines. Some of those black lid covers may be a bit mishapen at the manufacture or assembly end. I think mine was a little like that right from the box and just got worse over time as I would close it by pushing only in the middle. Lesson learned. BTW-how did your uploading to SS after recording Hi-MD through the DG2 from your computer work out? We never saw you follow up over there at MD, NetMD & MDLP / Xitel DG2. Best, Jim

Thanks for the compliment Samantha. Glad those links worked, I've not done that before. Just to clarify, I wasn't even thinking about stealth recording in my analysis or discussion. Although the AT822, while a bit long, is in fact very thin and light enough to put in an inside jacket pocket. I've done that on a few occasions where the music venue's policy was to not allow recording, photography, thanking notes, having fun, etc... However, generally when I record a group in a more relaxed club, I approach the musicians, some of whom I may know, and ask permission to record. I've never been turned down. Usually they just want a copy. As for the MS957, it would be totally unsuited for stealth because it is massive and heavy. It's made to look like an impressive studio mike, it just doesn't follow through on performance. I've been told that the AT8022 is as good if not slightly better than the 822. A bit more expensive though. The 822 can still be found with a simple Google Shopping search. The best price had been in the $230 to $249.95 range. I'm seeing them in some retail stores lately, like Sam Ash, for $319. One nice thing about the 822 is that it comes with two types of mike cords. Both attach to the mike by three prong XLR wired for stereo. One terminates in a mini stereo plug and the other has two lines, (left and right channel) that each terminate in a quarter inch mono plug. I use that one to run the mike(s) through a mixer. I don't know that the 8022 comes with those alternatives and it may be a five pin XLR at the mike. One last comment on your observations above. I did have, many years ago, what was then considered a "portable" cassette tape recorder. It was a SUPERSCOPE. All the budding musicians had one because it had a pretty good speed control knob for changing keys, albeit at a lower pitch. The thing was built like a tank

Well, just to make sure I wasn't overly critical of the 957 after my post above, I took the microphone to my studio Sunday night to make a comparison. I made sure the battery in both microphones was fresh. Then I first placed the MS957 in the same position on the mike stand as my AT822 which suspends the mike about 5 feet off the ground and directly above the center of my drum kit pointing straight down. I set the 957 in 90 degree mode and recorded about a minute or two going directly into the microphone input of an RH1 in MD SP mode, w/ manual record levels. Then I did exactly the same with the Audio Technica. Just hearing the difference in my recorded voice at the beginning of each track describing the microphone in use is enough to convince me that the Sony mike is profoundly inferior. Unless, as you suggest, there is some issue with this particular mike. Possibly a knock-off or the elements were replaced? Everything else I received in the purchase was of high quality and in near pristine condition. It was an MZ-NH900 and all accessories. What I hear in the Sony mike is a thin, tinny sound, very one dimensional and no stereo separation that I can detect. The AT mike produces a full round sound with lots of depth and excellent stereo separation. The Sony mike did not produce anything close to a realistic sound. The AT mike, especially with the roll-off engaged, produced a recording very close to the actual sound of my drum kit in that room. I've uploaded the three files (tracks) into a "Public Folder" in a program I use called DropBox. This creates an internet link to those files that I can send to anyone or paste. The three tracks are the Sony ECM-MS957, the AudioTechnica AT822 in flat setting and again in it's low frequency roll-off setting. The recordings are exactly what went onto the minidisc. Absolutely no post recording effects were applied except conversion to WAV format by Sonic Stage. Posted here are the links: Sony MS957 AT822 in flat setting AT822 in roll-off setting Give a listen yourself and tell me what you think. (Please don't criticize my drumming, I was just trying to get something on disc.)

Hi Samantha, Lots of good info. here. I must, however, comment on the microphone issue. Not one of those Sony mikes is worth a dime in my opinion and experience. And sorry but, same for the self built mikes. I recently got a Sony MS957 sent to me along with a Hi-MD minidisc I bought on Craigslist. That mike lists for about $300 on Sony's site I believe. I was appalled at the low quality of the recording it produced. It sounded exactly like the $70 907 I started out with several years ago. I record live almost every day in my practice studio, either my individual practice or group sessions I have several times a week. I also record at clubs and concerts, (and occasionally on a subway platform if I run across something really good). All my recording is done with minidisc. As for the microphone...the Audio Technica AT822 Stereo Condenser or it's replacement is the only way to go absent pro level studio or field recording equipment. It is an awesome microphone...get your hands on one, do an A-B comparison with anything else your using and you will never go back. When I got my AT822, based on a couple of knowledgeable recommendations, I was blown away by the quality of the recording. Everyone, including musicians, who hear one of the recordings I make with this microphone is immensely impressed. Funny thing though, they always ask what I recorded on (the medium) instead of what I recorded with (the microphone) thinking I suppose that the recording device is what produces the great sound. But, it's the microphone that is the first link in a live recording. The microphone is where the electrical frequency signal originates. I'd rather record to a cassette tape machine with a great mike than to a digital recorder with a cheap mike. I recently purchased a second 822 as a backup so I decided to use both in my studio. I run them through a mixer using four channels. The left and right output from each mike goes to its own mixer channel. That set up allows me to have complete control over the stereo balance via the pan controls on the mixer channels. I don't apply any EQ except to trim down the low end very slightly on the mike I have positioned directly over the center of my drum kit. That helps the sound of the cymbals by eliminating some extraneous low frequency harmonics produced by cymbals that aren't part of the musical frequencies that define a cymbal's sound. The other mike is set further away from the kit to add in some of the ambient room sound of the drums. Or if I have a group session going, the second mike is for the other instruments. All the above...just my personal opinion, Cheers, -ja

Interesting..., I didn't know there was an earlier version of the DG2 that had a switch on it. Maybe that's why it's called the DG"2" And, if by recording a CD, you mean playing it on you computer and recording the output directly onto minidisc using the DG2, I just tried that and I got track marks at the beginning of each new track. I played the CD in Windows Media Player and Real Player with SYNC REC both on and off. No titles but, track marks went onto the minidisc. (What does the switch on the other Digital PC Link do?) I had not done this before because if I want to record a CD in real time onto minidisc I play the CD on my stand alone Hard Drive DVD player/recorder that has an optical output. I think it

Just to interject briefly...I duplicated the process as described: Using an RH1, I formatted a 74 min disc to Hi-MD mode using the "Initialize" feature on Sonic Stage. After unplugging from SS I set REC Mode to Hi-SP and recorded a music clip from a web site using the DG2. I then re-connected my RH1 with Sonic Stage, choose "Transfer" which defaulted to Hi-MD and successfully transferred the track. SS created a file called "Hi-MD 2010-04-25 01_07_01\00" in My Documents/Sonic Stage where it placed the .oma file. In the SS library, the file is listed in the Album Colum as "Transferred from Hi-MD (2010-04-25 01:07:00)" I also have my "Advanced" transfer settings configured to "Save In WAV format when importing" therefore I also have the track as a .wav file in a folder I designated. So the method can work. Though I don't think it is necessary to format or initialize an MD disc in Hi-MD on Sonic Stage. You can just put the disc in your recorder and set the Disc Mode to Hi-MD in "Options" on the recorder's menu and then in REC Settings go to REC Mode and choose PCM, Hi-SP or Hi-LP.

I have several of these devices...they came bundled with many of the older minidisc units and as I buy used minidiscs I often get a Digital Port DG2 along with it. I'm not sure I understand why you are trying to have Windows record in relation to using the DG2. If I find something on the internet that I want to record to minidisc, I just plug the DG2 into a usb port and the optical output (TOS Link) from the DG2 into my MD's line in. It's as simple as that. It's also useful if you have a music file on your hard drive and want to make a copy on MD in ATRAC SP. Of course you have to make the recording in real time but, I think that is the only way to make an SP recording of a music file from your computer. Sonic Stage does not transfer in true SP. I've also disabled all beeps and chirps that my computer used to make. (Except that annoying alarm that Sonic Stage makes when it finishes transferring a file from it's library to an MD...anyone know how to turn that off??).