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jmsla

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Everything posted by jmsla

  1. 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
  2. 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
  3. 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 "
  4. 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
  5. 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
  6. 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.)
  7. 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
  8. jmsla

    Xitel DG2

    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
  9. jmsla

    Xitel DG2

    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.
  10. jmsla

    Xitel DG2

    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??).
  11. Hey Rainsire, I don't know about M.A.L or the others but, I was having the same probem and I just tightened the lid on my RH1 last week. The ends at the front edge of the of the lid were wobbling back and forth. If I happened to push down on the right side while handling the unit it would act like a mystery function button and interfere with whatever the unit was doing at the time. If you are having the same problem, here is what I did to fix it. First I carefully tightened all the screws I could easily get to that are associated with the lid. Then I held the unit up to my eye and looked across the front edge of the lid where I discovered that it was in fact slightly bowed. The middle where it latches was a bit lower than at the ends, thus it was swayback shaped. I fixed this bit of swayback by placing the unit on a firm surface like my desk top, and then with the lid open inserted my index finger, (fingerprint side up) just slightly under the middle of the lid. Then with my other hand placed my thumb and index finger at the two corner ends and applied very gentle pressure. I did not try to re-shaper it in one effort. After applying some gentle pressure, I closed the lid to see how much I had adjusted. I did this two or three times just until the ends held tight in place. Problem solved, the lid is now nice and tight when I close it. Lastly, I suggest not shutting the lid by pushing down only on the center of the front edge. That practice may contribute to the bend. Use two or three fingers across the front edge to apply even pressure when shutting the lid. Just go slow and gentle with the above procedure and don't adjust it more that it needs. -ja
  12. From my experience with the AT822, I would say "yes", though I'm not familiar with the 957PRO . That AT822 is discontinued but, they can still be found in some stores or on line. There is a replacement for it that I'm told is as good if not a little better but, also a bit more expensive. I paid $250 for each of my two and located one on Craigslist last year for about $175 which I snatched up my brother. (I'm now using two with a mixer in my studio and still a single mike straight into the MD when I'm in the "field". I'm sorry about my harsh description of the Sony 957 but, I stand by it. I just couldn't believe how bad it sounded. I had started out using the Sony ECM-MS907, that $75 stereo condenser described as being just the thing for digital recording. A musician who was familiar with minidisc recording and sound mixing in general saw me recording at a session and recommended the AT822 mike. I also saw a member of MDCF, a guitarist I think, recommend the mike also. The difference between those two mikes was like comparing a Hugo to a Mercedes, which is essentially what my friend at the session had told me. I had purchased my first AT822 based on those recommendations and blind faith and have yet to be dissapointed. But, an A-B comparison is always helpful, especially when you're talking about an expenditure in the $300 range. I still have discs with raw live club recordings and possibly still a few discs recorded in my studio with one mike directly into my minidisc. If you PM me, we can figure out a way I can provide you with a few samples so you can compare the results with other mikes you're interested in. -Jim
  13. Well, I received an ECM-MS957 bundled with a minidisc I purchased on Craigslist. I did an A-B comparison with my AT822 and must say that I simply cannot understand how Sony can charge three hundres dollars for this dreadfull microphone and most retail outlets for close to two hundres. I think it contains low end mike elements in an impressive looking housing. I'll gladly let it go for a nominal price. Mine even comes with a table stand and big foam wind screen.
  14. I use my minidisc(s) to record everything that I do in my practice studio each day. Individual practice sessions and sessions with other players. I just start the recorder going first off and forget about it...except for changing discs...kind of like Richard Nixon's Oval Office, for those of you who get the reference. Two or three discs a day is typical. I also record bands at clubs (bars really) and concerts. I record w/ minidisc exclusively and my microphone(s) is the AudioTechnica AT822. It's worth taking note, for those who inquire often about what mike to use, that the best digital recording device is only as good as the microphone attached to it. All live recordings start as an analog signal. It's far better to have a very expensive high end field mike recording to a cassete recorder that a Hi-MD set to PCM using a $79.00 microphone.
  15. Thanks for those tips.... What a goofy programs SS is. Sometimes, I get a choice in one of the drop-down menus called "Recover Rghts". I can't recall exactly what I'm doing when this choice appears, (in 'Controls' I think). Any insight what this does?
  16. A further question on thei topic: When I upload from an MD that I've recorded live or from a commercial CD, I instruct SS to save in .wav to a file in my hard drive. Then I delete the .oma or.OMA files and it doesn't appear that the .wav files are copy protected. I can then import them to SS if I want to put them on a CD or an MD. Am I missing somethin or isn't this a better way? Additionially, as .wav files, I can import or run them in a program like Audacity for editing.
  17. Hey All, I also own three. My first was actually an M200 but, that mike is useless. I got the second, an RH1, as back up because I immediately loved the unit. That one has been out of the box only once and just to test that all functions worked. I recently got my third on Craigslist for $250 and it is in pristine condition, hardly used at all. Even came with the 1gig disk still wrapped up. Now I keep the first one I acquired at my practice studio set up for recording...a stack of blank discs next to it and my AT 822 always plugged in ready to go. The newly acquired is at home for use with the computer and some playback. And the first back up is still in the box. If opportunity presents. I'll get a 4th to use as a portable player to carry around 'cause it's so thin and light. These are in addition to my somewhat extensive and growing collection collection of ATRAC and Hi-MD units. I just really dig this medium, even though I take a lot of grief and ribbing from pals who keep telling me to abandon MD for a flash player. I know better. Just wish we could TOC clone Hi-MD discs. jmsla Jim
  18. Oh Great! Now if I can just remember which disc it was. I know it was a newly recorded Sony 80 min. Color Collection w/ a red case. Yiles!
  19. Hi there TS, Thanks for the input. I don't see a lot of Sharp MDs listed and 4X would still be more than 15 minutes. I've have heard that some Sharp units are very good. Arvin's method, on the other hand, accomplishes my purpose in 4 minutes using my RH1. It's a really good process if you want to start with an unaduterated disc before making a live recording. -j
  20. If I convert the .wav file to LP2, aren't I creating one of those OMA files we are advised to delete in preference to the .wav format? And, I've noticed that the conversion part takes place rather quickly...2 or 3 minutes. It's the transferring, (recording), onto the minidisc that requires more time. Also , nothing in my SS library is copy protected and I put tracks on disc in NetMD mode all the time. Everything I have is a .wav file; line in and mike recordings as well as commercial CD tracks. I just check the box that instructs SS to convert the tracks to .wav when uploading anything. If SS tells me that it can't find or play or import a file that is "not associated with SonicStage" I simply go to the file in my hard drive folder, right click then tell it to play in SS. Then it magically become "associated " with SS and I can import it. I don't claim to understand what's happening, I just know how to make it go. -jmsla OK Arvin...I should have known better than to try and second guess a master. I improted the .wav file, convetted it to a 132kbps ATRAC file, checked the box to add copy protection and then purged the huge .wav file from my hard drive. So I have an OMA file in SS that is 149:52 long @ 132kbps. It downloads, w/o conversion, to minidisc in 8 minutes using an MZ-NH900. I'll test if its any faster downlosding to the RH1. Now I can clean up the dozens of second had discs I've got and record confident that if I trash a live recording I can get it back clean. thanks again.
  21. Thank You Gentlemen, Your discussion has guided me to the solution. First off, I did read the long thread quite sometime ago about slow uploads w/ (I thought it was the NH1), and performed the fix as described because I had in fact attached some older Net MD units to my computer. I thought the warning was to avoid attaching any units that were not at least 2nd Generation Hi MD. But, the real solution lay in the LP2 suggestion. It is indeed light years faster transferring from SS to an MD...6 minutes for a 00:74:56 track from .wav to LP2 as opposed to 30+ minutes to SP. It did take me a minute, well honestly a bit more, to finally figure out that I needed not a 74+ minute track of line recorded silence but rather, a 148+ minute track. Transferring the 74 minute track in LP2 onto an erased disc left exactly half of the objectionable original recordings on the disc, which I discovered after erasing the transferred track and cloning a fresh TOC to the disc as a test. Good that I did. So I loaded my 74 minute track into Audacity, which doubled it for me creating a 148+ minute track of line recorded silence. (Although it manifests as 'white noise' static when played but, not after being erased and recovered with a cloned TOC. Then it's silent.) The 148 minute .wav track is 1.47GB which I am storing on a thumb drive and import to SS to use only when I have some discs to clean up for future use. SS imports and accesses the track from the thumb drive so I never have to load it onto my computer hard drive at all. The transfer from SS to MD takes 11 to 12 minutes and completely obliterates the original recordings. Many thanks, you guys are great, -jmsla James Brooklyn, NY
  22. Thanks for the reply sfbp. The RH1 was my choice for the initial experiment to see if this scheme would work. It seemed to take half the length of the track, (about 37 minutes for the 74 minute track), for the transfer to complete. That seems like a long time and a lot of wear and tear on my best machine. Wasn
  23. Hi All, A question...and sorry if it's already been answered but, I couldn't find ecxactly what I was looking for. Which Hi-MD unit has the quickest transfer (download?) speed from SonicStage in SP, (yes I know it's fake), mode? I have available an RH1, an NH1, an NH-900, an NH-600 (no "D") and an MZ-DH-710. I have up-loaded both a 74 and an 80 minute analoge SP track to SS, saved in .wav. I want to be able to transfer (download) a track to a disc thai I am recycling from some prior owner. The reason being that if I only erase or format a previously recorded disc and then need to TOC clone to recover my own mistakenly erased tracks, I get remnants of the original recordings as well. But. if I record a single track of silence after erasing, (and then erase the silent track of course), I can then record on the disc and if necessary recover my own lost tracks with TOC cloning without getting bits and pieces of the truly awful music some people put on their minidiscs before giving them away. I don't want to have to do this in real time, hence the 74 and 80 minute tracks of analog silence I uploaded to SS. Now I want to know which of my machines wil transfer theses tracks to a disc the quickest. Thanks in advance for any replies.
  24. I was most concerned about the discs' trip in the dryer. It was very warm when I discovered it and, thought the outer case seemed fine, I was concerned that the disc could have warped from the heat. I've seen CDs that warped in a hot car or from being on a shelf that was sitting directly on a room radiator. Also, I can't see how the disc cases could be waterproof because of the little metal door that slides open to reveal the disc surfaces. Becausae of that enterance point I do worry about dust and very fine powder migrating into the case and from there into the guts of my machines.
  25. Hi All, Another report on the toughness of these dics. I'm not proud to reveal this but, last night I not only sent a Sony 80 minute disc through the washing machine, in hot water but, then put it through the dryer...on Hi Heat and it's one of thos big industrial type dryers that get really hot. The disc plays just fine...and it's really clean! I have had trouble, however, washing and drying Memorex discs. Just kidding but, I have had troublesome Memorex discs in general and am reluctant to use them. If someone has a disc they recorded in 1980, we could now test the 30 year question. Anyone? jmsla -Jim
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