A440

The download is not automatic. Try this page and click on a link. http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/

The only downside to that is that you'll have to buy Window$. I don't think it's installed on the Intel Mac.

You can upload repeatedly from the same disc with SS 3.4 (or 4.0).

I was basing the 20 bits on this link, to the Analog-Digital converter in the RH1, http://www.analogzone.com/avp_0804.htm from this post: http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=16220 If it's only 16-bit I stand corrected. And if CD's are only 16-bit then there is no question that MD is "CD-quality."

Once you have uploaded compressed tracks (Hi-SP, Hi-LP) into My Library, Marcnet's Hi-MD Renderer (see under Software Discussion) will convert them to FLAC if you prefer.

SonicStage 2.x is a complete nightmare. You probably tried to transfer something from the disc that had already been transferred (or marked by SonicStage as already transferred, whether it had or not). SonicStage 2.x not only doesn't allow that, but also viciously erases the data from the disc. Sad to say, it's probably gone. Get SonicStage 3.4, which removes that restriction, from Downloads.

Why do you say that? Wouldn't you want to preserve as much as possible of the original mp3, even if it is already marginal? Certainly 132 would further degrade the quality, introducing new compression artifacts, while a higher bitrate would at least save what's already there. Nothing will improve it, true, and the difference between 256 and 352 is probably something for dogs to hear, but I'd think you should at least go 192 or above.

In the numbers game, the specs for the Soundblaster claim 24-bit recording, which is slightly better than Hi-MD (which is 20-bit), as long as you have a computer with Windows XP and USB 2.0 http://www.soundblaster.com/products/produ...=9103&nav=2 It's not a portable recorder unless you are planning to carry your computer around along with it. But it might do your job for home recording. You will have to make sure that your microphones can't hear any noise the computer makes, like its fan or its hard drive spinning up--so you might have to put the microphones in one room and the computer in another. Meanwhile, in the real world, you would have to have incredibly acute hearing and serious high-end equipment to distinguish a 20-bit recording from a 24-bit recording. Most ordinary people and even some recording engineers can't tell the difference. What you can recognize immediately is whether you're recording with good mics. (And playing back through good speakers or headphones.) Mics are crucial. A 24-bit recording made with a bad mic--or a good mic in the wrong place--will not sound good. The most important investment you can make is to get good mics, and once you have them you'll have to experiment about where to place them to get the best piano sound. (Google ["microphone placement" piano] for some ideas.) It's hard to know what you consider "CD quality." Listen to some of the Live Recordings from the Gallery. I'll immodestly recommend one of mine: http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?act=m...si&img=3080 That is NOT CD-quality in numerical terms, because it was recorded at Hi-SP, which is compressed--not PCM, because I wanted to make sure I had enough space on the disc. The microphones were itty-bitty SoundProfessional BMC-2 mics, about $50. But it sounds mighty good to me. If you go to Live Recordings link (upper left on this page) and list the recordings by date uploaded DESCENDING (not the default, which is Ascending) you'll also see some other piano recordings right near the top. Try them and see what you think of MD recording. There is no recorder that will magically turn your piano room into a recording studio. But Hi-MD with the right settings will give you a recording that's just about as good as what's coming through your microphone.

The limitation of your computer is the soundcard. So if all you ever want to do with a Hi-MD recorder is re-record your tapes, it's possible that you would be better off investing in a good external USB soundcard. However, you wouldn't have a little portable recorder. As far as I can tell from this Iriver webpage http://www.iriver.com/html/product/prpa_product.asp?pidx=42 the Iriver H340 does not record in .wav, so you would be losing quality as you recorded (although mp3 at 320 kbps fools most people). But you'd have to doublecheck that. Also, I know that the Iriver H1** models only record in 16-bit while MD is 20-bit (better), but I can't immediately find that information about the Iriver H3**. I don't know what's on your cassettes, but if it's various tracks separated by silence, the MD has sync recording, which means it will make a separate track when it senses a few seconds of silence. That can be a very useful feature.

PCM recording will give you a CD-quality reproduction of what goes into the unit. But everything depends on the input: the microphones, where they are placed, how good the settings are. Once you have the recording, you can adjust some things with sound-editing software like Audacity, which is free. http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/windows With that, under Effects, you can bring out various registers (EQ), even out the volume (Normalize), filter out some kinds of noise, etc. But processing afterward is never as good as getting it right going in. Can you provide more information on your microphone? Maker, specifications, etc? Remember, you are not recording in a studio with studio-quality microphones and all the effects available through a studio console, so it's not going to sound like a Coldplay album. But with proper miking you should be able to get a good, accurate reproduction of the music you are playing.

You're right that Line-in is cleaner, but it is quieter as well, and amplifying a too-quiet recording with an audio editor is also going to amplify any noise. I record amplified concerts with Line-in and the battery module. But when I went to a symphony orchestra concert, I found I did better with Mic-in. Since you have a line-in recording already, it might be worth it to go back to the monastery and see what you get with Mic-in.

Are you going to be in Mongolia long enough to try a couple of different takes with different settings? I'm sure these are precious recordings, but experiment is the only way you are going to find out what works best. Since the chanting is unamplified--though do they use those big trumpets and cymbals?--perhaps you should use Mic-in instead. Line-in needs a loud signal. I'd suggest Mic-in at Low Sensitivity to see what you get. If it's obviously overloading, then switch back to Line-in. You could try replacing the batteries too, depending on how long you've used them. In my experience, however, dying batteries tend to produce staticky noise and dropouts rather than low volume, but I don't have your mics and battery setup. Sensitivity doesn't affect Line-in recordings--it's gain for the preamp at Mic-In. And I trust you're using Manual Volume.

How many minutes of music are on the disc? .wav takes (very roughly) about 10 MB per minute. So if you recorded in .wav, you'll need 800MB (80 percent of your 1GB disc). If you recorded in Hi-SP, you'll have a lot more once it's converted to .wav: 6.4 hours = 384 minutes = 3.84 GB. I don't even want to think about how many GB you'd need for a Hi-LP disc. You don't have to convert everything to .wav immediately. You can upload in the compressed formats and then convert the tracks you want to keep into .wav later.

You need to install SonicStage on a PC. (It won't work on a Mac.) Get the full 3.4 installer here: http://forums.minidisc.org/downloads/details.php?file=21 or the 4.0 online installer from Sony via a link here: http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=9586 Either one will do all you need for the MZ-NE410. If you're transferring mp3s that came from various sources, then I would recommend 3.4 because some people have found that 4.0 is very finicky about the kind of ID tags that are used. Install it. Open it. Connect the minidisc via USB. A window will open on the right listing all the tracks on the disc in the unit (if there are any). You need to import whatever folders of music you have into SonicStage and click the red arrow to transfer. It's pretty obvious once you're hooked up.

M-Audio Microtrack is M-Audio's first try at a flash recorder, and it has gotten very disappointed reviews, with relatively short battery life, complaints about controls and noisy mic inputs. http://www.transom.org/tools/recording_int...microtrack.html Edirol R09 is Edirol's second try (after the R01), and it has gotten more positive reviews. http://createdigitalmusic.com/2006/01/27/n...e-usb-recorder/ But people are complaining about build quality, and if you want track marking--one of my favorite things about MD--it's still not there yet. By the way, the minidisco deal on the RH1 (with coupon from this thread through Sept. 8: http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=16894 ) is better than B&H--it comes out to about $318 shipped to NYC.

All the Hi-MD recorders, and even the NH600, are going to seem awfully fat and ugly compared to the NetMD players. There is a Hi-MD player, the EH1, but I've never seen one for sale. I suggest looking on Ebay for one of the NetMD players--the Sharp probably has the best sound. Obviously make sure the photo is clear so you can see what condition it's in. But you should be able to beat those Audiocubes prices.

Don't you have any friends with PCs? As long as you install SonicStage but (during installation) make sure to not let it be the default player, current versions like 3.4 shouldn't disturb what's on your friend's computer. Either that, or spend a few hundred dollars on a cheap desktop PC (or get a used one on Ebay). The time you'd save in realtime transfers would be worth it.

I don't see why you don't want to just transfer the podcast. It's probably an mp3. For maximum digital fidelity, you could convert it to .wav (with dbpoweramp, from Downloads) and Transfer it "as-is" through Sonicstage. Or you could let SonicStage compress the original mp3 to Hi-SP or Hi-LP. How about recording something other than the podcast from your laptop through your optical input? Make your own mic recording with Windows Sound Recorder or Audacity, and see if that can be recorded via optical. Is it possible your laptop is applying some kind of copy protection to the file? Do you have a Windows XP Media Center computer? There's a lot of sneaky copy protection built into that operating system--just Google "media center" and "copy protection" together. It may not be the fault of the MD unit after all. The only reason to get an external soundcard would be for optical out, but you say you have that already in the laptop. If it's being copy-protected by the laptop, an external soundcard won't do any good, since Windows is still running it.

http://www.digikey.com/

Have you ever been able to transfer music to the unit. Or is this a new setup? First, try uninstalling the K-Lite Codec Pack. There may be some conflict between a codec in there and SonicStage. If uninstalling them doesn't make any difference, then you can get them again from this page if you want. http://home.hccnet.nl/h.edskes/mirror.htm I used to use the K-Lite codecs, but some discussion here convinced me that it's not a good idea to use them or other codec packs because you don't know how good the versions of the codecs are. Usually, media players will have their own codecs or download versions that they need, which will be more up-to-date.

"Assuming it doesn't install anything onto the hard drive of the computer" is, unfortunately, a faulty assumption. SonicStage ties itself deeply to the Windows operating system of the host PC. It installs all kinds of things into the hard drive. That is why, in the past, it has had so many bugs and conflicts with things like graphics and soundcard drivers. That's why uninstalling it needed its own FAQ, because of all the changes it makes deep in the operating system. If you were to carry around a bootable OS (complete Windows XP) on your external hard drive, and you can boot the PC you're visiting from your external drive rather than run it from its own Windows installation, then you could probably install SonicStage in the Windows on the external hard drive. But otherwise, SonicStage has to be installed into the PC, not just connected to it. The program in Downloads here is an installer, not a SonicStage you can just run as an app and open, because there's no such thing until it's installed on a particular PC. http://forums.minidisc.org/downloads/details.php?file=21

I think you may have figured out the problem. There's always some time between "100%" and the "finished" sound, and SonicStage must need that time to finalize things.

You can't just run SonicStage as a standalone program. You have to install it onto the PC, and I believe you need Administrator privileges to do that on XP.

Yes, you can upload. You need Sony software. http://home.earthlink.net/~mac-minidisc/pd...TransferMac.pdf There's a 2.0 version, but that will give you the idea. The unit will be detected as a hard drive via USB, but recordings have to be uploaded through the Music Transfer software if you want to play them.

That looks exactly like my SS 3.4 installation, which works fine. Try importing one or a few mp3s at a time--scan one folder--and see if it's just choking on too many mp3s at once. Another thought: is your hard drive close to full or are a lot of other programs running? SonicStage needs some room and CPU resources to do its conversions. Also try changing the ID tag on one of your problem mp3s to ID3v1 (rather than v2) and keeping fields short or empty--get rid of extensive comments, etc. SonicStage 4.0 has been having problems with unconventional ID tags, and maybe your SS 3.4 does too. Take a look at this thread. http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=16864 SonicStage also can't handle very low bitrate mp3s, like 48kbps, so if that's what you're trying to import you might just be stuck.