bluecrab

If you try to introduce logic to analyzing love, infatuation, or passion, it's not necessarily going to apply. I suppose I could (any of us could) give reasons why we love MD. I'm not going there. I'm happy enough just to be in this blissful state with it. Why do I love MD? Because I do. I just do.

The DN430 does have excellent sound, including Type S for LP playback. It's major drawback for me is that AFAIK, you cannot display time remaining, only elapsed track time. That is annoying, but the unit is so inexpensive that it can be overlooked. If there's a way to display time remaining, I'd like to know about it.

It might be completely tedious, especially with that number of MDs, but if you are not in a hurry and are patient, what would happen if you were to copy on a per-track basis by programming the track to be recorded? Might be worth a try and won't cost anything. That would keep you all-digital, too. That IS a lot of MDs, though!

By "HD" I am assuming that you mean "Hi-MD." Correct, no car Hi-MD units (that I know of). Next: You kind of imply that you want or need LP mode. If that's the case, then just go to the Equipment Browser on this site and look for car units that have LP. There are some. I have, for example, the Sony MDX-CA680X in my car. There are others from which to choose. See http://minidisc.org/car_table.html If you don't require LP, then that expands the number of possibilities. In any case, keep checking Ebay and perhaps Craigslist. I don't know that I'd go for that MDX-U1 that pops up on Ebay every so often (although reading the guy's pitch is sort of fun), but keep on the lookout, something will turn up. As has also been suggested, you can get a head unit that supports having an MD changer connected. I prefer having the MD right in the dash, but everyone has his or her own preference. Good luck!

My thoughts exactly. I don't want to get all worked up about something that could turn out to meet our needs just as well. Just have to wait and see how it goes.

This listing has been running intermittently on Ebay for YEARS. I mean it, years. I always get a kick out of reading it. http://cgi.ebay.com/SONY-MDX-U1-MINIDISC-P...id=p3286.c0.m14 Probably not the best use of $1129.88, at least not MY $1129.88!

Not at all. In fact, your response has reminded me that I should keep an eye out for another CA680X on ebay, in case mine fails. I guess on the off chance that a Clarion RMX465D ever appears on ebay, I ought look out for that one, too. Your CDX-GT510 looks much like the CA680X, not all that surprising given they're both of Sony's Xplod series. I actually have installed a few CS, CD, and MD head units, and they have always worked. But they've never looked or fitted quite as nice as what the local guy did. That's just me, I s'pose. Now, my current major beef with car MD head units is that few (any???) of them have Type S Atrac. That and, oh yeah, you cannot buy a new one any more! :-(

For months now, I have been copying books-on-CD to CD-R/W so that my wife can listen to them in her 2004 Subaru, which had a factory stereo. These books on CD average about 9 or 10 discs, so no matter how you do it, copying them is on the tedious side. (I mainly was using an Aiwa standalone CD recorder that will copy to CD-R/W, but at only 2x.) I also have to make any music CDs she wanted for her car, although these I can do at 4x on CD-R, or sometimes via iTunes. Then, just two days ago, the CD player in the Subaru failed. It would load but would not play a CD. Replacing it quickly was important, as CD playing ability was needed by this weekend! We considered a newer factory stereo from Subaru that would play MP3 CDs - after all, I could fit all of an audiobook on one mp3 CD, using iTunes. Subaru, helpfully as it turned out, wanted a lot of money for a unit that would play MP3 CDs. Forget it. What then? How about a nice inexpensive head unit - Clarion, Kenwood, Pioneer, whatever - that would play MP3 CDs? Well, maybe. I'd still have to fool around with iTunes, with MP3 CDs, with stuff I'd rather just not have to deal with. Somewhere in my basement, I knew, sat my previous car MD head unit - a nice Clarion RMX465D. Sure, the thing didn't have LP (great for audiobooks on MD), but you could still double the time by using mono, and for listening to a book read, that would be fine. My wife seemed agreeable to the idea. It took a couple of hours, almost, of poking around, but I did find the RMX465D. Yesterday, the local car stereo guy installed it in the Subaru and by last night, a tutorial on how to use it was being given by me. It looks great in the Subaru, sounds terrific and we are now an all-MD family, at least for car audio. I am already putting books onto MD for her. I am, in fact, a bit jealous, because the Clarion's tuner is better than the one in my Sony CA680X, although the Sony has LP - important for me. The Clarion can be seen here: http://www.minidisc.org/part_Clarion_RMX-465D.html My wife reported that the car stereo guy "seemed surprised" that she would want the MD unit instead of the somewhat overpriced Kenwood he wanted to sell her, but he still did a fine job of installation, just as he did when I needed my Sony reinstalled and a speaker repaired. This guy is the owner of the shop and has been so for over 20 years. He told my wife that at one time he had three full-time installers working for him, but that business is far less good now and that he mainly does all the work himself. Seems a shame. I know there are a lot of new cars that come with integrated audio units, so you don't really have all the after-market options you once did. In fact, when I bought my Ford Escape in 2006, one of the reasons I bought it was that you could easily pull the stereo and out in an after-market.

Is it really that surprising? We all want to hang on to our better units! Even on Ebay, any really decent deck is not that common. The Sony MDS-JB9*0 series does turn up on Ebay now and then. Both of my MDS-JB940s were from Ebay. Don't expect to find the Sonys or any of the other ones you note in good condition very cheap, though. PriceJapan shows both the Sony MXD-D400 and the MDS-S500 on their web site, if you're interested in going that way. Keep checking Ebay, something will turn up eventually. And once in a while, someone here parts with a good deck. Not all that often, though.

There is a store in Cambridge, MA called Stereo Jacks that has LP, CS, and CD: http://www.stereojacks.com/ I haven't been there for a while, about due for a visit. I don't remember if Amoeba in Los Angeles has vinyl, but they do have CS; in fact, last time I was there (Feb 2009), they had some nice bargain bins for CS.

The Set-Up. 1949 film noir classic. My brother and I just happened upon it on cable. It has the best boxing sequence I have ever seen in a film. Adapted from a book-length narrative poem by Joseph Moncure March. I have to say that we came in about midway through the movie, but it was so compelling that I will watch it again from the beginning.

The warranty looks good, whatever it actually means, but in truth I am not sure I have ever had a problem with a blank Sony MD, and I have many of them. In fact, the MD media in general have reliable. I think I have had maybe one or two problems out of hundreds of discs. (Sony, Hi-Space, Memorex, Maxell, JVC, TDK, Princo, probably others.) This is a much better result than I have had with CD-R or CD-R/W - you never know when you might get a bad one. How about Hi-MD - are those equally reliable? (Just curious.)

I never noticed that! It all makes sense now, somewhat unfortunately. There have been a bunch of similar MD pranks on 4/1 through the years, though. http://www.minidisc.org/april_1_1999.html http://www.minidisc.org/pony_mp3n1_interview.html http://www.minidisc.org/mztst1.html

AFAIC, Bob, this is indeed what counts most. You can look at all the numbers you want to and determine which unit should sound best, but in the end it comes down to whatever sounds best to the individual listener - which may not match what's supposed to be "best." I don't know why it should be like that, but so it is.

Absolutely. A bitstream is a bitstream is a bitstream. This reminded me, though, of the guy who, back some years ago, posted a rather detailed review of the different audio characteristics of various brands of MD blanks. I wish I could find that article, it was unintentionally very funny. Wait...actually it is right here! http://www.minidisc.org/hifi_world_blank_review.html WHAT in the heck was HiFi World thinking!

If I may go off on just a bit of a tangent...I have lately had some interesting experiences with LP2. Basically, I don't see how it can sound as good as it does. I am hearing stuff I didn't notice before (not artifacts). This goes for both portable and deck. What they have in common is Type S. Noticeable drop off (still not bad, though) in SQ from Type S to Type R when it comes to LP2. Since I have never heard any Hi-MD, I cannot compare the LP2 w/Type S to that.

Infamous and common bug for this machine. Mine died a similar death. There is at least one report of success in fixing it, if it's UTOC Error: http://forums.minidisc.org/lofiversion/index.php/t19479.html If you don't feel like doing that much, just hit Ebay, but avoid this model.

I had a relevant item shipped from Germany and had the sender (a private party) label it as a gift, just as a precaution. There was no problem and no tariff of any sort. I did the same thing with my MXD-D400 deck from Japan, although it's not clear that the seller was exactly a private party. In any case, they labeled it Gift and that was that. I'm not sure there would have been a tariff even without the "Gift" tag, though. I'm in the U.S.

Despite all our love for MD, the article isn't completely off the wall. For me, at least, MD's size and features offset what I have to admit is indeed reduced SQ. Not as reduced as cassette, of course, but pretty aptly described by "near-CD." How near to CD it is seems to vary. Mostly close enough for me. Furthermore, "today's" MD sounds a lot better than the MD of even 10 years ago. What I really don't get, and never have, is how the anti-MD crowd can think MP3 is so superior. One lossy format is OK and another isn't? How does that add up!

What will actually play an ATRAC CD? I know there are a couple of Sony portables that will. Anything else?

My Sony D-E561 has an optical out and I have used it many times without incident. The list you recall is probably this one: http://www.ericwhitney.org/websites/minidiscussion/opt.html As for your Sharp 702, you're lucky that you have one that has not succumbed to the infamous "UTOC Error." I am not sure I would use a 6V adaptor to replace a 5V one, but I'm hardly an expert on that subject. I did once fry a ZIP drive by using a larger adaptor than I should have and have been wary ever since.

I am completely unconcerned with live recording. The near-CD quality of SP and LP2 (so it sounds to me) work fine for me. I like, and have always liked, playing around with physical media. I really like making my own mixes and have the result of that be a minidisc, no matter if I keep it for a day, a year, or permanently. And I like having all this separate - pretty much so - from any computer I use or own. It helps to have a couple of decks that record CD>MD @ 4x. Maybe I will outlive them, maybe they will outlive me. A friend, one who heavily dissed MD as a lossy format, is now enamored of the iPod and he seems to think I should join those ranks. But as you say, I'm used to [MD] and fond of it. I managed to convince my brother and a friend to at least include MD as part of their electronic repertoire, too. The friend still doesn't understand why something so cool never caught on! MD is a way excellent medium for me to put recordings of books on. I listen to them while I drive, it's just great. I even found a musical use for LP4 - squeeze in an extra track or two on a comp, at the end, when space is running out. Oh well, we all know all this stuff, I just wanted to mention how happy I am with MD!

http://www.boston.com/business/technology/...th_anniversary/ I think these may be all cassette units, just can't tell. From another angle: http://topiclinks.boston.com/photo/012Y8Db3SvdkN