WaywardTraveller

This is a hard one...so many bands have had different (yet significant) influences on me at different points in my life....these are only a few: Rush. Without a doubt one of my enduring favourite bands. The first band that proved that reviewers on allmusic.com can truly be full of crap! This band has been such a background to me through my teenage years...when all the 80s metal faded away, Rush (and, ok, some of the old Iron Maiden I still listen to ) was one of the few bands to remain. Thought-provoking lyrics, amazing musicianship, and a mature attitude that has assured their progression through the years. Tool. Amazing musicianship, philosophical lyrics, and they stomp all over the "'aint humanity wonderful?" myth that has poisoned this planet for decades. Almost the Bill Hicks of darkcore (or metal or prog-metal or however you choose to label Tool...I have no idea myself ) Fugazi. Punk philosophy, willingness to experiment with new ideas and a general, all-around intelligent kick-ass punk band. Godspeed You! Black Emperor. dark, dreary, dog-eared hope in the post-rock world...an anti-capitalist faith set against aural atmospheres of loss, depression, and alienation. A Silver Mt. Zion. Featuring members of GY!BE (I think)...along much the same lines but with often a more folksy, hymnal tone. Heartbreaking, sad, and utterly beautiful. Dead Can Dance. World music with one of the most beautiful female voices on this planet...ok, the lyrics can be quite schmultzy at times, but the orchestration of such a varied spectrum of instruments is inspiring, soothing, and edifying...oh, and did I mention Lisa Gerard's voice? peace WaywardTraveller

Hello, This morning I made a 40min recording of morning chants at a prominent Mongolian Buddhist monastery here in Ulaan Baatar. I was using my NH700 recording in PCM mode with the Sound Professionals' ISI-HMAB-1 mics encased in headphones (battery module in right ear compartment). The mics are High Sensitivity Omni-Directional +7dB. As far as I can tell things turned out all right, but while monitoring the input levels I couldn't help noticing that the recording volume rarely made it past the lowest (leftmost) threshold indicator. The Rec Level was 30/30, and the volume knob on the mic unit itself was turned up all the way. The volume still seems ok if I turn up the playback volume...but I had a couple questions: - If my mic batteries were low, would this affect the throughput of the microphones? - Is such a low rec-volume level normal or preferred for a line-input recording? For almost all of the recording mic sensitivity was set to LOW, but I switched to HIGH while recording and the level didn't seem to change at all. Did I do anything wrong? If anyone can shed some light on this, please do! peace WaywardTraveller

My two cents, and all of this is strictly IMHO: I think there's a lot of whinging about drag-and-drop. I've never had any problems with SS that haven't been because of my currently crappy OS...IMHO it's just the laziness factor speaking out loud...although I WILL say that Sony should drop the acid-trip way SS manages music files on the computer...apart from that, you won't save that much time dragging-and-dropping vs. using the SS GUI. But for the record, here's what I thought of (whether or not they've already been mentioned): - OPEN BITRATE CHOICE using a jog dial. When I record, I want to be able to cycle through possible bitrates from 48kbps -> 352kbps and PCM, including the bitrates supported by SS but NOT the unit itself.. (MP3 as well, maybe?) - and what about support for other progressive formats like FLAC? and since Hi-MD's emphasis is on recording, I think these following TWO are particularly important: - GROUNDED AC ADAPTORS so that one can record indefinitely off wall-plug power WITHOUT annoying electric hum in the background! (PLEASE SONY PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!) - To add to the above note..it would also be nice to record using a remote like, say, the MC40ELK WITHOUT picking up interference from the remote itself. Hmmm? I mean why bother being able to set recording levels with such a remote when recording with the remote attached compromises the quality of your recordings?? - why not incorporate a small HD into the unit to enable you to, if you want, copy some key music/data to the HD for frequent use, but switch to MD or copy it to MD at will? This would probably impact on the unit size, but I dunno... - And yes, methinks the AA supplement on all units would be sweet. - I'm not too fussy about the 1GB blanks...I have no problem with them...but they could be a bit cheaper in some parts of the world, and although my hunch is that Sony is waiting to see how things sell before they invest in more designs, PLEASE GIVE US SOME COOL Hi-MD DISC DESIGNS! - AND it would be nice for them to abandon the "don't give one unit too many cool features" philosophy...keep what the RH1 has and build on that, i.e. digital out, larger display and maybe that organic electroluminiscent display a-la the RH10, but one that is built to last! Oh, and I mostly DISAGREE with what UMMWOOFWOOFF says...I will agree more once they phase cassette tapes out entirely, which - by the way - hasn't happened. peace WaywardTraveller

Oops...uhh, I DID know that. Brain lapse (I blame the Mongolian tapwater ) Will do... peace WaywardTraveller

Not necessarily...you could always try http://www.minidisc-canada.com. Even though right now they only seem to carry the RH1, you can emali them and ask them if they can obtain any other (relatively) recent units. It beats paying AudioCubes prices if you can avoid it. peace WaywardTraveller

Nope...and for the record, Sony is still the only one who manufactures HI-MD blanks at this time. As for the higher GB capacity, that would obviously be a new format of MD, with new hardware required, etc. etc. hmmm....maybe you should post this thought on the 3rd-gen Hi-MD wish-list thread? - http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=16970 peace WaywardTraveller

Well, I thought we could use a brainstorming session on what we might want to see in a future generation of Hi-MD recorders/players. I have copied/pasted my own thoughts from the previous "Thoughts for a new Hi-MD unit" thread...sorry for the redundancy, but I thought an official wish-list thread might generate some more focused input: - OPEN BITRATE CHOICE using a jog dial. When I record, I want to be able to cycle through possible bitrates from 48kbps -> PCM, including the bitrates supported by SS but NOT the unit itself.. blink.gif (MP3 as well, maybe?) - and what about support for other progressive formats like FLAC? - GROUNDED AC ADAPTORS so that one can record indefinitely off wall-plug power WITHOUT annoying electric hum in the background! (PLEASE SONY PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!) - To add to the above note..it would also be nice to record using a remote like, say, the MC40ELK without picking up interference from the remote itself. Hmmm? wink.gif - Just throwing this out as a random thought - why not incorporate a small HD into the unit to enable you to, if you want, copy some key music/data to the HD for frequent use, but switch to MD or copy it to MD at will? This would probably impact on the unit size, but I dunno...just thought of it now. Just getting some ramblings started...I hope we can turn this into a very productive brainstorming session! peace WaywardTraveller

To me that's just the point...they DON'T want to. This is the basic philosophy of (among other things) consumer electronics: never put ALL the desirable features into ONE model! Canon has done EXACTLY the same thing with their cameras, and other companies have followed the same philosophy: why give consumers everything they want in one model when you can tempt them to buy two? peace WaywardTraveller

I honestly didn't know you could do this! More than backup, though (since all depends on the RH1), I guess this is a convenient way of recording to two MDs at once? I didn't know the RH1 would give a line-out signal while recording this way. Does anyone know if the same is true for the NH1? Forgive another newbie question...but I've tinkered with low- vs. high-sensitivity recordings myself, and always wondered: does low sensitivity necessarily sacrifice detail and sound quality? I don't know too much about live recording, but I'm definitely eager to learn. peace WaywardTraveller

The M10 is essentially an RH910 with MAC interface. I can't say first-hand about the MAC interface, but for field recordings it can record in PCM mode, which is equivalent to CD-quality WAV files. As a Hi-MD unit it also allows you to perform some on-unit editing (dividing/combining tracks, moving tracks from group to group and in/out of groups). You might want to check out this link: http://www.minidisc.org/part_Sony_MZ-M10+RH910.html peace WaywardTraveller

Ditto, ditto, and ditto to that! For me, it also got to the point where the only way I could definitely get the results I wanted from the menu button was to hold the unit perfectly flat or to place it on a table or something....if I didn't, I couldn't successfully hold the Menu button down long enough to get to the Options. peace WaywardTraveller

I kinda like the "skins" idea for a 3rd-gen Hi-MD recorder - maybe a snap-on front-panel for different moods, designs, etc.? Not so sure about the heat-sensor buttons, though...hot summer weather might wreak havoc on your controls unless you remembered the Hold button! Other things I'd like to see on a 3rd-generation Hi-MD recorder: - OPEN BITRATE CHOICE using a jog dial. When I record, I want to be able to cycle through possible bitrates from 48kbps -> PCM, including the bitrates supported by SS but NOT the unit itself.. (MP3 as well, maybe?) - GROUNDED AC ADAPTORS so that one can record indefinitely off wall-plug power WITHOUT annoying electric hum in the background! (PLEASE SONY PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!) - To add to the above note..it would also be nice to record using a remote like, say, the MC40ELK without picking up interference from the remote itself. Hmmm? - Just throwing this out as a random thought - why not incorporate a small HD into the unit toenable you to, if youwant, copy some key music/data to the HD for frequent use, but switch to MD or copy it to MD at will? This would probably impact on the unit size, but I dunno...just thought of it now. How about let's have a constructive brainstorm session on this (if we haven't already?) and give Sony some of our own ideas?? peace WaywardTraveller

Well, whether it's stocking up for what some say could be a cold winter(!!) or not, I am thinking of picking up an MZ-NH1 when I go back down through China. Is there anyone here whi lives/works in China who might suggest a good place to buy it in, say, Shanghai or anywhere else? I know for a fact I can get a new one in Beijing's Zhongguancun[sp?] Electronics market for roughly CAD250 (no tax )...anyone else know a good place in the area, or where I can get it for less? Posting it back to Canada is another matter...thinking of labelling it as "BROKEN - SHIPPED FOR REPAIRS" to save me some grief... peace WaywardTraveller

SO you can record straight from AM/FM radio to (Hi-)MD? Intriguing....... What's the interface from Hi-MD deck -> receiver? RCA red/white? peace WaywardTraveller

I just got email back from Wing Li at Minidisc Australia saying that they "are lowering the amount of blanks we are carrying" and cannot get them. peace WaywardTraveller

I'd agree with Tunster, but I also remember another argument on this topic; one person said that the codecs for SS are actually updated more often than SB...theoretically, this should lead to better quality with SS, no? However, is all this moot insofar as the hardware of the unit itself in the end determines the sound quality? Is the software encoding irrelevant insofar as the playback is only as good as the unit's hardware itself? QUESTION: Would this mean that a realtime recording from a CD digital out to a MD's line-in using an optical cable is identical to software encoding? Better? Any experts wanna shed some light on this, since I am considering buying a portable CD player with digital/optical out expressly for recording favourite CDs realtime to MD for the best quality? peace WaywardTraveller

Well, I was thinking of this guy's review for example: http://www.audiocubes.com/product_reviews_...?reviews_id=466 He talks about error-susceptibility, but also about how "Some have a better high end while others give a warm feel to its playback while I find the HHB Pros have all these qualities"... peace WaywardTraveller

Yeah, is this still for sale? Is it silver? [drool] peace WaywardTraveller

Wanted to buy: a silver MZ-RH910 (silver only) with/without accessories, depending on individual cases. I'd like the unit to be in as good condition as possible (i.e. I'd like to see photos if possible). You can leave me a PM on these forums if you're interested. peace WaywardTraveller

Just wondering....after reading a review where one guy said the design of some Maxell discs was good, but the discs themselves were "the usual Maxell substandard," thought I'd pop this question out. I always thought that as long as all the zeros and ones were recorded and read properly, the music would appear faithfully...but some people talk about how some discs have stunted high ranges or lack definition in the mid-range or whatever. I'm a newbie to all this, so I ask you: can it be true?

Sigh....still waiting, waiting to see these somewhere I can buy them...they be teh gorgeoussssssss right up there with the [Kai] peace WaywardTraveller

Question....I used 3.4 on my home computer back in Toronto and (don't laugh...ok, well, laugh if you want to ) it was an Athlon 900mhz running Win98. My only problem was that I couldn't transfer more than one album/folder at a time; if I queued two or more things would go crazy and crash. Was this a known bug, or probably just due to my old schizoid and worthless OS? peace WaywardTraveller

Just wondering for anyone in Singapore, or planning to go: In Sim Lim Center, on the 3rd floor, I remember the Sony Store there selling blue and orange MDs in 5pks for very, VERY good prices (although I can't remember exactly how good)... If someone's in the area, could they possible check that out and see if they're still for sale? I'm going to be in the area at some point in the not-too-distant future and would gladly make the side-trip to pick up some of those sweet blue Sony 80min MDs peace WaywardTraveller

The title sorta says it all...I'd desperately love a Hi-MD deck, but would settle for a GOOD bookshelf system. The Sony CMT-AH10 and LAM-X1 have gotten mixed reviews (mostly due to weak speaker output??), but for going back to grad school they still might be what I need. Still lookin' at that Onkyo MD-133 to attach to my 15+ years-old-but-faithful Sony receiver, though... For those of you who might not know what I'm talking about: http://www.minidisc.org/part_Onkyo_X-B7+B8.html Since I'm more of a portable man right now, any and all opinions would be more than welcome. Hell, we could always make this The Big Hi-MD Deck And Bookshelf System Thread...? peace WaywardTraveller

Looking back, my Sharp IM-MT880 was also built solid as a rock..had this great, weighty (but not too weighty) feel to it, and the texture of the metal case was sweeeeeet! Complain all you might about the flashy USB nub-like growth on the corner - it still kicked serious ass. peace WaywardTraveller