tekdroid

I think it's more likely companies see it as a niche product with limited return on investment. There's been a sharp dip in MD-related sales for Sony year-on-year (of over 40%). What manufacturer will go into the Hi-MD market, spend considerable sums to make their own Hi-MD media, only to compete with Sony in a niche market that doesn't seem to be offering any growth opportunities that would make their presence in the market pay off? I just don't see it happening.

For 'in-progress' or 'incremental' back-ups? It's great (but with some limitations). Discs sitting around doing nothing? Put them to good use. Each standard MD will hold around 300MB in Hi-MD mode. For small amounts of data that change daily or weekly or whatever, it's a convenient form of back-up without having to erase/burn a new rewritable CD/DVD each time small changes are made (waiting for lead-in, lead-out, etc). It's also more reliable than packet-writing since it's native drag-n-drop and the media seems robust. It's convenient. For files that don't change (and you want to archive forever and don't need to ever make changes to), DVD and CD-based formats would probably be cheaper and better and more well-accepted for archival. If you just need a backup of important files on HD and you're not using your discs, go for it. As far as longevity of media goes, I doubt there'd be issues storing data long-term on MD. Unless your drive dies and you have no other to access your data. Keep in mind MD is slow. So if you make changes to 100MB+ sized files, perhaps it's not ideal (if the speed matters to you, that is). I use MDs to put software and settings and files on computers that need it without bothering with burning a CD or DVD every time changes are made. And to back-up important (but smallish, usually in-progress) files in a hurry, so I can put my mind at rest knowing there's 2 of something. In other words, a floppy replacement for files on the go.

I've had the problem of the device not being detected in SonicStage with (and only with) the 3.2 offline installer on this site. Tried multiple times after clean installs and it was reproducible always. The device never showed up in SonicStage, but had no problems being detected as a data drive in Windows. It always worked fine with the Sony web installer, tho. Reproducible, too. Each time, I followed the instructions here to uninstall it cleanly (look under How to properly reinstall NetMD/Hi-MD), then re-installed from the web installer from Sony's site. If you want to archive the web installer without downloading it again, or install SonicStage 3.3 on multiple machines (albeit with more steps), you may want to try this method. Alternatively, you might want to try the SonicStage 3.3 (not 3.2) offline installer on this site. I haven't tried it though. In any case, your best bet for 'cleaning' the system of SonicStage and the rest is listed above. Be particularly careful about removing ALL Sony-related listings in Add/Remove Programs, though. Right now (for me), with SonicStage 3.3, those listings are: OpenMG limited Patch 4.3-05-10-05-01 OpenMG Secure Module 4.3.00 SonicStage 3.3 MD Simple Burner 2.0.04 For you they should be something similar, but that's a quick way to know where to look down the alphabetical list (if you have a lot of programs installed it's easy to miss one).

Was 'thumbing through' the PCM-D1 manual. Smallish size, drag-n-drop wavs. MMMmmmMMmmmm.. If they took out the: built-in mics 4GB integrated memory old-style level meters ...and made the case of regular non-toughened material, they could make this thing so much cheaper. Especially with the ability to use non-Sony Memory Stick flash formats (of course that would never happen). Perhaps they finally realise their ATRAC garbage is going nowhere

wouldn't work on MD 'cause both sides of the disc surface are actually utilized for recording; 1 side the magnetic head to change magnetic orientation, the other side the laser to heat the spot so the magnetic head can do its magic. It would require a total redesign of MDs themselves as well as the units.

Just curious: what is the model/make of the adaptor? I've been interested in a device for illegally recording loved ones and not quite sure how they work/connect.

Already got the NH1 and NH700, but I might, in a temporary act of madness, buy that one, too Hah. No, that would just be silly. Bring on Generation 3!

What useful options does SonicStage give you that iTunes doesn't? First use? Honestly I was confused outta my mind (and still am, to a large degree). I found it terribly non-intuitive despite reading about it for days (and using it for months) and I work with computers every day. The library, the rights info, the rest... I want to upload recordings simply. I want to download recordings simply. I don't want library management. I want a single settings screen that non-confoundingly tells me exactly what's gonna happen when I upload or download. I don't want rights restrictions, or to even think about them. Yes, I suspect they will. It will be ATRAC-based and people will go "OMG"

Yeah. I do record (and listen) a fair bit in the sunlight so that's why I was curious. Hard-to-see-in-the-sun displays just annoy me. For most average light applications the display seems excellent (and the larger display size is always a plus). I don't think Sony will abandon these displays anytime soon, but regular LCD still has its strengths for me. Of course if I'm using a non-backlit LCD at dusk, I'm fumbling for a torch

yep, sorry. Your 90% figure right after that made me think "is it necessary or isn't it necessary?". Understood, cheers.

Coating the end of the headphone plug shouldn't be necessary since it should be conductive to start with. For starters, clean (by that I mean rub/ wipe) the headphone plug with a clean cloth or item of clothing or whatever before you stick it in. Test. Take out. Clean again. Test. Take out, clean again. Test. If that doesn't work... It could be that the little metal contacts in the jack are just dirty and need a clean. If you look inside the jack with the right light you should be able to see the metal contacts. Maybe (I'm guessing) a careful application of isopropyl alcohol on the contacts inside the jack might fix it? I've never tried it but it may work if all it needs is a good contact and is dirty. Lastly, it could be that something is physically loose/worn in the jack, then you're gonna have to look at fixing/replacing it somehow.

Been using both quite a bit for recording in linear PCM and data. Formatting the oldies in Hi-MD mode is one of the better things Sony have done, IMO. Especially since in some areas the Hi-MD discs are horrendously expensive (and hard to find) whereas regular MDs can be found anywhere. For short trips or short recordings, the oldies are adequate. One day they might break compatibility and go the "Hi-MD Pro" route with a high-capacity disc. Mmmmmm. High-capacity disc. Let me sit here and think of the possibilities. Ahh, sorry. Was getting carried away

You're right about no perfect unit. Much like most electronics out there. It's all a compromise and nothing is the best in all areas. 2 babies here. One has strengths where the other has weaknesses. The other has weaknesses where the other has strengths. A goood combo. Both preaching the linear PCM gospel. MZ-NH1 MZ-NH700

Thanks for the pic, BUT how would it cope with direct sunlight hitting the display. For instance, an outdoor event, MD on a flat surface, sun at midday? You get the idea. Would the text on screen be legible? Or would I have to shadow the display to be able to see it reliably? Not that I'm in the market to buy the unit, just general curiosity on how the display copes in full sunlight.

Slight miscommunication, sorry. By 'unnecessary' I meant unnecessary to most people here. Not that is has no technical merit in and of itself, but that it probably isn't seen in daily use too much. USB cables that come bundled with Hi-MD = filter(s) included on the cables already, so I'm not talking about those. Additional (loose) filters in the box = as I suspected, perhaps required by Sony to be bundled in there (otherwise, why go to the expense for something most people don't find a need for and are confused about?). Because most people seem to do just fine with out 'em. Which is what I meant by the "if they are indeed unnecessary..." to most people. I was talking specifically about the additional ones in the box perhaps being a requirement rather than Sony feeling generous and including them when they could get away with not I will check the FCC website out, thanks.

Can we get a pic of it in direct sunlight (or at least some words about it in direct sunlight?). Others have mentioned that it's not it's strong point, but I've never actually seen a pic of the display under those conditions. BTW, 100 bucks buys you a Hi-MD unit in MD Commoditization Land (Australia)

Do you have an external USB or firewire hard drive? Do you have a DVD burner? Use those. Put your WAV files on one of those those and transfer to your notebook. Or, if you don't mind waiting for a long transfer, just get a 1GB Hi-MD disc and copy your converted *.WAV files to it as a regular data disc. Then, attach it to your notebook via USB and copy the WAV files to your notebook. If you use Sony's SonicStage (or Simple Burner) to transfer the WAV(s) to your unit, they will be converted into Sony's proprietary rubbish so you can play it on the Hi-MD unit itself, but not transfer it easily to another device. Sony do this because they are paranoid about piracy. PS. I would keep the MZ-R70 if I were you Selling a unit like that is just not worth it. They don't make 'em like that anymore. Pity it doesn't do linear PCM, tho

The problem with colour screens: often they are hard to see in bright sunlight. The MZ-NH1's remote, for instance, is superb in the sun (largely due to goold ol' 'primitive' LCD technology . *Regular oldskool LCD visibility in the day. *Adequate visibility at night with backlight. Best of both worlds, and I hope that doesn't change. Indeed. And cheapness of materials... Personally I feel a touchscreen would be superfluous and horrible not to receive real tactile feel. And costly. A good remote would be far more worthwhile. Actually we did, but they never took off here. You could buy them in the early years of MD's release. But who wants to pay CD prices (and more) for lossy ATRAC and tiny artwork? Not I. I would suspect not the masses as a whole. I'd rather record it to a blank from a quality CD. Hah, exactly. Personally, I doubt it. Though in some markets (such as Australia) it's apparently true that they won't be selling the units any more. Which is really a shame if Sony are to be believed on this and they aren't just saying that to move stock Last financial year Sony sold: 1.92 million MD units (of all kinds, apparently) The year before: 3.36 million People have found other devices easier to live with for listening to their music on the go. As you can see, a big drop. CD portables experienced similar sales declines year-on-year, but still not as high as MD's drop, percentage-wise. It's still a significant market for them, though. And lets not forget the selling of blanks is a market not to be sneezed at, too. What we're probably seeing here is the recording market sticking to MD, but most poeple who just transfer/playback moving away. At least that's what I think I'm seeing. I think Sony got caught by lower-than-expected demand for Hi-MD due to people switching their preferences to HD and flash-based units for listening on the go, and that's part of the reason why we can still see so much Generation-1 Hi-MD stuff in the channel (and finding some sweet deals on them, too) I think we'll see Generation 3 for sure. Question is, where and when? If they can sell featureless players in Japan, they oughta be able to sell recorders. Somewhere.

http://forum.cdfreaks.com has a blank media forum here: http://club.cdfreaks.com/forumdisplay.php?f=33 Which is the best discussion I've seen on this stuff anywhere. Long story short: you get what you pay for with dual layer media. Philips and Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation (Verbatim's parent company) Link: http://www.m-kagaku.co.jp/index_en.htm developed dual-layer DVD+R media together, so it's not surprising to see Verbatim selling higher-quality discs (and charging an arm and a leg). edit: added linkage

Camping? You want to record nature, don't you? Don't you??

if they are indeed unnecessary, I think Sony (legally) has to have them in there to get some certification (even tho it was mentioned they don't) 'cause otherwise wouldn't these be the first things to go to reduce costs? The mystery continues.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Media_Disc UMD = 1.8GB I don't see recordable UMD as likely either. But for other reasons (piracy and cost-related). Sony are making a killing of UMD licensing, so the last thing they want (and the last thing the companies licencing the format for their content want) is the risk of cheap piracy by making it recordable. That said, I think it has great applications for music (and data), if I can put my imagination cap on for a moment: A 1.8GB recordable UMD/Hi-MD would be great for: *recording a full concert in linear PCM, without worrying about swapping discs after an hour and a half (as you do with Hi-MD) *put more music on the disc *put more data on the disc *faster transfer rates, given that the data is packed on disc at a higher density But UMD and Hi-MD are based on two very different technologies. While I'd love to hear Sony's CEO, Howard Stringer, actually say something about MiniDisc, I think it's clear it's not a really important product at Sony as far as revenue-generation is concerned. All his talk of 'fighting commoditization' and maintaining Sony as a premium brand makes me laugh, 'cause Sony, if we can use Hi-MD pre-SonicStage 3.2 as a particularly jarring example (let alone the rootkit fiasco), they have been very very anti-consumer. I don't see it changing much I think it's hard for him to put those words in action on the electronics side, when he's competing against companies with no publishing interests. Sony's a software/content company first and foremost, with electronics carefully built to build revenue for the content (and Blu-ray continues that trend...). MiniDisc has no pre-recorded content going to it these days (and who wants pre-recorded ATRAC?). MD is for those who make content, primarily. Very few choose it for listening to pre-recorded tosh The second-generation Hi-MD were built to encourage sales of 1st-generation Hi-MD at the current blow-out sales in Australia Actually, the only reason I can think of them doing that is reducing costs (and power consumption?) of any ATRAC hardware inside the unit. Just a guess. If Sony can reduce the per-unit costs by a dollar, they can make 1 million dollars making a million units by simplifying their design. But it doesn't make sense for the old-skool MiniDisc user, who (quite rightly) expects some backwards compatibility - especially for older units with no new Hi-MD replacements. Also, plastic painted silver and gloss finish seem to be the order of the day to make the average consumer go "wow" and still be interested, not actual metal casing. Sony see anything pre-Hi-MD as dead, I guess, especially in the current portable market where they are being eaten alive by competitors who traditionally never even had 'walkman' aspirations. Some belt-tightening was inevitable, I guess.

To keep things fair, things I dislike with the hinged cases above: *crackability *scratchability *gloss (fingerprints, etc) Definitely hate those aspects of the plastic (assuming it's just like a CD/cassette case). But I think they are a good compromise if you want to keep dust out and there should be some choice out there with the MDs we buy. That's what it's all about: just a bit of choice. Ideally, the cases I'd like to see would be: *made of the current 'softer' plastic the current MD cases use (far less susceptible to breakage/cracking), but in a hinged design. *as above, but with possibly no hinges and a little side slider with spring to open and close one end of the box for disc insertion (but this probably wouldn't fly as it would raise the cost by 3 cents and increase production complexity. But it would be a great thing to see out there as choice (even selling for a premium marketed under some Pro label, if they want, despite very little differentiation). Choice is really what it's all about, and I'd like to see more of it. The lack of choice (particularly among Hi-MD discs), is a bit of a bummer. Credit where it's due, I love: *the smokyness and non-gloss and feel of current MD cases *the fact that scratches are less pronounced because of the above (the gloss-finish hinged cases above likely aren't) *the fact that handling isn't so "slippery" as it would be with a gloss texture *the fact that I see no obvious fingerprints with the current plastic / texture (unless I load my fingers with oil, I would guess). The texture feels right in the hand, and any scratches they get are far less pronounced, yet it still keeps adequate transparency for labels, etc. Now if only they combined it with the goodness of the sealed case PS. I guess it's a bit of nitpickery, but we are discussing the finer details of design here, so that's to be expected And hey, MD is mature now (as far as basic design goes). Would be good to see more differentiation. And choice. Did I mention choice?

nice. Never saw them before. Wish some discs came with those by default! Seems like a far more serious (dare I say 'pro' case to prevent dust.