chenners

Happy Holidays All: After much hesitation and convincing from a friend, I finally got the guts to record off the soundboard. Of course, the sound quality blew me away! My nearly 2 year old Sony MD (MZ-N707) did considerably well as it was refurbished and I protected the disc straight after recording (I had to learn the hard way when I "accidentally" erased a show). Seeing that I've begun a collection of live recordings and will most likely only add to that collection (hopefully with more soundboard recordings!), I was thinking of using the current MD I have primarily for uploading audio to PC and finding another MD for recording. When I taped from the board, I had to fumble in the dark to adjust the recording level manually, so I'm looking for a unit with the manual recording level and backlight (back light is secondary as I can always bring a mini flashlight and the soundboard guys typically have some type of lighting at their station.) My friend who convinced me to tape from soundboard recommended a Sharp MD because of the manual recording ability and mic sensitivity option. I tend to have brand loyalty and Sony hasn't been all that bad (equipment envy: drooling over the Sony MZ-R909). Any recommendations and/or suggestions? Apologies if this is not posted under the appropriate topic. It's been awhile since I've visited and there's been a lot of changes! Cheers, Chen

With the aid of an iMic and software such as Macromedia SoundEdit 16 and SoundApp, my Sony MZ-N707 and Mac OS 9 got along great (well, except for the real time wait when uploading). My Mac crashed last week and I couldn't recover any data on the HD without spending upwards to $500-800 for data recovery. I ended up upgrading to OSX and am looking for software programs to use for uploading and editing live recordings (in multiple formats - RealAudio clips, MP3s, .wavs, etc). I've seen other posts about the program Audacity but am not familiar with it. Any recommendations/suggestions for Mac compatible software? In the meantime, I've been experimenting with Sony Sound Forge on the PC. But due to hard drive size/storage limit constraints on the PC, I use Sound Forge for smaller sound clips instead of full songs. I'm more comfortable with loading up the Mac with large and unprocessed sound files (AIFFs) and would need to add more storage space if I'm to use the PC continuously for uploading/editing, which is another topic entirely to tackle. But Audition is PC and Mac compatible, no? Ah, cross platforming issues...

Battery: New dry alkaline. Humm...yes, you know the pause button theory does sound plausible. Better than "something complicated." Thanks.

Novice recorder reporting problem with recording occurence #1. It was bound to happen sometime. I was taping an event last night and when I got home and listened to the recording, I got about a total of 20 minutes (a total of 5 songs) before my MD wigged out. I was able to record the rest of the show, but the songs were split into multiple tracks and there were gaps in between each track. Meaning that the songs were NOT complete and that I really ended up with clips and segments of the rest of the show. I'm a bit puzzled as to why this is. The only explanation I have is that I accidentally hit the "track" button on the MD, but that wouldn't edit out segments of the song/performance would it? I do have a refurbished MD, but that hasn't hindered me from recording before. Anyone?

Has anyone had the issue of using the headphone volume control with the Sony ECM-719 mic only to have the recording volume appear lower? (Yea, I know. I'm getting a decent pair of mics...soon, soon.) I tried a tester recording today, one with HVC and one without. I was a bit dismayed and puzzled at the recordings with HVC. It didn't pick up the sound of lawn activity (mower and blower) as loudly as I would've liked. The recording w/o the HVC was fine. Explainations, anyone?

Hey jadeclaw. Thanks for the info. My brain made a wrinkle. ;OP

Hi: I've just started with MD recordings but have come across the mention of two terms during tapetrades that I'm curious about: battery box(es) and recording from the board. What's the deal with battery boxes? I'm assuming that it functions as a power source and/or control device for high-end mics? I haven't had a need for a battery box (or have I?) since the shows I'm taping from are acoustic and rather low-key. Seeing as mics are only one aspect for quality recordings, I thought I'd get some clarification. As far as recording from the soundboard goes, what additional equipment would be needed? I'm assuming that soundboard equipment varies as well, but is there something equipment wise that is a must have but would also translate across platforms? And equipment and technalities aside, what protocol is there in regards to approaching the sound guy and asking to tape from the board? I've a Sony MZ-N707 that I got off eBay and have been using for several months (the MD was refurbished but so far has been working well). With all the live recordings and bootlegs that is now in circulation, I'm growing quality conscious and am on the lookout for ways to improve my recordings. This forum has been extremely helpful, so thanks!

...so... i've been using my sony mz-n707 for nearly a year and have been relatively happy with the results. ...but... uploading the recorded tracks from the md to my mac/pc via usb (iMic) is killing me. is there any way to bypass this? also: while i'm rather happy with how my recordings sound, i'd like to get another--more experienced--opinion on the quality of my recordings. please email me off list at write_chen@yahoo.com if you would like to volunteer. thanks

none other than your fine recommendation of the iMic, A440. had to go under the apple menu -> control panel -> sound -> click on the input tab -> select usb connection ->configure the input level and wa-la! (all this is covered in the iMic manual also). then i "recorded" the live music with macromedia's soundedit. while i've got music, i'm a bit fussy about the quality of the music that i've captured. still working on that one... much thanks.

YES it IS possible! :grin:

macobi: thanks for replying. it's nice to know that i'm NOT the only one who is becoming frustrated with the whole buzzing sound on the recordings. now, i've got a sony mz-n707 md and while i do have the remote (it's a necessity since the headphone cord is so blasted short!), i don't use the remote during recordings. but now that you mention it, i realized that my mic (sony ecm-719) is situated rather close to the md when i AM recording. so maybe that's the cause of the interference. i re-read the mic manual and funnily enough, it does mention feedback and keeping the mic a safe distance away from the minidisc. humm...maybe that's why the mic cord is so long. thanks again!

heh, that's true. but then there ARE other female md users, no? i think it's interesting how there are gender differences in getting the md into the venue but that one way or another, enterprising souls find a way! also: from what i've been reading, i'm getting the impression that security checks for males are more stringent than they are for females. so guys? there's always the option to ask a gal to carry your md for you. but then, that would depend on how comfortable you'd feel having someone else temporarily in control of a very valuable electronic device! (c'mon, we've got compartments for our compartments in our bags...) just my 2 cents... :grin:

hi all: has anyone had any problems with the sony mz n707 picking up a strange buzzing sound during recording? i have a sound clip of this noise/interference that would provide more info, but i wasn't sure about the md community/forum's policies about posting such links. i should mention that for the recordings with interference, i'm pretty close to the stage where the performance is taking place (anywhere around 3-5ft away). this means that i'm also close to all the audio equipment on stage. i became suspicious that MY MD could have been causing some type of interference/feedback when the artist on stage kept complaining of a "buzzing sound," and when the guy at the sound board mentioned how it was "not showing up on the monitors and i don't know what it is." while i didn't hear the buzzing sound then and there, i did hear it when i reviewed my tracks. just wanted to check with the community to see if this was an isolated incident (and i'm just too close to the stage area) or if this has happened to someone else also. cheers, chenners

fortunately for me, the venues i've been going to don't have that strict a security check. i basically put my md into the black little case that i got with it and put it in the zippered compartment of my purse. the bouncers aren't that thorough with their searches anyhow. besides, i distract them... in terms of setting up, i head to the ladies room (with the assumption that gals take up more time in there) and get everything set up (namely to remove the md from its case so i can check on the recording progress. i do the prep--blank disc, battery charged--before leaving home). i took the headphones the first couple of times of recording, just so in between sets i could listen and see that YES, i was getting everything recorded. but that became a hassle. now i situate the md in my bag so that i have relative easy access to check that the minutes are clicking off on the md (i guess NOT having a lcd light in this case helps in being covert). if people become overly curious, i pull out my cell phone and pretend that i'm checking messages. the only major issue i'm having is the microphone. the one i've got (sony ecm 719) isn't inconspicious. i've had it clipped to the strap/handle of my bag and used my arm in trying to cover the thing, which means adding more noise to the recordings (that mic picks up everything!) so i'm thinking next stop is a smaller mic. now my question is this: do you find yourself having to monitor your reactions (laughter, cheers, applause) while recording just so that your voice doesn't get recorded? and how difficult is that for you to do?

Well, after trekking to Radio Shack to pick up the 1/8" to 1/8" cord for $4.99 plus tax and rushing home to fiddle with the computer, I've finally got the live recordings into my computer. BIG Applause goes to A440 with special thanks to Anont. HOWEVER I didn't think ahead to download & save the Audacity program so I can use it at home. Sadly enough, my home PC doesn't have Internet connection but my Mac does, only that's not helpful for the Sony MD I have (humm..or is it? Wondering whether the iMic would work with Audacity & MZ-N707 on mac). In any case, there's still work that needs to be done. I'm currently alternating between using RealProducer Plus and Windows Media Encoder. I know Sony's been pretty touchy about copyrights and stuff, and since I am eager to share the new sounds I've got while supporting the artists...I'm thinking of uploading 30sec clips as enticement for the tapetrade. Besides, 1) I had to turn the sound WAY up for it to be recorded and 2) if I were to save the entire song(s) as .ram files, there's bound to be conversion/loss, say transfer to MP3, to WAV file or to CD later. Now besides seriously drooling over the optical attachment on the Creative Extigy, I think I may be going with the cheaper alternative of the iMic (for now anyway, ha!). Either that, or I'll have to find a cord that's compatible with the Canopus DVStorm setup on the front of the PC tower (I think that's geared more for video though.) Who knew when I got into this that I'd get soo hooked? But damnit, it's so much fun. Cheers P.S. A440: So, with the Creative Extigy, you just plug it in via USB and plug the MD in with an optical cable and wha-la, music into the PC?

a440: well, it seems you read minds as well, because i was JUST about to ask you if getting griffin's iMic was a good idea. thanks for the heads up on that. and also thanks for the notice about no background noise. i had a not-so funny incident of that happening when "recording" ram files to mp3s. now as far as the line in on the soundcard: what in the world am i looking for again? on the back of the PC tower, i see the generic attachments for printer, mouse, headphones & USB, but...soundcard? on the very bottom of the tower, there is what appears to look like an S-Video connection with Audio In/Out, Video In/Out and a slot for DV connection. huh? i'm not explaining this very well..would a photo help? cheers, chenners

"...either way, just connect a miniplug-to-miniplug cord from MD headphone out to soundcard Line-in." uh...haven't looked around for one of these cords yet, so could you suggest one? i do have one of the red/yellow-audio R/audio L cords but they don't connect to the mz-n707 also: the recordings from the MZ-N707? WONDERFUL! i didn't even have to use the headphone volume control (even when standing right in front of the speakers @ amoeba!)

Hello: I've just recently stumbled across the minidisc because I wanted an inexpensive way to record my friend's open-mic performances, as well as getting some live recording of some of my favorite bands for tapetrades and such. I purchased the Sony MZ-N707 MD & the Sony ECM 719 Microphone on eBay, and I have been using an old Toshiba clip-on microphone (which came with a Toshiba Recording Walky KT-4098, circa 1980s!) for recordings until the ECM-719 mic is delivered. So far, I've been impressed with the recordings (both indoor & outdoor open mic performances), although I've had to fiddle around with the Toshiba mic to get rid of the humming feedback due to a short cable. However, I am concerned about: 1) the compatibility of the 719 microphone with the MZ-N707 MD and 2) the sound quality of live performance recordings (I have yet to do these recordings). I did some reading prior to posting, and most of the entries with the MZ-N707 mention great sound quality recording, but with the 717 mic. In addition, there's a discussion about the use of headphone volume control/attenuator cord. The performances I would like to record (covertly) from will be in a rather small venue, and if I can get there early enough, I'll get seating close to the stage area. But then, I'm worried that this will be too close and that it'll pick up too much bass and the recordings will be muffled. In addition, I've been having difficulty uploading the open-mic shows to my PC. I've installed the software that comes with the package, but it doesn't recognize the MD when I attach it via the USB. (Ahem: I'm also biased because I've read reviews on minidisc.org about how "crappy" OpenMG Jukebox is...and I've come across the petition to Sony about this issue). I've spent several frustrating hours trying to upload the open-mic performances for my friend, and so far, it's a no go. (Curses!) However, I've realized that the PC I'm working on has Canopus DV Storm but this is totally wasted on me, as I'm not that technologically savvy yet. I figured that I should go straight to the source and post my question here at the minidisc community. Any feedback and/or comments would be greatly appreciated. I'll be taking my MD to record this coming Tuesday and am looking forward to it...Hopefully I'll find some way of getting those performances onto the PC and onto a CD! Cheers