mrelwood

I so much wish this wouldn't be true. It is actually hard for me to explain to myself, that even though the technology is all there and ready, no-one is making a suitable recorder. (Why not?!) It really bugs me that lighter-sized portables can record from a line in (iAudio U2), but no-one is making it properly for a portable HD. It could be, and we could all be carrying a recorder that would beat a MD in every aspect, even size. Just to make sure: Does anyone have any opinions on the Archos Gmini220? It actually seems like the best candidate for a MD killer. -Aki.

jadeclaw, thanks! That was just what I needed! Really? I didn't know the difference between different mp3 encoders were this big. Thanks for the links. Hi-SP surprised me, since I thought it would be "at least as good as old SP". Well, I think this finally answers my original question; no Hi-MD for me. -Aki.

No, since I don't have a Hi-MD, but what I ment was that all audio you want to listen with the player, has to be transfered in and out with the software, and that audio cannot be transferred on any other computer. -Aki.

By sound quality, I was meaning comparisons between mp3, which I asked earlier. And marcnet's program doesn't allow me to transfer music to other computers than where the songs are from, because of the libraries required. -Aki.

Sigh. Well ofcourse. I am more and more baffled about the fact that Sony is just making our lifes difficult with all these restrictions, they should be well aware that they do not actually prevent anything. People who want to make digital copies, will most likely use their CD burners, don't you think! Us people who would actually use the features (legally) are made to go thru all these unnecessary steps, which really sucks big time. I'd like to say "that's it, no Hi-MD for me", but since flash or HD portables haven't yet taken this recording issue seriously enough, I am still undecided. How about the sound qualities? -Aki.

Still one question. I convert a song to atrac and upload it in the Hi-MD. I install the darn software to another computer, can I download the song to the other computer, in ".oma" or any format?

Thanks guys! I think I start to have more complete idea over the usage I could have for the Hi-MD. Still not sure if the iRiver or other would be better though... How does the old Atrac compare to these new ones, is the sound quality comparable to the Hi-SP? Or is the Atrac+ better quality with the same kbps rate? And if new is better, does Hi-LP compare with old LP2? And how would a 320kbps mp3 compare with Hi-SP? One more thing. Marcnet, You are a genius. I can only imagine how much work Your software has needed from You, and how much people must love having a software to do the things they hoped for, since they were again harshly let down by Sony. I went for the NetMD a year back since I thought it could do the transfers promised. I had the machine returned. I don't Yet know if I'll get myself a Hi-MD(800) or the iRiver iHP-120 (or even the Philips' new one). Either way, I will donate some $. If I end up using the software, and if it works as well as said, I'll put $$.

Since it is impossible to learn about the real features from the manufacturer itself, I have to rely on people who have actually used the machine. And since I didn't find answers at the forum yet, I posted this new topic. 1) Can a single Hi-MD disc contain both Hi-MD player playable music AND data? 2) Are there any restrictions concerning the data in the Hi-MD? For example, can I rename "album.wav" to "album.tmp", upload to Hi-MD and download it at my brother's computer? 2.5) Does the data transfer also need SonicStage? 3) If I record music from a digital source (multitracker, digital mixer etc) on the Hi-MD, can I transfer the recorded material (*.oma?) to my computer with fast data transfer, and then use marcnet's wonderful piece of software to make it a regular .wav? 4) How fast is the data transfer to and from the Hi-MD? 5) Do You find it possible that Sharp or others would start manufacturing Hi-MD competitors that we recording people would like more? :cool: Thanks for any answers and/or opinions. I am actually starting to feel that the 320kbps mp3 would be enough, and I would get myself an iRiver iHP-120. It's actually not that expensive anymore..

[let's assume you have fill-up the storage on H120, what then?] Since he want's to record stuff, I strongly believe that he will use the recordings immediately in something, making CD's or sending fart sounds to friends by e-mail. All these mean that the audio will be transfered to a computer anyway. Therefore, keeping them in the iRiver is really not necessary. So the files are on the computer. What is the cheapest way to store data? It is a continuing battle between CD-R and hard disk. 200GB HD's don't cost that much anymore. Way less than 7$ / 1GB! [what if you want to retrieve your old recordings, assuming you burn it on cd/dvd or whatever. it would be hassle to search for it.] I think this is just a matter of how organized the person can be. I myself have lost just as meny MD's as I have lost CD's. And a CD has more room for writing what's in it. [Also, it would be a hell a lot easier to retrieve it, as you don't need another storage media to play it back.] If one burns them on audio CD's, I bet he's got more CD players in his house than MD players. But since audio CD's can't play back compressed audio, he would have to listen to the tracks thru a PC. How hard is that? [what if you accidentally drop H120, in midst of your recording?] This is a good point. But if a MD player is dropped and gets broken, it can't write the ID tag, so I hardly believe the audio would be usable either. I am having a Hi-MD vs iRiver debate myself, and though yet undecided, I don't find these practical issues in favour of the Hi-MD. I haven't yet been convinced with the recording sound quality of the iRiver, but nor have I been convinced about the computer connectivity of the Hi-MD. If I record my 3 hour gig on media, I am not going to record the same material again on the computer. Once recorded has to be enough, so the computer connectivity has a high value in my usage. And if my friend has a laptop with him and wants the third set also, we just transfer the audio for him. And if my friend has a movie he'd like me to see, we just transfer that to my equipment. Would work with Hi-MD also, if my friend would happen to have the Sony program and a certain coverter installed. I doubt. Actually, this helped me make my decision. No Hi-MD. Unless ofcourse Sharp or others would start manufacturing Hi-MD's without the restrictions. I doubt...