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Amen to that!

I was thinking that a system whereby mp3s could be downloaded into the MD but not uploaded to any computer would not require identification of a computer by software. Simply that a firmware layer on the player which interacted with the UMS layer could prevent uploading of mp3s. My DRM sheme allows unlimited drag and drop "checkouts" of unencumbered mp3s to MD or any other players you might have, but no ability to transfer those songs back to someone elses computer. It's a bit different to DRM shemes which try to tie songs to a single computer/player. Then again, I'm not a programmer or engineer so it's all just arm waving really. Personally I think all DRM is a pain in the #$% and Sony's heavy handed implementation is just wrecking the ability of Hi-MD to make any kind of real splash in the portable music market.

Thanks for the replies everyone! I guess I'll just have to honour my promise to myself and not buy another MD. I've got three anyway! On a related note - just how many people on this forum (ie hardcore MD users) actually buy mp3s from Sony? It's a shame that Sony would hamper their great hardware with such pathetic (and windows only) software just to ensure that people buy online music from them.

I'm as excited as everybody else about the next generation of Hi-MD gear, but get a nasty feeling that while the hardware will be excellent, they'll still require some version of sonicstage to transfer mp3s (presumably so thay can wrap them in some kind of DRM). This of course would leave linux and mac users out in the cold again. If the main purpose of the restrictive Sony DRM is to prevent songs from being uploaded off the MD to another computer to be listened to by someone else, why does this have to be mediated at a software level (esp. by software as unloved as sonicstage)? Why can't it be done in firmware? Is it technically possible mp3 files are recognized as such and when loaded into the player the firmware does something to them to ensure that they can't be uploaded out of the player again? No need for SS to work its "magic" on them. Nearly all the posts I've read are longing for a future in which files (esp. mp3 and to a lesser extent ogg) can be drag and dropped from any OS onto a Hi-MD masquerading as a USB drive, and then played natively. If these files were not able to be uploaded again then DRM would have been achieved. I hope it happens. Personally, I won't buy another MD until they support true drag/drop/play functionality.

Thanks for the info guys! To be honest the startup time is a really minor issue, I think that Hi-MD is great.

I usually keep my MZNH700 in "quickmode" so that it starts up within a few seconds (the startup time without it is unbelievable - 10-15 seconds). I understand from the manual that quickmode basically keeps the machine powered on ("standby") without the LCD on and presumably with the head parked safely. My question is - just how much of an effect on battery life does this have? I don't have the patience to use the MD with quickmode off in order to do a comparison. On a related note, does anyone know why it takes so long for Hi-MDs to power up compared to earlier portables? My MZR900 only takes a few seconds to power up and start playing.

I don't have an issue with output power - I can give myself a headache listening to my minidisc with no problems!! If it really bothers you then get a headphone amp, the decent ones aren't cheap but you should be able to just about cave your head in at top volume :smile:

2500MAh? Wow! That's got to be getting close to a normal alkaline battery hasn't it. Thanks for the heads up vabam. Unfortunately batteries are a bit expensive here, your US$10 would probably cost A$50 here.

The battery life on my MZNH700 is actually pretty decent using a 2300MAh NiMH rechargeable (got 4 and a charger as part of the price) - has to be 20+ hours. Basically keeps me going for a whole week of commuting. In fact I specifically went for a model that took AAs as opposed to the gumsticks. Even if the battery life is not earthshattering it's a 10 second job to plonk a fresh AA into it rather than recharging. For me the new features of the HiMD outweigh any battery life issues.

Why I like MD: 1 - Unbelievable sound quality (SP). I had an iRiver flash mp3 player for a while and now I can't bear to listen to it! 2 - High quality mic/line recording - just perfect for recording band rehearsals, and live gigs (running a line out of the mixing desk) 3- Cool electronic gadget! 4 - See point 1! MD is such a nice little technology, it succeeds DESPITE Sony...

Forgot to add, JB stock 1Gb minidisks for $8.95 too!

I got my MZNH700 at JB Hifi in Brisbane for $420 a few weeks ago. They've since gone up to $450 (for the xmas rush?), but I think JB are pretty much the cheapest place to buy MD stuff in Australia, either on or offline.

Thanks jadeclaw, just the news I wanted to hear!

Howdy all. Here's a hopefully not too stupid technical question maybe someone can answer... In my experience the optical block in MDs is pretty fragile and I'm sure that even if it wasn't, the laser has a finite lifespan. My question is, does real time recording wear the laser out sooner than USB transfer? To put it another way: it takes say 20 minutes to transfer 5 hours of HiSP music using SS or SB, writing 800Mb or so of data. If I record 5 hours of HiSP music in real time is the laser firing for the whole 5 hours, or does it just fire for the time taken to write the 800Mb (20 minutes)? If the answer is "real time stresses the laser" I might have to consider getting a windows box!

Greetings all As the title says, I'm back to using MD after 12 months of flash mp3 playing (iFP390T to be precise). I'd had a mzr900 for a couple of years which I really loved. Although I treated it like it was made out of spun glass, it fell victim to the dreaded optical block problem and stopped recording (played OK though). MDs are very difficult to get fixed here in Australia, so I ended up trying out a flash player (had no desire for a HD one like and iPod). Got the iRiver iFP390 and it worked well, I even got it behaving on a linux box. Ripped all my Cds to VBR mp3s and they sounded pretty good on it. I thought that would be the end of it until on a recent trip down to Melbourne my brother in law generously gave me his old mzr70 (!) since he had fallen victim to iPod disease. I took one listen and immediately fell in love with the format again - they just sound so good, and look cool too. I'm a complete sucker for cool electronic gadgets, and MDs have it all over flashplayers in this regard! I immediately went home, got my mzr900 repaired ($300!!!!) so that I could play all my old LP2 disks, and to the disgust of my wife also went out and got a shiny new mznh700! I've got to say, I'm very very impressed with HiMD, even with my budget model. I record everything in HiSP and it sounds brilliant and sharp. I couldn't care less about SonicStage etc since I use linux, so I just take the time to record stuff in real time. Having the option of using it as (slow) USB storage is nice. Unlike some people I've read here, $8 HiMD blanks are easy to get (JB Hifi), and I've reformatted a whole heap of 80min blanks as HiMD too. I've spent a lot of time reading up on this and other forums, and there's no doubt Sony could have been a bit less restrictive on the copy protection etc (my dream MD = USB2 which plays mp3, ogg, wav etc natively as well as atrac, with no need for SS/SB), but I don't really think it's a dying format at all. In fact I talked to the Sony rep at the shop I bought mine at, and he says HiMDs are selling extremely well in Australia (obviously things are a bit different in the USA where MDs are a niche market). At the end of the day I don't really care, I've got 3 cool MDs and odds are that they'll give me a lot of enjoyment for a good few years, until 50Gb flash players can be bought for $20! Sorry for the rambling post, just thought I'd share the love!!