jrhughes
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Posts posted by jrhughes
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Not quite - see also here http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=18220
* Moved to Software Discussion
Thanks, Rich. I did do a couple of searches before posting and came across that post, but, at the time, the last bit read:
"To avoid the gaps, make sure you have the view in SS set to Albums / Playlists and then transfer the entire top-level album as opposed to going into the album / group and selecting all tracks."
I have this view set but, with a legacy MD (not a Net MD), I don't see how to select the top level album. I don't think the concept actually exists with SP MDs, since all I'm presented with is the title of the disc and tracks. Am I missing something?
Again, there aren't actually any gaps, as such. One track still goes immediately to the next, but the very end of the previous track is lopped off, creating a nasty jump to the next. It has to be a limitation of the encoding process, since I can take a list of PCM tracks uploaded from legacy MD, which sound perfect, and encode them directly on the PC to A3+, which results in track truncation. The only way around it that I have found is to create an audio CD from the PCM upload and then import the CD as A3+.
Cheers
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OK, I guess I am alone. I have just found a workaround, so, for those who are interested, here's a rather long winded way of keeping the flow of gapless albums (eg., DJ mixes, concept albums) intact:
Use the RH1 to upload the SP MD and set SS to use PCM. Track contunuity is preserved.
Create an audio CD (I'm using a CD-RW since I don't want to keep it on CD).
Import from the CD.
This seems to be the only way to have ATRAC3+ imports of legacy MD uploads whilst maintaining continuity. All other ways that I've tried lop off about 0.5 sec (maybe less) from the end of each track. It's not much, and doesn't matter for most albums, but for those whose tracks merge, it does.
Cheers
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I thought I'd better start a thread of my own, since the one I've commented on ("Are the new RH1 upload features worth it?") I think may be a different problem to mine. I'm using the RH1, legacy MD discs recorded both digitally and via analogue, and the latest version of SS.
This is a problem I've only just noticed, because I've only just uploaded some SP data where each track blends in to the next. It doesn't matter whether the original was CD or vinyl, the result is the same: each track has a small chunk (probably less than 0.5 sec.) missing from the end, so that it jumps into the next track. There is no gap, but the transition is not smooth. I have not noticed it before, because I have been uploading some vinyl recordings whose tracks are separated by silence. Each new track starts at the right place, so I suppose only a small piece of silence was omitted. Now, though, I have horrible jumps as one track ends and the other begins for any album which is mixed so as to be continuous.
I can upload in PCM and this preserves the structure as it should be. That's great, but I want to be able to have A3+ encoded uploaded SP data. I have even tried encoding on the PC from PCM to ATRAC3+ 256, but the encoding process results in the same track truncations. So, no matter whether I upload as A3+ 256, or as PCM and encode later (either on the PC or by transfer to Hi-MD), I can't get smooth track transitions.
I'm aware of the comments about misplaced track marks but I don't think this is the same problem, since data is omitted in this case.
Does anyone have any advice? Am I alone?
Thanks in advance...
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I am the proud owner of a new RH1 and I love it. However, every single SP disc that I upload to my computer contains moments where audio is dropped, literally snipped out. It's just like if I were to go into Audacity or any other program, highlight about 1/2 a second of sound and delete it, so that there is a very noticeable skip (and, even more unfortunate, lost information/audio!). Has anyone else had this problem? I am using the cable that was supplied with the unit, coils and all.
So far, even though I enjoy the unit for its powerful recording features, the legacy upload feature has me INCREDIBLY disappointed.
Hmmm... I have had my RH1 for a few months now and have only uploaded one full legacy disc before today. The difference is that todays was the first mix album, where each track runs right into the next with no gap. What I've found is that the very end (less than 0.5 sec) of each track is lopped off, so it appears to jump into the start of the next track. There is no gap, but the transition to the next track is not seamless. This is with Import settings to transfer legacy MD as ATRAC256.
I've just confirmed with another mix MD and the same happens. I've tried transferring several tracks together and each track individually.
Now, if I change the Import settings to PCM instead of A256, the end of each track is intact and transitions are, once again, seamless.
I have serched the forum and have found threads on displaced track marks, but I don't think this is exactly the same issue. With displaced track marks, it seems that the track mark is offset but that all music data is still there. With the problem I have, a small piece of data is missing at the end of each track.
Is there a way around this without filling up my HDD with PCM?
Edit to add:
It seems that the track truncation happens on encoding and has nothing to do with the actual transfer. In other words, I can import legacy MD tracks as PCM which preserves all trach data and there's no truncation at the end of each track. As soon as I convert to ATRAC, though, either through transfer or directly on the PC, the truncation returns and track transitions are no longer smooth. This scuppers my idea for a workaround.
So it seems that I can only import legacy MD tracks in PCM, and leave them as PCM, unless I can live with jumps at track transitions due to truncation. Sometimes this doesn't matter, but with tracks that run into one another, it does
Does anyone have any ideas? -
>approximately 10,000 hours, which translates to roughly 14 years with an average of 2 hours per day use. Do you use it more than that?
No, I don't, and I hope you're right about the 10,000 hours
>recording levels can be seen and set via the RM-MC40ELK remote...
So they can, and I have one with my NH1!
Thanks for that, guys. I wonder what others who own the RH1 have their displays set to...
Cheers
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I changed the display properties to Auto Off on my RH1, despite the fact that I preferred to have it on all the time (nice to glance over whilst it's playing and see the levels, track number, etc.). I did this to conserve battery life and, more importantly, conserve the lifetime of the display itself.
I've noticed that it doesn't make an awful lot of difference to battery life - not for me to really worry about, anyway. But I have read that the OLED displays don't last very long and fade through use. The OLED display on my A1000 can't be made to stay on permanently, which I think says a lot. Any thoughts?
DrH
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I engineered a trip to my nearest Sony Centre a couple of days ago, whilst with the Other Half, and found that they had an RH1 on display. I was told they only had the one and that they were a special order item - but that they would let me have the display one if I really wanted it. I checked it over (it was fine, still had the display protectors on), got approval from my lovely fiancee (of course) and plonked down £250.
I must say that it's better than I was expecting. I have been waiting for this since it was announced, following comments on this forum and noting what people were saying about its display, etc. I already have the NH1 so I know a well-built MD unit when I see one, and the RH1 is up there with the best. From the pictures I'd seen I thought the display was a little odd, but now I see exactly why it's made that way. With its little rubber feet and front-facing display, it's far more usable than, say, the NH1 in static situations as well as portable alike.
Anyway, the biggest surprise for me is the ability to upload my *digitally* recorded legacy MDs (optical recordings made with my JB930) and then download them onto Hi-MD. I wasn't expecting to be able to do this with digital recordings, only analogue. Most of my legacy MDs are actually recordings of my vinyl LPs, but I do have a few digital discs which I can now put onto fewer Hi-MDs. Nice!
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1kyle,
So, what happens if you DO have some purchased music within the library?
I guess the purpose of the internet validation is to disable the purchased content on one of the machines. Is that correct?
Cheers,
Jason.
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I have had the Sennheiser PX-100 for some time. They are very comfortable, but the low end is rather too overblown for me. Bass is far too loose and things generally sound "distant". After some research, I went for the PX-200 and I think they are perfect - for the price - as long as a) they are seated quite low-down on the ears and
they are run-in for a while. Lovely, tight, deep bass and well balanced mid/highs. I am so pleased with them that I got a second pair. Just in case.I also have the Sony EX71SL. I can't wear "normal" earbuds since one of my ears lacks the recess for the bud to sit in. I thought I'd give these canal-type phones a go, to see if they'd stay in. well, they do, and they sound good. Overly shrill at first, but that is improving as they are running-in. Bass is very powerful - sometimes a little too powerful for my liking - and is highly dependant on the fitting within the ear. That is, make sure they are in properly and that you're using the correct silicone plug for your ear canal size.
Cheers,
Jason.
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The spec's for Atrac3+ are actually quite lax. They specify a bitrate from 8Kbps upto 1411(ish)Kbps and from 1 to 10 channels.
I dont think there is any shrotcuts, I think the NH1 (and others) can play back any bitrate that Atrac3+ can be recorded in, its just Sony that limit the datarates we can transfer at.
Ah, right... so you're suggesting that the NH1 may even be able to deal with 320 kbps if the option were there in SS to transfer it? This would make sense, since there seems to be no reason I can think of why the NH1, which was supposed to deal with a max of 256 kbps, can cope with 352 kbps but not the lower 320.
All very strange, I think. Not to mention the fact that we can now transfer at 352, but we can't rip and store in SS at that bitrate. That's just annoying.
Cheers.
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I've just updated SS v3.2 to v3.3, after reading here about the new 352 kbps bitrate. I wanted to see whether it really would work on my MZ-NH1.
Well, it does. It even displays "352 k" as the bitrate. But how?
OK, so what I did was to transfer a track at 256 kbps which I already had in SS, as 352 to the NH1. I do understand that this does not result in any increase in quality; I've learned from here that this will only be achieved when starting with PCM (WAV). This was just a test to convince myself that my NH1, which is supposed to handle a top bitrate of 256, will, in fact, handle 352.
What is so special about 352, then, that my 1st gen Hi-MD unit can use that and not 320? Is there some weird jiggery-pokery going on? I can't imagine why Sony would keep this hidden until now, and then not allow us to rip and store in SS at this higher bitrate. Am I missing something?
Cheers..
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Thank you, dex. It's nice to know that it really is meant to work that way. So, when I upgrade my Vaio, as I inevitably will at some point in the future, I'll simply back up the library to a removable HDD and restore from that on to the new machine.
Cheers,
jrh
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I was about to ask the very same question. I've looked around various fora and can see that this type of question has been asked before. The answer has typically been to back up in SS on the old PC, then restore from that backup in SS on the new PC. But, for every person who says it works, there is another who says that it doesn't.
I'm often upgrading my hardware and so it would be pretty pointless for me to back up all my favourite CDs only to find that I have to do it all over again after changing PC/Vaio/HDD. But having all my favourites in Hi-SP on my PC is what I'd like.
Does anyone know the exact circumstances under which this will and will not work? Or is it just temperamental?
Many thanks,
jrh
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... the filter was forcing the cable so much, that the remote cable was kind of ... "compressed" in many parts...
That's exactly the reason I don't want to fit one. None of my others (MD units nor D-NE900 CD) have a filter on the remote lead, yet they're not that dissimilar. The leaflet in the box of the NH1 clearly states that one of the small filters is for the remote lead, in order to comply with regulations, and yet it doesn't actually come fitted. I'd have thought that, if it were absolutely necessary, then it would come fitted with all units.
I'm going to leave mine off, then. Thanks to those who replied.
Cheers,
Jrh
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Hi,
I've just got the MZ-NH1 (Started with MZ-R3, moved to JB930 + MZ-E10, still own all). So far, I'm very impressed and now have more options for digitizing my vinyl!
Anyway, my point: I had three spare clamp filters in the box, one of which is supposed to go on the remote lead. I've read what I can find on here concerning the clamp filters, and know what they are for, but my question is specifically to do with the one meant for the remote lead. I tried fitting it but it pinches the cable a bit too much for my liking. Odd that it wasn't already fitted, seeing as the power and USB ones were. The larger spare filter is way too large for that lead.
Has anyone, who has opted not to fit this particular filter, had any ill effects as a result?
Thanks in advance,
Jrh
Encoding legacy SP: end of track truncation
in Software
Posted
OK, I'll retract slightly from the above: importing as PCM does not always sound perfect. In about 30% of the tracks there is a very small (much smaller than importing as A3+256) "pop" in the transition of one track to the next, as a tiny amount of the end of one track may be lopped off. This is only apparent with the types of album that are continuous and is so small in comparison that I can live with it.
It's still the case that PCM needs to be written to audio CD and imported from there, to have acceptable A3+ continuous mix albums or recordings. I'm grateful that it's possible at all - wonderful RH1!