I have read comments in several forums about the sound of current crop of Minidiscs, mainly from Sony. I got the idea that the amplifiers have not improved (if they have improved at all) like other aspects (ATRAC, batteries duration, recording times, pc uploading, etc. etc,), and this results in a sound that is marginally better (or marginally worst) that that from the early units. I would like to know your opinions. I got a friend`s old but in perfect condition MZ-E2 player which I connected to my HI-FI equipment, and found that it sounds better than I expected. Has someone compared the sound of current gear with that of first generation players or recorders, especially with that of the MZ-E2 - my "reference" ? I am asking because I am thinking about buying a HI-MD, and I will use it -part time- in my HI-FI rig, where "bad sound" will be very evident. Appreciate your comments.