timonoj
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Posts posted by timonoj
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I don't want to upset the Atrac fans, but maybe the best compromise between sound quality and space is the 160 kb\s VBR bitrate, considered "transparent" even by some "golden ears" (192 Kb\s minimum for CBR). And, of course, it's MP3. Is's not a disadvantage, on the contrary, maybe some day you'll want that disk or track back on your computer and if that MD is the only copy you kept of your music, you may spare the quality loss or effort of transcoding or playing digitally and re-encoding it for another player.
By the way, can someone tell me, which Lame should I choose to encode mp3s at 160 kb\s VBR ?
Sorry, the question should sound "which Lame setting should I choose..."
Sorry to disagree...But mp3 is quite an old format (back to the 92 or so, huh?). While atrac3plus is quite a much recent codec. It takes advantage of all the new studies done during all these years around the hearing capacities of the people. Sorry, but you are comparing an outdated codec (which, for some weird reason, and although it's a private codec, it's still being used) with a new generation one. So, definitely, if you compare a 160VBR mp3 with a 160CBR atrac3plus... Ain't much to do, is it? Anyway, if you don't like the atrac3plus codec, maybe you'll find that the mp4 or the HE-AAC both achieve an impressive audio quality with a relative low bandwith usage. Or, if you prefer open source, maybe you can choose ogg, which achieves, as well, a much better quality than the good old mp3.
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I would recommend for normal music hearing while you do other stuff (bus, train), to use the Hi-LP (64kbps) mode, although I encode some special songs in higher bitrates...
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Well, In fact, it has some audo encoding improvements. Nothing new on the behavior, nor looklike. But the "audio encoding improvements" sound should make you not to bother about anything else...After all, it IS a music player. It's the most important thing.
And also: I think some more high bitrate codecs were added on that version, as well. So you shouldn't be thinking that much about it...Just get it!
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Just like I described a few topics ago. Still use this method sometimes, but the battery seems to get less picky. However some hardware problem must be present.
Certainly...I agree with you. Somebody tampered with the firmware some posts before, he might even had it solved?
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Hello all out there,
sorry for bringing this topic up again, but from the beginning that I got my RH-1, I had exactly the charge problem described here.
I never use the remote control on my unit. Maybe that's the cause.
Luckily, I also own a NH1, so I regularly use the docking station to charge both of my battery packs. But it's really driving me crazy.
No news on that??
I use the unplug-take battery out-plug in-put back the battery. It always work for me when it doesn't want to be charged.
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My CD installation of Sonic Stage 3.4 warns against installing in a dual boot environment. It does not say why. Have you been able to use SS on your dual boot computer with no issues?
I'm afraid this has nothing to do with the dual boot thing, since SS doesn't need to do anything in the boot record. I have Dual Boot, and SS will install properly either the real windows XP partition, or the Vmwared one through ubuntu. In any case, I strongly recommend you to install at leas SS 4.0 or 4.2, since it has some improvements since then (more bitrates available, better encoding quality on low bitrates).
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Okay, I will give it a try. Meanwhile, I found out a pretty much easier way of having your integrated sonicstage running through linux. Pretty neat. Using VirtualBox. It has two versions, the closed code one, and the totally free one. Choose the closed code one, since it has usb support, which we will need. Now: Once you have installed your system (okay okay, i'll install w2k!), you can choose the seamless mode. This will hide the windows desktop, and make only the windows visible. It also will leave the windows tray bar just over the KDE bar. or the Gnome bar. That isn't annoying, since you can mark the autohiding option in it (I never chose that when I had windows on its own, but comes handy now). So the windows bar is totally invisible and total USB support
The problem is with my kubuntu feisty, which still has that annoying bug mounting usb units. That means I'm still fighting for connect the Minidisc. My Samsung Cellphone, however, was connected and identified at the first attemp. It's weird, since I can't use it on linux properly, but in windows it's detected the way it should. So I expect the same behavior for the minidisc whenever i manage to automount it
PS: For activating that seamless mode, once you have windows running, you check on the virtualbox the "guest additions" option, which will automatically launch on windows the special windows manager installer. That will make it able to hide
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Hi! I'm on ubuntu feisty, and having some trouble about using vmware. Can't install it, the installer just crases, even though I have the kernel headers and all the rest of the stuff. So I tried KVM, still on development, but aledgedly faster. Some trouble here (windows xp boots, and before showing the desktop crashes and boots again...and so on).
I just came here to tell you, that it seems to be possible to run XP on a VM, (okay nothing new here), but with the ability of loading just the programs you are interested in (like, sonicstage running on your ubuntu desktop). How? A remote application server. You install that server on the XP machine, and the client on your ubuntu. Then you click on your sonicstage icon on your ubuntu desktop, and it should go...
Here's the howto, he made that for something easier...Excel. But if you manage it to work, I'll be glad to see it. As soon as I install the new Ubuntu Gutsy I'll try it again. Meanwhile I'll manage using Win98SE, which doesn't fail, and also can run sonicstage... Here's the link:
http://searchenterpriselinux.techtarget.co...1238129,00.html
Good luck, mates! hope that someone achieves it
curls, Vmware takes around 100-140MB to install. The problem is the windows image. It should take at least 1-2GB, but if you're planning to import multimedia files there, then you should think of something bigger...Like 4-6GB
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Hi, this is a silly question, but I love to know which things are happening in a precise moment. So I would like to know if the little red light that blinks when starting or recording, could be turned to blink every time the unit reads data (and not just at the beginning or when connected to the PC)
Yeh, I know, it's a silly question, but I tried...
BTW, is there any firmware update on these unit? Since the info of the firmware can be seen through the menus, I always wonder if there will be any updates
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The consensus seems to be that you should stick with 4.2 unless you need Vista compatibility.
Ok, thanks for the info!
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So far...Is there any new on the new SS CP 4.3? I just didn't notice that it was a new version. But I didn't see any news or improvements, apart from Vista capability (wich I won't use)...
Thank you very much!
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I didn't try it yet....But since FFdshow can decode dozens of formats, another trick that might work is using Ffdshow for transcoding files to Atrac from formats that Sonicstage is not supposed to read. I don't have time now, but when i'm back home later, I'll try to import files that are not genuinely mp3 (ogg and flac, instead), properly renamed them as mp3, to see if Sonicstage notices the difference. If it doesn't, it wouldn't be any other problem to transcode them to Atrac3plus, would it?
If anybody else does want to give it a try, I'll be glad to read any news
[edit] I tried it....didn't work though
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Hi, I just wanted to say that I also have that very same problem. I also think it might be related with the temperature, but i'm gonna ask sony about the issue and see what they say...
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You're right - Hi-SP is 256kbps, I was wrong about that.
I'll clarify what I compared.
I compared a song transfered to my NH600 in Hi-SP mode via SonicStage (both from a WAV source and from a 352kbps source)
WITH
the same song copied in realtime via an optical cable (CD source).
But yes, absolutely, the realtime optically-captured sound is superior to transfering within SonicStage (either from a WAV source or from a 352kbps source). No doubt. I shall continue my trawl of the web to try and find analytical data on this.
Update
I have just tried a SonicStage transfer from an import captured in just ATRAC (not advanced lossless) at 352kpbs, and transfered to my minidisc in the original format (no further conversion). Again I used highest quality (rather than fastest).
Alas, this was still not as nice as the realtime copy, but was the best SonicStage version yet (in terms of the end product on my NH600 minidisc).
My conclusion based on my observations (and one colleague's) alone
The NH600 (I can only speak for this model) captures and converts music at a higher quality in realtime than using the SonicStage software to capture. (But I am still searching the web for analytical data to back this up for the rest of you!)
Another point: Did you check your cd player? I mean, does it have the "bass button" enabled? I agree and think it has something to do with the CD playback... I didn't notice any difference.
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Absolutely right, it has improved, I agree. As I said, I always use the maximum quality bitrate for HiMD recordings, whether using SS or reat-time optical recordings. But while the bottom end (bass end) is now sorted (it used to roll off considerably) the top end (high treble frequencies) are still just slightly duller, and the whole timbre is slightly less smooth when using SS.
I have a very good, trained ear - I'm a musician and sound engineer and have experience working with DAT masters and all sorts of wonderful recording formats, so I trust my ears!
No, I only use the top bitrates in HiMD mode whether copying tracks in SS or recording realtime from an optical lead. I trust my ears - I'm a musician and sound engineer, and very experienced in recording in lots of formats (I used to use DAT for mastering years ago), and have a very acute awareness of sound and timbre and frequencies. To me the difference is so stark (even though subtle) there's no question of a 'placebo' effect. I've had a few replies from scepticle people all questioning me further, but so far no one seems to have actually tried an A-B test (blind or otherwise) themselves...
Regards
Andy
You said the source was a CD? Does it pass through any mp3 conversion? Maybe ffdshow has an incorrect settings...Do you see at any time the ffdshow logo just left to the clock when encoding? I don't find any difference at all from taking directly the signal from a CD-player output or compressing with SS...
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I agree...Nice post! And pretty good english
Even here in madrid it's hard to find any MD...They're not advertised on the major stores, just on the small ones, then even though some of them might have them, some of the employees won't even know about them. (not even aknowledge of the existance of such a thing). Even when they do know about them, they'll only have a few models. Lucky that one of them was the RH1.
It took my time to find some shops, and quite a lot more to find a good deal.
But I'm really satisfied with the achieved quality of this little toy. I used to play my music on a mp3 discman (when they were an unknown and weird thing). The Napa. Now THAT was a brick. But it were stolen, altogether my class notes and some other stuff. That was the change of my life. I started to look info for the minidisc, and I became in love with my poor old MZ-N510. It's battery lastS -it STILL works just as in the first day, for around 40-60 hours of playback (I used one of those cammera batteries), and it received more crashes during all these years than any other thing I ever had. Probably because nothing lasted more to keep receiving hits and drops. I didn't take too much care of it. It had a rough life. But it was incredibly nice. It lasted for too long, it had nice quality playback (on LP2), and it seemed to be indestructible. It is still on working condition, as I stated before. Plenty of scratches, and the door doesn't fit perfectly. But it works. And records. Just like the first day. Amazed with it, and willing to have good quality audio without bothering about the space, I just bought my brand new RH1. My poor old N510 (i think it has 6 years, is that possible?) is carefully stored in a draw, in it's original box. It deserves some rest. I'm really amazed how though this little piece of technology can be. Now i'll take quite a lot more of care with my new and shiny metal player (it just looks georgeous!). Hope that I can say it lasted that much.
And yeah, I still see turning back heads when I swap the discs. I guess we enjoy not following everybody's path with ipods
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What codec/bitrate exactly did you convert to/record in? ATRAC can stand for SP, which is a transcoded LP2 version if you transfer via software. For this particular codec, SQ will indeed be a lot better when recorded in realtime. This is a long known issue.
If you used a different codec (for example Hi-SP), i'd be interested if you did the test blind? Your brain can play tricks with you if you know the source (placebo effect). See here:
http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/index....showtopic=16295
Wich version of SS are you using? It has been great improvement since the nasty v1.5 I started from. Also in coding quality.
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Hi Wizard!
Sorry my friend, I couldn't let that comment about the volume limiter go without a response!
I can't believe you like that (although I'm not criticising you, so please don't take offence). Most people hate it; it was put there as an EU regulation (Nanny State) to protect our poor wittle ears! It has a detrimental effect on the sound quality when played at upper volume levels (squashes and compresses the sound - but don't confuse this with data compression, this is audio dynamic compression).
American players (at least true last time I researched this) don't have this limiter installed and thus have been very popular with buyers in Europe obtaining them from the USA via mail order.
Hi mate, i'm afraid you misunderstood him...He's not talking about the volume limitation (aka AVLS), but from an option that you can activate from the remote, pressing the sound button.
You have many different options: Use the HD postprocessing DAC, using either preset or customized EQ, and using the normalized audio he was referring to
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when plugged into the computer it should never say 'XX min left', just charging. When plugged in (computer or ac-adapter) it can take a few sec for the RH1 to realize it is charging so if you haven't waited at all this could be it (took about 40 secs at one time with my RH1). Have you checked the battery is inserted correctly?
if nothing works and performance seems really strange, do not hesitate and return it as fast as possible (or perhaps demand a battery switch first if they will do that)... no need to accept a faulty machine of course
PS: not applicable here, but nonetheless interesting for random readers: when the battery still is nearly full, the machine won't say charging or 'XX min left' but it might still be recharging the last 20%
Thanks for the information. At this point, i waited once for around ten minutes with no living signal
That was another day. Now it decided to work again: I plugged it once into the laptop...Nothing happened. Changed the usb port (sometimes this works for usb stuff), and decided to turn on, and start the pc charge (yeah, i know, no minutage, just the charging icon and the pc connected message). Then i decided to switch to the AC charger. Then it worked. Any clue? Why this? I'm seriously thinking about taking it back to sony store...but it's a nuisance,it's placed in the other corner of Madrid
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Hi I'm having a weird problem with my brand new RH1. It just seems to decide randomly wether it charges or not...For example, right now I'm using the AC adaptor. The battery's almost empty (the battery icon is already blinking when i play anything). (just in case, i live in europe, so that's ~230V). But it doesn't show the "XX min left" message. If I plug it into the computer sometimes it will work. But that's quite weird isn't it? Or is it something that i'm missing, maybe?
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La verdad es que no tengo ni idea.......yo el SonicStage lo utilizo extrictamente para grabar, y nunca me he parado a ver tema de configuraciones, si te puedo decir que los problemas puede que surgieran a raiz de instalar la version 4, actualmente tengo la 4.2, y en un principio usaba la version 3.6, si no me equivoco que es la que venia en el CD de instalacion, si me puedes poner un poco mas claro eso de la conficuracion te lo agradecere.
Proof that FFDshow is working when Sonicstage is encoding a song:
**Esta es la prueba de que FFDshow está activo mientras Sonicstage comprime una canción:
Menu for configuring FFDshow audio settings:
Check if any of the checkboxes are checked...If so, disable them(i mean on the left pane!):
**Comprueba que no haya ninguna casilla marcada (las de la lista de la izquierda, las que están ahí marcadas no las toques):
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And is this also the the best way to import lectures? I have 8 numbered maps about 8 topics and in each map 10 numbered lectures (mp3 files). All well organised and I want the same structure on a Hi-MD disc. How can I import them in SS while leaving the structure intact?
Thanks, I've just done so, and worked great
Another nuisance: You cannot move an empty group on your minidisc. It must have at least one song so u can move it, or it will stick at the end of the playlist
And you might gess "big deal...so what?" Well, i have a group of 200 songs, made from importing a big "remember music" album...But it's a pain in the ass to look for the song 154, so i decided to split it in smaller groups. But I had to make my inventions to achieve that easy-to-say task! Once you create an empty group, it goes to the bottom of the list. I wanted to put it just next to the huge group, but i had to put some tracks on it before doing so, so I could then move the whole rest of the list. Annoying. And don't really understand the reason...
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Only the music transferred from the computer is affected. The mic recordings sound good in both computer and RH1. I also noticed that the sound is only affected at high frequencies. For example, the sound of a voice singing accompained by an spanish guitar seems to have no problem at all, but when I transfer a song with high top frequencies, it's like if everything went lower. By the way, i did restore it to its default settings, and nothing seems to have changed. It's starting to annoy me, maybe someone knows what's this issue related with? Maybe with configurations? Any help will be welcome!
Well, well... If you returned ur RH1 to the default settings and it still buggers you with the sound, maybe it's related with the encoding proccess previous to the transfer. Question for the wise audience: Is the SS v4.2 still using the directshow filter during the encoding? (most of us, redirected to ffdshow, that little double-F icon that appears next to the system clock, when encoding). If so, maybe u have to check which options are checked in audio settings in ffdshow. Maybe there's a normalize option checked, maybe an amplitude or postprocessing setting... Disable any of these settings if you find them. If you get lost on this, if I can i'll post some screenshots tonight.
**Traducido: Bueno...Si ya has puesto el RH1 en su configuración de fábrica y todavía te da por culo, quizá pueda tener que ver con el proceso de codificación previo a la transferencia. Pregunta para los sabios: Utiliza aún el Sonicstage v4.2 (supongo que tienes ese) el sistema de filtros de directshow durante la recompresión? (para la mayoría, esto redirige a ffdshow, ese iconito que sale de una doble F cuando sonicstage pone que está "encoding" una canción). Si es así, tienes que mirar qué opciones están marcadas en la configuración de audio de ffdshow, A lo mejor tienes activa alguna opción de normalización, o quizá alguna opción de amplitud o postprocesado. Si encuentras alguna de esas opciones, desactívalas. Si te pierdes en lo que digo luego por la noche si puedo posteo alguna screenshot.
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no timonoj... NetMD downloads (from PC to MD through USB in NetMD-mode) are still non-uploadable as far as all the testers that have posted their results here (including Richyu etc.) have determined... please test such a thing before posting as this could give false hopes to ppl who come and complain afterwards that they got incorrect info from MDCF
Ok, ok...sorry...I thought I could.
DVD Jon Strikes back! This time might come handy for Sony users
in Software
Posted
DVD Jon has created a new tool that is supposed to make all the transfers between the different devices you have completely transparent. It is supposed to get rid of all kind of DRM protections. It also mentions devices such as PSP and Walkman mobiles. I'm at work right now, but it might come handy for minidiscs, as well...Anyone wants to give it a try? The download is already available.
http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9873241-7.html