richm

I've encountered this. Sorry for the bump thread, mods, I'm not sure if it's a forum faux pas, as I've not posted for well over a decade. The MZ-N10 I bought new (about 2002 maybe), had this problem a few months after purchase. I sent it back under warranty to have it fixed, it came back, then after over a year of use the same thing happened, this time out of warranty. If I remember correctly MD recorder was sent back with the repair notes which stated the mainboard had been changed. A few months ago I decided to dig out my MD recorders after frequenting r/minidisc on Reddit, and see if they worked. By some miracle the battery on the N10 still worked (as did the battery on my mint MZ-NH1), despite neither being used since 2006, so I have been playing around with them ever since. I am able to transfer music to my NH1 in NetMD mode, but can't with the same PC, driver, cabling to the N10, it briefly flashes PC--MD on the screen when unplugging cable, but that's all, that applies connecting directly to the unit or through the dock. So it's possible the chip that governs USB connectivity in my N10 is faulty; that's my take on it.

I'm not sure about specific problems with that specific Network Walkman, but I have troubleshot a lot problems with various USB peripherals over the years. I experienced a similar problem with my venerable NW-HD5H where Windows (XP in my case at the time) refused to detect the HD5 properly where it had done before. I ended up uninstalling all the USB controllers in "Device Manager" then restarting the machine, this fixed it. This does have the unfortunate consequence of rendering USB keyboard and mice useless until after the reboot, so a PS/2 keyboard is needed, but all the USB peripherals should be redetected after the reboot. Poor detection of USB peripherals can also caused by dust in the USB plugs or the sockets, I clean them with compressed air. Happens sometimes with my PSP. You may have dodgy USB controllers, my current Intel board has rock solid reliability for USB, whereas my old nForce 2 was a little bit flaky in regards to USB.

I don't see how the HD5 can have a cradle. The USB port and the DC-In are both at the top behind a cover, you would need a flying lead or two for those connections unless the player sits on it's right side.

The NW-HD5H is also available in Europe, well at least in the UK... and with earphones.

I have come to this conclusion myself, thanks all.

Thanks for your quick responses, but I need a little more certainty whether these units offer 256kbps before putting my hand in my pocket. I did come to the same conclusions by searching through SonicStage 3.2, the Sony UK site and doing a lot of googling, but I've found nothing firm. Thanks.

Does anybody know what Atrac3plus bit rates are supported by Sony's in-car CD tuner range? I'm interested in purchasing a CDX-F5550, CDX-R3350 or a CDX-R6650 but there is no mention in the respective manuals what the supported bit rates are, Atrac3plus or MP3. I feel I'm pretty safe in assuming that Atrac3 LP2 and LP4 are supported and Atrac3plus 48kbps and 64kbps since they are pretty old, but a bit poor for my tastes. But what of 256kbps and the new fangled bit rates? Thanks.