andysnap

Like KJ I find my HD3 (v.cheap Sony refurb, from eBay seller) very convenient for out n about, taking up next to no space in my camera bag, but I do find the sound quality from my NH-1 to be just that little bit better, just a little more clearly defined, a touch cleaner. And the NH1 is a very, very lovely thing . . . . the HD3 just a hard drive music player Andrew

Wow, very interesting to see 'the first' . . .and to think that the evolution of the technology ended (before moving on to HiMD) with the ultra slim E10! Andrew (my first MD was MZN-710, now NH-1)

I bought a spare li-ion battery from a Hong Kong based eBay seller for a very reasonable price. The battery certainly appears to be OEM, as described by the seller. The battery life is excellent on my NH1, so the spare is just that . .just in case. The NH1 is superb, you won't regret buying one!! Aren't they very cheap from Minidisc Australia at the moment? Andrew

I've just transfered Kate Bush's superb new double album, Aerial, at ATRAC3+256kps. I normally encode at lower rates, so the sound quality at 256k is just amazing! Since Kate has spent 6 years making her album with utmost care for recording quality, I thought the least I could do was transfer it to MiniDisc at a top quality setting. Andrew

This has indeed been 'debated' at length in other posts, but as I own both minidisc models, my brief summary answer would be NH1 - beautifully made, real quality, and very compact. But it has a unique USB plug, and uses exclusive li-ion batteries, with no add-on AA battery pack. Also has a very minimal lcd screen on the unit, and really needs the very good remote. I'm delighted with my NH1 NH900 - compared to the NH1, feels ordinary, but is nicely made by any other standards. Has useful 'jog wheel' and good lcd screen on the unit, and has a standard miniUSB plug. Neither the RH10/910 better the above, other than the oled screen, so I'd say go for an NH1 if you can find one at a good price . . . it'll never be repeated again. regards Andrew

Wow, $900! I've just paid £85 for my 'boxed as new' s/h NH1. How technology has plummented in price. If only Sony had priced their MD players lower from the beginning, maybe the Pods would never have happened . . . Andrew

You could always set the 600 to play and record in NetMD mode, then you can use Hi-MD format as and when you feel like using it . . . . see Disc Mode in the options menu. As for your point about Hi-MD compatibility, surely this is a recording format like WMA, MP3 or AAC - after all, you can't play an iTunes AAC file on a WMA player! But at least you can play both NetMD and hi-MD on the NH600 Andrew

Well after some thought, and reading other posts, I've just voted for the NH1 over the 900 (both of which I own). I think the NH1 is a really special unit, in design, construction, engineering, and of course, specification. If it had a larger screen, and the 900's jogwheel, well that would be perfection! The 900 has everything anyone could want in an MD unit, and at a great price -compared to the price of the NH1. No wonder NH900 owners are very happy with them (including me!). I'm glad these two units are quite rightly battling for 'victory'. The others don't come close. But the NH1 edges all others, a special piece of Sony design, despite its flaws, which won't be repeated again I reckon. Andrew

I bought a 1450mh battery from this eBay seller, only a fiver new. Working fine in my NH900. . . http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/GP1450-Gumstick-Mini...1QQcmdZViewItem I'm curious about another post that these higher power batteries shouldn't be charged in the NH900. Why please?? Andrew

I bought an NH-1, upgrading from an MZN710, and whilst I thought it was superbly made and neatly designed with real 'wow' factor, I was disappointed by exactly these same drawbacks. I sent it back to Amazon, and bought an NH900, a great all rounder. I also found a cheap, mint E10 on eBay, and then a bargain HD3, to add to my Sony collection. A fine trio, and I enjoy owning and using each of them(sorry about the HD3 folks ) But I came to miss the sleek NH1, for all its faults(not many really), and have just bought one again. I'm loving it! I think it really is a special design, unlikely to be repeated now Sony have 'gone plastic' But as to which one is best . . . .hmm, very tricky. The slinky NH1 or the do-all NH900? Horses for courses, as they say! I look forward to reading some more opinions before I cast my vote! Andrew

Sony's ability to shoot themselves in the foot, after launching leading edge technology, is astonishing. The Minidisc was popular long long before Pods appeared - every student in the UK seemed to have one, even when they cost twice as much as they do now. And Sony did nothing to promote MD when Pods started taking over . . . Even now, they launch the PSP, using a close relative of the Minidisc, but stupidly just different enough to be very different and totally incompatible. Sony Ericsson launch new music playing mobile phones . . which don't support ATRAC, but Apple's AAC!! Crazy. Come on Sony, you're clever people, but seemingly can't join the dots . . . . . . Andrew

Well, I've just gone and bought an NH1 again! It really did have a 'special' quality that I don't think will get repeated now Sony are apparently making only plastic cased MD units. Andrew

Thats an interesting point, which has yet to be answered in real life use . . how long will hard disc music player work for before failing. And then what happens to your 5 -60 Gb of music? Another point in favour of Minidisc players is they are just so cheap at the moment. A Hi-MD Nh600 will only cost around £70-80, and is infinitely expandable. Just buy more MDs. An iPod, or any other hard disc player is quite an investment of your hard earned cash, so do you really need 5 - 60Gb of storage/music? I have both Sony MD players (E10 and Nh900), and a Sony HD3 20Gb hard disk player, and think the MD is more 'fun' (recording CDs to MD discs, making compilations, carrying only those collections I want to listen too . .) while the HD3 is useful for carrying 'everything', but even using a few of the 20Gb available is a huge amount of music, so I feel I could be recording to it forever!(yawn) And hard disk players require you to copy the CDs to your computer hard drive first before transfering (just watch your computer 'fill up'!), while Minidiscs can use Simple Burner, to just rip the CD direct onto your MD. My conclusion . . . go for a cheap MD first, and see how you 'use' your portable music and how much music you actually want to carry with you. Then later, if you find you do need huge capacity, look at a Sony HD player. They're only getting cheaper per Gb, and you could transfer any Minidisc ATRAC files stored on your computer straight onto your Sony HD player. Whatever, enjoy your music! Andrew

Ah! Thanks Ishi, well IMHO, Sony and Canon make the best digicams. Just a shame I have a Nikon D2h for my work, instead of the Sony chipped D2x! Sorry, going way off thread . . . Andrew

Excellent pics indeed, Ishi! I own an E10, but your pics make it look even better! What camera do you use? The images look like they were shot on a Sony digicam . . Sony digicam pics have a 'clean' and accurate colour rendition . . much like ATRAC3+ for photos Andrew

Was the 'Hi-MD E10' the NH1? Certainly seems to have alot of the character and style of the E10, although not as slim (what could be?) its maybe the more practical for that. Andrew

Thanks for that. Off with the clamps!! . . . . on the remote lead anyway, just gets in the way. Seems reasonable to leave 'em on the USB lead, even if the cord which came with my NH900 has no less than three clamp filters on it! Andrew

Can anyone tell me what the clamp filters on all cables to my NH900 are for? In particular, the filter attached to the remote - I find the filter, although small, to be annoyingly space consuming in the CaseLogic and LowePro cases I use. I never got round to fitting the supplied clamp filter onto the remote cable of my old MZ710, with no apparent ill effects, and would like to remove the same filter on my NH900. thanks Andrew

I bought an FM transmitter, from an eBay seller, and was disappointed by the sound quality . . I shouldn't be surprised it makes a Minidisc player sound like a cheap, mono FM radio. Only cost me a few quid so it was a cheap experiment. I've used a cassette adapter in a previous car, and was quite impressed by the sound quality, certainly much better than the transmitter. The major problem with both is the battery drain on the Minidisc, which is a bit of a pain. Andrew

Hmm, pronounced as in 'attractive'? I still think many Minidisc owners use the Ay -trac pronunciation, maybe because we are accustomed to saying eM Pee Three. Somehow a distict first syllable 'sounds' better. Or maybe there is just a cross-Atlantic difference, like many other words. Andrew

. . . .and then we could go on to ponder whether we should say SO-nee, or Son-EE . . . Andrew (for work I use a Nikon, not Ny-kon!)

Mercedes trying to make Mercs' young, hip and coool! Or is it anti-road rage music? Still I say fair play to MB for making a 100mb, 15 track, MP3 compilation available for free! Takes a bit of crunching into ATRAC for sticking on a minidisc though! Andrew

This is just what I've found with my new HD3. Not to be able to use Simple Burner with a multi Gb hard drive ATRAC player seems to me to be another of those examples of Sony's product madness, which lets the likes of Apple appear to be so much better sorted The speed and ease of CD transfer via Simple Burner was a major plus point with my new NH900. Come on Sony, get Network Walkmans on Simple Burner too! Andrew

Good to see that Sony continue to support Minidisc, and bring out new and improved products, in the face of the omnipresent Pods. Now if only Sony would make an effort to promote them . . . . . . Andrew

I've just changed my trusty MZ710, for a Hi-MD NH900, and this week an HD3 as well. Firstly, I really noticed the improved sound quality from the 900, and of course, it's backwardly compatible with my existing LP2 recordings. So from this alone, I would say get a Hi-MD unit, and enjoy the best of old and new. I've also found that Simple Burner program can transfer those annoyingly copy protected music CDs over to MD, in either LP2/4 or Hi-MD ATRAC, which is very handy! As for the HD3, the 20gb capacity is astonishing, and the unit itself is second only to the 'Pod in clean design, smaller than a Pod too. I've found it to be very well made, as can be expected from Sony, though the feel of a hard drive spinning up, and working, is a little stange. Downsides are the lack of remote, the required little docking adaptor for charging and usb connection, and the sound quality which I find just a little less 'rich' than that from the MD. I find that I like having 'compilations' of artist or music style on minidisc, and also having lots of favourite music on the HD3, and I use each depending on the circumstance, eg the HD3 for work when I don't want to carry discs around, and the NH900 when I do want to have my compilation discs, and have bag to carry them in. Don't forget also the recording capability of an MD unit, whereas the HD3 is just a music player and no more. Enjoy your new MD and/or HD3! Andrew