e1ghtyf1ve

Yes, it works fine, I'm doing this myself. The WAV files are plain vanilla, to do with as you wish, and are not "tainted" by Sony in any way. Cheers

I figured it out... Cheers Hey, what do you expect from a guy with an IQ of 85?

Some decks have been using 24-bit converters for some time. 24-bits are pretty cheap now, you know!

That's very interesting, but I don't see what malfunctioning/stuck buttons have to do with a completely dead NH900. The HiMD units should wake up on disk insertion regardless, or?

No, it's my fault for not making myself clearer: While I hold the device (made of plastic or metal, no matter) in my hand, I briefly touch the metal case of the computer just before I make the USB connection. This way any high voltage static build-up gets discharged through the case to ground, and not through the CPU via the USB port. If the modern CPU 'brains' of your HiMD device gets zapped, it will be permanently destroyed. The device will seem completely dead because, well, it is, just like the poor NH900. I have a habit of doing this when making any electrical signal connection, including S/PDIF. We were well taught back in the day... By the way, the inputs could be hardened better - consumer device manufacturers choose not to for some reason Cheers

These sorts of things seem to turn up on a regular basis. Did you know that one of the most common causes of Sudden Death Syndrome for both Palm and Pocket PC PDAs has been static discharge from the computer when connecting the USB device? Zap! I wouldn't be surprised if some Net/Hi-MD portables out there met their untimely demise in a similar manner. It hasn't happened to one of my toys yet, knock on wood. I make sure that the computer, myself, and my precious devices are well grounded before a USB connection is made. Just a thought...

If you are in the US, go to any Circuit City, Fry's, CompUSA, Magnolia AudioVideo or even Radio Shack. You can get decent headphones for less than $40.00, the Sennheisers for example are not bad at all.

One quick note: If you do decide to buy an RH10 (great little deck) make sure you can return it hassle-free. The reason I'm saying this is that there appear to be two hardware revisions of the RH10 that I know about. The first ones had problems with titling the tracks (missing letters, a minor problem) and a few had the volume keys occasionally crossing circuits with the search button. I had to exchange my RH10 at the local brick and mortar store due to these reasons. My second RH10 has performed flawlessly for about 150 hrs so far.

Understood. Then you are after all in the right place! SS v3.3 really isn't so bad in my opinion. I use iTunes every day and on a modern fast PC both software packages work similarly. Well, I was able to do many hours of side-by-side comparisons. If I were truly that demanding I would only stick to my 24-bit DAT and HD recorders. Thanks for clearing up your intentions. It sounds like you are set for some great recordings with the Sennheisers and Presonus. Have fun! Cheers

I'm glad you asked! The answer is no. I believe this is a good thing, and here's why. I've never heard a good mp3 hardware recording (I also had an Archos Jukebox). I've tried iRiver and Creative Nano plus as well. A good Lame/Ogg/WMA(!) encoding at similar bitrates will beat them hands down. I suggest you record using PCM or Hi-SP 256k ATRAC3+, then encode for best sonic results. I'm assuming of course that you are trying to record music or nature sounds/sound effects. If it's just voice, take a look at a cheap Olympus DM-10. Also, if you plan on recording live, invest in good microphones - they will make all the difference. Cheers

Very true. That depends on how much control you want over the bit rates. You will find that you'll need good mp3 encoding software anyway. USB 2.0 is much faster than Hi-MD USB 1.1, but the cards cost 5 to 10 times more than Hi-MD blanks. I own[ed] them and compared them to my HD 24-bit and Hi-MD recorders - I found their analog (mic, line) performance to be lacking. ...and don't forget the media costs. You will probably have to send it in. I noticed that as well. The Microtrack is not much better. The Hi-MD recorders are not made like the old Japanese-made MD tanks, but are much better quality (Malaysia). If you are lucky like me you can buy and try. If it's too junky you can return it... Cheers

As greenmachine said, Sony has gradually lifted the restrictions. The important key here is that you must download Sonic Stage 3.3 - it will not come with the recorder when you purchase it.

I've been in a similar situation. I've looked far and wide. Hi-MD was the only solution I could come up with, and it's the only reason I came back to MD. I currently own 24-bit HD recorders, and imagine my surprise that the little RH(9)10 can almost keep up with them using my M-Audio DMP3 preamp to line-in. This wasn't always possible, as I had to get the "feel" of the input levels first. Heck, even using the built-in mic preamps gives unexpectedly good results. It's all about microphones, their placement, and the adjustments you make. Many, if not most, of the local radio stations switched to MD from DAT 2 or 3 years ago. They couldn't be all wrong. Cheers

Our RH10s and RH910s produce identical noises as you describe above. Seeking is normal, especially with the short tracks. Cheers

Holy cow, somehow it must've really snagged hard. Those magnetic heads ride on two rails. Goes to show just how careful one needs to be when inserting discs! Ouch...

Please use the standard white lithium grease. It's often available at your local electronics supply shop. Never use mineral oil based greases, it can break the plastic parts! Cheers

Mono isn't so bad for speech, you know.

A quick search of this forum yields: You can only play MPEG1, not MPEG2 mp3 files such as those from BBC. So you need to convert, and when you do, make sure the resulting mp3 files conform to the specifications listed in your MZ-RH10 manual.

My posts were exclusively revolving around the mic/line recording functions, and that's all. As players only, it's patently obvious MD/Hi-MD can't compete with the other formats. I didn't realize I had to spell it out, but there it is. I'll try to make it simple: The new iRivers and iPods etc. have these great color screens and other new "features," but iRiver and others have clearly reduced or gotten rid of the recording functions for their newest models. Creative's 4-bit format is just barely good enough for voice notes, so I can't count that. This is my point, folks: It seems to me that recording options are getting less and less available. The few (one, actually) options are horrendously crippled. This is what's frustrating me, nothing else. I posted my thoughts on why the manufacturers are doing what they are. Others here have different theories. Best Buy is just following the trend, I think we all agree on this. Question: Can someone give me any alternatives to Hi-MD pocket recording with similar budget limits? A year or two ago, this would have been easy to answer. But now? ObrenMasic, I never take posts personally, so no apologies are necessary. I was just curious about your post which seemed to say that you got suckered into MD by a friend who you later dumped. I was wondering why you didn't dump these forums as well... Thanks for the clarification. You are of course not a troll, I was referring to a part of your post only. Sparky191, I'm puzzled as to why you say MD is old technology. Could you clarify this? I'm thinking about these facts: Hard Drives: IBM, 1955 Flash Memory: Toshiba, 1984 Magneto-optical: NeXT, 1987 (Steve Jobs! ), Sony MD Magneto-optical DWDD: Sony, 2004 (this is amazing, bleeding edge tech by any standards), Hi-MD Sure, players should and can decode AAC, Ogg, etc. But can they record in this format? Some consumers love recording - look at all the cassette recorders sold (ugh). My iRiver iFP-899 records at 160kbps MP3 stereo from mic-in to FAT formatted flash, and 320kbps MP3 with the crippled non-UMS firmware. The T30 is a major step backward in my opinion: no stereo mic-in, limited low quality line-in recording, and here in the US at least no UMS option, only MTP. No radio either! Same price as the iFP-899. Other manufacturers are following the trend. People will buy tons of these, because there's no other option, and that's that. Again, thanks for a great debate! Cheers

Exactly! Encoding schemes are constantly improving...

Now there's a can of worms. Read this: PDF comparison of MD with the Microtrack Remember that is with old-style MD, not the new Hi-MD recorders. New firmware might fix some, but not all of these problems: recorder freezing when you least expect it, level meters malfunctioning, noisy mic inputs, phantom power much less than the standard 48V (watch those mics), plastic surrounding SPDIF jacks too tight to fit many cables (get the saw), battery charging issues (malfunctioning battery indicator, non-replaceable battery). [Quick Edit: I must remember to name my sources more often. The problems I have listed are condensed from http://www.taperssection.com/ (reg. req.) a great resource for amateur and semi-pro recordists.] 1GB CF cards (fast) are still priced 10x more than 1GB Hi-MD (slow). Other than these little issues, the MT2496 is great! Cheers

Dude, you gotta learn how to read: "Well I think the name says it all. Bets buy is what an MD is not. I bought into the MD back in 1997 on the encouragement of a former friend, (havent forgiven him for suckering me into MD)." Win what? There is a world of information out there on this, not written by me. Try Google. Funny thing you should mention this. Government?! We really haven't been keeping up on current events, have we? Here ya go: CNET But I forgot, you can't read or watch the news, you might be watching "Conspiracy Theory." Thanks for the good laugh! Cheers

You'll notice that I edited my response. But what is an obvious MD hater doing here? Trolling, that's what. As to the iRiver: Terrific specs. I would've bought it instead of Hi-MD, had I known about it. Argh! But - it's gone, as is the JB3, as is the Archos model (also runs Rockbox, forgot the model number), etc. etc. It's too late for me now. I don't want to risk buying a used hard drive recorder on eBay. I'm not a Sony fanboy. For my recording needs on the go, without paying an arm and a leg, Hi-MD was the only economical choice in mid-2005. I remembered how great my MZ-R50 was back in 1997, so I figured I'd have another go. My main recording rig is the industry standard Apple Mac platform, Pro Tools, and BIAS Peak. When using a Windows PC, I edit using Adobe Audition (latest release), not Sonic Stage. I use iTunes every day and I love it. I also have to use Sonic Stage once in a while and it's not bad at all in my opinion. Back to the topic: The manufacturers will not go up against a media cartel (which includes Sony) and all the lawyers to provide consumers with easy, flexible, lossless recording options. It's simply not worth the risk, even though that would have given them a competitive edge on the iPod. Cheers

Nonsense - there is no substitute for research. MD declined long before there was an iPod to compare it to. Whee. I have two questions: 1. If you hate MD, why are you trolling these forums? 2. Congratulations on your iRiver. I wonder why it is no longer being sold? Hmm...

Well, for the reasons and sources linked to by my and other member's previous posts, including real experts, I believe that is a massive oversimplification. There is no substitute for research and careful reading. If you have evidence to the contrary, feel free to share. Well, I'll leave that as an exercise for the reader - I won't get drawn into a debate over something so obvious. Big hint: Read about it on the forums over at Mistic River You will read that DRM has everything to do with UMS - it precludes it, much to the chagrin of new owners. I notice that Samsung and Creative are going down the same path. But I leave finding the evidence to you - it should be easy. I won't do it for you this time... Cheers PS rei-gouki got it - and has posed a great question!