KJ_Palmer

They've (Sony) already done it - in the B10, and the B100, and B50,...

Actually, the N707 does have a mic-in. The line-in could also be used with a powered mic (or normal mic + battery box/pre-amp) with potentially better results... I voted Black/Red. I'd love to have had one in this colour, but they don't do them here (UK), so I got the blue/silver instead, which is still very nice. The White/Silver would have been a no-no as far as I'm concerned. The NF520D and 420D are standard NetMD downloaders only, so no line-in, let alone mic-in. Low-end, don't know the differences, but with Hi-MD looming, don't really want to know. I guess Sony are keeping a foot in the door of std-MD, just in case Hi-MD flops... Sorry, here's some info: MZ-NF420D MZ-NE410 MZ-NF520D Cheers

A cleaner might help. I have a TDK lens and head cleaner, which I've used once or twice on a portable, though not on a deck as yet. The laser read head on your deck might be getting weak or simply dirty, so a slight imperfection on the disk which might pass unnoticed on a newer machine could be picked up on the deck. Anyway, a cleaner is worth a try, it seems to have done the trick for my portable. A qualified service person might be able to give the laser a proper clean though, if need be.

Caselogic MD holders, and most of those made by other makers have a sewn in belt strap, so the case can't come off, unless your belt falls off (!). Overall, I prefer the Sony 'leather' case to others I've tried - it's especially useful for clipping a remote to the side. And the drawstring bag you get with the higher-end models is just plain awful.

SBG, I'd say at the moment I'm most impressed by Auvi of all the recent sonic developments for immediacy through headphones. Maybe Sony's HD digital amp will prove even better. I'm still a Sony man at heart basically though - the flat line-out of the higher end models is the purest I've heard, and ultimately more satisfying IMO, than Sharps slightly bass-heavy approach. Do try the PX200 though, they're cute and comfortable. Probably good on a flight or train if you need a bit of isolation. The PX100 beat them for overall clarity, but aren't so comfy to wear I find.

If you pop over to London, SBG, I'll give you a demo. :smile: I actually prefer the MX300/400 style 4 pole buds that you get with the DR420 for listening on that machine. I've tried a few standard 3 poles with it, including the PX100, PX200 and PortaPros, and felt there was something lacking. Maybe Sharp have something in their claim about separation/clarity with these 1-bitters. Stevo. If you can afford a tenner (or whatever it is in Euros), I'd say give the MX300 a try, you won't be losing much. True, they don't give much isolation, but if you must use them while motorcycling that's surely not a bad thing for you and other road-users (OK, lecture over :wacky: ). And they're much better than any Sony stock buds. Use the foam-pads (and get some spares) and they'll fit snugly and not fall out. I believe the foam pads help bring the bass out too, but then I'm not much of bass fiend..

I have occasionally used this stuff called "Sticky stuff remover" for removing label residues from floppy disks and once a plastic CD player. It works amazingly well and leaves a clean smooth surface, then you can wipe any residue off with warm water. Haven't tried an MD yet, but it should work, it's supposed to safe on plastics. You might be able to get some in a local hardware store...

You can, however use the new Hi-MD's to re-format existing (standard) MD blanks for use in the new machines. This actually doubles the capacity of the disks, so you'll get over 5 hours of LP2 quality music, and so on. But you won't be able to use any Hi-MD formatted disks in current MD units, but at least you won't need to throw away any of your blanks.

No I am afraid not, this is the same situation as your MZ-S1, re. no microphone input. The cheapest current Sony portable with a microphone input is the N710.

I'd lean more toward the NH900 myself. Slightly more traditional styling, and the black model looks appealing to me. Don't need the radio (of the 800) as I have a small protable digital radio that would doubtless be better. Of course the NH1 is sleeker, and more robust being full metal-bodied, but replaceable gumsticks/AA suit me better than Li-Ion. Given that the NH900 has almost all of the most important features of the NH1, and is $100 cheaper, I'd say that would be the "high-end" Hi-MD to go for, and perhaps wait for a later generation Nh1 equivalent.

George, my newest portable MD recorder is the Sharp IM-DR420. It has one of these newly developed 1 bit digital amps, and I must say I'm very pleasantly surprised with it's performance. It really is crystal clear. I like the Sonys too, but I think for now that the latest Sharps (at that price) have the state of the art MD sound. Sharps are also generally better regarded for live recording than Sonys too. The only thing I'd mention is the the new Sharps don't have such a great line out - the digital amps seem to have halved the power of previous models. A Sony might be better if you want to 'transfer' (ie. record) your MD recordings to another medium.

You just need an MD recorder with a built in mic-in jack. I don't know if these are available in your area (or price range), but look out for the Sharp IM-DR420 or Sony MZ-N710. Of course any older recorders with a microphone input would be fine too, such as the Sony MZ-N707, R700. But be sure it can use a microphone before you buy (and don't trust sales staff to know).

I'd also recommend the Sony MDS-EX71SL. You can buy them in Dixons for about £35 (I take it you're in the UK). They give fairly good isolation and have good bass. I use them with my even lower output D-EJ2000 CD player, and they're very good.

In fact most MD headphone outs double as a line output for connection to external devices. Only the higher end Sonys (eg. N10, N910), but all (I believe) Sharps are properly impedence matched for line out. The Sonys have a line out mode (menu selectable), the Sharps by setting the volume to maximum.

Yes, you should never really use AGC for music (that matters) - the natural dynamics (loudness/softness) of the music will be lost with the MD constantly compensating. Stick to a constant (manual) level, as the sound engineers should have already got the right balance on an album as a whole. Of course if your music is all loud or all soft you might not be able to detect the levels changing very much.

While my home separates setup is by no means at the high-end of the audiophile spectrum, I do all of my recording via decks, in real time without going anywhere near a computer. I started minidisc with the JE640 deck and am now onto the JB980, and in the meantime got myself a Pioneer CD recorder. I certainly prefer MD as a recording medium and for portable use over CD, and at least on my budgety-end home equipment the differences in sound quality are minimal - unnoticeable really. The plus points of MD in this setup are editablity (no such thing as an MD 'coaster') and rewritability (CD-RW is not worth the effort in my book), and flexibility (MDLP can be quite handy sometimes). The HiMD format will sort out the 'lossy' issue, hopefully there'll be some good high-end decks available soon. Even without that I would still have used MD as it is for a long while to come, perhaps with a high end deck like the JA333ES. Cheers

Certainly the N707 if you might want voice recording later (the N505 doesn't have a microphone input). It's a little better built than the N505 too, a better LCD remote control and has customisable bass and treble settings. A nice mid-level recorder, but yes, see if your friend will drop the price a little (as it's an older machine etc) ....

Yes, they're the top range, with a handy volume control. Don't know if you have Richer Sounds in the Republic of Ireland, but if so they should stock 'em . If you're interested in small overhead phones, I could also suggest the PX100 or PX200 (also by Sennheiser)...

It's normal for an MD to take some time during the TOC Edit / Data Save phase. It depends how long you mean by "very long". I don't have the N10, but I haven't noticed that the process takes longer than about 20 seconds on my units.

Kevs, yes I agree about that SCMS is too restrictive and undiscerning when it comes to material you own for personal use. The bottom line is that the record companies/hi-fi don't care about us, just their own interests. I think all home CD burners (decks) have SCMS protection. I've owned a few (including a dual deck Philips) and they all did. I think most/many PC soundcards don't do SCMS, so perhaps you could master your recordings onto CD that way and use a soundcard with an optical out for dubbing initially - tedious as you say. Copy protected CD's are becoming very "popular" nowadays, though I think most if not all have some sort of warning on the box - or at east are not allowed to display the "CD" standard logo.

All home "consumer" digital recorders use SCMS protection, but there are so-called "professional" decks which allow you to bypass SCMS. Sorry, I don't have any details, but I think they are rather more expensive than home decks. Alternatively, you could get an SCMS killer such as the Midiman CO3 from Sound Professionals, which isn't cheap either, or just good old analogue recording (with decent cables).

Hi, yes, well they fit very comfortably in my ears, though some people have said they don't like the fit. They're a bit smaller I'd say than the Sony stock buds. I use the foam pads that come with them, and they help keep them in place. I get replacement foamies from HMV. Over here, MX300 = £10, MX400 = £15, MX500 = £20 in the shops, EX71 = £35, but all probably cheaper if you can get them online. By the way, Sharp portables get the MX300 as their bundled earphones...

Hello. My favourite replacement earbuds are the Sennheisser MX series - mostly MX300 for cheapness and utility, but the MX400 and MX500 are of slightly better quality. I also use the popular Sony MDR-EX71 (inner earbuds) for isolation, but overall I prefer the Senns.

Sad to say, but it doesn't really surprise me . Any idea if the rest of the world will be put back from a June release?

It's a tough choice. I'd like them both. Well, I've already got the 420, but as the N910 has joint text capabilities, nice screen, high end features it would be high on my shopping list if it weren't for Hi-MD...