navsimpson

Yeah, the disparities in pricing are strange. Although I kinda' understand why the PS3 is more expensive (i.e. labour, gas and materials are more expensive, so it costs more to get it out) I don't understand why the NW-A800 can be priced at parity with the iPod in one region and not another. While the actual amounts should differ, shouldn't the comparison to other products remain the same? I'm curious to see what happens here in Canada - if Sony actually advertise it, then they might actually see their market share go up quite a bit. -Nav

Depends on exactly what you're transferring. If they unprotected ATRAC files or MP3s or AAC files, then you can just copy them onto some form of removable storage and move them over. I'm not sure if you could copy the files onto a CD though - I don't own a PS3, so I can't test it. Copy protected files you've purchased - or ATRAC files made with the 'copy protection' button checked (likely made in earlier versions) - won't work. Sorry I can't be of more help. -Nav

Has anyone gotten this to work? To be honest, I haven't tried yet, but I have a slow computer and transcoding takes forever, so I was curious to know if anyone had tested this yet. -Nav

That's tough to say, because sound quality is such a subjective thing. Many people say that ATRAC 64kbs is fine, while others say that it's unlistenable. I tend to fall in the latter camp, but that doesn't really mean much. Why not just test it with a few tracks you know well and see how that goes. One thing to keep in mind is that when converting to ATRAC, you are compressing the file twice - once to get to an MP3 (whether or not you ripped it yourself) and then once to get to ATRAC. That can often have more of an impact than the actual bitrates you choose. -Nav

AAC and WMA files that you've created on your own, or simply have no DRM, will play on the NWA800 series. What it can't do is PlaysforSure and Fairplay tracks. -Nav

Or maybe it isn't awful - if it starts things going like PSP movie downloads etc, then I might be okay living with it for a bit, until it quickly gets cracked. Anyway, here's the link from Engadget. http://www.engadget.com/2007/03/25/sony-de...new-clefia-drm/ -Nav

Basically, no. The new nw-a800 series has DSEE built-in, but those are the only models that do. Sorry! -Nav

Whoops! Sorry - didn't know about that one. Let us know how it works. -Nav

You're kinda' stuck, unfortunately. A less than ideal solution that will, however, still work would be to burn the iTunes tracks to cd and re-rip in ATRAC or MP3. The sound quality will be degraded, but if you want to listen to these tracks on the go, that's pretty much your only (legal) option. -Nav

The only way I know of to do this would be to save your ATRAC files as WAVs (which I'm pretty sure you can do in 3.4) and then use another program - CDex for example - to convert from WAV to MP3. Do keep in mind that you are compressing the music twice and are therefore degrading the sound quality twice. -Nav

While a given track is playing, press and hold either up or down for a couple of seconds to bookmark it. Unbookmarking works the same way. Be sure to let the player turn off on its own or use the menu button - if you turn it off using the switch on the bottom, the bookmark won't be saved. -Nav

The 256 or 352 option refers to accompanying lossy file - when you rip in AAL, Sonicstage produces both a lossless and a lossy file. This was largely done to make transfer easy and fast on devices that didn't support AAL. However, since the s706 would play the AAL file natively, I don't know if there's a way for you to transfer the lossy file rather than the lossless one. So, if you're listening to the lossless file, there will be no difference in sound, but there will be a minute difference in size. -Nav

Hmm... Videos formatted for the iPod (like the ones at cnnetv.com) do not play on the PSP. Does this mean that Sony is using this format to be more inclusive? Most video podcasts are done in the iPod compatible format. That certainly seems like another step in the right direction eh? Does anyone know which format psp.connect.com uses? -Nav

If I didn't have a player already, I would definitely consider the a800 series - probably the 2gb or 4gb model though. I figure you either get a player that does 10 or 20 albums, or one that does your entire collection. There is that tricky pricing issue though - if the 2gb is CDN$229, for only 70 bucks more, you can get a 30GB iPod Video. All that extra space (and iTunes versus Sonicstage) would be tempting. I think the sound quality of the Sony would still win out at the end of the day for me though - but maybe a Zen Vision would be a better deal. Still, I can't wait to see if the positive steps they've taken with this player also get made for a high capacity player. Also, given that the Connect store or something like it is probably headed over to the PS3, it's certain that some sort of video store is coming. -Nav

Apparently, for a Li-Ion battery, charging it before it gets depleted is best. Also, if the HD5 is anything like the HD3, the battery bar will go from full to 'one bar left' very quickly, but will last quite some time on that last bar. When all of my stuff was MP3s, the HD3 only lasted about 8 hours - so perhaps the HD5 will get 10? -Nav

There is no last.fm plugin for Sony software, as Sony tags aren't supported by last.fm and Sonicstage does not support plugins of any sort. I suggest you just rip your music in MP3 and only use Sonicstage when you want to transfer something to your device. -Nav

Just wanted to mention that the A800 isn't expensive at all - the CDN press release stated that it would be $169 for 2GB, $229 for 4GB and $299 for 8GB. That's exactly the same price as the nano, and it obviously does more than the nano. Also, I think the range of flash series players is a bit too much - would have been nice if the s70x series' benefits could have been transported to the a800 series. If Sony actually advertises these new players, I think they'll do quite well. -Nav

Seems like they snuck in those new E010x models without anyone noticing! They even have colour screens. And what's with the weird ATRAC bitrates on the A800s? Does this mean they won't support 192, 320, 352 etc? That seems like an odd choice. -Nav

Thanks for the link! So there it is! Still like it - am I nuts? They are, however, sticking with Sonicstage and Image Converter 3. I guess that means that there will be podcast/vodcast support, which is cool. Would have been nice if it were all integrated, but baby steps right. [EDIT] - Just noticed, it has DSEE built-in and also mentions something about drag n' drop - though it only says that in reference to video and photos, so it may not apply to music. Pretty damn cool though. Does anyone from the UK know how that sort of pricing compares to other players of that capacity? I noticed the 700 series has been dropped 50 quid. -Nav

JSP62 - No, if you plug an iPod into a PS3 or 360, you can play the files off the iPod. I'm not a 100% sure on this, but I think the iPod doesn't wrap music files in the same way that Sony ones do. Also, Aran - I thought you *could* play songs back from a Walkman. At least, that's what other people on the board have said. Perhaps you have to hit some button to bring up a directory structure and then go from there? -Nav

This is a snippet from 1up: "The goal is to have complete control over the devices interacting with your PS3, says Sony Computer Entertainment Europe spokesman Jonathan Fargher. "We're hoping to incorporate that functionality in the very near future -- from a local level at the moment to a global level probably within the next six months," said Fargher. "If I have my MP3 Walkman or my iPod, or digital camera connected to PS3 then I can access those devices too." What this seems to suggest is that the new video walkman (that was *not* announced at the 2007 line show!!!) might have some PS3 interactivity. 'Course, it also mentions the iPod, so it may not at all - but it's still an interesting idea, particularly if one could access content wirelessly or even over the 'net. Also - is there any point in us having a PS3 forum? Or would it get overrun with non-ATRAC discussion? -Nav http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3157547

Today is the 2007 Sony line show, so perhaps we'll hear some more news about Sony DAPs today... Even if we don't, should be good to hear more about the NW-A800.

What encoder was used to make the MP3s? Sonicstage has trouble with both Xing and FHG Guess encoders. Your first try should be to download a tag editor (like MP3 Tag Tools) and wipe and then redo the tags. -Nav

Hey, thanks guys! Who knew Badger and I were born on the same day? -Nav

Have you tried fully uninstalling Sonicstage as listed in the following thread? http://www.atraclife.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=6 -Nav