Avrin

Which SS version are you currently using? Only SS43 works with Vista.

Disable any Windows themes.

Not sure about ONKYO, but SONY RH910 and RH1 portables, when set at manual level 23, give you exacty the same level via optical in, as that of the original CD. What is happening in the modern CD world, is simply horrible. I usually pre-rip a CD into Adobe Audition, and look at the levels. If these are OK, then I simply rip the CD into SonicStage. But usually I have to use Audition to decrease the level by 1-2 dBs, export into WAVs, import these WAVs into SonicStage, encode them into ATRAC3plus, delete the WAVs, use CDDB (mostly works) and then transfer to the unit. Not a perfect solution, but at least it makes the music sound less horrible. If I create a collection from old and modern CDs, a bigger level decrease is sometimes required for modern ones. I would think that 22 or 21 on a SONY portable will do for such CDs. Again, I know nothing about ONKYO level scales.

Turns out you're right. The chip for Mic Amp & ADC in NH700&NH800, RH910&M10, RH1&M200 is AK5356VN-L. For other units it is easy to check with their respective service manuals. Just look for A/D Converter on schematic diagrams (you may use the search function). I may be somewhat misleading here. Yes, the digital signal obtained from the Mic or Line In via the ADC is the same for all units (neglecting possible analog noise differences resulting from different shielding, etc.). It will also be the same if recorded in LPCM. But ATRAC[[3][plus]] compression quality may actually be different, at least in some modes, because of different DSPs (and these actually ARE different in these pairs of units). Same as recording via optical.

I hope there'll be a RockBox for the new SONY players. Sooner or later. But not for the older ones, and never for [Hi-]MD.

I'd recommend the RH910, if you can lay your hands on it. Bought a 2-years old one exactly a month ago. Love its sound, and it is capable of recording with exactly the same quality as the RH1 (it has the same ADC chip), albeit with somewhat less convenience - it does not remember the settings, so you have to adjust them everytime you start recording. It is actually easy to make your hands remember the adjustment ritual (as I did with my camcorders). And its real playing time with the supplied internal (replaceable - mind that!) gumstick (900 mAh) + an alcaline GP AA in the supplied external sidecar is actually more than than the stated one. Though I tested it with a 2-years old gumstick. If you get an external GP charger with a pair of 1400 mAh gumsticks, you'll have trouble exhausting those even without a sidecar!

I'm afraid that it won't support any kind of ATRAC. SONY is now completely into WMA. Which is an even more closed format than ATRAC.

I'd rather prefer that they open the source. SONY, open the Magic Gate! There is nothing to lose, but so much to be gained!

Tried once more (following a similar discussion in a Russian forum). Setting the "Wave" volume slider on the PC to the highest position gives the original CD level on the optical output (regardless of the position of the "CD Player" volume slider, for an obvious reason). But trackmarks are still missing.

marcnet, I am really sorry that I forgot about your excellent program.

My theory is that the USB connection switches the unit to the USB mode, restarting the internal program and re-initializing some registers (which are not reset even after keeping the unit unpowered for a prolonged period of time). Then, after the USB connection is removed, the unit is again restarted and re-initialized in the normal mode.

1. Pushing FF five times in the Manual mode actually brings you to address 0113 used for regional settings. Both my RH1s have ***S03 (where *** change continuously) there. I set this myself, to remove the Eurocap (now both units think that they are in Japan). There is no way to set this address to anything like SS0001 2. To get to address 1113 from the Manual mode, you have to press Volume+, and then FF five times. Both my RH1s have SS00F1 there. Again, I see no easy way to set SS0001 there except by resetting the unit. Didn't you do anything at address 0111 by any chance?

Looks like these support wireless connection to a PC via the UWL-1 USB digital wireless system to transfer music files. But my Japanese is not as good as 10 years ago.

Looks like our world is getting really crazy!!! An ATRAC3[plus] to MP3 conversion tool is here: ftp://download.sony.com/US/portable/MP3CONVERSIONTOOL.EXE Also works with ATRAC Advanced Lossless, though I am not sure whether it uses the lossless part. Requires SS to be installed (it needs the OpenMG Secure Module to work). KEEPS TAGS!

Looks like it was a serious glitch, but with a really unusual happy end! Still, I wouldn't trust the unit for anything serious.

richyhu, this has nothing to do with NetMD, since HMA files are visible in Hi-MD mode only. CGC, most probably, something went wrong with your disc. There is no known way to extract anything directly from HMA files, since they are encrypted, and their exact structure is known only to SONY. Even more important, these files must be present on the original disc, in the order they were recorded initially - if you copy them to another disc, they'll be useless. Is the disc still playable on the unit it was recorded on? If yes, then you can do a realtime analog transfer to restore your records. And which version of SonicStage are you using? If it is too old to support Hi-MD, then simply upgrade to SS42, and try uploading again.

I meant that SonicStage is unable to analyze whether VBR files will play on a particular unit. It simply transfers all of them, even though some of them yield the CANNOT PLAY error.

ADDED: Turns out, SonicStage is completely unable to analyze VBR (variable bitrate) MP3s.

Looks like a real problem, but let it lie without the battery and AC supply for an hour, for a start. If this does not solve the problem, a good service-center will be good.

The process is explained elsewhere in the forums, but I'd rather advice that you don't. The volume limit on European RH1's is not that horrible as on second generation units. No other limits are imposed.

You may have one of the following two situations: 1. The operating system is cleanly reinstalled during the repair. In this case simply install SS42. 2. The computer is fixed, but the old operating system remains installed. In this case you'll have to remove the previously installed SS43. Look up in these forums and minidisc.org forums - there are instructions on removing SS, albeit somewhat outdated. In any case, you'll have to get rid of SS43 and any traces of it completely, before trying to install SS42. Pay special attention to removing the OpenMG Limited patch, since the SS42 installer does not remove it - this is a problem when upgrading from SS40, or downgrading from SS43.

Looking at the pictures, it doesn't seem like you'll be able to install a new battery - the power supply board connector gets damaged in the course of the removal procedure.

Trouble is that most cheap soundcards do not output the original digital signal from CD via optical out. The level of the signal is changed, and it does not contain trackmarks. Better use a cheap DVD player with an optical out.

Are you downloading on the same unit? SonicStage usually won't allow you to download a track that is not supported by the device. For example, you can not download MP3s to first generation or SP-hacked second generation units, and you can not download 48 kHz MP3s to second generation units. But if you use an RH1 to download, say, 48 kHz MP3s to a Hi-MD disc, and insert this disc into a seсond generation unit, it will show CANNOT PLAY. If you are downloading on the same unit, than the possible problem IS the bitrate, most probably - a variable bitrate. MP3 playback capability in second generation units is quite limited (in comparison to the RH1), and SonicStage can't control all encoding parameters to make sure the track will be playable.

Man, just stay where you are. Where we all are. You still have working devices, which support the format.