Avrin

The problem is I got my trusty RH10 destroyed in a service center (brought it in for laser adjustments, and they burned the main board). Got my money back, which was almost exactly the price of a new RH1 here (which suddenly dropped to $290). So I ordered a second RH1. But there is still that unexpected $350 bonus from last Friday occupying space in my wallet.

Got a call from the local SonyStyle today. Looks like in a week I'm gonna join the club of the happy owners of two RH1s! Both black. I actually almost bought a used silver one. But didn't like its state, and didn't like the looks. Ordered a second black one. Well, was it just a momentary lapse of reason or is the third one actually in my plans?

It does not work with HMA, OMA, or OMG.

Yes, these were your files from the first message that I tried. No crosstalk detected.

Just tried the above files on my RH1. I fed the unit's line out into my notebook via a really poor cable (designed for remote control, not audio). Even with this cable there was no noticeable crosstalk, if I can trust my ears and my eyes (in Adobe Audition). Same for the "Headphone" mode.

Just two facts in support (or refutation): 1. SONY Hi-MD team is still reworking the firmware of the RH1. Currently they are at 1.090. Do you remember any other [Hi]-MD unit with firmware being changed in time? This may mean that some development is taking place, and the RH1 is being as a testbed. (But then again this may mean that they have a person who just types increasing numbers into RH1 firmwares to keep minidisc.org people interested). 2. Since August 2006, sonystyle.ru used to offer the RH1 for ordering for a couple of hours every fortnight (or month). The item was unavailable any other time. Currently they have it available for ordering for five days continuously (for $290). Looks like a clearance sale to make room for a new one, or a change in the marketing strategy for the RH1. (But then again it may mean that they are making room for the NW-A808).

There was too much to change. A patch would have been the size of a full installer. So they released a new version instead. Full of new bugs. IMHO, the best version available now is 4.2. It has some improvements as compared to 4.0, and is really streamlined (no "Limited Patches", etc.) and stable.

I would advice against reconverting files, especially at such lower bitrates, since this definitely lowers their quality. The NW-E002F supports MP3s natively, so it is better to copy them as they are. But then again, it's up to your ears to decide on quality.

Officially the only new thing in 4.3 is Vista support.

Make sure you are logged in with Administrator privileges.

I would strongly advice against using iTunes and SonicStage to point to each other's libraries. These programs tend to update tags in files, and there is a chance (however slight) that this may render the files unplayable or untransferrable by the original program. Simply copy the library to wherever you want (like a local hard drive, or a network folder), and then import the files to the other program and transfer them to the required device. I also advice using SonicStage 4.2, and not 4.3, if your computer is not running Vista. As for copying over a network into SonicStage, use the "Import Music Files" command instead of "Import Folder" - it seems to work over a network (at least in 4.2). You can also drag files from Windows Explorer and drop them into SonicStage.

Never had a NetMD, but the bitrates to convert to, include only the time-tested and reliable ATRAC3 (without any 'plus'-es). And the bitrates that really can be transferred "as is" are 66 and 132 only. No user-updatable firmwares for a [Hi-]MD unit, sorry. After such an update (even if it existed), the unit will be reset completely. And not that many service centers around the world are able to adjust it back to a working state. For any money you may offer. Please, do not forget that flash, HDD, and other clever guys do not have to calibrate their mechanics, lasers, etc.

My 26-years old Technics SL-7 will forever be with me (though right now it needs a stylus replacement, which I am going to take care of in a couple of weeks). Especially in the wake of this: http://www.mindspring.com/~mrichter/dynamics/dynamics.htm - and things have got much worse since the article was written!

First, when doing all these adjustments, you need to have special calibration discs (one pressed non-rewritable MD, one rewritable MD, and one 1 Gb Hi-MD). Or else the unit won't let you get past the adjustments, since it is doing these automatically. In an emergency case, you may try using non-calibration (regular) discs, but you still have to have all three of these, and noone can guarantee the results. I'm still not sure about the error you have. If it is ERROR EE, this means a lot of trouble. There is an old Russian trick to cure ERROR EE ( http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?s=&am...st&p=100285 ), but I never actually tried it. Most probably after that procedure you'll get a chance to recalibrate your unit manually (the laser settings at addresses 0121-0124 and 0211-0216, some other settings, like power, may need calibration too). But I repeat - I've never tried this. And I'm not that good with service mode as it may seem.

The reason may actually be simpler. If you convert your MP3s into OMAs with a bitrate not supported by Hi-MD (like 96, 128, or 160 kbps), then the file is reconverted before transfer, and the reconverted copy is saved in Optimized Files. The default bitrate for the reconversion is actually 64 kbps!

Only starts with the unit off. See here: http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=18618

Of course, it may be impossible. But still I am 99% sure that it is possible. Who would beleive a month ago that the RH10 is capable of recording in true SP? Yet a single address adjutment - and it does this, though in a slightly limited way.

You don't have to program any sets of instructions - everything is most probably already programmed. The display is capable of showing anything - menus, startup animation, and those fancy spectrum analyzers. So it can easily show text info, if input the required data. And the processor has this information (it is not more stupid than that of the RH10). And as for menu items being disabled through service mode - we've already seen that on older models.

To make it easier to enter service mode on the RH1, put it on a desk with the display facing left. Or you may actually break your fingers.

ANYTHING can be changed in service mode. And I am 99% sure that it is possible to enable such things as trackname display, search menu, and equalizer settings on the main unit for the RH1. But only SONY knows which addresses need to be changed, and how. Service manuals are totally incomplete from this point of view. And there is nothing to compare the RH1 with.

I have a black RH1, and seriously considering buying a silver one. Almost impossible here for any money, but I don't give up my hope yet. Although I may probably end up buying another black one for my service mode experiments (and, YES, for the spare battery). And that $350 bonus last week seems really handy in this situation...

Very simply - by comparing the RH1 laser settings to those of my RH10. Everything was the same, except for MD reading laser power (address 0124), which was 0.20 mW higher. After decreasing it (by 0.40 mW actually), the READ ERRORs are gone for good.

vituar, giezzz, SonicStage 4.2 does not run under Vista. Only SonicStage 4.3 does. thejeepster70, Overzellas, your Windows Media components are most probably deleted or damaged. The SonicStage installer checks if these components are installed, and installs them if they are not. But it is unable to detect when these components are manually deleted or damaged. So, download, unzip and run the following two files from the SonicStage installer: http://dl1.aii.co.jp/contents/connect/_dat...staller/wmf.zip and http://dl1.aii.co.jp/contents/connect/_dat...aller/wmf95.zip . These are the same for SonicStage 3.4 - 4.3.

I had a similar problem when playing Hi-MD formatted MD discs on my brand new RH1 (the day after I bought it). But I actually had READ ERRORs (and loud beeps). Turned out to be an overpowered laser. But I am not sure what may cause this for 1 Gb Hi-MDs, since your unit does not display any error messages.

Which type of disc do you play? Does it display READ ERROR?