Avrin

Now I like it. No, I mean, I realy do!!!

Well, I know some things exactly (after having stared at the screen covered all over with HEX code). The bitrates ARE hard-coded in SS, SB, and drivers. I even know the HEX values for them. Not that I'm going to disclose all of them, but: 80 BB 00 00 - 48 kbps, 00 FA 00 00 - 64 kbps, 00 E8 03 00 - 256 kbps, and there are others (such as 00 71 02 00). If you perform a careful search in the registry of you computer, you will find (at least) some of these values (I still don't understand why they write them to the registry. No opportunities discovered yet. Though SS34 did behave somewhat indecently (from the SONY point of view) when controlled from the registry - means it reads from there, but is unable to fully comprehend what is commanded, and then overwrites the stuff again). The programs, and drivers, are really hackable, but due to the ([CENSORED]) way they are written, no decent hacker will spend their time on that. And do we have a decent hacker, who is also an MD addict? SONY, please, don't pay attention to this.

Then tell me please, why 192 and 352 were not allowed, and then suddenly became allowed? Without ANY firmware change!

Aren't you using different media, by any chance?

Did we need firmware upgrades for 352 or 192, when these were introduced? No! I am 99% positive that all current Hi-MD players will be perfectly happy with any ATRAC3plus bitrate available in SonicStage, if only transfers were allowed. Maybe even with ATRAC Advanced Lossless.

I used tracks from the first King Crimson album, which sound really horrible when encoded at anything below 192 kbps, because of inter-channel phase shift problems. And I did check them @64 lossy (horror!). I have nothing against 64 or even 48 kbps. These are quite usable in some cases. But NOT for the first King Crimson album.

I purchased my first unit, a shiny silver MZ-RH10, just this March. Already thinking about an MZ-RH1. In the meantime I am conducting lots of minidisc software and hardware experiments, which take lots of my time. You may see some of the results in this forum. It IS an addiction.

Turns out SonicStage (at least version 4.0) uses the whole file for CD burning and WAV conversion. I ripped a couple of tracks into ATRAC Advanced Lossless@64, and then tried converting them into WAVs and burning them to an Audio CD. In both cases they sound fine, and can't be distinguished from originals. Obviously, if the lossy 64 kbps part were used for conversion and burning, the sound quality would have been much worse.

Audacity does not have "Open Append", which allows opening all files on a single timeline, and is a really convenient feature for gap removal. You may also try Feurio! CD Manager (http://www.feurio.com), which has a similar feature, but it only supports burning edited files to a CD (or converting them to MP3s, which will reintroduce gaps), and is pretty much useless for long gigs, which do not fit on a single CD. In programs that don't have "Open Append" (Audacity, Sound Forge, etc.) it is also possible to remove gaps, but you will have to sequentially open all files and copy them to a single waveform. This is much less convenient, and may lead to errors, like skipped or misplaced files. BTW, just tried SS30 (having completely removed SS40, its drivers, registry entries, etc.) and checked track mark placement. Same horrible results as with SS34 and SS40. I was not able to do a precise check, since SS30 does not convert ripped tracks to WAV (and Sound Forge refuses to open SS30 files), but what I heard from my speakers was more than enough. Track marks were moved roughly the same way they are moved in SS40. ATRAC3@132 again shows better results, but the mark misplacement is quite noticeable. ATRAC3plus@256 is simply hideous.

Whilst you are waiting for the unit, you may experiment with different formats in SonicStage. But remember that it plays MP3s with the correct frequency response. IMHO, gaps in non-stop albums and live music are much more annoying than slight (if any) artifacts resulting from MP3->ATRAC3plus conversion. The simple way I get rid of them: 1. In Adobe Audition go to File->Open Append, and select all MP3 files constituting a particular gig or album. Adobe Audition opens them in 32 bit format by default. 2. Zoom in around trackmarks to see and delete all silence between tracks (if it does not need to be there). Zooming in really helps to do it quite precisely. Don't worry about slight waveform changes when silence is removed - you won't really hear the effects. 3. Convert the files back to 16 bit using Edit->Convert Sample Type. The default settings are just fine. 4. Export the music as a set of gapless WAVs using View->Show Cue List, selecting all Cues and pressing the Batch button. When preparing files for CD burning, it is required to make sure that all Cues are set exactly between frames. But when you only want to transfer them to MD, you don't have to care about precise trackmark positions - ATRAC3plus encoding will move them as it wants (see here: http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=15773). 5. In SonicStage import all resulting WAVs, and encode them into ATRAC3plus. I mostly use 192kbps, but you may choose another bitrate. Then delete the WAVs (you may want to keep them for other purposes though), and transfer the music to Hi-MD.

1) MZ-RH10 RULEZZZ!!!! 2) Try . It is listenable! 3) If you don't like it - go ahead back to a)! But pay attention to MP3 gaps in live music!

Processors only support processing instructions. If there are instructions (from the firmware) to decode WMA, AAC, OGG, MP4, etc. the processor will process them. SONY flash and HDD units with firmware version 1.00 did not support WMA and AAC, and now they do. And I don't think that an MD processor is a less sophisticated chip.

No, MZ-M100 (and MZ-RH10) requires a 1000 mA adaptor. 500 mA is not enough for it. You will most certainly end up with a fried adaptor and/or MZ-M100.

NW-E507 et al. are DESIGNED to be updated by the customer via USB connection. I am not sure that any MD (or Hi-MD) unit is that easly updatable. Probably one of the following methods is used by servicemen: 1. Using a pre-recorded disc containing new firmware in a special format. This is similar to DVD-player firmware updates, when you download the update, burn it onto a disc (sometimes using special procedures, so that the disc structure complies with certain requirements), and use this disc to update the DVD-player. The problem here is that MD units are not "universal burners" that can burn anything, so that even if such updates exist, users will probably not be able to burn them onto a disc. 2. Using service mode & a USB connection. This seems to me a bit more probable than the first method. In this case the reasons why updates are not released to the general public are quite obvious. Remember - even service manuals do not contain complete descriptions of service mode functions. EDIT: I am 99% sure that a firmware update could enable WMA and AAC playback on a Hi-MD unit. Not to speak of correcting the crippled MP3 playback. EDIT#2: Another reason may be that a firmware update on a [Hi-]MD unit resets all laser adjustments to their default levels, rendering the unit unusable until re-adjusted by a professional serviceman using specially designed adjustment discs (mentioned in the service manual). Remember - Flash and HDD units do not have to be adjusted to be operable.

Seems that the problem is even more serious than we thought. And it has to do with the format itself. I burned your files to an Audio CD using Nero. Ripping them back with Adobe Audition 1.0 showed that they were burned perfectly (exact 4.000 sec lengths, exact waveforms). Then I recorded them from my Panasonic DVD-S75 to my MZ-RH10 via optical in. The mode was Hi-SP. After tranferring the files to the PC and converting them to WAVs (SoundForge refused to open the recorded OMAs transferred to the PC) I got the following really horrible results: 1. #1 has 125 ms of silence at the beginning. The track length is 3.985 sec. 2. #2 has 139 ms of #1 at the beginning, and about 115 ms of waveform distortions around the joint. The track length is 3.993 sec. 3. #3 has 146 ms of #2 at the beginning, about 123 ms of distortions, and 2.949 sec of silence at the end. Also, the waveform does not drop to zero, but instead fades out for 28 ms. The track length is 6.780 sec. The results of the same process but using the Hi-LP mode: 1. #1 has 129 ms of silence at the beginning, then fades in (though not from the zero level) for about 44 ms. The track length is again 3.985 sec. 2. #2 has 142 ms of #1 at the beginning, and about 20 ms of very slight distortions (much less than in Hi-SP!). The track length is also 3.993 sec. 3. #3 has 149 ms of #2 at the beginning, and about 14 ms of almost unnoticeable distortions. It fades out to zero for 28 ms, then has 2.943 sec of silence, and its length is again 6.780 sec. EDIT: Some forum members may object that 4 sec files are too short for ATRAC3, and do not contain a whole number of frames (75 ms). Tests performed using 12 second tones yielded similar horrible results. Using both hardware and software encoding. Though ATRAC3@132 clearly shows better results in all cases. EDIT#2: Just tried other available formats: ATRAC Advanced Lossless - similar results. WAV - perfect. MP3@192 - small gaps all over the world with track marks roughly in the middle of those (between files). WMA@192 - perfect (!). AAC@192 - files get into each other AND have gaps.

Yes, I selected all the files during import and during encoding. The way I always do when encoding live albums gapless. EDIT: I have now updated the audio driver. Now SS4 does play WAVs normally, and all inter-track gaps are gone. But the files now DO get into each other when encoded in ATRAC3plus@192. About 385 ms of #1 is at the beginning of #2, about 392 ms of #2 is at the beginning of #3, and #3 has a nice 66 ms gap at the end (after converting it back into a WAV file). Also the waveforms are somewhat distorted at the places where files are joined (as seen in Adobe Audition). These distortions (amplitude changes) are about 50 ms long. EDIT #2. Just tried ATRAC3@132. The result is somewhat better, though still far from ideal. About 55 ms of file #1 gets into file #2, 61 ms of file #2 gets into file #3, and there is a 24 ms gap at the end of file #3. The distortions are also present.

Heh! After installation I tried encoding into ATRAC3plus@48kbps. Various music. It seems that it sounds quite a bit better (still metallic, but much more suitable for portable listening while travelling). This may be subjective though. And then - GAPs!

This used to be a very well-known bug in SonicStage. But today I encountered even more weird stuff in SS4.0. I downloaded your files and converted them to ATRAC3plus@192. Deleted the original WAVs, then played the converted files in SS. No parts got to other files, but the files had GAPS between them. Opening them in Sound Forge 8.0d clearly shows about a 78 ms gap at the end of each file. Then I converted the files back to WAV in SS. This added a 54 ms gap to the beginning of the 2nd and 3rd files. Tried ATRAC3@132 (which used to be faultless). Same outcome but with different gap lengths (37 ms at the end and 26 ms at the beginning). What's even more weird is that SS4 refuses to play the WAVs as they are. When I try to play one of the WAVs SS just freezes, and even Task Manager is unable to close it (I have to restart my computer). Now for some more weirdness. I tried ripping a gapless CD in SS4 (the first King Crimson album, which is a horror for most encoders because of its phase shift problems). No gaps but track marks moved as usual. Took some live MP3s (The Bays gig at Shambala), removed original gaps in Adobe Audition (in the usual way), saved them to WAVs, imported into SS4 and converted to ATRAC3plus@192, removing originals after conversion. Again - no gaps, but moved track marks! The only idea I have about gaps appearing between your files is that they are too short for ATRAC3[plus]. EDIT: Just tried longer sinewave files. Generated three files with the same frequencies as above, but 20 second long each. Imported into SS4, converted to ATRAC3plus@192. GAPS are still there! It seems that SS4 does not like pure sinewave forms.

Why shouldn't I? Actually I would prefer 128kps ATRAC3plus instead of 132kps ATRAC3. It is perfect for some music.

Really nothing new for HiMD. Not even 320kbps.

All of the above prices seem to me like a great sale. Here in Moscow, Russia a HiMD disc sells for $11 (and that only if you can find it, which means turning a Sony Center inside out). A 5-pack sells for exactly $55 (under the same conditions). And a 5-pack of good old 80-minute MDs sells for $9.30 (at the same place). And you have to develop some preternatural sensitivities in order to know when HiMD or MD discs are available at a SC (calling them by phone is of no avail). But then again no one here in Russia takes MDs (including HiMDs) seriously. Until they listen to how these sound.

Try cleaning battery contacts.

SS 3.4 does have this kind of glitch. I once encountered it when tranferring tracks from one Hi-MD disc to another. The tracks were fine one the original Hi-MD. I transferred them back to the PC (I had deleted the original ripped ones after having transferred them to the first Hi-MD disc some time before that). Then I inserted a new Hi-MD disc and transferred the tracks to it. Two of the tracks had skips. These did not sound like CD skips (when a CD head looses the track and returns to almost the same point after some moments), but they were simply pieces of silence about 0.3-0.5 seconds long in the middle of the tracks. The tracks were originally encoded into ATRAC3plus@192 kbit/s from a CD, and then transferred "as is".

If you care about real continuity: Adobe Audition. Its "File->Open Append" really saves lives. And you can take care of skips between MP3s and other unfortunate format files.

I had similar problems with SonicStage 3.4 a couple of weeks ago (while transferring ATRAC3plus files @ 192 kbit/s to my RH10 - to a brand new HiMD disc!). Restarting the computer and reconnecting the device eventually helped. Most probably this is just an unhappy glitch within SonicStage or the device driver. System restart leads to re-initialization, and the glitch disappears.