kino170878

So did you try to transfer the SP tracks back to an audio device that supports Atrac? How were you able to verify that the tracks were ripped to 292kps on the PS3?

I've read that the car units with Atrac CD compatability do not offer gapless playback, to the fury of their owners. Can you confirm or deny?

Try ebay UK there should be some dirt cheap MD portables and even decks. The discs should work I think.

There is one area where Minidisc is still king - editing. Is there any other format which can insert new track marks, delete and rearrange the order of tracks all on the unit? MD is perfect for that and one of the reasons why it's still being used by studio professionals and DJ's. For everything else your post is spot on - no one really needs to concern themselves with Minidisc anymore and there are other easier alternatives out there. I can also understand the thread starter's preference for having two audio outs on the portable. None of the newer MD units have this feature it seems. My old MZ-R37 has a dedicated line out in addition to a headphone out, essential for those who need it.

This finding is very interesting. It also makes sense if you think about how Sony originally incorporated nearly all features into their units before deciding to needlessly restrict us. Isn't MP3 playback still crippled on the RH series of units though?

Yes please, whatever 60 euros is in GBP plus a bit for secure postage is fine.

Your JB920 deck will have a digital output. Buy (or borrow) a CD recorder deck, either consumer type or professional (the latter you would need to ignore the SCMS copy protection, but the consumer one should be fine since you recorded originally through analogue thereby allowing one digital copy to be made). Then just hook up the MD unit to the CD unit and hit the sync record. It will copy digitally with near-bit perfect resolution. It's real-time of course but very straightforward. You can then burn the CD to a PC later on.

I don't have access to any Hi-MD units right now, but is it possible to record in SP mode 292kps (as the NH1 for example can do) using a 1gb Hi-MD disc? If so what is the maximum recording time? Is it half of 16.5 hours, the latter which is the time available for LP2?

Can the upload of ATRAC SP in its original format ever be accomplished? Are you sure the answer is a no? The reason I ask is that just as with so many things Sony (encryption, DRM, etc etc), is it possible that the SP codec *could* exist hidden somewhere under so many layers of needless meddling? You yourself found a way to play un-DRM'd Atrac3plus files through an application procedure which Sony never made public.

Those who want to listen to extremely high quality lossless audio should be allowed to, those who want to listen to extremely compressed low quality audio should be allowed to. The price differential / difficulties involved would separate the two groups of consumers and the industry could then profit from both. Or maybe it just isn't worth the effort. After all if you can manage to feed the masses with bread then why bother giving them anything better than that. Personally I hope CDs continue to live on but I fear the move to wireless distribution will soon make them extinct.

Any guy who has "several" JA555ES machines must be absolutely loaded.

I am no expert on reverse engineering but as an avid minidisc user I can relate to the post above mine. Whatever software appears as a result of your great efforts, if it is not simple to use or if it can't offer basic upload/dowloand from the computer then I just don't see it catching on. The moment a program comes out that can do all the basic things you would expect of it then you will have achieved the incredible.

Yes I thought the problem had to do with Sonicstage and the link to the PC. Try to use the minidisc on its own, that's how it was originally designed. It seems Sony hates you for using the computer to make life easier. All my minidisc collection is hardware units and discs, I have no audio stored on my computer.

Don't know how relevant this is but the company EDL has minidisc transfer software which allows you full access to change the SCMS settings (Unlimited, Copy, Original). I recall some of the Tascam professional decks which also let you change the SCMS setting between 0 and 1. EDL specially modify Sony MD data drives for use with their software. Only SP/LP/Mono MD and not Hi-MD of course but I have a feeling it's the same underlying copyright restriction that is involved.

Sometimes if you do an editing operation while the MD unit is connecting to the PC then I think Sonicstage can corrupt the disc. But I think you should still be able to erase it....strange

Are you saying that soon we will all be able to upload SP Atrac (292kps) to and from the PC and MD units, without any conversion? If I understand it right then it means you're almost in possession of the SP codec itself...

I have a feeling that your bad results regarding WAV files is due to effectively converting the files twice - first to WAV and then again to Atrac. If you keep WAV as WAV (PCM) without doing additional conversion then the file should sound near perfect. Incidentally I have read that converting bit rates in this manner will break gapless playback. You have to keep to the original bit rate (and possibly even rip the CD in one go) while keeping tracks 'as is' if you want to preserve the full dynamic range in Sonicstage and on MD. Any deviation from this procedure - whatever the bit rate chosen - can result in problems.

Hmm. So if you were to transfer tracks from the computer using your software to a portable MD unit are you then able to *edit* on the MD itself? Inserting tracks marks for example? Sonicstage does not allow you to do any editing after you transfer. Your program would be of huge help if it did.

Just a deck. But I guess it's impossible. Never mind Sony, karma is finally getting to you - recession anyone? Hehe.

Interesting development. But no re-recordable option and only 1gb discs? It still has a long way to go.

Sony created the Walkman people, they know almost everything there is to know about sound quality. The Apple is a flashy toy compared to the Sony. Apparently the need to come up with a bunch of useless distractions is what sells products these days. not audio performance. A sad and sorry state of affairs but hey that's reality. I definitely do want more on the gapless playback front but I think at least WAV files should be gapless. The touchscreen thing I couldn't really care for but if it works well enough then great. If nothing else this new product will push down the prices of the older NWZ A829 units so I can pick them up cheap.

Minidisc was around for a good 10 years before Hi-MD so it already has a proven longevity. I assume the thread starter is satisfied with the compression format of standard minidisc, if not then yes uncompressed PCM WAV would be the way to go. But as you already state Hi-MD players won't be around after a while. It's a tradeoff like all things in life

If you are in the professional field and are interested in using MD for archiving, I would suggest only going for standard MD (SP 292kps) and not Hi-MD since Hi-MD players are soon likely to be rarer than hen's teeth. Company's like Tascam (and even Sony I believe) are still making SP decks, and Tascam have no plans that I know of to stop production. I think Sharp even continues to make an SP portable, though it's the decks which are of most interest given their greater number of inputs/outputs and ease of control.

The Sharp is a 1-bit player correct? It is supposed to give a better sound through the output. Maybe in order to experience proper 1-bit audio you must therefore use 4-pole headphones. Otherwise using standard headphones you would lose on sound quality. It's worth investigating further but if Avrin is right then it's a more serious issue and I'm surprised there would be no mention of it in the manual.

You don't sound like you need editing capabilities on the portable unit itself. There are flash recorders and players that are far more convenient and faster than Minidisc, and flash is the future - even Sony itself admits this. However, for others nothing yet can substitute for MD, whether it's the sound quality or the unique facilities offered by the format. Why not have both, that way you have the best of both worlds.