kino170878

You cannot upload legacy MD to a Mac, only to a PC. Sony prefers PCs because it allows them to utilise copy protection and DRM.

You need the RH1, not NH1, to upload legacy mono MD.

Sounds like you have some old SP equipment. If it's quality you're after, SP is very good indeed. But the 256kbps is way easier to use. For portable use I'd probably go with that. But I am an old school guy, so I still listen to SP on my portable and deck.

You could always send it to Sony. The price will be much higher than buying another secondhand off ebay though.

Get another one. 10 years of hard use it's served you well, now it's time to move onto a new deck.

$300 is a bargain. In the UK they are selling these for $500.

One point that you bring up still hasn't been resolved though: why are the 1gb discs less stable than standard capacity discs? That sounds like the root of the problem here.

I always thought that the Edirol R-09 looked a bit like an electric shaver. Just say you wanted to pull a chick on the night and you didn't realise you brought your mate's recorder instead. Seriously though, portability is the key. I think you have more than a good chance of getting through security if you are smart. Research, research, and research into it until you find a solution.

Only Onkyo makes Hi-MD decks, you will have to import them from Japan which is quite expensive. Sony do not (and they never will) make any Hi-MD decks, only normal MD decks (which are still being made even today). Your Hi-MD discs will not play on Sony decks, only regular MD discs are playable. If you still want a Sony deck, you have to use SP, LP2 or LP4 mode. SP though is fine for recording real-time from your midi system. For transferring already existing MP3 tracks however I would seriously look into another format rather than minidisc.

There is actually a way to do this according to your requirements, but it involves buying more hardware. What you need are the MXD units that Sony used to do. These were direct CD to MD decks that could copy in SP mode at up to 4x speed. So if you have 100s of CDs this will be a life saver. No computers involved at all, this was the old school way of listening to quality music but with more convenience. I have three units in my setup, the MXD-D3, MXD-D4 and MXD-D40 (and I also have a hi-fi system that does 2x speed). Ebay would be your best option. Good luck.

I think the R50 used a slightly older version of ATRAC than the R700 on the recording side; however the inputs/outputs on the R50 are superior. Tough call to choose between them.

the blue raja can confirm it for you, but I am quite sure that you are stuck with the remote. There is no way to just plug in another pair of headphones to the main unit. A ridiculous move from Sony.

Does anybody own or used to own the Sharp MD-DR77? This unit supposedly had a recording button on the remote control itself. Can anyone confirm whether it allows insertion of track marks from the remote control during playback?

It's nice to be optimistic. I really hope that discs can be easily found to buy in the near future, used or new. However, until a few years ago mindiscs were everywhere. Now they are nowhere. I remember when sellers on ebay were selling lots of 100 brand new minidiscs at a go, alas I couldn't afford to get those at the time. Nothing could have prepared me for the shock of seeing MD completely disappear from the high street retailers even when I sensed the beginning of the end. The fact that there are supposedly huge stockpiles of media lying abandoned in warehouses and other locations means nothing to me unless I can get a sizeable amount of discs at one go and at reasonable rates. I don't want to wait 20 years when only a thousand or so users will be left and the seller's market changes to favour buyers instead. Time is too short. As soon as I get the cash, I am going to buy as many minidiscs as I can afford wherever they may be advertised. Good luck to the rest of you.

Again, the production of mindisc related items is almost grinding to a halt. This will mean that supply of minidisc media will surely dry up. Prices on Ebay (and I look out on Ebay every single day) are holding their levels, and I predict that as time goes by the media will get rarer and rarer. I am becoming increasingly worried. I need the money to buy my stock now, not in 5 years time when nothing will be left.

Sony UK are selling them for £250 each. That's almost $500. At that price nobody is going to buy them.

Indeed it was after your excellent review that I learnt about its limitations. I wouldn't hesitate to get a mint one, time will tell.

What you are saying is that at any point in time, Sonicstage on the PC is able to add track marks? Whereas on the unit itself you have one chance and one chance only (i.e. after a live recording) to add track marks? Is that correct?

Sorry but I was under the impression that once inside Sonicstage, anything transferred back to the minidisc player would then be unable to have track marks added? It was only if you had an original recording that was first made on the minidisc itself that you would have the option to add any track marks - but once this was copied over to the computer then further editing back on the minidisc recorder was forbidden. Or is there absolutely no restrictions at all when placing track marks on a disc?

That UK one is listed as faulty, so be careful. I also was interested in this smart little player, but there are a number of things that put me off. The biggest complaint I have is the proprietory remote, once its broken or lost forget it you won't be able to use a different remote and they're very expensive to buy.

What really slaps you in the face is the new iPod craze together with those hi-fi docking stations. Rather than purchase quality hi-fi separates these morons will hand over money for a complete joke of a system that looks and sounds utterly fake.

I'm guessing that none of these remotes offer insertion of track marks during playback? Only during recording...

Sony has effectively decided to kill of minidisc. The ONLY possibility is if somehow Japan gets to see a final model as a commemorative gesture to die hard fans. But the chances are against it. As for media i think 1gb is the most due to the nature of magneto optical media, but somebody else may have better info on that.

Ebay is now the only option it seems. But have you seen the prices on Ebay for discs now? Soon you won't even be able to afford the asking price anymore. I recall so many stories here of people trying to give their disc collections away and still they couldn't get rid of them. The MD market sometimes makes no sense to me at all.

OK thanks