Alkali-kiwi Posted November 2, 2004 Report Share Posted November 2, 2004 I'm thinking about buying a Minidisc recorder both for listening to music and recording purposes, and after reading a lot of posts on these forums I think the NH700 would suit my purposes well (thanks especially to dex Otaku and jadeclaw for your very helpful NH700 reviews!). However, I am concerned about the headphone output power (3mW in Europe), especially after I read reviews on amazon.de where people commented that this was quite quiet. I often listen to music during flights and train travel, and I would like to know if the output from the European NH700 is loud enough to listen to it comfortably above the ambient noise in these environments. Any comments/advice you have would be much appreciated. Thanks for your help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrToad Posted November 2, 2004 Report Share Posted November 2, 2004 Had a NH700 for a couple of weeks now and have found when using the EQ the max volume is reduced compared to normal (flat) setting due I beleive to compression. I haven't tried the the NH700 while travelling yet but would think a lot will depend on the phones you use. The ones that come with the 700 you will probably want to dump them pretty quick! I use for preference a pair that came with a long lost Panasonic player which perform supprisingly well. I also use a pair of the Sony ear buds which don't sound as good but because they sit in the ear they isolate surrounding noise well. Trouble is they aren't as loud as the Panasonics. If you do a lot of travelling there are a number of over ear and at least one (Sony!) in ear noise cancelling phones. If you can find phones that suit the normal sound setting I am pretty sure you won't have any problems. If you need equalization (for my ears and my phones essential) then it might be more of a problem. I also have an MZ E909 player. The NH700 with EQ reaches about 75% to 80% of the E909 volume. Having said that for me it's are loud enough - just. Earphone selection is critical Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atrain Posted November 2, 2004 Report Share Posted November 2, 2004 3wx3w isn't too bad. the ones that get most people upset are 1.2w x 1.2w like the euro n710. if you aren't using demanding headphones it should give you any grief Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrToad Posted November 4, 2004 Report Share Posted November 4, 2004 Alkali-kiwi Further to my original comments I had occaision to use the train today so tried the NH700 in ernest. I am pleased to report that using my Panasonic in ear open back phones with EQ the volume was adequate. Set to full I was able to concentrate on, and enjoy, the music. It blocked out all but the occaisional announcement over the PA even playing quiet melodic music. Hope this helps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KJ_Palmer Posted November 4, 2004 Report Share Posted November 4, 2004 Ideally use some sensitive, low impedence headphones/earbuds with the lower output Sonys. If you don't mind (or even prefer) earbuds, may I suggest something like the new Sennheiser MX550 earbuds - they seem to have been designed with getting the most out of such players in mind. They can certainly go ear-splittingly loud, the sound quality is excellent (IMO), and they're at the lower end of the price spectrum (ie. about £20). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alkali-kiwi Posted November 5, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 5, 2004 Thank you all for your very helpful advice. I have now ordered an NH700, and I am looking forward to its arrival. I will let you know how I get on with finding appropriate headphones/earbuds - at the moment I have some old (but quite cheap) Panasonic earbuds (!). I will see how they go, and if I need something better then I might try some of the Sennheiser ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alkali-kiwi Posted November 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2004 I have now had my NH700 for just over a week, and I am extremely happy with it. The sound quality and the solidity of the build quality (despite the device being all plastic) significantly surpass my original expectations, and I have instantly become a minidisc fan! :smile: I spent 8 hours on trains in Italy on the weekend, including 5 hours on noisy regional train, and listened to my minidiscs the whole time. Using my old Panasonic earbuds (open back, and with the equaliser on), I found the volume to be loud enough for my tastes on settings around 18/30 - 20/30. I may invest in some isolating earbuds in the future, but I certainly have no problems with the output power of the NH700 for my purposes! Thank you all again for your helpful and accurate comments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonahn Posted November 18, 2004 Report Share Posted November 18, 2004 Is there really any physical difference between the MD units sold in Europe and the rest of the world? Could it be that the difference in quoted power output is just due to some European law requiring a more stringent measurement method? (e.g. power output quoted at 1%THD in Europe, 10%THD for the rest of the world...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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