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Hi-md Nh1 Usb Cable Modification

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Topaz

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I want to share with you how I got on with reducing the length of my NH1’s USB cable to a more manageable length. I was initially bothered by the unnecessary length and relative rigidity of the supplied cable and after consulting the forum (here) (thanks to ROMBUSTERS for the tip), I purchased another USB cable from Sony to work on. Equipped with newly bought soldering iron, some snazzy shrink sleeving (2mm and 5mm diameter), and a spare surgical mask left over from the SARS crisis, I undertook the operation.

<Scalpel...> After cutting the cable, my first incision into the cable wall revealed a lattice of screening mesh underneath. Exploring deeper exposed four thin wires (black, white, red and green). With so much extra cable available, I figured I’d do a practice run, and I’m glad I did – I learned a lot. One initial problem was that these four internal wires are very small and two of the colours didn’t strip easily. It took a while to get it right. <Clamp...> Also I would advise that you take care in “combing out” the cable’s screening mesh; try to keep both ends oriented in the same way for easier recombination later on. <Suction...> The next problem encountered was since I made the cuts and joins at the same length along the wire on my practice run, the 2mm sleeving made the whole thing a little bulky (even when shrunk down). It was tough getting the outer 5mm sleeving over (and it also looked like a black worm had just eaten a small marble). <More suction, please...> The solution was to stagger the cuts/joins at different places along the cable so as not make it too bulky in one place (two at one end and two at another worked fine). In the end I double sleeved it, slipping one 5mm section over, shrinking it down then slipping another 5mm over and shrinking that too. It was a fidgety job but the operation was a success and the new shorter cable works fine.

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I can’t really understand why, in Japan, the long and short USB cable come as standard with the NH1 (Japanese NH1 owners please confirm this, thanks), but overseas only stock and supply the long version. Anyway, it also goes well with my MCMD-R1 too, and is far more portable, as you can see.

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I would be grateful for any comments, technical or otherwise – my only remaining concern is that screening mesh does not cover (and therefore protect) the joining area on the cable. I don’t know whether this will have a significant effect or not.

FYI, cost of the operation: USB spare cable: US$29.50; shrink sleeving US$1. cool.gif

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You might look into Zip-Linq retractable cables. They are available in many end styles and have a model to fit the small 5 pin connection used on most MD units. They work just fine at USB 1.1 speeds and can be as short as 3" or as long as 36"

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I can’t really understand why, in Japan, the long and short USB cable come as standard with the NH1 (Japanese NH1 owners please confirm this, thanks), but overseas only stock and supply the long version.

I can confirm that. My Japanese NH1 was supplied with both lengths.

You might look into Zip-Linq retractable cables.  They are available in many end styles and have a model to fit the small 5 pin connection used on most MD units.  They work just fine at USB 1.1 speeds and can be as short as 3" or as long as 36"

The Zip-Linq is indeed a smart alternative. For those curious, here's how it looks like.

user posted image

Thanks for the tip, BobS.

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Thanks for the response so far! tongue.gif

I can confirm that. My Japanese NH1 was supplied with both lengths.

I am very envious of you, Ishiyoshi - your short cable is even shorter and lighter than my modified version, and it still has a filter on.

You might look into Zip-Linq retractable cables.

BobS, that's a good suggestion - retractable means you have the best of both worlds, long and short. However, for the NH1, the unit has a proprietary USB port on the unit and is not compatible with the Zip-Linq as shown by Ishiyoshi.

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Second generation units (e.g. MZ-RH10, etc.) will be able to benefit from this tip.

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Hello,

When I got a Mz-NH1 last year, it came with two USB wires in different lengths, and some neat little wire clips to shortern the wires. It also came with an ugly gray felt bag to protect the player, sonic stage 3, and standard earphones with a short wire. Well, in past times (like 15 or more years ago) some companies like the big "N" did not put all the wires you needed in the box with your electronic stuff and you were forced to pay more money to get the right wires from that company. Those times sucked, but now companies here are more friendly that the big "N" used to be.

P.S. Ishiyoshi's retractable USB wire is cool! And I really like your set up Topaz! ARe you using the newest version of Sonic stage and do you think it is faster? The sonic stage that came with my unit is slower than one I download in Japan on the MORA site. I would have thought Hi-MD would have come with a better version of the sonic stage soft than one could get for free.

Edited by Mikami
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Hi Mikami!

...in past times (like 15 or more years ago) some companies like the big "N" did not put all the wires you needed in the box with your electronic stuff and you were forced to pay more money to get the right wires from that company.

I've heard of similar practices in HK shops in previous times, but I think that happens less and less (and I thought it was just HK shops that did that...)

Are you using the newest version of Sonic stage and do you think it is faster? The sonic stage that came with my unit is slower than one I download in Japan on the MORA site. I would have thought Hi-MD would have come with a better version of the sonic stage soft than one could get for free.

I have been upgrading to the latest SonicStage version each time it was released. I'm currently on version 3.2. I assume that they will have ironed out any reported bugs and errors from previous versions so I guess you should keep up with the upgrades. I had some reliability issues with the bundled software (some tracks not uploading and erroring) but so far with the newer v3.2 I haven't had a problem. I can't really tell whether its faster or not, sorry.

(sorry moderators, slightly off current topic but I want to respond to Mikami smile.gif )

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Personally I'd have left well alone, I fear for the safety of my one and only NH1 cable. I dislike the proprietary nature of the NH1 cable and the relative difficulty in securing a replacement should anything go wrong. This should mean that every NH1 should be supplied with two, if not for the convenience of having a choice of lengths then as a backup. I'm sure Sony would charge me an arm and a leg if I tried to buy a spare from them here in the UK so I'd probably have to get one shipped from Japan via AC

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