MZ-B100 HI MD Version?

[GoHurdler1]

Hello All:

I posted this similar message in Dec 2004. I got one response from it so I decided to ask the question again with an update. Do you think that Sony will come out with a HI MD version of the MZ-B100. I would love to upgrade to the HI MD format and not have to worry about having a ton of disks but (A) I need a practical machine like the MZ-B100 to do interviews with and ( I don't want to buy something now and then have Sony come out with a HI MD version of the MZ-B100 three or six months later).

I know that Sony has come out with the Sony MZ-100 and MZ-10 in their professional line but not business line.

I also saw the MZ-DH10P

Does anyone have any guess about Sony introducing a replacement model or any model with built in mics and speed control etc? Its like there are a couple of models that sort of come close but not really. And it’s pointless to call Sony customer service because they are of no help. I can't afford to spend an arm and a leg on one model and have the model that I do need come out a few months later.

Thanks.

Edited August 30, 2005 by GoHurdler1

[Russell Letson]

I'm in pretty much the same position--my old B-3 and then my two B-100s became indispensable tools in my boy-reporter kit. Sony seems slow to recognize how valuable journalists and researchers find these models, and it took them forever to come up with the B-100 and B-10 as replacements for the B-3. I'm hoping (probably foolishly) that they'll shorten the loop this time around. But, hey, they fixed most of the idiocies of Sonic Stage, so maybe there is hope. The ability to dump field-recorded interviews onto a computer and run them through a transcriber application would be an enormous convenience.

If you really want to dream--imagine a B-100-style machine with one of those Organic EL displays and a foot-control option.

[GoHurdler1]

Hello:

Yes, the MZ-B100 has come in handy and I have gotten compliments on it from people over the years wanting to know where I had bought it. I told them about the MD format and how it can hold hours of recording time. As you know Russell being able to have the built in mics and speaker so you can record and not have to worry about forgetting some portable microphone or headphone makes your job so much simpler. Yes a foot pedal and a greater increase in the speed control would make a newer model so much better.

Yes, it would be great if a new version comes with upload capabilities so you can hook it up to some type of transcription software.

I wonder if Sony even consults with reporters when making these products or if it thinks wow if we build it our way they will come. I guess it would be pointless to send Sony any e-mails about making a Hi MD model.

[dwissl]

Do we really still want to use Minidisc for that? Isn't a motorized recorder too noisy, when one wants to use a built-in stereo microphone?

I bought the Sony ICD-MX20, which uses DUO Memory Sticks. It has a wonderful built-in stereo microphone. It's so good, that Sony may see it as the successor to its business MD recorders. However, its maximum bitrate is 48 KBPS, so it may not be the machine for radio broadcast quality recordings. But its digital voiceup function makes speech really sound clearer and since the built-in mic is so good, one can often leave the ext mic at home.

[sebastianbf]

The ability to dump field-recorded interviews onto a computer and run them through a transcriber application would be an enormous convenience.

if you mean convert the transfered file to wav, it's possible.

[Russell Letson]

I meant a better-than-realtime transfer. It's not unusual for my interviews to run an hour, so realtime isn't an option.

As for motor noise--I've never had a problem with my B-100s, though the Hi-MD mechanisms might not be as quiet.

Actually, a solid-state recorder with USB 2 data transfer would be fine with me, though I do like to archive many of my interviews, and with MD I just stick the original in a box rather than taking the extra time to burn a copy to CDR.