The Return Back To MiniDisc (The Journey)

[todds]

Dear All

I remember reading somewhere in an old post that we mini disc users whatever other players we buy or use eventually come back to mini disc,not to sure whether i agreed with that at the time but over the last few months i have seemed to have tried a lot of different hard drive players and now find myself awaiting the delivery tomorrow of an Sony mznh900 (black) from ebay... :-)

Dont know what made me sell my old Unit Sony mznh-700,just fancied a change, firstly i tried the iriver h10

great sound quality,but didnt like the navigation,i then tried Sony nwe-507 lovely unit but too small navigation issues again and for some reason unit hurt my ears on playback to bassy (perhaps it was just me being fussy......:-) so then onto the sony nwhd-3 not to sure what happened here just was not in love with the unit really battery life seemed quite poor,but this could of been me listening to music and thinking that it would shut off after playing a groupp album maybe..... ( kept thinking to myslef my old mznh700 would have swithched itself off),i would have still had the old hangmans noose of headphone round my neck but at least battery would be preserved

So for some unknown reason spent a fortune on a sony vaio pocket 40gb version,superb looking player,a bit top heavy one end,but great colour screen,spent ages loading it up with a few hundred cd`s didnt really have an issue with it but yet again decided this time it was mini disc for me, i have a large rack on my wall along side my bed with all my old mini disc on it and i think this was a reason maybe i even kept looking at them seeing what was on each one whilst listening to the vaio pocket player...... i am sure they were speaking to me :-) come back come back...........

Overall it has cost me a fortune over the past few months buying and selling on ebay,pcworld and even tesco for the iriver and in the end iam back were i feel most comfortable,it has been a strange and frustrating journey,i seem to have spent far too much time listening to the technology and not enough time listening to music........

The mini disc always sounded good to me even at hi-lp 64 so am looking forward to enjoying my music again.....

Long live Mini Disc............ (sorry for long post,and it may seemed muddled but i feel alot better i have now got that of my chest....

regards

adrian...

[chriswyatt]

Hi Adbot

Welcome to the forums.

[1kyle]

Not that I ever went away from Minidisc -- but since I do a lot of Car journeys I find a minidisc more and more useful -- I absolutely LOVE some of the Audio books I can get now (on CD or Tape copied to MD) and listen to these in the car a lot now.

My last set was a recording of Dan Brown's Da Vincii Code which I transferred from CD (5 X CD) to 2 X LP4 Minidisc (LP4 is fine for Audio reading of a book) . I'd prefer on a HI-MD unit but my Car radio only does MDLP --but even so it's far far better than carrying around bulky CD's.

If you've never listened to Audio Books --they are great --if you are on a 5 or 6 hour Car journey I'm sure even the youngest listener can get fed up with an incessant "Boom Boom Boom" type of music --but pop an audio book in the MD player --great.

I'm not sure about the availability of Audio Books in other languages than English -- but well worth trying.

I still don't bel;ieve the minidisc is on its way out either --much too useful still.

Cheers

-K

[Syrius]

I just found out my brother got an Ipod with the Apple "pay us to replace a battery that normally should be user-replaceable so we can rip you off even more" plan, delivered today at home. Traitor. GRRR. And I wanted to get him an RH710 for X-mas.

Edited October 26, 2005 by Syrius

[alpinexiv]

...

Edited April 1, 2006 by alpinexiv

[Deanage]

and for some reason unit hurt my ears on playback to bassy (perhaps it was just me being fussy......:-)

No, not really. Most Sony gear tends to have a strong bottom end but loses a little bit at the top compared to, say, Sennheisser. I've been listening to Sony gear basically all my life though so when it was time to get good headphones it was going to be Sony MDR-7509 or Sennheisser HD600/800 but then I picked up Sony MDR-F1's in Japan for 22,000yen (about AU$275) so that sealed the deal. That, and Sony Central in Adelaide want $670 for the same pair...

By the way, thanks for sharing your experience with us. It's true about being attached to MD's. I look at HD players and other stuff but I always come back to MD.

MD

[Syrius]

Well, scratch the Ipod. My brother bought it for someone's birthday. What a relief.

[Christopher]

Haha Syrius.

todds, great first post! (I wish all newbies were like you) I think that we all have associations with particular devices as we delve further into a more technological age. There is an extreme amount of diversity in the market, and it can be damned near impossible to find something that will make you truly content. I won't fib -- I haven't used Minidisc in quite a while since I got my NW-HD3.

However, for the final assignment in my recent Humanities class, I had to interview a leader of faith within their house of worship -- needless to say my trusty NH900 was the first thing on my mind. The recording went really well (especially thanks to greenmachine's nice mics) and it was a comfortable experience. I got a great grade on the paper and finished the class with a 97%. The catalyst to the success of the composition was the multimedia experience I created by attaching the rich recordings made with MD. There really is a small learning curve with MD if you have half a brain in your noggin, and that really appeals to people and brings them back after long periods of distraction.

I'll never sell all of my MD units, because I've seen too many of these topics to realize that it'd be something I'd eventually regret.

[todds]

Really appreciate all you comments on my post i have now received my mzn-900 from ebay and am busy loading it up yet again with cd`s...... glad to be back in the community now i have a minidisc player again felt a bit of an intruder without one...

Has anyone any thoughts why the mznh700 could run about the same battery lenght on one aa and why the 900 unit needs rechareable and aa to achieve same sort of playback times what do the units do that requires so different power requirements...

Is it quality of playback? size of unit ? poor engineering ? or just sony being sony ? any thoughts would be appreciated

thnx

adrian

[AMPlitude]

glad you feel the way you do, and welcome to the forums

[Susie h]

I too went away for a while (6 months or so) but have returned to embrace Hi-md with open arms. I love my rh10 and I won't stray again. I do miss all of my old players and recorders but I do have one relic of pre-hi-md times. My beautiful MZ-E10 which I was given (by a traitorous soul who went the way of the iriver, but it was free to me so I won't complain) on the stipulation that I wouldn't sell it on ebay so I still have but don't use as I've shifted format entirely. My only real disappointment is with the shabby UK version of the rh10 remote and the fact that 1gb discs are ever more difficult to come by reasonably priced.

The sound quality and just the feel and look of my md is something I didn't find elsewhere and I think you are right that we always come back. Although if my iriver friend thinks he is getting his MZ-E10 back....

[mercury_in_flames]

haha, welcome back. Ive managed to compromise with owning the HD5, and getting an md deck, all in the past 6 months. My deck is centre stage for music entertainment at home, while my hd5 goes out with me. I actually got the deck AFTER my hd5, haha. Doubt I will ever succumb to hi-md though. Not while the himd decks out there dont have optical out ports.

Susie, dont you find it a neusance having a legacy md deck and a himd recorder/player?? I am afraid that if I did get a himd portable, it would make my jb980 redundent, and thats the last thing i want, having forked out for an extra 2 years warranty.

[nsherin]

I've just made a return to MiniDisc too. Bought my first MD recorder - an MZ-R50 in 1998 and loved it. Since then, I've had several portables and two MDS-JE480 decks at various times. I've always loved the editing features - very handy for recording LPs from my Pro-Ject Debut II turntable.

When my iPod Mini got stolen whilst out shopping last week, I thought about my options and decided to return to MiniDisc, for it's superior quality, ease of use and the fact that it fits in nicely with my interest in hifi. So, I bought an MZ-RN600 for £60 last week from my local Sony Centre. I then had a couple of long train trips to/from my parents, which gave me a good chance to listen to MD again (I kept all my recordings I made with my last MDS-JE480 before I sold it when I bought an iPod Mini back in Feb). To be honest, I was stunned by the sound quality of MD - it was much better to my ears than my iPod Mini. It also stamps all over the Creative MuVO MP3 player that my sister had for Christmas.

So, now I'm back from visiting family, my next mission was to find a seperates deck. After visting serveral shops, I ended up at my local Sony Centre. I noticed they had the MDS-JE980 (a deck I have lusted after for ages) for £250, down from £280. The only other choice was the MDS-JE489, which I've owned before - an OK deck, but I was after something better, and having decent seperates (a NAD CD player/amp and a Rotel tuner), I decided on the MDS-JE980. Got home and hooked it up - WOW! Built like a tank and sound quality that is on par with my NAD CD player. I'm very very pleased! Love the timer feature as well - now I can record Bob Harris' shows from Radio 2 easily if I'm out or going to bed early!

For me, the move back to MD was definately worth it! The JB-980 is one special piece of gear!

Edited December 31, 2005 by nsherin

[1kyle]

The JB980 is a FANTASTIC deck --even at LP2 it blows a lot of other stuff away and of course Optical IN and OUT --what more could you want.

I still have loads of MD's recorded at LP2 and SP which are great as well for the car (Old Kenwood MDLP radio still going strong even though Kenwood no longer make MD products).

I'd love a HI-MD deck but the JB980 will still be with me for YEARS yet.

I'm not a huge user of the computer for arranging my music and if I do rip from a CD I'll often pop one in while I'm watching TV / going to bed and record to MD in real time anyway. The JB980 allows limited editing using a computer keyboard (without a computer having to be attached) which is nice.

I might be old fashioned but I refuse to let a computer anywhere near my Hi_FI equipment --even a laptop. A computer reminds me too much of work so it's banished to my office.

I'm not in favour of the "Home Entertainment" centres which have a computer as its central core.

To those who think MD is dying -- actually the format for Pro use has never been stronger especially as DAT is finally being killed off.

Low end consumer use might have been affected by "Ipoditus" but radio stations, reporters etc etc use minidisc systems in droves and just look at the runaway success of the MZ-M100 (the Pro version of the RH10).

Happy new year to everyone

Cheers

-K

Edited December 31, 2005 by 1kyle

[The Low Volta]

format for Pro use has never been stronger...format for Pro use has never been stronger...look at the runaway success of the MZ-M100

1kyle... please post links/proof when stating such 'daring statements'... before you know it handbags are flashing through the air again

[nsherin]

1kyle couldn't agree more re: JB980 - mine has had a couple of days to warm up now and I'm still amazed at the quality of sound from this deck! Didn't realise MD could sound so good! Does anyone have any idea if blank MD discs are going to get more difficult to buy in stores in the UK, as I can see me doing loads more recording with this deck!

[pauljones52]

True there are other music players out there which tempt us minidisc users away, but we always come back as the format has so many uses. Now sony lets people upload their own recordings in digital (eventually!!) Im going to stick with the format for a while yet.

On an unrelated note the record function on my N910 has recently broke and I cant record true SP on my RH10, which is very annoying!!! Might have to go looking on ebay for a cheap old unit, you can never have too many players!

[Mr_Bass_Man]

On an unrelated note the record function on my N910 has recently broke and I cant record true SP on my RH10, which is very annoying!!! Might have to go looking on ebay for a cheap old unit, you can never have too many players!

... don't tell me - you get the dreaded "BLANKDISC" after recording?

N910s seem somewhat prone to that mode of failure

[1kyle]

1kyle couldn't agree more re: JB980 - mine has had a couple of days to warm up now and I'm still amazed at the quality of sound from this deck! Didn't realise MD could sound so good! Does anyone have any idea if blank MD discs are going to get more difficult to buy in stores in the UK, as I can see me doing loads more recording with this deck!

MD blanks are still really easy to get in the UK -- even Dixon's still has loads (usually) of the older 80 Min (or 74 min) standard discs.

Finding cheap Hi-MD discs is more of a problem but using the JB980 deck you won't need any HI-MD discs.

Enjoy the deck --- one of the really GREAT pieces of gear which will pass the test of time --- it'll still work when 2 or 3 generations of IPOD's have bit the dust.

Happy new year and great listening (on MD of course).

Cheers

-K

Edited January 2, 2006 by 1kyle

[pauljones52]

... don't tell me - you get the dreaded "BLANKDISC" after recording?

N910s seem somewhat prone to that mode of failure

Yup thats exactly what happened! I claimed on the house insurance and got an RH10 as a replacement so cant complain

[Trondis]

Hi!

I bought my MZNH600 (European model) last september. It was on sale for a quarter of the suggested retail price, and less than a third of the best price I could find on the net. Since then I have tried to find reasons why this was a good purchase compared to other portable players. First I thought of my needs:

1) I need to bring a reasonable amount of my CD music when I am on vacation

2) I need to be independent of a computer to change the music when on vacation

3) I need to be independent of battery chargers etc. because I travel to another continent with different currencies and plugs etc.

With these criterias I found that the MZNH600 is perfect. I can fit most of my CD collection to 10-12 HiMD discs if I compress them to Atrac3plus 64k. That is a suffeciently good sound quality for my tired old ears. The player also uses standard AA batteries that are available everywhere, plus these batteries seems to last forever. Besides this, I find that SonicStage actually does a good job in transferring the CDs to MD. To me it sounds like the original, without gaps etc.

There are quite many alternatives to MD as portable players, but it is hard to find one that can do the same as the HiMD players. The small flash-based players are good if you have a computer nearby to load in new music, or to charge the batteries. The HD based players can fit more music than the HiMD players, but which ones are independent of computers or chargers to reload the battery? My old father just bought a flash player, and I had to help him to put music on it. Since the player didn't come with a program to transfer the music, and no recommendation to a good program either, I had to search the net and try out several. That wasn't easy. The obvious choice to make WMA files is Microsoft Media Player. That one seemed to work fine, it even downloaded the cover art. But it didn't handle a 4CD box well - it could only find the track titles of the first CD in the box. Other rippers had the right titles, but didn't number the tracks. That meant that they would play back in alphabetical order. Half of the "free" programs that I tried was either full of adware, or they were just "free to try" with limited functionality.

All in all, I am very happy with my MZNH600 player.

[greenmachine]

A combination of CD DAE and L.A.M.E. works very well for ripping and encoding CDs to mp3 for me. Only a few kilobytes in size and no nasty ad-/bloat-/spyware. Just pure functionality.

[theblueraja]

This thread sure put a smile on my face!!

I just celebrated my 1-year anniversary last month of being an MD user... and I can't rave enough about this format!! Even though I own several units, my black RH10 is my most frequently used (and most important) unit... actually I can't say that because my NH900 is equally important since I always use that as my downloader!

Anyway, MD rules, there's no doubt about that. Here are my top 5 reasons:

1. Sound Quality.

2. Portability.

3. Reliability.

4. Multiple uses.

5. Cool factor.

I even saved the last 2 pages of this thread into a notepad doc for times if I get the "MD gloom & doom" feel that happened not long ago.

[nsherin]

MD blanks are still really easy to get in the UK -- even Dixon's still has loads (usually) of the older 80 Min (or 74 min) standard discs.

Finding cheap Hi-MD discs is more of a problem but using the JB980 deck you won't need any HI-MD discs.

Enjoy the deck --- one of the really GREAT pieces of gear which will pass the test of time --- it'll still work when 2 or 3 generations of IPOD's have bit the dust.

Happy new year and great listening (on MD of course).

Cheers

-K

Happy New Year to you too. Yep, the JB980 is a good one - even in LP2 mode it sounds amazing and the quality on my portable is really good too. Wilkinsons sell MDs for a decent price - I bought 10 x Maxell yesterday in a box for £7.99. I've got one HiMD disc I bought to try with my portable - haven't used it yet, as I still prefer using the JB980 indoors....

[lamewing]

Well, three months ago I would have laughed at the silliness of this thread, yet the last couple of weeks have changed my mind 100 percent. After using a mp3 player and a PMP (which I really like, but seldom really used) for the last few months I have found my way back to minidisc as well (I really cannot believe it either).

It seems there is no escape!!! To be truthful, I need a recorder for my classes and an occasional music player. Why buy a dedicated player when it is used so infrequently? That question has prompted me to buy a few older model units and possibly a HiMD unit or two in the future.

I may even go old school and just use my CD/MD deck to make discs. Who knows.

[garyc]

I don't think I'll ever go Hi-MD, that said, I do keep an eye on any hardware that comes out etc... i just got my 980B last week, kind of an early birthday present to myself ... Haven't had time to really enjoy it yet. I will mainly use it for old skool SP recordings. I'll try out the net md on it with my laptop just for kicks,

[theblueraja]

...That question has prompted me to buy a few older model units and possibly a HiMD unit or two in the future...

I must ask, why the sudden purchase of SEVERAL units? Plus, if you're contemplating HiMD, why spend money on the others?

[lamewing]

I must ask, why the sudden purchase of SEVERAL units? Plus, if you're contemplating HiMD, why spend money on the others?

BlueRaja

Several =/ a few

Actually I found locally two Sharp DR7s..so that is the few I meant. I bought them both because they were in good condition and DR7s are hard to come by. Why these instead of just jumping into HiMD again? I just don't like the construction quality of some of the HiMD recorders compared to the older units. Plus some of the HiMDs are just ugly...NH1, NH3, and EH1 excluded.