Hi-MD, is it worth it?

[Sony_Fan]

Well, I currently own a regular Minidisc recorder but I've been wanting to upgrade to Hi-MD. Unfortunately, I haven't found a single store that carries them. This leads me to believe that they are less popular than MP3 players. But that's why I want a Hi-MD unit, because they are not popular and they stand out from the rest. I would only buy one if Sony promises to promote the Hi-MD units and if they are willing to build Hi-MD players for the car. I don't just want to use the the Hi-MD as portable audio, I want to play them in my car without using a car adapter since I don't have a cassette player. So the question is, is Hi-MD worth it? Will it be around for a while? Thanks. Edited November 27, 2005 by Chris G

[The Low Volta]

just a couple of thoughts on this chris:

- "just to stand out from the crowd" is a bit weak to stick with (Hi)MD IMHO...there are brands of MP3 players that sell even less than (Hi)MD

- "I would only buy one if Sony promises to promote the Hi-MD units" combined with the remark I quoted above doesn't really make sense... if they really promote it, it might be picked up by the crowds and get popular and you do not want that, not?

- "and if they are willing to build Hi-MD players for the car" there are other options, get a radio with aux-in or use an FM-transmitter...both will sound better than a cassette-adapter

so is HiMD worth it?

- yes definitely if you want to record as well, as there are no real alternatives (for the same price) and it won't even matter whether Sony keeps producing them, as by the time your unit dies there probably will be an alternative

- no if you just want an MP3 player... just get a player and paint it bright pink, then you will stand out from the crowd as well and won't have to deal with the peculiarities of HiMD/SS

PS: using typographic stuff like caps and bold text is often interpreted like shouting on forums...I know, it makes you stand out from the puddle but just remember this, as ppl might react 'angry'

Edited November 27, 2005 by The Low Volta

[Sparky191]

.... So the question is, is Hi-MD worth it? Will it be around for a while? Thanks.

Depends on what you want to do. If its record then yes. If you don't record then its a harder question. I would suggest a MP3 player makes a better player. Will it be around? No one knows, probably Sony haven't decided yet. They are pulling it out of most markets, with the only new new units being released in Japan. That doesn't bode well IMO.

[mercury_in_flames]

just get an mp3 player and save yourself the hassle of s.s. btw, love the sig, classic stuff.

[RobA]

Even if you don't record, go for it. I have a MZ-NH600D which doesn't have any audio inputs (only usb), so its a player and downloader only, and I love the fact that I have removable media and really long battery life.

Edited November 28, 2005 by RobA

[bogon07]

Even if you don't record, go for it. I have a MZ-NH600D which doesn't have any audio inputs, so its a player only, and I love the fact that I have removable media and really long battery life.

RobA don't sell NH600D short, it is a downloader not just a mere player.

I agree the removable media is the most fundamental and flexible advantage of minidisc. You can continually expand your music collection. I particularly like being able to devote a single disc to an artist and a 1GB can hold quite a few albums at Hi-SP or Hi-LP.

Also you wonder about the life expectancy of hard-drives in portable audio players.

[tekdroid]

So the question is, is Hi-MD worth it? Will it be around for a while? Thanks.

Without going into your needs (and precisely what you mean by 'a while'), nobody can answer that. If you wanna stand out from the crowd, then by all means buy one (if you can find one). Sony won't promise you anything and will probably deliver less than they promise, so your choice They haven't announced Hi-MD car units or anything of that nature. What they have announced is discontinuing MD in some markets, like Australia.

Recording on the go

If you want to record in a small unit unobrusively at good quality, it's a very good choice. (linear PCM recording = no lossy compression). If the unit dies, you did back up all your stuff to CD/DVD, right?

PC files

If you want to save the odd data file to them on your PC - using them much like a floppy with any USB port (with no additional software required with modern operating systems - just plug-n-go) - it's also a good choice. Don't expect high-speed, though; transfers are very slow compared to flash memory and hard drive-based portables (and virtually everything else). Good enough for smallish files, but the wait can be unbearable for many files (or just larger files). So, HI-MD is useful as a portable back-up even if your audio interests dry up. Around 300MB can be saved on each 'regular' MD formatted to Hi-MD mode, too. Potentially a cheap and convenient (if relatively slow) very portable back-up.

Library management & ease-of-use

If you want to transfer files and manage your music/recording library easier than someting like iTunes, or if you expect drag-n-drop for audio files that the unit can play away from the computer, it's probably not a good choice. Everything has to be transferred through Sony's software with probably more surprises and 'gotchas' than you'd reasonably expect.

Removable Batteries

4) If you like to have a portable unit that's (arguably) more reliable than a HD-based unit and has relatively cheap removable media and that doesn't go cheap on you with internal, non user-replaceable batteries (a la iPod Nano, etc), it's also a good choice; you can carry spares and you can also forget about voiding the warranty - or wrecking your unit by hacking it open - when the battery nears the end of its useful life (as they all do after a few hundred charge cycles).

[Sony_Fan]

Even if you don't record, go for it. I have a MZ-NH600D which doesn't have any audio inputs, so its a player only, and I love the fact that I have removable media and really long battery life.

The only type of recording I would do is real time recording using the optical out on my DVD player. I would probably use Hi-SP only if it's as good as old SP or better. I know PCM is CD quality, but play time is too short.

Edited November 28, 2005 by Chris G

[AMPlitude]

i wouldnt recommend hi-md or just md to anyone who doesnt need to record anymore. it just doesnt seem cost-effective

i forgot to mention sonicstage

[MDGB2]

The newest version of Sonicsuck...I mean stage, isn't really that bad.

A lot better than v2.0 I got with my first unit, although I would love SimpleBurner to just re-encode everything 'on the fly.' Maybe when this Connect player thing comes out? We shall see.

[greenmachine]

The only type of recording I would do is real time recording using the optical out on my DVD player. I would probably use Hi-SP only if it's as good as old SP or better. I know PCM is CD quality, but play time is too short.

It's hard to find other portables with optical-in recording functionality. HiMD seems perfect for this job. Hi-SP sounds about as good as SP does, but saves you quite some space due to the reformatting of discs and a slightly lower bitrate.

[bogon07]

The only type of recording I would do is real time recording using the optical out on my DVD player. I would probably use Hi-SP only if it's as good as old SP or better. I know PCM is CD quality, but play time is too short.

Be aware that the optical out from the DVD may allow the Minidisc recorder to detect if there is any copy protection on the DVD or CD you are recording.

[dex Otaku]

Be aware that all consumer CD players should respect the rules of SCMS. Most newer CDs that are copy-protected apparently do not respect SCMS at all, and do not allow even one generation of copy to be made from them.

DVD players are another story. Whether they'll respect SCMS even with unprotected CDs is iffy; whether they'll respect SCMS with DVDs of any kind is usually a simple "no," though some that will transcode non-PCM audio to PCM for digital output will allow 1st-gen copies. The only way to find out is to try it.

[Joe]

MD is also a very rugged medium, compared to fragile hard drive based players. I recommend them as portable listening devices because of that fact (and also because a $500 HD based Mp3 player went bust on me, losing all my music in the process).