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Sonicstage 3.4 Debuts With Stunning New Functionality

Christopher

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Christopher Grand Master

Christopher

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To the surprise of many in the community, Sonicstage 3.4 has arrived with features that truly make this a worthy upgrade for Hi-MD users by allowing unencumbered uploading of analog and now digital (optical, USB) recordings: e.g. a user can transfer tracks to Hi-MD formatted disc, remove tracks from library, and fully upload back onto any computer without DRM woes OR record audio using optical in and upload to Sonicstage with the ability to convert to WAV (PCM). All users are encouraged to upgrade, and coverage of more new options can be found within along with download links..+++

Sonicstage 3.4 Debut

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If you're a member of the forums (registration is free, takes under a minute) and wish to employ a quick download of MDCF's SonicStage 3.4 Full Installer, you can find it in our Downloads section.

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Official Sony-hosted download links: Europe | Japan | USA | Asia-Pacific | JEB [Overseas]

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Sony has had to have been reading for the forums because the functionality delivered in this release is in tune with what users here have been requesting for quite a while. Complete and nonrestrictive digital uploads have finally been allowed, 192kbps ATRAC3plus can be transferred to Hi-MD formatted discs and more! Startup logo has gotten a facelift too; a new symbol for a new era.

New Features:

  • Tracks can be transferred in ATRAC 192kbps to a Hi-MD device.
  • Tracks recorded with a Hi-MD device with the digital/analogue inputs or microphone input can be uploaded to SonicStage and saved in WAV (PCM) format. (e.g. burn a Hi-MD disc, send to a friend and they can upload all contents to their computer without DRM woes; record via optical, no BS upload restriciton!)

  • Audio CD's can be ripped in ATRAC 352kbps.
  • CD information can be displayed from the tracks in My Library.
  • WAV files can be converted into ATRAC Advanced Lossless format.
  • ATRAC format files (including ATRAC Advanced Lossless) can be converted into WAV format.
  • Song lyrics can be displayed when clicking the "Lyrics" button (only if the lyrics are encoded with the track).
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Audio CD's can be ripped in ATRAC 352kbps

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Tracks can be transferred in ATRAC 192kbps to a Hi-MD device

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Song lyrics can be displayed when clicking the "Lyrics" button (only if the lyrics are encoded with the track).

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New Music Service Modules

NOTE: The Japanese SonicStage 3.4 includes a new Music Service module: Yahoo Music Service alongside Mora. As you can view from the screencapture, a Music Community module will also be added sometime in mid-February 2006. One notable feature with the Music Community module is the option to utilize music playlist created/shared by other users.

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SonicStage : 3.4.01.13062
SonicStage Add-on for Personal Audio Download : 3.4.00.12140
OpenMG Secure Module : 4.4.00.11241
MagicGate Memory Stick Device : 4.4.00.11241
NW-E2, NW-E3, NW-E5 and NW-E8P : 4.4.00.11241
OpenMG CD : 4.4.00.11241
M.S. PRO : 4.4.00.11241
CD Walkman : 4.4.00.11241
Hi-MD : 4.4.00.11241
Music Clip, NW-S4, NW-E7 and NW-E10 : 4.4.00.11241
HDWM : 4.4.00.11241
Net MD : 4.4.00.11241
EMD Plug-in: 1.2.0.9
CD-R Writing Module(Audio CD/ATRAC CD/MP3 CD) : 3.4.00.12140
Px Engine: 2.4.35.500[/code]
Edited by Ishiyoshi
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indeego Newbie

indeego

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There is another new "feature".

Let's say you transferred one of your mp3s to Hi-MD as an Atrac-file.

Now, you loose you mp3 on your PC (for whatever reason).

In the past, your mp3 was lost, well, ok you could do a real-time recording, but do this with albums and albums and ..

Now, with 3.4, you just have to delete the mp3 in the SonicStage database and SonicStage will let you upload your lost file again via USB!

And guess what, you could also export this file to wav, without any DRM.

Anyone out there to try out if this is limited to your own PC? ;)

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Killroy Newbie

Killroy

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Tracks recorded with a Hi-MD device with the digital/analogue inputs or microphone input can be uploaded to SonicStage and saved in WAV (PCM) format.

Hello,

this is not totally clear to me: Tracks recorded with a HiMD device could be uploaded to SonicStage ever since, regardless if they were made from the analogue or digital input. But only analogue recordings could be saved as WAV then (except with Mark's famous HiMD Renderer).

So does it mean that in Version 3.4 both types of recordings can be converted to WAV after uploading?

Would be great for me since I sometimes record tracks from my DVD-recorder's optical digital output!

Cheers - Killroy.

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Skradgee Newbie

Skradgee

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Awesome. I'm thrilled to learn about this. However, I have a question about another scenerio...

What about tracks, recorded mic or line-in, that were uploaded to a PC with an earlier version of SonicStage, and marked as 'Track from PC'? Could these be uploaded again? Forgive me if this has been explained about the new version as well, but I just want to make sure. ^_^

Hooray for another version! Hi-MD lives on! :D

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raintheory Newbie

raintheory

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There is another new "feature".

Let's say you transferred one of your mp3s to Hi-MD as an Atrac-file.

Now, you loose you mp3 on your PC (for whatever reason).

In the past, your mp3 was lost, well, ok you could do a real-time recording, but do this with albums and albums and ..

Now, with 3.4, you just have to delete the mp3 in the SonicStage database and SonicStage will let you upload your lost file again via USB!

And guess what, you could also export this file to wav, without any DRM.

Anyone out there to try out if this is limited to your own PC? ;)

This has been possible for some time with MarC's HiMD Renderer... :D

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doclloyd Newbie

doclloyd

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Does the HD5 support ATRAC 352? I haven't tried it yet with my HD3 and I don't remember reading anywhere one way or the other on the NW-* series.

Regardless, I am also very impressed with the upgrades Sony is making to Sonicstage. My hope is one day they make managing the music database (i.e. moving it from one computer to another) will be more straightforward, but I digress. I will rejoice with the new functionality!

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surripere Newbie

surripere

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192 KBPS - Excellent, should be a decent compromise between space and audio quality. This seems incredible as it was only a few months ago that the prevailing mood on the forum was that SS 3.2 wouldn't be upgraded. As Kurisu points out Sony must be looking, and more crucially taking notice, of the forum. All the more reason for us to keep up the pressure for a HiMD deck as the thread on the HIMD section advocates. Such an animal would make my audio life complete (okay that's a bit over the top but I really would like one)

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dex Otaku Newbie

dex Otaku

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Good to see more positive changes. I hope some of the install and stability issues brought up by many of our users have been addressed as well; many of them are just plain weird, and it seems to me like 3.3 had many more than the previous versions.

Interesting that they can suddenly make 192kbps work on HiMD.

Glad to see full support for uploading/exporting optical recordings.

Expect another update to the text of the HiMD uploading FAQ. Suggestions for additions or changes should be PM'd to me, please.

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hkey_barker Newbie

hkey_barker

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Forgive me if you could do this before and if this is old news.

My library is all Atrac3+ 256 kbps. I installed SS 3.4 on two computers. I could easily transfer Hi-MD made recordings to both PC's no problem. I also copied an entire folder from my PC to my laptop through Windows/drag and drop. Imported into SS (I did NOT get a authorization prompt) and transferred to a disc at whatever bitrate I wanted. I also transferred to an old NetMD player no problem.

So in theory can we share OMA files??? Doesn't make much sense considering the size but might be worth checking out.

Great to see SS moving forward.

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MDfreak Newbie

MDfreak

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With the 3.3 update Sony "unlocked" the 352 kbps ATRAC3plus transfer for Hi-MD devices. With 3.4 they unlocked the 192 kbps.

My personal conclusion: Hi-MD devices can decode all kinds of ATRAC3plus bitrates, the only problem is that the SonicStage software doesn't allow to transfer certain bitrates to Hi-MD. Furthermore I think it has something to do with the Hi-MD driver that tells SonicStage which bitrates a device accepts.

So if Sony can just add certain bitrates to be transfered to Hi-MD, is it possible to "unlock" bitrates ourselves? Sadly I have not enough knowlegde to dive into the SonicStage code but maybe someone can locate the part of the code where Sony defines which bitrates are allowed to transfer to Hi-MD so that it will be possible to unlock the remaining bitrates that are already present in SonicStage: 320, 160, 128 and 96 kbps.

Personally I suspect the file C:\Program Files\Common Files\Sony Shared\AVLib\HiMD.dll as being the file where Sony defines which bitrates are ok to transfer to Hi-MD. The named file changed in filesize since SS 3.3.

Maybe some of you people know more details about how above mentioned things work and maybe someone with more programming experience can try to write a patch.

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tekdroid Newbie

tekdroid

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...perhaps this upgrade also points to SONY's renewed dedication to the MD, and that future generations of MDs are on the horizon? I sure hope so!

It's clear as crystal. Sony might be stupid in some areas, but they aren't stupid enough to throw away 1.9 million MD-related units a year. Or throw away their investment in Hi-MD and Hi-MD production so soon.

From SonicStage 3.2 onwards, it was clear to me that Sony wanted to start to revive the market. They react when they see results (or lack of) in the financials. They react when they see competition beating them silly. They react when they see virtual upstarts (Cowon, etc) adding FLAC and gaining ground. They react to flexibility of bitrates in other formats like mp3 and Ogg Vorbis. They react to easier use and less restrictions of most of their competition.

They react to not making money :)

I still don't see much logic in backing out of certain markets like Australia (especially now that Hi-MD is allowed to breathe and perform as most people would expect of a multipurpose, flexible player/ recorder), but maybe some clarity will return on that front at some point...

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tekdroid Newbie

tekdroid

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I'm pretty sure that is what made Sony so paranoid to begin with. I'm sure they're very nervous about what will happen now that they've lifted the restrictions.

Yes, because we all know DRM in SonicStage was stopping so much piracy from occuring. Chaos and the end of the world will follow shortly. ;)

Seriously...

No company is worried about what will happen when they face irrelevance in a particular market. Especially not since piracy can occur far more easily in other products from countless competitors. Many offering far better ease-of-use.

All Sony needs to worry about is people not buying from them. That's it.

People buy (and recommend) things when they see value in them, and always will.

DRM only pisses people off, but is still a wet dream for content-creators who still don't get it.

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dex Otaku Newbie

dex Otaku

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DRM only pisses people off, but is still a wet dream for content-creators who still don't get it.

This varies market-to-market, country-to-country, even. I think that "content distributors" would be more accurate than creators.

While artists on majour labels may or may not suffer lost sales rom unauthorised distribution of their works by internet, the ones who really lose in the traditional system are the distributors and the backers - not the artists.

Here in Canada, the vast majority of musical or sound artists are independents who have no access whatsoever to formal distribution chains. I have yet to meet a band that wasn't signed to a majour label up here who aren't taper-friendly and who don't actually not take issue with their works being ripped and distributed on the net - in fact, the vast majority of bands I've come in contact with since the 'net really took hold openly support their works being distributed on filesharing networks and the like.

The plain truth is that for bands who are out on their own [not being backed monetarily, marketed, and distributed by a majour label] having their content available on the 'net means their potential audience increases dramatically. As a result of more people hearing their work, they actually sell far more albums than they would otherwise.

The part of the DRM argument that I personally feel the vast majority of people simply don't get, and this includes the majority of bloggers and journalists who defend one side or the other, is that while the RIAA and other various groups may state that artists benefit from the use of DRM, that is an outright lie outside of the majour-label system which represent an extremely tiny minority of the actual recording musicians on earth. The distributors and publishers [record companies] are the ones who stand to benefit, while the artists simply get shafted as usual.

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