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RH1 metal or plastic case?

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lamewing

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Hey folks. My RH1 just arrived and after opening it I am concerned regarding the material of the case. It seems if the case feels like it is made of plastic. Am I wrong? Please tell me that is the case. The case isn't aluminum. Might it be made of magnesium? Thanks.

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Hey folks. My RH1 just arrived and after opening it I am concerned regarding the material of the case. It seems if the case feels like it is made of plastic. Am I wrong? Please tell me that is the case. The case isn't aluminum. Might it be made of magnesium? Thanks.

Both the lid and bottom are definitely metal. Obviously the switchgear is plastic, and the sides are either very hard tough plastic (most likely) or metal as well (unlikely). I like the grippy sides - this thing is amazingly well made.

The mechanism is virtually identical to the 2nd gen. RH(9)10 decks, but seems quicker. One would guess that Sony made a few updates to it.

I've just filled the included disk with data and did a binary comparison with the original. As expected it was bit-perfect and fast - much faster than my RH10. I believe the RH1 finally realizes the data storage possibilities of HiMD/USB2.0.

Back to topic...

cheers

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Both the lid and bottom are definitely metal. Obviously the switchgear is plastic, and the sides are either very hard tough plastic (most likely) or metal as well (unlikely). I like the grippy sides - this thing is amazingly well made.

The mechanism is virtually identical to the 2nd gen. RH(9)10 decks, but seems quicker. One would guess that Sony made a few updates to it.

I've just filled the included disk with data and did a binary comparison with the original. As expected it was bit-perfect and fast - much faster than my RH10. I believe the RH1 finally realizes the data storage possibilities of HiMD/USB2.0.

Back to topic...

cheers

I took a closer look at the body casing (after it cooled off...those UPS trucks get hot here in TX)and you are right. The top/bottom are metal, and probably magnesium, as the RH1 seems much too light for an aluminum body. It is disappointing that the sides are plastic. I guess I am still stuck on the tank-like construction of the old R900/N900 series recorders. Nonetheless, I didn't mean to say the RH1 was badly constructed. I am not fond of the little battery door, though. :blink:

The unit is faster on transfers. I tried playing a music video (Traveling - Hikaru Utada) from my DH10P and it skipped, but the RH1 was able to transfer the data fast enough to play the file. Nice. It still isn't up to true USB 2.0 speeds, but that is to be expected. I guess we will never see HDD transfer speeds. <_<

The ability to do legacy transfers is nice, but I really don't have much use for that. I guess I could use my R900 to record and then eaisly upload the tracks (classes at university) to my PC. Heck, my RH1 would never need to leave the house. Hmmmmmm ^_^

The true mini-usb connector is a dream come true. I don't know why Sony didn't make use of this on all of their recorders (NH1, DH10P..??) as it really makes the unit more useable.

I didn't realize that the unit charges from the USB port. NICE. Again...WHY did it take Sony soooooooo long to provide this feature.

My only "real" complaints are (and I knew this going into the purchase) 1. the lack of full support for the 3-line remote, especially considering there is no title information on the unit itself. Actually, I can live without the title info on the RH1, but the remote support should be better. 2. the lack of an external AA battery case. But I guess many folks might use the RH1 purely as an "uploader"??? 3. The use of that dang LIP battery. It would have been nice if Sony had gone back to the use of NW-14 type gumsticks.

Overall, a nice unit. Will I keep it? I really don't know. I might just return it and look at a different HiMD unit. Nice unit (very nice), but I don't think I will truly take advantage of all the features. Too bad there is no color LCD (ie. DH10P) and a true scroll wheel (R900/R909/N910/N920).

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I took a closer look at the body casing (after it cooled off...those UPS trucks get hot here in TX)and you are right. The top/bottom are metal, and probably magnesium, as the RH1 seems much too light for an aluminum body. It is disappointing that the sides are plastic. I guess I am still stuck on the tank-like construction of the old R900/N900 series recorders. Nonetheless, I didn't mean to say the RH1 was badly constructed. I am not fond of the little battery door, though. :blink:

The unit is faster on transfers. I tried playing a music video (Traveling - Hikaru Utada) from my DH10P and it skipped, but the RH1 was able to transfer the data fast enough to play the file. Nice. It still isn't up to true USB 2.0 speeds, but that is to be expected. I guess we will never see HDD transfer speeds. <_<

The ability to do legacy transfers is nice, but I really don't have much use for that. I guess I could use my R900 to record and then eaisly upload the tracks (classes at university) to my PC. Heck, my RH1 would never need to leave the house. Hmmmmmm ^_^

The true mini-usb connector is a dream come true. I don't know why Sony didn't make use of this on all of their recorders (NH1, DH10P..??) as it really makes the unit more useable.

I didn't realize that the unit charges from the USB port. NICE. Again...WHY did it take Sony soooooooo long to provide this feature.

My only "real" complaints are (and I knew this going into the purchase) 1. the lack of full support for the 3-line remote, especially considering there is no title information on the unit itself. Actually, I can live without the title info on the RH1, but the remote support should be better. 2. the lack of an external AA battery case. But I guess many folks might use the RH1 purely as an "uploader"??? 3. The use of that dang LIP battery. It would have been nice if Sony had gone back to the use of NW-14 type gumsticks.

Overall, a nice unit. Will I keep it? I really don't know. I might just return it and look at a different HiMD unit. Nice unit (very nice), but I don't think I will truly take advantage of all the features. Too bad there is no color LCD (ie. DH10P) and a true scroll wheel (R900/R909/N910/N920).

I hear ya. I've taken a closer look at the sides - they are awfully thin and strong. So the RH1 may have an all-metal case after all (who'da thunkit! :lol: )

I need uncompromising recording and playback quality, with accurate LR level meters. It has utterly beaten my M-Audio MT CF recorder in all departments, so it stays in my little collection. I'm hoping to get rid of the MT soon...

cheers

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My only "real" complaints are (and I knew this going into the purchase) 1. the lack of full support for the 3-line remote, especially considering there is no title information on the unit itself. Actually, I can live without the title info on the RH1, but the remote support should be better. 2. the lack of an external AA battery case. But I guess many folks might use the RH1 purely as an "uploader"??? 3. The use of that dang LIP battery. It would have been nice if Sony had gone back to the use of NW-14 type gumsticks.

Now I am totally confused :blink:. MDcenter.nl states that RH1 fully supports the 3-line MC40ELK remote:

http://www.mdcenter.nl/redirect.php?file=h...h1/index_en.php

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Now I am totally confused :blink: . MDcenter.nl states that RH1 fully supports the 3-line MC40ELK remote:

http://www.mdcenter.nl/redirect.php?file=h...h1/index_en.php

The prototype unit we tested for that review did as far as I could see. I don't yet have the retail unit, but I'm pretty sure the 40ELK is 90% compatible. Certainly as far as titles go.

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even it is made of metal, still feel cheap. it is harder to give the cheap feeling using metal than using plastic. i don't know why i feel my rh1 as cheap as plastic budget models.

I think it feels cheap because it is made of plastic and magnesium, making it feel awful light for a recorder. Also, the body doesn't have a true "clamshell" design like most of the other MD units. I guess this is why the door doesn't feel as sturdy, but at least it does make a solid "clunk" when it is closed. It seems we will never see a true metal battery door though. :P

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even it is made of metal, still feel cheap. it is harder to give the cheap feeling using metal than using plastic. i don't know why i feel my rh1 as cheap as plastic budget models.

It's all about preference, I suppose. Now our MZ-RH(9)10s, 5G video *pod, and MT - they feel cheap and scratch if you look at them wrong. I need to keep them in cases to preserve their looks. Did anyone ever hold and use the MT in their hand? Now that's the benchmark of cheapness in my book. Not so with the incredibly tiny RH1. They had to use thinner metal (vs. thick plastic) to get it down to that size... :lol:

cheers

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you can understand what i mean "cheap" when you holding a R50 in your hand. i didn't use any other md unit since R50 and recently i bought dh10p and rh1. when picked up both of them i immediately felt the difference. dh10p is better but rh1 is another step of downgrade.

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littlecx: I know what you mean. I had an N1 (magnesium body) and even though it was lightweight, the thinness of the metal did make it feel pretty inexpensive and almost plastic-ish. With Hi-MD, my NH1 (also magnesium) does feel "cheapy" compared to my EH1/NH3D (brushed aluminum) and the DH10P, another sturdy-feeling unit. Seems like Sony likes to use the lighter magnesium body with a lot of their recorders - N1, NH1, RH1.

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Yep, I agree, and should clear up what I mean by "cheapy feeling" as well.

I started with a Sony MZ-R70. Solid Aluminum (front and back). After than I owned the R900, R909, and Sharp DR7. All of these MDLP are made from aluminum and felt very sturdy.

I tried the NetMD units. I bought a MZ-N1 and was turned off by the plastic feeling magnesium body. Ick. Back it went. The N910 and N920 were sturdy aluminum as well. The MZ-S1 was an exception as it was truly a TANK.

On to HiMD. The NH1 is a nice unit, but does feel a bit too light - magnesium again. The EH1 I bought a year ago was great. I am interested in trying out the NH3D since it is aluminum as well. The DH10P - I tried it and LOVED the LCD, but the camera aspect really was a downer. Same unit without the camera would have been wonderful.

The RH1 is almost a keeper. It is too light and too plasticky on the sides. I see it's best use (for me) is as purely an "uploader" as I use MDLP/NetMD recorders to record my classes. It is worth $330.00. Maybe not...probably not. If I had years of old legacy recordings, then the RH1 would be a nice find.

For fun, what I would like to have seen was a unit in the shape of the N910, with the color LCD and all the benefits of the RH1.

It seems that Sony might have done better by making a deck that had all of the RH1 capabilities (even a small bookshelf sized deck), but hey....what is done is done.

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weight and the choice of magnesium, aluminum or plastic doesn't have direct impact on quality. using high grade plastic with good craftsmanship still can give you good feeling. i don't think the craftsmanship of rh1 is comparable to r50 such as there is always a gap between the body and the lid when closed on rh1 and r50 is simply tightly closed. i am not talking about weight.

Edited by littlecx
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weight and the choice of magnesium, aluminum or plastic doesn't have direct impact on quality. using high grade plastic with good craftsmanship still can give you good feeling. i am not talking about weight.

Weight and body material do have a direct impact on perceived quality, which is very important - afterall, it made you feel that the RH1 is a "downgrade" to the DH10P/R50, and a lot of people on this forum would firmly disagree with that comment of yours.

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so u think rh1's build quality including craftsmanship is as good as r50? and i am not that stupid that i judge by just weighing which is heavier which is lighter. i dunno what others thinking here but i am not only one feeling rh1 cheaper than old school models on forums in my place.

and it is the fact that when i press the shell of rh1 and r50, rh1 does flex more. (shock absorbing?)

Edited by littlecx
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Um, I was never making a comparison between the R50 and RH1. I just stated that weight AND build material are very important in determining what we think "feels cheap" (ie, perceived quality). So, I don't judge by weight only either. But, what I did disagree with is when you stated that weight and construction material don't contribute to body quality.

Edit: I think we are agreeing with things, but you're taking me the wrong way (or not understanding what I wrote). You think the RH1 feels cheap. I think the NH1 feels cheap. And, guess what? I bet they're both made of the same material.

Edited by jaylen
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i talked about craftsmanship b4 but u just skipped.

No, I did see that. Craftsmanship (like you said) is included in build quality, which includes body construction/material and weight, among other things. Why else would people think plastic is "cheap" and metal is nicer.

Your words:

"weight and the choice of magnesium, aluminum or plastic doesn't have direct impact on quality."

Anyway, I think we've beaten this topic to death. If you have any more arguments/excuses as to why we disagree, feel free to PM me. I don't want to intrude on other forumers' posting/reading space.

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wat i mean choice of materials is actually grade of material, not type of material. just like benz s600 and toyota corolla both use plastic in the cabin but s600's plastic definitely feel expensive. grade of material does hv impact on quality, type of material not that apparent if the maker make it good.

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Benz plastic is probably thicker/denser (hmm, WEIGHT? lol) compared to Toyota's standards.

""weight and the choice of magnesium, aluminum or plastic doesn't have direct impact on quality."

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and i believe there must be some materials which are light weight but tough and resistant and feel good.

lol Sorry, but I just had to...

"... the choice of magnesium, aluminum or plastic doesn't have direct impact on quality." :P

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But, isn't the grade of a material determined by its type? Like if it's steel - carbon steel, carbon alloy steel, or steel alloy with chromium/nickel.

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i think different types of steel hv different characteristics and used in different fields and each type of alloy have quality differece so that the manufacturers can sell at different price. but i do believe both metal alloys aluminum, magnesium and high grade plastics are good enough for making walkman even (if)the costs are different.

Edited by littlecx
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