Sony MZ-RH1 Error Messages

[wostraub]

[Administrator -- please redirect if wrong forum]

I bought a MZ-RH1 unit in September 2006 and experienced immediate problems with "read error" and "no disc" error messages. Old/new MDs (80min and 1GB) were not being recognized by the unit. etc. By removing the internal battery long enough to allow the clock/date to "die," the problem went away. However, upon using SonicStage (4.3) to download music files, the problems returned. So I shipped the unit to Sony, who returned it saying "nothing is wrong." Yes, nothing is wrong unless I use SonicStage, because it's still acting up.

Has anyone else experienced this problem?

Edited February 18, 2007 by weylguy

[son0fbob]

[Administrator -- please redirect if wrong forum]

I bought a MZ-RH1 unit in September 2006 and experienced immediate problems with "read error" and "no disc" error messages. Old/new MDs (80min and 1GB) were not being recognized by the unit. etc. By removing the internal battery long enough to allow the clock/date to "die," the problem went away. However, upon using SonicStage (4.3) to download music files, the problems returned. So I shipped the unit to Sony, who returned it saying "nothing is wrong." Yes, nothing is wrong unless I use SonicStage, because it's still acting up.

Has anyone else experienced this problem?

I get the same error message regardless if I'm using SonicStage or MD Simple Burner. I never thought about removing the battery though, strange that when Sony received the unit they couldn't find anything wrong. Hopefully somebody within the forum might be able to shed some light on this issue.

[votiendung]

[Administrator -- please redirect if wrong forum]

I bought a MZ-RH1 unit in September 2006 and experienced immediate problems with "read error" and "no disc" error messages. Old/new MDs (80min and 1GB) were not being recognized by the unit. etc. By removing the internal battery long enough to allow the clock/date to "die," the problem went away. However, upon using SonicStage (4.3) to download music files, the problems returned. So I shipped the unit to Sony, who returned it saying "nothing is wrong." Yes, nothing is wrong unless I use SonicStage, because it's still acting up.

Has anyone else experienced this problem?

I go to Sony corporation at my country. I pay 20$ for comission repair.

[Avrin]

Just gut two READ ERRORS on my RH1 bought only yesterday. The errors appeared when loading Hi-MD formatted 80 minute legacy discs recorded on my RH10. When I insert a disc for the first time, a READ ERROR appears. When I remove and reinsert the disc, it plays just fine. No problems with 1Gb Hi-MD discs though.

And a look inside the loading mechanism revealed a compact and much less reliable structure than that of the RH10 (which inherited it from the NH900). The battery can be seen from the disc compartment, which means an easier way for dust and dirt to get inside the unit. And I will probably never like the crazy ejection force of the RH1.

But the sound of the unit is impeccable.

[Avrin]

Turns out the problem still had to do with electronics adjustments. Just turned the MD reading laser power down by 0.20 mW to match that of my RH10, and the READ ERROR is gone for good for all lid positions. Checked by inserting all of my 23 legacy MDs in a row - no errors. And the unit now loads MDs considerably faster. And the laser will probably live longer.

EDIT: Increasing the MD reading laser power by 0.20 mW on my RH10 does not lead to errors...

Edited February 21, 2007 by Avrin

[Sparda]

I don't understand how that works, normally you would assume turning it up would make it load faster. Lol, be careful not to fry your discs and cause a fire.

[Avrin]

Not always up. If the laser power is set too high, then the laser spot on the disc is too bright and wide, and unable to focus on the groove properly. Turning the power down decreases the spot diameter and brightness, and provides proper focusing (and increases the life of the laser). If, on the other hand, the power is too low, then the spot is too weak to read information, and the power should be increased.

15+ years ago, when there were no firmwares, the CD player laser adjustment procedure was simple. The power was adjusted by a resistor. Turn the resistor up until the unit just stops reading (or begins to skip), and mark the resistor position. Then decrease the power, so the unit reads again. Continue decreasing power until the unit is again no longer able to read properly. Mark the new position, then set the resistor exactly in the middle between the two positions, and you're done.

BTW, the default (unadjusted) value for the MD reading laser power is actually 0.60 mW lower than what had been set on my RH1. So the laser was definitely emitting too much light.

Edited March 1, 2007 by Avrin

[Karmageddon]

Not always up. If the laser power is set too high, then the laser spot on the disc is too bright and wide, and unable to focus on the groove properly. Turning the power down decreases the spot diameter and brightness, and provides proper focusing (and increases the life of the laser). If, on the other hand, the power is too low, then the spot is too weak to read information, and the power should be increased.

15+ years ago, when there were no firmwares, the CD player laser adjustment procedure was simple. The power was adjusted by a resistor. Turn the resistor up until the unit just stops reading (or begins to skip), and mark the resistor position. Then decrease the power, so the unit reads again. Continue decreasing power until the unit is again no longer able to read properly. Mark the new position, then set the resistor exactly in the middle between the two positions, and you're done.

BTW, the default (unadjusted) value for the MD reading laser power is actually 0.60 mW lower than what had been set on my RH1. So the laser was definitely emitting too much light.

So then, would you say it is neccessary to reduce the laser power? How do I goa buot doing this? And why would sony crank it up for this wonderful model (MZ-RH1)?

[Avrin]

It depends on whether you are having READ ERRORS with legacy recordable MD discs. My first RH1 had a value of 41 at address 0124. In comparison, the RH10 had only 3D there. When I set the RH1 to 3D, errors disappeared. Then I decreased the value further to 39. Still no errors. My second RH1 had 40 at 0124. I set it to 39 immediately after purchase, before any errors ever appeared.

In any case, you may try setting the value to 3D, or even to 39. This won't harm the unit, if you do it accurately (it is done is the service mode, after all). If any problems arise - just increase the value back. If it is already 3D, nothing needs to be done.

As for why does SONY do this - I have no idea. Probably to make the life of the RH1 shorter, so people buy another units, such as flash or HDD. Or they are planning a release of another HiMD unit, and want the owners of the RH1 to buy that also, when their RH1s die.

[tekdroid]

And why would sony crank it up for this wonderful model (MZ-RH1)?

Laser power (read and write?) has probably been cranked up due to the fact that the MZ-RH1 spins at a higher top speed than its predecessors. Compare the specs in the manuals versus the older models top speed. Faster speeds probably necessitate higher laser power at higher rpms to get the disc read/written to reliably. Just a guess but sounds likely, IMO.

[sfbp]

Just a final word on this thread (I've been re-reading the current lore on this topic).

I now believe that the rationale behind turning the read laser power DOWN is as follows:

1. The electronics in all MD-units is a complicated servo (i.e. feedback) system which depends on known power of laser hitting the disk at the right time and place.

2. When installing a new head, the laser power is measured under certain conditions. It is this power which is entered into the settings at 211(9111) and 212(9112), to determine how much power is required for reading.

3. When you "report" a larger number by entering it each of these locations (you will find that by design, 211 [expected power output based on actual characteristics of the head] is always a larger number than 212 [observed output power]) a smaller amount of power is actually sent to the head, to get the required output. And vice versa.

4. If you look in the service manuals for decks, the IOP value is a measured output of the laser head quite comparable to these two measurements.

So REDUCING this number is INCREASING the actual laser output when it comes time to read the disk.

In my case I had a problem with 1GB (HiMD) disks but (for me) 80m disks (at HiMD format) always worked perfectly. Avrin's observations happen to be the other way around. I have no clue why that should be so.

I may still have some problems, but at the very least I am always writing disks perfectly now. Odd that changing READ parameters should make a difference to that, but my rationale is that it is when the unit tries to re-read the TOC to finalize the directory of files that the problems occur.

It is still quite possible that some other parameters need to be fiddled with when these units get in this (general) state. I am still resisting buying a Laser Power Meter, but one of these days I may break down.....

Happy tweaking!

Stephen