How durable and longlasting RH-1?

[Xeys_00]

Well, I keep coming back to the idea that if I continue with minidisc, eventually, I will have to get one of these. But, for that kind of money, I need it to last. So far, I haven't had to invest much into minidisc, but this is a serious investment. How long could I expect this to last, if I never took it out of the house, used it only to upload recordings made on my older recorders, and kept it put away in a drawer when not using it? I'm antsy thinking about spending that kind of money, and if I do, this will have to last for a LONG time. Any opinions?

[KJ_Palmer]

Some users have complained about the jog lever failing, but I have a feeling it could last at least 10 or more years if that's your usage. That's pretty much all I use my RH1 for - SP uploading and a few transfers to MD, and I never touch that jog lever. Otherwise it stays in it case in a drawer, and looks brand-new. My NH700 gets the bulk of portable player duties, and it also does a fantastic job of that. Only time will tell of course...

[Hungerdunger]

Well, I keep coming back to the idea that if I continue with minidisc, eventually, I will have to get one of these. But, for that kind of money, I need it to last. So far, I haven't had to invest much into minidisc, but this is a serious investment. How long could I expect this to last, if I never took it out of the house, used it only to upload recordings made on my older recorders, and kept it put away in a drawer when not using it? I'm antsy thinking about spending that kind of money, and if I do, this will have to last for a LONG time. Any opinions?

Well mine goes out and about with me nearly every day (in a pouch on my belt) and is lasting pretty well. It must be over 2.5 years old now.

There are two problems with mine, both of which I have seen reported here - (i) the jog lever sometimes malfunctions. E.g. if you push it to Fast Forward, instead of moving further along the track, it moves to the next track; (ii) sometimes it won't start operating (on battery power) and to get it working I have to remove the battery and replace it.

Both the faults are annoying, but not serious. Otherwise it's fine.

[Xeys_00]

Well mine goes out and about with me nearly every day (in a pouch on my belt) and is lasting pretty well. It must be over 2.5 years old now.

There are two problems with mine, both of which I have seen reported here - (i) the jog lever sometimes malfunctions. E.g. if you push it to Fast Forward, instead of moving further along the track, it moves to the next track; (ii) sometimes it won't start operating (on battery power) and to get it working I have to remove the battery and replace it.

Both the faults are annoying, but not serious. Otherwise it's fine.

By the way, it looks like Minidisc Canada has it for about 300 after tax, etc. Does anyone know if it will have problems at the border? Extra tax or anything?

[Levanel]

By the way, it looks like Minidisc Canada has it for about 300 after tax, etc. Does anyone know if it will have problems at the border? Extra tax or anything?

If you're in the states, then yes there may be customs issues as with all international shipments.

[alexis]

According to my experience, it looks like if you want to keep your RH1 working a long time, you will have to protect it from dust or particles exposure.

Mine had the laser head travel mechanism jammed once because of some textile fibers caught in the driving screw thread. It later had also the magnetic recording head arm blocked because of a hair caught in the gear supposed to actuate the head lifting/settling mechanism.

So, I would say, the RH1 was a durable device so far, its metal construction showing good resistance to wear, but it has to be thoroughly cleaned from times to times (meaning opening it completely and removing stuff that would jam the fine mechanics).

[tekdroid]

I'm antsy thinking about spending that kind of money, and if I do, this will have to last for a LONG time. Any opinions?

Short answer: I wouldn't.

The only thing that could convince me of the unit's value is if I had a bunch of older MDs with original live recordings that couldn't be uploaded digitally (which you do, I guess), and even then I'd stick to a small quality loss with analogue and keep the discs until I could find a unit for under $100 USD to upload with (or simply loan one off someone for a few dollars to finish the upload job).

The unit is lacking in several features previous models had:

*Group button / Group functionality

*Bookmark icon on unit (no show)

*No three-line display on remote or unit

...to name but three sad omissions.

and I have heard very many complaintshere about that jog lever crapping out.

FWIW, the value I place on this unit, knowing what I know, but having never used it (and seeing I have no older MDs worth worrying about) is USD$120, seriously. There's no way I'd pay USD$300+ for the unit. I'd sooner fork out for the PCM-D50 or an older Hi-MD unit like the MZ-NH700, which won't help you achieve your upload desires in any way, but there you go, you wanted opinions

If you have money burning a hole in your wallet, go nuts, but otherwise I'd refrain.

[sfbp]

With respect, I disagree.

1. You lose more than "a small quality loss" by going analogue. You lose the whole point of MD, digital sound as well as it has ever been manufactured for consumer use at reasonable prices. Compared to the prices charged for earlier units, the lowest street price for a new RH1 is not bad.

2. There is group functionality. It just isn't on the unit itself, only via the remote. Certainly the most valuable option to me is to start a new group every time I push REC. Combined with the automatic track marking this is a good, if not ideal setup for recording live when you have no idea what is the format of what you are about to hear.

3. Ditto for bookmark functionality, use the remote.

4. I believe that 3-line display is possible using the 40ELK, which is compatible. Also there are some interesting display options that I don't remember from other units.

As far as the jog lever goes, my theory is that if you don't understand how it works, the normal tendency is to push on it too hard - which I did. Fortunately I stopped using this as a player just before I realised that in one direction (only) the jog had gone icky. Everything works. Maybe as Storm Shadow says about other aspects of the RH1, even this could be cured by cleaning.

Your original idea of keeping it for uploads (and live recordings at PCM, which I do in addition), means it will last. So might an NH700 but you will have difficulty obtaining one in the US. And the RH1 is your link to all other recordings made with legacy units. As Microsoft proved, backwards compatibility is one very important key to success, and there are so many zillions of MD out there that it does seem reasonable Sony will make one unit (this one) for a good while. Nevertheless I wouldn't count on it.

Stephen

[Hungerdunger]

One more pro if you listen (like me) to Podcasts or if you have a large collection of mp3s: It can play MP3s without conversion which means quick uploading via SonicStage. I know the second generation (RH10 etc) also had this feature, but (as many people have reported here) the sound quality was never satisfactory.

[tekdroid]

With respect, I disagree.

1. You lose more than "a small quality loss" by going analogue. You lose the whole point of MD, digital sound as well as it has ever been manufactured for consumer use at reasonable prices. Compared to the prices charged for earlier units, the lowest street price for a new RH1 is not bad.

It all depends on the user, I guess, and your priorities. I don't think the quality loss is all that bad, all things said. I guess it would depend to a large degree on your equipment, too.

2. There is group functionality. It just isn't on the unit itself, only via the remote. Certainly the most valuable option to me is to start a new group every time I push REC. Combined with the automatic track marking this is a good, if not ideal setup for recording live when you have no idea what is the format of what you are about to hear.

When I was reading about this (correct me if I'm wrong) there is no option for Group Release on the unit. Not sure if that's available on remote. The loss of Group button on the unit is also an annoyance to me, but might not be to others. When stationary sitting down at the desk I really don't like using the remote (I prefer on-unit controls).

3. Ditto for bookmark functionality, use the remote.

Yeah but my point was the Bookmark icon they didn't even bother to include as a feature on the unit's display, like previous models sanely did.

4. I believe that 3-line display is possible using the 40ELK, which is compatible. Also there are some interesting display options that I don't remember from other units.

If I'm not mistaken the unit itself doesn't show track names, does it?

Yes, optional remotes are great (at more expense, tho), but shouldn't be needed at this price point, IMO. Even the cut-down MZ-NH1 simple display had a 3-line to save itself.

As far as the jog lever goes, my theory is that if you don't understand how it works, the normal tendency is to push on it too hard - which I did. Fortunately I stopped using this as a player just before I realised that in one direction (only) the jog had gone icky. Everything works. Maybe as Storm Shadow says about other aspects of the RH1, even this could be cured by cleaning.

I just don't think someone paying decent money should be bothered by design weaknesses. I personally wouldn't, and unless I had to make those uploads in a hurry, I would wait. No doubt the unit brings some unique stuff to the table, which I acknowledge, but at the expense of its weaknesses, I don't feel there's much value here. But the way Xeys_00 will be using it (babying it), I guess it may be a good choice.

There's a good review here:

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