bobandglennie Posted September 19, 2009 Report Share Posted September 19, 2009 Hello from Canada. I'm new here but not new to Minidisc. I was first introduced to the medium in 2000 when I needed a re-recordable medium on which the track numbers (and playing order) could could be asigned at will. I bought an Onkyo MD 2321. I soon saw that the medium had many applications and soon bought a Sony MZ-R37 which quickly became my constant companion. The R37 sadly will only play now but I have an RH1 and a Sharp MD=MT20 in addition to the Onkyo deck. My question is about the Sharp. I got it used but in real good shape from a neighbor who didn't know what it was. She gave it to me !!! It won't run with my Sony power supply even though it's the same plug, same polarity and only 1/2 volt difference. The Sony power supply is 4.5v and the Sharp wants 5v. Is it normal for this unit to be this fussy about it's external power? Secondly, it won't record optical from my Onkyo deck using the Sony optical cable for portable recorders. It tells me there is a bad connection at the optical in. Does it need a Sharp proprietary cable? If so, where can I get the proper optical cable and power supply? Thankyou so much Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfbp Posted September 19, 2009 Report Share Posted September 19, 2009 Hello from Canada. I'm new here but not new to Minidisc. I was first introduced to the medium in 2000 when I needed a re-recordable medium on which the track numbers (and playing order) could could be asigned at will. I bought an Onkyo MD 2321. I soon saw that the medium had many applications and soon bought a Sony MZ-R37 which quickly became my constant companion. The R37 sadly will only play now but I have an RH1 and a Sharp MD=MT20 in addition to the Onkyo deck. My question is about the Sharp. I got it used but in real good shape from a neighbor who didn't know what it was. She gave it to me !!! It won't run with my Sony power supply even though it's the same plug, same polarity and only 1/2 volt difference. The Sony power supply is 4.5v and the Sharp wants 5v. Is it normal for this unit to be this fussy about it's external power? Secondly, it won't record optical from my Onkyo deck using the Sony optical cable for portable recorders. It tells me there is a bad connection at the optical in. Does it need a Sharp proprietary cable? If so, where can I get the proper optical cable and power supply? Thankyou so much Robert Manual is here: http://minidisc.org/manuals/sharp/sharp_mdmt20_manual.pdf Page 41 describes what happens with different power inputs. I'm not sure if the battery is removable. Also there is a sidecar - but not clear if this is a Sony-fittable one, or a Sharp special. If you had one you could also have an AA (chargeable or not) as well as the internal battery. A charger from London Drugs will probably do just fine. Have you got the right optical cable? Optical at both ends? If so, you are a victim of SCMS, and you will not be able to go from one MD deck to another. http://cgi.ebay.ca/Toslink-to-Mini-Toslink-Digital-Optical-Cable-6ft_W0QQitemZ160361184567 Stephen in Vancouver Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobandglennie Posted September 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 Manual is here: http://minidisc.org/...mt20_manual.pdf Page 41 describes what happens with different power inputs. I'm not sure if the battery is removable. Also there is a sidecar - but not clear if this is a Sony-fittable one, or a Sharp special. If you had one you could also have an AA (chargeable or not) as well as the internal battery. A charger from London Drugs will probably do just fine. Have you got the right optical cable? Optical at both ends? If so, you are a victim of SCMS, and you will not be able to go from one MD deck to another. http://cgi.ebay.ca/T...emZ160361184567 Stephen in Vancouver Stephen, I appreciate the reply. I have the manual that you linked me to. The error message list on pg40 is how I knew that the recorder was objecting to the Sony power supply and the Sony optical cable. The battery is removable and it runs fine on two AA NiMH which I can re-charge in a separate charger. What I don't know is why it doesn't like the Sony power supply? Are the Sharp recorders that fussy as to object to a .5v difference? As for the optical cable ...I have the cable that came with my Sony MZ-R37. It is optical at both ends but I don't know if it's the right one for the Sharp. And that's what I'm trying to find out. This cable works fine with my RH1 and and the R37 (before the R37 broke) but the Sharp gives me an error message indicating that there is a problem at the optical connection. I don't know if this is because of incompatability with the cable or some other problem. The Toslink cable that you linked me to on Ebay appears to be a universal fit and I don't know how to be sure it will work with my Sharp. Any futher assistance you can share with me would be appreciated. BTW, aside from these 2 issues the little Sharp performs very well and I like it better than the old Sony MZ-R37. It's easier to read and has a better record level meter. Thankyou Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfbp Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 Stephen, I appreciate the reply. I have the manual that you linked me to. The error message list on pg40 is how I knew that the recorder was objecting to the Sony power supply and the Sony optical cable. The battery is removable and it runs fine on two AA NiMH which I can re-charge in a separate charger. What I don't know is why it doesn't like the Sony power supply? Are the Sharp recorders that fussy as to object to a .5v difference? OK so we're both "on the same page" as far as docs go. I will tell you that I have seen some extremely odd things with a Sony MZ-N910 (I had 2, and was selling the second) refusing to charge with a non-Sony charger. I eventually came to the conclusion that the circuit doesn't come on if the battery has more than a certain voltage relative to the applied charging voltage. However as the battery got discharged, it started to work again. Could this possibly be your problem I wonder? As for the optical cable ...I have the cable that came with my Sony MZ-R37. It is optical at both ends but I don't know if it's the right one for the Sharp. And that's what I'm trying to find out. This cable works fine with my RH1 and and the R37 (before the R37 broke) but the Sharp gives me an error message indicating that there is a problem at the optical connection. I don't know if this is because of incompatability with the cable or some other problem. The Toslink cable that you linked me to on Ebay appears to be a universal fit and I don't know how to be sure it will work with my Sharp. I don't think there's a difference between *cables*. I just wanted to make 100% sure you didn't have something that was expecting to connect a Coax (SPDIF) input rather than Toslink, since I don't know the Sharp and (mea culpa) didn't actually have time to read the manual I linked to. You could probably tell that my response seemed a little hurried. As long as the cable still works for the RH1 we're in good shape, clearly. That leaves the other possibility - SCMS. Have you tried recording into the optical socket from some other device that you know it's ok to get optical output from (eg a CD player), instead of the Onkyo deck? Believe it or not, I've never even tried to record from MD to MD since I know it's usually "not allowed" (well, maybe once). If so, then it is possible that you have to find at least an MD that didn't have downloaded tracks, but only mic-recorded tracks, before concluding there was no possibility to record. Oh, one more thing - I assume the 3.5mm tip of the optical cable has red light in it? Cheers Stephen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobandglennie Posted September 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 OK so we're both "on the same page" as far as docs go. I will tell you that I have seen some extremely odd things with a Sony MZ-N910 (I had 2, and was selling the second) refusing to charge with a non-Sony charger. I eventually came to the conclusion that the circuit doesn't come on if the battery has more than a certain voltage relative to the applied charging voltage. However as the battery got discharged, it started to work again. Could this possibly be your problem I wonder? I don't think there's a difference between *cables*. I just wanted to make 100% sure you didn't have something that was expecting to connect a Coax (SPDIF) input rather than Toslink, since I don't know the Sharp and (mea culpa) didn't actually have time to read the manual I linked to. You could probably tell that my response seemed a little hurried. As long as the cable still works for the RH1 we're in good shape, clearly. That leaves the other possibility - SCMS. Have you tried recording into the optical socket from some other device that you know it's ok to get optical output from (eg a CD player), instead of the Onkyo deck? Believe it or not, I've never even tried to record from MD to MD since I know it's usually "not allowed" (well, maybe once). If so, then it is possible that you have to find at least an MD that didn't have downloaded tracks, but only mic-recorded tracks, before concluding there was no possibility to record. Oh, one more thing - I assume the 3.5mm tip of the optical cable has red light in it? Cheers Stephen Hi again, belive me, I won't become a pain in the ass . I don't think that SCMS is the issue here. I'm allowed to make 1 digital copy of a Minidisc and that's what I usually do with the RH1 (and formerly the R37). For example I can make a Minidisc from cable radio ... analogue. Then, after editing I can copy once from my Onkyo deck to another disc digitally. I haven't tried an optical recording from another device but I could try it from my Panasonic AV control reciever. I can asign optical out from any of the source inputs. It's going to a pain to drag it out of the rack and find the optical plug but I'll try that. I'm heading into Ontario Canadian Sheild wilderness for my anual fall canoe retreat but I'll try it when I get back at the end of the week. Thankyou Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfbp Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 Since the RH1 generally has less DRM than other (previous) devices, I do think that ir's entirely possible you were somehow allowed to do something that Sony did not allow previously. In particular I recall reading of an Onkyo deck (probably a different one, most likely HiMD) and that it had optical out but ONLY from the CD - leaving the situation that there exists NO device for sale, ever, that had HiMD and optical out. So that's why SCMS occurred to me. Enjoy Muskoka, or even more distant parts! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobandglennie Posted September 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 UPDATE !!! The little Sharp now records digitally from the Onkyo optical out! The problem was pocket lint or some kind of fuzz in the Optical/analogue port. It didn't affect solid connections for analogue recording but it was blocking line of sight to the optical pickup. A good blow job with compressed air did the trick. As I said I got this unit from a neighbor who didn't know what it was, so who knows where it's been and how long it bounced around in somebody's pocket (or under the bed or ... you get the picture ) All that remains is to try to find a power supply that it likes, but at least it can use MiMH rechargables and it's easy on batteries and they're no hassle to charge. I do appreciate your interest in this problem. Maybe see around the forum. Off to Killarny. Latter Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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