Work Around for MD's under Windows 7

[1kyle]

Thanks so much for the details, and for taking the time.

How are you getting this CD image file TO your VIRTUAL machine??

Virtual machines can't read CD-ROM drives, so I presume you are MAKING the image in your regular Win7 environment. How are you getting that FILE to the virtual environment to import into Alchohol, or whatever? I've tried 'sharing' files between my real Windows and virtual and have had little success.

Hi there

How to do it --- instructions

1) ensure your HOST system has FILE SHARING enabled and if it's Windows 7 TURN ON NETWORK DISCOVERY and allow firewall to share files

2) Ensure the XP Virtual machine in the Virtual machine settings has NAT or BRIDGED networking enabled

3) In the VIRTUAL machine mount NETWORK DRIVE with windows explorer - mount the drive or folder containing your CD images

4) now with Alcohol 52% in the VIRTUAL machine right mouse click against the Virtual drive and select Mount image

5) select your image file.

MD simple burner should immediuately recognize it and connect to gracenote to get track etc info -- and you can start burning

7) when finished UNMOUNT the image and mount the next one.

Note this is better than using the actual CD drive in the Windows XP guest as the Mount / Eject stuff doesn't always work with Simple burner on a Virtual machine -- and in any case it's really FAST burning when using a mounted image

Incidentally don't use the Mount image from the VM settings as this also can cause problems with EJECT / RELOAD and simple burner.

The Alcohol 52% software has its own iSCSI adapter which works 100% EVERY time in the XP virtual machine.

Enc 2 pics of the setup

Cheers

-K

[sfbp]

Please could moderators split this thread? I'll never find it if/when I finally need it.

Thanks

[1kyle]

Please could moderators split this thread? I'll never find it if/when I finally need it.

Thanks

Hi there

Good Idea -- I'll echo that -- I've had several people wanting to know how to use Minidisc (both HI-MD and Net MD) with Windows 7 and not have to use Sonic Stage as a Library. -- You DO need to have it installed however.

Windows 7 Does NOT mean that your MD's don't work any more -- just takes a bit of a "Work around".

Cheers

-K

[Avrin]

And I'll say it again - you don't need to have SonicStage installed in order to use SimpleBurner. You only need OpenMG and the drivers.

[1kyle]

And I'll say it again - you don't need to have SonicStage installed in order to use SimpleBurner. You only need OpenMG and the drivers.

Thanks

I've just uninstalled the whole kybosh on my XP machine -- and re-installed only the drivers, OMG and Simple Burner.

Works fine --thanks for the tip.

Cheers

-K

[theblueraja]

Ok, 1Kyle's posts have been revelatory. Ineed this thread needs to be split. I just updated my version of Sun VirtualBox (my Virtual XP) since I always ignored the "hit OK for the newer version" and the program seems to run a bit better and have more options... most importantly what has enabled me or perhaps inspired me to do something thanks to 1Kyle's directions.

While I'm not going to use the CDimage thing, Alchohol, nor SimpleBurner, just check out MY setup:

(keep in mind the whole reason I'm using a virtual XP is because NetMD drivers won't work to make LP2 discs)

1) Using SonicStage in my Vista 64bit platform, I rip a CD (132kbps).

2) I set my SHARED Network folder in my Virtual XP to be the root folder that SonicStage saves to (C:/ProgramData/Packages/SonyCorporation/SonicStage/Packages)

3) In SonicStage on my Virtual XP, I simply then IMPORT directly from that shared file.

BINGO! That's IT. My SonicStage in Virtual XP now contains the exact same music file I just imported via SonicStage in Vista, now available to go to MD via my Virtual Machine.

How cool is THAT??!

Thanks again 1Kyle for the inspiration.

[Stuge]

"Thread split "

I have split the topic as requested .please let me know if thread title is appropriate ??

[scarrabri]

Hi i am using windows 7, 64 and want to use sonicstage,and i have read that it is possible to use it,but i am still not sure how to do it ,is there a very easy way lol best wishes Brian

[MusicBringer]

Hi i am using windows 7, 64 and want to use sonicstage,and i have read that it is possible to use it,but i am still not sure how to do it ,is there a very easy way lol best wishes Brian

Me too.

I have just tried to install SS4.3.

After reboot, I get an error message when I try to launch.

"Cannot find the OpenMG Secure Module. Exiting SS

(Error code:00005607)

Help. Please

[scarrabri]

Me too.

I have just tried to install SS4.3.

After reboot, I get an error message when I try to launch.

"Cannot find the OpenMG Secure Module. Exiting SS

(Error code:00005607)

Help. Please

Hi there i too had trouble,and not being good at this sort of thing , i put windows vista 32 bit in as a duel boot with windows 7,because i thoght by what i had read it would work,and it did, lol theres still a few problems,and a few blue screens lol but slowly it is getting better ,i hope you sort it out ,best wishes Brian

[sfbp]

I have just tried to install SS4.3.

After reboot, I get an error message when I try to launch.

"Cannot find the OpenMG Secure Module. Exiting SS

(Error code:00005607)

Unless you own one of the less-basic versions of Windows7, that give you a free copy of Windows XP (32 bits) as an XP-compatibility add-on, you cannot run Sonic Stage properly under 64-bit Windows7 (and not at all under Vista-64).

Check - you need Professional or Ultimate. Home Premium (the default with most new machines) won't do it for you.

There are other work arounds (VMWare, VirtualBox) which are pretty nerd-oriented, but the best one IMHO is to downgrade Windows back to XP, heheheh.

[scarrabri]

Unless you own one of the less-basic versions of Windows7, that give you a free copy of Windows XP (32 bits) as an XP-compatibility add-on, you cannot run Sonic Stage properly under 64-bit Windows7 (and not at all under Vista-64).

Check - you need Professional or Ultimate. Home Premium (the default with most new machines) won't do it for you.

There are other work arounds (VMWare, VirtualBox) which are pretty nerd-oriented, but the best one IMHO is to downgrade Windows back to XP, heheheh.

lol are you joking,back to xp, i have got vista 32 bit working with sonicstage,and you could say its working lol but not brilliantly ,but its getting there ,and i still have windows 7 as the other boot up ,not that it will work with that, but back to xp as good as it was ,maybe not best wishes Brian

[SkyFire2001]

What MD player are you using? Because I upgraded to Win 7 64-bit from Vista 64-bit and have Sonic Stage 4.3, and works perfectly with my MZ-M100...it won't with my older MZ-N707, which I know why that is. But I think with the M100 & M200, they may work flawlessly with Win 7.

[MusicBringer]

...you cannot run Sonic Stage properly under 64-bit Windows7

This cannot be true, surely.

There must be folk here who now use Win 7x64 Professional or Ultimate with SonicStage 4.3 Ultimate Release 2.

Are you still telling me there is no way forward and "you cannot run Sonic Stage under 64-bit Windows7".

[sfbp]

Correct.

You can run it in the XP emulation mode, with a fair amount of jiggery-pokery. But this requires W7 Professional or Ultimate which 90+% of people do not have.

It's possible (rumoured, even) that with the last update for the RH1, the NetMD driver for that unit (only that one) will work natively on W64. But the rest.... no way. They are locked to the 32-bit world, as is Sonic Stage itself.

The way forward is back!

[MusicBringer]

Hello sfbp, thanks for your reply, even though you are the bearer of bad news I shall not shoot you.

Fortunately I do have Win 7 Ultimate... so please direct me to the jiggery-pokery so that I can start poking and jigging.

[sfbp]

Did you download XP mode?

[MusicBringer]

Ummm no.

Didn't realise it was a add on

Sorry, I am a bit uncertain with all this.

I suppose I go to MS Updates to get the XP mode thingy ??

Download Windows XP Mode

It is new to me. I'll have to read up on it.

Windows 7's XP Mode: what it is, how it works, who it's for

[sfbp]

Once you've got it downloaded (and also Microsoft Virtual PC), now you may have to turn on Hardware Virtualization. If you can't turn HAV on (supposing your CPU does not support it) there is a workaround, but I have no idea what THAT will do to your USB support.

Then once you're in the Virtual machine running XP mode you will have to play with the USB connections. Haven't done that myself, but I know it's there.

I didn't say it wasn't complicated One reason I have strenuously and actively avoided Windows 64-bit.

Note: the above is all only really necessary if you actually have to connect up a netMD device, or a HiMD device in netMD mode. W7-64 is actually smart enough to run most 32-bit applications OK, and I believe SS is OK based on what I read from posters here. HiMD does NOT require drivers, but without them you will not be able to access "legacy" MD disks in your HiMD unit.

The one exception to all this is that there is claimed to be (I only say that because I haven't tried it myself, since I don't have W64) a driver for the MZ-RH1 for Native W64, just released. But it has to be extracted from the install package for the so-called X-application, Sony's new "way forward". It is also claimed that it will work. But I seriously doubt it will help other models (note: the RH1 and M200 are one and the same MD hardware, the M200 merely has a mic in the package).

Note added many months later: there's a way to make the NETMD760.SYS work with ANY NetMD unit under Win64.

Edited August 1, 2011 by sfbp

[MusicBringer]

My word sfbp what a reply!

Thank you for taking the trouble to explain things to me as you know them.

I don't think we've met before, but I have been a member here for many years, although only pop in from time to time - when things go wrong, ha ha.

I am still a lover of my minidisc players and use one of them every time I travel.

My need for Sonic Stage is simply to get the music file from my pc to the HiMD.

AFAIK you HAVE to use SS to do this - and there is no alternative.

I do not think I have a requirement to connect to a netMD device, nor use a HiMD device in netMD mode - is that right?

I do not have RH1; my MDs are detailed below.

I really need to set aside some time and dedicate myself to this exercise

[sfbp]

The *only* thing that matters is the mode (or bitrate). If you are using Hi-SP (256kbps), Hi-LP(64kbps) or "PCM" (1411kbps), you are correct, and no driver should be needed. No promises, mind. As you know, you cannot upload SP, LP2 or LP4 anyway with your units. However you can DOWNLOAD those formats to MD or HiMD. LP2 is a particularly good deal (and still quite acceptable quality) on HiMD as you get twice as much space, compared to a. LP2 on std 80m disk and b. HiSP (256kbps).

I try not to assume and make generalisations because someone always pops up a month later and misinterprets them. And everyone seems to have different needs. Take me for example - I couldn't live with *just* HiMD; I value and treasure the many recordings I have made in SP, LP2 and LP4 on various decks.

The only thing that I can promise is that you should be able to get EVERYTHING working under the XP virtual machine - because it is designed to work.