Xitel DG2

[coral]

I am wondering if anyone here uses the Xitel DG2 for recording from their computer. I have had trouble trying to get Windows XP to start recording. Any help?

[sfbp]

I'll be getting one in a few weeks (mail will take a while). Will let you know how I get on.

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

Same here, the Icelandic Volcano has delayed it's arrival from Hong Kong though. I had hoped to do a thorough write up about it.

coral, the next best thing may be to refer to this chaps write-up, he has configured Windows XP to work with it and has described it in detail with screenshots: http://www.dansdata.com/xitel.htm

[jmsla]

I am wondering if anyone here uses the Xitel DG2 for recording from their computer. I have had trouble trying to get Windows XP to start recording. Any help?

I have several of these devices...they came bundled with many of the older minidisc units and as I buy used minidiscs I often get a

Digital Port DG2 along with it.

I'm not sure I understand why you are trying to have Windows record in relation to using the DG2. If I find something on the internet that I want to record to minidisc, I just plug the DG2 into a usb port and the optical output (TOS Link) from the DG2 into my MD's line in. It's as simple as that.

It's also useful if you have a music file on your hard drive and want to make a copy on MD in ATRAC SP. Of course you have to make the recording in real time but, I think that is the only way to make an SP recording of a music file from your computer. Sonic Stage does not transfer in true SP.

I've also disabled all beeps and chirps that my computer used to make.

(Except that annoying alarm that Sonic Stage makes when it finishes transferring a file from it's library to an MD...anyone know how to turn that off??).

[sfbp]

You've put your finger on why it is desirable. There are so many stupid things done by SS, that the Xitel seems like a better way (not that I have tried it). Also I have a desktop with optical out (card) and it always seems to work well. So USB would be great for laptops of which I have 2

1. No stupid protection on the files that end up on the MD (they can be uploaded again)

2. No SP restriction.

[coral]

I have recorded music from a website onto on 'normal' MD in Hi-SP on my MZ-RH1. Now that I have the music on a disc I've tried to transfer it to SS and it wont let me place the music on my hard drive or into SS. Any comments?

[sfbp]

You'll have to define your terms better. Please explain exactly what you did and what you are trying to do.

Stephen

[coral]

I formatted an 8o minute MD with SS. I then set the MZ-RH1 to record at Hi-SP. I used the Xitel DG2 to record music off the internet with the MZ-RH1. After finishing recording, I tried to upload my recording to SS. The SS wouldn't upload this music onto my desktop pc. aNY IDEAS WHY?

[sfbp]

OK. That's a good start. Question: does a microphone (or analog line in) recording in HiSP upload successfully, or not?

Stephen

[jmsla]

OK. That's a good start. Question: does a microphone (or analog line in) recording in HiSP upload successfully, or not?

Stephen

Just to interject briefly...I duplicated the process as described: Using an RH1, I formatted a 74 min disc to Hi-MD mode using the "Initialize" feature on Sonic Stage. After unplugging from SS I set REC Mode to Hi-SP and recorded a music clip from a web site using the DG2. I then re-connected my RH1 with Sonic Stage, choose "Transfer" which defaulted to Hi-MD and successfully transferred the track.

SS created a file called "Hi-MD 2010-04-25 01_07_01\00" in My Documents/Sonic Stage where it placed the .oma file. In the SS library, the file is listed in the Album Colum as "Transferred from Hi-MD (2010-04-25 01:07:00)" I also have my "Advanced" transfer settings configured to "Save In WAV format when importing" therefore I also have the track as a .wav file in a folder I designated.

So the method can work. Though I don't think it is necessary to format or initialize an MD disc in Hi-MD on Sonic Stage. You can just put the disc in your recorder and set the Disc Mode to Hi-MD in "Options" on the recorder's menu and then in REC Settings go to REC Mode and choose PCM, Hi-SP or Hi-LP.

[sfbp]

I think this is a worthy experiment, thanks for doing it from all of us who don't (yet?) have our Xitel-DG2. Small comment: probably a good idea to use Sonic Stage to change the title from blank before uploading. In retrospect those numeric titles are hard to get rid of later, and one number looks like another (except when you record the same ol same ol thing every day for 100 years!!!!).

OP: Sonic Stage is very peculiar (I just finished a battle with it which I won't bore you with, last night) and I expect it's something silly that you couldn't possibly be expected to know. Keep on telling us what you're doing and we will try to dig you out of there.

Stephen

[Avrin]

I have a DG2 of the later (switchless) variety, and it looks like it is not possible to preserve original CD trackmarks when recording through it, i.e., the signal is being changed, compared to the original CD. I've tried various software players and output modes (e.g., kernel-streaming), all to no avail.

[jmsla]

I have a DG2 of the later (switchless) variety, and it looks like it is not possible to preserve original CD trackmarks when recording through it, i.e., the signal is being changed, compared to the original CD. I've tried various software players and output modes (e.g., kernel-streaming), all to no avail.

Interesting..., I didn't know there was an earlier version of the DG2 that had a switch on it. Maybe that's why it's called the DG"2"

And, if by recording a CD, you mean playing it on you computer and recording the output directly onto minidisc using the DG2, I just tried that and I got track marks at the beginning of each new track. I played the CD in Windows Media Player and Real Player with SYNC REC both on and off. No titles but, track marks went onto the minidisc. (What does the switch on the other Digital PC Link do?)

I had not done this before because if I want to record a CD in real time onto minidisc I play the CD on my stand alone Hard Drive DVD player/recorder that has an optical output. I think it

[Avrin]

The switch on the "first" version of the DG2 had something to do with trackmarks (setting different modes, IIRC). My "switchless" version doesn't transfer trackmarks on non-stop albums at all. And for albums with separate tracks and long enough pauses between them trackmarks are created automatically by the recording unit, even if they are not properly transmitted via optical.

[THIS SUCKS]

I have a DG2 of the later (switchless) variety, and it looks like it is not possible to preserve original CD trackmarks when recording through it, i.e., the signal is being changed, compared to the original CD. I've tried various software players and output modes (e.g., kernel-streaming), all to no avail.

i had that problem too just use winamp with the wincue download. it pauses the winamp program between tracks which forces a track mark then it starts back up for the next song.

[Avrin]

Wincue is useless for gapless albums, since it introduces silence where it shouldn't be. I am using a set-top DVD-player with an optical out to record in SP, so the DG2 that I bought last year is just a piece of equipment in my collection.

[THIS SUCKS]

i have a pioneer pdr-509 cd recording deck that i use for transferring cd to md in sp. it passes the gapless trackmarks when i need to. i was refering to copying mp3s from the pc to the md in sp mode. you are correct its no good for albums like pink floyd the wall where one track ends at the very beginning of the next.

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

The switch on the "first" version of the DG2 had something to do with trackmarks (setting different modes, IIRC). My "switchless" version doesn't transfer trackmarks on non-stop albums at all. And for albums with separate tracks and long enough pauses between them trackmarks are created automatically by the recording unit, even if they are not properly transmitted via optical.

Hi all again and sorry to bring up a old topic.

This is true, the switch toggles between "Discrete" and "Continous" modes. In "continous" mode there will always be a digital optical signal present and hence no track marks when a CD plays from track to track. Discrete mode is what most people want for track marks to be placed, I think the cheap copy Xitel DG2's I got from eBay sadly do not have the toggle switch and appear to be set in Continous mode. This means that you need to use Wincue + WinAmp or Foobar2000 + two-second-pause plugin to make track marks but maintain the digital optical sound quality.

More info and images of a Xitel with the toggle: http://www.dansdata.com/xitel.htm

[sfbp]

I just wanted to chime in and say that my newly resurrected CMT-PX3 (HCD-595MD) does level synch with a digital input. I sit and watch it in MCrew and the tracks mostly magically divide themselves. Clean up after a recording is trivial, when a silence in the music became a track mark (most often because of movements when I didn't want to divide the track for a piece), you can just rejoin them (with a couple of mouse clicks).

I am unsure if this is some magic property of the Sony-built PCLK-MN10 or of the Bookshelf unit. But this is something I have been looking for many a long year.

I feel a review coming on... still a couple of things to resolve though.

Stephen

[sfbp]

Thought I'd add this here: does anyone have experience with the XItel DG2 in Windows 7? It works fine in XP with stock XP device support drivers, ie nothing special from Xitel.

 

I have had a series of weird incidents. Currently the DG2 works on one computer but not another. But then at least twice I had it going on the second machine, only to have it revert to not working.

 

The last time I got it going, I went in and deleted a bunch of "hidden" devices from Device Manager. At some stage I may have pointed the driver install at the other machine that works, but not convinced that was more than a coincidence.

 

The Vendor ID (VID) is 09EF. The only device I could find listed (yes, I know there was an AN1) was PID 0101 for the DG2.

 

Something weird is going on, and I wish I understood USB device installs better. When it works (and also when it doesn't) there are two devices showing up in the device map:

 

1. A "USB Composite Device"

2. "MD-PORT DG2"

 

The problem appears to be with the second of these, and there's always a yellow exclamation glyph showing "not working". If you drill down into the device map, the error comes from "Code 10 - could not start". When it works, everything is the same except that the yellow indicator is missing.

 

And then suddenly (at least 2 times) it worked - at least until the next time I turned on or rebooted (by "turn on" I mean open the lid) my laptop.

 

I really hope someone out there can tell me what's going on. I could really use this device about now.

 

Thanks.

 

Footnote: someone seems to have done it here

 

http://bbs.mydigit.cn/simple/?t651913.html

 

However so far I haven't a clue what's going on. The thing about "neutral" caught my eye. Probably something to do with 32 bit drivers installed under X64.