MD users today

[Soundbox]

Has MD already become a 'cult' recording system or is it still just an accepted format that needs no excuses?

The reason I ask is that following threads here and also responses from people who see me using it I get the impression that although it is a current system, one needs to give excuses or reasons for using it today.

For me I have just carried on using it without concern about other alternative technology (like I am happy with my 4:3 CRT TV, VCR and E-Reg car) but it seems that these days I have to keep explaing why I do these things. "Why don't you get rid of that old TV and get a flat one" or "Why do you still drive that old car" and now I am hearing "What are those things?" whan using my MD's...

So, is it still a current system or has it slipped into the abyss of 'cult'.

Ian

[freddyjollo]

Like you I have just carried on using it but not to the exlusion of better alternatives, which have to some extent replaced what was once the only way to do the job.

I use the BBC iPlayer radiodownloader that was mentioned in these forums elsewhere to get my favourite radio shows where I think there will be a large number of episodes of differnt shows - I dont want to get a muddle on a minidisc.

I ll put them there later, if I want them portable.

I am not happy with VCRs(YUK!) or 4:3 tvs. Totallly NO!

Minidisc, cult? No. Current? No.

Sometimes you get used to things, especially things nicely made - pride of ownership. Most people understand that? In these days of austerity, I cant afford to always have the greatest, best and latest - many people appreciated that also.

[md user]

Has MD already become a 'cult' recording system or is it still just an accepted format that needs no excuses?

The reason I ask is that following threads here and also responses from people who see me using it I get the impression that although it is a current system, one needs to give excuses or reasons for using it today.

For me I have just carried on using it without concern about other alternative technology (like I am happy with my 4:3 CRT TV, VCR and E-Reg car) but it seems that these days I have to keep explaing why I do these things. "Why don't you get rid of that old TV and get a flat one" or "Why do you still drive that old car" and now I am hearing "What are those things?" whan using my MD's...

So, is it still a current system or has it slipped into the abyss of 'cult'.

Ian

In a sense, if we, as a minority group, are 'worshipping' the MD format in spite of later edition technology, then yes, we are. However, look at how many are ACTIVELY using this forum. OK, multiply by 10,000 - I'd say we are only 'a bunch of individuals worldwide' who share a similar enthusiasm for MD - you know, where you buy more than one, then a deck, then talk about them to friends &c... But that's all. The big picture is ... everybody ELSE is doing the opposite - selling the MD tech for iPod/flash/HDD tech. And, since buying my iRiver - I can see why. I must be mad to pursue MD ...

As you say, though, I run my M-reg (1995) car - it's cost too much so far to let it go. (I wish I could afford the throw-away/buy new way of living.)

One wonders whether we are actually an economic/character group forced to love MDs, rather than true MD fans - if we had started all over again TODAY ... [be honest! I'm not provoking, just doubting it myself.]

Yes, controversial - but, hey!, what else we got to talk about concerning MDs?

Keep listening to MDs!

mdmad.

PS. all said and done, I STILL haven't found a portable player to sound better than my MD setup ... (after much investment in time to perfect EQs, headphone responses &c. for the MD players). Doubt I ever will - not without 10x budget level (

[bluecrab]

In a sense, if we, as a minority group, are 'worshipping' the MD format in spite of later edition technology, then yes, we are. However, look at how many are ACTIVELY using this forum. OK, multiply by 10,000 - I'd say we are only 'a bunch of individuals worldwide' who share a similar enthusiasm for MD - you know, where you buy more than one, then a deck, then talk about them to friends &c... But that's all. The big picture is ... everybody ELSE is doing the opposite - selling the MD tech for iPod/flash/HDD tech. And, since buying my iRiver - I can see why. I must be mad to pursue MD ...

As you say, though, I run my M-reg (1995) car - it's cost too much so far to let it go. (I wish I could afford the throw-away/buy new way of living.)

One wonders whether we are actually an economic/character group forced to love MDs, rather than true MD fans - if we had started all over again TODAY ... [be honest! I'm not provoking, just doubting it myself.]

Yes, controversial - but, hey!, what else we got to talk about concerning MDs?

Keep listening to MDs!

mdmad.

PS. all said and done, I STILL haven't found a portable player to sound better than my MD setup ... (after much investment in time to perfect EQs, headphone responses &c. for the MD players). Doubt I ever will - not without 10x budget level (£1k+). Sometimes I just want to sit back and enjoy what I've got rather than to keep pursuing better, and better, and better ... which often isn't!

P.P.S. Err, gulp! I do have a CRT - but it is WIDESCREEN! Sounds like we're on similar wavelengths ... although E vs. M, 4:3 vs 16:9 I must be ahead!

I am not economically forced to stay with MD, I just like it. Yes, I sometimes do have to make "excuses," although people either don't ask or those who know me have just given up trying to understand. If I had to start all over again today? I likely would not even look at MD, but no matter, I'm there. I love it, and what's done is done. Had I the ability to do so, there are far more important things in my life (looking back) that I would change. But I can't change those, either!

16:9 CRT TV, 32" (1/2 depth LG, bought just before tube TVs pretty much went the way of....MD?) ;-) I like the flat screen, though.

I don't know what the UK car refs mean; however, I'm still driving a manny trans 5-speed (4-cyl Ford Escape, 2006) and I hope to never give up doing my own gear shifting.

Give me minidisc, a stick shift and a Hi-def CRT and there's nothin' I can't do!

;-)

[Bwil]

Give me minidisc, a stick shift and a Hi-def CRT and there's nothin' I can't do!

;-)

Me too, brother. Sticks are hard to find in new cars...

I get a variety of responses to my use of MD, but my response to them is always this: It gets me closer to my music. I can hold my music in my hands, see the art that I made and applied carefully to the various surfaces, and enjoy the amazing quality that you get from well-recorded SP. If need be, I can throw a whole crapload of stuff onto a 1GB Hi-MD and have convenience. It's just the best compromise between our download culture and old habits of owning physical media.

Ipod lovers don't get this anymore than automatic transmission drivers understand us stick fans. It IS worth the hassle, people!

[sfbp]

16:9 CRT TV, 32" (1/2 depth LG, bought just before tube TVs pretty much went the way of....MD?) ;-) I like the flat screen, though.

I just put my Toshiba Flat Screen Tube HDTV up on craigslist. Did I make a mistake? It certainly had the best picture (although creating some interference in all sound that really bugs me).

The Sony Bravia I purchased seems to do the job quite nicely, with just enough forward-looking features to make it seem useful. But my main reason for buying it is I worry about finding that everything moved so far forward by the time I wait for the CRT to die that I may be stuck. Seems like resolution on the LCD screens is a perpetual problem... too high or too low always.

[Soundbox]

Thanks for the thoughts - sound like we are on the same wavelength (probably why we ended up here in the first place). Concerning the car registrations in the UK, my E reg is 1987-1988 and MDMAD's M reg is 1993-4. With regard to TV's and the like, I have realised that we are being bamboozled with quality over content. Huge budget CGI effects, big locations and even bigger stars - but forgettable stories. So for me, I am now chasing good films and TV shows and worrying less about the actual technology. VHS seems fine on my 25" set (and they are cheap too).

[sportster44]

I'm not of same mindset, iget a new car every 2 years, i love my flatscreen TV and my blueray player. But I also love my MD... simply because it's the best sounding player I've heard. Is it a cult type item? Probably... but that doesn't mean it's not good.Sure flash memory and HDDs are more convenient, but for me it's about the sound quality, and I think that MD still ranks in top echelon .

[D2B3I093]

Well for me Hi-md was my 'last episode' with minidisc before I moved on to digital audio players. I wanted to stay with the 'disc format' an extra little bit longer. Oh how glad I am that I did. Everytime I listened to my NH1 I was kind of jaw-dropped at the sound. It's very satisfying and gives such a good listening experience with any song. It's the same with the RH1. I like the 'HD amp' concept. It seems like a clean heightened/fattened sound improvement.

[Chickenvenus]

I have a few portables and a few decks, with a still growing large pile of discs, I find that altough I have other newer equipment, mp3 players etc, I just really like the MD and continue to like it. The sound is good, it's good at recording and the little discs have a certain attraction of their own that I don't see in flash drives, CD's etc.

I don't see myself as belonging to a cult, though when I meet someone who I discover also has a MD deck/portable, you often pick up a certain vibe and it's all good.

[JG98258]

I'll give you a good analogy of MD users sticking with the format when there are other newer formats available: film cameras vs. digital cameras. Sure digital pictures are quicker, easier, etc., but are they better, when you take all things into consideration? A hard question to answer. . .

Film camera users are in a similar situation to MD users: few available models that do the work(the camera, the minidisc player/recorder) currently being produced; limited selection of media (film, MD blanks)currently being produced and sold in the retail market.

If there are enough people out there using the products, the products/market will survive. Maybe for many years- there are plenty of similar situations.

I'll be doing my part to keep the minidisc format and film camers alive!

[Odyssey]

I just put my Toshiba Flat Screen Tube HDTV up on craigslist. Did I make a mistake? It certainly had the best picture (although creating some interference in all sound that really bugs me).

The Sony Bravia I purchased seems to do the job quite nicely, with just enough forward-looking features to make it seem useful. But my main reason for buying it is I worry about finding that everything moved so far forward by the time I wait for the CRT to die that I may be stuck. Seems like resolution on the LCD screens is a perpetual problem... too high or too low always.

===============================================

You know, technology is funny. Everything keeps changing, technology never stops.

But I have found that sometimes the older is better.

For instance, I was into computers since they came out, went through the green screens then RGB then color TFT and then, the LCD.

LCD was pretty good until I started getting into modifying pictures, editing and drawing on screen. The LCD screens lack clarity. I had to use one of my tube type color monitors and noticed that the tube not only was clearer than LED but I had a much better range in picture size formats. Older was better.

I too have a Sony Bravia, its a nice bright set. I like to use it for playing movies. For general tv I like my Tube type set. The LCD screen still has some issues with contrasting colors where the tube is perfect.

In sound I advanced from Reel to reel to cassette, ( R-R was better but clumsy) from cassette to MD, and there I am.

I have commented before, the MD is the perfect portable sound studio for me, editing is fabulous and unlimited storage. I like the convenience of taking out a oldies MD and sticking in some nice Elevator Music. I like some of my music separated this way. I prefer the MD and doubt I will ever go to the lossy IPUD. But Technology waits for no one, not even the IPUD user. in time discs will be old and fade away, the ipud will become a dogs chew toy, being replaced by an ear piece.

Until that time, keep those MDs spinning

[philippeb]

I have commented before, the MD is the perfect portable sound studio for me, editing is fabulous and unlimited storage. I like the convenience of taking out a oldies MD and sticking in some nice Elevator Music. I like some of my music separated this way.

May I add that the rare and unique Sony DCM-M1 minidisc camcorder allows similar editing of video recordings. It has all the features of regular MD machines, plus invaluable unlimited undo (alas undocumented and unadvertised).