Two Questions

[goodsound12]

Hello all;

Just joined today and would like to ask a couple of questions.

I own a MZ-RH10 Hi-MD.

Here are my questions.

My player/recorder went through a period of non use and all three of my Nickel Metal Hydrade gumstick batteries have bit the dust. I have tried unsuccessfully to revive them including freezing the batteries. They just refuse to take a charge. I know I can purchase off brand replacements online, or just continue to use the double A piggyback power source, but what I was wondering is if the gumstick Lithium Ion battery Sony included with some other Hi-MD walkmans would work in my RH10?

My second question is this.

Is there any reliable source of obtaining new sealed blank Hi-MD minidiscs at reasonable prices?

Thanks a lot. Great to see there are still supporters of this wonderful format.

[slugbahr]

G'day and welcome to the forum

1) No, unfortunately. They are a different size as well as being Li-ion.

2) the cheapest on ebay these days are Hong Kong/Chinese/japanese sellers offering 5-packs at about US$70-75. Others might know of websites that may be better.

Sometimes there are some available from members on this forum.

Hope I've helped

Danny

[sfbp]

The NiMH batteries are eminently chargeable most of the time.

You just need the right charger, mostly (more below). Also you can clean off the contacts of the battery by judicious scraping with a very sharp (penknife?) blade, and should swab (using a Qtip) the inside contacts (door and also the far end of the battery compartment) with isopropanol.

To wake batteries up, you can either force charge with a regulated power supply (lab gear) or (maybe easier) charge by insertion in one of the japanese-made MD portables (eg R91) which seem to be much better adjusted for charging these batteries.

Good luck

Also you can buy some, more of that in a later post if you have no luck.

[PhilippeC]

Hong Kong/Chinese/japanese sellers offering 5-packs at about US$70-75 ????

Viva el second hand !

[goodsound12]

The NiMH batteries are eminently chargeable most of the time.

You just need the right charger, mostly (more below). Also you can clean off the contacts of the battery by judicious scraping with a very sharp (penknife?) blade, and should swab (using a Qtip) the inside contacts (door and also the far end of the battery compartment) with isopropanol.

To wake batteries up, you can either force charge with a regulated power supply (lab gear) or (maybe easier) charge by insertion in one of the japanese-made MD portables (eg R91) which seem to be much better adjusted for charging these batteries.

Good luck

Also you can buy some, more of that in a later post if you have no luck.

Thanks for the response. Unfortunately both of your suggestions for "waking up my NiMH batteries" are not really an option for me. The first suggestion, for reasons that should be quite obvious, and the second one because I have no access to a R91. Was my RH10 not made in Japan? I have tried recharging them on my old MZ-N1, but that hasen't worked either. The contacts on both the batteries themselves and on the RH10 are very clean. The last time that I tried to charge my NiMH batteries, before the most recent attempt, they took a charge but it didn't last very long in usage, less than an hour. Now, neither player will even allow itself to enter into charge mode. On my RH10 the charging indicator flashes once quickly on the OLED display and then goes out. I only froze the batteries because I read in a few places on the web that this sometimes can reset or wake them up. It didn't work for me. It's not really a huge tragedy as I have been just using the AA piggyback adapter which is not optimal but at least I am able to still use the player. I have seen the NiMH gumstick batteries for sale on the internet but don't know how good they are in comparison the original Sony ones that came with the players. I record mostly Hi-rez DVD-Audio and SACD directly from the analogue outputs on my universal player, using a Mosnster cable iPod cable, in full PCM and the sound quality is several steps beyond what any MP3 player can ever hope to attain.

Just checked and yes my RH10 was made in Malaysia but my MZ-N1 was made in Japan and it will not charge my gumstick NiMH's.

[sescoscuba]

40 Hi - Md sealed sell for 401 euro.........

http://cgi.ebay.it/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110936517622&ssPageName=ADME:B:WNA:IT:1123

7 diffrent guys have made offer > 300 euro....

SONY, can you hear me?

you are quite sure that the magneto-optical disk called md is deceased?

[goodsound12]

40 Hi - Md sealed sell for 401 euro.........

http://cgi.ebay.it/w...E:B:WNA:IT:1123

7 diffrent guys have made offer > 300 euro....

SONY, can you hear me?

you are quite sure that the magneto-optical disk called md is deceased?

Wow! I wonder how long that guy has been stockpiling those? The last time I ordered some directly from Sony Canada I paid $50CDN. for a box of five. I had the opportunity to purchase more at the time and probably should have because now they are scarce and escalating in price. That guy won't ship outside of europe anyway, so no good for me even if I was wiling to pay his asking price, which I'm not.

[sfbp]

R90 or 91 easy to find on eBay.

The other possibility is to fix the charging circuits on th RH10. Its not so much about the battery as the charger, is ny point.

[goodsound12]

Thanks for the advice but I can't really see the sense in purchasing another player just to try and re-charge my batteries without knowing for sure if it will even work. While possible, I feel that it's unlikely that the charging circuits would be gone on both the RH10 and my MZ-N1. I have read on several different sites that these gumstick batteries, if left too long without being used, lose their "memory".

[sfbp]

It's likely.

I'm guessing this one would be purr-fect

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sony-MD-MZ-R91-Personal-MiniDisc-Player-Recorder-Faulty-Spares-or-Repair-/350588537299

[slugbahr]

It's likely.

I'm guessing this one would be purr-fect

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sony-MD-MZ-R91-Personal-MiniDisc-Player-Recorder-Faulty-Spares-or-Repair-/350588537299

I wonder what colour it is

[jim.hoggarth]

I wonder what colour it is

I will let you know when it arrives! Just bought it. It's worth the money just for the battery contacts, assuming they are any good. Decent battery terminals for R90/91, R900/909, N1s etc are getting really hard to find. I wish folk would stop leaving batteries inside their units - at this rate I will be replacing terminals with bent paper clips !!

BTW, slugbahr, noticed your signature. I have in my possession one brand new MZ-RH710 which I intend selling soon. Only problem, it is Piano Black not Silver. Let me know if you want it, in other words make me an offer

Jim

[PhilippeC]

40 Hi - Md sealed sell for 401 euro.........

http://cgi.ebay.it/w...E:B:WNA:IT:1123

7 diffrent guys have made offer > 300 euro....

SONY, can you hear me?

you are quite sure that the magneto-optical disk called md is deceased?

Years ago (>2004), the Hi-MD blanks were sold 10€ each, so this 401 e for 40 Hi-Md sealed is not a bad deal, it is a normal price. Unsealed and use (b- or c sergio ), 10€ is not a good price.

Thanks for the advice but I can't really see the sense in purchasing another player just to try and re-charge my batteries without knowing for sure if it will even work. While possible, I feel that it's unlikely that the charging circuits would be gone on both the RH10 and my MZ-N1. I have read on several different sites that these gumstick batteries, if left too long without being used, lose their "memory".

maybe somebody living in Canada can help you to charge your gumstick batteries, just ask.

[sfbp]

Try this listing:

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/van/ele/3225910634.html

[Azureal]

You could try one of these: NiMH Wall Charger

I have a couple and they never seem to have any trouble charging the gumstick batteries.

Your existing batteries may just be toast, they do have a lifespan.

Try this listing:

http://vancouver.en....3225910634.html

That's a sweet find Stephen! That's a lot of goodies for 25 bucks!

[sfbp]

I would be tempted if only for the S1. But I have my hands full right now. The R90 was what caught my eye.

[Boomchild]

Thanks for the response. Unfortunately both of your suggestions for "waking up my NiMH batteries" are not really an option for me. The first suggestion, for reasons that should be quite obvious, and the second one because I have no access to a R91. Was my RH10 not made in Japan? I have tried recharging them on my old MZ-N1, but that hasen't worked either. The contacts on both the batteries themselves and on the RH10 are very clean. The last time that I tried to charge my NiMH batteries, before the most recent attempt, they took a charge but it didn't last very long in usage, less than an hour. Now, neither player will even allow itself to enter into charge mode. On my RH10 the charging indicator flashes once quickly on the OLED display and then goes out. I only froze the batteries because I read in a few places on the web that this sometimes can reset or wake them up. It didn't work for me. It's not really a huge tragedy as I have been just using the AA piggyback adapter which is not optimal but at least I am able to still use the player. I have seen the NiMH gumstick batteries for sale on the internet but don't know how good they are in comparison the original Sony ones that came with the players. I record mostly Hi-rez DVD-Audio and SACD directly from the analogue outputs on my universal player, using a Mosnster cable iPod cable, in full PCM and the sound quality is several steps beyond what any MP3 player can ever hope to attain.

Just checked and yes my RH10 was made in Malaysia but my MZ-N1 was made in Japan and it will not charge my gumstick NiMH's.

While on the subject of trying to "wake up" these gumstick batteries, I found that Sony MD units and even their stand alone gumstick chargers have a hard time or fail to charge weak or almost dead batteries. Personally, I have had situations where a battery won't charge in a Sony unit but any one of my Sharps that use the same battery will bring them back to life. So, I don't know what it is about Sony's design of their charging systems but for me I have found it to be not as good verses other brands.

[slugbahr]

BTW, slugbahr, noticed your signature. I have in my possession one brand new MZ-RH710 which I intend selling soon. Only problem, it is Piano Black not Silver. Let me know if you want it, in other words make me an offer

Jim

PM sent (a little while back)

[sescoscuba]

Very nice machine; i like his sound.

[netmduser]

Hello all;

...

You can try the following.

1.Install double A piggyback power source with fresh/rechargeables

2.install problem gumstick

3.Use the MD so that the AA drains. You may need to repeat a full battery drain cycle a few times.

4.The gumstick after a few cycles of #3 should start to charge again.

[goodsound12]

This thread has been dorment for awhile but i have an update, sort of, and another question.

With a litle more research I found a suggestion online from someone who folded up a small piece of tinfoil wrap and placed it on top of the positive terminal of the Gumstick and then closed the battery compartment latch and got the battery to start accepting a charge that way. I thought what the heck I'll give this a try. Well what do ya know, it worked.

One of the three Sony gumstick batteries I have still refused to take a charge but at least I could get the RH10 into charge mode , it would just not stay in charge mode very long. I think that particular battery, which is the one that came with my MZ-N1 and therefore is the oldest of the three batteries is truly toast. One of the remaining two would stay in charge mode a little longer but would drop out of charge mode after five or six minutes. I continued to re-start the charge mode with this battery several times and eventually I was able to get it to about half charge. The third gumstick charged fully on the first try but went down to about half charge almost immediately after disconnecting the AC adaptor and beginning playback of a minidisc, but it continued to play for at least an hour before I stopped playback and the indicator on the display showed that it still had plenty of charge left.

I then removed the piece of folded up tinfoil and closed the battery compartment lid and could not get the player to respond in any way. It appears that what I have believed all this time to be an issue with the gumstick batteries themselves, most probably in fact, is an issue with not being able to make electrical contact with the gumstick. Like I posted previously in this thread the contacts inside the battery compartment and on the underside of the battery compartment lid are squeaky clean with absolutely no signs of corrosion or buildup.

Upon further inspection today It appears that when inserting a gumstick battery in the battery compartment it seems to be sitting a little lower than I remember it to, and that when I close the battery compartment lid the elctrical contact of the battery compartment lid is not making contact with the little nub on the positive end of the gumstick. I notice the same thing with my MZ-N1 as well. That's why the batteries wouldn't charge in either machine and that's why, understandably, I automatically assumed that it was the batteries themselves that were the issue. The batteries are not making electrical contact with either machine.

Has anyone else experienced this? Can anyone offer a proper fix or suggestion to work around this other than a little piece of tin foil which puts presure on the battery compartment latch and makes it difficult to close? Any other insight to offer? Could it be that the batteries have shrunk? I mean why else would they not be making contact now when they always have before? I noticed that there is a small amount of springiness when I push down lightly on the inserted gumstick when the battery compatment lid is open. Is it possible that the spring under the electrical contacts located in the bottom of the battery compartment have compressed somehow? Folded up foil wrap is far from an optimal solution. It's all a bit of a mystery to me. Thanks in advance for any help you may be able to offer.

[sfbp]

I think the circuitry in the MD portables decides (as most NiMH charging systems) when to turn on and off by measuring the voltage periodically. So anything which causes a voltage drop is a problem. Bad contacts, green guck from the brass corroding, battery "crystallising out".

There are three solutions:

1. Clean up (this was effectively yours)

2. Adjust the settings in NVRAM to make the battery charge a bit longer. There's even a theory floating around (my theory, like the Dinosaur in Monty Python) that whole factories got the setting wrong because of the mains voltage/frequency in their country. Japanese-built models seem not to need adjusting, on the whole. Malaysian ones, European ones, I dunno.

3. Charge your gumsticks in something else (eg a model that is well adjusted - see 2 above). This may be another MD portable, or a wall charger.

My favourite wall charger is the one made by GP (Gold Peak) who may still sell sets of 2 batteries and a charger.

My favourite charging-engine is the MZ-R91 (although the MZ-R90 should be internally identical).

Doing #2 takes a fair bit of patience, some accurate equipment, a very good abilty to see/manipulate small things, and a steady hand.

Hope this helps.

[goodsound12]

Thanks for the reply. The thing is, like I mentioned in my previous post, I am able to get the batteries to charge now, well two of them anyway, so that's not really my main concern anymore, if a concern at all. I have performed no cleaning whatsoever of the contacts on my RH10, they were already very clean with no signs of corrosion or buildup which was detremined by a close visual inspection under magnification. I have never left a discharged gumstick battery in the battery compatment for any extended period of time, nor have I ever operated my RH10 in any environmental conditions that would have caused corrosion or buildup on the battery compartment contacts.

Using the tin foil has shown that the batteries themselves are not the primary issue. The main problem now is that the batteries are not making electrical contact when inserted into the battery compartment. It appears that this was the reason the batteries were refusing to charge in the first place, not that the batteries themselves were defective or used up. With the tinfoil in place not only will two of the three batteries now charge, at least partly, they will power the player on their own for playback and other functions. As soon as I remove the tiny little square of folded tin foil then I get no power to the RH10 whatsoever under battery power.

This is the part that is perplexing me. Tin foil in place and everything works, charging, playback, the OLED display, everything, no tin folil and nothing works. I am at a total loss to explain this bizzare phenomenom, as the issue never existed previously and now it occurs on both my RH10 and my MZ-N1, which also uses the same Ni-MH gumstick battery. Yes I tried the folded tin foil with the MZ-N1 and with it in place the MZ-N1 also functions. How could the same condition, which was not previously present, suddenly occur with two completey different devices, at the same time? If the tin foli is not merely allowing the battery to make physical contact within the battery compatment, then what is it doing? What can I do to correct this issue as like I said before, I don't want to always have to have a little square piece of aluminim foil stuck in my battery compartment?

Also, and I hesitate to mention this, but disclosure of this issue to potential buyers has affected my ability to sell my RH10, which frankly I find a little strange as I have operated my RH10 in this manner with no problems at all for the better part of two years now by utilizing the AA piggyback power sourece. BTW, that is an absolutely awesome and invaluable feature. Without it my player would have virtually been an unuseable dud in regards to portable use for the last two years since this issue first began.

[sfbp]

Tweezers or needle nosed pliars are your best friend. The battery door mechanism can be bent back into shape after it loses it.

[funkateer]

I've been struggling with iffy gumsticks too...mostly Sonys, one Sharp, a couple of new "powerstream" batteries. They're all weak, even the new ones. I tried most of the tricks mentioned here, except freezing them. Of the old batteries, it seems the Sharp is the best...with wall charging, my NH900 seems to do the best. Though I've noticed with my equipment, I appear to get the best charge by connecting my RH10 via USB to a Mac. Obviously no data transfer is possible there, but it charges and charges and charges. Sure wish there was a reliable source of new gumsticks and or the Sony lith batteries.

Oddly, even though the RH10 charges from a USB on a Mac, it will not charge when plugged into my portable USB battery. Even though the battery was low, the display only showed a full battery icon. I disconnected immediately...

[funkateer]

Guess I'm expanding to more than two questions...

As stated above, I've tried hooking up my Rh10 via usb to a Macbook Pro...it shows as a drive and will charge the battery. Tried a usb external power brick designed for macs...no go.

Just bought a Powerbag from Woot for $40...mostly loving it because it has a built in battery and cables for iphone/ipad, mini-usb and micro usb. Separate usb slot for other gadgets. Perfect for my daily use because I travel w iphone, ipad, micro usb powered wifi gadget. Was really hoping the mini usb plug would power a md unit. Tried RH1 and RH10....no display on RH1, the RH10 showed it was connected but showed no sign of charging.

Has anyone had any luck using a portable/external usb power source to charge any md units, and if so, details?

[ShanePatrice]

Thank you everybody for helping me get this useless piece of crap back into circulation. Battery would not charge but those tweezers fixed the problem. Only 3 hours fixin & wa la solution found & implemented perfectly. Many thanks to all from a no longer ripping her hair out lady in NYC. _/♥_

Now if I can just get this Grace Tape2USB working with Audacity to move cassette tapes to laptop Windows Media Player so I can transfer them to CD's, I'll be in business ~ after 2 1/2 years of trying to get all the settings right, jeaz!