Jimma Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 The Economist magazine has referred back to and republished an article about the release of the MiniDisc from 1992 when talking about Sony's current financial situation. Interesting. http://www.economist.com/news/business-and-finance/21619965-our-warning-sony-was-over-diversifying-1992-doing-much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieronkirk Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 Thank you Jimma, most interesting. I purchased a MDS JB920 in 1998 so that I could record concerts from BBC R3, particularly those at which I was present. An AC mains programmable timer proved very useful. An MZR55 followed and the following year I purchased a MDS JB930. I have not looked back! The sound quality from MD is far superior than Compact Cassette and there is no comparison when it comes to editing. Recording engineers from the 50s/60s could only have dreamed of MDs capabilities. I felt Sony's issuing of pre-recorded MDs to be irrelevant, it is after all a recording media. Considering Sony's problems back in 1992, we can be thankful that MD lasted as long as it did. My MDS JB920, MZR55 and MDS JB930 are still in use, despite the JB930 dying a couple of months ago, fortunately repaired. I have since added two MZR55 and two JB930. Kieron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddyjollo Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 My MDS JB920, MZR55 and MDS JB930 are still in use, despite the JB930 dying a couple of months ago, fortunately repaired. I have since added two MZR55 and two JB930. Kieron. what did the JB930 die of ? and how much to repair? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddyjollo Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 well the economist got it wrong about DCC - the cheapo not so cheap version of DAT lol? That now seems a silly thing to have developed? any one here ever try one? we should be ever so glad this forum not now called DCC Digital Compact Cassette Forum? How many tapes would still be useable all these years later? heads worn out. very few I think. Thankyou Sony for taking a gamble.You made a durable gem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluecrab Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 Funny how The Economist seemed to praise the DCC, which died a much earlier death than did MD...and less lamented, too. (The DCC's SQ, though, may have been even a bit better than MD's.) Thanks for posting the link. BTW, Freddy, yes, I very briefly had a DCC deck. As I say, the [digital tape] sound was great. I found, though, that its SQ with standard cassettes was not so great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfbp Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 The Economist magazine has referred back to and republished an article about the release of the MiniDisc from 1992 when talking about Sony's current financial situation. Interesting. http://www.economist.com/news/business-and-finance/21619965-our-warning-sony-was-over-diversifying-1992-doing-muchMakes one wonder if entrenched business interests caused that piece to be written. By no stretch of the imagination was MD a failure. It just didn't beat iPod. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieronkirk Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 freddyjollo, The optical unit failed, the repair cost was £103. A bargain considering the s/h cost of a JB930, typically £130-160. Kieron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluecrab Posted September 27, 2014 Report Share Posted September 27, 2014 Kieron, Would you be willing to offer your opinion of the JB920's SQ vs. the JB930? I own a 930 and I think it sounds great. There is a chance for me to buy a JB920 for at most 100 USD. It is supposedly in excellent condition. I'm a bit wary, though, that the 920's ATRAC 4.5 might sound noticeably not as good as the 930's Type R. Have you an opinion on that? Any other reasons that might sway me for or against the 920? TIA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boomchild Posted September 27, 2014 Report Share Posted September 27, 2014 well the economist got it wrong about DCC - the cheapo not so cheap version of DAT lol? That now seems a silly thing to have developed? any one here ever try one? we should be ever so glad this forum not now called DCC Digital Compact Cassette Forum? How many tapes would still be useable all these years later? heads worn out. very few I think. Thankyou Sony for taking a gamble.You made a durable gem. I tred out DCC. The sound quality was good. What I didn't like was I felt it was less user friendly then MD. Then you had the issues of reliability. The head design was very complicated and prone to failures. It never impressed me enough to stray from the MD format. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieronkirk Posted September 27, 2014 Report Share Posted September 27, 2014 Kieron, Would you be willing to offer your opinion of the JB920's SQ vs. the JB930? I own a 930 and I think it sounds great. There is a chance for me to buy a JB920 for at most 100 USD. It is supposedly in excellent condition. I'm a bit wary, though, that the 920's ATRAC 4.5 might sound noticeably not as good as the 930's Type R. Have you an opinion on that? Any other reasons that might sway me for or against the 920? TIA! For the first year I made many recordings on my JB920, they play very well on the JB920 and the JB930. I cannot detect any shortcomings with the JB920 compared to the JB930. There is no PC keyboard socket on the JB920, so it is a bit awkward when it comes to editing/naming. Kieron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddyjollo Posted September 27, 2014 Report Share Posted September 27, 2014 freddyjollo, The optical unit failed, the repair cost was £103. A bargain considering the s/h cost of a JB930, typically £130-160. Kieron. dont know about that being a bargain - £130 for a JB930 way too high - or am I out of touch? I sold my jb930 here some time ago for £70 I think. Any way atleast you know it is alright now, unlike when u buy 2nd hand, nice to know that they can atleast be repaired! at not too high a price any other comments any one about normal prices for QS mid range decks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieronkirk Posted September 27, 2014 Report Share Posted September 27, 2014 dont know about that being a bargain - £130 for a JB930 way too high - or am I out of touch? I sold my jb930 here some time ago for £70 I think. Any way atleast you know it is alright now, unlike when u buy 2nd hand, nice to know that they can atleast be repaired! at not too high a price any other comments any one about normal prices for QS mid range decks? A quick look on e-bay reveals: JE780 £120-149, JE640 £90-119, JB930 £120-150, JB940 £130-150, two JB920 for £110 each and another one with RMD-11P for £200. Yes a repair is better than buying s/h, not knowing how your purchase has been treated. It does help buying s/h if the unit comes with the original packaging, I purchased yesterday a JB930 with box etc. for £90 + £20 postage Kieron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddyjollo Posted September 27, 2014 Report Share Posted September 27, 2014 A quick look on e-bay reveals: JE780 £120-149, JE640 £90-119, JB930 £120-150, JB940 £130-150, two JB920 for £110 each and another one with RMD-11P for £200. Yes a repair is better than buying s/h, not knowing how your purchase has been treated. It does help buying s/h if the unit comes with the original packaging, I purchased yesterday a JB930 with box etc. for £90 + £20 postage Kieron. well I assume they sell for that? that must be recent prices make me smile if I want to sell my 4 decks - 3 x 940 and 1 x980. I bought 2 of the almost mint 940's about 3 years ago both the UK special edition for £70 each in London pay on pickup so no postage - one the nice silver version. Seems like prices have gone up the way house price have lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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