Minidisc Deck Recommendations - JB-930/940 or Tascam MD-350?

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

Hello All,

I'm after a new deck to add to the collection!

The two in my sights are the Sony JB-930 (or 940 which has MDLP) - this is a premium Sony deck and I'd be looking for one in black with the red "UK tuned" emblem. I think it also has a PS/2 port so a keyboard can be plugged in to aid MD titling.

The Tascam MD-350 is a German made beast, which I understand was designed for long haul professional use in a rack - it also has metal gears inside to improve robustness.

I really like the sound of the Tascam, it reminds me of a German premium car or something. The Sony though visually looks better and is probably more consumer-friendly since I don't use it professionally. It's just for occasional recording and playback.

Any owners here of the respective models? Thanks!

[PhilippeC]

Hi arr-900...

I just order a Sony JB930 deck to Pierre "100 decks" Lubanez. Close brand new one its box plus plus... So I will be able to compare it to my JB980 when I will be back in Vietnam.

PhilippeC

[NGY]

2 hours ago, Arr-Nine-Hundred said:

Hello All,

I'm after a new deck to add to the collection!

The two in my sights are the Sony JB-930 (or 940 which has MDLP) - this is a premium Sony deck and I'd be looking for one in black with the red "UK tuned" emblem.

...

Any owners here of the respective models? Thanks!

Ha. I just sold  my "UK Sound" 940 two weeks ago.

Had two 940 anyhow, so one had to go to release some play budget. I sold it locally for ~130€, with an RM-D10M remote.

 

(I still have a very nice 930, not a UK Edition though. PM me for detiails, if interested.)

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

4 hours ago, PhilippeC said:

Hi arr-900...

I just order a Sony JB930 deck to Pierre "100 decks" Lubanez. Close brand new one its box plus plus... So I will be able to compare it to my JB980 when I will be back in Vietnam.

PhilippeC

Thanks Philippe - holy heck though - the JB-980? That looks like something to aspire to own

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

If I had to chose one of the decks - Tascam MD-350, Sony JB930, 940 or 980 - then which should I go for?

I mainly record via optical from my PC (mp3's and YouTube) to create compendiums. I use SP mode more and more these days for MDLP isn't as important.

[PhilippeC]

I record - in real time - only Flac 16 bit - 44,1 kHz to 24 bit - 96 kHz and SACD quality files. All coming from (tons of) torrents. Good thing to live in Asia for that. 

The JB980 is a Net-MD unit. You can have the same features with a JB940 (MDLP) + a portable Net-MD unit. Net-MD is very useful to tag swiftly the tracks.

[k-spin]

.

[BearBoy]

I've got an MDS-JB940 and two MDS-JB980s. Which is better for you would really depend on how you want to use the deck.

The MDS-JB940 has more connectivity options: it has two optical inputs (the MDS-JB980 only has one) and it has both optical and coaxial outputs (the MDS-JB980 only has optical).

Both decks are MDLP compatible but only the MDS-JB980 has the Group function.

The MDS-JB940 is ATRAC Type R whereas the MDS-JB980 is Type S. Recording quality should be the same on both but playback of MDLP discs should be better on the MDS-JB980.

The MDS-JB980 has NetMD.

MDS-JB940s tend to be a fair bit cheaper than MDS-JB980s.

I have no experience with the Tascam deck you mention but, as a professional deck, it may not enforce SCMS. It also has XLR inputs and outputs. The Tascam website says it uses ATRAC version 3. Not sure how this would compare quality wise with the Sony QS decks.

[freddyjollo]

confirm this  or not - the JB980  - you cant change the  bit lenght 16 or 24 bit?  any one getting a sony deck these days should also get a spare  load belt from ebay as after all these years the tiny rubber belt that ejects the md is likely to be on its last legs?

[BearBoy]

That's correct.

The MDS-JB940 also has some filters that can be applied to the analogue output, which are absent on the MDS-JB980.

[bluecrab]

I cannot chime in on the Tascam, as I do not have that model. I do have both the JB930 and JB940, though. These two are similarly (but not identically) featured, even given the MDLP diff. For me, the 930 has the better SQ for listening. Not to say the 940 isn't very good—it certainly is. But the CXD-8735N DAC in the 930 goes a long way. This is the same DAC as in the the JA20ES (and my JA22ES). The 930 sounds almost as good as the 22ES. Almost. The 940 misses that rung by a half-step. Good luck!

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

On 4/20/2017 at 10:46 AM, PhilippeC said:

I record - in real time - only Flac 16 bit - 44,1 kHz to 24 bit - 96 kHz and SACD quality files. All coming from (tons of) torrents. Good thing to live in Asia for that. 

The JB980 is a Net-MD unit. You can have the same features with a JB940 (MDLP) + a portable Net-MD unit. Net-MD is very useful to tag swiftly the tracks.

The swift-tagging is a useful feature but... I'd have to use Sonic Stage and therefore keep two copies of each file right?

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

On 4/20/2017 at 11:55 AM, freddyjollo said:

confirm this  or not - the JB980  - you cant change the  bit lenght 16 or 24 bit?  any one getting a sony deck these days should also get a spare  load belt from ebay as after all these years the tiny rubber belt that ejects the md is likely to be on its last legs?

Yep Freddy, I'm hoping to find a JB-9x0 deck with the eject problem so I can buy and fix cheaply. I have already done a drive belt fix on a JE-770 deck I bought for £15

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

On 4/21/2017 at 1:14 AM, bluecrab said:

I cannot chime in on the Tascam, as I do not have that model. I do have both the JB930 and JB940, though. These two are similarly (but not identically) featured, even given the MDLP diff. For me, the 930 has the better SQ for listening. Not to say the 940 isn't very good—it certainly is. But the CXD-8735N DAC in the 930 goes a long way. This is the same DAC as in the the JA20ES (and my JA22ES). The 930 sounds almost as good as the 22ES. Almost. The 940 misses that rung by a half-step. Good luck!

Many thanks for that bluecrab! I'm leaning heavily towards a "UK sound" 930 as it seems a bit cheaper and I'm using SP more these days (I've too many discs to use up now - haha)

Good to see you still posting around these parts too

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

On 4/20/2017 at 11:13 AM, BearBoy said:

I've got an MDS-JB940 and two MDS-JB980s. Which is better for you would really depend on how you want to use the deck.

The MDS-JB940 has more connectivity options: it has two optical inputs (the MDS-JB980 only has one) and it has both optical and coaxial outputs (the MDS-JB980 only has optical).

Both decks are MDLP compatible but only the MDS-JB980 has the Group function.

The MDS-JB940 is ATRAC Type R whereas the MDS-JB980 is Type S. Recording quality should be the same on both but playback of MDLP discs should be better on the MDS-JB980.

The MDS-JB980 has NetMD.

MDS-JB940s tend to be a fair bit cheaper than MDS-JB980s.

I have no experience with the Tascam deck you mention but, as a professional deck, it may not enforce SCMS. It also has XLR inputs and outputs. The Tascam website says it uses ATRAC version 3. Not sure how this would compare quality wise with the Sony QS decks.

That is a really good summary dude, thanks

[PhilippeC]

57 minutes ago, Arr-Nine-Hundred said:

The swift-tagging is a useful feature but... I'd have to use Sonic Stage and therefore keep two copies of each file right?

You can easily delete any file created on your computer once it has been transfered on your MD disc.  It will be seen in the Sonicstage music files database and you will just need to delete it both in the database and on the computer. You can also store all on CD/DVD-R.

[NGY]

I wonder if anybody here has some comparison of the "regular" Euro/US/Japan vs. UK Sound/Edition (etc.) decks?

I am really curious, whether it was just a marketing trick, or it does have to do with the sound. My observation is that the UK version 940 is actually missing a relatively large piece of circuitry (blank areas on the main board), that exists in the normal version. So the question is, it is the case of the "more with less"?

Unfortunately, all my service guides discuss the regular versions only. If someone possess service manual(s) for the UK versions, I would love to read and compare them.

[BearBoy]

I've wondered about that too.

My MDS-JB980s both carry the "UK Sound Tuned" badge but my MDS-JB940, which as far as I am aware is a UK model, doesn't. Not sure if the previous owner may have removed it (are they just stickers?) or whether it never had one in the first place.

My SCD-XB790 also carries the badge but none of my Sony QS cassette decks do.

 

[sfbp]

I've wondered about this from time to time. Jim always was most sceptical saying the difference twixt 780 and 980 was a couple of screws and a plate. But from growing up in England my memories of all recordings is 50Hz hum. Maybe there's some real effect to do with that.

My 980 has the aforementioned sticker (guess where it came from) and works just fine on 60Hz 117 volts (or so), of course with a transformer. Certainly the magic of Sony decks seems to be the way they clean up analogue input.....

[bluecrab]

Although I recall some discussion of the "British ears" aka "UK Sound Tuned" ploy over on the Facebook MD group (said discussion instigated by me), I cannot find it...and there were some responses. Second-best: found this: https://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/european-tuned-sound

...from which I gleaned:

"Generally speaking it was an attempt to get closer to the sound of British hi-fi as opposed to the bright and brash end of the spectrum.  Of course, there is always a marketing element to these things as well."

This makes a kind of sense, in that some people find Sony's digital sound to indeed be too "bright" or "harsh." Perhaps the "UK tuned" thing is an attempt by Sony to make the sound a bit more analog-like. Applying my own experience to this, I find it reasonable. Although I do like Sony's sound as produced in the Sony CDP and MD decks I have used, it is noticeably different from the sound I get from my Musical Fidelity DAC, which is used for both iTunes and Internet radio playback. That sound is more analog-like, yet at the same time very detailed. It may not be coincidental that Musical Fidelity is a British company. If I listen to an MD or CD on a Sony unit, then switch to the Musical Fidelity, the difference can be almost a bit jarring. I appreciate both kinds of sound-shaping, although not sure yet which I prefer.

[BearBoy]

I'd stumbled across that What Hi-Fi forum as well. Wasn't really sure if it was much more than just speculation though. Although, as you point out, it does sound fairly plausible.

Does your MDS-JB940 have the "UK Sound Tuned" badge on it Bluecrab? If so, are there any other indications on it anywhere that show it is a UK model? Mine has the model number printed on the back as just MDS-JB940 (where the voltage details/serial number are). It also has another code lower down underneath where the power cord is connected that reads: 4-228-507-41 CED CEK.

 

 

[bluecrab]

My 940 is most assuredly the US model, as was my prior 940. I have long considered the 940 to be one of the better all-around bargains.

Just FTR, my sound comparisons between the Sony MD and CD units are based on the [JA20ES  and XA20ES] vs. the Musical Fidelity V90 DAC. The 940 doesn't enter the picture much, because when I use it for playback, usually its output is directed digitally to the JA20ES, which in that case serves as a DAC. In any case, IMO the 940 sounds more like both the 20ESs than it does the Musical Fidelity.

When I get a chance, I hope to output iTunes to the JA20ES and see what that sounds like, as opposed to the MF DAC. It's all good!! :-)

[NGY]

Thanks for the link and the quote. Interesting reading, and makes sense.

I could not notice a difference between the two 940-s though. True, I did not make any A-B switching back and forth listening tests, that would have probably given a good evidence.

I will dig my photos out I took when compared the two units' internals.

[bluecrab]

I once asked my brother, he of the long-ago audio engineering degree, why he thought US and UK source material sounded so different. He did not know why, but he suggested that voltage diffs could be a factor.

[BearBoy]

16 hours ago, bluecrab said:

My 940 is most assuredly the US model, as was my prior 940.

Ah, sorry. I got the wrong end of the stick completely.

[freddyjollo]

I  dont think it should matter these days if you pump the output to a decent  modern  dac as I do  ( Audiolab 8200cdq )?

[Automan]

I thought it was time to revive my MiniDisc system.

My MDS-JB940 worked yesterday playing several discs but today all that happens is the relay clicking all the time.

Are there any common easy to fix faults making the power relay click?

Perhaps PSU capacitor failure?

 

[PhilippeC]

Back to Vietnam ! Without my new JB930 because of a luggage final weight + volume problem and, above all, my brother's insisting on keeping the unit for him till my next trip to France. Fantastic unit anyway.

[kgallen]

On 19/04/2017 at 2:28 PM, Arr-Nine-Hundred said:

The Tascam MD-350 is a German made beast, which I understand was designed for long haul professional use in a rack - it also has metal gears inside to improve robustness.

Of course I'm quite late to this thread but as this forum seems like a good semi-historical resource I might as well contribute! I've got a number of Sony and Tascam MD decks that I use at home and also for sound at my amateur theatre group, so can try and help out.

Regarding the Tascam MD-350 I can make a couple of comments here regarding usability (rather than audio) that pertain more to my use model for theatre music and sound effects rather than home audio use.

1. On the display you can have titles or time showing, not both as I can with my Sony MDS-JE520.

2. Selecting Auto Ready (auto pause on Sony decks) requires the external PS/2 keyboard. There doesn't seem to be a front panel method to enable this.

3. Regards SCMS, my thoughts are that this deck does enforce this, although I could check if anyone is interested. Certainly my Tascam MD-CD1 (Mk1) doesn't which is handy for me making backups of my show disks.

Hope that is of some use so far!

Kevin

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

On 07/05/2017 at 9:58 AM, PhilippeC said:

Back to Vietnam ! Without my new JB930 because of a luggage final weight + volume problem and, above all, my brother's insisting on keeping the unit for him till my next trip to France. Fantastic unit anyway.

I'm late but welcome back home

Were you going to compare your 980 to the Tascam model? I'm interested in the "feel" of the unit, how the switchgear is quality wise, does the LED display have all the useful stuff including EQ bars which move to music.

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

2 hours ago, kgallen said:

Of course I'm quite late to this thread but as this forum seems like a good semi-historical resource I might as well contribute! I've got a number of Sony and Tascam MD decks that I use at home and also for sound at my amateur theatre group, so can try and help out.

Regarding the Tascam MD-350 I can make a couple of comments here regarding usability (rather than audio) that pertain more to my use model for theatre music and sound effects rather than home audio use.

1. On the display you can have titles or time showing, not both as I can with my Sony MDS-JE520.

2. Selecting Auto Ready (auto pause on Sony decks) requires the external PS/2 keyboard. There doesn't seem to be a front panel method to enable this.

3. Regards SCMS, my thoughts are that this deck does enforce this, although I could check if anyone is interested. Certainly my Tascam MD-CD1 (Mk1) doesn't which is handy for me making backups of my show disks.

Hope that is of some use so far!

Kevin

Many thanks Kevin. Can you please give me some comments on the tactile "feel" of the unit, is it heavy and solid feeling compared to the Sony, how the switchgear is quality wise, does the LED display have all the useful stuff including EQ bars which move to music.

[kgallen]

Hi Arr,

Some of the data/images on here might provide some of the info you're after:

http://tascam.com/product/md-350/images/

I have no experience of the Sony units you list so I can't give an A-B comparison. Regards the MD-350, I have it mounted in a rack case as I move it around for shows. It's probably not "pretty" enough for a home hi-fi setup as it's a "pro" unit with rackmount; I'm sure the Sony's are much more aesthetically pleasing. The switches/connectors are solid enough (whatever that means) although I'm not sure the MD-350 is (was) that high up the Tascam range. But I find the Sony's pretty good too - here I'm talking about MDS-JE520/530 that I also have, although I realise the JB units you're looking at are higher end Sony units. Having had a Tascam MD-CD1 and a Sony MDS-JE530 to bits recently, their construction is pretty similar for the front panel. They are a number of PCBs mounted behind the front panel on which the display and switches etc are mounted. I wouldn't say there is much between them construction-wise from that aspect.

The MD-350 is a fluorescent display much like the MDS-JE5[23]0, but the filter screen gives it an orange colour compared to the "silver" of the Sonys. Personally I prefer the look of the Sony display, and the Sony's certainly have more information available simultaneously (titles and time at the same time). The Tascam comes across as a little less thought-through in the design phase on the screen layout. I've always been impressed with the build and features of the Sony MD units - I guess they were never a "budget" item.

I think the Sony's I've used have more complete features accessible from a proper front-panel accessible menu system. The MD-350 is a bit more "ad-hoc" in my view and you need a PS/2 keyboard for e.g. Auto Ready (=Sony Auto Pause) which is a function I always use, so have to make sure I have a keyboard with me. Having said that, having the proper keyboard for titling is a dream. Even with the MDS-JE520's "full" remote control, titling is a bit of a drag! Overall feature-wise there's not much between the Tascams and the Sonys, it's just the Sony's feel a bit more polished on the user interface!

Having said that, I love my Sony's for some things (in the house, making masters) and the Tascam for others (on the road, titling). Horses for courses maybe? However overall, and even though it's 2018, I'm moving back to MD more and more for my theatre work. I'm just sick of CDs playing up, skipping, being temperamental, bad CD-Rs etc etc. Conversely my MDs are rock solid and have other benefits for me like titling as standard and supporting very short tracks, which is essential for back-to-back short sound effects. CD minimum track length is 6 seconds which is just unworkable for me sometime, so I've pretty much always used some MD for shows, but frankly it's going to be a lot more now. Having just saved a Tascam MD-CD1 which can do CD to MD dubbing including titles and track marks, most stuff is going to end up on MD for the shows...

So... I'm not sure if I've helped at all. If there is a more specific question where I can give a more quantitative answer, then just shout and I'll see what I can do.

Regards,

Kevin

 

[PhilippeC]

Arr or Arrrrrrr or Aaaaaaaarrrrggggghhhh-900 depending how he feel !  Thank you for that looooong comment that I will read tomorrow (it's time to bed 00.59).

[kgallen]

If you're still looking, there is this 930 on eBay.co.uk at the moment (not related to me at all, I just found it):

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sony-MDS-JB930-Minidisc-Recorder-QS-RANGE-Rare-MD-Amazing/132500874503?hash=item1ed9aae507:g:Qu4AAOSwy4taf1N4

 

The seller also has another two MD machines: an MDS-W1 (twin MD!) and rack mount MDS-E10:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sony-MDS-W1-TWIN-MINIDISC-DECK-Rare-MD-1/132500816402?hash=item1ed9aa0212:g:fD8AAOSwqfZaf0N0

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sony-MDS-E10-PROFESSIONAL-Minidisc-Recorder-Rare-MD/132500805920?hash=item1ed9a9d920:g:aAgAAOSwHYVaf0At

They all look cosmetically neat, bright displays.

 

Separately there's a Tascam MD-350 here that claims to be in mint condition:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tascam-MD350-Professionial-Mini-Disc-Record-replay/132498502894?hash=item1ed986b4ee:g:uFwAAOSwubFae3YE

[kgallen]

I don't think there are any Hi-MD decks (at least from Sony), only portables. I think the MDS-JB980 is the "creme de la creme" (sorry!) of Sony home Hi-Fi components.

[sfbp]

There's no ATRAC3 PLUS on the JB980, sadly. It's one of the very few decks that provide USB connectivity (as opposed to portables which do).

Hang on to that MZ-RH1 - they have become quite valuable, since it is the only model which allows uploading of standard (SP, MDLP) disks to a computer.

If you need a deck (non-portable) with HiMD (ATRAC3+), the only option(s) is by Onkyo. You can find the relevant listings here

[bluecrab]

I have always considered the JB940 to be one of the best all-around bargains in hi-fi. It's not really the absolute best at anything, but it does so much so well. I have one in current use, as a player and for some recording of streamed material.

[freddyjollo]

The JB980 is a bit of disappointment. The NetMd feature is very slow  and not worth the bother, It is  much lighter than the JB940. I have the JB980 UK version in silver from new and has more or less remained in its box unused. hmm have to get around to sell it I think.

I used to have a JB930, It was the first deck I bought but rarely used it as it only has SP and Mono modes, no long play. I sold it to some one on these forums  long time ago.

 

The good thing about any of these decks with  digital out you  can hook it up to a better DAC for improved sound

 

[Arr-Nine-Hundred]

Belated Happy New Year to you all Good to see my thread still active!

I'm tracking a JB940 on eBay right now. It's a "UK Tuned edition" - what is that all about?

[freddyjollo]

On 1/11/2020 at 10:41 PM, Arr-Nine-Hundred said:

Belated Happy New Year to you all Good to see my thread still active!

I'm tracking a JB940 on eBay right now. It's a "UK Tuned edition" - what is that all about?

One thing it has some real copper screws  to hold the top on. I think some  small internal  changes

half  down here

https://www.avforums.com/threads/sony-uk-sound-tuned-question.197020/

some thing about the the Brooklands Sound Project . Google  that dont  help