billythekid Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 hey all, i am looking to upgrade from my mz-r500 that has given up on me recently and was just wondering if anyone could give me an idea of a good md unit to purchase in australia. i primarily want to transfer music off the computer to the player and would also like a rechargable battery pack (though not definetly) on the player as i spent a small fortune on batteries in the past for the mz-r500. anyone who has a good md unit that performs these functions could you point me in the right direction. also, could anyone give me feedback on buying mds off ebay in australia? are there good second hand units out there? cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeriyn Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 Hi there. What's your budget? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billythekid Posted August 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 about $400 max. that's why i have been looking on ebay. i'd really only like to pay about $200, and it doesn't have to be the newest model or anything, just be able to transfer from the pc. a good, reliable model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeriyn Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 Okay. ^^ Thanks for the budget info. Hmm... you live in Australia, right? Little different for me, I'm not sure how much 400AUD would be compared to USD... I don't think you'll get anything good for 200AUD, though. But let me poke around a bit... ... okay. Looked around a bit on eBay Australia. There's some interesting things there... more people are selling higher end units than on eBay in the US. o.O Might not make out like a bandit, but go with either the N1 or the N710. Either one of those will do what you want and then some, the N1 is quite compact and a pretty solid unit (a bit flimsy in construction, but solid in functionality). The N710 I don't really recommend because of its puny headphone amp (only 1.2mW+1.2mW!!) but it's also there. If you don't care about extra features such as optical in recording, mic recording, rechargeable gumstick batteries, remote control, etc, there's always the NE410. My little brother has one and man, it is one tough piece of hardware. Isn't the best sounding thing in the world, but comparable to low-cost flash MP3 players (probably better actually). If you had more money, I'd suggest buying a new Sharp IM-DR80, but it's a bit expensive for your financial reserves. Maybe save up a bit more? The sound of the Auvi 1-bit Digital Amp is more than worth it. I speak from experience; just recently got in my Sharp MD-DS8 player and found out all I'd been missing while using Sony units all this time. :happy: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billythekid Posted August 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 thanks for the info. i'll look out for an N1 i think. cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeriyn Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 Be warned about the N1 however. It has a history of optical pick-up block faults (rendering the unit dead) as well as the ribbon cable connecting the magnetic write head to the main unit breaking. I've never used an N1 myself, but there are lots of people on this forum that have experienced these problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billythekid Posted August 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 what about problems with the n710? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christopher Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 The low mW issue with the N710 is only relevant in Europe, otherwise it's a fine recording unit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeriyn Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 The low mW issue with the N710 is only relevant in Europe, otherwise it's a fine recording unit.I didn't know that... :happy: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billythekid Posted August 14, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2004 what is the mz-n10 like? i take it that this is a separate model to the n1? any problems with it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeriyn Posted August 14, 2004 Report Share Posted August 14, 2004 what is the mz-n10 like? i take it that this is a separate model to the n1? any problems with it?The N10 is Sony's 10th Anniversary MD recorder, and it is quite different from the N1. First of all, the remote is not backwards and a bit easier to use. The unit is thinner than the N1, it's constructed of magnesium alloy rather than aluminum, and it's quite light. It uses a sort of vertical jog dial for menu functions rather than the N1's control bar. 3-line display on the main unit, but it's a bit hard to read (contrast is light). Constructionwise, the N10 is a lot sturdier than the N1. Opening and closing the unit feels solid and not cheaply produced. The problems with the optical block that the N1 has do not appear on the N10 (although block faults are possible on any unit). Recording, it's pretty easy to do. It has NetMD as well as regular vanilla recording, and it records well. I can't really notice too much of a difference between its SP recordings and my R900's SP recordings. Soundwise (as a player), you really need to define the EQ settings or it doesn't sound good. It still can't beat an Auvi on sound quality, not even close, but it doesn't sound TERRIBLE. Just... muddy. With an EQ tailored to the type of music you listen to (I had to fiddle with it for a while before it would sound decent) it's not bad. Although, Sharp is much better. :happy: As a recording unit, I like it. As a listening unit, eh, okay but nothing special. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billythekid Posted August 14, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2004 thanks for all the help..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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