TSpyrison Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 So I'm trying to decide between the MZ-NH1, MZ-NH900, and the MZ-NHF800, and Im coming up with a few questions.. The MZ-NH1, Does the cool docking station also provide the power and USB port to the computer? No more "plugging in" the usb cable.. just drop it in the docking station? Does the 900 do the same thing with a less-cool looking docking station? And as for the 800, the differences between that and the 900 are no digital pitch control and no "High Definition" digital amp". What would I do with the pitch control, and what does the "High Definition" digital amp" do for me? would I miss it? Thanks for helping me out with my stupid questions :grin: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumz Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 1) No, the dock does not have a USB input on it. You either hook it up to the computer or up to the dock. Disappointing. I can't speak for the other units. I can say that the digital amp is making a significant difference for me over the amp Sony uses in it's lower-end models (I'm assuming the 800, 700, and 600 all use the same amp, though I could be wrong). I listened to my friends NH600 and didn't really like how it sounded. I'm now listening to my NH1 and the sound is clearer with much less background hiss. I like the DSP on the NH1, as well (EQ and presets... not the virtual sound stuff so much). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christopher Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 Rumz, I'd love to hear more of your impressions of the NH1; I feel you're one of the only opinions around here [or t-board] that I seemingly agree with very often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ipaqman Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 I have had my MZ-NH1 for almost a week now. I previously have owned the B100, R900, R90, R700, and others. The NH1 is a very nice machine compared to the others. It is definitely lighter, thinner, and smaller. The finish is sleek. Only one side panel is plastic. The battery door is better designed than my older MD units. The NH900 battery door looks the same as the door on my older MDs (R900, R90) which is on the flimsy side. I chose the NH1 over others because of the audio date-time stamp function. The other units do not stamp the audio at all. This is a must if you do a lot of live recording. It is harder to sort out audio without it. In addition, the NH1 battery system seems to be better for recording than even the NH900. The NH900 has warning messages about not enough battery for recording and editing. The NH1 does not. This might be due to the Li-ion battery or better components. If you buy a spare battery, the Li-ion battery will hold a charge longer than the gumstick battery. The NH900 has an extended battery pack. The NH1 does not. That is probably because of the different voltage in the NH1 (3.7 volts). The NH1 will charge its battery to 80 percent charge in one hour or less. In fact, a minute countdown timer is displayed. A full charge takes 2 more hours. The NH900 takes 2.5 hours to charge a fully discharged battery. There is no 80 percent indicator. The NH1 main unit LCD display is very limited compared to the other units. You have to rely on the LCD remote for many functions. In addition, the LCD remote backlight on the NH1 is dimmer than other MD remotes. The NH1 remote is more useful with a three line display. The NH1 uses a non-standard USB cable with a locking plug. The other units use a standard 5 pin mini USB plug, I believe. The other units have a lot of plastic and are much thicker than the NH1. The sound is excellent and is loud enough that I do not normally use over 20/30 for a volume setting. In conclusion, I think that you need to consider whether you need the date-time stamp, the thinness/lightness, the quality versus the cost savings, the extended battery pack, the cheaper batteries, and the standard USB cable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrZhivago Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 I own MZNH1 and have also seen/tried most of the other Hi-MD units. I can wholeheartedly recommend you MZNH1 over other units, providing that the price is of no concern to you. I would absolutely stay away from anyhing less than MZNH900. Few more facts: Both MZNH1 and MZNH900 have hi-def digital amp, other models don't. A lot has been said about hi-def Sony digital amp. I won't go into that (not an audiophile) but I feel that it does give more dynamics and precision to the output. Compared to MZNH1, my old MZN910 sounds bit "dry". MZNH1 LiIon battery is far superior to gumstick MW?10 supplied with MZNH900. I had this type of battery in my old MZN710 and had to recharge it every day on quite average daily usage (3-4h). I recharge my MZNH1 every 3 days for roughly the same usage. On MZNH900 you can attach spare AA battery pack that would give you more combined hours than MZNH1. MZNH1 can be only charged from its cradle. So if you travel you'd need to take it with you :wacky: If you do lot of field recording (away from power points) MZNH900 may be better choice, because you can use standard AA batteries. MZNH1 has much better finish and built quality(all magnesium). MZNH1 on-unit single line display won't show you artist/track/group name. Many of the options are only accessible through its remote, so its a must. If you don't like using remote,MZNH1 may not be for you. But if you do,you d rewarded with one of better remotes Sony has ever released. Hope this helps a bit. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumz Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 If you have any questions, Chris, let me know. Once I've played around with it a bit and can gather my thoughts I will post some various impressions, though probably not a full-blown review. I'll probably just cover what matters most to me In any case, for the price-- $309 from Datavis-- this was a great deal, considering that's only $10 more than retail for the NH900. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christopher Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 I've seen a fair number of NH1 remote pictures and it just doesn't seem to be bright enough in my eyes - what a terrible mistake for Sony to make considering the bright [ha!] past/success of their previous backlit remotes. Obviously the difference is only $10 right now TSpyrison [i would act quick if I were you], so it's really a choice between the NH900 and NH1. The strengths of each have been perfectly outlined, so it's really your choice now. The NHF800 isn't worth it when you've got the higher-ends in mind - the only reason I would absolutely consider it is if that's all you could afford or if you were really bent on the radio remote. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrZhivago Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 I've seen a fair number of NH1 remote pictures and it just doesn't seem to be bright enough in my eyes - what a terrible mistake for Sony to make considering the bright [ha!] past/success of their previous backlit remotes. Obviously the difference is only $10 right now TSpyrison [i would act quick if I were you], so it's really a choice between the NH900 and NH1. The strengths of each have been perfectly outlined, so it's really your choice now. The NHF800 isn't worth it when you've got the higher-ends in mind - the only reason I would absolutely consider it is if that's all you could afford or if you were really bent on the radio remote.Yeah, it ain't bright as other Sony's backlit remotes,but it is quite sufficient for all lgt. conditions. I don't know what's the all fuss about this anyway?. Maybe it would look flashier :cool: with more backlit.? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ppk3000 Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 Yeah, it ain't bright as other Sony's backlit remotes,but it is quite sufficient for all lgt. conditions. I don't know what's the all fuss about this anyway?. Maybe it would look flashier :cool: with more backlit.?The remote's backlight is good enough for most conditions, and when I'm in darker environments, I'm too lazy to hold that (lamely-placed) display/backlight button so I set the BACKLIGHT option to "ON" and have it glowin' while the thing plays :cool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeriyn Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 1) No, the dock does not have a USB input on it. You either hook it up to the computer or up to the dock. Disappointing.The NH1 does not have a usb port on the main unit. >.>; it's on the charge stand. Or rather, it has a port on both... but... why bother? transferring tracks with sonicstage while on battery power is annoying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrZhivago Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 The NH1 does not have a usb port on the main unit. >.>; it's on the charge stand. No! :smile: You are wrong aeriyn. It's quite the opposite. NH1 does not have usb port on its charge stand, it's on the unit. You must remove MZNH1 from charge stand to connect it to PC. I have japanese domestic model,and this also applies to the international model. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeriyn Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 Not according to the photos. http://www.minidisc.org/images/sony_mznh1_avwatch4.jpg The usb cable looks plugged into the stand to me. >.>; Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrZhivago Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 :wacky: Well i own the unit,I guarantee you that it hasn't got USB port on its cradle. It was scraped by Sony @ the very late stage in developement. Maybe you have seen pictures of early prototypes that had usb on cradle. Cheers Edit. Yeah,this is prototype picture. :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeriyn Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 Ugh, that's so retarded. Does Sony just expect us to buy these just because they make them? Sheesh. That's just sloppy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ppk3000 Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 I would prefer to have the USB port on the unit and on the stand... serves best for both home + travelling purposes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrZhivago Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 Ugh, that's so retarded. Does Sony just expect us to buy these just because they make them? Sheesh. That's just sloppy.I think the reasoning behind this decision was, that you don't have to charge unit whilst making recordings anymore,because its USB powered. It also saves few bucks per unit made. Generally, if you look at the whole new Hi-MD lineup,you ll see traces of cost-cutting everywhere. Cheaper battery on MZNH900,cheaper plastics on 600-800 units. Heck, they even hired cheaper designer to design the new lineup :laugh:. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeriyn Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 I would prefer to have the USB port on the unit and on the stand... serves best for both home + travelling purposes.Agreed completely. One of the things I liked about my N10, you could connect the USB cable even without the charge stand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumz Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 Note that it's a proprietary USB cable-- one end plugs into your PC and the other end is reminiscent of USB cables for cell phones and PDAs. Now, since the NH1 can only be charged via the cradle, I'd love to see Sony make available an adapter to plug the power cable directly into the unit for travel situations, so you don't have to take that cradle everywhere to charge. The cradle really isn't large or heavy, I'd just be worried about breaking because of it's shape if packed away somewhere. My PocketPC has such an adapter... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TSpyrison Posted August 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 Now, since the NH1 can only be charged via the cradle..Can I plug an ac power adapter into NH1 without the charging cradle to use (not to charge the battery, but to use the device while plugged in, and save battery power) ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumz Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 You don't need to, provided you plug your MD into a powered USB port. Your Hi-MD unit will draw enough power from the USB port to record, etc-- it just won't charge (but neither will it drain your battery). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ipaqman Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 And the NH1 uses a proprietary USB cable unlike other Sony MDs. I wonder why they chose it unless they originally had a plan to allow the NH1 to charge and to connect to the PC simultaneously. There are seven connections in the unusual USB plug, two more than necessary. Five could be for USB and two for charging power. But it would cost something to build circuits to deal with the presence of USB power and 6volt power. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TSpyrison Posted August 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 You don't need to, provided you plug your MD into a powered USB port. Your Hi-MD unit will draw enough power from the USB port to record, etc-- it just won't charge (but neither will it drain your battery).And if I just want to let it play? the usb port will power it? I sit at work, and listen to my net-md unit with it running off the ac power adapter all day.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ipaqman Posted August 17, 2004 Report Share Posted August 17, 2004 And if I just want to let it play? the usb port will power it? I sit at work, and listen to my net-md unit with it running off the ac power adapter all day..I don't know about a NetMD unit but with a NH1 it will run off the USB power and you have the choice of playing your music from your NH1 or from the computer speakers via SonicStage. SS will play directly from your Hi-MD disc to your PC but not your NetMD disc to your PC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TSpyrison Posted August 18, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2004 In any case, for the price-- $309 from Datavis-- this was a great deal, considering that's only $10 more than retail for the NH900.Is this the Datavis you mentioned? Has anyone bought anything from them? (good store to buy from?) http://www.datavis.com/webapp/commerce/com...main.d2w/report I think.. I might be settling on the NH1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaotic Posted August 18, 2004 Report Share Posted August 18, 2004 Is this the Datavis you mentioned? Has anyone bought anything from them? (good store to buy from?) http://www.datavis.com/webapp/commerce/com...main.d2w/report I think.. I might be settling on the NH1how about you check these two threads out, and decide yourself! http://forums.minidisc.org/viewtopic.php?t=5631 http://forums.minidisc.org/viewtopic.php?t=5718 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TSpyrison Posted August 18, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2004 Ok, I just ordered the The MZ-NH1 from Datavis... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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