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A discernable difference in the various Sonicstage versions?

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Hello,

I've read before from the words of jadeclaw long ago that it seemed like there was an improvement in the prepackaged* ATRAC3/plus codec that comes with Sonicstage 2.1 over 2.0. This has always made me wonder, is there really a difference? Was there one from 1.5 to 2.0 [specifically LP2]?

I'll call Sony later today or tomorrow and see what they have to say. I may do an ABX test somehow. I cringe at the thought of installing and uninstalling all these versions of Sonicstage.

* - yet still inferior to on-unit codecs

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If I had a machine other than my own to try out the codecs on I would. I won't risk messing with my install [sS2.1 / SB2.0] though, because it worked on the first try.

Perhaps what we need to do is ask people if they'd encode a few short test files.

I know there are people here who are running older versions of OpenMG Jukebox and SonicStage..

Would anyone like to volunteer a few minutes of their time so we can test the differences between codec versions?

edit: I can make a few test files, including brief music clips, whitenoise, pinknoise, etc. if the demand exists to do so.

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I heard in the past how terrible SS encoded LP2 was, but after doing my own comparisons, I find that I was unable to discern the differences between the two different encoding methods when using SS 2.1 and an N505 (Type R), so I'm making the assumption that SSLP2 pre-2.0 was terrible, and the new versions of SS have improved. tongue.gif

I am curious to know exactly how improved though. Is it even possible to download the earlier versions of SS?

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Okay... I found my old SS 1.506 installer disc, I now have 2 musical samples, both recorded in LP2 using SS 1.506, as well as SS 2.101. (Both were recorded via my soundcard's line-in, using the headphone out of a MZ-N505, hacked to give a fake line-out.)

Now.. where do I send these? I don't have any webspace to host them myself. :wink:

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I think the real question, the one I want answered after all is, "Is there a difference between the MDLP encoder period/at all?"

Sony never released version numbers for ATRAC3 like they did with ATRAC. Clearly, ATRAC has improved over time--I can definitely tell the difference between what my brother recorded with my R30 (ATRAC 4) and what was recorded with my R900 (ATRAC 4.5), and I can tell to a much lesser degree the difference between recordings from my R900 and those I made during the brief time I had my N10 (ATRAC 4.5R), but where is the proof that MDLP has improved at all from the R900 days?

"Type-S" is the decoding DSP as someone so eloquently pointed out to me, and doesn't affect recordings made in MDLP mode.

So, does "new" MDLP unit recordings/"new" SonicStage rips in LP2 actually sound any better than the recordings made with an R900/R700?

If my R900 wasn't dead, I would ABX this and let everyone know, but since it is dead and my N505 is not here yet... sou ne...

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I have had the opportunity to compare LP2 recordings made using 1) SS2.1 and 2) an R90 which was transferred to computer by analogue means.

Tthe SS2.1 encodes I did sounded like absolute garbage. They were completely unlistenable - almost painful to hear, in fact.

The R90 recordings [with subsequent conversions] sounded surprisingly excellent.

The difference between them was such as night and day.

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According to SonicStage FAQs on the Sony support site, when you make a recording in SS, Type-S is disabled.

I know that Type-S is a decoding thing, but maybe something in the Atrac file says to the MD Player, do not use Type S during playback as this originated from SonicStage.

This could account for a lot of the difference in playback quality.

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According to SonicStage FAQs on the Sony support site, when you make a recording in SS, Type-S is disabled.

I know that Type-S is a decoding thing, but maybe something in the Atrac file says to the MD Player, do not use Type S during playback as this originated from SonicStage.

This could account for a lot of the difference in playback quality.

The R900 does not have Type-S decoding DSP, however, so any LP2 tracks played back on the R900 (or recorded off the R900 via analog) would likewise not gain the benefits.

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Okies, for Reference, my thread again:

http://forums.minidisc.org/viewtopic.php?t...?t=5595&start=0

However, one thing I didn't payed attention to was, that I had to replace the mainboard after the first test. PSU, Soundcard, D/A-converter(MDS-S38) and the headphones stayed the same. So, I don't know if that had any significant influence, personally, I guess not. On another point, it is possible, that during an upgrade from 2.0 to 2.1 not all components are replaced. Since the dead mainboard initiated a windows reinstall, all SS-components were replaced. Finally, regardless of the differences, the biggest gain in quality is achieved by using a recorder and doing realtime recording instead. And in that regard, I can definitely confirm Dex' experience.

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