MiniDisc lives! Hi-MD MZ-RH1 said to be coming soon
By Marc Perton 
posted March 9th 2006 4:47PM
posted March 9th 2006 4:47PM
[Thanks, Indeego]
posted March 9th 2006 4:47PM
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what I wanna know is that can you change recording levels while recording? this is what made Sharp MD's the best for live recording. I've had two Sharps, 1 panasonic and one Sony - the Sony was the worst and the Sharps by far the best. (well, one died. :( ) But Sharp seems to have gotten out of the MD market, just by looking at places like Audiocubes and Minidisco. it seems only Sony does Hi-MD too.
Still use my Sharp.
I've owned many MD products over the years, and
without a doubt, it is one of the best things Sony
has ever produced. People are simply left speechless
when they see my MD recorder/radio in my auto.
Sony did fail however, when they didn't go for the
Minidisc for their PSP. Movies are alright on the
PSP, but as a music player, it would have ROCKED!
sweet new md player
i probably wont get it because im fine with the
MZ-NH600D in my pocket
even tho it doesnt have live recording.........
[Quote]what I wanna know is that can you change recording levels while recording?[/quote]
Yes that's possible with the sonys since the MZ-R909.
It was one of the biggest disadvantages compared to the Sharps, beside the Sound of course ;)
RH1: this is not a competitor to the Ipods, thats an really professional toughed and breathtaking designed portable.... Recorder!
And there is nothing comparable out there as I now :)
I love the design, it's unique!
40. Now why can't Sony make their damn mp3 players as attractive as their minidisk players?
So true. But just in case they didn't hear you...
NOW WHY CAN'T CONY MAKE THEIR DAMN mp3 PLAYERS AS
ATTRACTIVE AS THEIR MINIDISK PLAYERS?
Why did Sony ditch their pretty cool stick remote controllers?
What the heck, I'm fed up with posting comments about Sony. They don't deserve the help. If their own stupidity dosen't get 'em SAMSUNG will.
I agree with Unsal's comments about the PSP.
Having Hi-MD discs readable on there would have been awesome.
Rather than £80 for a 1GB boring Sony memory stick, £4 for a HiMD disc to cram full of photos, music and videos to watch. I know what I'd choose!
(though maybe that's why they didn't - trying to have memory stick as a rival to Compact Flash perhaps)
I also think they should have produced a range of Hi-MD camcorders. Stick the disc into your PSP and watch the videos. One disc, loads of uses. Also you'd have a Hi-MD slot in the PS3 of course.
There are so many minidisc users out there, but I don't think many people understand the massive difference between the conventional minidisc format, and the Hi-MD format.
If Sony had skipped NetMD and gone straight to Hi-MD maybe a year earlier, and actually told people about Hi-MD and advertised it, then they would be in a much better position.
Then as a recording medium it's second to none and both MD and Hi-MD are alive and strong in semi / pro users.
Come on Sony, give us a couple of Hi-MD decks!
"What I wanna know is that can you change recording levels while recording? this is what made Sharp MD's the best for live recording."
From what I have read on the net, this may be the first Sony MD in a long time that will allow you to have manual recording level adjustments as a DEFAULT. That alone may make me want to buy!
Plus, the newest version of Sonic Stage 3.4, does away with most of the DRM restrictions. I can upload to Hi-MD and then transfer back to ANY computer as long as both have Sonic STage 3.4. I can then play with Winamp the files transferred in ATRAC 3+ and am all smiles at work!
I think HI-MD will be around for a while. I have recorded many legitimate concerts with my MD/Hi-MD equipment and am very satisfied with the quality and the speed of transfer these days. At one time, had an MDLP deck with optical output and Creative Audio optical input card. Now, with USB upload, it's a breeze. I can have a show up on Bit Torrent hours after the show is over. Can't be beat if you know what you are doing...
All this talk of MP3 (absolutely HIDEOUS for quality music containing transients and a high dynamic range and ATRAC.
If most of the people would actually READ THE SPEC of the device before pontificating then you might get a sensible answer.
Minidisc units for over a YEAR now have had the ability to record in totally UNCOMPRESSED sound (PCM) if you want so you don't have to store in ATRAC / ATRAC3 if you don't want to and all the DRM crud of transferring recordings to and from a computer has been removed in the latest version of Sonic Stage (3.4)
For "Teens" and "Sub Teens" wanting to play fairly cacophonous sounds on the move an Ipod will suit them fine (until it breaks / gets stolen or whatever) but the MD is above all a Portable RECORDING device and marketed to people who want it for that purpose. It's not primarily designed as a "Portable Music player".
HD devices out in the field are not a good idea either --Hard disks can lose data and are fairly easily damaged out in the field in the middle of a "Media" scrum. A 40 GB disk when broken means you've lost 40 GB and your entire recording sessions.
Removable media like the Hi-MD --90 Mins at PCM (lossless uncompressed) or up to 7 hours at reasonable compression --far far superior to MP3 is ideal for portable high quality recordings --which IS what the device is designed for.
Solid state devices also have their limitations
All this talk of MP3 (absolutely HIDEOUS for quality music containing transients and a high dynamic range and ATRAC.
If most of the people would actually READ THE SPEC of the device before pontificating then you might get a sensible answer.
Minidisc units for over a YEAR now have had the ability to record in totally UNCOMPRESSED sound (PCM) if you want so you don't have to store in ATRAC / ATRAC3 if you don't want to and all the DRM crud of transferring recordings to and from a computer has been removed in the latest version of Sonic Stage (3.4)
For "Teens" and "Sub Teens" wanting to play fairly cacophonous sounds on the move an Ipod will suit them fine (until it breaks / gets stolen or whatever) but the MD is above all a Portable RECORDING device and marketed to people who want it for that purpose. It's not primarily designed as a "Portable Music player".
HD devices out in the field are not a good idea either --Hard disks can lose data and are fairly easily damaged out in the field in the middle of a "Media" scrum. A 40 GB disk when broken means you've lost 40 GB and your entire recording sessions.
Removable media like the Hi-MD --90 Mins at PCM (lossless uncompressed) or up to 7 hours at reasonable compression --far far superior to MP3 is ideal for portable high quality recordings --which IS what the device is designed for.
Solid state devices also have their limitations
First of all: HiMD is not MD. I am getting really tired of seeing the same arguments over and over again which always seem to equate the two, when they are not the same thing. HiMD is a descendant of MD.
Second: Even if Sony had released MDLP sooner, or netMD [they also aren't the same thing], their place in the portables market would likely be little different. As far as using netMD or HiMD for portable listening, the transfer and encoding process [from PC] is slow and somewhat cumbersome. The vast majority of people who want something purely for -listening- would be better served with a flash or hdd player.
Third: MD and HiMD shine at portable recording, as has already been pointed out. Comparing consumer/prosumer/musician equipment that can be used for recording, one will quickly find that HiMD in particular currently gives the best performance vs. cost of any [digital] format available. This has already been said, though.
Last: SonicStage may not be everyone's cup of tea, but for those of us who do location recording on a budget, and who know their arse from their elbow when it comes to software, there aren't any major issues left to be resolved [I test these things when new versions come out]. The vast majority of problems that people encounter with SS are caused by poorly-maintained Windows systems [i.e. 95% of consumers' computers], not by actual problems with SS itself. I personally have never had any installation issues [with all versions between SS 2.1 - 3.4], for instance. There have been some notable bugs in certain parts of the software, but Sony actually has worked on correcting them, even going so far as to actually LISTEN to the online community's suggestions for changes and fixes, despite their not even having a formal bug-reporting system for their customers to use.
The vast majority of people who seem so opposed to the existence of HiMD [I personally consider MD deprecated asof the release of HiMD] are quite simply missing the point. Your iPods or iRivers are not designed as recorders, and while they may have some basic functionality for doing such, they cannot compete with HiMD on that ground, period.
I love the Mini-disc. I still want it to success. Sony should have concentrated more on Hi-MD Mini-Disc Car Stereos and Home Entertainment as weel as portables. That would have worked if Sony had played their cards right.
The MX-RH1 looks good. If I had a Hi-MD Car Stereo to go with that It would be perfect for me to use my music on the move.
@Jeff (#33):
You ask, what Mr. Stringer is doing?
The Answer is simple: Getting rid of stuff,
that really doesn't make money like the Qualia Line or businesses, that don't belong into an electronics company like a french restaurant chain (Maxim's de Paris) or a bunch of cosmetic companies.
And the DRM issues delaying the PS3 are outside Sony's control, as the working group doing the DRM-Standard was too inept to get the specification complete on time. HD-DVD suffers from the same problem, as it uses the same standard.
Btw, HiMD rocks, iPod sucks.
With best regards
Jadeclaw.
mac compatibility is only for upload pcm...no sonic stage on mac.. arff sony###
I have covered this story and linked to the current thread. Wish I could get as excited as you lot.
MD vs. iPod...this sounds like the cassette vs. reel-to-reel war that I am old enough to remember.
Cassettes were "cool", small, cheap, and well-accepted by the crowd...BUT a good used Ampex 350 blew them all out of the water for fidelity. Cool? iPod is stylish, the "in" thing of the hour, but high-fidelity? Pleeeeze! Vinyl sounds better than 128 k-bit/sec.
I'll take Linear PCM over ANY compression (ATRAC included) when sonic quality counts.
These are RECORDERS, not fashion statements! The audio quality should be the primary gauge of merit.
I see a lot of Sony bashing here, despite the fact that, maybe slowly, they ARE answering concerns, and every new MD seems to address the complaints of the previous batch. Give them a chance! When you can get PCM sound quality, all the editing ability, cheap media, and hold it all in the palm of your hand, you complain?!? Try paying $60+ for a 45-minute reel of tape. For all it can do, $300 is more than a fair price for the mz-rh1...I will camp out in the audio store's parking lot to get one! I paid $400 for the mz-m100, and don't feel the least bit cheated. Look inside a MD unit, at all the technology, all the work that went into making it a reality, and maybe give Sony a little credit, eh? If you don't like MD, fine, but please don't feel that this justifies taking it away from those of us who do. I'll stick with MD for as long as I can get it!
What the heck.
Sony has to be greatfull for the fans that supported the format for more than 10 years now.
So they cannot introduce a revolutionary follower of MD and than cut off the lines all of a sudden.
Morally they are indebted to the fidel MD users and should introduce the soonest possible a state of the art, full fledged, collector's item, legendary, HiMD home deck.
If only to convince people to rely on any forthcoming Sony hi-tech developments. So as a consumer you can be sure that your investment won't be lost money in a few years.
Of course a car deck is necessary too, coupled with a DAB tuner.
By the way, recording a live broadcast from a DAB receiver through the optical path gives you the quality of sound a step closer to reality.
Long live the format!
Hi
I've been using Minidisc since 2003, and I simply cannot live without them. The new HI-MD format is simply great. Blanks are cheap, and music is easily transferred to the unit, in just few seconds!
Instead of having an mp3 player that it run out of music, I simply change the disc, and that's all: with 2 or 3 Hi-MD I can go on for months!
Once you've tried MD, you understand the difference!
only americans hate MD. everyoen else in the world stopped usign cassette tapes and vcr tapes years ago in favor of MD and VCD. Okay maybe in europe they still used vcr tapes for a while
but seriously.. nobody else but americans doesnt "get" MD. its teh repalcement for cassettes and is way better. CDs and devices like Nano, Zen, Etc are NOT a replacement for tapes
even though i havent used MD for many years now.. i havent used anythign else either for long periods of time
if you need to record or want to have real control over your mixes in real time.. nothign comes close
(i type like a drunken person.. sorry)
I love MD. The sound is so 'full' compared to my iPod. The iPod is seriously lacking when compared to other mp3 players. I only notice it when comparing directly with my friends players though.
NO other music players have 'sleek' remotes that are so ergonmically designed imo. You can control it without looking and the screen is great on the stick remotes. I would alone pay £100 for the remmote.
I really hate having to take my iPod out to change tracks. The remote you have on the 2nd and 3rd gen iPods DO NOT COUNT. You can't even change play back mode (shuffle, loop, straight) ON THE REMOTE! WTH is up with that?!
I'm wary of the Sony software though :(
I may try one later down the line when the price drops though.
I'm going to miss the dry cell though :(.
I have been an avid MD user since my MZ R30, MZR 50 and MZE900. I'm now on a 3rd Gen iPod. 4th gen too big and 5th gen didn't offer anything I needed. I'm not a student anymore and don't need the ultra portability that I needed back then. I'm sure I would have upgraded to the 5th gen for the thinness of it th ough.
Keep going Sony.
Koing
MD is NOT comparable with those stupid MP3 players like ipod etc.
MD and HI-MD are superiour!
it's cheap and the sound quality is just awsome. in every way! they look stylish and original. all those MP3 players like ipod look the same! MD will never die! there are SOOOOOO many people around the world using it. And remember: MD is the granddad of the MP3 players of today! MD was allready around in 1991!
MP3 players will never be as good as an MD or HI-MD player!
Hot item for recording interviews and the like... Mac support is finally offered, and $300 isn't that bad for a recording unit to use for podcast interviews, etc. A full-range audio input for the iPod is not much more affordable - the iMic or whatever it is that plugs on the bottom records at a lower quality...
Lighten up fellas, it may not be for you but people do still need things like this.
And that thing looks TIGHT with those little audio meters just appearing out of nothing! Sony is on to a good look with that 'LED/phospher through the surface' thing.
I've owned MD units for years and never had a single problem with quality. And the quality of MD FAR exceeds that of Ipod. It's uncompressed people. Ipod doesn't do that. It's totally out of Ipod's league. Those who continue to think MD uses proprietary formats are also clueless. You should really read up on Hi-MD. It's not compressed and it's a digital upload to a computer.
These are not players for the most part. They are recorders for serious musician's and audio buffs. They sell great in that market and have for many years. They do sound great to listen to - much better than Ipod - I know this. Both my kids have Ipods and I have multiple MD's. I know which sounds better.
Sorry if this has been addressed:
I have a "Net MD" MZ-NF610. I record my own music. I was really bummed when I figured out that in this day and age you can't use Sonic Stage to just drag/drop the music I recorded (analog source) onto my PC to burn a CD. That's the reason I bought this thing!
So my question is: with "Hi MD", I can now do this using a USB cable, SonicStage software, and much faster than real time (drag/drop)?
BTW, I really like my MD, even if I can't do everything as conveniently as hoped.
Minidisc lives on
http://my.opera.com/minidiscliveson/forums/
MD gear has its place. The pocket-size solid-state recorders I know about still do not have low-noise mic preamps- there, MD is the only game in town. The insert track point feature is handy; it is essential for dance rehearsals; other formats don't offer this AFAIK.
Let's face it!
You can't compare iPods and other mp3 players to this thing. This player is for recording in very high quality (linear PCM) with some serious microphones, something mp3 players can't do. For some reason they're called mp3 PLAYERS.
So, it's much, much better for recording!
For playing some tunes, the only advantage of mp3 players is that you don't need to change discs. The sound of this device must be much better than any mp3 out there: digital amplification, linear PCM playing, etc. Even Sony, who has the better sounding mp3 players on the market, admits that this Hi-MD has a much better sound than all the mp3 players they manufacturate!
If you want a music player, buy a mp3 player, you'll be satisfied, at least if aren't an audiophile. If you want to do some serious recording, and want the greatest sound quality available in a portable device, buy this Hi-MD. It's that simple.
MDs are great, I'm a musician and I don't trust computer hard drives to store my music ideas. I like an actual hard copy of everything, in case my computer decides to crash on me. MDs are geared for a certain audience, those who care about the quality of their recordings. I carry my ipod nano, and I use it to listen to music. I also walk around with my MD recorder to be able to record on a whim. I like having disks to store and catalog, call me old fashinoned. Sony could improve on its customer relations tho and also pay attention to what we want. A drag and Drop interface would be sweet, and yeah soundstage sucks.