I just got a new Zen MP3 player and I like it's portability. But
even at 320 compression, I'm a little disapointed at the quality
of the sound compared to my portable CD player.

I'm starting to look at the "Mini Disk" option, but don't see many
comments about this standard. Just looking for a little insite from
those that have gone through all of the hits and misses with this
standard.

Thanks.

Banger

if you're looking for soundquality, battery-life and portability, then look no further.

yet, if you're looking for a coupla hundred albums at your fingertips, MD is not for you.

thats the real big difference between a HD MP3 player and Minidisc.

Some people believe ATRAC is superior to MP3. I'm NOT one of them. What encoder are you using? Hope it's not the included one by Creative. MP3 options are numerous. Are you using --aps, --ape or --api LAME MP3's? If you're not happy with 320 kps LAME MP3's I can't believe you'd ever be happy with ATRAC (though I'm sure someone will pipe in about a MD boards generic MP3 comparison). You may find an MD player you enjoy better than a MP3 player, so the hardware should be part of the equation. I've never heard the Zen, but barring output issues, you can always stop using compression completely and use WAV. It will eat up the space quickly though, but you should get the best quality. Test that and see if you still have problems. If so it's not the format, but the player.

go to minidisc t-station to find out more, it's a great format

I use Exact Audio Copy to rip and the latest Lame compression to
encode. I was told that this is the best combination.

What do you think?

Quote:



Yeah, that's the best. Try the above WAV or WMP9 "mathmatically" lossless WMA (I believe this is supported) tests on an album or two and see what you think of the quality.

SP vs. a Really good MP3 is really hard to tell, you will have to audition it yourself to see how you like it.

ANd if your looking at converting all of your MP3s to Minidisc, your be VERY disapointed trying to get yout MP3s to MD at faster then real time.

Hi,
Minidisc is a great product. I now have an Ipod, but still feel that my Sharp MD-SS323 sound tons better. Look around in the T-board, and I'm sure you can find a good minidisc player/recorder that suit you.

PUrk

Ok, I went ahead and ripped a wave of Pink Floyd's "Wish you
were here" and put it on the Zen for a back to back comparison
with the 320 EAC Lame encoded one.

Much to my suprise, I was not able to tell much of difference
between the two on my Ety 4P's. So I can only think that it
is the output source of the "Zen" and not the compression that
is coloring the sound. This is with no EAX enabled on the Zen.

Has anyone else found this to be true?

Quote:



I agree with Purk, I own both an iPod and MD and I enjoy using both. I recently went to a conference and brought the MD instead of the iPod because I wanted to be able to record the speakers at the conference.

Even if the iPod had recording ability I would have to worry about battery life, which in the new iPod is not good.

I just put a 5 pack in my fanny pack and carry it onto the plane and I have more than enough music. Blanks go with my luggage and I have lots to record the speakers in LP4. Only used a couple of AA batteries since battery life is great with MD.

I would say if you can, try before you buy. See if any of your friends has an MD recorder and see if you can borrow it from them for a little bit to understand what is involved in making discs and testing sound quality. MD can be great, but it's not for everyone.

I feel that Sony has done a better job with ATRAC compression scheme than the MP3. The sound on the DAC of the MD is also sounded better to my ears. I'm fairly impressed w/ my ipod. The ability to have 1000 of songs in your hand is just amazing.


Purk

I knew something was wrong!!

The previous test I did with a .wav copy of Pink Floyd's "Wish
you were here" and a "320" mp3 version. was not accurate to say the least. You have to remember I just got this Zen unit and I am still learning how to use it properly.

I was comparing the mp3 against the same mp3 track!

I went back and double checked all of the settings and low and
behold I was playing the same track twice! I know, I know.....
duh!

Finally got it figured out and as you might imagine there is a lot
of difference between the two. In fact, for me, this is the sound that I am looking for and I find that I am transported away from
the crowds again.

But this leads to another quandry. I now will have to put only
wav files on the Zen to get the best sound possible, and this
takes up alot of space. Let's see, average .wav @ 60 megs,
thats is roughly 333.333 files. Not too bad, but I would prefer more.

Now, there is a way to replace the 20 gig HD with a 60 gig. This
has been done with no issues by others who own the 20 gig
Zen. Of course creative now sells a 60 gig version of the Zen so
this would make sense.

But still only around 1000 .wav's with this set up. Then again I
really don't think I would get tired of every song any time soon
while on the road with this setup. Also, I take my laptop when
I travel and could store another 300 or so .wav's there that
could be easily tranfered while on the road.

For me I suppose this will be the final solution to get the sound
and capacity that I want........for now.

Banger

I had the Sony Minidisc player-I forget the model #,but it came out in the Summer 2001. On the plus side,it had good sound,and it was pretty convenient to carry around. On the downside, it took forever to download stuff from my computer,and it was really hard to get volume from them,and I couldn't edit on them the way I was told I'd be able to...so overall I was kinda disappointed. If I could suggest anything, it would be what some of the others have said-see if you can find some other ones to compare to. I wish I had followed that advice when I bought it.

I had considered putting only wave files on my iPod, but decided not to because battery life takes a big hit.

Battery life on the Zen is better than the iPod, but still be prepared for poor battery life if you decide wave files are the way to go.