Anyone Familiar With Minidiscs?

Yes, the Sony MZ-RH1. The last Hi-MD model from Sony. I have one and selling it away today. Though I find the sound quality to be excellent and really enjoyable. Recording my CD albums to it is just too troublesome. However, it doesn't take AA batteries.

I had a Sharp model way back when. It did sound good and I liked it.

However, you might want to consider a DAP that records. There's a Korg model that pops up here occasionally that both sounds good (according to owners) and records. It'd have more capacity than a MD, too.

I'd be concerned about finding blank media and the potential for failure. Something without moving parts would be more reliable.

I agree with you on the quality of the old "made in Japan" Sony, I have a mint DD9 Quartz Walkman that I still use and love. Because of that I asked a user on youtube once about just that question, what recording Hi-MD player is still worth buying today?

 

Here is part of the response I got:

 

To answer your questions directly, I will tell you that the RH-1, while being the absolute *best* HI-MD unit developed, is not without its disadvantages: It has an OLED display which is prone to dying, and its proprietary battery will eventually die, and you're either stuck with cheap knock-off replacements, or Sony's expensive originals. You don't really need to get the expensive RH1 to enjoy the benefits of the format.

 

All HI-MD Recorders will record and play PCM/Wave. All Hi-MD players will play PCM/Wave. The 2nd generation units, like the RH10, RH910 and RH710. will also play MP3s natively (without having to convert to ATRAC), but with unlike the RH1, they sound muffled. MP3s converted to ATRAC sound just fine. 

 

My suggestion to you would be to get a 1st- or 2nd-gen unit that can take a regular battery in addition to their regular one, and that has Sony's HD Digital amp. Go for either the NH900, or RH910. You can also scour Ebay for units like the EH70 or the EH50, which are also Hi-MD compatible. (Will play everything but Mp3 natively, they are player-only, have the HD-Amp, and won't record.)

 

Let me list the units I know of and their pros and cons.

 

RH1: Plays and records everything. Propietary battery, OLED display may die.

RH10: Plays everything, can record, but cannot record in old-style MD format, can use AA battery. Oled Display, MP3 playback muffled.

RH910: Same as RH10, doesn't have an OLED display that may die.

 

So for your needs, I would probably look for an RH910, it looks to be the most reliable Hi-MD player.

Here's a site with the features of each player and more information: http://www.minidisc.org/part_Hi-MD_Sony.html

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Ah, that really small 1980's walkman that expanded in order to fit a cassette?  It was really advanced for its time. Really cool 

 

Good luck.

Edited by Sylverant - 11/24/11 at 1:04am

I don't understand why someone would go for MDs when there are so many variants of MP3 players today, most of them will play PCM without any kind of problem. Another problem with MD is that the format is essentially obsolete today, and getting new MD or repairing and existing MD player is going to be more and more difficult in the coming years.

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Basically for its recording capabilities. Otherwise there better daps to be had. Hi-MD discs only hold 1 gb per disc, so there's no reason to buy one just for playback, but few players can compete with them in recording.

 

There is the player Uncle Eric mentioned, the Korg MR-1, which holds 20gb's and has a ton of features, but it might be more difficult to find than a Hi-MD.

 

http://www.head-fi.org/products/korg-mr-1-professional-mobile-recorder-digital-voice-recorder-hdd-20-gb-mp3

 

The op stated that he needed recording features, so his options are limited. A good Hi-MD player works here.

 

There is also the Sony PCM-D50, but it only has 4gb's of space (though with a memory card slot) and is a little big. None of these players are cheap either.

Unless he absolutely needs a digital input, something like the Sony PCM-10 may do a much better job.

 

 

Or if he needs a digital line in, a laptop with a USB interface is much better. Regardless, he should also check what's available in pro audio.

 

The issue with MD is the future of the format, for example I don't know if it's possible to transfer PCM files from a MD to a computer digitally. And there has been no (or very little) new MD hardware for the pas few years.

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Hi-MD records from these inputs: USB-in / Mic-in / Analogue-in / Digital-in. It is possible to transfer PCM files from the Hi-MD to a computer, but generally speaking SonicStage (the only software md players can be used with) can have usability issues and may be a deal breaker for the op.

 

That said, this Sony is a good option. I had no idea Sony made a new model, and at $229 on amazon the price is great for the features you get compared to other options. It runs for 15 hours on two AA's on the highest quality recording settings, but goes on much longer for music playback. You'll need a memory card for it, but 16gb microsd cards go for less than $20 now. Great recommendation khaos974.

 

To the op, this is probably a better option. As for its use as a media player, here is a link on headfi: http://www.head-fi.org/t/456327/sony-pcm-m10-as-portable-player

 

Basically, many people feel it has really hi-quality sound and use it as a media player alone, but some of its music browsing features could annoy you: http://www.head-fi.org/t/456327/sony-pcm-m10-as-portable-player#post_6901242.

Edited by Sylverant - 11/24/11 at 10:04pm

But an MD player is also backwards when browsing is concerned.

 

 

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Yes, aside from the 5 line screen on the RH910/RH10, most MD player use 3 or even 1 line browsing which make browsing the folders and menus difficult, which is why I initially recommended the RH910 as the most reliable to use Hi-MD player, but your right about the PCM-M10 being a better option.

Anyway, we may be more held to the OP if he described what he would use it for in addition to the functionalities he needs. Maybe it would be possible to find him a more optimal repartition of the functionalities.