That wave converter will be the saving grace of Hi-MD. If it allows you to convert recordings from analogue and microphone in.. All the people out there recording their bands will be very happy.

Quote:




Um... NJB3? iHP-1xx?

Quote:



Since WAV = container for PCM... does 'convert' apply to PCM or just or just ATRAC?

[size=xx-small]Sorry I have to ask. Sony = unreliable + misleading + deceptive. There isn't even any fine print to look out for.[/size]

It's a good question. I tend to believe that if Sony doesn't say, then that means it doesn't exist. HiSP should sound very good though. For a demo or practise then surely it would be fine.. Quicker to upload HiSP than PCM at HiMD pace.

I, too, found the article very informative. However, I'd like to see the section on durability added to with the information you said would make people blanche.

The one thing I've noticed that nobody is noting is that, for about the same price as the MD mic attachment in some places, the iPod can use a voice recorder attachment. I've yet to play with it or to test the quality of the recordings, but the iPod has built-in recording capabilities whether or not said capabilities are being exploited. Has there been any buzz about the Mini's recording facilities (seeing as it shares software with the iPod), and of new attachments for the system which could make it into a cheap recording studio, much like the HI-MD?

You can attach a voice recorder to the ipod to record at 8khz. The ipod's not for recording. Better off with a tape recorder. The Sony has an integrated mic preamp, so there's no mic attachment, you just need to attach a mic. You can also use the line in with a mic preamp, but not it seems an external adc if you want wav files at the end - so dat users are unlikely to be persuaded.

For me, iTalk works great as for my own use I only make voice-quality recordings (meetings for later transcription). If you want to do anything more serious though, the recording solutions for the iPod wont do the job. None of the recording solutions at this moment works on the Mini. Which is why it's not included.

Quote:




I wouldn't hold your breath for this as details are sketchy and who knows what other restrictions will be placed on this?, but if the feature is released it seems rather bizarre that with more and more amateurs and pros moving to digital desks (and the primary way in which MD is used by musicians is to hang them off the back of a desk) that they would now need a different workaround with this addition... but the bootleggers who're using analog preamps would be laughing all the way to Kazaa.


Or do Sony want to encourange bootleggers? This is contrary to what was discussed at the meeting.


Correct me if my thinking is whacked.

Quote:



People with digital studio equipment don't need MDs to get digital copies of their works to their PCs.

Quote:



There are an increasing number of digital semi-portable multitrackers which record onto HDD, and digital desks are coming down in price all the time. There's many, many potential uses but I would say that digital recording capability will be more and more important in the future for a musician's portable audio device.

I was all excited about HI-MD and now devastated. As an amateur musician I need something that's small like a minidisc recorder, yet easy to pull files off onto my computer to manipulate and burn to cd. Is there no option? The pocket studios are too big and complicated.

You can use analog input to the minidisc recorder and wait 'till the software comes out to convert to wav. Or go with a NJB3 for digital (16/44 only - but I could be wrong) or line-in recording.

Quote:




You can play your recordings on your computer using Sonic Stage and copy the audio stream on the fly digitally if your sound card suports "record-what-you-hear" functionality (if it doesn't, you can use Total Recorder to achieve the same results).

that was a great review, well balanced and covered most of the bases. I appreciate your taking the time to do that.

I love MD, but feel the new expanded format is basically unuseable to Macintosh based computer owners. That's why I have a couple of ipods.

The new format would be great for downloading radio streams for long runs, but I've jogged dialed in enough titles to know that my fingers would fall off before I filled a new big MD with song titles and album info.

And you forgot the most important advantage of MD over ipod. You can only use hello kitty MDs in a mini disc player!

Again, my thanks for the great review. It was better than many reviews I've stumbled through in equipment magazines.

M

After reading the comparison between the iPod and the Sony, I thought, well that's it, looks like the iPod for me. I went to the Apple web site and saw a brand new 20GB iPod with a 12 hour battery for $300. The next morning I went down to the Apple store here in San Francisco, and gave it a listen. First, I'd like to say that the new iPod with the click wheel, first introduced on the iPod Mini, is as cool as anything I've encountered. The hole package is a marvel of engineering, and being able to rip to mp3 and mpeg4 and Apple lossless, is just what I was looking for. But, and it's a big but, the sound leaves me wanting. I would discribe it as articulate but light weight, and the whole bottom octave (or more) is missing. I tried my own walking around headphones, the Grado 60's, and I knew that I would grow very unhappy with iPod. I tried the built in EQ, unlike the Sony's 6 band EQ, it said Jazz, Acoustic, Rock, Bass boost, etc. Garbage. I went back three times over two days to give it another chance with the same results. I asked one of the floor sales help if anyone mentioned the lack of bass, and he said no. To me, that's neither here or there, because people who read this site like good sounds, and most of the people who buy mp3 players drink Coors light. So, give it a whirl and let me know what you think, and what you think sounds best.