[redshifter]

for md i mainly use atrac-r encoded music, from a sony jb930 md deck, and play back on a sony r70 md unit. the sony d66 eggos sound fantastic right from the headphone out: no noise, no obvious compression artifacting.

for portable with an amp, i just use a sony d777 pcdp or r50 md unit, cha47 amp, and sony v6 or ety er6. this is slightly less portable than the above md setup. this cd rig has sonically more air and smoother transition between bass/mids/treble. detail is also resolved better. the md rig has a sweeter, more comparmentalized sound, but with amazing clarity and a warmth that is addicting. md brings poor and good cd's into a similar level of sound quality.

personally i use the r50-d66 combo the most these days. in portable situations for me it is the point of diminishing marginal sonic returns.

when they make a hd or ram player as small and light as the r50, i'll consider it. until then i am very happy with md.

 

[leon]

cdub,

You're welcome! Glad you like the 831. My opinion is that the 831's ATRAC isn't the best for recording, but it is fantastic at playing back music you've recorded using Type-R (or something else).

Here's an analogy. Think of the original CD as chicken broth, something we cooked up over 3, 5 hours from real chicken bones and meat. Compared to that, MD (ATRAC) and MP3 are "concentrated" broths that you add water to, in order to restore them. Somewhere during that process, the taste might be compromised.

When taste is compromised, you might add extra seasonings to the formerly concentrated broth. Sharp's ATRAC is like when you've added too much salt. If you're listening back and forth between the CD and the Sharp ATRAC copy, you may find the Sharp copy to have less of an imagery, the elements of sound are pushed together and harder to identify.

Sony's Type-R is a better-controlled broth, it will not sound 100% like the original, but it's quite natural, and quite pleasant. I think the difference is noticeable, especially for listening with headphones.

Some people like their broth/orange juice in concentrate form, others hate the idea. The taste difference might be subtle (as they are between ATRACs), but people obsess over them. Both are valid options. Don't sue me for bad analogy, teehee.

 

[Watchdog]

Leon, I love that analogy

I'll have to remember that one and use it sometime.

 

[jpelg]

One point that has not been mentioned thus far (perhaps because there is an implication for one or the other), but there is a marked difference between an optical md recording and an analog one. By playing with recording levels, you can change the sound of the md recording drastically - sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse - from a digital recording.

 

[Braver]

guess I like it salty. if it's a bit salty, it stays good longer, in my experience.

 

[cdub]

Thanks for all the input everyone!

Leon, I agree with you 100% with your analogy. I thought maybe I was just imagining that the 831's recording were not up to par and are a little bit "flat". I think the difference is noticeable when compared to my d-777. I guess its time to start looking for a type-R home recorder. Any suggestions?

 

[leon]

cdub,

The general opinion is that any Type-R is a good Type-R. Back when Best Buy had the JE440 deck for $150 or something... that was a pretty good deal.

You might want to do research on the features of the Sony decks, in case something you want isn't on the basic deck (JE470 for this year, I think). I've heard that more expensive decks have better quality for playback at home.

I bought a refurbished N505 portable for $110. If you'd only do optical recording from CD, this is the cheapest Type-R solution. Beware though, of an user interface that takes a lot of getting used to, and might be frustrating... very different logic from the 831.

 

[Mystyler]

My advice is:
If you are easily pissed off, don't get a Sony.

The PC3 MD deck uses similar layout to the portable MDs from Sony, and the number of time's I've almost thrown it out the window must be in triple figues by now. I've come to love my Panasonic inteface - similar if not the same as Sharp - and would love to see a Sony MD made for idiots or short-fused people like me.

 

[KJ_Palmer]

Actually the majority of Sony decks are simple, efficient and intuitive to use, and in operation totally unlike Sony portables, which I admit can be a major pain.

I'd thoroughly recommend a deck like the MDS-JE780 for home use.

 

[redshifter]

i'd recommend the sony jb930 deck--i got one used for $150 and it features the same type dac's in sony's es decks.

 

[Watchdog]

I have the Sony JE 470, if you have any questions about it, let me know I'll try to answer.

It seems as though Sony might be phasing out their home MD units. It was tough to find this unit and it was on clearance as the demo model and the only one left. I got it for $250 Cdn. which is roughly $150 US.

I like the deck and it was my first foray into MD. After having used the format a bit, I now think to myself that I wish I'd been able to get something like the 930 or nicer.

One other home unit I have my eye on is the MXD-D40. It's a CD player and MD in one unit. It won't give the same quality of recording the 930 would and maybe not even quite as good as my 470. But you can dub at 4X speed and I think it even automatically titles discs if the CD has the CD-text on it. Pretty sweet.

 

[Watchdog]

I just checked the Sony site and www.minidisco.com and neither offers the 930 any longer.

With Sony's emphasis on the portable market it seems that they're not going to offer the higher end units any longer, which is kind of lousy for someone like myself just getting into MD.

Sony should have priced MD more aggressively back in the beginning. I always wanted MD, but thought it was too expensive, only recently have prices dropped enough that I was willing to try it out. Now that I've tried it and found out how great it is, I would love an ES MD unit, but of course now you can't buy one.

 

[myself, aka me]

Quote:

Originally posted by KJ_Palmer Actually the majority of Sony decks are simple, efficient and intuitive to use, and in operation totally unlike Sony portables, which I admit can be a major pain. I'd thoroughly recommend a deck like the MDS-JE780 for home use.

Yeah, those mini-decks steal the interface from their portables.
Mini deck does not equal mini features, though

I've gotta get a hold of a Panasonic and a Sharp some day. Maybe i'll go to aus with a gumstick and 'test' them.

I learnt how to use a JE470 in 5 mins at the sony store. I haven't used a sony or any other deck before.. Tomorrow I learn the PC1 interface

 

[Mystyler]

Quote:

Originally posted by myself, aka me Yeah, those mini-decks steal the interface from their portables. Mini deck does not equal mini features, though I've gotta get a hold of a Panasonic and a Sharp some day. Maybe i'll go to aus with a gumstick and 'test' them. I learnt how to use a JE470 in 5 mins at the sony store. I haven't used a sony or any other deck before.. Tomorrow I learn the PC1 interface

Your PC1 menu system is the same as my PC3 buddy.
Perhaps I made the mistake in not doing any deck research, and not listening to that nagging thought saying, "buy the JB940!" Hell, the PC3 ain't bad really, just the freakin' menu systems, and some other queer "features" I would hope were (not?) present on other Sony decks, so my PC3 doesn't seem like a dodgy piece of kit.

Watchdog, the JB930 is a few years old now, as have been discontinued for a while. Your best bet would be to hunt down a JB940 - I **think** the DACs are the same as the JB930. redshifter would know for sure, I'm sure.

The next "series" up from the JB940 is the JB980.
Sony still makes the JA333ES, but that sets us here in Australia back a cool $2500AUD. (The JB980/940 are priced at $999AUD)

 

[redshifter]

Quote:

Watchdog, the JB930 is a few years old now, as have been discontinued for a while. Your best bet would be to hunt down a JB940 - I **think** the DACs are the same as the JB930. redshifter would know for sure, I'm sure.

but of course. the 940 i believe went back to using sony's hybrid-pulse dac's, and the 930 uses their current-pulse dac's. i have a hybrid-pulse sony changer, and the jb930 has better detail. my advice would be check the classified ads of any large high-tech companies in your area. a lot of techies i think are upgrading from md to hd--i got mine from the microsoft micronews ads.