Help with portable minidisc recorders

[ernieBob]

Hello all

I have been looking at portable minidisc recorders for a while now. I am convinced that they sound good but I am not certain about one thing - how does one navigate through the tracks once they are on the minidisc? Am I correct to understand that the mp3 info is not displayed on a unit or its remote even if music is transferred via the usb ports? I have only seen one minidisc recorder in real life (yes i know

) so bear with me.

Can anyone post a few pics of what type of info is shown typically?

Thank you all.

 

[Chase-]

Disclaimer: This is my experience of minidisc using a Sony MZ-N10 netMD 2-3 years ago.

MiniDisc can sound good, depending on how you get your music onto it. As far as I know, the best way to do it is through line-in or via software direct recording from another CD. It's a terrible idea to transcode your mp3s onto it if you were thinking about that.

In terms of it's display, it's only very basic when compared to modern mp3 players. The tracks will display in order they're recorded onto the MD, and I believe take their cues from the software that was used to encode it. If you record using line-in, it'll appear as Track 01, 02, etc. I think Hi-MD probably has some alphabetical search function, since they can hold 1gig of data...and sorting through that track by track would be...yea.

Not sure, but I don't think MD supports drag and drop, someone call me out on this if I'm wrong. So yea, if you drag drop music it won't display on the player.

www.minidisc.org should have a comprehensive list of MDs that have been produced and pictorials as well.

Good luck.

 

[doomlordis]

Ok,

Hi-MD has artist,album, genre search etc much like ID3 searching on MP3 players. (think ipod)

NetMD allows you to put groups on , groups are usually albums but you can make up your own groups using Sonicstage.

1st gen Hi-MD support Atrac3/atrac3+ and SP recordings.
2nd gen Hi-MD support MP3 as well (treble is cut off , can largly be fixed with EQ)
3rd gen Hi-MD (MZ-RH1) supports MP3(no treble issue) and Atrac and sounds great.

My recommendation for recorders is :

NetMD - Sony MZ-N910 , MZ-N10 (UK version sucks due to low volume),
if you are buying Sony try to get a type 's' as they sound slightly better when playing LP2 Atrac3.
Sharp DR480,DR580/DR400/410/420 - 1bit Sharps sound really really good.
Aiwa NX1

Hi-MD

RH1, NH1 , RH10, NH900 , NH700/800(800 has radio). (RH1,NH1,NH900 have HD digital amp - some say it sounds better)

 

[ernieBob]

Thank you both for the replies so far. I think you have answered the original question to my satisfaction. So it is as I feared. If I use line-in to record my music, navigation through the tracks would be a daunting task. However, I guess it does not matter if all songs are put on shuffle (provided the function exists on the chosen recorder

) and good sound could possibly justify the navigation limitations.

 

[ILikeMusic]

If you need line-in recording capability why not get something that employs current technology? A Cowon A3 (just for instance) recording to FLAC will be better in just about every way than a Minidisc setup.

 

[ernieBob]

Thank you for the input ILikeMusic.
Yes, I guess if recording through line-in were to be the main reason for buying the minidisc recorder, I would have alternatives that are comparatively modern. I am more concerned about the sound of the unit rather how the music gets onto it. Moreover, the minidisc units look more "solid" in comparison to modern mp3 units (in my opinion, I do not want to challenge anyone else's opinion here

). As for the A3, it is a PMP and not something that I am considering to get anytime soon.

 

[doomlordis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ILikeMusic /img/forum/go_quote.gif If you need line-in recording capability why not get something that employs current technology? A Cowon A3 (just for instance) recording to FLAC will be better in just about every way than a Minidisc setup.

If the line-in recording is anything like the A2 then ill skip it. I may need to record more than 1 min 18 seconds of audio.

The RH1 is best recorder i have had, linear pcm all the way.

 

[ILikeMusic]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ernieBob /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thank you for the input ILikeMusic. Yes, I guess if recording through line-in were to be the main reason for buying the minidisc recorder, I would have alternatives that are comparatively modern. I am more concerned about the sound of the unit rather how the music gets onto it. Moreover, the minidisc units look more "solid" in comparison to modern mp3 units (in my opinion, I do not want to challenge anyone else's opinion here ). As for the A3, it is a PMP and not something that I am considering to get anytime soon.

OK, well I just mentioned the A3 as one example, there are several units capable of recording. With regard to sound quality any current MP3/AAC/FLAC/etc. player should be able to equal or exceed ATRACS, and with regard to solidity a flash-based DAP would be infinitely more shock-resistant than Minidisc, and many hard drive players would probably be just as good.

It sounds like you have already decided that you want a Minidisc and are looking for reasons to support that decision, but hey, if you like the format, go for it. But in terms of objective technical performance Minidisc is pretty much obsolete and I'm not sure that trying to enter the Minidisc arena from scratch right now would be a very good idea... who knows how long it will continue to be supported. In any event there are now many better options.

 

[doomlordis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ILikeMusic /img/forum/go_quote.gif OK, well I just mentioned the A3 as one example, there are several units capable of recording. With regard to sound quality any current MP3/AAC/FLAC/etc. player should be able to equal or exceed ATRACS, and with regard to solidity a flash-based DAP would be infinitely more shock-resistant than Minidisc, and many hard drive players would probably be just as good. It sounds like you have already decided that you want a Minidisc and are looking for reasons to support that decision, but hey, if you like the format, go for it. But in terms of objective technical performance Minidisc is pretty much obsolete and I'm not sure that trying to enter the Minidisc arena from scratch right now would be a very good idea... who knows how long it will continue to be supported. In any event there are now many better options.

In terms of objective technical performance minidisc is not obsolete, in terms of large storage capacity it is but it is still a fine recording platform and although it may not hold 30gb of tunes an 1gb Hi-MD can hold enough for most people.

 

[ILikeMusic]

Quote:

Originally Posted by doomlordis /img/forum/go_quote.gif In terms of objective technical performance minidisc is not obsolete

Yeah, I didn't mean that comment to be as broad as it sounded and Minidisc can certainly hold its own as a recording device if you avoid ATRACS. I just meant that I personally don't see the point of the format nowadays. It certainly shined during its time, but that time has passed and now there are better options. I think even Sony would agree with that.

 

[doomlordis]

The point : I have 300 + discs , i play them at home on my 980 deck, i can take a disc off the shelf put it in my pocket and listen to it on my portable on the bus to work.
When i get to work , John (who also has a minidisc player) wants to hear the new We are scientists album so i press eject and give him it.
I notice that the Ting Tings have a new record on myspace, i plug in my minidisc and record it.

I think the biggest failing of MP3 players is that they have no removable media, if my player breaks i still have my discs.

I have a Sony S618F mp3 player and use it far less than this:



Simply Beautiful, they do not make players like this anymore.

 

[ILikeMusic]

Quote:

The point : I have 300 + discs , i play them at home on my 980 deck, i can take a disc off the shelf put it in my pocket and listen to it on my portable on the bus to work.

I was referring more to the OP where there was no prior investment in Minidisc. I meant that I didn't see the point in beginning a new Minidisc hardware/software collection at this point in time.

Quote:

I think the biggest failing of MP3 players is that they have no removable media, if my player breaks i still have my discs.

Backups don't require removable media. I have a multiple backups of what's on my DAP and I'm as secure as could be in that regard, in fact it's a lot easier to back up the contents of a DAP than multiple Minidiscs.

 

[trains are bad]

My RH1 is such an astounding piece of portable audio recording studio hardware; it should be in a museum of human progress. I don't do portable audio in any form (I didn't buy it for that); I use it as a recorder, but I would keep it around if only for the satisfaction of ownership.

And ATRACIII is a very (technically) good lossy compression format. It sounds good at very low bitrates.

 

[ernieBob]

Thank you all so far.

Yes I have made up my mind about the minidisc recorders somewhat. I really like the design of the recorder that doomlordis has put up here along with some others that I have seen in "pictures of you portable rig" thread. I am currently getting by on a 1GB nano, so I am not looking for too much capacity.

The only problem is that here in Aus, there are not many recorders that are available that look good too (the RH1 is out of my budget)

).

 

[doomlordis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ernieBob /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thank you all so far. Yes I have made up my mind about the minidisc recorders somewhat. I really like the design of the recorder that doomlordis has put up here along with some others that I have seen in "pictures of you portable rig" thread. I am currently getting by on a 1GB nano, so I am not looking for too much capacity. The only problem is that here in Aus, there are not many recorders that are available that look good too (the RH1 is out of my budget) ).

what do you want a hi-md or netmd?

Oh and the picture i posted is of the MZ-E10 , its a player only not a recorder.