[Podtweaker]

On several occasions upon openning up the case of the Korg & lifting up the Tosh drive , the zif connection to the motherboard has been disturbed & not as properly positioned & locked in place as I am positive I placed it before closing the case back no matter how carefully I've attempted to position the drive & cable before closing up. I don't think the era.ele cable is locking to the motherboard as securely as the stock zif cable does & the shorter length does'nt help w/ cable tension that may be happening when things are back together. "Back to the drawing board" as they say!

 

[JDUBS]

I had an issue with this as well, initially. You need to make sure the black piece (lock for the zif cable) is pushed all the way in. It should hold it really well, at least it did for me on the few cables I tried.

For me, I think the next thing to try is the 64gb Runcore SSD. I love the idea of no moving parts!

-Jim

 

[Podtweaker]

SUCCESS!!!! I now have a 74.5g capacity Korg MR-1(after formatting the 80gig Toshiba mk8025gal HDD). The problems I was having stemmed from the zif cable connection to the Korg motherboard connector. The thing I noticed about the stock zif cable connecting the original Hitachi Hdd to the Korg board was that the foil portion of the zif fit completely inside the lock down plate of the connector. I trimmed a slight sliver off of the zif cable(blue side end) so that it more closely matched the foil length of the original zif! I finally moved past the start-up screen to a "NO FAT32." <<exit>>" screen, which I did by pressing the "P" control button. I believe the main menu screen came up at this point (if it did'nt I may have pressed the side menu button after I was able to exit the NO FAT32 screen I was kind of supprised things appeared to be working correctly at this point,please forgive my memory lapse). Once I had the main menu screen I scrolled down to System pushed the "P" control then scrolled down to Format HDD (crossed my fingers one more time) pushed the "P" selector & selected Yes to are you sure. Sure enough the Korg formatted the HDD & confirmed it. I had previously copied all the Korg MR-1 folders to my computer before removing the stock Hitachi HDD so it was just a matter of syncing up my Korg to my PC openning up the drive the folders were on & copying them to the MR-1. The Korg did all the work in formatting the new drive. I hope this will help anyone who is planning to try this upgrade. So what new music should I put on my player next?(rhetorical question) I'll check back w/ everyone later! As the song goes "Don't worry,..Be happy!"

 

[oghoter]

Well done, Podtweaker! I immediately tried with the blue zif end trimmed, like you, and it seems to be ok now. However the thin black lock bar on the hdd end came apart and now i cannot get it back in place. The "comb" should face down, but does it matter which way it goes?

 

[Podtweaker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oghoter /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well done, Podtweaker! I immediately tried with the blue zif end trimmed, like you, and it seems to be ok now. However the thin black lock bar on the hdd end came apart and now i cannot get it back in place. The "comb" should face down, but does it matter which way it goes?

Ouch! This happened to me when I was trying the zif cable w/ the mk1231gal(the 120g hdd that won't work w/ the Korg,but it was still out of my Ipod Classic) so I had a heads up that the latch on the Hdd was fragile! The "comb" side of the zif cable (white) faces down,away from the latch lock down bar on the Hdd end & on the motherboard end (blue) it faces up toward the underside of the lock down plate!(Was this your question?). I hope you have very steady hands & the patience of a watchmaker & some very good means of lighted magnification as I'm drawing a blank as to a way to restore that lock bar. You may have to consider another way lock that cable to the Hdd as just placing it through the insertion slot won't hold the connection in place after everything is back in place & you put the case together,but you know that already. Sorry, I can't offer more help at this time! Keep checking this thread . If I can think of something(or hopefully someone else can) I'll get back to you. Good luck!

 

[Moontan13]

The MR-1 is an interesting device. Where do you get the high res files to play on it though? Currently I'm using a reciever with my computer that has a 192khz/ 24 bit DAC so I'd like to A/B high res audio with ordinary CDs to see if the difference is worth it.

 

[oghoter]

Made it – at last. New zif cable (AWM 20624) arrived yesterday. Suddenly everything seemed easy. I had already managed to get the thin black lock pin back on the hdd port. I did not trim the cable ends in any way. White end in the Toshiba 80gb hdd (white side facing same way as hdd label, towards the bottom of the Korg), blue end in the motherboard port. Got some help from my wife who has steady hands. Amazingly, after all my troubles, it worked on first try. And continued to work, with the box screwed together. Now I have 74,5 gb ready for music. Great! Thanks to Podtweaker and others in this thread for helpful input.

 

[Podtweaker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oghoter /img/forum/go_quote.gif Made it – at last. New zif cable (AWM 20624) arrived yesterday. Suddenly everything seemed easy. I had already managed to get the thin black lock pin back on the hdd port. I did not trim the cable ends in any way. White end in the Toshiba 80gb hdd (white side facing same way as hdd label, towards the bottom of the Korg), blue end in the motherboard port. Got some help from my wife who has steady hands. Amazingly, after all my troubles, it worked on first try. And continued to work, with the box screwed together. Now I have 74,5 gb ready for music. Great! Thanks to Podtweaker and others in this thread for helpful input.

Good to hear it! (You do know ,of course , the reason everything worked correctly was due to the wife's help!! Just don't admit to it too strongly it's not permitted in the "Guy's Code of Behaviour") Getting serious for a second, I'm kind of supprised that the lock pin was'nt a gonner! If the replacement zif cable was the same as the first one I have a feeling that second set of hands was the reason the trim was'nt necessary. Well, anyhow, congrats & enjoy

 

[taperted]

Hi Everyone,

I've been trying to CF mod my MR-1 for a few months now, but I can't get past the start up screen.

After reading the past messages in this thread, there was a question about an external battery pack for the MR-1, especially for the folks that are installing a larger HDD. As you all know, the stock battery lasts a few hours, so an external pack is required if you're out and about.

Its power requirements are compatible with USB (ie. 5V), but the USB-in jack on the MR-1 cannot be used to charge. You can either hack together a USB cable to a power-plug, or you can purchase this cable from Dealextreme:

DealExtreme: $1.87 2-in-1 USB 2.0 Power Data Cable for PSP

It is for a Sony Playstation Portable, but it is compatible with the MR-1. The nice thing about this cable is that you can plug it into your computer, use it like a USB drive and charge the battery without using that bulky AC adapter.

The other issue with a USB battery pack is that the MR-1 requires a high current, ~ 800 mA. Most USB battery packs output < 500 mA. Check the current output before purchasing. If you use one with a low current, the MR-1 will run off it for a few minutes, but then when it requires a high current, it will switch to the internal battery. So when looking for an external battery, look for one that outputs 1000 mA. I have this one, and it works fine:

Macally | External Li-ion Battery for iPod | IP-A481 | B&H Photo

-- Ted

 

[JDUBS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tedyun /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi Everyone, I've been trying to CF mod my MR-1 for a few months now, but I can't get past the start up screen. After reading the past messages in this thread, there was a question about an external battery pack for the MR-1, especially for the folks that are installing a larger HDD. As you all know, the stock battery lasts a few hours, so an external pack is required if you're out and about. Its power requirements are compatible with USB (ie. 5V), but the USB-in jack on the MR-1 cannot be used to charge. You can either hack together a USB cable to a power-plug, or you can purchase this cable from Dealextreme: DealExtreme: $1.87 2-in-1 USB 2.0 Power Data Cable for PSP It is for a Sony Playstation Portable, but it is compatible with the MR-1. The nice thing about this cable is that you can plug it into your computer, use it like a USB drive and charge the battery without using that bulky AC adapter. The other issue with a USB battery pack is that the MR-1 requires a high current, ~ 800 mA. Most USB battery packs output < 500 mA. Check the current output before purchasing. If you use one with a low current, the MR-1 will run off it for a few minutes, but then when it requires a high current, it will switch to the internal battery. So when looking for an external battery, look for one that outputs 1000 mA. I have this one, and it works fine: Macally | External Li-ion Battery for iPod | IP-A481 | B&H Photo -- Ted

Great tip on the battery pack, Ted! Thanks! I need to send in the free battery pack form from Korg, but I'm guessing that won't be a lithium ion...who knows, though.

Anyone get their free pack from Korg, yet?

As far as CF cards go, definitely try the Transcend 133x. I confirmed that the 32gb Transcend 133x card works fine.

-Jim

 

[taperted]

Hi Jim

The battery pack from Korg is just a box that holds 4x AA batteries.

Korg | 4-AA External Battery Pack for MR-1 Recorder | BATPACKMR1

What I don't like is that it doesn't take rechargeables. If you use rechargeables, there are only a few brands that work in this box. I forget which ones, but they are more expensive than the normal Duracell or Energizer rechargeables.

I suspect that because most rechargeables are rated 1.2V, and that the output of each cell becomes lower as it discharges, the total output is lower than what the MR-1 needs (4 x 1.2 = 4.8, and the MR-1 needs 5V).

It's a convenient solution that I keep around as an emergency, but the USB pack will pay itself off eventually.

-- Ted


Quote:

Originally Posted by JDUBS /img/forum/go_quote.gif Great tip on the battery pack, Ted! Thanks! I need to send in the free battery pack form from Korg, but I'm guessing that won't be a lithium ion...who knows, though. Anyone get their free pack from Korg, yet? As far as CF cards go, definitely try the Transcend 133x. I confirmed that the 32gb Transcend 133x card works fine. -Jim

 

[oghoter]

Agree with Podtweaker regarding the guy code. It is precisely because people break such archaic codes, that we get progress in internet forums like this one - in my view.
Now. we know how to give the Korg mr1 a bigger disk, something it needed all the way. Next perhaps is programming.

 

[oghoter]

To answer the original question of this thread, yes, the Mr1 can function very well as a playback unit. Although you can playback only ca 10 albums with the original disk, you can enlarge this to 50 or more, using a better disk, and the battery can be upgraded also. What you get is a pretty good dac that is very empowered due to the better digital format. So even if the dac is mediocre the sound is good. In my case, and i am not alone, the dsd sound is better than any pcm heard so far. It is a niche format, but still the best.

 

[taperted]

I tried the RunCore 32 GB SSD, with partial success. It hung at various points when trying to access the drive:

1. It will not format; it will attempt to do so, but it takes forever.

2. It hangs on Shutdown.

3. It hangs on Recording.

I was able to use the MR-1/SSD as a USB drive, so I could format it by hooking it up to my computer and format as a FAT32. I then cloned my MR-1 drive using Acronis True Image, then restored the image onto the SSD. It was able boot up, then go to the recording screen.

Most functions were normal, such as browsing through the library and playback, however, pushing the Record button would hang the unit, and I had to push reset.

The other thing is that the SSD got quite warm during operation. It wasn't too hot to touch, but definitely warm.

I mainly use this to record concerts, so I won't be using the SSD. However, for those interested only in playback, it is possible to use it. I haven't used it extensively with the SSD installed, so I don't know if it will hang on any further functions.

 

[taperted]

Success!!!

After my failed attempt at putting in a RunCore SSD, I tried out the Mtron 16 GB SSD, as this fellow used in his post:

Translation result for http://www5a.biglobe.ne.jp/~bigsmile/rail/mr1-swap.htm

The main difference that I could see is that the R/W speeds for the Mtron are on par with the MR-1's Hitachi HDD (100 MB/s), whereas the RunCore is slower, at 60 MB/s. I didn't think it would make a difference because the PATA interface caps the bandwidth, but I was completely out of ideas.

I just installed it, formatted it in the MR-1 and it is absolutely seamless. I can record, playback, etc...

Edit: The SSD doesn't improve battery life at all, at least when recording. Perhaps most of the juice is used during processing of the DSD?