Mini Disc sound
Sep 16, 2002 at 2:37 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 27

Whitebread

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My friend has a 3 year old Protable Mini Disc. It's a Sony and the sound is horrible!!!(it was the MD player, not the headphones). It sounds flat, it doesn't get loud enough and the only thing you can adjust sound wise is the bass (Stupid "Sony digital bass boost thing" that does nothing). Although, that MD player is 3 years old and I'm assuming that there are better players out now. Can someone recomend me a player that can drive some quality headphones (Sennheiser HD 497 or headphones like that) to a high volume, and will let me adjust the trebble and bass(must record)? Thanks. And also, can you recomend me a pair of headphones with good bass responce for music like Hip-Hop and Reggae? Thanks again.
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 3:16 PM Post #2 of 27
No portable MD player will be able to drive those Senns very well.

BTW - Sounds like your friend doesn't do a very good job recording from CD to MD.
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 3:26 PM Post #3 of 27
Ok, well, what are some headphones that PMDP will be able to drive well?
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 4:02 PM Post #4 of 27
You could drive any phones you want to use with the help of an external headphone amp.
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Sep 16, 2002 at 4:16 PM Post #5 of 27
Yes I know but I don't know where to get them and I don't want to spend too much money. Plus, I really don't want to be walking around with like 400 dollars (or more) worth of audio equipment. IF I can get the MD player, amp and headphones for under 300 then I'll consider an amp but if not then forget it.
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 5:18 PM Post #6 of 27
Yes you should probably forget that, cause under 300 is not going to happen, and since this is Head-Fi, you should get used to carrying 500+ worth of equipment on board.
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Sharps won't let you adjust the treble and bass, but Sonys will most likely sound "flat" the way you described it. I'd imagine Sharp would relieve you(r friend) of that perceived flatness.

Guys, can I recommend the D66 (or the similarly priced Senn/Beyer) with a basic Sharp portable? That should round off to $200, $250. Or with the KSC-35, which will bring it under $200 for sure.
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 6:50 PM Post #7 of 27
The D66 is a good all-purpose companion for the Sharp, not the Sony's strangely enough. The impedance is higher, and the higher amp of the Sharp drives the D66's better - although clipping is still evident if you go for 'monster bass'.

The newer Sharps (770, 880) also feature a nice 'flat EQ' sound that makes twiddling the Sony's EQ's a bit redundant. Bass boost now goes really low - so it adds presence to the sound instead of flabbing it out. Not sure about the 1XX series... Although the 180 has a comparatively huge 10mw @ 32 ohms amp (770 etc is 5mw @ 32 ohms, Sony's are 5mw @ 16 ohms).
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 7:16 PM Post #8 of 27
Well guys, thanks for the recomendations but I'm not satisfyed with the specs of these PMDP. So, I guess I'll go with one of those Archos players. They will let you adjust the bass and treble anywhere from 10 decibels below to 10 above normal in 1 decibel incraments plus the amp in those MP3 players push 10mw@32ohmns or something really close. That way I'll be able to use those HD 497's and still be able to play LOUD. Although I'm worried about the HDD failing (1 year warranty, I've seen many COMPUTER HDDs fail right around 1 year after they were bought and this HDD is in a PMP3P) but I guess I have to deal with it. Thanks
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 7:27 PM Post #9 of 27
Yes - the Archos are quite tempting, I've had a chance to spend some extended time with one.

Much more convenient recording, for me this would have been the winner...

However, I, as the designated style guru of Head-Fi, cannot bring myself to tote one around. Too ugly.

The menu system is very hokey, and if I was being honest (do not let the T-Forums MD fanatics see this) the output of the Archos didn't sound so hot.

Still, you pays your money and takes your choice...
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 7:32 PM Post #10 of 27
Quote:

Originally posted by Magicthyse
Yes - the Archos are quite tempting, I've had a chance to spend some extended time with one.

Much more convenient recording, for me this would have been the winner...

However, I, as the designated style guru of Head-Fi, cannot bring myself to tote one around. Too ugly.

The menu system is very hokey, and if I was being honest (do not let the T-Forums MD fanatics see this) the output of the Archos didn't sound so hot.

Still, you pays your money and takes your choice...


I think the things ugly too, the screen sucks and so does the menu interface but it's the best I can get for my money. I don't have money to spend on a good PMDP, headphone amp and a good pair of headphones, thus I need a player that has a relativly powerful internal amp, the Archos has this, huge capacity, and is smaller than the NJB (hate that thing anyway). I'd go with a PMDP player if I could afford an external headphone amp OR if the amp was as loud as the Archos and I could adjust the tone.

Also, I have to say that I've never really listened to some quality headphones on a good powerful amp, so to me the Archos sound good cause it's the best I've had. It all comes down to how much money you have to put towards audio and I don't have much.

If anyone knows of a recording PMDP that lets me adjust the tone (Equalizer, not stupid bass boost) then can you let me know?
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 9:41 PM Post #11 of 27
"If anyone knows of a recording PMDP that lets me adjust the tone (Equalizer, not stupid bass boost) then can you let me know?"

The Sony mz-n707 doesn't have the "bass boost", rather it has a (+/- 3) treble and bass control. Many new players do.
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 9:44 PM Post #12 of 27
Quote:

Originally posted by Sol_Zhen
"If anyone knows of a recording PMDP that lets me adjust the tone (Equalizer, not stupid bass boost) then can you let me know?"

The Sony mz-n707 doesn't have the "bass boost", rather it has a (+/- 3) treble and bass control. Many new players do.


I'm assuming that when you say +/-3 your refering to dB, right? Ok, then do any PMDP have a line out jack?
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 9:50 PM Post #13 of 27
The middle is flat and both the treble and bass can go up three notches and down three notches. I'm not sure how many db is each notch.

The top of the line Sony portables (like the N1) have a lineout setting (you still use the phone jack, but I think it bypasses the amp).

I'm assuming their non-NetMD gear is the same.

Check model info at http://www.minidisc.org/equipment_browser.html

I guess they call it: "8 step bass and treble adjustment."
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 10:07 PM Post #14 of 27
Aright, thanks. The link is VERY helpful.
 
Sep 16, 2002 at 10:17 PM Post #15 of 27
Does the MZ-N707 come with the remote with the LCD or the remote without the LCD?

And in "LP4" mode, is the sound quality of the recording as good as an MP3 incoded at 128KBPS?
 

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