[Tmonsterop]

I'm looking for a high quality portable minidisc recorder/player. My focus is on sound, and the recording quality. Can anyone suggest something?

 

[Peddler]

I personally found the Sony 505 (NET MD) sounded surprisingly good considering it's the cheapest in the NET MD range at the moment.

They are all pretty good sounding to be truthful and the differences between the cheapest and most expensive is more to do with features than sound quality.

The older Sharp models had better headphone amps in them and, as far as I'm concerned, the best sounding one of all was the Sony R-35.

MD3/CD players are really starting to make their mark now. Although I like MD as a format I think for portable purposes the Iriver 350 SlimX represents excellent value and with the latest firmware (on my machine anyway) doesn't skip at all once the music starts playing. It's a cheaper format than MD as well.

 

[marcopolo]

I am with Peddler and others; I like the mini disc format and the fact that with the 'sp' recording; you (are) compressing data, however you are filtering out noise and some back ground that actually makes for almost identically recording sound as the original CD. IMHO. Plus I have read about this too.

Your questions which MD? I have had a couple of Sony's and a Sharp. The Sharp MT77 does present higher headphone volume out than the Sony. However, my current Sony MZ-N1 has the line out built in digitally; pushes more volume out. So I like that.

The Sony & Sharp debate is discussed in other forums and threads. Like the various headphones, comes down to budget, looks, quality, perceived performance and value.

I have to say my two Sony's (listed in me sig) both work great. My Sharp is in Japan @ HyperJack being repaired. To be fair, i did drop it

But man, it was on carpet? lol

My last comment would be, the primary retailers like Circuit City & Best Buy don't sell the top end line of these units. So either you go online or an upscale stereo outlet like Tweeter on the east coast. If you go online and go via Japan-- be careful; they are a bite to get repaired.

Good luck!

 

[Superbaldguy]

Forgive me if a T-Board Mod pipes in.....

The Sharp MD-DR7 seems to be the recorder of choice, lately. It has a digital amp and sweet design. Saying that, I am a Sony man, with the MZ-R909 and MZ-R910, both equally excellent. There are a *lot* of Net MD recorders, now, that allow USB transfer to MD. (the DR7, R909 and R910 are not these types)

As Peddler says, the sound from any of them is about the same - superb, IMHO. It's just a matter of what features you want/need, really.

If you take a strool through the MiniDisc T-Board, you should be able to get a better idea of the model that suits your needs. (shameless plug!)

 

[skagen]

I just broke my Sony MZ-R900 and am in the market for a new or used replacement. I liked the Sony, but it was lacking in power a bit ( I played everything at like 9 on the volume).

I heard the Sharps have more power and sound as good. Does anyone have ant recomenations for a lower-priced Sharp MD recorder that sounds good?

 

[Tmonsterop]

I'm new to the MDmarket, and am not familiar with the term NetMD. Can someone out there explain it to me? Also, I looked around and did a little research, and it sounds like the Sharp MD-DR7 and the Sony R909/910 are really the best in terms of recording quality. Does anyone own the DR7 who can tell me whether it's all that it's hyped up to be?

 

[myself, aka me]

Welcome to NetMD, sorry about your sanity. No, NetMD is a feature that lets you transfer ATRAC3 files at high speed to your MD unit.. (after an .mp3 or .wav has been converted to ATRAC3, 16x for LP2, 32x for LP4). It's a bit restricted. You're allowed 3 checkouts of a particular song, after that you have to check it back in if you want to record it via netMD again. Can't delete any files on the MD due to that. Oh - no digital upload at high speed, only PC--->MD

I own a DR7, I don't have much 'phones wise, and only owned it a couple of days, but it smokes my R37s headphone out (much less tinny) and almost sounds as full as my deck. Bass boost boosts bass not mid bass (bass guitar doesn't get amplified much, bass drums do). Detailed.

But beware of the 15 page english section, I had to refer to the Japanese 100 page manual a bit reading the katakana, heh.

 

[Watchdog]

You can avoid the check in/out restrictions if you use Nero or RealOne.

 

[myself, aka me]

But it's still protected in real. Simple burners okay probably, still, no NetMD for me

 

[Watchdog]

Quote:

Originally posted by myself, aka me But it's still protected in real. Simple burners okay probably, still, no NetMD for me

I'm sure that means something like the tracks can't be deleted, moved around or combined or something like that. I haven't actually tried to use that on any discs I've made with RealOne yet.

Could you elaborate?

 

[myself, aka me]

I'm not sure exactly what is protected - as I said I don't have netmd, but I think you cannot delete tracks, moving is still okay, renaming might be okay, but splitting/combining and deleting is a big no.

 

[Tmonsterop]

I'm into serious recording, and I know that I can't drag a laptop and a soundboard in for recording small things, so MDs look like the way to go. Does the DR7 have exceptional recording quality?

 

[okinawa_joe]

What is protected are the tracks. When using OpenMG or RealOne you get protect tracks recorded to the MD, this means that the tracks can't be deleted, moved or edited whatsoever. The only way to erase a track is to check it back in to the PC, even if you don't have the .omg file.

Simple Burner however does not protect tracks at all, it's a nice little app. I have nothing to do with OpenMG or RealOne, I only use OpenMG to title, group etc. I do all my recording with Simple Burner straight from CD or I use a slighty modified Nero method for MP3 recordings.

There's a discussion going on about the difference between recording in LP2 via optical and via NetMD.

Anyhow, thought I'd be of help.

Regards,

 

[Watchdog]

I actually recorded some tracks in RealOne and was able to delete them in Simple Burner. It did ask if I was sure I wanted to delete the track as it was protected. I said yes, and it was deleted no problem.

I suspect that if I put the MD in my home deck that I would be able to delete and move the track around.