I can remember back to the early 90's and the first advert I ever saw for Minidisc. The band Reef were having one of their demo tracks played on minidisc to a crusty record exec. He didn't like what he heard and threw the disc out of the top-floor window. After falling all the way to the ... Read review
Advantages: Portable great quality sounds. Long-play function. Disadvantages: No rechargeable battery function. No NetMD. No remote control.
...rockin'. The message that sony was trying to get across was of the durability and robustness of their new format. It is claimed that minidiscs can be recorded onto a million times over with no detectable decrease in sound quality. Another advantage is that these discs are less prone to skipping when the player is jolted, which is a real boon for runners and the Magic Roundabout's Zebedee alike.Boing!
Minidiscs are a lot smaller than ... ...contained within a plastic casing, imagine a smaller version of a 3.5" floppy disk on a computer. The casing means that the actual disc is not prone to scratching like can be a problem with cd's. Minidiscs vary in recordable length from 74 to 80 minutes depending on which brand you buy.
On to the actual player.
This particular model is very reasonably priced, at about £80 if you look around on the web. It is a player ... more
I can remember back to the early 90's and the first advert I ever saw for Minidisc. The band Reef were having one of their demo tracks played on minidisc to a crusty record exec. He didn't like what he heard and threw the disc out of the top-floor window. After falling all the way to the road, a likely lad found the disc, popped it in his player and started rockin'. The message that sony was trying to get across was of the durability and robustness of their new format. It is claimed that minidiscs can be recorded onto a million times over with no detectable decrease in sound quality. Another advantage is that these discs are less prone to skipping when the player is jolted, which is a real boon for runners and the Magic Roundabout's Zebedee alike.Boing!
Minidiscs are a lot smaller than cd's, about 7 cm square. They have a disc contained within a plastic casing, imagine a smaller version of a 3.5" floppy disk on a computer. The casing means that the actual disc is not prone to scratching like can be a problem with cd's. Minidiscs vary in recordable length from 74 to 80 minutes depending on which brand you buy.
On to the actual player.
This particular model is very reasonably priced, at about £80 if you look around on the web. It is a player and recorder which means that you can use it to record music from cd's as well as play them on the move. Recording onto the discs is via digital input. You WILL need a digital output from your stereo if you want to record onto minidisc. Alternatively, all Playstation 2's have a digital output, so owners can use this to help them record. This model gives you the option of either stereo (left and right channel) recording, or mono (one channel). Mono frees up more space on each minidisc. However, this model has a Long Play function. Similar to LP on a vhs recorder, this means that you can double or even quadruple the amount of space on each minidisc.
So an 80 minute mindisc on LP2 would become a 160 minute minidisc, and on LP4 would become 360 minutes long. So, one can fit about 5 or 6 albums (depending on their length) onto one minidisc. This is really handy for long journeys, instead of carrying around 5 cd's, or 5 minidiscs even, you can fit plenty of music onto one. This probably causes a minute decrease in sound quality, but for the purpose of a portable music player, exquisite sound quality is not essential When recording however, make sure you use the provided AC mains adaptor, as it uses a lot of juice. Purists can still record one album per minidisc if they want to, but one would have to question why someone would want to do this.
On the playing side, there is a digital bass boost and an AVLS (auto volume limiting system), repeat 1/all/shuffle/program/group and three digital sound presets. These are all quite handy features for talioring your playing needs, especially if you've got more songs than Oklahoma.
Battery life last for about 50 hours, which is quite good. I've had mine for two months now and haven't had to change the battery even though I use it a lot. One feature that could be handy is the ability to recharge the battery, although this is available on more expensive models.
Another feature that this recorder doesn't have is NetMD. This is a fancy name for recording from your computer via a USB cable. This is a lot quicker than recording from your stereo/Ps2. Again, more money will give you this ability, but if you don't have a PC anyway then it is irrelevant.
I've also road-tested this player while out running, and the g-protection jog proofing meant there was no skipping of tracks. The only problem was the headphones falling out of my ears. The 'phones provided are adequate, but can be exchanged for a 'sport' version which have bands to keep them on your ears. Alternatively, there are more expensive 'phones with extra bass and sound quality. Both of these are about £20.
There are also some editing functions available, which can be handy for removing lengthy pieces of silence between tracks etc. but it's capabilities don't extend far beyond that. You can also name each track through pressing the buttons on the front of the player. One thing that I would have liked is a remote control on the headphone cable, this is a function available on more expensive models.
All in all this is a very good budget model, which will suit all the needs of someone restricted to this price level. Obviously with the advent of MP3 and things like Apple's Ipod, there is competition for which format is best, but for those without a computer, minidisc is the only choice. And anyway, MP3 sound isn't as good as Minidisc
Advantages: Economical, Recordable and Compact Disadvantages: Loss of Quality and no NetMD
...premastered minidisc. When Sony first introduced the minidisc system, they must have expected it to take over from the CD as the principle audio media. However, many artists were slow to take up the oppurtunity to record on minidisc, probably due to the cost and the undeniable fact that some sound quality is lost. As such, these days, the main way to get good use out of it is to put your cd's onto minidisc, providing you with a compact version of ... ...provide great stereo sound output. The only annoyance is if you're on the move, as they fall out of your ears quite easily. I would suggest getting some which hold onto the ears, but don't get cheap ones, pay out for sony one's because the sound quality is much better ...
matthewinuk2 09.02.2004
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Sony MiniDisc recorder
Sound Quality
Ease of Use
Look & Design
Range of Features
Value for Money
Similar reviews »
Reviews which might be of interest for "Sony MiniDisc recorder"
Advantages: High speed download, superb sound, ultra lightweight Disadvantages: Pricey
One dull Saturday afternoon, I wandered into a Sony Centre and spotted a pocketsize silver box on display. It had this appealing futuristic look, and was so light I hardly noticed that I was holding it. Five minutes later, I was £179 poorer!
The little thingy is Sony MZ-N505, codename Net MD Walkman, or Sony Portable MiniDiscRecorder. MiniDisc was invented by Sony and uses a new compression technology to store digital sound in less space (up to 5 hours playback time in one MiniDisc). It’s very similar to floppy disk; you may record, play or erase any music file, and edit the track names (like filenames). A blank MiniDisc costs around £1.50. The MZ-N505 can record audio files (MP3, WAV and WMA) from PC via a USB cable, or CD audio tracks from a CD player (or CD Rom drive). It comes with a very user-friendly software to handle ...
Advantages: small-light-compact-great sound quality-MDLP-great batery life Disadvantages: pricey!
It was my birthday and to my great surprise and joy I was given a sony MZ-R900.This is a minidisc player.In case you don?t know what a minidisk is, it is a revolutionary invention by Sony.A minidisc is a 2.5" square cartridge with a digital optical disc inside.It is designed for recording music onto and can be recorded over 1 million times without a loss of sounds quality!Most minidiscs can hold 80 minutes of music on them in normal mode.
Anyway back to the minidisc player.The Sony MZ-R900 is available in silver or blue (mine is blue) and will fit in the palm of your hand!It is extremely light too!As soon as I received the minidisc player I ,naturally, wanted to try it out.To my horror an extremely thick manual fell from the box!Luckily the minidisc player was extremely simple to use and understand and soon I was enjoying my new gift ...
Advantages: Small, excellent battery life, flexible Disadvantages: Poor headphones, can't get it off my girlfriend
Well, I?ve owned my little mini-discrecorder for about 6 weeks and I still haven?t figured out why I brought the little beastie! I know that I?ve always wanted one and finally took the plunge a few weeks ago, but when I try and pin down WHY I wanted one or why I finally bought it, I?m a bit stumped. Maybe I?ll be able to tell you when I?ve finished writing this!
So, probably best to start at the beginning and tell you what ?Mini-disc? is.
Well, Minidisc is a fairly new format for storing and recording and storing music. It was invented by Sony and released onto the market back in 1993. If you?ve never seen a minidisc, they are like little CD?s, about 7cms in diameter and encased in a plastic cover to protect them from dust and the possibility of being scratched. The whole thing looks a bit like like a small 3 1/2? diskette ...
Product Information for "Sony MiniDisc recorder" »
Audio system
Sound Output Mode
Stereo
Automatic Volume Limiter System (AVLS)
Yes
Record Level Control
Automatic, manual
Features
Battery level indication, hold button, ATRAC technology
Md system
Type
MiniDisc recorder
Media Load Type
Slot-load
Playback Modes
Programme play, random play, all tracks repeat, one track repeat
Sample Rate
44.1 kHz
Shockproof Memory
Yes
Features
Sampling rate converter, MDLP
Headphones
Headphones Type
Headphones - binaural
Connectivity Technology
Cable
Sound Output Mode
Stereo
Connections
Connector Type
1 x headphones ( mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm )
1 x DC power input
1 x digital optical / line-in ( mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm / optical )
Manufacturer's product description
Being on the go means having music with staying power. This compact MD WALKMAN model, designed to fit your pocket, will bring you hours of non-stop enjoyment.
