Mini Disc Recorders?

Whistle
21

Hey Azalin:

Im not sure about the particular model you’re mentining, but I have heard from the folks at

http://www.soundprofessionals.com

that a new version of the Sharp MiniDisk is due out soon…supposedly a low cost version of the MT877, supposedly somewhere in the $150-175 price point with most of the features ofthe 877, including teh abilityty to quadruple the recording time on a MiniDisk, as well as on-the-fly input /recording level control. I havent seen any info recently re when this new thign is coming out. Ive been waiting, since I think I would prefer this model to the current Sonys and I dont want to pay the extra for the 877.

Hope this helps.

Kev

22

Thanks Dazedin,

I placed the order already for the Sharp model. I’m sure it’s an old one with less features than newest models, but at least it’s an LP and has micro input, all I need for the upcoming Willie Clancy! :wink:

23

Slightly different vein…I knew a guy who had an mp3 player that had a slow down feature on playback. He would convert a cd to mp3, load it and listen in slow-motion while he practiced along with it on his lunch breaks. I think he could play at 75%, 50%, and 25% of original speed. I saw this thing about a year ago. Any developments in that field?
Tony

24

I think that any MP3 player from Creative Labs can do just that, like the Creative Jukebox player. They have developed a piece of software that can apply special audio effects on music. That’s VERY useful, I wish they could make a minidisc player that could do that.

25

I have had a sony recordable minidisc for 4 1/2 years daughter has had a Sharp for longer. Neither of these have ever gone wrong. I think my sony is easier to use. It records well at session and when at workshops. Sony help desk have been very helpful and it is worth buying the warranty on one as my sons Goodman broke down after a year and it wasn’t under warranty. So one dead minidisc player.

26

As far as an mp3 player with slow down features, I should have been more specific. This player is a portable device that looks just like an ordinary portable cd player.
Tony

27

Tony,

The Creative Jukebox looks like a CD player and is about same size, but has a hard-drive internally and can’t play CDs…

28

On 2002-05-24 11:31, StevieJ wrote:

So here’s my question for the techies: this being a “plug-in power” model, is there any reason why I cannot simply use an extension cord with this mike?

That’s what I do, and it works just fine. It’s a real shame that the mic picks up so much noise, because otherwise it would be a pretty cool setup, just chunking that sucker into the side of my recorder. I wonder if it’s possible to alter it to isolate some of that noise.

=Caj

29

On 2002-05-24 11:31, StevieJ wrote:
So here’s my question for the techies: this being a “plug-in power” model, is there any reason why I cannot simply use an extension cord with this mike?

Pixyy has a DS-70P microphone for his minidisc recorder, and with an extension cord it works like a dream.

30

On 2002-05-24 12:53, Azalin wrote:
Actually, does anyone know anything about the Sharp MD-MT99CS? I’m about to buy it 'cause it sells for only 120$US, and seems good enough to do the job. Is it a piece of crap?

Hey Azalin,

If you don’t mind me asking, where did you manage to find that unit for 120$? The only place I’ve seen it in stock is at “futureshop.ca” and they won’t ship to the US.

Mark “looking for a minidisc” V.

31

Heya Mark,

Yeah, dead on, futureshop.ca, they have the deal going on right now, ends up being about 120$US. It’s very strange that there is no other way to get the device, maybe it’s a very old model? From what I can see it does the job…

32

Thanks Azalin,

I was afraid of that. bummer no shipping to the US. The unit was intro’d in May of 2001 so it’s only a year old. If you look into the minidisc.org site there is a bewildering maze of model numbers. Some released only in certain countries. That unit sounded good since it was MDLP, long antiskip and has a mic input. I’m leaning towards getting the MD-MT877 but if I can get similar features for 120$ well…I guess it’s back to hunting up e-bay.

Mark

33

Hello all, I just got a sony mz-n1 with ms907 mic. Here are my initial impressions.
The Good.
It’s small, I mean really small, not much bigger than the disc itself.
Sound quality is a-freaking-mazing. So good it’s spooky. I recorded my 3 year old singing some songs then played them back for mom, she was kinda wierded out by how lifelike it sounded.
Comes with a cradle that doubles as a battery charger and usb interface to the computer.
Records from PC at up to 1/32 of actual playtime. On a Celeron 1 gig with 192 meg it takes about 4 minutes to record a full cd, not quite 32x, but not bad.

Allows +/- 20% speed change on the fly. So you can slow down tunes (a bit) without having to re-record them on the pc through “slow downer” software.

The so-so.
It’s a bit complicated to operate. I’ll be keeping the manual around for a while.
You have to use headphones and an external mic, so, even though the unit is small, in practice, its a bit cumbersome with the wires and stuff.

The bad.
The PC software sucks. The “Simple Burner” is ok, you can copy an Audio cd pretty easily,and it pulls track names from the internet via CDDB. The full featured software that lets you burn from mp3’s, wav’s, etc. Is not intuitive, didn’t support at least 1/2 the mp3’s i tried o push through it, did not like many of the file names so i had to spend a good deal of time editting out spaces and special charaters, etc.. Didn’t fail gracfully, i.e. spent 5 minutes downloading a directory, gives one message, then you look at the MD player and see that only two tunes made it down.

Some Mini-disc players have an am/fm tuner built into the remote, this one does not.

And, the number one thing that sucks, there is no digital upload. If you record tunes at a session, for instance, to get them up to a pc, you have to go analog out the headphone jack into you sound card in real time, Major Bummer. [edit: This is not a limitation of this particular model, but of all portable mini-disc players. They’ll probably come out with one with digital upload next month so I’ll have to go out and buy another one.]

I’ll repost after I’ve spent some more time with it.

Regards,
jb

[ This Message was edited by: brownja on 2002-06-28 07:51 ]

34

Heres an update on the new Sharp I mentioned earlier. My corporate spies tell me that the new Sharp is less expensive than the 877, but it does not have a microphone jack, so it aint worth jack to anyone wanting to record a session.

sigh. so for me its gonna be the 877.

35

As I understand it there is no digital upload on (almost?) all of them in order to cut down on music pirating. If you want digital out you will have to get an expensive home deck.

36

Would y’all post your thoughts on various low-end minidisc microphones? I know where to get them, but I’d like your real-world impressions after having used them. I don’t want to spend more than $100.

Thanks!

S.
Arlington, Va.

37

I’ve got the Sony MS907 or some such number. I like it. Takes a AA battery, and cost me around $70 (dealcat.com I think, and check edealfinder to see if there are any coupons floating about)

If you remind me in a few weeks I will send you a clip of a live recording I took at a festival a few weeks back. Been kinda busy…=) haven’t yet gotten it OFF the md and onto the pc.

I’d like to hear from anyone who has played with those binaural (sp?) mics that go by your ears, minidisco has them and they seem pretty cool…

(and if I move to Seattle next year I am getting a Hydrophone for underwater recordings, hehe)

38

On 2002-07-15 17:49, avanutria wrote:
I’d like to hear from anyone who has played with those binaural (sp?) mics that go by your ears, minidisco has them and they seem pretty cool…

I got a set from Radio Shack for $20 on sale about a month ago. I ran out to a track of tallgrass prairie (9-mile prarie is about a mile from my house, it’s the largest “virgin” tract of tallgrass left in the midwest http://snrs.unl.edu/wedin/nefieldsites/NineMile/nine_mile_prairie.htm ) and walked around recording. The recording was great, I listen to it at work to de-stress. They do well with live bands as well. I’m sure the higher end ones have a better range but for $20 these do fine for me. The mics really do create a true 3D map of sound. While I was on the prairie a jet went overhead and with headphones it makes you look up and duck.

Mark

[ This Message was edited by: markv on 2002-07-15 17:59 ]

39

Hey Mark can you give me the model number for those? Maybe the Rat Shack still carries them.

40

On 2002-07-15 18:23, avanutria wrote:
Hey Mark can you give me the model number for those? Maybe the Rat Shack still carries them.

Oddly enough I just found the exact same ones on e-bay for $10 !!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1365796374

Mark