Freesound Forums
sony MD recording
Started March 6th, 2006 · 12 replies · Latest reply by tigersound 18 years, 8 months ago
i know its next topiclike that but every previous onewent nowhere- so i hope this doesnt.
im just about to get new MD recorder, for the basics of field recordings, blah blah blah. i cant afford DAT or any 4 track, or digital disk ones,thus MD is the choice, plus i will replace an old ipod which i hate alredy, but anyway, on the track..
few issues discussed already - i guess after all of them its clear i will be able to record my work from MD to pc without stupid hassle ? the only thing that left to explain is - will i need additional cables ? i have soundcraft compact 4 mixer, so whats the way of connecting MD to PC for uploading ?
second one - can i record a disk with my favourite tracks from mp3 ?any valid formats i need to use ?
third - record quality. i have olympus vn-120 PC but its shite,voice recordings are blurry,its good for students that sleep in classes,not for field recording really. i pressume i will need a mic,now:
what mic ? i think condenser would be good, BUT - is there a pre-amp in MD ? i want to use the same mic in MD and my soundcraf tmixer,while mixer has phantom-power, so i dont need a pre amp for it,but what about MD ?
ah,all those questions...
please, dont forward me to other topics, after reading all of them there was no conclusion,i hope to get on in this one.i know many of you knows the MD issues andhas the answer to my few question from the top o fthe head, so thanks for your responses in advance
MD uses the ATRAC compression algorithm. This is how so much audio can be crammed on a MiniDisc. As far as I know, the files cannot be dragged & dropped onto your PC. You can connect your MD player to your PC via USB, but the MD player has to play the file to decode it from ATRAC to PCM audio, (WAV format, etc.) in REALTIME - ugh. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that's the case. As far as a mic goes, what types of things will you be recording, and where? For a very stealthy, portable solution, with a very small external power supply, check out the coresound binaural-ish mics.
http://www.core-sound.com/mics.html
Never used them myself, but a lot of people rave about the sound. The external P/S looks a little wanky, but they are very inexpensive, and even offer a 30 day trial period.
you'll basically need to take what you recored on the MD and re-record that back into your computer.
and that's pretty easy. yes you'll need a few extra cables unelss you have them already? I don't know your connections so i can't tell you what you need but for the most part they are easily found at electtronic stores and music stores.
once done there then you'll have to probably convert that to mp3 like you wanted..unless you have a program that can do it for your as u record and AS FAR AS I KNOW ITS NOT POSSIBLE TO RECORD SOMETHING TO MP3. YOU CAN CONVERT IT TO MP3 BUT NOT RECORD IT AS AN MP3 (does that make sense?perhaps i'm wrong correct me please if i am)
you can also connect MD TO COMPUTER via usb...but the process to convert to mp3 is the same i believe..which is what the last poster meant when he wrote you still have to let the md play..meaning you have to record it back into your pc first before you have a file your pc can deal with-example-a wave file.
I use a Sony MD and transfer to PC via analog in real time. Sounds a pain, but I'm used to it. With a Net MD, yes you can transfer via USB but Sony make it a real pain, thinking you are probably copying copyrighted material.
For analog connection, I've just bought an Edirol UA1-EX - a USB connecting audio interface. Wonderfully quiet, and quite a flexible device from what I see so far. Also provides me with low noise audio line-in for my laptop, and (yet to be tried) I could transfer via optical link from my Sony MDS980 HiFi MD deck digitally into computer (still involving real-time transfer).
I capture on the PC using Cool Edit Pro (now Adobe Audition) as a WAV file, and where required convert to MP3 using iTunes free software. I am realizing that anything less than 192 kbps MP3 is pretty naff.
Mic I use is a Sony ECM-MS907 - a reasonably compact stereo jobby. Also have a pair of OKM Soundman binaurals, but the cables seem very fragile and one broke on holiday and I missed some good opportunities.
latest minidisc recorders allow you to transfer PCM RECORDINGS (non compressed) to your PC or even Mac at high speed via USB cable. (but only if purchased in the USA, I read somewhere)
take a look: (if you haven't already)
"The Sony MZ-M10 portable audio recorder is ideal for journalists and musicians who need to make high-quality stereo audio recordings using cost-effective removable storage media. The MZ-M10 recorder comes supplied with an ECM-DS70P Stereo Microphone and MDR-EO931Earbud Headphone. The recorder uses affordable Hi-MD™ media with 1 GB storage capacity. Three recording modes are supported including: Linear (PCM) 44.1kHz/16-bit, ATRAC3plus 256kbps (Hi-SP) mode and ATRAC3plus 64bps (Hi-LP) mode. The recorder supports USB uploading + downloading with PC (using supplied Sonic Stage software), and USB uploading with MAC (using supplied Hi-MD WAV importer software), allowing transferring audio recordings to a computer in .WAV file format. This Hi-MD™ device can also be used as a USB mass storage device, allowing storing data files on the Hi-MD™ disc along with audio recordings."
means that with MZ models i can transfer my field records to PC using USB and Sonic Stage and then, i can do whatever i want to PCM's , like transfer them to.wav's etc etc ?
My son had a Sony Hi-MD recorder and Sonic Stage. I am struggling to get him to define exactly what the problem was, but I think it's to do with Sony's attempt at SCP (Serial Copyright Protection). Transfers between PC and MD were limited in some way. All rather a pain and OTT when it's your own material in the first place. Sony acting as Big Brother.
Other points from your first posting:
My ECM-MS907 mic can use plug-in-power (which the MZ-N10 supplies), but has 1.5v battery itself available. I understand it has a small built-in amplifier of less than phenominal performance - but listen to my files and judge.
A decent MD recorder will give you a choice of microphone input or line input. Purists seem to like to use line input with higher quality external mic pre-amps / mixers or whatever.
For transfer from MZ-N10 to PC via analog, I now use a stereo minijack to pair of phono leads into my UA1-EX. Alternative as I say is optical TOSlink cable from MDS-980 into UA1EX.
Yes, you can record a favourites MD from any sound source you like. If you use analog input into the MD (e.g. line in) then the MD doesn't know or care what the sound source is. With Sonic Stage, you convert the files from WAV or MP3 to Atrac on the PC, then batch download to the MD.
Hope this helps, Mike.
the more time i spend in this issue the smaller my willingness to get into that sony protection hassle.uh. i just realized that the MD that im thinking about, the ones for less transfer-hassle and better quality are about 400$. so the same as field-recorders EdirolR-1,R-09 or M-Audio Microtrack. the ones without hassles. what to do now?
imlost......
Pretty much all Sony HiMD-recorders will do what you need. All of them come with SonicStage, so no matter which one you have, you will be able to download your recordings to your computer and save as PCM-WAV through SonicStage. This takes far less than real-time. This works only for HiMD-recordings though, not recordings made in NetMD mode, or recordings made using older (pre-HiMD) recorders.
Mine was quite affordable, something like 140 € (though I got 50% off). Compared to the "better" models, it lacks the mic preamp, and it runs on AA cells or the USB power supply only (no LiIon or other rechargeable, and no net adapter except for the USB connector). Transfer hassle is the exact same for all models.
ATRAC2 is pretty good, though obviously nothing beats PCM in terms of quality.
I'm really loving the Sony MZ-M10. With PCM recording, Minidisc no longer compresses files! and files transfer easily. I shopped around before deciding on this. I decided not to go with a compact flash device as that would add up to $100 (for 2gb )to my purchase and I can carry several 1gb discs with me for only $6 or so. This works with my mac quite well.
What did you decide on?
For a bog standard hi-MD and a pair of Soundman binaurals you shouldnt be looking at over £200 max. Its worth having a look here - http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?from=R40&satitle=hi+md - i dont know about you, but I'm sorely tempted by the one that's only £50 - looks fine to me!
Alternatively, you can buy a portable used DAT (walkman) for around £100 these days - the only problem being you want something with phantom power. Personally, I would invest in a pair of good quality binaural mics - you wouldnt believe how good the recordings can be on them and a regular Hi-MD.
Anyone?
hang on a minute - the £50 one is only a MD player. duh! anyway the more expensive ones that record (useful for field recording i believe!) look pretty good and all!