Re: MD: Clie (was: Sony doesn't seem to have a portable MP3 player)
Ok, a bit overkill, but it certainly fits the bill of being portable! If its anything like my old Palm Professional, it would be about the size of an MZ-R50. My Palm Professional was, without the case, almost the exact same size as my R50. For the record, the Clie is about the same size as the Palm V/Vx. Sweet! Having never seen one in person, the Palm Professional seemed like a good guess for size. For the record, I have a Palm Vx, and the size is about as close to perfect for a PDA as I've seen. The N710C (US model), and the 700C (when flashed) can both take Memory Sticks right up to the 128MB ones. To play ATRAC3, only white (MagicGate) can be used. The blue/purple ones can hold any amount of MP3s and other files. No ATRAC3 though. This seems strange, but I'm sure there's some explaination... Why does the hardware (the type of Memory Stick used) affect what can be put on it? Clearly I don't understand Memory Stick technology... Does the MagicGate have a built-in ATRAC3 decoder or something? Or is it just a security thing? It has to be 'signed out' through their program OpenMG. Maximum of 3 signouts, so you can't just copy it to all your friends. This can also convert MP3s on the fly as they're being transferred, if you like your music in ATRAC3 format. So what happens if I sign out some music, which I've paid for, put it on a memory card, then decide that I want to use my Clie to record something through the line-in? If I repeat this two more times, am I rewarded with a song, which I've paid for, that I can't listen to? If there's some FAQ about this, I'd like to take a look... Just to reiterate, the N710C (retailing for $450-$500) will happily play MP3s. ecost.com have 128MB Memory Sticks for $105. So you can get a 2-hours-of-music playing, 11-hour battery life, full colour hi-res all-singing all-dancing Palm which plays videos for $600. And it fits in your jacket pocket. Not too bad eh? Not too shabby! I'll consider it when I get around to replacing my Palm Vx. It sounds similar to Palm's m505, which I've been drooling over for a while now, but with more and better features. The only thing I don't like, which is the same complaint I have with all solid-state storage devices, is the cost of the media. -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word unsubscribe to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: Sony doesn't seem to have a portable MP3 player
Before this post I did a little research to see if I could find a Sony MP3 player similar to a Rio. From my research, I have found that Sony doesn't seem to make an actual MP3 player. This is true, to the extent that they don't make an MP3 walkman-style device. However, they do make an MP3 player. The Sony CDX-MP450X is a car AM/FM/CD/MP3 player. It plays MP3 files that are burned onto a CD-R or CD-RW, along with audio CDs and the radio. Unlike the music clip, it requires no special software apart from a CD burning program and something to make/get MP3s with. My whole point when I first started looking to see if Sony made an MP3 player, was based on a theory of mine that Sony does not encourage MP3 since it is now in the record business. Remember this is the same company that went to court to fight for the individual's right to make home recordings. I'm not sure how the existance of this car deck affects your theory. Since they have the technology and the willingness to build a _mobile_ MP3 player, I have to wonder why they aren't building a _portable_ MP3 player. -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word unsubscribe to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: S/PDIF
2) The level is a bit too low in the digital out even if I have the highest level in the Windows Volume control. Is it possible to adjust the record level on the MJ-L7 when recording digitally (the manual says the level it set atomatically)? I think you can do this. Go into the Volume control, then go Options, Properties. Select the Playback radio button (circle with a dot in it) and see if S/PDIF output is listed in the Show list below. If it is, check it off. If not, choose the Other radio button and look for it in the Show list. See if there are any other items in the Other dropdown. If I still had my Vortex card in the Windows machine, I'd just look and tell you exactly where it is. I know its in there somewhere and it defaults to about half volume. I had the same problem you did until I discovered that. Hope that helped -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: MD
Um... is there such a thing as "lossless" compression? I don't think so... I think "lossy compression" is redundant ;) Lossless compression is what people generally call programs like WinZip. When you compress a file with WinZip, it takes up less space and when you decompress it you get the exact same data that you compressed. In other words, it doesn't lose any data in the compression and decompression process. ATRAC is lossy because it does NOT return the same data after decompression that it was given for compression. ATRAC throws out information in order to make it easier to compress the data, therefore the compression and decompression process loses data. This is, coincidentally, why audio MD equipment would be very poor for data storage. I believe this has been discussed on-list a few times. -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: ATRAC loseless compression techniques...
Does any loseless compression algorithm require the entire set of data for read access before it begins compression? If you wanted to encode audio with a loseless compression, could you do it in real-time or would you need to wait until the entire recording is complete, and then compress afterwards? Would the results be as good in real-time than as a post-process? I'm sure that there are some algorithms that require access to the entire data set before they could compress it. I can't name any off the top of my head though. Compress, gzip, and bzip2 (all from the Unix world, although Windows implementations exist) are able to compress a stream of data in real time (this is actually their normal way of handling things). These all use lossless compression algorithms with varying degrees of speed and compression. One advantage of a non-realtime compression algorithm is that it can be much more complex than a realtime one. If a realtime algorithm is too complex it won't be able to keep up with the input data and will lose data. This isn't an issue with non-realtime compression since it doesn't have to keep up with an input, it can work through at its leisure. As for quality of the results, that's dependant on the specific algorithms in question. This is, coincidentally, why audio MD equipment would be very poor for data storage. I believe this has been discussed on-list a few times. ...and if I understand correctly, data would have to be encoded into some sort of audio stream designed to be completely loseless when converted with ATRAC, right? ...or maybe embed some sort of error-correction mechanism...? As I said, these have been hashed out on the list before. The gist of it all seemed to be that you would fit a very small amount of data onto a disc, it would take a long time (74 minutes for a full disc) to read and write the data. This isn't to say that it can't be done, just that it would be fairly impractical when compared to using something designed for storing data. -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: Xitel Sound Card
I vaguely recall reading on this list about problems with the DG1 and the MZ-R50. Unfortunately, I can't remember any specifics. Has anyone here tried the DG1 with an MZ-R50? I'd rather not buy one if it won't work with the only piece of MD equipment that I own. The big advantage when recording MP3 is because you can adjust the recording volume (MP3 files are very various, like CD of course...). So, now I can do any music mix I want from MP3 to MD with an equal sound everytime... Also the very big advantage is the difference of price (nearly $30 difference between each other). I will admit that the price difference is a big advantage between the two, however I have to disagree with the ability to adjust the recording level as being a major selling point. I found a WinAmp plugin called AudioStocker that automatically adjusts the output level so that everything is equal between songs and within a song. Granted, this does ruin certain effects in songs, like songs that have a very soft intro or get progressively louder (Silent Lucidity comes to mind). I don't find this to be a problem when I'm making a disc for use when I'm walking or biking, but it would be a problem if I were making a disc where I want to appreciate every nuance of the music. -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
RE: MD: Xitel Sound Card
On Thu, 28 Sep 2000, Peter Forest wrote: Do you have a link for this plug-in ? It could be useful... You can find this plugin at: http://www.users.one.se/liket/mp3stock/audiostocker.htm However, for me, the nuance and effects of songs are really important for me... In this case, the plugin may not be to your liking. You could try playing with the settings and see if you can find something that offers a good balance between volume equalization and preserving the nuances and effects. -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
MD: Karaoke?
Since this list is a fountain of all knowledge when it comes to MD and other nifty stuff, I thought I'd ask this here... I'm a karaoke singer, not a good one, but I try to improve. So I figure one way I can improve is to record myself singing using my trusty MD walkman. I don't really want to record myself in the karaoke bar since, apart from the risk of getting my nice MZ-R50 stolen or damaged, I can only get down there once a week. Plus the place has a great sound system that lets you hear yourself sing very clearly, so you can kinda gauge how you're doing without recording yourself and playing it back. So now my question - is there any software that would allow a computer to play a standard Karaoke disc? This would need to be complete with graphics (and proper timing on the graphics!) and everything. And yes, I checked out Soft Karaoke (came with my SoundBlaster Live) and www.tune1000.com (I think that's what it was) - they don't have most of the songs I sing, and the midi renditions of the ones they do have are poor at best and insanely terrible at worst. Any thoughts? TIA -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: MZ-R50 Performance
I've only owned one R50 and apart from breaking the remote while biking, I haven't had a single problem with it. Being a recent buy, I never had one that could disable SCMS, but I don't have the need to just yet since I don't have any other MD equipment. I broke the remote during a biking accident, but other than that I've never had a problem with the unit itself. After I wiped out with it I was surprised that it didn't even skip in sympathy for my bleeding leg! I bought the R50 after doing a lot of research and comparisons between the various models, but before discovering this mailing list. The main things that appealed to me about it were the jog dial for titling and the size. There were smaller models (like the R55) when I bought mine, but I avoided those for the same reason I avoid the really small cell phones - I'd probably end up losing it or something! I find the size to be a perfect for a jacket or pants pocket and the remote fits perfectly on my backpack right above the length adjuster for the shoulder strap. Does Sony still make the R50? Or has it been discontinued in favor of the insanely small R90/91? -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 On Sun, 13 Aug 2000, Francisco [iso-8859-1] José[iso-8859-1] Sánchez wrote: For all who are bent on comparisons . . . FWIW, I've owned 2 Sony MZ-R50s. I bought the first one at a Best Buy in Chicago in the summer of 1998 (without the help of the ignorant sales staff). I saw it, I'd been wanting a MiniDisc player/recorder for a long time to record lectures at med school (the 74min discs recording in mono are great for this), it looked cool, so I bought it, not realizing what a great unit it would be. Unfortunately, it was stolen by some lowlife earlier this summer (at school, no less). I was so pleased with it that I hunted high and low until I found another one. Unfortunately, it has the later OS (or whatever you call it) so I couldn't turn off the SCMS restrictions like I did my earlier one :-( This second unit has also performed flawlessly. Recording time has never been an issue (I keep the aux power unit handy, but rarely need it, except for a full day's lectures, ~8hr). The battery has only died once since I've owned both units. The thing is built like a TANK, as the first one was dropped a couple of times while biking (no skips, only minor cosmetic damage). The editing controls are straightforward (on smaller units they seem rather fiddly to use) and I don't quite get the End Search gripe everyone has (maybe I don't record often enough with it). I get raves every time I pull it out to record a lecture . . . I've recommended it to anyone who asks me who is new to the advantages of MD and wants to buy a "starter" player/recorder with no complaints. Just my two cents' worth . . . Frank Sanchez - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED] - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
MD: MD - MD dubbing?
I've noticed HMV.com selling some of their selection MiniDisc format, which leads to an interesting question (either that or it just shows that I don't RTFM enough). If I have an MD deck with a digital out and try record to my MZ-R50, I know I can't record digitally from an MD that is a copy of a CD. Can I record from a store-bought MD to a blank MD without SCMS getting in my way? Will there be a significant amount of degradation? What I mean by degradation is... To record from CD - MD, I know that it takes uncompressed data from the CD, sends it to the down the wire in digital form, then the recorder compresses it with ATRAC, and stores it. To record from MD - MD, it uncompresses the ATRAC, sends it down the wire in digital form, then recompresses it when it hits the recorder. I know that this would cause degradation, but does anyone know if this would cause unacceptable degradation in the sound quality? Is it something that someone would even notice? Thanks! -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: old soundcard topic
I don't know how much this has been hashed over here, but... I have an Aureal Vortex 2 card, an OEM version, which has a wonderful optical out. I use it all the time with my MZ-R50 without any problems at all. According to Aureal's website, www.a3d.com, the Vortex cards have a coax output, which probably refers to the boxed card. If you can find an OEM one with an optical out though, you'll be happy! As for quality, I've found the Vortex 2 to be an outstanding card, I certainly have no complaints! -- Dave Kimmel [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 5615049 On Fri, 31 Mar 2000, JK wrote: I am looking to purchase a new sound card. What I need is excellent sound and a Optical Digital output. I have looked at the SoundBlaster Platinum w/ Live Drive, but don't need all the Midi stuff up front. I looked at the Soundblaster MP3+, but it did not have the optical out that I wanted unless I bought the Optical I/O card seperate. I would love to hear any and all recommendations on sound quality between the two and other that you can recommend as well as best price sources for the merchandise. Thanks for revisiting this topic again. Joel - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED] - To stop getting this list send a message containing just the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: MD: Help screen for MD recorders
On Thu, 23 Mar 2000, J. Coon wrote:
How come no one ever thought of incorporating a help screen on a
minidisc recorder? Things like removing a track mark, or moving a track
on a portable aren't as intuitive as they should be on several of the
units.
This is something that's been bugging me for a long time!
First some background: I bought an MZ-R50 sometime last year, and I've
been quite satisfied with the unit in every respect, except for the
headphones and the UI. In addition to that, I'm a total gadget freak and
computer nut.
I've always wondered why nobody's thought of taking some hints from the UI
that Nokia uses on their cell phones. Imagine an MD walkman, but with a
UI like a Nokia 6188 or 6190. I'd have a numeric keypad to enter track
numbers to play, or titles when editting, in addition to the up/down
arrows and buttons to use on screen commands ("SoftKeys" as Nokia calls
them). I think an MD player could do without the talk and end buttons,
but maybe have play/stop/ff/rw/pause/record instead. ;-)
Just some ideas that I'd like to see in the UI:
- First and foremost, a dot matrix display is essential to make everything
else usable.
- When you press up or down, it would bring up a track list, showing the
track titles and playtimes. Pressing Enter or Play would play the
track. Ideally, this would function identically to the phone book on my
6188.
- A playlist editor could be done in a similar fashion.
- When done right, a numeric keypad is actually a pretty easy way to enter
titles, much easier than the jog dial on my R50!
- The UI could also allow for a digital graphic equalizer. I think this
would rock! At the very least, I'd like to see a Mega Bass control with
more than three settings - there are too many times that I want it half
way between Min and Max.
Of course, it is essential that it have a simple UI that can be used when
"blind", meaning either in the dark or through clothing. There are many
things that MUST be able to be done without going through a menu.
I think that the portable MD manufacturers could take some really big
hints from cell phone makers (especially Nokia) to make their products
better. I have to admit that my R50 is fairly easy to use, but how
exactly do I move a track around again? ;-)
/rant
-- Dave Kimmel
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
ICQ: 5615049
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