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How is the quality of MD Recorder/Players

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Posted on September 24, 2009 at 05:01:56
KalK
Audiophile

Posts: 16
Location: Ontario, Canada
Joined: August 27, 2009
 and why this format is not so popular? Are these any better in terms of sound quality comparing to an analog tape deck or a DAT player?

I was curious what the members here think of this MD format.

Cheers

RE: How is the quality of MD Recorder/Players, posted on October 18, 2009 at 07:13:10
Spendor Harbeth
Audiophile

Posts: 601
Location: Left Coast
Joined: May 15, 2009
 I have owned three different MD recording decks and players. I found the recording quality to be very, very good. I archived hundreds of cassettes to MD and they were indistinguishable from original. Editing capability is off the charts too.

RE: How is the quality of MD Recorder/Players, posted on October 16, 2009 at 05:29:13
Allen Wright
Manufacturer

Posts: 4729
Location: Schaffhausen
Joined: January 31, 2002
 I am using MD to archive old spoken lecture tapes, as it is a magnetic/opyical format, I am assuming recordings will last muchbetter than burned Cds, which I have had "vanish" after 8 - 10 years.

On speach, they are fantastic, but on music, not so good.

I find they sound dull and boring, especially if the music is complex, like orchestral.

My SONY Walkman Pro sounds much better as a live music recorder - and is still small enough to bootleg a concert or two...but can't hold a candle to my REVOX G36.

Regards, Allen (Vacuum State)

RE: How is the quality of MD Recorder/Players, posted on September 25, 2009 at 04:11:00
niklasthedolphin
Audiophile

Posts: 203
Joined: April 1, 2007
 The MD format has the ATRAC standards.
This standard developed through time.
It ended being comparable with the redbook standard that is used for CD's.

Make a search on ATRAC to go into details.

The force of the MD, before CDR & SS digital recorders came along, was the editing options and the ease and versatility of user interface.

Sound quality won't cope with open reel and even the better cassette decks will be superior to MD as they are to CD.

"dolph"

Just curious..., posted on September 25, 2009 at 06:05:04
soundnut
Audiophile

Posts: 3108
Location: Iowa
Joined: May 7, 2004
 In what ways do you think that a good cassette deck is superior to CD?

Cheers,
Bobbo :-)

RE: Just curious..., posted on September 25, 2009 at 08:54:18
niklasthedolphin
Audiophile

Posts: 203
Joined: April 1, 2007
 In Quality of Sound.

"dolph"

RE: Just curious..., posted on September 28, 2009 at 08:08:17
Tadlo
Audiophile

Posts: 1216
Location: midwest
Joined: March 8, 2003
 I was curious too. Could you be a little more specific?

RE: How is the quality of MD Recorder/Players, posted on September 24, 2009 at 08:25:47
ironbut
Audiophile

Posts: 1115
Location: no california
Joined: February 21, 2004
 I've been using MD on and off for several years now. I also have a Sony D50 flash recorder. I have used a Korg MR-1 and Sound Devices 702. The MD I currently use is a MZ-M200/Rh-1.

The pro's are;
Extremely small compared to anything.
Media is pretty cheap.
Long battery life.
Decent sounding built in mic pre's (on the top Sony models at least).
Records at cd quality which I find acceptable but not great.

The cons are;
This is an abandoned format. You can forget about any further development and media and replacement units days are numbered (maybe on one hand!)
They are a little fragile. The mechanical aspects of these are wonders of miniaturization. I've taken a few apart and it's essentially an open air hard drive!
They hate moisture in any amount.
Somewhat limited recording time (1 hour 20 min at 16/44).

The development of flash recorders has pretty much eclipsed the MD format. If you're interested in a basic portable recorder you might try something like an Edirol R09hr. It's small, will record up to 24/96 and even though the battery life is a bit short, mini usb phone chargers can be attached to it tripling the run times.
You can usually find them on ebay for under $300 and sometimes for much less.
RE: How is the quality of MD Recorder/Players, posted on September 24, 2009 at 09:59:46
ironbut
Audiophile

Posts: 1115
Location: no california
Joined: February 21, 2004
 Just to kinda follow up on the pro's and con's of digital recorders,..

Generally speaking, most of these recorders sound pretty darn good with live recording.
What makes a much more significant difference are the microphones and microphone setup/positioning.
IMHO (and I'm no expert by any measure!) If you buy a decent recorder, you may never find the limits of how good it can potentially sound without a great deal of practice with microphone selection and use.
But, no matter what level you're at, I think it's great fun and rewarding too.

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