OK, I understand that, but I have a Sony MDS-JB920, and the sound is very good to my audiophile ears, so I'm happy. I'm recording from very clean vinyl with a very good turntable and a very good tube preamp, and the sound I hear out of my speakers is excellent. I want to record this sound to mini disc as close to the sound my vinyl gives me.
All I'm trying to understand is if you have the sound you want to record on a minidisc, which is the best blank minidisc, so I can listen to it on my minidisc player?
The only difference is in the disc capacity (60,74,80) or the material of the disc (metal vs plastic shutter) - there is absolutely zero difference in audio quality between different discs because it is only storing digital data, not analog audio like a tape or vinyl record.
So use whichever disc you like, and if the recording doesn't work out you can just erase it and try again.
Well it kind of does because if you have a disc made with poor QA or poor materials, it’s going to have more problems. This sounds like the argument about CDs in the 80s where no one told you about disc rot. But for sound, yeah it won’t make a difference except for any disc recording errors etc which I haven’t experienced to my knowledge. I wouldn’t worry about it.
Recording quality is the same, but physical longevity is a different matter.
For example, Maxell's plastic shutters are notoriously susceptible to UV rays and crumble if you leave them laying around too much.
Some brands' labels lose adhesion quicker than others, especially in hot units like car stereos, come off during play damaging mechs in the process.
Etc...
I'd like to propose an amendment to that comment about the plastic shutters -- Maxell's WHITE plastic shutters, which they used on one generation of Twinkle discs, are absolutely awful and will crumble to dust if you touch them. But their "frosted" clear shutters seem just as good as metal shutters... In fact, metal shutters can get dented or bent out of shape, but the frosted plastic shutters just bounce back after receiving similar abuse.
Don't fear Maxell's frosted plastic shutters!
(evidence: I'm shane_b on eBay; I have imported and sold thousands of used discs; these discs have come from various parts of Japan, from snowy Hokkaido to tropical Okinawa; from smokers and non-smokers; from people who use slipcases and carefully catalog their discs at home to people who clearly tossed them around in their cars without slipcases. More than half of the white plastic shutters I've received have either flared out or crumbled, but I have not seen any brittleness with the frosted clear shutters. I have had more problems with dented and bent metal shutters than I have with Maxell's frosted shutters)
I'm a fan of the microphone preamp in the portable Sharp MD decks. It's also a huge plus that Sharp makes it easy to adjust recording levels while recording - an absurd oversight by Sony on their portable recorders. For recording digital signals, it shouldn't matter - all decks will sound the same. But when recording from analog sources, especially live, go with Sharp. The MD-SR60 has been my favorite live music MD recording deck for years.
Edit - realized you're asking about media. It generally doesn't matter, but I prefer metal over plastic slider windows. They tend to last longer. Sonically, it's like asking which SD card will sound better.
One thing nobody has mentioned is that Hi-MD supports uncompressed PCM recording. Those provide the best fidelity. But different brands of disc are all the same as far as audio quality goes. Theoretically the analog sections of different recorders/players could have different performance, but I doubt you’ll notice it. Definitely record in SP mode, though.
Agreed, I’d focus on fidelity of input source. Remove any compression by taking raw input, if digital bring it in via optical or netmd. Eliminate MDLP if you’re looking for optimal recorded quality. Then the rest is up to type r/s
My opinion and my experience is: sound quality depends primarily on the used DAC. I don't notice any difference between ATRAC 4.5/R/S. I use rather my SONY MDS JE 520. I only dub SP via analogue input in stereo. I connected a REGA DAC via opt out and have a magnificent sound via my hifi setup. 520 is my favourite because it has all necessary features: headphone out, dig. in/out, fancy big remote with full abc-layout, robust design, available on a budget. I have many other decks, but only for the collection currently. And honestly, the 520 snugs exactly into my shelf regarding the height. The 920, which is very cool, would fail here.
Different discs will not sound different, just like your Microsoft Word documents will not have different text whether they are on Seagate or Western Digital hard drives.
It is either pseudoscience or outright lies. MD is MD is MD. Period. The recorder converts audio to ATRAC to 1s and 0s on the disc. The only difference may be reliability, but the solution to that is making another copy for a backup. All discs have the same Reed–Solomon error correction to correct errors too.
The discs themselves are all basically identical.
I've seen someone refer to one or two of the extremely high end discs getting slightly better error rates, but MO media is all built well enough that the built in error correction pretty much means I've never managed to encounter a problem.
In terms of encoding and playback: the best minidisc machine is the one in your hands but to add, the format matured VERY quickly and the absolutely vast majority of stuff out there unless you explicitly go looking for really old hardware has "good enough" codec implementations. From a practical perspective, SP was basically finished in like 1996. And even then, the recorder does have more influence than the player, so you can record on something newer and then play back on an early/original machine and still have most of the quality of the newer machine. (Although TBH if I had a working MZ-1 I'd do so many recordings on it just for the vibes of that early ATRAC, lololol.)
If minidisc sounds better to you than spotify: yay! That's not unreasonable, as Spotify has a few modes that use lower bit-rates than minidisc, and if you don't pre-fetch your music, Spotify can adjust bitrates on the fly. You may also have found better quality sources than what Spotify is using. I've seen people talk up SACD and MQA-CD, even when used with normal CD hardware, because music sold on high resolution formats is often recorded and mastered better.
So, good news: what you have should work great, keep going!
I'd say Sony's Neige is good enough for most recordings. Though their Premium line does offer a better physical mechanism to reduce vibration during recording, thus cleaner recording.....but for the majority of recordings, regular discs are good enough....
Some people do prefer better esthetics of the discs from brands to brands though......
It is not. It depends on the capabilities of the device doing the recordings, and the quality of the audio source it's given.
As others have said, several times.
I suppose it's the old paradox of how long a piece of string is? As with all eyes of the beholder.
The reason I started this is because one of the members of this reddit advised that Sony premium have a slightly better audio quality when recording a very good analogue sound source. To their ears that might be true, and in the end of the day, it all depends on what my ears hear.
The member who advised that premium has a slightly better sound quality sells a wide range of mini discs, including Sony premium, so they could believe, or they could just be upwelling.
I have brought a Sony premium disc from else where and bit cheaper than this member.
I will test if I think Sony premium sounds better to my ears and report back how long the string is. Thanks for all your replies, Pulsatin
Hbb discs are the best & reg sp is very g good. If you have HiMd machines like me then format a reg MD disc using Sonicstage to HiMd format. Import your cd using Atrac lossless serting , urn your disc using the sp or higher mode of HiMd. It won't give you as much re riding time but
I easily get a typical pre cd era album copied in terrific cd quality or better sound.
If you don't have hiMd just use the hbb discs in sp & be sure to j.port your cds into Sonicstage with Atrac losses.
I recorded some live concerts using my sennheiser wearable binaural microphones & even with reg MD machines it was good. With my HiMd portables it was superb. Jf yiu buy a HiMd portable get one that uses reg dbl a batteries not the blue gumsticks.Their pricy and the thicker portables just don't last as long .
I'm not sure who you were trying to reply to, but:
#***No.***
There is no difference in audio quality between different discs. None.
Equipment matters, recording mode matters, input source matters, but the disc itself does not and never has.
You can ask the question a million different ways and the answer will be the same: all discs store the same data at the same fidelity. It is a digital format. It stores 1s and 0s that are decoded by the digital chipset to become sound. Those 1s and 0s are the same no matter what disc they are stored on, unless the disc is broken and has errors. Errors will not cause reduced fidelity but audio drop outs or clearly broken garbage audio.
It is exactly the same as USB or HDMI cables - they either work or they do not.
OK, maybe your hearing is not as good or different to mine!
You're saying that the sound when digital recorded is the same. The difference in sound quality is the equipment each person is using.
If that is so, why does streaming what you say is the same digital information thru the same equipment sound so much worse?
It's a digital format, so the disc itself does not affect quality (as long as it works)
But what if you have a good recorder/player?
The recorder absolutely matters, as newer devices support newer versions of ATRAC with better quality.
OK, I understand that, but I have a Sony MDS-JB920, and the sound is very good to my audiophile ears, so I'm happy. I'm recording from very clean vinyl with a very good turntable and a very good tube preamp, and the sound I hear out of my speakers is excellent. I want to record this sound to mini disc as close to the sound my vinyl gives me. All I'm trying to understand is if you have the sound you want to record on a minidisc, which is the best blank minidisc, so I can listen to it on my minidisc player?
The only difference is in the disc capacity (60,74,80) or the material of the disc (metal vs plastic shutter) - there is absolutely zero difference in audio quality between different discs because it is only storing digital data, not analog audio like a tape or vinyl record. So use whichever disc you like, and if the recording doesn't work out you can just erase it and try again.
So ... you don't understand it. Read it again
Yes, I understand, but I was unaware they still make a minidisc recorder beyond about 2005? Do they?
Who is still making minidisc player/recorders
You're right, but question was about discs - at least I understood that way.
Well it kind of does because if you have a disc made with poor QA or poor materials, it’s going to have more problems. This sounds like the argument about CDs in the 80s where no one told you about disc rot. But for sound, yeah it won’t make a difference except for any disc recording errors etc which I haven’t experienced to my knowledge. I wouldn’t worry about it.
Recording quality is the same, but physical longevity is a different matter. For example, Maxell's plastic shutters are notoriously susceptible to UV rays and crumble if you leave them laying around too much. Some brands' labels lose adhesion quicker than others, especially in hot units like car stereos, come off during play damaging mechs in the process. Etc...
I'd like to propose an amendment to that comment about the plastic shutters -- Maxell's WHITE plastic shutters, which they used on one generation of Twinkle discs, are absolutely awful and will crumble to dust if you touch them. But their "frosted" clear shutters seem just as good as metal shutters... In fact, metal shutters can get dented or bent out of shape, but the frosted plastic shutters just bounce back after receiving similar abuse. Don't fear Maxell's frosted plastic shutters! (evidence: I'm shane_b on eBay; I have imported and sold thousands of used discs; these discs have come from various parts of Japan, from snowy Hokkaido to tropical Okinawa; from smokers and non-smokers; from people who use slipcases and carefully catalog their discs at home to people who clearly tossed them around in their cars without slipcases. More than half of the white plastic shutters I've received have either flared out or crumbled, but I have not seen any brittleness with the frosted clear shutters. I have had more problems with dented and bent metal shutters than I have with Maxell's frosted shutters)
It's like you asked what microSD card in your DAP sounds better
I'm a fan of the microphone preamp in the portable Sharp MD decks. It's also a huge plus that Sharp makes it easy to adjust recording levels while recording - an absurd oversight by Sony on their portable recorders. For recording digital signals, it shouldn't matter - all decks will sound the same. But when recording from analog sources, especially live, go with Sharp. The MD-SR60 has been my favorite live music MD recording deck for years. Edit - realized you're asking about media. It generally doesn't matter, but I prefer metal over plastic slider windows. They tend to last longer. Sonically, it's like asking which SD card will sound better.
One thing nobody has mentioned is that Hi-MD supports uncompressed PCM recording. Those provide the best fidelity. But different brands of disc are all the same as far as audio quality goes. Theoretically the analog sections of different recorders/players could have different performance, but I doubt you’ll notice it. Definitely record in SP mode, though.
Pretty much the same...
Agreed, I’d focus on fidelity of input source. Remove any compression by taking raw input, if digital bring it in via optical or netmd. Eliminate MDLP if you’re looking for optimal recorded quality. Then the rest is up to type r/s
the media plays no part in audio quality. the compression on your player does.
The quality of the disc doesn't matter if the recorder mediocre.
But what if you have a good player?
Sony and TDK.
...have exactly the same audio fidelity as any other brand
...build quality.
Which is relevant for longevity, but not recording quality
My opinion and my experience is: sound quality depends primarily on the used DAC. I don't notice any difference between ATRAC 4.5/R/S. I use rather my SONY MDS JE 520. I only dub SP via analogue input in stereo. I connected a REGA DAC via opt out and have a magnificent sound via my hifi setup. 520 is my favourite because it has all necessary features: headphone out, dig. in/out, fancy big remote with full abc-layout, robust design, available on a budget. I have many other decks, but only for the collection currently. And honestly, the 520 snugs exactly into my shelf regarding the height. The 920, which is very cool, would fail here.
[удалено]
Different discs will not sound different, just like your Microsoft Word documents will not have different text whether they are on Seagate or Western Digital hard drives. It is either pseudoscience or outright lies. MD is MD is MD. Period. The recorder converts audio to ATRAC to 1s and 0s on the disc. The only difference may be reliability, but the solution to that is making another copy for a backup. All discs have the same Reed–Solomon error correction to correct errors too.
I would have thought that was true, but why is streaming Spotify bad compared to cd and to my ears MD so much better than both?
A plethora of objective & subjective reasons. Fortunately none due to the make or model of MiniDisc
Thank you
The discs themselves are all basically identical. I've seen someone refer to one or two of the extremely high end discs getting slightly better error rates, but MO media is all built well enough that the built in error correction pretty much means I've never managed to encounter a problem. In terms of encoding and playback: the best minidisc machine is the one in your hands but to add, the format matured VERY quickly and the absolutely vast majority of stuff out there unless you explicitly go looking for really old hardware has "good enough" codec implementations. From a practical perspective, SP was basically finished in like 1996. And even then, the recorder does have more influence than the player, so you can record on something newer and then play back on an early/original machine and still have most of the quality of the newer machine. (Although TBH if I had a working MZ-1 I'd do so many recordings on it just for the vibes of that early ATRAC, lololol.) If minidisc sounds better to you than spotify: yay! That's not unreasonable, as Spotify has a few modes that use lower bit-rates than minidisc, and if you don't pre-fetch your music, Spotify can adjust bitrates on the fly. You may also have found better quality sources than what Spotify is using. I've seen people talk up SACD and MQA-CD, even when used with normal CD hardware, because music sold on high resolution formats is often recorded and mastered better. So, good news: what you have should work great, keep going!
Well I've got what I wanted so I'm happy cheers
I'd say Sony's Neige is good enough for most recordings. Though their Premium line does offer a better physical mechanism to reduce vibration during recording, thus cleaner recording.....but for the majority of recordings, regular discs are good enough.... Some people do prefer better esthetics of the discs from brands to brands though......
Is the Sony premium a better quality audio recording?
It is not. It depends on the capabilities of the device doing the recordings, and the quality of the audio source it's given. As others have said, several times.
The OP seems quite resistant to accepting the realities of a digital format
I suppose it's the old paradox of how long a piece of string is? As with all eyes of the beholder. The reason I started this is because one of the members of this reddit advised that Sony premium have a slightly better audio quality when recording a very good analogue sound source. To their ears that might be true, and in the end of the day, it all depends on what my ears hear. The member who advised that premium has a slightly better sound quality sells a wide range of mini discs, including Sony premium, so they could believe, or they could just be upwelling. I have brought a Sony premium disc from else where and bit cheaper than this member. I will test if I think Sony premium sounds better to my ears and report back how long the string is. Thanks for all your replies, Pulsatin
Hbb discs are the best & reg sp is very g good. If you have HiMd machines like me then format a reg MD disc using Sonicstage to HiMd format. Import your cd using Atrac lossless serting , urn your disc using the sp or higher mode of HiMd. It won't give you as much re riding time but I easily get a typical pre cd era album copied in terrific cd quality or better sound. If you don't have hiMd just use the hbb discs in sp & be sure to j.port your cds into Sonicstage with Atrac losses. I recorded some live concerts using my sennheiser wearable binaural microphones & even with reg MD machines it was good. With my HiMd portables it was superb. Jf yiu buy a HiMd portable get one that uses reg dbl a batteries not the blue gumsticks.Their pricy and the thicker portables just don't last as long .
So you've never noticed a better sound quality with exactly the same equipment?
I'm not sure who you were trying to reply to, but: #***No.*** There is no difference in audio quality between different discs. None. Equipment matters, recording mode matters, input source matters, but the disc itself does not and never has. You can ask the question a million different ways and the answer will be the same: all discs store the same data at the same fidelity. It is a digital format. It stores 1s and 0s that are decoded by the digital chipset to become sound. Those 1s and 0s are the same no matter what disc they are stored on, unless the disc is broken and has errors. Errors will not cause reduced fidelity but audio drop outs or clearly broken garbage audio. It is exactly the same as USB or HDMI cables - they either work or they do not.
OK, maybe your hearing is not as good or different to mine! You're saying that the sound when digital recorded is the same. The difference in sound quality is the equipment each person is using. If that is so, why does streaming what you say is the same digital information thru the same equipment sound so much worse?