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rossasaurus
Lokahi
USA
306 Posts |
 Posted - 10/21/2005 : 09:16:10 AM
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Something us Mac users have wanted for a long time from Sony.
At least one of their new models now has Mac compatibility.
http://www.minidisco.com
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 10/21/2005 : 1:45:15 PM
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That doesn't help me and the minidisc I just bought. I use Mac and Garageband to edit my audio for my newspapers website and I have to go through a PC to download the audio. Very frustrating.
Jesse |
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Reid
Ha`aha`a
Andorra
1526 Posts |
Posted - 10/21/2005 : 2:45:56 PM
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Jesse,
What kinda outputs does the MD you just bought have? And what kinda inputs (*including* WiFi, USB, Ethernet, etc.) does your Mac have. Because Sarah has a major Mac at work (and, since Yale used to be a Mac partner, not to mention having Skatey-eight Brand X boxes and 17 flavors of Unix) and I have a Wintel Lan at home, we have become kinda interface mavens. Also, we have a major Sony MD deck. We might be able to suggest something. (Although, I am not sure why, except for the ignominy, using a Wintel PC as an input device is so frustrating. WinXP is a lame copy of MacOs, after all :-).
So, if you can parse the parentheses, maybe we can suggest a way out.
...Reid
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 10/21/2005 : 5:39:37 PM
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The formats used by Sony are proprietary, so you have to have a PC running their software (Sonicstage)to download or upload anything from the MD recorder. After I've recorded something, I can download it and convert it simultaneously into a WAV. Then I transfer that to my Powerbook and drag it into Garageband. A clumsy way to do it. If it's just the software, then I could use the new Mac Sonicstage to download via USB. But I think the new Mac-compatible MD recorders are a change in hardware, making the new MZ-N100 about $400 whereas I just paid about $200 for a floor model MZ-RH10, which is the exact same machine.
Jesse Tinsley |
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rossasaurus
Lokahi
USA
306 Posts |
Posted - 10/22/2005 : 4:11:24 PM
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Maybe Sony will do the right thing and make it backward compatible?
I always end-up running the analog audio out to my imic a/d; kinda defeats the whole purpose of digital doesn't it? Even then, still sounds better than a cassette.
Anybody gets a new Sony, Jesse and i want to try your Sonicstage software!
Are the new ones using the ATRAC format? |
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 10/22/2005 : 5:16:10 PM
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I'll be using analog out occasionally for doing audio packages to go with slide shows for my newspaper website unless I can divert the soundfiles through a handy nearby PC. It's clumsy to listen and log your soundbites on the MD, but then I can just download a few seconds here and a few seconds there to Garageband rather than downloading 10-30 minutes of miscellaneous and sifting through it for interesting tidbits. I did two packages today for the paper's website. I'll link to some when I do something worth showing off.
Garageband is pretty user-friendly for doing audio editing of natural sound or voice soundbites.
Jesse Tinsley |
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cpatch
Ahonui
USA
2187 Posts |
Posted - 10/22/2005 : 8:26:43 PM
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| I've read that even on Windows the USB transfer only works for PCM files (recorded on the MZ-RH10) and it is S-L-O-W. (Not much better than realtime.) That pretty much ruled the MZ-M100 out for me. |
Craig
My goal is to be able to play as well as people think I can. |
Edited by - cpatch on 10/22/2005 8:28:30 PM |
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Russell Letson
`Olu`olu
USA
504 Posts |
Posted - 10/24/2005 : 3:21:10 PM
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On the Hi-MD machines, USB transfer to the computer works for ATRAC as well as PCM files, *provided* the recording was made via the analog mic/line-in--thus no using outboard A/D units. PCM transfer is slow because the physical disk-access speed is limited--that is, it's a function of file size, and PCM files are big. One of the real advantages of solid-state or HD hardware is that physical throughput can be much higher than the MD's. (But I find sturdy, cheap removable media compensates for that limitation.)
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 10/24/2005 : 4:17:10 PM
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There are a couple of portable flash memory recorders out for reporters, the Marantz PDM670, the Edirol R1 and an M-Audio MicroTrack. Both have the features I would love to have, including cross-platform compatibility and high-speed download, but at $400-$500, they were out of my range. Since I'm working for the web most of the time, I don't use the full range of the MD because most of my stuff will be reduced in quality when it's published.
A lot of people complain that the MD format doesn't allow you to download fast, upload in mp3 format, etc. All true. But for what it is, an mp3 player/recorder with removeable media, the MD works fine.
A lot of audiophiles live with the concept that everything has to be perfect, or the ultimate, or it's not good enough for them. I like the MD, even with its limitations. I can record near broadcast quality interviews and live performances with equipment the size of a pack of cigarettes that costs around $200. I think in a few years, the compact flash recorders will come down in price and I'll make the switch when it's practical.
Here's a link to my first try at doing a multimedia slide show with audio. It's about the clown school for the local clowning group that works at the hospital and area nursing homes.
http://www.spokesmanreview.com/blogs/video/play.asp?file=102205_clowns&filetype=swf
Jesse Tinsley |
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Reid
Ha`aha`a
Andorra
1526 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2005 : 08:36:14 AM
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OK, I get it. What we did was use a TosLink output on our MD to get a digital copy of ATRAC files into our computer via a Gina3G TosLink input(which synched the clocks and just passed the bits through and then we did have to convert the songs to a wav) and it *was* slow = realtime. In our case, there is no such thing as "downloading". So, actually, Jesse, your situation is somewhat less cumbersome than ours was.
Reid |
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Mark
Ha`aha`a
USA
1628 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2005 : 11:34:00 AM
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quote:
There are a couple of portable flash memory recorders out for reporters, the Marantz PDM670, the Edirol R1 and an M-Audio MicroTrack. Both have the features I would love to have, including cross-platform compatibility and high-speed download, but at $400-$500, they were out of my range.
I am midway through a review of the M-Audio Microtrack for an online magazine (I'll post a link when the review is published.)
The good news is that it records at all MP3 resolutions as well as WAV files up to 24-bit/96kHz. It records from 1/8 inch mic inputs (one is included) as well as line and mics -- though you'll need an xlr to trs adaptor. It's got phantom (sort of). It records via s/pdif. It downloads via USB 2, which is plenty fast. It records on flash memory.
Hozit sound? depends on the source, but plenty fine for casual stuff. Fairly ez to use, somewhat maddening interface (so what else is new?) Under 3 bills street price.
The downside? Phantom pooorly implemented. File naming convention is odd, to say the least. 1/8 inch input too noisy (like a first generation minidisc)... and my unit tanked one week into the review, so I'm waiting for a replacement (I always break review gear, so this is not necessarily a reflection on the product...).
The upside? Can record various rez and formats on the same card -- can record direct to MP3. No need to change file formats in order to edit on your computer. Can use various sized flash cards and microdrives. Shows up as a generic USB device, so file transfer is a snap. Relatively inexpensive. Can use a wide variety of mics...
Anyway, I think it would make a good portable rig for podcasting, reporting and non-critical remote recording. That is, if the replacement unit ever gets here.
Closest competitors would be the high def minidisc and Edirol R1, which I have not seen. Tho' the video ipod supports 44.1 wav files, according to Apple.
cheers,
Mark |
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2005 : 12:11:16 PM
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A recent report on the Marantz unit said they were unreliable and NPR was chucking them into boxes in the corner and going back to MD, cassette and harddisk recorders. I know that manufacturers were rushing these to market, perhaps prematurely. Maybe that was the case with the M-Audio Mark got.
Before I bought my MD, I tried to buy a used Marantz cassette recorder on Ebay for a few weeks, but the good ones were going for $250 on up and beat up recorders from the 70s were going for $100 plus. I figured that for reliability, you can't beat a cassette, which you can visually verify that it's running. There are plenty of downsides on the MD, including using the unreliable 1/8th" input and no Mac compatibility. But I'm having a blast with it.
Jesse Tinsley |
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Karl Monetti
`Olu`olu
USA
756 Posts |
Posted - 08/20/2006 : 09:16:24 AM
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Jesse
Have you come up with anything new recently about recording live stuff? Going to a camp next week for a week, need to record the sessions and i am not user friendly, ort should i say, user friendly stuff usually beats me up. I need something simple. Maybe i should just dig up the little cassette recorder i have, put in new batteries and see if it still works. I can still outsmart a cassette deck! And, i know how to put them mon CDs then ninto my ipod if i wish. |
Karl
Frozen North |
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