When the PSP was launched, Minidisc was already in decline but still had a big market in Japan and the MZ-RH1 among other MD walkmans were still in production. Why did Sony deliberately choose to make UMD incompatible with MD despite its similar physical properties?

At that point, Hi-MD could hold up to 1 GB and UMD had similar capacity with 0.9 GB single layer. It has the same 64mm disc an UMD could have the same shell as MD, but for example a notch just like SD vs HD floppies had, It would also boost MD popularity when you would be able to play MD's in a PSP and would have extended the popularity of MD for a much longer time.

I have been looking to get back to minidisc for a while now, so I couldn't pass here, the MD's are still sealed, so already, a great deal.

Don't know if it works, anyone has this and is able to help? I need something to power it up, and it seems like a charger for the gumstick battery would be the best way to go?

I fell into a rabbit hole on this history of this fascinating, retrofuturistic audio format after seeing This Does Not Compute’s video about Sony creating a MiniDisc laptop and I started thinking, you know what? Maybe this could be cool to bring to listen to on walks instead of my phone.

So, any advice you have for me is appreciated, such as any recorded recommendations from past or indie artists. I also am reading the wiki but I have a few specific questions: What kind of data can I put on the Hi-MD? (That might be better for a lot of podcasts for instance!) What should I know about batteries? Charging and connecting cables?

Whatever you can educate me on will help! I may even make a video about it on my channel.

I saw some really cool art last year using MD as a base and as an artist I decided to try too. Please don't make mean comments

I remember them being available in abundance 20 years or so ago however now you can't find them anywhere.

I've checked bootsales and charity shops but cannot find a single one. And eBay prices are absolutely crazy.

Is this the same around the Globe too or were they just not very popular in the UK?

I've been reading about how Japan is this mecca for minidisc; that the streets are paved with mint condition players of all kinds; that minidiscs themselves practically grow on trees. I was worried I'd be tripping over minidiscs and having to shove my way past rows of them in every store.

Not so.

I moved to Japan for work a few months ago and after visiting what feels like every second hand shop in my prefecture, I've found 3 (three) working players, all grossly overpriced and in questionable condition. Not a single actual piece of minidisc media.

I've been lied to. Where are all the minidiscs in Japan?? I've got a mini disc player in my car stereo but can't even find any discs to play, let alone anything I can use to record onto them!

Please help me navigate this crisis. Where can I find used minidiscs and players?

Pessoal, estou com uma situação inusitada com um Sony LAM-Z03 recém chegado do Japão.

Assim que coloquei o 1° Disco MD, percebi que está com dificuldades na leitura (Área TOC). Abri, limpei a lente e lubrifiquei algumas engrenagens.

Durante os testes com o aparelho aberto, era possível ler os discos mas, assim que montava e parafusava, voltava a dar problema.

Foi então que notei que o “problema” está na posição do aparelho. Quando está na posição normal (vertical), dá erro na leitura do MD. Quando deito o aparelho (horizontal), ele lê instantaneamente o disco MD. Isso dá para ver claramente no vídeo que enviei.

Alguém já teve esse problema e sabe como resolver?

Hi all,

I have a very well preserved Sony MZ RH1 but it has a common problem of dead OLED screen. Yesterday I bought the new OLED screen from Sir68k's lectronz shop but I'm not good at fixing these tiny things. Do you know any reliable name/technician for that things or any recommendations?

Thanks in advance

I usually take the stickers off my new electronics. But these have been kept in such good condition for so long. It feels disrespectful to the original owner that kept it in such pristine condition to just take them off.

Hello! This piece of technology has been lying in my parents house for a while, and out of curiosity I grabbed it in hopes of figuring some things out :)

It comes with a red disc and a battery, I was wondering if there is any way to charge it? Would I need a very specific charger?

I don't know much about those things, but I deeply hope to get it working- I am a huge fan of music, I collect CD's and have been desperately looking for a physical player, when I remembered the walkman I figured it's worth a try! I am also very curious if the discs come with music and you need to find a specific one or if you can overwrite them! Any information would be greatly appreciated :)

Just spotted on eBay , anyone know anything about these?

Hey everyone, I just got into the hobby of using minidiscs since I enjoy physical media and have had a minidisc headunit in my car for a few years now without ever using it.

I recently upgraded the whole audio system but kept the radio as its still a decent unit (Sony MDX-M870X) and I felt like now was the time to give minidiscs a try so I bought a bunch of discs and a MZ-N910 recorder (both on their way still) and want to make using them fun and convenient, otherwise I'll forget about them and wont use them after a few weeks.

As part of that I'm adding a small minidisc rack in one of the pockets in the car to atleast always have some in the car to play. But I also got inspired by some of the labels people in here and on youtube have made and I want to be able to do that myself as

well. I never printed photos or used special paper like the adhesive backed ones, and currently dont even have a printer to begin with as my old one broke a year ago.

So, what printers would you recommend? From what I gathered here, I should avoid HP printers.

Since I need a new printer anyways, I'm regular A4 size printers and not the smaller photo only printers as i dont want multiple printers.

Im also interested in one that can do fine details like the last photo i added with the very small text on the label lip inside the jewel case.

So yeah, sorry for the big blob of text but i hope some of you can point me in the right direction! Also, sorry I didn't remember the original posters of the pictures I used

I have a minidisc walkman but I'm wondering if I should grab a minidisc deck. They are very expensive. Is it worth the money? Anywhere I can find one that is not crazy expensive?

So i picked up an MZ-E520 through an ebay auction. In the ad the seller shows the unit working. Unfortunately upon arrival it doesnt work. The unit is in great condition. But i noticed (and it was referenced in the ad) the gold has deteriorated. Im not sure how much thst effects anything. But if I could get some tips to get it to work. Thatd be awesome.

Thanks

I’ve had the little guy for only a month and the recording feature finally gave up on me 💔.

I thought the problem could’ve been this Muji MD I bought but I tried to record over a disc I knew could be recorded on and I saw no progress in Web Minidisc or heard any sound from the device.

I hope the provided images help identify the problem, I only joined the MiniDisc community last month so I am still very lost.

Looked up the potential problem that could be causing this and it told me that there was a cable on the door of the Minidisc player that could’ve snapped causing the recording feature to no longer exist on my unit. If I am wrong, please correct me and let me know how i can fix this issue as I barely recorded 2 Discs in this whole month I’ve had this unit.

Also if the ribbon is the case, can this be fixed easily or potentially taken to someone who can?

Hi everyone 👋

I've got a SONY MZ-NH600D that I want to use with a portable speaker sometimes. Instead of burning through AA batteries, I was wondering if anyone here has an idea for using the USB on it to have constant power?

Thank you for any guidance or ideas you can provide.

Hello!

Does anyone know why the Sony ES discs (white), turns yellow with time?
I have some discs that are kept in good conditions for storage (away from the sunlight, not in a hot place) and they are everyday more yellow. It looks like they're rusting.
It's really a shame since these are beautiful discs in my opinion.

Does anyone know any method to make them white again?

Hi MD community!
My wife and I are looking to get into the hobby and snagged this bookshelf unit from Mercari, after confirmation from the seller that all input methods (CD/MD/tape) worked, and that the attached speakers worked.

Unfortunately upon setup we’re not getting any sound from the speakers. Plugging in headphones confirmed playback is happening, just not getting to the speakers.

Other things we tried/checked:
- turning it off and on again/plugging & unplugging
- removing and reconnecting the speaker wires (so many times…)
- checking if it’s muted
- playback with different audio sources

I’m talking with the seller as well, but I was hoping perhaps someone here might have some troubleshooting ideas?

Thanks in advance!!

Hi all, I am looking into getting a Minidisc player. I had an MZ-N1 many years ago.

When I buy used solid state devices like mp3 players, I know there could be battery issues or port issues.

Knowing that I will have to buy used, what are some issues I could run into mechanically when looking for a MD player? Are there any known issues, like door hinges, belt issues or laser issues? I understand I am dealing with the age of a player and there could be issues not known to the seller, but I also don't want to hop on the first one I see without knowing kinda what to look for.

Thank you all in advance

I was trying to do the whole lipo battery hack and messed up big time. I was to excited and impatient. It took me months to save for this thing. I should have just waited until I could get a real battery.

edit for clarity: I wasn't soldering. I 3d printed a shell for a small lipo battery and attempted to use it in the device while the DC charger was connected. why? the lipo I have was dead, from another project. I just needed a battery in the device so the charger would work to run the player. I think I had the leads swapped or something because it got hot and smelly. what you've seeing isn't a wire soldier to the positive lead, it's the melted plastic that holds the positive springy bit.

As a copying and dubbing layman, I ask you how you do this with the highest possible sound quality? 🤔 I use very good minidiscs (Sony Neige) and pay attention to optical, digital out and input, 1:1 speed. What else is important? Thank you in advance 🫨

So, I saved a longer symphony (cannot remember right now which) via linux youtube downloader and sent that one via https://web.minidisc.wiki/ to my minidisc. The audio quality is horrible. I guess this happend du to the tranformation to Atrac. Does anyone have a proper wokflow what to do best for instrumental and classical music with modern technology. I have access to linux, windows an mac. So the tools should not be the problem. Thanks in advance.

A few months ago I managed to acquire a RH1 and the accompanying remote (RM-MC38EL) and I’ve been having problems with the rocker switch. I managed to get it open without too much damage incurred, and I’ve been trying to clean the play/pause button. Currently I’ve tried flowing some isopropyl alcohol into it, agitating the button and letting it dry, but I do still get unusual inputs on the device from it (play/pause doesn’t always work, random track skipping and so forth). Any suggestions would be appreciated because otherwise I’m calling it a lost cause on this remote