If you are like a lot of us we all want that latest and greatest in technology. Somewhere around the year 1998 Sony had the next big thing so I ran out and bought a MiniDisc recorder. I bought a home unit AND a portable because this thing was going to be the wave of the future. I think I used it every bit of ten times before it got set on a shelf and started collecting dust with my cassette players.
I was going to put mine on eBay a while back so I did what anyone usually does when trying to find info on a product,I Googled it. Wouldn't you know on the first page I ran across an article talking about the return of the minidisc. I had to read it because I knew they were not making a comeback with mp3 players so cheap.
I read on and it was an article talking about how people who make their own music should buy a minidisc recorder to capture samples instead of an expensive portable sampler. As I read on I forgot all about my plans for eBay and was happy I had never sold them before.
MiniDiscs don’t get scratched like Cd's, and the discs never go bad so they can be written to again and again. Because it’s digital there’s no quality loss with time or playback. There are 60, 74, and 80 minute discs available for a couple bucks a piece. Sony makes a electret condenser stereo microphone for around 50 dollars or there are cheaper ones as low as 20 dollars. They are usually require a battery since condenser mics need power and you will most likely not be near a mixer with phantom power.
The players offer 1/8" stereo inputs and outputs and some have S/PDIF or TOSlink optical inputs. Most recorder models also support the "plug in power" feature which is simply a built-in 1/8" mic preamp for use with passive mics. I will probably get a self powered mic for mine because I've read this really eats the battery life up.
So, if you are one of the unlucky souls who thought you wasted your hard earned money on a dead technology then today's your lucky day. Don't go out and buy that 300 dollar portable sampler, go downstairs and blow the dust off of your Sony MD and start collecting your samples. I know I'm headed out to get me a little condenser mic today and start getting mine.
I was going to put mine on eBay a while back so I did what anyone usually does when trying to find info on a product,I Googled it. Wouldn't you know on the first page I ran across an article talking about the return of the minidisc. I had to read it because I knew they were not making a comeback with mp3 players so cheap.
I read on and it was an article talking about how people who make their own music should buy a minidisc recorder to capture samples instead of an expensive portable sampler. As I read on I forgot all about my plans for eBay and was happy I had never sold them before.
MiniDiscs don’t get scratched like Cd's, and the discs never go bad so they can be written to again and again. Because it’s digital there’s no quality loss with time or playback. There are 60, 74, and 80 minute discs available for a couple bucks a piece. Sony makes a electret condenser stereo microphone for around 50 dollars or there are cheaper ones as low as 20 dollars. They are usually require a battery since condenser mics need power and you will most likely not be near a mixer with phantom power.
The players offer 1/8" stereo inputs and outputs and some have S/PDIF or TOSlink optical inputs. Most recorder models also support the "plug in power" feature which is simply a built-in 1/8" mic preamp for use with passive mics. I will probably get a self powered mic for mine because I've read this really eats the battery life up.
So, if you are one of the unlucky souls who thought you wasted your hard earned money on a dead technology then today's your lucky day. Don't go out and buy that 300 dollar portable sampler, go downstairs and blow the dust off of your Sony MD and start collecting your samples. I know I'm headed out to get me a little condenser mic today and start getting mine.
5 comments:
What a great idea, I alway wanted a mini disc recorder but never got around to getting one. I tried using my Sandisk Sansa MP3 player but it did not turn out too well, I had to use the build in mic. I guess its like recording a music video on a cell phone.
By the way I love the site keep up the great work
Speaking of the sansa, I have an archos mp3 player (jukebox recorder v2) that I'm running the "rockbox" firmware on, and it has a line in that accepts a preamped mic. It can record to wav files, and has been awesome as a portable recorder for me. does a great job of bootlegging concerts! Check it out, you can use it with ipods and irivers, too - they make great lossless recorders. and it's easy to always have your mp3 player with ya.
Useful piece
You obviously were mistaken
Excellently)))))))
Post a Comment