A Repairman's View of Portable Minidisc Recorders
David Popovits Sigma D.O. Electronics Tel Aviv Israel ([email protected]) July, 2000 Introduction: My remarks are mainly…
Reference library
MiniDisc guides and repair
207 published source and document records. Incomplete and historical records remain available here.
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AM-F5 User Manual
Scanning courtesy V. Vassiliades Available also in a single document for printing. Table of Contents Front Cover Table of…
Background, warnings, and budget
Background For more information on MiniDisc, check out the videos on the main page and our FAQs. What MiniDisc is MiniDisc (MD) is an audio format introduced by Sony in 1992 and fully discontinued by 2025. It was a repla
Basic Service/Maintenance
This is a guide on BASIC servicing for all MD devices, I would recommend you do this for EVERY MD device you buy, unless you know it was correctly serviced recently. This guide will apply to ALL units. Re-Greasing the La
Boyde's Minidisc Equipment Mail Order FAQ - Bank Details
Minidisk Shipping from Japan, Bank Account Details For any currency not mentioned below, please send to the account in Hong…
Buying From Japan
MiniDisc was wildly successful in Japan, moreso than probably anywhere else in the world. This makes Japan a great place to buy equipment. Proxy services make it easy and convenient to buy from Japanese auction sites lik
Common Issues & Repairs
Most MD equipment was well made and still works to this day. But there are some common (and not so common) issues that may need fixing. Corroded battery terminals The Ni-MH and disposable cells used in most MD portables
Common terms
There are a lot of terms, initialisms, and acronyms you may come across when researching MiniDisc. This section hopes to cover the most common ones. ATRAC ATRAC is the audio compression format Sony developed to use with
Consumer Products - MiniDisc - Competition
Personal Video Home Video Television HIFI Home Entertainment MiniDisc Portable Products Car Products Personal Communications…
Controlling the MiniDisc Mailing List Server
How to Join the MiniDisc Mailing List You can join the MiniDisc mailing list by sending mail to [email protected] the message…
Converting ATRAC files to other formats
FFMPEG FFmpeg is the most powerful and flexible tool for converting between different audio and video formats. The following Linux command can be used to batch convert all AEA files in the current folder that are compati
Copying audio
Drag MP3, FLAC, WAV, or most other audio files to the web browser window to record them on the MiniDisc. You can also click the "+" in the bottom right corner (next to the playback controls) to bring up a file selection
Copying MiniDiscs to PC
This guide covers real time audio transfer from a MiniDisc to a PC for archival. Although a small minority of devices can export discs faster than real time, the vast majority only support real time playback. Most people
DAT Heads FAQ
------------------------------------------------------------------------ D A T - H E A D S F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S…
David Popovits (Sigma D.O. Electronics)
David has contributed a detailed and interesting repairman's view of portable MD recorder problems plus 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 pages of…
Deal-breakers
As 20+ year old consumer electronics, MiniDisc equipment often has issues. Some are easily fixed, but others render a device unusable. There is more detail in the Buyer's guide and a page for repairing common errors, but
Development and technical background
Development and technical background Web MiniDisc Pro is a progressive web app (PWA) built using netmd-js (a port of the earlier linux-minidisc project to TypeScript), React, and WebUSB. It runs entirely inside your own
Devices that support Homebrew features
This page lists Type-S and Type-R portables from Sony (as well as direct clones) that support the netmd-exploits as described on the Web Minidisc Pro guide. The exploits for Type-S devices are older and more thoroughly t
FAQs about MiniDisc vs DAT, CD-R, DVD-RAM, etc.
The following questions and answers deal with technologies that do, or at least appear to, compete with MiniDisc. This document…
Frequently asked questions
This is a subset of our FAQ section with information most relevant to newcomers. "Why MD" and "Using MD" are must-reads for all aspiring collectors. Check the full section for more. Why MiniDisc? MiniDisc is a unique and
General Recording (Dubbing) Guide
Unless you have a NetMD recorder or deck with built-in CD copying, MDs are recorded in real-time from another audio source. Whatever plays into the MD's input is recorded onto the disc. The output of the source (such as
Getting Help
There's a lot to go through here, so it's understandable that you may need to reach out to others for help. The MD community is famously helpful and friendly, but we ask that you follow some basic steps before you post o
Getting Started
Before we begin Read the tl;dr version Be aware that MiniDisc is not the same as 8cm Mini CDs, Nintendo GameCube discs, or Sony PSP UMDs (Universal Media Disc) - MiniDisc is a particular format, and is spelt "MiniDisc" -
Getting Started - tl;dr version
You're interested in MiniDisc. Here's what you need to know. Read the full guide. You should watch this video It covers the format extensively It can be expensive The hardware is 15-30 years old Many devices have since f
Guides
Getting started Getting started guide Detailed buying guide Model naming conventions Purchasing equipment from Japan Real time copying (dubbing) General copying guide (analog / digital) md-to-pc Software guides Web MiniD
Hi-MD
Hi-MD Web MiniDisc has always supported Hi-MD devices in standard MD mode. As of Web MiniDisc Pro 1.4.0, Hi-MD modes are also supported. Warning Hi-MD mode features are much newer than NetMD and there may be bugs. You ma
High Quality MP3-to-MD Recordings
Recording MP3's to MD - USB Audio Devices MD unit reviews: Sony MZ-R90 vs Sharp MT831 | Sony MZ-R900 | Sharp MT77 • Info on the…
HiMD Recording Capacities
HiMD Recording Capacities This page lists recording capacities for discs recorded in various HiMD modes. This information is sourced from the manual to the MZ-RH1, but should be similar for all Hi-MD recorders Except for
Homebrew mode
Homebrew mode This requires a Supported NetMD Device. Using the overflow menu, you can enable homebrew mode (formerly factory mode.) This mode is experimental and comes with no warranty. Once you click, there is a warnin
How to built your own optical cable for digital audio
Erhard Schreck ([email protected]) I bought a Sony MZ-R30 in Germany for DM 590.- but living abroad you can export it and get…
How to get it
There are several places to find equipment, depending on your locale. You won't find MiniDisc equipment in stores that sell new electronics, nor in major online retailers. In-person The local availability of MiniDisc equ
How to Lookup ToC Signature
How to Lookup ToC Signature Sony included a " ToC signature" as part of the MD spec. Recorders "sign" a disc and track with a 3-4 digit value when they record. Sony never published a list of these so we're making our own
How to modify the Sony MZ-R700/R500/G750/N707/N505/N710's EEPROM settings to add features
How to modify the Sony MZ-R700/R500/G750/N707/N505/N710's EEPROM settings to add advanced features Peter Maksymiuk, Poland…
How to Reset Sony MZ-Rxx Series MD Recorders
Introduction The Service mode is a state of the unit that Sony Service stations use to determine what's wrong with the unit. The…
Launching Web MiniDisc Pro
Insert a MiniDisc into the NetMD recorder and connect it to the computer. Navigate to Web MiniDisc Pro. On first visit, or if there has been an update, you will see a changelog window. Quickly check if anything seems rel
Linear PCM Audio to Hi-MD with SonicStage
Hi-MD devices support lossless Linear PCM audio. Using SonicStage, you can transfer lossless WAV tracks to a Hi-MD device with the steps outlined below. The steps to install SonicStage on Windows 10 are here: sonicstagew
LIP-12 Rebuild
Rebuild guide curtesy of @DanielMcGregor#4040 on the Mizucat Discord. This is a short and simple guide to rebuilding the LIP-12 battery. It uses a standard 18650 battery and is a rather quick fix. If you'd like to watch
LP4 Mode Quality Report
Ken Simpson-Bull Melbourne, Australia. ([email protected]) I've been a Minidisc enthusiast for over two years and am dismayed by…
Managing tracks
Click on a track to select it. The disc title will be replaced with options. After selecting one track, you can select more tracks by clicking them. You do not need to hold Ctrl or Cmd to select multiple tracks. Left to
Manuals
Minidisc User Manuals Notes: Links in green are PDF files. Some PDF files (ones from Sony!) will not open with Acrobat Reader…