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 like Yahoo Japan Auctions, Mercari Japan, and others.

Most sellers in Japan don't ship overseas and many don't accept foreign credit cards, hence the need for these proxy sites.

The most commonly used Yahoo Japan auction proxies are: Buyee, From Japan, Jauce, Sendico, Zenmarket, and Mercari Japan.

Each proxy is slightly different in terms of how bidding on auctions works, (Jauce requires you to deposit funds onto their site whereas From Japan operates similar to eBay), so please keep this in mind when choosing a proxy. Be sure to read their First Time Buyer FAQ if you have further questions.

Decks and bookshelf units that require wall current will use 100V, 50/60Hz, in almost every circumstance. To use these devices outside of Japan, it's highly recommended you acquire a step-down transformer to convert your local voltage to 100V. This is especially important for bookshelf units (with amplifiers.) If your local current is above 120V, plugging a Japanese device without a transformer is a good way to watch a single, brilliant firework.

While many Japanese items are in excellent condition, even for items the age of MD gear, there are exceptions. Thoroughly review the photos for the listing (some proxy services only show some of the included pictures, so check the original listing.)

In addition to the photos, it's important to understand the condition as described in the listing itself. Many sellers of MD equipment don't have or claim to not have MiniDisc media, and use that as an excuse to not test a device. If a listing does not specifically mention test results in the description, you should assume it does not work. Most listings will mention the phrase "動作確認済" ("Operation confirmed" in English) for the parts of the device's functionality that were tested. Even this, however, does not mean that they will still work when they arrive to you.

It's highly recommended you copy and paste the entire description into a translation tool like Google Translate or DeepL. If you are unclear about the translation, sometimes using only smaller sentences can yield more clear results.

Finally, the vast majority of listings that show up on auction sites at reasonable prices are listed as "junk" items - while this can mean what it sounds like, this often is just a synonym for "untested". If you choose to not buy anything listed as 'junk', you'll likely pay more than you need to. However, it is more likely (though not certain) to get a tested and working product if the description does not mention 'junk'.

Certain devices may require accessories for testing or to confirm that they power on - a good example are Panasonic portables, many of which use a 2.5mm jack for the primary output so a remote is necessary for testing purposes. Carefully review the description of the item to make sure that the accessory you think is included from the photos is actually part of the listing. Most listings will clearly indicate if they are the main unit only, or if accessories are included.

Some services allow you to search in English, converting to Japanese equivalent words in the background. However, you'll often find better results by searching in Japanese.

"MD" is more commonly used to refer to MiniDisc in Japan than "MiniDisc" itself. "MD" is pronounced "emudee" in Japanese, and is often used in listings.

本体のみ | Main Device Only - no accessories will come with the auction, even if they are in the picture.

パーツ | Parts - often used to indicate the device is (or may be) broken and should only be used for parts.

修理 | Repairs - see "parts"

ジャンク | "Junk" - see the "item condition" section above.

保証 | Warranty - almost always used in the context that there isn't one.

通電 | Energized - generally used to tell you the device turns on. Without further explanation, you should assume this means there was no testing done.

動作確認済み | Operation confirmed - device has been tested to work, However, this might only mean energization.

完動品 | Fully-functioning product - tested to be working in normal operation without faults.

ミニディスク | MiniDisc - MiniDisc was usually abbreviated as "MD" in Japan, not spelled out.

枚 | Sheet - Used for bulk MD lots, eg. "MD 枚".

ソニー　バッテリーケース MD | Sony Battery Case MD - sidecar battery cases specifically for Sony units. See this article

電池ケース MD | Battery case - sidecar battery cases for other brands not Sony.

ポータブル | Portable - for portable MD devices.

プレイヤー | Player - typically used for portable devices.

レコーダー | Recorder - devices that can both play and record.

デッキ | Deck - audio component decks to be used in a larger hi-fi.

ミニコンポ | Bookshelf - devices that have their own speaker amplifier and are not decks.

リモコン | Remote - can be used in conjunction with ポータブル (portable) when searching specifically for portable remotes, eg. "ポータブル リモコン MD". See this article

Beyond the cost of your listing, there are other costs that must be paid when buying from overseas. Most Japanese sellers will not ship directly overseas, hence the use of proxy services. Here's a listing of the most common fees you'll encounter when using a proxy service:

Domestic shipping - The charge to ship your item from the seller to the proxy service. This is often free, but even then, your proxy service may require tracking numbers which can sometimes have an extra cost. Look through the listing to determine an estimate for domestic shipping, but be aware this isn't always listed.

Consumption tax - If you purchase your item from a store, your proxy service may charge you Japanese consumption tax in compliance with Japanese law. Currently, consumption tax is 10% added on to the item price.

Proxy service fee - The proxy service will charge a fee, either percentage-based or flat-fee, for their service of buying the item, accepting the shipment and holding it, repackaging or relabeling it to ship it to you, etc.

Payment service fee - Some proxy services charge extra for each completed auction or each seller you purchase items from, to cover the cost of processing your credit card or the cost of bank transfers to the Japanese domestic seller, etc. These are often a few hundred yen.

Currency conversion - Some services will list your pricing and their fees in Japanese Yen, but charge your card in your credit card's currency. This also generally means that they choose the exchange rate, and it may not be as ideal as a charge in yen.

International shipping - Obviously, you have to pay shipping to get the item from Japan to you. Different proxy services offer different types of shipping services, but you should be prepared for this cost - it can lead to sticker shock, especially if you purchase an oversized item like a storage rack or a deck.

Optional services - Many vendors offer optional services like package consolidation (opening multiple boxes and consolidating items into one box), additional packaging, photos, inspections, shrink wrap, insurance, etc. All of these services generally attract extra charges. Consider each one carefully. Please note that in rare circumstances, consolidating packages may lead to a higher expense than shipping the packages separately. You generally can't estimate this in advance, but this is especially likely if you are including multiple oddly-shaped items.

There is generally not one. Consider everything, even 'operation confirmed' devices as final sale.

Some items may be unwieldy or very expensive to ship, and some items may only be shipped via certain methods. A notable example that comes up when purchasing MD related equipment is that Japan Post will generally not accept speakers for shipment. (There are some exceptions for speakers that come with special documentation about the magnets inside, but you should not expect that this will be the case for any particular listing.) Because of this, some proxy services will scan the text of listings for the word 'speaker' and try to block you from bidding, or will restrict shipping to (generally more expensive) couriers rather than the Japan Post-powered airmail or SAL options.

While the selectable options will vary depending upon your forwarding service, there are a few different options when shipping from Japan. Prices have increased significantly in the last few years, so it's important to check the current rates before making a purchase.

Japan Post - This is the Japanese government operated postal system. Until recently this was by far the cheapest and quickest shipping option. Post-covid, however, it has been more limited. As an example, shipping to the USA using Express Mail Service (EMS) has almost tripled in cost since the pandemic, starting at ¥4,100 for a package under 0.5 kilograms as of time of writing. Japan Posts' cheaper shipping option, Small Packet, may not be delivering to the United States. You can check service availability by country from this link. Shipping costs can be found at this link.

Accepted items are as expected: nothing flammable/dangerous or prohibited by your country's customs service. Batteries are limited to two per box (note that this means you can not ship a Nintendo Switch. It contains three batteries (one in main console, one in each JoyCon)). There are no food restrictions.

Courier Services - Courier services are companies such as UPS or DHL. These can usually be pretty fast (Japan to west coast North America in 2 days), but cost more. These companies are usually prohibitively expensive for an individual to use, but many of the forwarding services have bulk deals to reduce costs. For an individual, the cheapest option is Kuroneko Yamato, which costs ~¥2,750 for a 60cm3 package to the United States of America.

Accepted items are similar to those of Japan Post, but with a few more exceptions. They do not accept anything with food or batteries inside.