Sony Portable Mini-Disc Player/Recorder (MZ-R500PCNAVY)

by Sony

Product Details

Product Manual [710kb PDF]

• Item Weight: 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B00005T38K
• Item model number: MZ-R500PCNAVY
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #133,388 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
  • #51 in Electronics > Portable Audio & Video > Minidisc Players
• Date first available at Amazon.com: November 15, 2001

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

The jacket size MD Walkman player/recorder MZ-R500 easily slips into a pocket for personal enjoyment just about anywhere. MDLP Long Time Recording and Playback lets you record 2X (LP2) or 4X (LP4) longer on an 80-minute MiniDisc to provide as much as 320 minutes (over 5 hours) of music with excellent sound quality. Skip-Free G-Protection technology makes the MD Walkman an ideal on-the-go companion, with an advanced system that provides more than 10-times faster shock recovery compared to conventional systems, ensuring perfect playing performance without skipping even during such active uses as jogging. Download new songs from the net in any format you like with the Analog PC Link cable.

Product Description

ThereM-^Rs not much more you could ask for with this MiniDisc player from Sony. Besides looking good with its cool navy case, it has SonyM-^Rs G-ProtectionM-^Y anti-shock system and Digital Mega Bass« that provides rich, deep bass. The power consumption technology allows a single AA battery to last for up to 48 hours of playback or about 5 hours of recording. Now listening to your very own mix of music is just a touch away.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For folks on the go., July 26, 2002

By 

anti_pc "anti_pc" (Crockett, VA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sony Portable Mini-Disc Player/Recorder (MZ-R500PCNAVY) (Electronics)

This little MD player is one of the greatest audio investments I've ever made. I can't figure out why folks are buying MP3 players. These MD recorders, especially the MZ-R500, seem to be the best kept secret in the world of mobile personal audio.

One complaint however... I don't like the fact that the recorder always defaults to "automatic" recording volume level. You will quickly find out that the auto volume feature doesn't let enough sound in. It also makes "mush" out of live albums as it compensates too much for the crashing percussion instruments. I found this out when I recorded the live version of Orange Blossom Special by Johnny Cash. I thought something was wrong with the MD recorder. When I set the recording volume manually, the mush went away.

It must be set to manual each time you record, from song to song or album to album. Any time you start recording, in other words. All other settings the user makes stays put, just this ONE feature resets to auto. Quite frustrating.

Once these small issues are figured out, this is a fantastic little gadget. Certainly meant for folks on the go. Simply start it playing and slide the "hold" feature in place. All the buttons are now disabled and can't be hit accidentally. Drop it in your shirt pocket and go! This thing does NOT skip either!

Cheers.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Choice, December 26, 2001

By 

Art Vandalay (Toronto, ON) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sony Portable Mini-Disc Player/Recorder (MZ-R500PCNAVY) (Electronics)

The Sony MZR500 is an amazing MD player, with functions to please almost anyone. I'll outline some of the pros and cons of this model:

PROS:
- text capability
- MDLP (which allows for up to 5 hours of music onto one MiniDisc)
- FULLY Mac compatible (with iTunes, anyway)
- excellent sound quality
- repeat function
- unbeatable price
- PCLink included
- small size allows for maximum portability
- excellent battery-life
- easy recording

CONS:
- records in real-time
- comes with cheap, flimsy earbuds
- no remote-control
- small buttons may provide some problems for big-handed people
- small display

This model is a perfect choice for a first-time user, or even an electronics savvy audiophile.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but here's what's lacking, September 5, 2004

By 

Randy (Colorado) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sony Portable Mini-Disc Player/Recorder (MZ-R500PCNAVY) (Electronics)

I bought an MZ-R500 a couple of years ago solely to record live music. What a surprise that this model doesn't have a mic input jack! It only has a line input, and I was unable to record anything live. (Later I learned that I'd either need an accessory battery box or an upgrade to record with a microphone). I quickly upgraded to an MZ-R700 which has the neccessary mic input jack and have been more or less happy. Also lacking with this model is the inability to start recording from anything other that AUTO volume level. To change levels out of AUTO, you always have to start recording, press pause, and then go into the menu to manually adjust the volume. Quite a pain when you want to record live stuff on the fly. OH well. . .