Customer Reviews

Sony MZ-NH1 Net MD / Hi-MD Walkman Portable Minidisc Player / Recorder

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I got the MZ-NH1 a couple of weeks ago and I am thrilled with it.
Let me sum it up:
PROS
* I gigabyte MD is great
* Over 7 hours of music using ATRAC3 256kbps, 2nd highest quality, and sounds beautiful
* Full Magnesium Body
* Small, Slim, and Solid Device
* Long Battery Life - Gumstick Rechargeable battery
* Sweet Cradle
* Finally we have Transfer from MD to PC
-important note- When the file is transferred it's in sony's omg format which you can only play using the sonicstage software. However, there is official news that Sony will come out with a free program that will let you convert the "omg" file into
a wave.
* Mic recordings still sound incredible
* No check in - check out, but you still have to use SonicStage Software to transfer music to player
* You can drag and drop files
-note- If you drag and drop mp3s it will put the file on the disc but you won't be able to play it through the player, must use sonic stage.
* Backwards compatible with old minidiscs
* You can record from literally almost any source of sound.

CONS
* headphones included aren't too good (no biggie)

This player is sweet

I have been an MD user for a couple of years now. I finally got this great Hi-Md unit and I am very satisfied thus far. The unit is really sleek and sturdy; light, but at the same time has a rugged feel to it. The sound is amazing. Do yourself a favor and buy a good pair of phones for th unit. The phones that come with it do not do justice. I splurged and got the shure ec3s, and the sound is amazingly clear. SonicStage 2.2 has come a long way since OpenMG; and keeping in mind that when we are talking about transfering, we are actually talking about burning a cd; the transfer speed is very good.
Of course the big drawback is that there is no Apple support for the MD; but for the sound, the features (digital recording; microphone recording that is at pcm quality) I can live with that drawback. i have a dedicated windows laptop for my music.
Coming from just being an ipod user for the last 7 months; the batter life on this thing is trully amazing. In the two weeks that I have had it; I had to charge the battery just three times (including the initial time), and then I just listen to music hours and hours each day. I am using hi-sp for my songs which equates to 7 hrs of music at the 1gb disk, and 2 hrs of music at the regular MD disks formatted under the Hi-Md scheme. One word of advice; to enjoy the sound fidelity to its fullest, you will need to start with a lossless format; in my testing if I start the conversion from a compressed format already e.g., MP3, Atrac3 to AtracPlus; there is some distortion and artifact introduction. However, I believe this has to do with the sensitive earphones that I have. If you use medium grade earphones you should be ok.
Bottom line, I think the MD format is here to stay; true it's not for everybody, but those of us that are used to the little quirks that come with the system (sony's drm leaves something ot be desired), love these little machines.

This little machine is awesome... I use it to play music copied from CDs (I ride the train to work) and to record live music. What puts this unit in a class by itself is the ability to record through the line-In or mic-In straight to 1Gig MD and then USB download to PC and convert to wav... Nobody else can do that, that I know of... that was the missing link --- Yea Sony! of course, from there, u can do anything you want with the digitized music: edit, layer tracks, crossfade with other music, burn CD, MD, the web, whatever... I also needed a good stereo mic for recording live music and rehearsals. I picked the Sony ECM-MS907 Stereo Microphone. It's small, sturdy and adequate, but the threads on the included adaptor don't fit standard mic stands, and the Sony mic won't fit in the adapter that comes with, say an SM57 or SM58... bummer... I also needed closed headphones. The Sennheisers are great for rehearsals, etc, but uncomfortable on long train rides,,, the Sony MDR-EX71SL/WK ear buds fixed that problem... OK Here's something you can't do,,,, you can,t transfer songs to and from your PC on AC power, 'cause you can't cradle the MZ into the AC adapter and plug in the USB cord at the same time... I know... tha's dumb... The Sonic Stage software is adequate after you upgrade it from the Sony sight,,, and you need to download the MP3 and WAV conversions tools also $FREE$ ... You have to have Sonic Stage installed in order to install these other tools... OK here's another gotcha,,, An MD that was loaded from Sonic Stage knows what computer it came from, so you CAN'T take your MZ-NH1 to your friends house and download your Sonic Stage songs to his Sonic Stage so he can make a copy of your disc ... naa-daa ... u get a nasty message saying something like "This MD wasn't recorded on your friends computer so fuhgetaboutit" ... tha's wack'd Sony ... You CAN record directly from a CD to an MD loaded in the MZ through the Line-In, thus bypassing Sonic Stage step, but Line-In means analog so some degradation will occur (You can record your favorite TV show here, but why?). Oh yea, the units made out of some kind of alloy from outer-space (Cryptonite, i think), it feels like an indestructible cigararette case (looks like one too) ... but here's the gotcha... the remote's just painted plastic, it works good, lights up, etc, but it feels like if you accidentally stepped on it, it'd crunch like a cockroach... Still, with the line-in, mic-in recording capabilities, 1GB disk capacity, WAV & MP3 conversion software, tank-build and very good sound, this unit is way ahead of the CD/MP3 players, I-Pods and other portable units availabe today...

i recently bought the sony mz-nh1 for recording live shows, and i couldn't be happier. you can transfer your recording to your computer, make cd's (with sony WAV converter) and then format the minidisc and use it again! awesome

I'm sorry to see another brilliant Sony format die because of bad decisions from their marketing division. Someone sold them out in the US and killed the Minidisc by forcing the stupid copy restrictions into the hardware. Especially as most other manufacturers were making music players/recorders without those restrictions.

This unit is the best Minidisc ever made in my opinion. It's a masterpiece of engineering and crafted with incredible perfection. It has a feel that is unlike any other product in its class. I won't bother with a lengthy review since it is no longer available. I am sad however that the last 18 years of minidisc in the US market was so disappointing and such a failure. It should have been a thousand times more successful than it was. Maybe someone in the industry will grow a brain and realize this was an example (as DAT was also) of consumers sending a message to Congress, the electronics and the music industry, voting with their pocketbooks.

After my old MD didn't work as good as before, I decided to buy a new one and the best one so I chose the most expensive coz I believe that if the price is so high then there must be something good in it.
Yeah! I bought MZNH1 I was innocent coz I didn't know about the USB stuff and all but when I use it I was surprised to see that this tiny ,thin aluminium Hi-MD player could do a lot of things. The sonic stage 3.2 is invincible. The one that's attached in the box is sonicstage 3.0 so u guys will have to download it from the sony.com The sound is real cool even though I think I would recommend u guys to buy new headphones. The ones they give us aren't that good. The recording sound is great and they have the date and time to let us see when we recoded it too. Mic, u will have to buy it urself.
I know that some of u guys might think Ipod is much better and all but I want to assure u that MZNH1 or other models of Hi-MD is as good as Ipod, maybe the style isn't that cool to u all but those who want to be unique and not like those ppl sitting in the subway or tube wearing white ear plugs with the pround face thinkihng they're so cool, should buy this MZNH1. I love one of the comment in here comparing Ipod with the wristband everyone is wearing. I agree!!!! U guys should check outthe sony website for further information......

Whenever I am going to work, I cant help to notice all the people sitting around me on the train with their stylish iPod. They are just cool fad as are those yellow rubber bracelets that cost a dollar. Apple should have just added the yellow bracelet in the packaging! "I really dont want an iPod, but my friends have one so I'll dish out 250.00 so I can look cool." This is why I didnt want an iPod. They are dumb and trendy. This Mini Disk player will obliterate any iPod ever made. Just look at the specs and compare. Ok, sure some iPods can hold more music, but who wants a device who's internal battery will only last you about a year or so under normal use. Not only do Mini-Disk players offer superior sound, but they are long lasting. I myself have dropped my player many times over the past two years and it still plays and records like the first time I used it. So do yourself a favor and get a Mini-disk player and stand out, unless you want to be like everyone else on that train or bus or wherever with their little iPods and white earbud headphones. If you got an iPod for Christmas, sell it on EBAY so some poser out in suburban America can look cool with their yellow LIVESTRONG bracelet.

Pros:
-Fast Data Transfer
-Excellent sound
-Durabilty/Reliable
-Easy to use
-Record all types of digital music files
-Not an iPod

Cons:
Ahem,...it's not an iPod!

Guess this product is sort of superceeded by iPod's and other MP3 players, but if you have an old minidisc player and want extra capacity along with compatibility with your old MD's, this is the way to go. In the end it is now just another gadget in my drawer of toys, with very infrequent use. Sound is in my opinion better than mp3 format files, but limited storage 1G is still too small.

If you're a sucker for frustration, then this item is for you. This MZNH1 is only useful for listening to music. The other features it boasts for doesn't work. You'll end up loosing valuable work. I used it to record minutes of the meeting and it bombed out at the end of the meeting. It started displaying AuFileERR and it erased the content of the entire disk. Chatting with the help desk didn't help. I've only had it for a month and it's driving me nuts already. The Sony warranty is so useless because it's not honored in other countries. This is probably the last Sony product I'll ever buy.

I got the MZ-NH1 a couple of weeks ago and I love it.
The sound is great when i use the headphones, and amazing sound when i connect the MZ-NH1 to my house amplifier or to my car audio system.
If you are a fanatic for the High Sound definition the Ipod don't compare whit the MZ-NH1.

The High quality of sound that gives the High Definition Digital Amp incorporated in the MZ-NH1 with the versatility of the Md are the perfect combination.

Additionally the MZ-NH1 has another amount of excellent characteristics.