Sony Bundle5 MiniDisc Home Recorder with Portable Player
By: Sony Average Rating: 4.5 Total Reviews: 16
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 On: 2001-05-25
With the advent of mp3 and cd-r technology, the poor minidisc is facing possible obscurity. Not because it is an inferior format (my fellow audiophiles will testify to that)but due to poor timing, perhaps. I have held off purchasing any new recordable formats besides cassette until last year, when I finally broke down and bought the above bundled minidisc recorder. I must admit, the price tag (around $300) was the main attraction- a deck recorder, and a pocket-sized player which is tiny in comparison to a discman (to which I refused to lug around from that point on). The recorder deck allows nearly omnipotent control over all concievable aspects of format: erasing single tracks, rearranging song order, combine/divide, and my personal favorite, entering the names of songs and album title. Remember pause tapes? Those painstaking cassette mix tapes that would take hours to get JUST RIGHT? Well the minidisc bundled deck with supplied fully featured editing remote control will save you the trouble of building up those pause button calluses on your finger. The deck plugs right into any up to date console cd changer/shelf system. 74 minutes later, you have a minidisc ready to pop into the supplied MD portable player. If you are like me, there is nothing better than having a pocket-sized digital player, with the capacity to play as much music as you can carry, all stored on thin 3 inch squares. I spend all day out and about, and Im always equipped with at least two minidiscs and an extra AA battery (just in case). Perfect for those who already carry too much on their back. If you travel abroad and absolutely have to bring your music along, then the portable player is the perfect choice. I went to asia with mine, and took along almost thirty discs, and it didnt even make a dent in my carry on luggage. Try doing that with cds! When in my hometown, I take the term pocket disc player literally, as it never really leaves my pocket. Soon I will upgrade to a portable recorder, so I can catch impromptu recordings. Really, this bundle has kept a raging audiophile drooling for months, because of the sheer volume of music you can record yourself and take on the go. Mp3 and similar formats still cannot top minidisc on that. Newer versions of the player offer longer battery time, but can cost close to $200 dollars. Save yourself the cash and get this bundle, its a perfect package, in my opinion.
by: Anonymous On: 2000-01-05
So I paid $350 for the recorder( MDS-JE330) and theportable(MZ-E32IE33)and its the best $$ I have spent on music inquite awhile. I have a portable CD player which I never use because it is too big to really carry around. I play the MiniDisc in my car through a casstette adapter and it sounds great. I started out to buy a CD-R recorder but balked when I found out my car CD player wasnt CD-r compatible. The recorder is easy to use and I have recorded from my CD player and from a digital source which plays through my TV. Both recordings sound great. This Sony Bundle package is the most value for the money I have seen yet. I looked at another portable player like the one I have with this package and just the portable is $199 retail ( not at Amazon of course!). Bottom line...great value and a great product.
by: Anonymous On: 1999-10-22
Picked up this bundle as a way to take music on the road when I travel and am amazed by the MD format. Sound quality is excellent, both decks are easy to use (although the portable sounds a little flat to me) and its digital so your recordings should last forever. I hummed and hawed over buying this for several months but finally took the plunge. Am glad I did. I can carry 6-10 disks, the player and a bunch of spare batteries in the space of a few CDs and have enough music on-hand for hours of entertainment while travelling.
On: 1999-10-21
Picked up this bundle as a way to take music on the road when I travel and am amazed by the MD format. Sound quality is excellent, both decks are easy to use (although the portable sounds a little flat to me) and its digital so your recordings should last forever. I hummed and hawed over buying this for several months but finally took the plunge. Am glad I did. I can carry 6-10 disks, the player and a bunch of spare batteries in the space of a few CDs and have enough music on-hand for hours of entertainment while travelling.
by: Anonymous On: 1999-10-11
Having bought this bundle and played with it for a few days, I have absolutely no clue why these things arent selling faster than they can make them. I have a CD-R drive on my PC which is great for making perfect masters, but its cumbersome and unforgiving. With minidisc, you have so much flexibility and its so easy to use, youll be using all the available features in no time. The thing that blew me away was how easy it was to record analog cassettes, and how good they sound. I cranked the recording level on some old tapes I have that will NEVER be available on CD, and now theyre preserved digitally with all same conveniences. Id agree that the portable is nothing stellar, but itll make a great beater for the car, etc. This technology is just underexposed in the US, otherwise people would be all over it.
On: 1999-10-10
Having bought this bundle and played with it for a few days, I have absolutely no clue why these things arent selling faster than they can make them. I have a CD-R drive on my PC which is great for making perfect masters, but its cumbersome and unforgiving. With minidisc, you have so much flexibility and its so easy to use, youll be using all the available features in no time. The thing that blew me away was how easy it was to record analog cassettes, and how good they sound. I cranked the recording level on some old tapes I have that will NEVER be available on CD, and now theyre preserved digitally with all same conveniences. Id agree that the portable is nothing stellar, but itll make a great beater for the car, etc. This technology is just underexposed in the US, otherwise people would be all over it.
by: Anonymous On: 1999-08-30
MD (Mini Disk) is as handy as CD but recordable and erasable just like cassettee. Because it is a disk there is no tape jam. MD even allows users to put titles of the songs. It is five times as small as CD. ATRACK, a sound information compression technique, made it possible. Since MD is in a shell, it is more durable than CD against scraches and dusts. Because of 30 sec sound memory, there is no sound skip even with terrible vibrations. MD is becomming more and more popular. Finally its price becomes lower than one CD-ROM writer. Do not miss it!!
On: 1999-08-29
MD (Mini Disk) is as handy as CD but recordable and erasable just like cassettee. Because it is a disk there is no tape jam. MD even allows users to put titles of the songs. It is five times as small as CD. ATRACK, a sound information compression technique, made it possible. Since MD is in a shell, it is more durable than CD against scraches and dusts. Because of 30 sec sound memory, there is no sound skip even with terrible vibrations. MD is becomming more and more popular. Finally its price becomes lower than one CD-ROM writer. Do not miss it!!
by: Anonymous On: 1999-08-28
Minidiscs rule!!! I am actually a long-time user - Ive had my system for a couple of years and I love it. I have had an in-dash player in my car for about a year now and it has yet to skip, even when I hit a pothole or something. Theres no way Id ever go back to cassettes or even a CD changer in my car. There is simply no comparison. Ive encouraged several friends to buy their own systems and hopefully the prerecorded minidisc market will expand soon, because I think theyre here to stay!
by: Anonymous On: 1999-08-27
This has become a stable part of my musical set-up. Mini-disc is wonderful. My only problem is with the portable player; I found I couldnt use the headphone-attached controls and maintain a high listening volume. So fine, I use the units controls and my own headphones. In terms of sound quality Im now spoiled. Its difficult to even listen to cassette.
On: 1999-08-27
Minidiscs rule!!! I am actually a long-time user - Ive had my system for a couple of years and I love it. I have had an in-dash player in my car for about a year now and it has yet to skip, even when I hit a pothole or something. Theres no way Id ever go back to cassettes or even a CD changer in my car. There is simply no comparison. Ive encouraged several friends to buy their own systems and hopefully the prerecorded minidisc market will expand soon, because I think theyre here to stay!
by: Anonymous On: 1999-08-22
I picked this bundle up and love it! The home deck is awesome, and even though its a baseline model, I dont see what else youd really want to do, you know? Sound is superb as youd expect, and the little mds themselves are awesome. I tossed one about ten feet in the air and let it crash onto the pavement, then popped it into the player as a demonstration for a friend. I even put one through the washing machine by accident (it was in my pocket, and I forgot to check) and it played flawlessly. All in all, minidiscs are a very underrated technology waiting to bust on the scene once people discover how cool they are.However, the same can not be said of the portable. The price is awesome for the deck alone, so look at the portable as a freebie, not really an incentive to buy. Sure, its a really good product, but the headphones are the same crap ones they give with the ten dollar walkman, and no AC adapter or rechargeables. The worst part, though, is the sound quality. My ears were not decieved; it sounds dead. None of the bass settings satisfy, and headroom is very low, providing a muddy sound. On the home deck it sounds fine, but in the walkman,a mixed bag. Also, it skips for no apparent reason sometimes, the battery indicator cannot be trusted, and speaking of which, it chugs batteries like theres no tomorrow. Anyway, to make sure my ears werent playing tricks on me, I plugged the same headphones into Old Faithful- a Sony D-11, either the first or second discman they ever made, serving me well for six or seven years now, at least, and the sound was better enough to warrant using it over its much more compact sibling (when you factor in that it chugs four AA faster than the MD does two and has no kind of ESP, youll understand how drastic the difference is). In conclusion, an awesome way to affordly adopt a new(ish) technology. However, although the home deck is more than satisfactory, the portable left me disapointed. However, a home CD-player and discman combo isnt much cheaper than this, and you cant record on one of them, so I say go for it.
by: Anonymous On: 1999-08-13
If your not an internet user your proberly beter of with a minidisk system, but if you are on the net order a protable MP3 player by Diamond or Philips, i own one with 64mb, thats not a lot but it does the job!
by: Anonymous On: 1999-08-13
Admitadley the bundl does have the base line player and home deck. But who cares! The sound quality is amazing. Only the most snobby audiophile on a very expensive system will notice and real difference and its much more flexable and user friendly than CDR or CDRW. All i need now is for Sony to release a md drive for my pc! The only drawback is a lack of remote but i solved that by buying the remote from the next unit up from Sony direct and it works with most functions including keyboard entry of titles!
by: Anonymous On: 1999-07-21
If you love recorded music and want a much better alternative to your tape deck, the minidisk format is simply wonderful. Easy to use with a little practice and the sound quality is dramatically better than tape. Access tracks just as you would on a CD. This is Japanese audio engineering at its best. The 74 minute blank diskettes can be recorded over forever. I love this product and dont even remember where I put my old tape deck.
by: Anonymous On: 1999-07-17
As a great lover of music and home audio, I use this thing to death. Interestingly enough, in Europe (I live in Germany), its much more accepted than in the states. I hardly use my cassette deck anymore. Im a home-recording enthusiast (record my own composed music as well), and this technology is incredible. I can record compilations, change the order or songs, delete songs Ive grown tired of, and replace them with new material. And the sound quality never diminishes. The only thing I could ask for is a disk that holds more than 74 minutes.
by: Anonymous On: 1999-07-16
The sound quality of the Mini Disc player is ok for most uses. There is some "Digital Clipping" that is noticed in quiet passages.
On: 1999-07-16
As a great lover of music and home audio, I use this thing to death. Interestingly enough, in Europe (I live in Germany), its much more accepted than in the states. I hardly use my cassette deck anymore. Im a home-recording enthusiast (record my own composed music as well), and this technology is incredible. I can record compilations, change the order or songs, delete songs Ive grown tired of, and replace them with new material. And the sound quality never diminishes. The only thing I could ask for is a disk that holds more than 74 minutes.
On: 1999-07-15
The sound quality of the Mini Disc player is ok for most uses. There is some "Digital Clipping" that is noticed in quiet passages.
by: Anonymous On: 1999-07-14
I agree that MiniDisc is the greatest thing ever to happen to personal music recording. Once you try it you will never go back to cassette, and it seems to be much more flexible than CD recording. The sound is very impressive. I got this bundle as an inexpensive way to get into MiniDisc technology and I love it, with two tiny caveats if youre considering this bundle: 1. As an entry-level model, the home deck doesnt allow you to adjust the recording level in digital mode and doesnt come with a remote (an all-purpose remote can be programmed for the playback functions). 2. The portable unit is larger and heavier than most other portables available today. But for a low-cost way to get todays best recording technology, this bundle really cant be beat.
On: 1999-07-13
I agree that MiniDisc is the greatest thing ever to happen to personal music recording. Once you try it you will never go back to cassette, and it seems to be much more flexible than CD recording. The sound is very impressive. I got this bundle as an inexpensive way to get into MiniDisc technology and I love it, with two tiny caveats if youre considering this bundle: 1. As an entry-level model, the home deck doesnt allow you to adjust the recording level in digital mode and doesnt come with a remote (an all-purpose remote can be programmed for the playback functions). 2. The portable unit is larger and heavier than most other portables available today. But for a low-cost way to get todays best recording technology, this bundle really cant be beat.
by: Anonymous On: 1999-07-03
This is the best thing to happen to consumer music recording in years. Great sound in a compact, direct-access medium. I record great sets for travel or outdoor enjoyment and can still rearrange or replace any tune on the disc. The cost of media has dropped dramatically in the last several months. The portable slips easily into a pocket and you can bicycle on cobblestones without causing the music to skip. My favorite toy!
On: 1999-07-02
This is the best thing to happen to consumer music recording in years. Great sound in a compact, direct-access medium. I record great sets for travel or outdoor enjoyment and can still rearrange or replace any tune on the disc. The cost of media has dropped dramatically in the last several months. The portable slips easily into a pocket and you can bicycle on cobblestones without causing the music to skip. My favorite toy!
by: Anonymous On: 1999-07-02
I actually have only the home mini-disc player/recorder in this bundle, which I bought as a cheap, digital source for home recording/ 4 track mixdowns, figuring I could save myself a few hundred bucks and bum my friends DATs and CD burners if I ever needed to transfer to those formats. This player/recorder has many useful features, but Ill be dammed if I can figure out how to use them all. There are no onscreen menus, and all functions are performed by using a series of vaguely labled buttons on the front panel. Overall, the design is not very user friendly, nor is the awkward, bulky manual. Another drag is the fact that there is apparently no rackmount kit available. On the upside, its cheap and it sounds great. The AD and DA conversion is surprisingly smooth, and the adjustable recording level is very handy for plugging in a microphone without getting that nasty digital clipping. If you are looking for a way to go digital without breaking the bank, this might just be your ticket. Besides, just think how much your friends will bug you to use it if you buy a CD burner!
On: 1999-07-01
I actually have only the home mini-disc player/recorder in this bundle, which I bought as a cheap, digital source for home recording/ 4 track mixdowns, figuring I could save myself a few hundred bucks and bum my friends DATs and CD burners if I ever needed to transfer to those formats. This player/recorder has many useful features, but Ill be dammed if I can figure out how to use them all. There are no onscreen menus, and all functions are performed by using a series of vaguely labled buttons on the front panel. Overall, the design is not very user friendly, nor is the awkward, bulky manual. Another drag is the fact that there is apparently no rackmount kit available. On the upside, its cheap and it sounds great. The AD and DA conversion is surprisingly smooth, and the adjustable recording level is very handy for plugging in a microphone without getting that nasty digital clipping. If you are looking for a way to go digital without breaking the bank, this might just be your ticket. Besides, just think how much your friends will bug you to use it if you buy a CD burner!
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