Sony MZ-NHF800 Personal MiniDisc Player
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Similar in Personal Audio Mini Disc Player
- Recordable: Recordable
- Built-in Equalizer: Yes
- Headphones: Yes
- Remote Control: Yes with LCD
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Best MD Recorder Ever...!!!
Pros
Holds 45 Hours of Music or 1 gb on a Hi-MD disc.
Cons
Does not support direct playback of MP3 files.
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Get this recorder...
Sony MZ-NHF800
Introduction
I have been searching and searching for a higher capacity Digital Audio Player. The media for flash players were too expensive, so I never even considered getting one of these. So I was seriously considering one of the IRiver's HD MP3 players. This seemed like the perfect solution for my portable needs.
But since Sony announced the savior to MD, which Sony calls it, Hi-MD way back in April of 2004, I was thinking, WOW…finally something cool from Sony. This seemed like the perfect solution for me. And since I have been an avid user of the MD format since 1997. I will gladly stick with the MD format, so I chose to purchase the Sony MZ-NHF800 model when I got an email from jandr's website.
Why I chose this model over the MZ-NH1 and the MZNH900
The first reason why I chose the 800 model over the NH1 and the NH900 is because I don't think I need all the bells and whistles of the NH1 and the NH900. And also mainly because I like the radio feature and the fact that the battery is an AA so I never have to worry about having to charge it. And it is universal and easier to obtain than the gumstick batteries that the other two models uses.
Setting up the MD recorder to record from the PC:
Simply plug the included USB cable to your PC's USB port. If you have the latest Windows Operating System, it automatically recognizes it as an external removable mass storage drive and begins to install the drivers for it. It names the 800 Hi-MD unit as drive H. (At least it did with my PC, so don't know about others.)
Types of Connection:
The Sony MZ-NHF800 sports the following connections: USB, MIC IN and LINE IN (You can also record analog or Optical with this input) and AC in.
Installing the software:
Installation of Sonic Stage 2.0 and Simple Burner 2.0 was uneventful. Simply follow the on screen instructions and you're good to go. No error messages or crashes were encountered during the installation. (This of course depends on your PC)
Transferring Music to the MD Recorder
There are two applications that you can use to transfer music to the MD recorder, Sonic Stage 2.0 or Simple Burner 2.0. To me using Sonic Stage 2.0 was clumsy. The software itself isn't all that great. But Sony did make some improvements to it. Like eliminating the checkout and check ins. And also allowing microphone recordings to be uploaded via USB. Transfer times seems no different to me than my Sony MZ-N707 NetMD unit.
Personally, I think it's too clunky to use and it is something that any PC user must learn in order to get the most out of it. I even sometimes still forget how to use it or seem a little confused by it at times. And I been using NetMD since it's introduction.
For those of you who do not like the idea of saving .OMG files to the HD or worried about running out of storage, you can use Simple Burner 2.0. This software allows you to copy a CD to MD or Hi-MD directly without saving any files to your HD. I simply love this version of Simple Burner. This version allows you to record in Hi-SP, unlike the previous version, where the user can only transfer in LP2 and LP4 modes. There are three recording modes to choose from. They are as follows: Hi-SP, Hi-LP, and the lowly 48kbps bitrates.
Recording via PCM mode
The Sony MZ-NHF800 allows the user to record in an uncompressed format called PCM or Pulse Code Modulation. This is a high resolution recording format that is of very high quality. The only downside of recording via PCM is that it takes up a lot of space on the disc.
I recorded a few tracks via optical in real time from Springsteen's Best of album. I uploaded the PCM recording of "Born in the USA".
It allowed me to upload it back into my PC, but won't allow me to transfer it to a CD. It gives me a message and says "Cannot create a CD because of copyright restrictions."
Microphone Recordings
With this unit you can also use it like a tape recorder. I recorded with the mic and here's what I found out. The recording was done using PCM mode and it has the same restrictions. I can upload it back to my PC but it won't let me burn it to a CD. It gives me the same message:
"Cannot create a CD because of copyright restrictions."
I also wanted to find out if it'll let me burn my own microphone recordings to CD if I didn't record with PCM, but with Hi-SP and here are my findings:
Just transferred microphone recordings recorded in Hi-SP, still no good. I get the same restrictions and the same message, "Cannot create a CD because of copyright restrictions."
So I don't see the point of allowing microphone uploading if you can't get it out of your PC again.
I guess I can see from Sony's POV with the restrictions with mic uploading. But if they want to put a dent on the market they have to ease up on some of the restrictions.
But since I'm not bothered by these restrictions, I still like the Hi-MD format. As long as I can get my songs onto a portable digital medium, I'm happy.
Using the MD recorder as an external drive
You can use the MD recorder as an external drive. You can save non-audio files such as .jpg, word documents, excel and other computer data. The Hi-MD Walkman appears as an external removable drive. You can not however defrag the MD unit, as you would defrag a regular drive. The MD recorder does not show up as an option to select.
Sound Quality
I was quite pleased with the sound quality of Hi-LP. The MZ-NHF800 has several sound enhancements that you can select to enhance your listening pleasure. I have not yet used Hi-SP but will do so sometime in the future.
Battery Life
It seems that the radio part sucks up most of the battery life. I have used a battery for 3 days and it's already on it's last bar. However the battery is still good. Sony has already noted this in the manual.
The Remote Control
As usual, Sony's radio MD units are housed into the remote control. The remote control is simply better than my MZ-G750's radio remote. For one thing, the remote's LCD screen displays the track title and also the track number. Or you can have it display the tracks elapsed time, but not both.
Unfortunately, there is no back lighting on the MZ-NHF800 remote or on the MD recorder itself.
The remote control allows you to control basic functions like PLAY, REW, FF, STOP, Radio ON/OFF, radio presets, sound enhancement, volume, group folder selection, HOLD, AM/FM, TV, Weather Bands Selection and play mode.
Radio Reception
Radio reception is decent depending on your locale. But for me it was coming in loud and clear.
Final Thoughts about the MZ-NHF800
I must say I am simply pleased with this machine. Sony still has its kinks to work out with the MD format, such as allowing direct playback of MP3 files. And the time it takes to convert it to ATRAC. Other than these issues I am quite happy with this unit and will continue to support the format.
Introduction
I have been searching and searching for a higher capacity Digital Audio Player. The media for flash players were too expensive, so I never even considered getting one of these. So I was seriously considering one of the IRiver's HD MP3 players. This seemed like the perfect solution for my portable needs.
But since Sony announced the savior to MD, which Sony calls it, Hi-MD way back in April of 2004, I was thinking, WOW…finally something cool from Sony. This seemed like the perfect solution for me. And since I have been an avid user of the MD format since 1997. I will gladly stick with the MD format, so I chose to purchase the Sony MZ-NHF800 model when I got an email from jandr's website.
Why I chose this model over the MZ-NH1 and the MZNH900
The first reason why I chose the 800 model over the NH1 and the NH900 is because I don't think I need all the bells and whistles of the NH1 and the NH900. And also mainly because I like the radio feature and the fact that the battery is an AA so I never have to worry about having to charge it. And it is universal and easier to obtain than the gumstick batteries that the other two models uses.
Setting up the MD recorder to record from the PC:
Simply plug the included USB cable to your PC's USB port. If you have the latest Windows Operating System, it automatically recognizes it as an external removable mass storage drive and begins to install the drivers for it. It names the 800 Hi-MD unit as drive H. (At least it did with my PC, so don't know about others.)
Types of Connection:
The Sony MZ-NHF800 sports the following connections: USB, MIC IN and LINE IN (You can also record analog or Optical with this input) and AC in.
Installing the software:
Installation of Sonic Stage 2.0 and Simple Burner 2.0 was uneventful. Simply follow the on screen instructions and you're good to go. No error messages or crashes were encountered during the installation. (This of course depends on your PC)
Transferring Music to the MD Recorder
There are two applications that you can use to transfer music to the MD recorder, Sonic Stage 2.0 or Simple Burner 2.0. To me using Sonic Stage 2.0 was clumsy. The software itself isn't all that great. But Sony did make some improvements to it. Like eliminating the checkout and check ins. And also allowing microphone recordings to be uploaded via USB. Transfer times seems no different to me than my Sony MZ-N707 NetMD unit.
Personally, I think it's too clunky to use and it is something that any PC user must learn in order to get the most out of it. I even sometimes still forget how to use it or seem a little confused by it at times. And I been using NetMD since it's introduction.
For those of you who do not like the idea of saving .OMG files to the HD or worried about running out of storage, you can use Simple Burner 2.0. This software allows you to copy a CD to MD or Hi-MD directly without saving any files to your HD. I simply love this version of Simple Burner. This version allows you to record in Hi-SP, unlike the previous version, where the user can only transfer in LP2 and LP4 modes. There are three recording modes to choose from. They are as follows: Hi-SP, Hi-LP, and the lowly 48kbps bitrates.
Recording via PCM mode
The Sony MZ-NHF800 allows the user to record in an uncompressed format called PCM or Pulse Code Modulation. This is a high resolution recording format that is of very high quality. The only downside of recording via PCM is that it takes up a lot of space on the disc.
I recorded a few tracks via optical in real time from Springsteen's Best of album. I uploaded the PCM recording of "Born in the USA".
It allowed me to upload it back into my PC, but won't allow me to transfer it to a CD. It gives me a message and says "Cannot create a CD because of copyright restrictions."
Microphone Recordings
With this unit you can also use it like a tape recorder. I recorded with the mic and here's what I found out. The recording was done using PCM mode and it has the same restrictions. I can upload it back to my PC but it won't let me burn it to a CD. It gives me the same message:
"Cannot create a CD because of copyright restrictions."
I also wanted to find out if it'll let me burn my own microphone recordings to CD if I didn't record with PCM, but with Hi-SP and here are my findings:
Just transferred microphone recordings recorded in Hi-SP, still no good. I get the same restrictions and the same message, "Cannot create a CD because of copyright restrictions."
So I don't see the point of allowing microphone uploading if you can't get it out of your PC again.
I guess I can see from Sony's POV with the restrictions with mic uploading. But if they want to put a dent on the market they have to ease up on some of the restrictions.
But since I'm not bothered by these restrictions, I still like the Hi-MD format. As long as I can get my songs onto a portable digital medium, I'm happy.
Using the MD recorder as an external drive
You can use the MD recorder as an external drive. You can save non-audio files such as .jpg, word documents, excel and other computer data. The Hi-MD Walkman appears as an external removable drive. You can not however defrag the MD unit, as you would defrag a regular drive. The MD recorder does not show up as an option to select.
Sound Quality
I was quite pleased with the sound quality of Hi-LP. The MZ-NHF800 has several sound enhancements that you can select to enhance your listening pleasure. I have not yet used Hi-SP but will do so sometime in the future.
Battery Life
It seems that the radio part sucks up most of the battery life. I have used a battery for 3 days and it's already on it's last bar. However the battery is still good. Sony has already noted this in the manual.
The Remote Control
As usual, Sony's radio MD units are housed into the remote control. The remote control is simply better than my MZ-G750's radio remote. For one thing, the remote's LCD screen displays the track title and also the track number. Or you can have it display the tracks elapsed time, but not both.
Unfortunately, there is no back lighting on the MZ-NHF800 remote or on the MD recorder itself.
The remote control allows you to control basic functions like PLAY, REW, FF, STOP, Radio ON/OFF, radio presets, sound enhancement, volume, group folder selection, HOLD, AM/FM, TV, Weather Bands Selection and play mode.
Radio Reception
Radio reception is decent depending on your locale. But for me it was coming in loud and clear.
Final Thoughts about the MZ-NHF800
I must say I am simply pleased with this machine. Sony still has its kinks to work out with the MD format, such as allowing direct playback of MP3 files. And the time it takes to convert it to ATRAC. Other than these issues I am quite happy with this unit and will continue to support the format.
