Say HI to MD! (Sony Hi-MD Walkman MZ-NH700)

Member Name: otalgia

Product:	Sony Hi-MD Walkman MZ-NH700
Date:	06/08/08 (426 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Small and lightweight recorder and player

Disadvantages: Limited record time and no support for MP3

Introduction
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The MZ-NH700 is a portable Hi-MD minidisk recorder and player from Sony.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Hi-MD format, the Hi-MD disc is the same dimension as a standard minidisk but has greater storage capacity.

The minidisk player has been with us a long time and was the natural predecessor to the Sony Walkman. That said, with the invention of MP3 and growing popularity of micro MP3 players the minidisk market has gone into gradual decline.

So the question is - "Why would I buy one of these?"

Well firstly as the unit uses a removable disc then you can store infinite amounts of LP's in Sony's Atrac format (a compressed format that is similar to MP3). Each Hi-MD disc will hold up to 45 CD's worth of tracks.

Secondly, and more importantly the unit is capable of recording in uncompressed CD quality for around 74 minutes per disc. To record you will require an external microphone (the Sony ECM-719 is a good partner for this unit).
If you are a journalist, musician, field recorder or journalist then this recorder is highly useful considering its small size and good battery life. This leads me nicely into a description of the item itself.


The recorder in detail
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The minidisk recorder comes in a cardboard box and contains the player, a fabric carrying pouch, headphones, remote, power adaptor, manual and software CD containing Sonic Stage software (which is required to manage the contents of the disc).

The first thing you will notice is that the player is extremely lightweight.

The unit is less than 4 inches square and has a brushed aluminium appearance, though actually it's made of plastic. I have dropped mine several times, and despite a few scuff marks the player has remained fully functional. The player can be found in all siver or silver an blue colours.

The front has an LCD display (regrettably not backlit), a jog wheel, and four buttons to control menu and playback controls. The menu system is intuitive and options are grouped into sensible headings. For example to wipe and format a disc there is a menu item named 'Useful' where the format option can be found. Most of the time the main menu will be avoided as playing a disc is a simple as inserting it and then pressing the play button on the front of the unit. My biggest bugbear is the lack of backlight on the LCD. This can prove a real pain if you are using the unit at night. I often have used the light of my mobile phone as a torch to illuminate the display.

The back of the unit has a battery compartment that takes a single AA battery to power the unit. Battery life can vary depending on whether you are using the unit for playback or recording. As a rough guide on a standard high capacity battery I got about 5 hours playback and about 2 hours of recording.

The top of the unit has a slide button to open the drive tray which mucks a rather flimsy click noise when opened, though I have had no problems in the couple of years I've owned the recorder.

The side of the unit has the headphone connector and microphone inputs, plus a USB connector for transferring tracks to and from your computer. The headphone socket uses a special connector for the supplied remote, which enables you to change playback tracks on the player without having to access the player itself. The cover for the USB connector is a little flimsy and can often unexpectedly pop out!

The player uses Sony's Sonic Stage software to transfer tracks back and for between the PC and player. The software also can convert your CD's into Sony's proprietary Atrac format which is a compressed format similar to MP3 and allows lots of tracks to be stored onto a single Hi-MD. It is also worth noting that the player can also play standard minidisks too. The Sonic Stage software is easy to use, though transferring large files can take ages.

The sound quality of playback of the unit is comparable to your standard MP3 players on the market. The unit does make a slight rumble noise when the discs are playing but you cannot hear this when using the headphones. The volume is loud and the headphones supplied are adequate though better ones can be bought to improve the listening experience.

Recording on the unit, with a decent microphone yields excellent results. I have used the unit to record band rehearsals and quiet conference meetings and both have come out undistorted and the clarity is impressive. The restrictiveness of only being able to record 74 minutes can prove a problem if you are recording a lengthy performance. During a 2 hour concert I had to change the disc between songs, which was not ideal.
Overall the sound quality in both recording and playback is great. The unit provides plug in power to a microphone which means that you do not need to put a battery in your microphone as the minidisk will provide this power for you.

The carrying pouch is a little felt swag bag that is quaint but unlikely to get used much. Sony sell an arm mounted carrier for this unit which is much more useful for both recording and playing back tracks whilst on the move. It is essential if you are a jogger!

My conclusion
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When minidisks were released they were a welcome step away from the unreliability and fragility of the cassette tape. The ability to jump straight to a track without having to fast forward or rewind was a godsend. Regrettably the nail in the coffin for the minidisk was the advent of the MP3 format and the decreasing cost of storage media. Nowadays it is cheaper to buy a high capacity MP3 player than a minidisk and individual discs. The MP3 player also means that you don't need to carry a library of discs around with you. It's a shame, as the player is very good quality and easy to use. The player's redeeming feature is its recording capability (albeit with the requirement to purchase a quality microphone); though again a lot of the newer MP3 players are now incorporating digital recorders into their arsenal too.
So to round off, a good unit for its era that is now sadly in decline.

Price and availability
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This unit is out issue though can be bought for around £50 from eBay or Amazon marketplace at the time of writing.

Copyright M. Jones (Otalgia) 5th August 2008

Summary: A good minidisc player and recorder for its era

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