The ultimate MD recorder! (Sony MD Walkman MZ-R900)

Member Name: Lakerskb8

Product:	Sony MD Walkman MZ-R900
Date:	26/02/01 (1646 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: MDLP, easy to use, good sound

Disadvantages: None I can find

I couldn't decide between the Panasonic SJ-MR200 and the Sony MZ-R900. I decided to go for the MZ-R900 because the sound quality was better and the people who invented the mini disc made it. When I first opened the box I loved the shape and design of the MZ-R900 straight away. I got it in silver because on the MD unit the back of the screen is blue unlike others, which are the average green colour. When you look at the MD there is a bump at the top of it around the screen, which looks bigger in most pictures, it looks nice in reality and gives the MD a character. The screen is a lot smaller when compared to other MD units but this does not change a thing, all the information you need can be seen clearly and is not cramped. Since the screen is very long in width you can see a lot more of the scrolling track title when compared to narrow screens on other MD units. The manual that comes with the MZ-R900 is quite large so I only read how to record onto an MD and then skipped the rest. I put my blank MD in and away I was recording which was really easy to get to grips with (the manual gives an easy step by step guide). Sometimes when recording I found that it was hard to stop recording when a track ends and sometimes it went over into recording the following track. It didn't matter though because using the Jog dials on the left and right of the unit made deleting and editing tracks a breeze! The jog dial on the left controls the main functions, to use it you simply push it in to open the menu and then push up and down to scroll around the menu. When you find the category you want to enter you simply push the jog dial in and keep doing this till you get to where you want. EASY. The right jog dial controls play (push in), forward a track (push up) and back a track (push down). The jog dial also makes inputting track titles really easy. That’s it for the MD unit but the remote control on the headphones is another work of art! It is the best looking remote cont
rol I have ever seen with a Mini Disc recorder/player but really I wouldn't have expected anything less from Sony. The control is shaped as a cylinder and the screen is curved to follow this shape (the screen is backlit in a diamond blue colour). On the top of the screen are 5 buttons, which can be used to control everything on the MD unit apart from the recording function. At the end of the control is a twisty knob thing. You twist it up go forward a track of fast-forward a track and twist it backwards to move back a track or rewind it. Another amazing thing about this knob is that if you pull it out you the controls change so that now twisting it up turns up the volume and twisting down decreases the volume! Clever isn't it. What I liked about the MZ-R900 is that you can have 8 treble settings and 8 bass settings which means 8x8 = 64 so you can have 64 different sound settings all of which do not distort the sound through the headphones, maximum bass did not make the earphones vibrate like other MD units on the market which is good as this improves the sound quality. The build quality is excellent but the open switch to take the MD out of the main unit rattles sometimes and some people may find the buttons on the main MD unit a bit to small (I think they are fine). There is a clip on the back of the remote control, which is really strong so it shouldn't come off when you are on a jog or something. There is also a leather case which comes with the MZ-R900 although it isn't exactly the best one I have seen, it is a bit too big for the MD unit anyway, leave it and show off the fantastic design of the MD unit to your mates! The MZ-R900 was the model to replace the MZ-R90/91. As there were many complaints with them (eg motor noise) Sony fixed all the problems and brought the MZ-R900, to me the best MD recorder out there.

I have said everything about the MZ-R900 and you may be thinking what is so special? Why did this guy buy it? Well now I'
;ll tell you. Sony have used a new technology in the MD world called MDLP which is Mini Disc Long Play which works like the long play mode on a VCR. There are 2 long play modes, LP2 and LP4 as well as the standard version used by most MD units. What MDLP does is that it gives you the ability to record twice as much version onto a mini disc in LP2 format and four times as much in LP4 format, so in LP4 you could record 4 full albums onto 1 MD! This does save money on buying expensive blank discs. Sony in the manual say that in LP4 occasionally the sound is slightly distorted but if that happens you can easily record in the more reliable LP2. That is why I got it and I think that would swing it for most people (it did for me!).

The optical digital cable is supplied but if you are planning to record form a portable CD player then a different cable is required.

You can't really fault the MZ-R900 and I would recommend this product to everyone even though it is expensive but you do get your moneys worth!

Summary: