JVC XM-R70SL: A great MD player!
Written: Jul 31 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Extremely compact digital format. Durable aluminum casing.
Cons: More expensive than MP3 players.
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| jkwong520's Full Review: JVC XM-R70SL Personal MiniDisc Player |
When MD player/recorders first came out about 10 yrs ago, I thought that the technology was neat, but unpractical. The prices were astronomical and the prerecorded MDs were very expensive and the selection small.
Since then, prices have dropped, the technology has improved and the marketers have finally realized that it's potential was in recording music from CDs and not buying prerecorded MDs.
Why I Bought It:
I first saw a MD player/recorder about a year ago. A college friend of mine had a friend buy him one while he was in Japan. It was sleek and small, so I knew I had to take a closer look.
As far as portable formats go, there are several: CD, tape and now the MP3 player. I had a AIWA walkman, but it was clunky and after a few drops, the music fades in and out and is no longer reliable. I also had a portable CD player, but it broke one day for no particular reason (never dropped), and I decided that CD players were just too fragile for me. At the time, the only MP3 player was the Diamond Rio, and it was very expensive. So, I took a look at MDs.
I bought my MD recorder last winter (11/99) on uBid for $190 (listed for over $300), and it was one of my best buys yet! I chose this one over the ones from Sony since similar Sony models were more expensive. The XM-R70SL can do everything the Sony can, will cost less, and is almost as small as the smallest Sony one.
After months of use, it's held up wonderfully and has proved to be one of the best portable formats around. Here are the reasons:
1. Smaller than walkmans. It will easily fit in a pocket and internal
memory will afford 40s of skip protection.
2. It's digital. Skip to a track just like CDs, no more analog rewind/ffw
like tapes.
3. Battery power. Small battery that lasts for about 8 hours per 2 hour charge. Comes with rechargeable lithium-ion battery. A much better system than plugging in NiCads into portable CD players/walkmans. You can also use attach a battery pack to the unit, but I get enough battery life without it.
Pros:
The only real reason why you would consider a minidisc player/recorder is its portability. Drop the unit into your jean's pocket, clip the remote to your shirt and you're off! Like nearly all the MD recorders on the market, the remote is standard. You can do nearly all the operations with the remote as with the main unit except for recording/editing functions.
The JVC-R70SL has random/random repeat (track determined at random)/repeat track/repeat entire MD in addition to the standard playback.
Recording is a breeze, but just be forewarned that, like most recording devices, that the quality of the recording depends on what source equipment you have. The JVC MD recorder is flexible in that it allows you to choose from several input sources: analog (standard RCA cables), mic, and optical (digital). My first two recordings were done using analog inputs, and they came out well as long as the recording sound level was set properly. If the recording sound level is set too low, you can't hear the music, and if you set it too high, there WILL BE DISTORTION. However, the unit has a little meter that tells you if you're in the correct range.
Recording via a optical connection was the easiest and the best way. In analog, (if your recording from a CD), your source converts the digital information into analog signals which is fed into the MD recorder. The MD recorder than filters the analog signal (compression/truncation) and then records it digitally. With all the processes going on, it easy to see how sound quality will be degraded depending on the quality of your DA, AD and ATRAC (minidisc filtering system). When using the optical input, the signal stays in the digital domain and the results are much cleaner! Most CD players and shelf systems will have an optical port.
Once recorded properly, the sound quality is fantastic! It will rival your portable CD player as far as clarity and range go, and it will easily surpass your walkman. The bass is clear and the percussion is resonant. The only way you're going to be able to tell the difference from a CD is to use high-end equipment in a studio/home theater setting, and even then, it's still excellent.
CONS:
Unlike the ad photos, the LCD readout from the unit is not backlit. It's not a big deal since you will use the remote more often anyway, but just to let you know....
The minidisc/MP3 debate. Take a look at www.minidisc.org to see how the
portability of MP3 players may give minidiscs a run for the portable audio market. One of the articles at the site gives the edge to the minidisc (latest ATRAC version), but either will satisfy any travelling music lover. Plus, recording MDs will be the same in 5 years as it is now. You
won't need additional hardware like MP3 players (computers and their OS change every few years) and minidiscs are cheap compared to flash cards used in MP3 players.
Not very widespread in the US. Minidisc technology has taken off in Europe and in Japan, but it's still fairly new in the US market. However, you can easily connect it to a home system setup for those times that you want to listen to the music at home w/o using headphones (same way as plugging in a portable CD player).
Can't make MD to MD copies. This is true for any MD player/recorder. It was built that way to limit piracy. It's a small annoyance since I only know of one other person who has a MD player and we don't trade music, but it's probably one of the biggest reasons why MDs have not received as much flak as MP3s (Napster, etc.).
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
jkwong520
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Member: Jonathan Wong
Reviews written: 2
Trusted by: 0 members
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