Just for public info -
I've done a small handful of MD-to-CD-to-Computer transfers, and it's
gone very well. I'd definitely recommend it as a way to get MD into
the computer with track IDs intact, and creating an additional backup
(audio CD) along the way. My notes below. Feel free to repost
anywhere.
Hookup:
MD deck SPDIF out (I used coax, did not test optical) to HHB BurnIT
CDR-830 CD recorder deck. HHB in "Synchro All Final" mode which reads
track IDs incoming from SPDIF and increments the track ID on the CD,
and automatically finalizes the CD at the end of the pass.
Gear:
I've tried two MD decks: the professional player Sony MDS-84P and
consumer Sony MDS-JB920 and both have performed very well. I compared
the output of both, and to the output of EDL software transfers
performed by Aaron Ximm.
- Sony MDS-84P
- Sony MDS-JB920
- HHB BurnIT CDR-830 CD recorder deck
NOTE: Sony MDS-84P DOES NOT DO MONO CORRECTLY. If your discs have
sections of mono material on them, the 84P will output them as double
speed distorted stereo. The JB920 plays mono correctly. Note: mono
can increase the length of your playout, possibly making it longer
than the 80 minutes which can fit on a CD.
Listening:
- 84P vs 920 reverse phase test: Two are almost identical; tiny
"crystalline" artifacts present in comparison. I don't hear traces of
source recording in these artifacts, so I suspect they're not
important and the output of the two decks is for listening purposes
essentially identical. (suspect a difference in ATRAC codec version)
- 84P vs EDL conversion - audible differences here. EDL material
shows significant reduction of high frequencies. In phase-test, lots
of program material evident in difference file. This deserves further
exploration - to my knowledge no processing was applied, but the
EDLpro files are old and maybe I remember wrongly. On EDL material,
I hear more artifacting in mid / hi mid frequencies on wide-band
material like wind. I hear the artifacting in the 84P and 920 too,
but less... it may be that it's masked by greater amount of hi freq
information.
- 84P DOES NOT DO MONO correctly. Mono-recorded MD material comes
out terribly distorted and speed doubled. It's read as if it's
stereo.
Hope this helps those of you wanting to transfer MDs!
-jeremiah moore
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