The introduction of the MZ-RH1 allowed users to freely move uncompressed digital recordings back and forth from the MiniDisc to a computer without the copyright protection limitations previously imposed upon the NetMD series. This allowed the MiniDisc to better compete with HD recorders and MP3 players. However, most pro users like broadcasters and news reporters had already abandoned MiniDisc in favor of solid-state recorders, because of their long recording times, open digital content sharing, high-quality digital recording capabilities and reliable, lightweight design.
On 1 February 2013, Sony issued a press release on the Nikkei stock exchange that it would cease shipment of all MD devices, with last of the players to be sold in March 2013. However, it would continue to sell blank discs and offer repair services.[2] Other manufacturers continued to release their own MiniDisc players long after Sony stopped, with TEAC & TASCAM producing new decks up until 2020 when both its consumer and professional products, TEAC MD-70CD and TASCAM MD-CD1MKIII, were discontinued.[14]
The disc is permanently housed in a cartridge (68Ã72Ã5 mm) with a sliding door, similar to the casing of a 3.5" floppy disk. This shutter is opened automatically by a mechanism upon insertion into a drive. MiniDiscs can either be recordable (blank) or premastered. Recordable MiniDiscs use a magneto-optical system to write data: a laser below the disc heats a spot to its Curie point, making the material in the disc susceptible to a magnetic field. A magnetic head above the disc then alters the polarity of the heated area, recording the digital data onto the disk. Playback is accomplished with the laser alone: taking advantage of the magneto-optic Kerr effect, the player senses the polarization of the reflected light and thus interprets a 1 or a 0. Recordable MDs can be rerecorded repeatedly, with Sony claiming up to one million times. By May 2005, there were 60-minute, 74-minute and 80-minute discs available. 60-minute blanks, which were widely available in the early years of the format's introduction, were phased out and are now rarely seen.
All consumer-grade MiniDisc devices feature a copy-protection scheme known as Serial Copy Management System. An unprotected disc or song can be copied without limit, but the copies can no longer be digitally copied. However, as a concession to this the most recent Hi-MD players can upload to PC a digitally recorded file which can subsequently be resaved as a WAV (PCM) file and thus replicated.
The latest versions of Sony's ATRAC are ATRAC3 and ATRAC3plus. Original ATRAC3 at 132 kbit/s (also known as ATRAC-LP2 mode) is the format that used to be used by Sony's now-defunct Connect audio download store. ATRAC3plus was not used in order to retain backwards compatibility with earlier NetMD players.
MiniDisc has a feature that prevents disc skipping under all but the most extreme conditions. Older CD players had once been a source of annoyance to users as they were prone to mistracking from vibration and shock. MiniDisc solved this problem by reading the data into a memory buffer at a higher speed than was required before being read out to the digital-to-analog converter at the standard rate required by the format. The size of the buffer varies by model.
A buffer of at least six seconds is required on all MiniDisc players, be they portable or stationary full-sized units. This is needed to ensure uninterrupted playback in the presence of disc fragmentation.
The data structure and operation of a MiniDisc is similar to that of a computer's hard disk drive. The bulk of the disc contains audio data, and a small section contains the table of contents (TOC), providing the playback device with vital information about the number and location of tracks on the disc. Tracks and discs can be named. Tracks may easily be added, erased, combined and divided, and their preferred order of playback modified. Erased tracks are not actually physically erased at the time, but are marked as deleted. When a disc becomes full, the recorder can simply slot track data into sections where erased tracks reside. This can lead to some fragmentation but unless many erasures and replacements are performed, the only likely problem is excessive searching, reducing battery life.
Recording from an analogue source resulted in a disc marked "protected" and "original" allowing one further copy to be made (this contrasts with the SCMS on the Digital Compact Cassette where analogue recording was marked as "unprotected").
MD Data, a version for storing computer data, was announced by Sony in 1993 but never gained significant ground. Its media were incompatible with standard audio MiniDiscs, which has been cited as one of the main reasons behind the format's failure.[citation needed] MD Data can not write to audio MDs, only the considerably more expensive data blanks. It did see some success in a small number of multi-track recorders such as Sony's MDM-X4, Tascam's 564 (which could also record using standard audio MD discs, albeit only two tracks), and Yamaha's MD8, MD4, & MD4S.
The bitrate of the standard SP mode is 292 kbit/s, and it uses separate stereo coding with discrete left and right channels. LP2 mode uses a bitrate of 132 kbit/s and also uses separate stereo coding. The last mode, LP4, has a bitrate of 66 kbit/s and uses joint stereo coding. The sound quality is noticeably poorer than the first two modes, but is sufficient for many uses.
NetMD is a proprietary protocol, and it is currently impossible to use it without proprietary software, such as SonicStage. Thus, it cannot be used with non-Windows machines. A free *nix based implementation, libnetmd, has been developed. In 2019 a coder named Stefano Brilli compiled the linux-minidisc CLI into a web browser-based application,[17] allowing users to transfer music via USB to modern devices.[18] The libnetmd allows the user to upload SP files in full quality.
The format experienced a golden age with the introduction of MDLP (special ATRAC codecs that allowed users to fit more music on a MiniDisc), but its popularity faded quickly once large capacity hard-drive/flash music players (e.g. iPods) rose to prominence starting in the early part of last decade. Consumers also lost faith in the format due to Sony's clunky MiniDisc music management softwareSonicStage (and also the dreaded Connect Player). Sony tried to curb the mass exodus with the introduction of the 1GB Hi-MD format, a scaled-up version of the original technology, with little success.
Currently, the only portable MiniDisc unit still in production is the MZ-RH1. In contrast, when MiniDisc was most dominant in the marketplace, Sony was launching up to half a dozen (or more) new MiniDisc players and recorders each year with incredible features that some portable music players still lack to this day.
CD players haven't quite increased in demand in the way turntables have, but there are manufacturers who still produce dedicated disc spinners (at both budget and high-end prices) for CD fans and audiophiles alike. Many new all-in-one systems are starting to feature CD players alongside streaming starts, too.
More premium players will have better DAC chips and internal components, fewer errors and also support different optical disc formats (SACD alongside standard CD, CD-R, CD-RW, for instance). Some CD players even pack in wireless and streaming tech to turn your CD player into an all-in-one media system, and include a USB port so you can play 24-bit high-resolution files. It's up to you whether you want the extra features (which can be more expensive) or stick with a solid disc-spinner that will do the job well.
The other thing to consider is if you need an integrated CD player (one with a DAC built-in) or a CD transport (no DAC inside). Transports such as the Cambridge Audio CXC will need to use either a standalone DAC or the one in your stereo amplifier to handle the digital-to-analogue conversion before the sound reaches your speakers. The upshot of a CD transport? It puts all its concentration and skills on reading the CD disc. The downside is you'll need to make sure you buy or already have an appropriately skilled DAC to connect it to.
Or you can simply pick the player that's most closely aligned with your budget, system and preferred functionality. Do you prefer slot-loading or a disc tray? Does it have a display that can be read easily at a distance? Do you need Bluetooth, or do you have a large collection of SACDs that needs some love? Remember to set your budget according to the demands of the rest of your system.
Despite being around for nearly a decade, the Roksan Caspian M2 CD is still going strong. It remains one of the best players at Â2000 (around $2700, AU$3700). The M2 CD has an immensely solid, well-damped feel that suggests it will be working for years to come. The softly suspended CD transport is an unusual touch, but it minimises the amount of vibration fed in to and out of the mechanism to the benefit of performance.
Ergonomically, you can't argue with it. The precision controls and the silky smooth disc drawer feel top notch, even if it's a little squished up to one side for aesthetics. Likewise, the software for the streaming control isn't the best we've seen but it definitely gets the job done.
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