Peter Ravn's MiniDisc page

U-TOC: [Super undo function] [Entering test mode] [TOC cloning] [Rescue an all erased disc] [Prolonging playtime on blank discs] [Prolonging disc playtime on old MD's] [Prolong disc playtime for later use] [Bypassing SCMS] [Using the pitch for extended playtime] [Minidisc calculator] [Links, manuals etc.]

Peter Ravn's MiniDisc page

Hacks, tips and tricks on Sony MD units...

Visit the U.S. National Debt Clock

Welcome to my MiniDisc page!

I will try to gather many resources and list some tips that can make the MiniDisc use even more fun and enjoyable. The page is intended for use by experienced Sony MD deck owners. Beginners start here.

Comments and questions are welcome.

Regards,
Peter Ravn,
Copenhagen Aug. 31, 1999. SPAM preventer

News!

December 03, 2008: Error in link corrected.
March 29, 2006: Next recorder will be the MZ-NH1 - see MDcenter.nl
February 19, 2006: Added 192 kbps mode on the Hi-MD planner
January 30, 2006: Added 352 kbps mode on the Hi-MD planner
February 15, 2005: How to enter testmodes on Hi-MD portables added (see first black box below...)
September 22, 2004: Interesting article on gapless playback which is my number 1 reason for why I am using MiniDiscs.
September 17, 2004: Interesting news - Fast uploads of PCM recordings from a Hi-MD portable now possible and soon more than 25.000 visits at the Hi-MD planner!
August 20, 2004: Just got a Hi-MD unit, the NHF800 !!
August 11, 2004: Hi-MD portables can now be bought many places - still no blanks however :-( and the Hi-MD planning calculator are now updated with actual data from different users making it operate with a higher precision and some more userfriendly services added. Try it out!
February 13, 2004: The Hi-MD planning calculator now also includes 132, 105, 66 and 48 kbps bitrates.
January 14, 2004: A dedicated Hi-MD planning calculator is now ready and includes the standard Hi-MD recording modes: PCM, Hi-SP and Hi-LP. Try it!

January 8, 2004: Waiting over! Sony introduces Hi-MD 1 GB blanks with almost 8 hours playtime (Hi-SP)! Follow the news on MDCP and/or try the minidisc calculator which now also handles Hi-MD!

Some specifications found on http://www.sony.co.jp/Products/Hi-MD/ :

Hi-MD Recording modes	Play/ record length on a 80 min. standard disc (Hi-MD re-formatted from 177 to 305MB - will not play in old units)	Play/ record length on a 1 GB Hi-MD
PCM (=CD quality)	28 min.	1 h. 34 min.
Hi-SP (=Atrac3plus 256 kbps)	2 h. 20 min.	7 h. 55 min.
Hi-LP (=Atrac3plus 64 kbps)	10 h. 10 min.	34 h.
Atrac3 132 kbps (LP2)	4 h. 50 min.	16 h. 30 min.
Atrac3 105 kbps	6 h. 10 min.	20 h. 50 min.
Atrac3 66 kbps (LP4)	9 h. 50 min.	32 h. 50 min.
Atrac3plus 48 kbps	13 h. 30 min.	45 h.
Atrac 292 kbps (SP)	2 h. 19 min. (calculated- see note)	About 7h 30 min. See note

Note: Still no accurate information on the standard playmode (Atrac 292 kbps) used on the old units other that the pressrelease (see Hi-MD link above) indicates play and recording of old discs....and a machine translation of http://www.sony.jp/CorporateCruise/Press/200401/04-0108/ also indicates that SP recording is possible...

January 5, 2004: Waiting for Sony news at the CES 2004...
Press conference planned Jan. 7...
December 2, 2002: Now also published: How to restore default settings on Sony MZ-Rxx series MD recorders - in case the test mode made your unit defective.
November 25, 2002: Wild hack making it possible to add R900 functions onto R500, R700 and G750 Sony portables!
September 2, 2002: New Sony MD units: MZ-E10, -N10 and LAM-Z10 (japanese text) - English Babelfish machine translation
March 6, 2002:
The minidisc calculator has been made more userfriendly check it out!
January 3, 2002:
- Read Brian Youn's review of the first NetMD unit - the Sony MZ-N1
- The minidisc calculator has been updated and now includes LP2/LP4 modes
August 30, 2001: Brian Youn's impressive review of the new portable recorder Sony MZ-R909
June 27, 2001: Sony announces high speed ATRAC downloading to Minidisc - Net MD
Feb. 22, 2001: First impressions of a Sony MZ-G750
May 23, 2000: Test modes for Sony portable recorders added
Mar. 23, 2000: Test modes on more Sony units (again!) - see below
Feb. 25, 2000: I recommend the Philips SBC RU880 if you need a universal remote and/or a timer
Feb. 17, 2000: Test modes on more Sony units - see below

Some Positive Feedback!
Peter,
I love you!!! The recovery worked on the MDS-JE330, and you can post that on your site. I bought the '330 for $125 at Best Buy (open box special).
Sony told me there was no way to recover it. You made it happen.
Many thanks for saving me from my own stupidity,
Steve Waterhouse

......Sheldon Brown wrote:
I was seriously bummed. I recalled seeing something linked to Minidisc.org about TOC cloning, so I went there, and thence to your page: http://ravn.net/md/...
... to make a long story short, you saved my bacon! I followed your instructions, on my Sony MDS-JE630 deck, and it worked like a charm!
Thank you so much for providing this info!
Johannes Lindvall wrote:
Twice you have saved me now! I am very grateful.

Tips and tricks on Sony decks:

The tips on how to upgrade discs and to upgrade for later use have I found out by myself - the other tips have I found mainly from MDCP.

Test modes on compact units

Disclaimer
I hereby reject any liability or responsibility, whatsoever, for consequences resulting from the use of this information. This includes, but is not limited to, damage to your equipment, to your data, to other equipment and to other data.

Several have asked about service mode (test mode) on compact units, often I couldn't help - but now I found out the following (all Sony models)- please beware of possible risks.

Highlight area with mouse to read text! Remember entering test mode can harm your unit:

MDS-EX880: Switch on the System select MD Function, release any Disk "there must be shown "No Disk" on the Display) then Press the Buttons Stop + MD1 + Display.

HCD-MD515 (DHC-MD515): Switch on the System select MD Function, release any Disk "there must be shown "No Disk" on the Display) then Press the Buttons DBFB + Dimmer + MD Eject

DHC-MD373: Switch on the System select MD Function, release any Disk "there must be shown "No Disk" on the Display) then Press the Buttons: Switchoff (stby) + Stop(MD) + Rec. -> To change the test menu points you have to use the Remote Commander!

HCD-MD5: Put the HCD-MD5 into Stby mode then press the following buttons: Hold down PresetEQ + Groove and then press the Function Key.

MDS-EX77: Unplug the power cord, hold Rec button down and plug in the power cord (I'm unsured it could be CD-Sync Button, too)

MDS-MD1: Unplug the power cord, hold Play button down and plug in the power cord.

MDS-101: Unplug the power cord, hold Play + Playmode buttons down and plug in the power cord

HCD-MD1EX/HCD-MD1DX (known as Piccollo MD and Piccolo Piano): In Standby mode Press the buttons Rewind (|<< <<) + Vol -

MXD-D3: unplug power cord and press AMS + Stop at the MD Deck side then plug in the power cord.

HCD-MD313 (DHC) and HCD-MD333 (DHC): Press Playmode + Play(MD) while plug in Power cord

MDS-MX1 : Press the Stop key while plug in Power Cord

MJ-L1 : In Standby Mode hold down Clock Set and Bass/Treble Key and then Press the MD (Function Button). At most of the Systems Service mode can be released by pressing repeat button, you don't need to unplug the power cord. But if the record function don't work correctly you have to unplug the powercord.

TOC Clonning on a Sony MXD-D400 CD/MD combo deck look at http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=8133

Test mode on portable recorders MZ-R55 -90 -91:
Set the Hold Key -> "Hold on"
While the normal mode with the display shows No Disc hold down the Play Key and press the following Keys:
FF + FF + Rev + Rev + FF + Rev + FF + Rev + Pause + Pause

Remove battery to exit test mode on portables...
See more in the Sony MZ-R90 service manual. Hi-MD portables (-NH1, NH600, NH700, NHF800, NH900): Set the Hold Key -> "Hold on"
Press "Group" button and hold it
Thend press the following keys:
FF + FF + Rev + Rev + FF + Rev + FF + Rev + Pause + Pause
Release "Group" button
More info: http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=7434 and http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=8157 (how to increase volume on Euro models)

I hope this helps somebody....Beware that it maybe NOT be possible to do TOC cloning tricks on compact units and portable recorders...

TOC
Super undo function	Entering test mode
TOC cloning	Rescue an all erased disc
Prolonging playtime on blank discs	Prolonging disc playtime on old MD's
Prolong disc playtime for later use	Bypassing SCMS
Using the pitch for extended playtime	Links, manuals etc.

Disclaimer
Below listed som hacking tips that I have performed on a Sony MDS-JB930 and -JE640. Most of the tricks works on many Sony units (some tricks will however not work on Sony portable recorders, JE510 and JE320 decks) . On other brands only a few will work. You might try them at your own risk. As it is of course a little risky to go beyond the limits in the MiniDisc specification. Remember there can be problems with playing those hacked long discs on some units...(among them Sony portables).

[TOC] Super Undo function by preventing TOC update: Press STOP for about 10 seconds - the "TOC" sign will disappear - eject the disc and turn off the unit. It works on older and newer units - including the new JB930. Read more here.
Method found by Dirk (dito@berlin.snafu.de).

[TOC] Entering test mode [See also above ]
In order to do many of the tricks we need to enter test mode (or service mode), this enables us to switch discs without the TOC is updated. Highlight area with mouse to read text! Remember entering test mode can harm your unit:

Unplug the unit
Hold and press the AMS button.
Plug in the unit while still pressing the AMS button
Release the AMS button.That's it!
To exit test mode - unplug and plug in without touching the AMS button.

Warning: Please exit test mode again fast do not use your deck in test mode as it can damage the deck and/or disc. Test mode is only used for swapping discs to perform the TOC cloning. Read about the risks here!

[ To enter test mode on other brands look here.]

Method found by Eric Woudenberg (see more here).

[TOC] TOC cloning
When you copying a disc would it be nice to transfer the tracktitles etc. It can be quite boring and timeconsuming to enter tracknames for 20 tracks...first copy the disk without track names etc. To clone the TOC do:
1. Insert the source disc
2. Enter test mode (see above)
3. Eject source disc
4. Insert disc that should have the source disc's TOC
5. Enter normal mode (plug off the unit and plug it in again)
6. Dirty the TOC (rename a track)
7. Eject disc to perform TOC update - Voila!
It is important to state that the source and target disk must be identical - the target disc must BE a clone of the source disc, because if they are different the TOC cloning will not work correctly on the target disc.
Method found by Martin Borus (see more here).
[TOC] Rescue an all erased disc. If you by accident have made an all erase can you save the music.
1. Make a disc with one long track filling the whole disc
2. Perform TOC cloning (see above): The TOC of the one long track disc cloned onto the ALL ERASED disc
3. Re-insert track marks and track titles on the disc.
Method found by Martin Borus (see more here and here).
[TOC] Making 60' and 74' discs play up to 66:16 (for 60 min. disc) and 80:16 or 80:38....
The actually length depend on the brand of the disc:
Brand Time

Axia 78:55

BASF 78:30

Hi-Space (coloured) 80:38

Maxell 80:16

Mmore 78:48

Sony Premium 78:50

TDK RXG 78:50

Samsung 78:52

Xeus 78:48

Xeus Wavy 78:42

The table will be updated frequently to cover more brands of discs - mail me your observations to !
1. Insert a blank 80 min. disc
2. Enter test mode (see above)
3. Eject disc
4. Insert 74 min disc
5. Enter normal play mode (plug off the unit and plug it in again)
6. Then record on the disc to the very end or at least beyond the 74:59 mark to get more space on your disc
Method found by R.M.Morri�n (see more here) and Tom Daniels (see more here).
Note: Instead of prolonging discs can you consider to buy a newer unit with MDLP (2x & 4x LP).
[TOC] Upgrade an 74 min disc to about 80 min. without destroying the TOC - this makes it possible to add up to 6 minutes on each MD in your excisting collection, without performing re-recording! You need your "old" recorded 74 min. disc and a blank standard 80 min. disc (80:59) to perform this operation.
1. Insert the 74 min. disc
2. Enter test mode (see above)
3. Eject disc
4. Insert the blank 80 min disc (a standard 80:59 disc)
5. Enter normal mode (plug off the unit and plug it in again)
6. Dirty the TOC until the unit recognize it's a 80 min disc - but not affecting the 74 min TOC. It should be sufficient just to rename a track.
7. Eject disc to perform TOC update (now you have the 74 min. TOC on your 80 min. disc)
8. Re-insert the 80 min. disc
9. Enter test mode
10. Eject disc
11. Insert the 74 min. disc
12. Enter normal mode (plug off the unit and plug it in again)
13. Now can you record beyond the 74:59 mark (depending on the brand of the disc - somewhere between 78:50 up to 80:38...)
14. Optional: Performing an "ALL ERASE" on the standard 80 min. disc - making the disc ready for normal use again....
Note: Instead of prolonging discs can you consider to buy a newer unit with MDLP (2x & 4x LP).
[TOC] Upgrade a 74 min. blank to about 80 min. for later use
1. Insert a 74 min. that is hacked to about 80 min. (see "Making 60' and 74' discs play up to 66:16 (for 60 min. disc) and 80:16 or 80:38.." above)
2. Enter test mode (see above)
3. Eject disc
4. Insert the blank 74 min. disc
5. Enter normal mode (plug off the unit and plug it in again)
6. Dirty the TOC (rename a track)
7. Eject disc (and store in a save place...)
8. When recording on the disc use the record overwrite function. If you perform an "ALL ERASE" the disc will return to 74:59...
Note: Instead of prolonging discs can you consider to buy a newer unit with MDLP (2x & 4x LP).
[TOC] Bypassing SCMS.
The SCMS (Serial Copy Management System) prevents more than 1 digital copy. If you have recorded a MD digitally from a source and you later want to copy that MD digitally - then SCMS will prevent you in doing that. To bypass the SCMS can you copy analog (greater loss of soundquality), get a unit that bypasses SCMS (like an older Sony MZ-R50 or a prof. unit), buy an electronic black box (copy bit eleminator -stripper...) that removes SCMS or you can follow these steps here:
1. You need of course 2 units, the source disc and 3 blank MD disc's
2. Take one of the blank discs and record it with one long track with an analog input. We call this disc *1*
3. Take another blank disc and TOC clone the source disc onto it - this is you safe copy of the TOC. This is disc *2*.
4. Now clone the TOC of disc *1* onto the source disc - now the source disc contains an TOC stating that the recording is analog thus allowing digital copying
5. Copy the source disc digitally to the last blank disc *3* (target disc)
6. Clone the TOC from disc *2* onto the source disc and disc *3* - now the trackindexes and names are restored - Important note: In order to use TOC cloning the source and target disc must be physical identical - meaning you can only do it if the source disk was recorded continously as one whole unit with no re-numbering etc. If that is not the case you must then manual name and divide tracks on the target disc (disc*3*)!
It would be a good idea to keep disc *1* to next time you want to copy discs digitally.
I was inspired by Martin Borus page about SCMS bypassing. Info on how to defeat SCMS on Sharp MS 701 portable by TOC cloning.
[TOC] Make longer disc by using the pitch functions (on JB920/930)
1. Play a minidisc at the highest pitch +12.5% and record it digitally (or analog) on a other unit.
2. Now you can get up 91 minutes on a 80' disc, but you must play the disc at pitch -11.1%! Therefore the disc is only useable on decks with pitch control.
3. You can repeat the process once more and get 102 minutes on a 80' disc, but each time you do it the compression increases also with 12.5%...and the time display is not that good anymore....
This method has some serious drawbacks: MD's can only be played on units with pitch, you need one or more dubbing procedures - it's timeconsuming and the audioquality are affected, the time display does not show the correct time anymore because playback is done with -xx.x% pitch.