Topic: Korg MR-1

[guysonic]

My MR-1 shut down last night while in the bag.  Too hot I'm guessing.  Just wanted to let everyone know, a hot gear bag and MR-1 not a good idea.

If you 'have to' run inside an equipment bag where the gear gets excessively hot, I suggest leaving enough room inside to place a few of those soft freezer cooling pouches inside next to the gear (do not freeze these as this causes water condensation troubles).  The pouches act as a heat-sink and will delay the inside of the bag from fast rising temperatures caused by normal gear heat, and outside sun exposure.

[flintstone]

"...wouldn't movement out in the field be likely to damage the hard drive in the MR-1..."

The small hard drives used in music players are pretty durable.  There are millions of iPods and other music players in use with small hard drives, and they rarely experience disc failure.   Of course you need to take some precautions.  Don't drop the recorder, and stay away from the mosh pit if you're recording.   Don't set the recorder on a surface that vibrates with the music (or the dancing).

The MR-1's one-bit recording produces a prodigious data stream.  The 20GB drive in the MR-1 is sufficient to hold only about 7 hours of one-bit 2.88mHz recordings.  That's why a 4GB Compactflash card wouldn't work well as storage for a one-bit recorder.

Flash memory has three main advantages over a hard disc.  Flash memory is more durable, faster, and uses less electric power than a hard disc does.  Hard disc is cheaper per MB, and available in capacities larger than flash memory offers today.   

I saw a name-brand 16GB Compactflash card for about $105 after rebates from a reputable dealer this weekend.  As flash memory gets cheaper and available in larger capacities, I expect manufacturers of field recorders that use hard discs (e.g., Korg, Edirol R4) to switch over to flash memory for storage.  Future iPods and even laptops will switch to flash memory, too.

Flintstone

[Nick's Picks]

i've seen a handheld PC, or some sort of sub laptop (can't recall...I might have just read about it), that ran XP and had a 32gb flash based storage setup.
slick as shit.

[manamana]

I'm still convinced the HD can probably be replaced with an ata-CF adapter and 8 or 16GB CF card. still haven't seen pics of the insides of one though, so can't be sure.

If this recorder had fewer usability issues, I'd probably buy one and try it. but for now I'll wait for someone else to do DSD better.

[Nick's Picks]

what "usability issues" do you speak of?
I have no problem w/mine.  in fact, its a piece of cake to run, and reliable 100% thus far.

[mandoman]

what "usability issues" do you speak of?
I have no problem w/mine.  in fact, its a piece of cake to run, and reliable 100% thus far.

I'll second that question. Speaking from an mr-1000 point of view, it's been 100% reliable.
Wish I could say the same for that POS Microcrap and very unreliable CF media
I used to own...

[CC#]

   "usability issues"

   I asked the question based on some reviews I have read on the R-09/Microtrack, crappy battery lid, firmware updates on the
   microtrack would cause (some) units to "die" etc. etc. I realize the Mr-1 is a new unit out on the market and only time will tell
   on how the unit holds up.

   I decided to go ahead and purchase the Mr-1 yesterday, (couldnt wait anymore!). So far this little machine is very impressive!
   (Using the included mic) audio recorded in the DSD format sounds " A M A Z I N G ", (I cant wait to pair the Mr-1 with quality   
   mics/pre-amp!!).  Very happy!
 
   Thanks for the response!
   
   

[it-goes-to-eleven]

I'm still convinced the HD can probably be replaced with an ata-CF adapter and 8 or 16GB CF card. still haven't seen pics of the insides of one though, so can't be sure.

If this recorder had fewer usability issues, I'd probably buy one and try it. but for now I'll wait for someone else to do DSD better.

The MR1 is at a price point where I get much more concerned about quality and longevity than say the r09 @ $330ish...

So I agree about the unproven nature of the beast.  I am was disappointed in how the mr1000 was bungled in terms of gain structure, no hold button, etc so that (and my microtrack disappointment) makes me fairly cautious about the mr1.

Nobody has even gotten an eval unit to actually check the basic real world noise specs and gain structure in both pcm and dsd.. Hello Korg?  Send a unit to guysonic. Sheesh.

I'm still wondering about the conversion software and the various issues I've read.  Never really saw a resolution.  I also wonder.. How long has Korg committed to supporting the software?  Will they orphan it in a couple of years?

I'd like an r09 replacement that is closer to the 722 in sound... but so far not enough recordings have been released to answer that question..

[SClassical]

what "usability issues" do you speak of?
I have no problem w/mine.  in fact, its a piece of cake to run, and reliable 100% thus far.

I'll second that question. Speaking from an mr-1000 point of view, it's been 100% reliable.
Wish I could say the same for that POS Microcrap and very unreliable CF media
I used to own...

Yes the MR-1 is 100% reliable....My MT has drop-outs sometimes and channel exchange (left become right and vice versa) when recording digital in using the current firmware using a Kingston 8GB 45X card @ 24/96.

[Nick's Picks]

shit..
having gone through an MT, two R9s...the price point doenst bother me.
so far, this deck *smokes* those two in every area I have a concern with.
it sounds fantastic, is easy to use and is built like a tank comparred to either of those other two decks.

as far as real world tests go...i'm unconcerned.  plugging it in to measurement gear looking at wav forms in sofware is far from "real world" use ....at least in my world.
while that info is useful, I doesn't make me... or keep me from ... buying that product.

[manamana]

I was refering to lots of little things people have mentioned

-battery life
-heat/HD - I'd never put a HD device in half the scenarios I tape in. too hot and too bumpy.
-included software seems downright juvenile.
-the weak analog stage
-the charging issues
-if you format the drive settings get reset

basically, I agree that it sounds a bit better than the r-09, but I just can't see the MR-1 getting anywhere near the r-09 in terms of ease of use. Aside from the potential jack issue (which has a fix I'm happy with), I've found the r-09 nearly impossible to screw up. The MR-1 just has too many things that I think would annoy me.

I suspect there'll be a version 2 of both the MR-1 and MR-1000 in about a year. hopefully then...

[Nick's Picks]

the only thing the R9 has over it is battery life and ease w/the 2xAA approach.  but...that is until you break the little door to get in there.

the juvinile software...,  you've used?
weak analog stage?  huh?  where did  I miss that.
charging issues? 

[WiFiJeff]

the juvinile software...,  you've used?
weak analog stage?  huh?  where did  I miss that.
charging issues? 

I think there was an erroneous early report that the MR-1 would not charge if not turned on.  This is not true, it's just hard to tell it's charging.

The AudioGate software is usable but not good for conversions to pcm at 96kH or 192kH (okay at 48 or 44.1) because of hf noise left in.  I suppose this is what is meant.

Reliable word on the analog stage is not yet in.  I have seen no tests, but most have agreed it sounds good, which is a good start.

Jeff

[Nick's Picks]

this "hf noise" at resampling is something that is inaudiable, but visible in a wav form, (from what I understand).
i've done several DSD>24/96 conversions and they *sound* freakin' great. 

somtimes we see to loose touch w/that part of our hobbie.  that is, how things actualy sound...

[WiFiJeff]

It makes it very hard to edit the wav except by ear, and since we can't edit the dsd stream I think a fix is needed.  But I agree we can wait on this.  The only thing that keeps me from using the MR-1 as my main engine is that the Sonosax MiniR82 is such a freaking great machine. 

Jeff