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Gear / Technical Help => Ask The Tapers => Topic started by: kidrocklive on June 25, 2006, 10:11:39 AM

Title: can minidiscs ever go bad?
Post by: kidrocklive on June 25, 2006, 10:11:39 AM

i.e. the data on them becomes lost somehow

Title: Re: can minidiscs ever go bad?
Post by: noahbickart on June 25, 2006, 10:27:06 AM

Folks may find this answer snooty, but MDs strart out bad. ATRAC is *lossy* compression which means that data is intentionally thrown away.

That being said, MDs are optical discs so yes, then can (and will) go bad.

-Noah

Title: Re: can minidiscs ever go bad?
Post by: kidrocklive on June 25, 2006, 10:33:07 AM

Quote from: noahbickart on June 25, 2006, 10:27:06 AM

Folks may find this answer snooty, but MDs strart out bad. ATRAC is *lossy* compression which means that data is intentionally thrown away.

That being said, MDs are optical discs so yes, then can (and will) go bad.

-Noah

I already knew the lossy part, but is there anyway to keep it from "losing" anymore data? Maybe not completely or forever but to just try and make it last longer.

Title: Re: can minidiscs ever go bad?
Post by: Zaphod on June 25, 2006, 10:45:29 AM

Sure there are crucial (not sure what exactly) parts that can and do fail. If your MD is not writing the TOC properly then I'd say its time for a new one.

nevermind I thought you were referring to a recorder, not a disc..

I suppose a disc could definetly fail.

Title: Re: can minidiscs ever go bad?
Post by: Javier Cinakowski on June 25, 2006, 10:50:10 AM

An MD or HiMD can in theory be recorded on more than 1million times.   Just like a regular CD, don't leave the MD on your car dash board in 100 degree heat. 

Title: Re: can minidiscs ever go bad?
Post by: kidrocklive on June 25, 2006, 10:54:45 AM

Quote from: windorabug on June 25, 2006, 10:50:10 AM

An MD or HiMD can in theory be recorded on more than 1million times.   Just like a regular CD, don't leave the MD on your car dash board in 100 degree heat. 

haha too true

Title: Re: can minidiscs ever go bad?
Post by: sunjan on June 30, 2006, 03:31:55 PM

Quote from: kidrocklive on June 25, 2006, 10:33:07 AM

I already knew the lossy part, but is there anyway to keep it from "losing" anymore data? Maybe not completely or forever but to just try and make it last longer.

Transfer the data to archive media instead, the sooner the better.

I guess for long term storage, dry climate paired with stable temperatures is your best bet.

The biggest risk with MD is that the TOC gets corrupt, which jeopardizes the entire disk. No access to the data, even if the recording is still there physically. Happened to me after one gig (Orbital at Roskilde Festival 1999, someone poured a mug of water over my gearbag). The recording was gone gone gone.
After that I moved to lossless. ;-)


/Jan

Title: Re: can minidiscs ever go bad?
Post by: dunebug81 on June 30, 2006, 03:41:24 PM

If stored properly MDs should last for many many years.  Ive got some MDs that are coming on up 10 years old and they still work fine.  There was a study done that tested the lifespan of the disc.

http://forums.minidisc.org/index.php?showtopic=15932

Sunjan, you can recover the TOC so you can get your MD to play again.  I would offer my services but I no longer have a MD that will do a TOC clone.