100 Junk MDs - How many did I get working

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  • čas přidán 29. 10. 2021
  • You may remember that I bought one hundred used and untested MD portables from Japan (shown in this video • Too many MDs? ) I promised to make a follow up video showing how many I could get to work. Here it is. In this video I share a few tips as well as the odd lemon.
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  • Věda a technologie

Komentáře • 988

  • @Steakkiller
    @Steakkiller Před 2 lety +557

    When life gives you lemons, clean your Minidisc player 🍋

    • @CathyInBlue
      @CathyInBlue Před 2 lety +13

      Don't make life take the lemons back? Don't demand to see life's manager?

    • @Steakkiller
      @Steakkiller Před 2 lety +5

      @@CathyInBlue Nah.
      I'd probably just bake some lemon cake.
      Not gonna lie ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

    • @BLenz-114
      @BLenz-114 Před 2 lety +3

      @@CathyInBlue
      Oh I demand to see life's manager almost daily, but that guy's a wily one and hasn't made an appearance yet. Starting to wonder a bit . . . .

    • @lemoneer7474
      @lemoneer7474 Před rokem +3

      @@CathyInBlue Don’t have the scientists develop a lemon that can burn your house down?

  • @mal2ksc
    @mal2ksc Před 2 lety +167

    Any time you get a salvage rate over 50% from a total grab bag, you've done well.

    • @themlotproductions
      @themlotproductions Před 2 lety +5

      Yes, but at roughly £50 each it’s not quite a bargain!

    • @mal2ksc
      @mal2ksc Před 2 lety +10

      @@themlotproductions £50? I thought it worked out to more like £10 per working unit when it was all said and done, and a couple of the salvaged units are really nice recorders.

    • @LaurentiusTriarius
      @LaurentiusTriarius Před 2 lety +6

      I find them regularly at the recycling center and they pretty much all work, I also find 7/8th gen i7/i5 laptops that work. It's surprising how people don't care about outdated but perfectly fine tech stuff.

    • @mal2ksc
      @mal2ksc Před 2 lety +4

      @@LaurentiusTriarius At least MiniDisc requires actual discs which are kind of rare -- unlike that 7th/8th gen laptop, which isn't obsolete by any stretch. I'm typing this on a 3rd gen Celeron! I should hang around your recycling center and snag an upgrade or three.

    • @Jrodsly
      @Jrodsly Před 2 lety +1

      Indeed. I know Techmoan said not to buy these lots, but I'm still tempted by one of these lots. My Dad wants to split a lot with me at some point, so I want to try one out for fun.

  • @Gappasaurus
    @Gappasaurus Před 2 lety +244

    Me: “Perhaps Mat buying and repairing 100 MD players is just a bit too much?” 🤔
    Luther Vandross: 🎶 “Never too much, never too much, never too much…” 🎵

  • @stylesuxx
    @stylesuxx Před 2 lety +51

    Haha, back in the high times of MD I was working as a repair technician for Sony, you would not believe how many devices were sent in for repair and just had the hold button in the locked position - we even had a special card that explained what the hold button does :-D

  • @victorvangrimgamming6784
    @victorvangrimgamming6784 Před 2 lety +83

    SONY: "wow look at how many minidisc players are being bought amd how much buzz their is about minidisc. Perhaps it's makeing a comeback?"
    Matt: "today I'm cleaning 100 minidisc players"

  • @CBitsTech
    @CBitsTech Před 2 lety +73

    Lemon smells better than white vinegar! Good tip, thanks.

    • @johnqpublic2718
      @johnqpublic2718 Před 2 lety +1

      Citric amd ascorbic acid vs acetic acid - basic chemistry classes teach them all.

    • @senorcapitandiogenes2068
      @senorcapitandiogenes2068 Před 2 lety +6

      But lemon juice contains a lot of sugar. Make sure to rinse it off with an appropiate amount of destilled water.

    • @senorcapitandiogenes2068
      @senorcapitandiogenes2068 Před 2 lety

      @@JamesTK Might I suggest Chlorine Triflouride instead? Its just more convenient

    • @iaincowell9747
      @iaincowell9747 Před 2 lety

      @@senorcapitandiogenes2068 if you are using pure lemon juice then no it doesn't contain a lot of sugar. Lemons have a low sugar content

  • @deanchur
    @deanchur Před 2 lety +50

    For the full early 2000's experience I recommend connecting one of the MD players to a Playstation 2 via the optical out and recording game music so you can listen to it later.
    Many good memories of recording MSX FM from GTA3 to Hi-MD via the optical out

    • @TobyRieper48
      @TobyRieper48 Před 3 měsíci

      This is how I recorded all of my music back in the day!

  • @andyflange
    @andyflange Před 2 lety +156

    Some of the ones with a TOC read error may have a similar issue to mine which was sat unused for over 10 years... the motor for the read head had seized.
    I lubricated the Worm gear and gently moved the read head back and forward numerous times by hand to try and unsieze it. Worked for a while but seemed to seize again 20 or so minutes into a disc so I re-opened it, cleaned the worm gear with IPA, re-lubricated and manipulated the read head again and it has worked perfectly since

    • @Dolphination
      @Dolphination Před 2 lety +10

      Good work!

    • @ShakaCthulu
      @ShakaCthulu Před 2 lety +8

      I’ll have to give that a shot. I refuse to condemn my Sony MD deck to the trashbin.

    • @ujustgotpwned2008
      @ujustgotpwned2008 Před 2 lety +10

      Took me a while to work out why International-Style Pale Ale was useful in this, but Isopropyl Alcohol is probably more useful

    • @MikehMike01
      @MikehMike01 Před 2 lety +1

      Cheeses

  • @Kenny_P_abz
    @Kenny_P_abz Před 2 lety +409

    I love how initially laid out all your repair materials but half way through you resorted to giving it a whack. Your videos are a Saturday highlight - cheers.

    • @VinnytotheK
      @VinnytotheK Před 2 lety

      👋💥

    • @misterkite
      @misterkite Před 2 lety +15

      "Percussive maintenance"

    • @kevwang0712
      @kevwang0712 Před 2 lety +1

      Out of curiosity, if a machine relies on a spinning motor that's having trouble getting its spin starting, wouldn't it be possible that a good whack might just be the kickstart it needs?

    • @AlfaGiuliaQV
      @AlfaGiuliaQV Před 2 lety +5

      @@kevwang0712 Just like an old car might need a damn good thrashing from time to time.

    • @alexanderthomas2660
      @alexanderthomas2660 Před 2 lety +1

      Giving it a whack is not as wacky as it may sound! I have noticed that the biggest problem with my old Sharp MD player (besides the gumstick battery being deader than dead after all these years) is that the carriage can get stuck when it hasn't moved for a long time. A good whack will usually remedy this.

  • @inactiveytchannel
    @inactiveytchannel Před 2 lety +362

    *This is the most Techmoan thing I've ever seen*

  • @Darxide23
    @Darxide23 Před 2 lety +100

    In all my years of troubleshooting and repair, I've learned that "dirty laser lenses" is kind of a myth. Unless it was one of those stereo/boombox types with the lid that opened fully and some kid with jam hands was getting the lens all sticky with boogers and whatnot, then cleaning the laser lens is more or less a lesson in futility.

    • @russelllukenbill
      @russelllukenbill Před rokem +2

      Kind of like how when I clean my glasses, I somehow gain perfect eyesight. lol

    • @testname4464
      @testname4464 Před rokem +2

      @@russelllukenbill No because glasses genuinely do get dirty. Water, dust, and other gunk gets all over the lenses since they're exposed 24/7

    • @russelllukenbill
      @russelllukenbill Před rokem +2

      @@testname4464 Yes, but they rarely get dirty enough that you can't make out what it is your seeing, it is just a little blurry or whatever. I can't remember the last time that my glasses were so dirty that I couldn't see out of them at all, except when coming in from outside and they fog for a few minutes, but that is not the same thing.

    • @testname4464
      @testname4464 Před rokem +1

      @@russelllukenbill What kinda perfect world do you live in? I have to clean my glasses every few days or else everything gets blurry

    • @russelllukenbill
      @russelllukenbill Před rokem +2

      @@testname4464 I don't know what to tell you. I didn't say that I never clean my glasses, I said that they don't get dirty enough for me not to be able to see out of them entirely. Blurry is not the same as complete obstructed. I obviously live in the same world as you and it certainly isn't perfect. I won't keep arguing this with you, have a nice life.

  • @mpersad
    @mpersad Před 2 lety +66

    "Schrödinger's mini disc" - priceless!

  • @MoultrieGeek
    @MoultrieGeek Před 2 lety +170

    After watching your efforts with contact cleaning I got motivated to clean/change the batteries in my lounge wall clock. Thanks Mat!

  • @Ineedanameplease
    @Ineedanameplease Před 2 lety +27

    He said “you ain’t getting any of my mini disc players!” 😆 and I resonate with that

  • @punksci6879
    @punksci6879 Před 2 lety +114

    I'd strongly advise using IPA after the lemon juice, organic residue left on it will cause problems again in short order.

    • @TimRrstrm
      @TimRrstrm Před 2 lety +20

      Indeed, clear vinegar is a better choice.

    • @VinnytotheK
      @VinnytotheK Před 2 lety +22

      Organic Residue seems like a nice band name.

    • @pand3mic942
      @pand3mic942 Před 2 lety +22

      @@VinnytotheK It sounds more to me like a term used in a bad hotel review

    • @VinnytotheK
      @VinnytotheK Před 2 lety +3

      @@pand3mic942 😧

    • @hoffwell
      @hoffwell Před 2 lety +14

      India Pale Ale?

  • @KarlAdamsAudio
    @KarlAdamsAudio Před 2 lety +43

    19:56 my Sony D-35 Discman had an episode of "scrambled buttons" that turned out to be a dirty hold switch that was making partial contact - a bit of exercise & it came good, thankfully.

    • @russellhltn1396
      @russellhltn1396 Před 2 lety +14

      Some machines have a two wire control where different resistors are connected to request different actions. A dirty contact somewhere is going to throw off those values enough that buttons end up doing something other than what they are labeled for. This may be a fairly simple fix.

  • @croolis
    @croolis Před 2 lety +151

    The way most of the Sony devices work is that the lid of the gumstick battery bay, with the positive contact, connects to the chassis through the hinge - if the hinge has corrosion in it, there is a good chance it won't connect. This can be tested using a multimeter between the battery terminal and the terminal for the external battery case as these are wired in parallel.
    Thanks for the great videos as always.

  • @retractingblinds
    @retractingblinds Před 2 lety +19

    Hey Techmoan, I work on a lot of CD drives for game consoles and one of the surprise culprits for them has been the sensor switches for lid, media or laser positions. These are usually little pressure lever based microswitches. Using the youtube standard deoxit I've had a lot of success cleaning these switches and watching the devices spring back to life. They seem to be prone to oxidization.
    It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if some of these mini disc players have a sensor switch or two gummed up from the elements and are in need of contact restoration. Try it if you can, but shield sensitive elements like the laser lens from the spray.

  • @meechmushrooms
    @meechmushrooms Před 2 lety +8

    "The things are blind; they can't see the disc at all."
    That made me laugh harder than it should have.

  • @DJNeiloSF
    @DJNeiloSF Před 2 lety +65

    Suggestion: you might want to neutralize that lemon acid on the device when you are done cleaning, otherwise it may cause unwanted corrosion over time.

    • @chaos.corner
      @chaos.corner Před 2 lety +26

      Do you know that from bitter experience?

    • @RCAvhstape
      @RCAvhstape Před 2 lety +29

      @@chaos.corner Kind of sours the deal, doesn't it.

    • @kevinr.3542
      @kevinr.3542 Před 2 lety +15

      Maybe you just bought a lemon

    • @andypyne
      @andypyne Před 2 lety +25

      The simple solution is to use partially corroded batteries so that the leaking alkaline neutralises the lemon juice.... 🤔

    • @ericpode6095
      @ericpode6095 Před 2 lety +2

      🤣😂🤣

  • @n2n8sda
    @n2n8sda Před 2 lety +82

    A lot of the Sony MD players have a hidden service menu where you can do laser and magnetic diagnostics. Some of the older portable recorders might play discs but will fail / choppy audio when trying to record.

    • @WinterCedar
      @WinterCedar Před 2 lety +6

      How do you access it?

    • @sweaterfish6311
      @sweaterfish6311 Před 2 lety +1

      I've also had a problem on a couple units where any edit to the TOC (even just renaming or moving a track without recording anything new) corrupts the whole TOC and makes the disc unreadable. I assume this would only apply to recorders, too, since the players don't have any TOC editing ability.

    • @countgent
      @countgent Před 2 lety +2

      You can find the way in the user manual. Just find the pdf you need. I fixed some TOC issues that way. But not for long !

    • @HeyPatch
      @HeyPatch Před 2 lety +2

      For the mz-r55 it’s like the conami code 😂 ff ww ff ww ff ww vol up vol down play pause play pause 😂 (FYI that isn’t the actual code, look for the service manual for your player the see how to access the diagnostics menu)

  • @brysimm404
    @brysimm404 Před 2 lety +12

    It's amazing how many different MiniDisc player designs were actually made and sold - outside the USA anyway. My SHARP unit still works, and takes AA batteries instead of using a "gum stick".

  • @trzarector
    @trzarector Před 2 lety +17

    What is it about MD that still fascinates us!!! The amount of variations of design is amazing. Some great looking machines you’ve got there. Great video from a fellow MD lover! 💽

  • @yahnsolo
    @yahnsolo Před 2 lety +4

    A thing to consider is that very very thin dust that comes from jean’s pockets. Especially those thin devices that goes often on pockets. The dust sneaks in the optical assembly, on the prism and make the reading to fail (TOC errors, or erratic play after some lucky attempts).

  • @paulmurgatroyd6372
    @paulmurgatroyd6372 Před 2 lety +23

    The madness of the 'barely different' battery adapters makes me seethe.

  • @phantom2012
    @phantom2012 Před 2 lety +8

    I and many of my friends had them in the day. There's a reason the corners are often worn. The corner smack was common to unjam the micro motor that spun the disc, or the carriage. I had a sony recorder and it failed once. One slap and it was sorted.

  • @SvenBollue
    @SvenBollue Před 2 lety +7

    Depends what one considers 'working'. Most of the old portables will play fine, but recording correctly, that's a whole different ballgame. Because in that case, the very frilly magnetic head that touches the top layer of the disc needs to still be perfectly aligned with the last underneath the disc, the tiny flat cable not broken and the magnetic head not clogged with dust/dirt.

  • @minipolenet
    @minipolenet Před 2 lety +10

    I bought MD recoder because I was interested in minidisc after seeing your past video, and I bought junk condition Sony netMD with battery terminal corroded because I did not want to spend a lot of money on discontinued devices. This was easily removed with a home rust remover containing phosphoric acid and then operated perfectly

  • @MarcGrondin
    @MarcGrondin Před 2 lety +33

    Great to see so many of them working. This is just the type of thing I would spend a week on lol.

  • @magicalpencil
    @magicalpencil Před 2 lety +5

    going through all of those broken MD players reminded me of the prison scene from A Fistful of Yen
    "who are they?"
    "Just lost drunken men who don't know where they are and no longer care"
    "And these?"
    "These are lost drunken men who don't know where they are, but do care!
    And these are men who know where they are and care, but don't drink."

  • @whomee2
    @whomee2 Před 2 lety +54

    Just a couple of notes from my CD experiences:
    1) The external battery packs: you mention that some of them don't line up, being too narrow or too wide; I had one that those contacts could be slid along a channel to line up.
    It wasn't an official sony or other name brand product, I recall is was an off-brand, universal type of thing. Not sure if any of yours may have that option, or if you could even come across one on an auction site.
    2) The Lens Cleaning Discs: first of all, that lens cleaner with the ribbon that you wiggle, with the little brush on the disc--that is how all CD lens cleaners work, they all have a brush of some kind stuck to the disc to spin around on the laser.
    If you opened up that official sony lens cleaning disc, you would (i'm 99.9% sure) find a little brush affixed to the disc in the same manner.
    Also, with my cd-lens cleaners, I always put a drop of isopropyl/rubbing alcohol on that little brush before i put the cd into to the player. It always seemed to get the player working for a good while before needing cleaned again.

  • @rahb1
    @rahb1 Před 2 lety +37

    Fascinating video! I am SO impressed by your patience and persistence! I am now *really* annoyed I gave away all my MD stuff. Absolutely perfect for community radio.

  • @surfacematter2098
    @surfacematter2098 Před 2 lety +3

    I wonder why we love these MD videos so much? I dont get it..but here I am, watching and wanting one for no reason other than they look cool and you make them seem really interesting.

    • @burendasan
      @burendasan Před 2 lety +1

      I don’t have the time, money, or space to do what he did so I feel like I’m living vicariously watching him go through all the MD player models and try to fix them.

  • @sofa-lofa4241
    @sofa-lofa4241 Před 2 lety +61

    Not a bad result in the end, just shows how contact cleaner can help!
    Personally, I use De-ox it, it's not cheap but will save devices for years... Bad battery contacts, switches, pots, etc.
    It's been worth it's weight in gold over the years, saved many portables, amps, etc.

  • @johnrose8145
    @johnrose8145 Před 2 lety +7

    10 hours! You have the patience of a saint. Great stuff, love your videos, keep up the good work (because I wouldn't have the patience - and neither would the wife).

  • @SayMcGillicuddy
    @SayMcGillicuddy Před 2 lety +9

    12:05 was definitely the opportunity to break out the 1-Grit

  • @RyanBuskirk
    @RyanBuskirk Před 2 lety +6

    "These hold one gigabyte; wow, it's the future isin't it!?" 🤣

  • @3D_Blu-ray_Bunker
    @3D_Blu-ray_Bunker Před 2 lety +47

    Schrödinger's minidiscs indeed. Good old Techmoan! Looking forward to the *next* job lot of MD players (assuming old Mat hasn't bought them all already...).

  • @TheRolandS69
    @TheRolandS69 Před 2 lety +30

    Great video and I really enjoyed seeing the outcome from the previous video.
    I never did own a Minidisc and have no plans to, but still interesting.

  • @Chief89Music
    @Chief89Music Před 2 lety +24

    wow I like how fiercely you ended up staying on this topic and turned this into a series even very awesome especially also and as for me to see since I skipped that minidisc thing back in the day so all the more nice to see what it was about as for the now retro tech . . .

  • @MrMattGrid
    @MrMattGrid Před 2 lety +18

    MiniDiscs passed me by, never even seen one for real, ripped all my CDs to MP3 20 years ago - which coincidently, today is the 20th anniversary of the launch of the Apple iPod 🤓 Interesting video though!

    • @andypyne
      @andypyne Před 2 lety

      At what bitrate?
      I did that too at 192AAC after doing my own A/B test to determine where to my ears the compressed sound was transparent to the original.
      Turns out my process was flawed and I have spent years re-ripping/downloading in ALAC (can be losslessly conveyed to FLAC)

  • @crbielert
    @crbielert Před 2 lety +17

    I know its like 20 pounds for a tiny can, but the full strength "d100" deoxit whips through the really crusty green contacts pretty well.

    • @startedtech
      @startedtech Před 2 lety

      I just use some random cheap brand they sell at the store. It works great.

    • @MikeStavola
      @MikeStavola Před 2 lety +1

      @@tarstarkusz from my experience, the spray stains some plastic finishes, but the brush on stuff hasn't been a problem. I last used the spray about 15 years ago, so they may have changed the formulation.

    • @crbielert
      @crbielert Před 2 lety

      I work in a job where nobody cares about discolored plastic and time is of the essence. Thanks though, didnt know it could discolour some plastics. Haven't experienced that, myself.

    • @JonnyInfinite
      @JonnyInfinite Před 2 lety

      I used vinegar on my Minidisc player that had had a battery go bad in it. Worked a treat

    • @crbielert
      @crbielert Před 2 lety +1

      @@tarstarkusz yeah, i primarily use it on electronics with metal chassis, vacuum tube sockets, and automotive connectors.
      Edit: they sell a different formula of it specifically for pots and faders.

  • @SalomeDoyle
    @SalomeDoyle Před 2 lety +20

    somewhat heart breaking that the Cinnamoroll (the cute Sanrio mascot/character) player never made it back to life :(

  • @enzoperruccio
    @enzoperruccio Před 2 lety +73

    "Because these two pegs here where the power goes through, certain machines have them at different widths to one another"
    That's the most Sony thing ever

    • @jonny5alive123
      @jonny5alive123 Před 2 lety +16

      Yeah, if Sony want to know why they fell out of favour with a lot of people they only need to look at the nonsense they were playing with their power adapters and memory cards in the early 2000s.

    • @jonny5alive123
      @jonny5alive123 Před 2 lety +13

      @@MarquisDeSang It has nothing to do with the tolerances, Sony of that era would just make random changes to power adapters between device revisions for no reason.

    • @smorris12
      @smorris12 Před 2 lety +5

      I've never been impressed with Sony stuff. And endless proprietary connectors, batteries and file formats just make it look even less appealing

    • @awo1fman
      @awo1fman Před 2 lety +4

      @@smorris12 Sony was awesome bang for the buck in the late 1970s through the 1980s. In spite of Beta/max... But their success really started going to their heads and in the 1990s onward they not only got too expensive, they went crazy with proprietary everything.
      Unfortunately, that seems to be the rule. Every company that starts out with great products at reasonable prices seems to sooner rather than later get cocky and start doing everything wrong.

    • @smorris12
      @smorris12 Před 2 lety

      @@awo1fman They get carried away with their own hype I suppose. I had a friend who spent a fortune on high end Sony stuff in the 90s and the reliability was appalling.

  • @startedtech
    @startedtech Před 2 lety +23

    Hey Matt, great vid as always! From my personal experience I'd recommend using white vinegar over lemon juice, there's a lot less residue and impurities that get left behind.

    • @tithund
      @tithund Před 2 lety +4

      +1, Fixed up a bunch of stuff with the vinegar.

    • @gregx5096
      @gregx5096 Před 2 lety +4

      +1 here too. Actually managed to get a "frozen" 9V alkaline battery's contact free from a unit's connector with a bit of a soak in a tiny dish of cleaning vinegar (6% acidity rather than the usual 5%, not much difference really)

  • @smorris12
    @smorris12 Před 2 lety +8

    Misbehaving buttons happens to various Sony things. I think they must use a resistor ladder affair (*) and grot under the contacts affects the resistance.
    * All the switches are paralleled together, each with their own resistor in series. The processor measures the voltage on an analogue input to then determine which button is pressed

    • @Kalvinjj
      @Kalvinjj Před 2 lety

      Neat trick, used it on some of my MCU projects where I had a free ADC pin but not enough digital ones to make a matrix. Tho I do wonder why would they go with this strategy for like 5 buttons or so, even tho that's kinda a good quantity to use this technique for (too many and they will most certainly fail).

    • @smorris12
      @smorris12 Před 2 lety

      @@Kalvinjj My mother has a Sony radio/cd thing in the kitchen which gets continual use. Both unit and remote control buttons are temperamental but it took well over 10 years to manifest itself so I have to admit that that's definitely "good enough" from a manufacturer

  • @realmackle
    @realmackle Před 2 lety +8

    Honestly just having the high-md one working would make this entire endeavor a success in my book

    • @kevinh96
      @kevinh96 Před 2 lety

      Not really, he paid £500 for this haul and a standard HiMD player in good working order can be bought on Ebay for around £120-£200 depending on cosmetic condition and accessories. Sure some of the more sought after models go for more but the more basic ones such as the NH600 or NH700 can even go for less if it's a bare bones unit.

    • @realmackle
      @realmackle Před 2 lety

      @@kevinh96 I was just saying for the sense of accomplishment

    • @gregx5096
      @gregx5096 Před 2 lety

      Wasn't that one not working on the initial attempts as well? Glad that it decided to wake up now!

  • @Frenchmisto
    @Frenchmisto Před 2 lety +9

    You’re an amazing man! I enjoy watching your CZcams videos so much. Kind regards from a French man living in Japan!

  • @synthaxx7313
    @synthaxx7313 Před 2 lety +8

    Signed working machines as a top tier patreon reward?
    Either way, great stuff as always!

  • @green929392
    @green929392 Před 2 lety +17

    If your ever looking to get rid of the broken machines Im sure Colin from "This Does Not Compute" would be happy to accept them. Hes diagnosed and fixed a bunch of players on his youtube channel.

  • @AristarcoPalacios
    @AristarcoPalacios Před 2 lety +2

    I was happy about the MD players that work. Then you dropped the bomb "I'm not selling them to you" and my heart shattered and broke into a million bits. 😢

  • @UnholyTriforceDelenn
    @UnholyTriforceDelenn Před 2 lety +5

    The more videos you do on the MD format, the more I'm obsessed with it, Mat! I really love MDs, and I really want to get a Hi-Fi or Mini Hi-Fi MD player that can record discs with the metadata included, as well as a bunch of recordable discs and start burning them with my favourite music. I'll then take those discs, along with any pre-recorded albums I can get hold of, and play them on a portable MD player, making that my primary listening device when I'm out and about (whenever that becomes a thing again without lockdowns and such). I dunno if you're planning to do any more videos on MDs, but if you do, I'm looking forward to them!

  • @glenngogoll6166
    @glenngogoll6166 Před 2 lety +2

    Thanks for your great videos. As a 30 year, retired veteran of the Australian audio industry, youve shown me things that ive never heard of, let alone seen. Inwas, vaguely familiar with the Philips ski slope, but i dont remember actually seeing one. But then,these days, i dont remeber a lot of things. Cheers & keep up the good work. After 30 years in the business, it gets in your blood & I’ll always be interested in old stuff.

  • @neatodd
    @neatodd Před 2 lety +2

    I love videos, like this one, where the presenter really loves their subject and their enthusiasm shines through.

  • @RambozoClown
    @RambozoClown Před 2 lety +4

    Schrödinger's mini disc!
    I love it. You could probably test a few of those with some test leads wired to a battery or power supply.

  • @burntalive
    @burntalive Před 2 lety +6

    I'm so sad that the orange camo one is dead. That one was my pick of the lot :(

  • @tranmere292
    @tranmere292 Před 2 lety +35

    Quite entertaining in its own way! I've never had an MD - that particular format passed me by. However, the tip re lemon juice on corroded contacts was useful. I have a treasured elderly digital SLR with the problem and it might be the solution. It still works but I don't want things to get any worse.

    • @rusuclaudiu1988
      @rusuclaudiu1988 Před 2 lety +7

      I use vinegar. Is stronger and faster. The downsize is that i use it only when I dismantle the stuff because I am rinsing the piece in water just to remove any residue. Otherwise in couple of months you will see that it is more corroded than before

    • @rusuclaudiu1988
      @rusuclaudiu1988 Před 2 lety +2

      @@nonoyorbusness i am using a potentiometer spray. It's a mix of solvents and something oily. Vaseline sometimes is too much on these battery doors. We want to use these parts of the past and nobody likes greasy machines. But is quite effective this spray. The oily stuff goes into the remaining pores and seals it. Of course, is a temporary fix but for a long period six months to a year. A permanent fix would be replate it but....anyway i have never seen a corroded walkman if the batteries weren't forgot inside.

    • @TheFilwud
      @TheFilwud Před 2 lety +1

      I have seen white vinegar used to dissolve the oxidation, followed by a good clean with Deoxit to remove any remaining contamination and acid.

  • @catnip420
    @catnip420 Před 2 lety +2

    Long MD videos have become a monthly thing for me now, either new or rewatched old, I hope there's more to come!

  • @skywind007
    @skywind007 Před 2 lety +2

    Techmoan, you should have picked a single grand winner and then made a separate 5 minute video about it.

  • @ampsmashed
    @ampsmashed Před 2 lety +4

    All Hail the Mighty Lemon 👐
    Excellent weekend viewing whilst doing my soldering. Honestly amazed that any of these kinds of micro devices still work at all. Tempted to buy one myself. Some seem bomb proof.

  • @cageycretins
    @cageycretins Před 2 lety +17

    Try two wires/ leads and a 1.5v battery (or whatever they need) instead of the proprierty extra-battery-jungle-dongles?

  • @MikeNHOC
    @MikeNHOC Před 2 lety +1

    Glad you were able to get a few of them working. Thank you for sharing! It was neat to see all the different styles there were..

  • @hawkshaw2
    @hawkshaw2 Před měsícem

    Your channel is a blessing. It's informative and helps me avoid buying junk just because I think I can fix it. Thank you!

  • @GadgetUK164
    @GadgetUK164 Před 2 lety +13

    Great video! Huge amount of time required to test and clean all of those!

  • @ForDemoPurposesOnly
    @ForDemoPurposesOnly Před 2 lety +3

    As always, very educational and engaging, with essentially a science experiment (demo of the lemon juice) thrown in.

  • @lancethrustworthy
    @lancethrustworthy Před 2 lety +1

    I use white vinegar instead of lemon juice.
    I was thinking it would be close to 50/50, but I'm glad to see the numbers were in your favor. Bravo.

  • @bigbowlowrong4694
    @bigbowlowrong4694 Před měsícem

    I used to have the Kenwood one with the dimples at 8:20! What a nostalgia trip that was, considering I last touched it like 20 years ago😆

  • @ZGryphon
    @ZGryphon Před 2 lety +11

    Oh hey, I think I had that rectangular Sony in the "working" layout (far right, second row from the top). Not that specific one, obviously, but I owned two MD players back in the day, and I think the first one was one of those. (The second was a very elaborate Sharp player/recorder that never came out officially in the US, which had a clickwheel around the center display like the early iPods. You had one that looked similar, but not quite the same, in the earlier "box o' junk MD players" video.)
    The Sharp died of electronic dementia, but the Sony was still working the last time I tried it. No idea where it (or any of the discs I had) might be now--I've moved a couple of times since then and lost track of the lot. Probably in a box upstairs somewhere, which I suspect is the fate of most consumer electronics. It was oddly satisfying to see how many of them you could resurrect.

  • @darrenharman3362
    @darrenharman3362 Před 2 lety +3

    If I had the space and the knowledge (and the money) to do what Techmoan does, I’d be a very happy man.

  • @Caviarhound
    @Caviarhound Před 2 lety +2

    One of my favorite formats of all time. Bang up video!

  • @berkkarsi
    @berkkarsi Před 2 lety +1

    This man now has the biggest Minidisc collection in the UK.

  • @alextirrellRI
    @alextirrellRI Před 2 lety +53

    I know with larger optical drives, there are adjustment pots for the lasers to compensate power/focus. I wonder if MD's also have these?

    • @TheFilwud
      @TheFilwud Před 2 lety +17

      Yes, to squeeze more life out of the laser, maybe not all but a lot, even portables, in service mode there is a setting which can turn the laser up, of course turning the laser up will help it read discs but it will also burn the laser out faster, still it will get you a bit more life out of the machine without having to cannibalise another to get a replacement laser, which is probably just as worn out!

    • @BenHelweg
      @BenHelweg Před 2 lety +2

      Good riddance to these things.

    • @macsound
      @macsound Před 2 lety

      It would be an interesting teardown to see if Mat can show how the internals work and even if there was a camera lens to show if the laser was turning on at all

  • @boredfartless4221
    @boredfartless4221 Před 2 lety +8

    You're supposed to wet the brush on that "Home made" cleaner with alcohol .

  • @j.lindback
    @j.lindback Před 2 lety +2

    Well done! You sure did a great effort salvaging those lovely machines. MiniDisc was the format that made listening to music both easy and fun!

  • @wearetomorrowspast.5617
    @wearetomorrowspast.5617 Před 2 lety +1

    I could watch Mini-Disc vids all day long.
    Just a perfect use of technology.
    Useful, compact, user friendly. Loved the the whole thing.

  • @Nic5Cyprus
    @Nic5Cyprus Před 2 lety +27

    When life gives you lemons clean corroded battery compartments with them

  • @fredbloggs5902
    @fredbloggs5902 Před 2 lety +11

    Pro tip: Some liquid de-scalers contain citric acid at a higher concentration than lemon juice.

    • @Breakfast_of_Champions
      @Breakfast_of_Champions Před 2 lety +7

      The lemon juice contains sugar, you can just buy pure citric acid. Vinegar essence works as well.

    • @randomnickify
      @randomnickify Před 2 lety

      Yes, but most of us already has lemon juice in our homes, so him suggesting it has more sense.

  • @jaimemcnulty
    @jaimemcnulty Před 2 lety

    one of the purest hobbyist channels on youtube. thank you for your vids.

  • @stigyanblue1442
    @stigyanblue1442 Před 2 lety +1

    How did I not know these existed? They're so cute and little! Obsolete but cute!

  • @SplicesAndCelluloid
    @SplicesAndCelluloid Před 2 lety +8

    20:41 It seems like the DAC is broken, I'd be interested to see if the digital out still works though.

  • @admiralandersen
    @admiralandersen Před 2 lety +4

    I love these videos about the MiniDisc format :-)

  • @grfeld84
    @grfeld84 Před 2 lety +2

    Glad to see that the majority of the players worked! Thank you for sharing the experience!

  • @fajarkurniawan9434
    @fajarkurniawan9434 Před 2 lety

    I just love the sound of opening the lid, inserting the disc, closing the lid
    Couldn't afford MD player back then

  • @AndrewMione
    @AndrewMione Před 2 lety +3

    These videos always make me nostalgic for my old minidisc player and making mixes.

    • @AtheistOrphan
      @AtheistOrphan Před 2 lety

      Same here. I had a fancy-pants MD deck with keyboard for titling.

    • @GldRush98
      @GldRush98 Před 2 lety

      Right? I wonder what happened to mine every time I see one of these videos. My basement flooded probably a decade or so back and we just tossed everything that got wet... I fear my Sony MD was in the lot of stuff that got soaked :(

  • @mhoppy6639
    @mhoppy6639 Před 2 lety +35

    If you have to ask “why?” Then you’ll never get techmoan. Brilliant stuff Matt.
    As alway, thanks for creating.

    • @inshadowz
      @inshadowz Před 2 lety +2

      The only answer to “why” is “because Techmoan”, and that's why we're all here.

    • @mhoppy6639
      @mhoppy6639 Před 2 lety +1

      @@inshadowz indubitably!

  • @dmanbiker
    @dmanbiker Před 2 lety +1

    I imagine Matt is slowly descending into madness as minidisc players fill his house.

  • @BushidoBrownSama
    @BushidoBrownSama Před 2 lety +1

    This MD thing of yours is becoming an obsession.
    Luther Vandross - "Never Too Much" is a great song someone has hood taste

  • @4tehlulz
    @4tehlulz Před 2 lety +28

    Loved the follow-up video and great to see quite a few working. Preparations for the collapse of the global economy when Mini-disk players become a currency is well under way!!!

    • @toomanymarys7355
      @toomanymarys7355 Před 2 lety

      Better than bottle caps!

    • @karvast5726
      @karvast5726 Před 2 lety

      What kind of a apocalypse would use minidiscs player as currency lol

  • @lumsdot
    @lumsdot Před 2 lety +6

    for the ones missing battery adapters, just push some powered wires against the contacts to see if they work

  • @murraykriner9425
    @murraykriner9425 Před 2 lety

    Recall seeing these for sale in many places outside the U.S., while traveling in the 90's. They were always rather costly, and many still are if you can find them on an auction site, usually missing the key ingredients necessary for them to work. That kind of explains why so many reached out to you for a proper trouble shot MD Player, since your doing all the work of getting them to operate for them. Great content. Thanks for sharing.

  • @gerrywarwick8477
    @gerrywarwick8477 Před 2 lety

    Your Vidz are so refreshing and fun. Please never stop!! MD was my favorite format ever!! I get it....we can get all songs now...but ....back in the day you'd had to choose!!!

  • @ryanjosef
    @ryanjosef Před 2 lety +3

    i was lucky enough a while ago to find a portable mini disc player/recorder.. it sounds good. also bought an optical cable for it to record . pretty decent. I do have to admit that I have a little envy for the stacks of awesomeness you have there !.

  • @mykelevangelista6492
    @mykelevangelista6492 Před 2 lety +11

    As with so many Techmoan videos, I so want to keep hitting the upvote button. Trouble is, you can only do it the once - sad, but true.

    • @FiXato
      @FiXato Před 2 lety +2

      As long as you do it an odd number of times, you can do it endlessly. ;)
      (Though perhaps CZcams's AI will get tired of you doing so, and think you are a badly written bot 😏)

    • @modularcarpet
      @modularcarpet Před 2 lety +1

      We’ll just have to upvote your comment to compensate…

  • @rooneyscape
    @rooneyscape Před 2 lety +1

    Bought a Porsche Boxster from new (back in the day) and insisted on having the factory fitted MD player as I was so into minidiscs. Kept the car for 16 years and felt obliged to pass on all my minidisc equipment to the purchaser when I sold the car. Wish I’d kept some of it. It was a great format

  • @user-fr5zw7sv6z
    @user-fr5zw7sv6z Před 7 měsíci +1

    It's just terrifying how a perfectly working, beautifully designed machines goes to waste because they just become obsolete... and now with technology development taking a slower pace, companies don't want to make products last enough to become obsolete.

  • @DaveVelociraptor
    @DaveVelociraptor Před 2 lety +4

    FWIW I'm more interested in this video than the original one, because it should bring some closure to it.

  • @BigKelvPark
    @BigKelvPark Před 2 lety +7

    Matt, the Sony at 8:37 may not like that battery (I used the same fleabay specials). One of mine (I can't remember which one) did the same. Furthermore, I can't remember where I read it but I had to drill a dimple in the base of the battery for it to work without issue. I think there is a very crude but descrete microswitch on the battery flap. I've moved house twice since I last saw any of my portables and I still have several boxes to unpack.

    • @BigKelvPark
      @BigKelvPark Před 2 lety +2

      Now I've finished the video, it's good to see you got it working. I really need to find my missing portables.

  • @sumplais
    @sumplais Před 2 lety

    I picked up a minidisc player at a thrift store and before I could do much with it, someone stole it (and the rest of my work bag). Much more recently I found a Sony MZ-NH1 and with its lil docking station at a goodwill, and because it didn't have a power cord it was very cheap. Thanks to your video I just learned it does Hi-MD, came with a 1gig disc and has a LIP-4WM battery (a variation on the gum stick battery). I thought it had a built in battery till now.
    That is quite the collection you have. I never realized how many different companies and models of portable minidisc players there were. Good luck on the dead ones if you keep working on them, and congrats on the working ones.

  • @luggie111
    @luggie111 Před 2 lety +2

    Great vids, I loved my sharp MD player and recorded dj mixes with it was great!

  • @dustandroktwok1447
    @dustandroktwok1447 Před 2 lety +3

    Ah, can’t wait to watch this! The Minidisc Saga continues with Part 3: Will They Work? 😂