Home > Consumer Reviews > Sharp MD-R3 CD/Minidisc Player/Recorder

This product is my favorite of the MD products that I have had the opportunity to use. The editing capabilities are easy to use and function well. The one-touch CD to MD is a fantastic feature.

Like all products there are shortcomings. It wont play some of the MDs that I made claiming a "TOC err" I originally thought the problem was the MD, but my other players play it. It also is too large to take anywhere to record a concert. I would like to see a PC adapter so titling doesn't take forever. But thoses are all minor problems.

Overall, this is an excellent product for anyone. If you don't own MD yet, you should and here is a great place to start.

Mine didn't work for long either. It has an inability to write minidisc Table of Contents (TOC err) that destroys both new and previously recorded discs. I lost some priceless live recordings by putting my master minidisc into this deck.

The Sharp customer service representatives were rude and did not help or offer to replace this deck even though countless online reviewers have had the same experience. It's obviously a fault in workmanship and Sharp's unwillingness to replace this piece of junk has convinced me never to buy another product from them.

I would rank it zero stars if I could.

I have owned this unit for about 18 months. Was great while it worked. Now the Minidisc won't record. Get a TOC W error. This requires service at a cost of about [$$], which is about what I paid for it.

Sometimes gadgets and features are a good thing. Sometimes they compromise the quality of a product. This is the case with the Sharp 3 CD to MD recorder. The driver for the CD side of the equipment whirs(?) and makes other noises. Granted, this doesn't affect the recording, it just feels lower quality. The other features are fine, but just overall OK. I have actually returned the Sharp unit and bought a CD to MD with just one CD bay.

I have owned this unit for about 3 years. It has been 100% rock solid. I was so surprised to see other people having problems. This deck was actually very reasonable, because I caught it at minidisco on a closeout. I would have been somewhat dissapointed at list price, however. Over the years, I went through several new and used Sony 320's and 510 that broke constantly, but this one is a "daily driver" and still going strong after 3 years! I heard a while back that early production models were a little junky, but mine was literally from the last set of them.
The only issues I have had were the "track glitch" thing, but since the first time I had the problem, I simply key up the CD and MD manually, and have never had a problem since.
Yes, the CD section is clunky, but the MD transport is much better than the pre 99 Sony's.
This deck has alot of features that typical Sony's don't have, except their very high end models...like timer recording, coaxial digital in, optical in AND out, time stamp, etc. IMO, A whole lot of features for an sub $... deck (from minidisco).
Also, once you learn how, the jog dial titles better than a Sony remote, especially the newer Sony's with 3 letters per button (yuck).
This is irrelevant however, because I use the Net MD for that, plus for MDLP (when desired).
Yes, this unit is a little outdated, since it will not play MDLP or MP3's, but it makes a good workhorse, with its best feature being the timer recording for those of us who like to record radio shows!