Home > Consumer Reviews > Sony MZ-S1 S2 Sports Net MD MiniDisc Player

The Sports NetMD from Sony is an excellent player for runners. I did a fair amount of research before buying the player, since all my previous cassette/CD players skipped after a few minutes of running, but in several runs so far, I have NOT been able to get this baby to skip even once.

The good points about this player are:

1. More compact than a CD/cassette player
2. More music than either of the above
3. Skip-free performance
4. The MiniDisc is very compact - I carry one extra MD on my
runs along with the one in my player - it fits comfortably
in the key pocket of my running shorts.

The drawbacks are:
1. Supplied headphones are quite bad
2. Poor software (particularly the quick transfer tool,
which resulted in a few bad transfers

Overall, I am very impressed and happy with the player. I would
recommend any runner to look at this player seriously if they're
looking for a good portable audio tool.

Thanks to Real for supporting the Sony MD players in the Real One Player! Sony has a long history of making innovative, easy to use, well designed, compact, and durable consumer electronics that come with some of the worst, least usable software you'll ever see. It's a shame, too...clearly some competent design and development effort goes into the SW, but usability and convenience (ironically, something the hardware itself shines in) is something that is just apparently not a consideration.

Anyways, if this device wasn't supported by other software, I'd have a hard time recommending it...However, since it works well enough with Real One Player, I'd have to say you couldn't do better than this device for a portable (and ruggedized!) digital music player. I have experience with the Nomad II, Nomad Jukebox, Sony MusicClip (crippled by the OpenMG SW:(), and RaveMP players. The sound quality is significantly better than any of those players. Furthermore, I've experienced much longer battery life than any of these other players by a factor of 2 or 3. The real payoff, however, is the cost of media: Minidiscs are a factor of 20-40x cheaper than comparable 128MB flash memory devices (compact flash, smart media, etc.).

Five stars if it didn't come with OpenMG.

Ive always been a real fan of the minidisc design. The size and ruggedness of the media made it ideal for a person on the go. Up til now the players havent followed suit. The models offered were quite fragile in contrast to the minidisc inside. After endless dings and dents to my Aiwa am-f70 I finally found a player that im not afraid to drop on cement while running. If you have ever owned or even used a sports walkman from sony then you should know what to expect from this model.
Beyond the design, the ability to record from your computer via a USB port gives Minidisc users a something to cheer about. Although the software is a bit clunky and confusing for those who arent highly computer literate, I expect with some use most anyone can master the art of making a recording from Mp3 files.
Although I do like this model quite a bit I do have something to gripe about- NO RECHARGEABLE BATTERY. Big mistake in my opinion.

I bought the MZ-N505 (the gaudy little gold or silver one) but returned it for the MZ-S1. While the two are almost identical in recording and playing features, the N505 was so small and light that it felt dangerously flimsy. The more robust body of the S1 makes it a better buy.

I'm planning on bringing my player around campus with me in (the bottom of) my backpack, carrying it when running, and keeping it in my jacket pocket while skiing. Nothing heavy duty--I think most people will subject their players to all kinds of similar use when they realize how convenient and portable they are.

The S1 is a shade bigger and weighs almost twice as much as the 505, but the only way you can tell the difference between 4 ounces and 7 is when you're holding one in each hand. That extra weight is used to make the body thicker and more 'drop-resistant'. Should I wipe out while skiing, the last thing I'll have to worry about is this player. I can hold it in my sweaty clutches or get it rained on and the rubber gaskets around the MD and battery compartments and the playing controls will keep it from getting wet inside.

The player controls put the 'joy' back in 'joystick'--they're designed to be easy to control when you hold it upright in one hand (while running,for example) but can be operated from any angle. The backlit LCD screen is another improvement over the N505.

I also found the design more tasteful--it lacks the "please steal me" ghetto design philosophy of the 505. When you throw in the hand strap and better headphones that come included in the package, the MZ-S1 is the better choice.

i got into the minidisc medium several years ago, when it first came out. i bought a large, clunky, vcr-sized sony recorder-player deck, which came w/ a "free" portable player. the portable player was problaby the worst piece of electronics i've ever owned (i won't get into the attrocities of it).

about 3 years ago, i upgraded my portable unit to the
sony mz-e44 model. it's a fantastic player, and i really can't say much bad about it. small, stylish, and efficient. a sweet blue/purple irridescent color scheme. but after 3 years, it was time to upgrade again.

i purchased the sony mz-s1 model about 2 weeks ago, and absolutely love it.

the minidisc technology is not for everyone. it is not the most perfect medium w/ which to record and listen to music. but from what i've seen and heard, if you are a fan or user of this technology, the mz-s1 will suffice for all your needs.

the pros:
- stylish. off-white and orange colors. smooth, rounded edges. not the smallest and most compact model, but it's good enough for most purposes.
- comes w/ software containing two seperate recording/playing programs. i've seen some negative opinions about the software, but it's nothing that should prevent the average user from enjoying the player, or the recording process.
- you can record up to 5+ hours of music to one minidisc. this is the most major upgrade to the 2 previous players (3, if you count the home deck) i've owned.
- my previous 2 models have occasionally skipped, even just during normal walking. this player has yet to skip on me. even once. even during rough, rugged movement. i once dropped the player while trying to put it in my pocket- it hit the ground, but never missed a beat (and the casing didn't scratch or scuff, either! needless to say, a pleasant, and great surprise)

the cons:
- a little bigger than it probably needs to be, but this is just nitpicking. the mz-e44 model is smaller, but only slightly, and the mz-s1's features more than make up for it. it still fits quite nicely in the inside pocket of my leather coat, but it doesn't fit as well into my jeans pocket, as the mz-e44 did.
- the included software is a bit complicated and cumbersome at first, but after playing around w/ if for a short while, is easy to get used to.
- this is probably nitpicking as well, but 2 things this player lacks, that my former, 3 year old model had, is a rechargable battery (still, you get 50+ hours of playback w/ a single AA battery, which really is nothing to complain about), and one of those remote-stick thingies that you can change tracks, volume, etc. from. in order to do these basic tasks, you have to actually touch the player itself. again, not a big deal, but a feature that would've been nice.

in conclusion, i would reccomend this player to anyone, though not highly. i would suggest doing some research and shopping around, to find the best fit for you. there's nothing here that should deter anyone from purchasing this model, but other models out there may contain other features that this one lacks, that may suit you better. still, this is a player that the average consumer can't go wrong w/, and should make most consumers happy w/ all the features and abilities it has. i know i myself am happy i bought it. and i owned what i previously considered to be a top of the line model (paid [money] for it 3 years ago).