Home > Consumer Reviews > Sony MZ-N10 Silver Net MiniDisc Walkman

Well ... where do i start!

I was going to buy an MP3 player thinking that it was the best solution for music on the move. Then i discovered net md, i have always been a fan of mini disks and have used them for a number of years.

I bought the sony mzn-10 earlier this week and i am bowled over by it!

I thought long and hard about which player to get, do i get an mp3Player? do i get a regular mini disc? or do i go the cd/mp3 route, well frankly after thinking about it long and hard for several weeks i can honestly hand on heart say that i have made the right choice.

Advantage of net md over everything else... far more for your money, one minidisk will cost in the region of £1 and on that £1 disk you can have over 5 hours of music... try comparing that to an mp3 players highly expensive memory sticks.
so you can have all the music you want at your fingertips and not have to worry about splashing out huge sums of money to buy more memory or delete a song you like to replace with another.

the speed the player records from my computer is amazing, the first time i did it i thought i had done something wrong, it was so quick. the player is not much bigger than a floppy disc, yes it really is that small and the remote control has everything you need. Sound Quality is what you would expect of sony and the difference between the different speeds is barely audible.

The earphones that come with the unit are ok, good enough for the average muso...however... if you want to enhance your musical experience by about 1000% then i would reccomend you buy the Sony MDR-EX70LP Fontopia Headphones. they ... are worth every penny. it is almost like listening to a totally different track when you use those.

ok i suppose i have to find a downside, However it is a very fickle downside. i find the buttons on the player a bit small (i have been blessed with quite large hands) however this is counteracted by the buttons on the remote unit which are of adequate size. so not really a downside, more just a pointer.

Do yourself a favour, dont think about it anymore... just go and buy this.

The 10th Anniversary Edition Sony MZ-N10 is THE MiniDisc Player/Recorder to get....it's got every imaginable feature that you could possibly need for your music needs.

The super-fast 64x record lets you transfer an mp3 from your computer to your MiniDisc in 5 seconds! In LP4 modem you can store up to 5 HOURS of music on an 80 Minute MD. The Net MD works using Sonic Stage software which is supplied (a very nice piece of software) and the connection between your MZ-N10 is made using a USB cradle. You also charge your MZ-N10 using the cradle (thus eliminating the need for recharging circuitry to be built into the MiniDisc itself). It's the slimmest, lightest and strongest NetMD MiniDisc on the market as I am writing this. The interface is very easy to get to grips with. The joystick is small but useable and the jog-dial allows for fast scrolling through your music. Battery life is impeccable....whilst I haven't counted the number of hours that I've used it for....it went for about a week without charging and that's with heavy daily useage.

The only downsides to the MZ-N10 is the screen. Theirs no backlight and the text is a little feint...but this is made up for by the remote which has a bright clear backlight and allows you to do pretty much everything from it.

Sound quality is very good on Standard Play and gradually reduces as you increase the record length of your MiniDisc. I found that recording in LP4 made too much of an impact on the quality of the music so switched back to 80 Minute SP mode.

Admittedly I have only had this minidisc since last night but I have been using it all day.

I used to own a MZ R700 so I am used to how minidiscs work but this is my first NetMD. My old one has been on the blink for a while now so I ordered the MZ N10.

I found the package when I got home from college and grinned stupidly. I took it out of the box with the cardboard flying everywhere and ran and plugged it into my computer and loaded the software. Within five minutes I had worked out how to put music onto disc with the surprisingly easy to use software. It took me about 10 minutes to downnload nearly all my favourite songs (about 90 with some being over 5 mins e.g. Sultans of Swing and Bohemian Rhapsody).

The MZ N10 comes with docking bay, PC-MD software, and an in wire remote. The software is extremely simple to use and extremely quick. The docking bay has slightly sticky pads underneath to stop it sliding about on your desk.

It is slower recording on LP4 than at normal rate but it is still ludicrously fast.

I was debating whether to get the MZ N10 or an Apple iPod. Obviously I chose this as it is smaller, lighter and it looks fabulous. The iPod also has diabolical battery life (5hours) whereas the MZ N10 can last for 58 hours on LP4. If by chance you have forgotten to charge the built-in-battery you can clip on the adapter and insert an ordinary AA battery. The remote is stylish and easy to use and just looks great clipped to my coat. Minidiscs can't hold as much music as an iPod but who seriously needs 2,500 songs in one day? The iPod's battery would probably have to be charge 19 times to play every song it holds. Minidiscs are hardly big and if you can find a decent case they are extremely easy to transport on holiday etc.

Another little thing, when you're recording, a little LED on the unit lights to say it's working. The same happens when you charge. It's the small things that count and the MZ N10 is tiny.
Great buy and great price.

If, like me your Discman is looking a bit scatty and old hat (brick-like perhaps) and you were thinking of purchasing a new portable audio unit. I can only advise that you ditch CD as a format and purchase one of Sony's new Net MDs. My old "Slimline" Discman was beginning to wreck havoc with the stitches of my pockets and Sony's definition of "Jog Proof" was testing the boundaries of truth-bending. So I set off to work in the summer, hoping that by the end of the school-holidays I would have earned enough to replace my aging technology.
Upon delivery of the MD Recorder I was taken by suprise at the size of the unit. At the same time however it feels sturdy and feels like how much it's worth. You will want to keep it safe but gradually you will learn that despite its size, the MZ-N10 can take some knocks. It is a truly beautiful, and quality piece of equipment from Sony.

Now for the features. Having previously experienced th MD format I was inclined to make my first recordings in full stereo and LP2. However, trying to squeeze a few more tracks onto one particular compilation I opted for LP4 and expected a dip in sound quality. To my suprise again, there was no audible loss in sound quality. And with the speed of the file transfers from PC (x64 speed) You can fill an 80min MD with LP4 files in 5mins tops.

Now for my slight sticking point with this otherwise excellent product...the headphones. Due to the in-line remote and the shortness of the headphone cable...the headphones are prone to falling out of the ear under the weight of the remote (unless you are wearing clothing that enables you to clip the remote on at about chest-level). Also the headphones provided tend to let in a lot of outside noise which encourages you to turn up the volume, which in turn lowers the sound quality.

Well, I have owned various portable music devices over the last fifteen years and this has got to be the most desirable ever. I previously owned an MZN1 but sold that to get an apple iPod. The original Sony was great, sound quality was crisp and deep and the whole package was good. I guess I sold it for an iPod to have the latest gadget but I was sorely disappointed with the software and sound quality of the iPod! So again I sold the iPod and bought the MZN10.

The first thing you notice about the unit is its size, it is so thin and light, the lithium battery that is built in really condenses the weight. The remote is basically the same as the MZN1 but it also has buttons on it to access different group settings, ideal if you record on LP4 for accessing different albums quickly.

I recommend using LP2 mode though for better stereo imaging, this allows approx two albums to be fit onto one 80min minidisc. I like the charging cradle and USB socket allowing quick connection to your PC. The digital pitch is still there so you can speed up or slow down your tunes, I use that a lot! Using the Sonicstage is a doddle once you get used to it, its much easier than the original Sonicstage that came with MZN1.

One thing to note, the 64x recording is great but it only records at that speed once your collection has been converted by Sonicstage to the Sony ATRAC file format, ie if you record your music as mp3 or WMA files, Sonicstage converts them into Sony friendly ATRAC3 formats. This can take a while and is a little tedious at times but once it is done, trasnfer really is rapid. Remember though, Sony use a Check-In/Check-Out system meaning that you can only record music from your hard drive three times then you have to re-record from the original source. This is stupid but I suppose its necessary to keep copyright going. Another major inconvenience to anyone new to minidisc is that some CD's are copyright protected meaning that you cant copy it at all.

Another criticism is that the 100Hz bass enhancement isn't as crisp as I would have liked, saying that though, there is a VSP device that is like a digital signal processor for studio, live, arena and club settings, as well as heavy, pop, unique and jazz settings. The other really good thing is that you can store TWO of your own equalizer settings, doing away with the old two switch mega bass settings. I would also have liked a louder amplfier, my old Intel Pocket Concert mp3 player was so loud it was deafening but still I suppose its saving my hearing! Battery life is really good, the meter is realiable too! When charging, a countdown timer shows how many mins remain till charged.

The lithium battery allows 80% rapid charge in an hour, great if you forgot to charge it the previous evening. The display is nice, but I wish there was an option of a backlight on the machine.

To summarise, I have owned quite a few walkmans over the years and this has to be my favourite. I am usually one to swap for the latest gadget but I think I will keep this for a while. Very well made and highly cool!