Differences

This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.

--- faq:why-md [2023/03/16 16:40] – [Edit - Panel] updated subreddit subscriber count vaporwave
+++ faq:why-md [2023/05/28 07:42] (current) – specialk
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   * You still have working MiniDisc equipment in your car or a bookshelf system.
-According to reddit, there are over 7,700 subscribers to /r/minidisc.
+There are over 8000 subscribers to /r/MiniDisc on reddit and around 1000 followers on each of Twitter, Instagram, and our Discord server.
 </panel>
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 <panel title = "Why did people NOT use MiniDisc when it was on the market?">
-There are a number of reasons, and they changed throughout the format's existence. Initially, recorders were large, with poor battery life (See: [[equipment:sony:portable:mz-1|Sony MZ-1]]) and could not compete with the established cassette tape. The North American market also preferred portable CD players and both Canada and the United States faced legislative battles regarding MiniDisc's digital recording functionality. Later, the rise of CD-R drives in PCs (combined with broadband internet) and MP3 players changed how (portable) music was consumed entirely. Sony tried to counter this with the [[https://www.minidisc.wiki/technology/start#netmd|NetMD]] addition and later [[https://www.minidisc.wiki/technology/start#hi-md|Hi-MD]], but it was too late to counter technology such as the iPod.
+There are a number of reasons, and they changed throughout the format's existence. Initially, recorders were large, expensive, with poor battery life (See: [[equipment:sony:portable:mz-1|Sony MZ-1]]) and could not compete with the established cassette tape. The North American market also preferred portable CD players and both Canada and the United States faced legislative battles regarding MiniDisc's digital recording functionality. Later, the rise of CD-R drives in PCs (combined with broadband internet) and MP3 players changed how (portable) music was consumed entirely. Sony tried to counter this with the [[https://www.minidisc.wiki/technology/start#netmd|NetMD]] addition and later [[https://www.minidisc.wiki/technology/start#hi-md|Hi-MD]], but it was too late to counter technology such as the iPod.
+</panel>
+<panel title = "How expensive and easy to find are machines?">
+MiniDisc recorders vary in price based on the model, condition, and location. Equipment in Japan is usually cheaper than in North America. Because devices are no longer made and interest in the format is increasing, prices are rising and many recorders cost over US$100 on average. See our [[guides:buying-guide|Buyer's Guide]] and [[guides:buyfromjapan|Buy from Japan guides]] for advice on what to buy.
 </panel>
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 <panel title = "What are the common pitfalls of the format?">
-Recorders themselves have quite small mechanisms that are impossible to be repaired by an amateur. As they have moving parts, all players will eventually fail or degrade in performance. Luckily, many machines are well designed and built, but hardware issues are inevitable. Discs are often overpriced, with some listings at more than US$10 per disc. When ordered as part of a used lot (MiniDiscs are reusable near-infinitely) or direct from Japan, a disc should never exceed US$4 (as of 2020).
+Recorders themselves have quite small mechanisms that are almost impossible to be repaired by an amateur. As they have moving parts, all players will eventually fail or degrade in performance. Luckily, many machines are well designed and built, but hardware issues are inevitable. Discs are often overpriced, with some listings at more than US$10 per disc. When ordered as part of a used lot (MiniDiscs are reusable near-infinitely) or direct from Japan, a disc should never exceed US$3 (as of 2023).
 </panel>
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 <panel title = "How much worse than CD is the sound?">
-That depends on how much of an audiophile you are.
+Very little. But some depends on how much of an audiophile you are.
-Yes, ATRAC compression used on MiniDiscs is lossy. The quality of encoding tracks increased quite significantly over the format's first 5-10 years, and by the time that ATRAC 4 and Type-R came to the market, the audio quality had increased to being nearly identical to CD. If you're easily bothered by audio compression, then you probably already know that this isn't the path for you - but for everyone else, you can easily experience a better audio experience through MiniDisc than you can most other audio formats.
+Yes, ATRAC compression used on MiniDiscs is lossy. The quality of encoding tracks increased quite significantly over the format's first 5-10 years, and by the time that ATRAC 4 and Type-R came to the market, the audio quality had increased to being nearly identical to CD. If you're sensitive to audio compression, then you probably already know that this isn't the path for you - but for everyone else, you can easily experience a better audio experience through MiniDisc than you can most other audio formats.
 </panel>
@@ Line 122: / Line 128: @@
 <panel title = "Cassette tapes?">
-Cassettes were a popular music format (especially in the '80s and '90s) but were a 1960s technology that was upgraded using technology (such as Dolby NR and Type IV (metal) tape) that is no longer being produced. Issues such as wow, flutter, rewind speed, and degredation over time were all addressed by the MiniDisc format, which can still be used as a convenient and high quality music format to this day.
+Cassettes were a popular music format (especially in the '80s and '90s) but were a 1960s technology that was upgraded using technology (such as Dolby NR and Type IV (metal) tape) that is no longer being produced. Issues such as wow, flutter, rewind speed, and degradation over time were all addressed by the MiniDisc format, which can still be used as a convenient and high quality music format to this day.
 </panel>