The only software to do the PC emulation on Mac (Virtual PC) was recently purchased by Microsoft and it's future is in question. Several Mac software companies have stepped to the plate, but it may be months before a successor is ready.

This is a tangent, but I noticed a product at that link called the DENECKE AD-20/ZEFIRO INBOX. I've been looking for a good, portable converter to go with my minidisc, MM-1 combo. Does anyone know if this converter is better than what's in the Sonys? I also thought I could also use it if I ever wanted to record to harddisk.

DV audio & mini disk
 

Mini disks are great for listening to music (MP3's kind of thing" making live recordings of lectures, notes, etc. The mini disk is a digital version of the old consumer cassette recorder. Designed for consumer electronic applications at -10db.
All pro audio gear is usually set at +4 -- so when mixing, you have to get a match on impedence and levels. Sounddevices has an excellent article in their support site (www.sounddevices.com) Also they make the USB Pre preamp that allows both audio at -10db and +4db, as well as s/pdif i/o -- I have had very good luck importing audio from both pro and consumer level equipment using the USB Pre. This has excellent Mac dirvers, including OSX, and offeres a good low cost pro solution -- as well as the other dedicated Mac audio solutions (i.e. PCI audio board with DAC/ADC)

The key here is How GOOD do you want your audio to be. Radio stations prev. used audio cassette recorders for their field interviews (I used to do radio interviews and this is what we used due to protability and convience). Once "canned" and broadcast -- with vioce (not music) with a lower dynamic range, you couldn't tell the difference in the analog days -- you can now with the improved digital equipment. A mini disk IS a cassette recorder for all purposes -- the same quality or lack of quality -- and it is NOT the same quality (sampling rate is lower,etc) as a DAT, just like a cassette is not a good as reel-to-reel is). Audio on mini disk and audio from your camera will NOT be the same quality and you will be able to tell the difference -- unless you bring it into a good audio program and tweak it -- then you could get away with it.

Small protable DAT's (better than the mini disk) can be had second hand from online or local area sales boards (like Craigslist in the S.F. bay area). Shop around -- a good piece of used pro gear to do the job is better than a new piece of consumer gear in most cases.

Jay Rose's book and others area available on Viedo Audio applications and how to get the most out of your equipment.
Keep shooting, et all.

Thanks. I've heard repeatedly that I need to match the impedance and levels in order to connect pro and consumer gear, but nobody explains exactly what this means. I know, I know -- I've already ordered the Jay Rose book so I don't have to ask stupid questions likes this -- but in practical terms, can you tell me what this means right now? What do I need to make everything match with the Sony minidisc and MM-1? I'm currently using a -20db inline attenuator and a shure XLR to mini adapter that includes a transformer to plug into the line input on the minidisc. It sounds pretty good to me, but I'm uncertain if this is the right set up exactly.

Mini disk audio to dv
 

Check out the Sound Devices site at "www.sounddevices.com/tech/balancing.htm" for an article discission on your question. The pad should take care of thelevel differences and the transformer will isolate your mini disk from the pro-level +4 input to prevent any distoration from impedance mismatch. The transformer should be 10K on the input side and 600 ohms (or there abouts) on the output side. There isn't room on this site to go into details, one of the books recommended previously, will go into more detail. Try your setup and see how it works, first, it sould be o.k. -- but don't expect the same quaility audio you get from your pro-gear. The mini-disk is a backup system and such should work o.k., until you get something better, et all

Thanks again. I'll get started on all of this reading.

Sorry to dig up an old thread.
 

From what I've heard you can get audio on a minidisc that will pretty much match DAT quality. I know lots of people using portable minidisc for their sound and they all love it.

The one question I have is: Can't you just get a home MD deck (inexpensive at around $100-150) with optical out and capture it to your soundcard that way thus keeping it all digital? Or does the copy protection on MD get in the way? I know that you can usually make at least one generation of copies in digital....isnt that good enough to get it on your PC and plop it in your NLE?

MiniDisc is near CD quality, not DAT quality, although most folks probably will have trouble hearing the difference. And it is adequate for most video purposes.

You can do a digital transfer as you describe, that is how I do it.( But digital transfer does not eliminate the compression /decompression cycle associated with MiniDisc.)

Also, because MiniDisc is 44.1 kHz sample rate, you may have to upsample to 48 kHz for use with your NLE, not a major problem - most good systems will seamlessly take care of this for you.

Tape is Dying
 

Tape of any kind for most recording purposes is probably dying.

HHb used to make a DAT recorder. They stopped making the PORTADAT in favor of an MD deck, the PORTADISC. They have recently released the PORTADRIVE for high-end location sound recording. It writes directly to removable 20GB hard drives. See the review at http://www.locationsound.ca/hhbp.html. A mere $10,000.

Fostex has the PD-6 which is a high end location DVD recorder.
see: http://www.locationsound.ca/reco.html#renl

Sony has now introduced (not yet in the US, I think) professional cameras that record to disk in DVCAM and better, so workflow is going to be non-linear from begininng to end very soon indeed, I think.