Throwback Thursday: MiniDiscs

By on Aug 19, 2010 at 5:35 PM
Audio August 19, 2010

For this week’s Throwback Thursday, we’re going to dive into the audio realm with the technology that was MiniDiscs. Remember back when exercising with a portable CD player was out of the question? First, you had to have the stamina to carry the hefty device around while shaking your bon-bon (click on link to get Ricky-rolled). Second, anything you were listening to on your CD Walkman was bound to end up sounding like a bad remix after the anti-skip protection (typically 10, 20, 45, or 60 seconds) ran out. Then, in 1992, in came the MiniDisc.

Reminiscent of CD-ROM cartridges found on the Apple Performa series of computers, the MiniDisc promised CD-quality audio, with skipping under only the most extreme conditions, in a compact package. MiniDisc players were smaller, sleeker, and definitely more attractive than the CD and cassette-based Walkman units available at the time. At its inception MiniDiscs could accommodate 74 or 80 minutes of music. In 2000, Sony added a technology to its devices dubbed MiniDisc Long Play (MDLP) which allowed the throttling of audio quality and storage of up to 320 minutes of audio on one 80 minute MiniDisc. The MiniDisc’s Achilles heel came in the fact that the format only supported minute-based, CD-style audio recordings. Support for MP3 storage and playback was not added until the mid-2000′s; by then the era of the hard drive and flash-based MP3 player had begun.

Unfortunately, this was a technology we invested in and we owned several portable MiniDisc players (even a MiniDisc deck). We are also conjuring up faint memories of high school friends bragging about bootlegging Dave Matthews Band concerts with portable MiniDisc recorders and high-quality microphones. How about you? Any MiniDisc memories, or did you manage to avoid the fad?

BGR Throwback Thursday is a weekly series covering our (and your) favorite gadgets, games, and software of yesterday and yesteryear.

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  • lens42

    I used these to record musicians. Despite the ATRAC compression, sound quality and dynamics were top notch. This really WAS a great technology. Sony kept in proprietary for too long.

    • dad

      Yep, thus mini discs demise. If Sony had opened it up to 3rd party peeps, it would have exploded. But when iPODs hit the scene in the US and others followed, mini discs were going nowhere except in Japan.

  • Omen

    Weren’t they very popular in Japan?

    • dad

      Yes very popular, even when MP3 players blew up in the USA, mini discs were still the shit in Japan.

  • MarkyFark

    “Unfortunately, this was a technology we invested in and we owned several portable MiniDisc players (even a MiniDisc deck)”

    That’s because you’re retarded. EVERYONE knew Mini-disc was doomed from the get go. Seriously… you’re stupid.

  • jtrain

    I used this to record music and voice lessons for at least 10 years. I have a box of the discs somewhere. I bootlegged Pavarotti ( a somewhat famous opera singer) in concert and it sounded fantastic. Still have it, although now I use the zoom recorders. Well done on the Throwback Thursdays!

  • Tom Thomas

    I still use mine. It’s great when I’m mowing the lawn. I have a number of albums which I lost the original CDs on 9/11 when my WTC office was destroyed.

  • Crashoverride

    Had a “walkman” and a full deck for the apartment while in college. There was a sony outlet near my college and we rocked the heck out of these. Great for what we called “extreme sports” back then-especially mountain biking. They were awesome, as I remember bootlegging a ton of concerts with them too!

  • richard

    Not only did they free you from skip, they also allowed
    you to record the (few) decent songs of albums and not
    lug around CDs. Definitely lightened one’s load.
    There apparently was a computer version as well which
    replaced the CD drive, but this was Japan only, sadly.
    Still use mine occasionally.

  • Paul

    proud to owner and user since 1996. Yes thats right, 1996. I went through a bunch of different models but I spent almost a decade on the MD format until it was retired for an iPod.

    I still have my mini-disc and it makes an appearance whenever I go to a concert. I have a library of live music recorded onto Mini-Disc that could probably take up a small book case. I always loved the fact I could record and revisit concerts I went to.

    I’ll bust out the MD player every once and while but for now, its mostly a dust collector in my electronics hall of fame. The MD was a 1st ballot HoF’er though.

  • Bruckout

    I had a couple mini disk players and i love them. Sound quality was amazing and mine is still around somewhere, maybe i’ll pick up and take a listen one of these days.

  • Chad Wichterman

    I love and use minidiscs today, i have a great passion for the format and will never stop enjoying them. I hate ipods and mp3 players for hurting this format. I don’t care what anyone says against MDs vs Ipods that have the thought of Ipods are better, cause it will be a waste of time. You can do so much with a MD that those Ipod junk can never give. Everytime i see someone listening to a Ipod i always shake my head and think there goes another I Sheep who is taking part in hurting the MD format. TSK TSK TSK.

  • Xpadix

    i bought an MD head unit for my car, and now even though i have changed cars many times since 99, i still install that same head unit in my daily driver, i love the reaction that people give me when they sit inside, they are like wow, didnt know those things existed, and wow u are a geek

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