Even though a CD player with a digital output is the perfect partner for a MiniDisc recorder, Sony has realised that more and more people are using their PCs for music storage and need to be able to transfer this music to MiniDisc. To address this market Sony has released the MZ-R700PC portable MiniDisc recorder.

What you get in the box is a pretty standard recordable MiniDisc Walkman. Not the smallest around, but not too big either. One unusual aspect is that Sony has not supplied its usual 'chewing gum' rechargeable battery and, instead, includes a rechargeable AA cell. The remote control is functional, but has no display to tell you what track you're listening to.

The AC adapter charges the battery when connected and also allows you to run the unit from the mains. Although an optical digital cable is supplied in the box, it's not the preferred method of connection for this model. The 'PC' in the model name refers to a USB interface that's lurking in the box.

This bit of kit will stream digital music from your PC via the USB port and pump it to the MZ-R700PC. In theory this is a great idea, but in practice it's somewhat flawed.

The big problem is that MiniDisc is a digital recording format, but the USB interface decodes the digital files and outputs them as an analog signal. So, you might as well just connect the MZ-R700PC to the line-out jack on your sound card which will also output an analog signal.

The sound quality of an analog recording isn't bad, and the recorder does manage to insert breaks between tracks, which makes life a little easier. You should make sure that your PC isn't doing anything else while recording or you may find some strange noises making their way into your recording if something as simple as a new email arrives.

The idea behind the MZ-R700PC is a good one, but recording analog onto a digital format is a bit of a waste, especially when the majority of PC sound cards have digital outputs now.

CONTACT: Sony
08705 111 999
www.sony.co.uk