The MD-SR50 is a simple recorder that has an appealing design and low price. The low price means you lack a remote ,optical cable and recharchable battery. Since there is allso no disk in the package, just buying the unit doesn't get you started. You'll need at least a battery and a disk. Earphones and adapter are included.

The unit is quite heavy compared to the latest Sony models, a bit large but feels sturdy and gives the confidence it'll survive small crashes. It runs of one AA battery, which may be a NiMH. Playing time should be around 7 hours than, but including track switching and a bit more volume 5 hours is the most I got out of it.

PERFORMANCE

Overall performance is good. The 10 sec anti-shock memory seems small but is enough for normal use. It does seem to be sensitive to shock when recording though. Output volume is 10 mW, no AVLS or other protection and that is defenitly a plus: it allows me to push out the neighbours organ... Bass can be adjusted to 4 levels. Recording level can be adjusted before and during recording. The unit has a noise level that can be heard during analog recordings with volume at 80 % and higher. Some additional digital noise can be heard. I'm not sure if this is recorded allso, or just the output amplifier. Recordings can be made mono to double recording time. Microphone can autostart recordings.

USE

The buttons are easy to use. But putting the volume controls in the middle and without any distinction in size is a bad choice. There are a lot of buttons, but I prefere that over a menu. The LCD can't be lit and that is a big disadvantage. The manual is rather messy. It provides a lot of information but lacks a clear line. A non technical person should consult the usual wizz-kid in the street ( as with vcr's and so on ). Options are plenty and allow real control.

ACCESOIRES

The earphones are real crap. They have been designed to emphasize bass and high. You can't use them for any serious music, only house and so on. They lack the mid-frequency range, which means a roaring guitar can't be heard with them. Get a high-end set of earphones if you can. Be prepared to spend half the cost of the unit on them. It's worth it. ( this is not a Sharp problem but a general problem, I like sound to be technical straight and not perceptional enhanced to humour tone-deaf people ) The pouch to store the unit in is a laugh.

CONCLUSION

A good recorder that for its price really is an excellent buy. disadvantages: no backlit LCD, clumsy placement of volume controls, no digital interface to edit TOC on a computer and download it to the unit. advantages: high outputvolume, good bass-enhancement, sturdy, good control. I bought this Md Player as it looked good.... The MD is quite bulky and battery life is about 5 hours. I got it for about S$350 which is very reasonable but there is no rechargeable battery, remote control nor optical cabe.... The recordings are good but the earphones totally suck.... It is uncomfortable and the sound quality isn't that goood.... I replaced it with an aiwa earphone, which i found better...

I miss the LCD backlight feature.... WHen i want to use MD-SR50 in the night, i have to turn on the lights.... It is easy to use but sometimes, when u walk, the song would just pause, then continue about after 10 seconds.... Volume is soft and if u want to make the song louder, u must on the volume very high on the playback unit..... Though i found the unit lacked some important factors like those listed above, i still find it very useful... I would recommend it to anyone who wants to get a cheaper MD and doesn't mind the missing features... I am looking to buy the Sharp 831 soon though..... I write this review of the Sharp MD-SR50 as a first user of Mini Disc players. I own several Walkmans (Sony and Aiwa) and a Discman (Sony) as well. I would call myself a critical listener who is not easily satisfied. The Sharp MD-SR50 has been reviewed before so I restrict myself to those features not covered before or aspects I particularly like or dislike.

The SR-50 is surely not the smallest MD player/recorder on earth. Although at the time of writing (October 2000) by far the one with the best price/performance ratio. I bought mine for 160 Euro's in exchange for a playing cassette Walkman. You will find in the box the player, a manual, a carrying pouch (unnecessary to unpack), earphones (not used yet, because I already owned a high-quality Aiwa set) and a battery charger. So be aware: the (indispensable) rechargeable battery is not included nor is an empty disc.

I started recording some of my CDs without reading a single letter of the manual. No problem at all, everything worked as I expected, although I am not a typical user of electronics but more a technee. The sound of the MD-SR50 (but probably of all MDs) is terrific. I cannot distinguish it from my Discman and it is far superior to the MP3's I play on my laptop (of course with the same headset !). Besides the sound quality, the post-recording editing features of MDs are wonderful. Erase, split, combine, shuffle and cut tracks as you like. Just incomparable to cassettes or tape.

The manual states that you should use Sharp's own rechargeble Nickel-Metal Hydride AA battery (AD-N70BT) only. Bull shit! I bought a Maxell 1100 mAh Ni-MH battery (for less than 3 Euro's) and it works perfectly. Moreover the manual says you should not use NiCd batteries. That is also half the story. You can use NiCd batteries as long as you do not recharge them with the MD's recharger. That one uses a far to high recharge current, unhealthy for NiCd batteries. As long as you use your own NiCd recharger, "there is not a cloud in the sky" after an old Dutch saying. Playback time of the MD-SR50 is not the longest on earth too. When I played back my first recordings on the road, I was really worried about the playback time. The player has a battery indicator of three little bars. Already after half an hour, the first bar went off apparently indicating only 2/3 of remaining power. But that is really pessimistic. A fully recharged Ni-MH 1100 mAh battery last for a little more that 4 hours of perfect music, enough for an entire marathon. For those of you who do not run so fast, use a high-density Alkaline battery - it last for more than 6 hours. Another thing that worried me in the beginning is the relatively short anti-shock memory of only 10 seconds. Let me ensure you: it is long enough for jogging on the street. If you prefer jogging on rough terrain you can switch off the Auto Power Save mode and than you will have perfect sound in dispense of a little more power consumption.

In conclusion, I have used my SR-50 for over a month now and I am very satisfied with it. The only drawback is its size (and perhaps its weight): It is just too big. (but the tiny Sony's are twice the price !)