Sony RDR-HX870 copy CD to HDD issue

[visioneer]

Hi all,
Just for the fun of it last night, I copied a music CD to the HDD of my machine using the dub facility. It copied across easily, and quite quickly too, but the size of the file on the HDD was in total 560mb which seemed a lot to me.

Had a look around the various menu options but couldn't see anything that would give me control over the format of the recording or the bitrate etc. Has anyone else tried this or got any advice as to whether it's possible to reduce file sizes?

[Gavtech]

The kind of copying you describe does no encoding at all... It is a pure copy of the data on the CD so will end up being exactly the same size as the CD will be ... i.e. typically up to 700MB.

If you want it to have a smaller digital footprint , then compress it first before transfer ... which means convert it to MP3.

[visioneer]

Thanks. Suppose it makes sense when you say it like that So, I make an MP3 cd first and then transfer it. All my MP3's are on my laptop so do I have to burn them to a CD and then load them onto the Sony or can I connect my laptop to the Sony and transfer directly?

I intend to get an external USB HDD in the future but have held off getting one to see which models other people have used with success on here. I should then be able to back up my MP3's onto the HDD and also trf to the Sony which thinking about it is a bit like having 2 backups of the MP3's.

[Gavtech]

Originally Posted by visioneer

... so do I have to burn them to a CD and then load them onto the Sony or can I connect my laptop to the Sony and transfer directly?

You can get MP3's onto the unit via DVD-R's -RW's and probably CD's [but check in the spec] ... Also via plug-in USB keyfob memory.

It is also possible via a USB connected HDD.

However, I believe a computer will specifically and deliberately NOT be recognised by this unit ... and there is some significant risk to the power supplies of either the PC or the DVDR if you attempt to connect them - So don't.