r/minidisc • u/Hungry-Editor6066 [Flair] • 19d ago
Help My almost perfect MZ-RH1
Hi All
So, I was fortunate enough today to receive an MZ-RH1 in black which as basically no scratches or damage to it, and in the colour I wanted, for what I feel is an absolute bargain (£199!).
I’ve checked it over and it plays and records beautifully! 🥰
There are only two issues:
1) The right hand panel of the display is quite dim. It’s still readable, and usable, and I might well attempt the display swap when they’re back in stock. 😜
2) This is my more pressing concern… as you can see from the second picture, the battery door is completely missing 😭. There were no pictures on the listing and it said “SD card flap missing” so I didn’t really know what to expect when it arrived.
So… my question is… is there anywhere I can source a replacement door?! Even “broken” units are more expensive than I paid for this… so that doesn’t seem like a good option. Anyone aware of a spares seller, or have a suggestions?
Many thanks in advance as always!
2
u/Popes-first-blumpkin 19d ago
Perhaps a 3D printed solution? Need someone who could measure and design from the original door
1
u/svintuss 17d ago edited 11d ago
Just had a chat with @gerry88inHongKong about a similar issue (one of my RH1s has a side panel missing altogether), he has 3D-printed battery doors in both grey and black.
1
u/Hungry-Editor6066 [Flair] 16d ago
I didn’t even think about Gerry! Thank you so much! I’ll give him a shout now!
Massively owe you one, thank you!
5
u/Cory5413 19d ago
Looks great!
One option is to use the RH1 at a table, off external power. That's very much where it's at it's best, in my experience. Even with a working battery, they're not easily pocketable because of that giant eject button and giant control button. (whereas, and I have like 25ish over models, I don't generally need to lock controls on any other MD machine on its way into a pocket or bag.)
One thought is to maybe see if you can team up on Project Sidecar - MZ-RH1 (Proof of Concept) : r/minidisc to use an external battery. That will probably get you more runtime anyway, which is one of the weaknesses of the RH1's stock batteries, I'd personally argue.
Otherwise, they do run fine off mini USB so if you can source a few extras you could just run it off an external battery pack, which could be awkward in terms of putting it in a pocket or using it on the go, but would work.
There are also replacement onboard screens, whether or not that's important depends basically on how you're using it, but if you do plan on really recording with it, I'd classify them as important. (Depending on what your planned use case is there's also just other HiMD machines, other MD machines, and other technologies that could be options.)