Price Paid:  $500.00 from Local Hifi store

Summary:
The definitive stationary MD recorder. Outperforms and outshines its successor, the JA555ES by miles and miles. True, the MD format may not exactly be audiophile in its qualities, but as an alternative to CDR, there's hardly anything that combines ultimate portability and excellent sound quality the way MD does it. I use MD in my car and portable during sports, but did not want to sacrifice sound-quality at home, hence I chose the JA50ES.

Sony decided to make MD more affordable by reducing the overall quality of their flagship series of stationary MD recorders. This meant that in the evolution from the JA50ES to the JA555ES, some crucial characteristics of the JA50ES were dropped in the process. Its dual-mono design was dropped along with other things, thus rendering the JA555 a rather unsatisfactory and unworthy successor. Pick one up while you still can. You can find these babies at killer prices, $500 should not be difficult to find, its original price being well over $1500)

In short, despite the MD formet, this machine brings out the best in the Minidisc platform. Its sound quality is great *even* to audiophile ears.

Strengths:
Definition, transparency, slam. If there's a machine on this earth that brings out the very best of the MD format, it's this machine. The JA50ES rules!

Weaknesses:
It stil is Minidisc.

Similar Products Used:
Sony JA30ES, JA555ES, various JVC and other brands.