Pioneer MJ-L77 User manual

MJ-L77
MINIDISC RECORDER
Operating Instructions

WARNING: TO PREVENT FIRE OR SHOCK
HAZARD, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS APPLIANCE TO
RAIN OR MOISTURE.
Thank you for buying this Pioneer product.
Please read through these operating instructions
so you will know how to operate your model
properly. After you have finished reading the
instructions, put them away in a safe place for
future reference.
In some countries or regions, the shape of the
power plug and power outlet may some-times
differ from that shown in the explanatory
drawings. However, the method of connecting
and operating the unit is the same.
RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK
DO NOT OPEN
CAUTION
IMPORTANT 1
CAUTION:
TO PREVENT THE RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO
NOT REMOVE COVER (OR BACK). NO USER-
SERVICEABLEPARTSINSIDE. REFERSERVICINGTO
QUALIFIED SERVICE PERSONNEL.
The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is
intendedto alert theuser to thepresence of important
operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in
the literature accompanying the appliance.
The lightning flash with arrowhead symbol, within an
equilateral triangle, is intended to alert the user to the
presenceofuninsulated"dangerousvoltage"withinthe
product'senclosurethatmaybeofsufficientmagnitude
to constitute a risk of electric shock to persons.
IMPORTANT
FOR USE IN THE UNITED
KINGDOM
The wires in this mains lead are
coloured in accordance with the
following code:
Blue : Neutral
Brown : Live
If the plug provided is unsuitable for
your socket outlets, the plug must be
cut off and a suitable plug fitted.
The cut-off plug should be disposed
of and must not be inserted into any
13 amp socket as this can result in
electric shock. The plug or adaptor of
the distribution panel should be
provided with a 5 amp fuse. As the
colours of the wires in the mains lead
of this appliance may not correspond
with coloured markings identifying
the terminals in your plug, proceed as
follows:
The wire which is coloured blue must
be connected to the terminal which is
marked with the letter N or coloured
black.
The wire which is coloured brown
must be connected to the terminal
which is marked with the letter L or
THE POWER SWITCH IS SECONDARY CONNECTED
AND THEREFORE DOES NOT SEPARATE THE UNIT
FROM MAINS POWER IN THE STANDBY POSITION.
This product complies with the Low Voltage
Directive (73/23/EEC), EMC Directives (89/336/EEC,
92/31/EEC) and CE Marking Directive (93/68/EEC).
coloured red.
Do not connect either wire to the earth
terminal of a three-pin plug.
NOTE
After replacing or changing a fuse, the
fuse cover in the plug must be replaced
with a fuse cover which corresponds to
the colour of the insert in the base of
the plug or the word that is embossed
on the base of the plug, and the
appliance must not be used without a
fuse cover. If lost, replacement fuse
covers can be obtained from your dealer.
Only 5 A fuses approved by B.S.I. or
A.S.T.A. to B.S. 1362 should be used.
[For MiniDisc Recorder MJ-L77]
CAUTION
This product contains a laser diode of higher
class than 1. To ensure continued safety, do not
remove any covers or attempt to gain access to
the inside of the product.
Refer all servicing to qualified personnel.
The following caution label appears on your unit.
Location: Bottom of the unit.
CLASS 1
LASER PRODUCT
INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT
Recording and playback of copyrighted material
may require consent. See the Copyright Design
and Patent Act 1988.
US and foreign patents licensed from Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation

Contents
1 Before You Start
Opening the Box................................................................................................ 4
About Minidiscs ................................................................................................. 5
2 Connecting up
Connecting to the Rest of the System ............................................................... 9
3 What’s What
Front Panel Controls and Display................................................................... 10
4 Switching On
Playing an MD ................................................................................................ 11
Changing the Display...................................................................................... 12
Introduction to Recording MDs ...................................................................... 13
Automatically Recording from a CD .............................................................. 14
Automatically Recording a Tape..................................................................... 15
Using the Menu System................................................................................... 16
5 More Playback Features
Programming the Track Order ....................................................................... 17
Playing Things Again...................................................................................... 18
Playing Tracks at Random ............................................................................. 19
6 More Recording Features
Recording Options........................................................................................... 20
Numbering Tracks........................................................................................... 20
Recording Extra-Long Material...................................................................... 20
Selecting Analogue Input Recording.............................................................. 21
Recording an Analogue Source ...................................................................... 22
Recording an External Digital Source............................................................ 23
Recording Over Unwanted Material ............................................................... 24
7 Editing
About MD Editing............................................................................................ 25
Naming a Disc................................................................................................. 25
Naming a Track .............................................................................................. 26
Dividing a Track into Two............................................................................... 27
Combining Two Tracks into One .................................................................... 27
Moving Tracks on a Disc ................................................................................. 28
Reordering Tracks on a Disc ........................................................................... 29
Erasing Tracks on a Disc................................................................................. 30
Undoing a Mistake .......................................................................................... 31
8 Additional Information
Understanding Error Messages ....................................................................... 32
Troubleshooting .............................................................................................. 33
Specifications .................................................................................................. 34
Set Up In Use

1 Before You Start
4
Thank you for buying this Pioneer product. Before starting to set up your new
minidisc recorder, please check that you’ve received the following supplied accessories
in the box:
• Optical digital cable
• Power cable
• Warranty card
• This instruction manual
Using this manual
This manual is for the MJ–L77 Minidisc Recorder. It is split into two sections, the first
covering set up, and the second, operation. Set up, which starts here, covers all aspects
of getting your new minidisc recorder up and running with the rest of your XC–L77
stereo system. If this is the first time you’ve used minidiscs, we recommend reading the
About Minidiscs section starting on the following page before using the recorder for
the first time.
In the second section of the manual, starting on page 10, you’ll learn how to use all
the features of the MJ–L77, from basic playback to disc editing. The final part of the
manual provides reference information on error messages you might encounter
during use, a troubleshooting page, and technical specifications.
Hints on Installation
We want you to enjoy using the MJ–L77 for years to come, so please bear in mind the
following points when choosing a suitable location for it:
DO...
❖Use in a well-ventilated room.
❖Place on a solid, flat, level surface, such as a table, shelf or stereo rack.
DON’T...
❖Use in a place exposed to high temperatures or humidity, including near
radiators and other heat-generating appliances.
❖Place on a window sill or other place where the recorder will be exposed to
direct sunlight.
❖Use in an excessively dusty or damp environment.
❖Place directly on top of an amplifier, or other component in your stereo
system that becomes hot in use.
❖Use near a television or monitor as you may experience interference—
especially if the television uses an indoor antenna.
❖Use in a kitchen or other room where the recorder may be exposed to smoke
or steam.
❖Place on an unstable surface, or one that is not large enough to support all
four of the unit’s feet.
Avoiding condensation problems
Condensation may form inside the recorder if it is brought into a warm room from
outside, or if the temperature of the room rises quickly. Although the condensation
won’t damage the recorder, it may temporarily impair its performance. For this reason
you should leave it to adjust to the warmer temperature for about an hour before
switching on and using.
more than
+15cm =
Tip
Take care when
installing or storing
optical cable.
Do not bend the
cable around sharp
corners and coil
loosly when storing.
Opening the Box

1 Before You Start
5
Set Up
Minidisc, or MD as it’s usually called, is an extremely flexible and convenient format
on which you can both playback and record high-quality digital audio. Because it’s a
disc, MD has many of the advantages of compact disc—you can jump directly to any
track on the disc, program the playing order, instantly skip over tracks you don’t want
to play or back to tracks you want to play again, and so on. The really great thing
about MD though is the flexibility it offers when recording. Things that were
impossible using analogue cassette tape, such as reordering tracks, programming
track names, and deleting tracks without leaving any gaps are all easily achieved if
you’re using MD. Minidiscs have other advantages over cassette tape; the recorder
automatically finds the next blank space to record on, and can tell you how much
room there is left on a disc before you start recording. When you delete something
from the disc, the time available for recording is automatically updated.
If this is the first time you’ve used MD, please take a few minutes to read through this
section of the manual. It gives information on how to handle the discs properly, the
different kinds of disc available, and some basic MD characteristics.
Different kinds of MD available
All MDs carry the MD logo shown at the top of the page. Do not use any disc which
does not have this mark.
There are both recordable and non-recordable (playback-only) MDs. Commercially
available music on MD generally comes on discs which are playback only. The
diagrams left show the differences between the two types.
Handling MDs
The actual disc that contains the audio is quite delicate and so is protected against
dust, fingerprints and so on by an outer cartridge. Don’t force open the disc shutters to
expose the disc, and never touch the disc itself. Also, do not attempt to disassemble the
disc cartridge.
If the disc cartridge becomes dirty or stained, wipe clean with a soft, dry cloth.
Storing and labelling MDs
When you’re not playing a minidisc, put the disc cartridge back in the case for storage.
Avoid storing or leaving discs in very hot or humid areas, such as in a car in summer.
Also avoid leaving discs in direct sunlight, or in places where sand or grit might get
into the disc cartridge.
Recordable MDs come with self-adhesive labels to stick on the disc cartridge to tell you
what’s recorded on the disc. Always stick the label in the area provided, avoiding the
disc shutter and the edges of the disc.
If the disc label starts to peel off at the corners, remove the label and replace it with a
fresh one—don’t simply stick another label on top of the old one.
About Minidiscs
Minidisc mark—all
MDs carry this logo
Shutter Disc Cartridge
Don’t touch the disc!
Recordable MD
Disc has shutters
on both sides
Disc
label
Playback-only MD
Disc has shutter
on one side only
Disc
label

1 Before You Start
6
Avoiding accidental erasure
Once you’ve recorded a disc, it’s a good idea to protect it against accidental erasure by
sliding the tab on the side of the disc to the open position.
If you want to erase or re-record the disc, simply slide the tab back to the closed
position before loading the disc into the recorder.
Analogue and digital recording
Whatever you record onto an MD is stored on the disc as digital data (in other words,
numbers). This is what we mean when we say that MD is a digital format. However,
what you feed into the MJ–L77 to record can be either analogue (such as the output
from a turntable or a tuner), or digital (such as the direct digital output from a CD
player, or another MD recorder).
If you record an analogue signal, the recorder has to first change it into a digital form
before writing it onto the disc.
If you’re recording from another digital format, like a CD, it makes sense to just
record the digital data directly. For this purpose the MJ–L77 has a digital input which
you can connect to either the XC–L77 CD receiver, or an external digital source, such
as another MD unit, DAT recorder or DVD player. When recording digitally there are a
couple of points to bear in mind.
All digital audio has something called a ‘sampling rate’, which is measured in kHz
(kilohertz). The quality of the final sound depends to a large extent on this: the higher
the better.
Compact discs have a sampling frequency of 44.1kHz, which happens to be the same
as MDs. This means you shouldn’t run into problems making digital recordings of
CDs or other MDs (although see Copying restrictions below for exceptions to this).
Other digital sources you may come across (DAT, digital satellite and DVD) often use
different sampling rates—specifically, 32kHz and 48kHz. The MJ–L77 can handle
these too, and, at the time of writing, these are by far the most common sampling
rates around. There is, however, a trend towards higher sampling rates. Some DVD
discs and DAT tapes are recorded at 96kHz. The MJ–L77 cannot handle this rate, and
you’ll have to record via the analogue terminals of the DVD or DAT recorder to the
auxilliary inputs of the XC–L77 CD receiver.
Use a screwdriver, pen or
fingernail to open or shut the
erase-protect tab

1 Before You Start
7
Set Up
About the Table of Contents
When you load any kind of minidisc into the recorder, the first thing it does is read a
section of the disc called the Table of Contents, or TOC. Just as the contents page of a
book tells the reader what each chapter is about and where to find it in the book, the
TOC tells the recorder where the tracks are on the disc, the name and length of each
track, the name of the disc, and so on. In the couple of seconds it takes to read all this,
the recorder’s display shows the message MD TOC READ.
Since you can change what’s on a recordable MD, the Table of Contents is rewritable,
and so is called the User Table of Contents, or UTOC for short. If you have a recordable
disc loaded in the recorder and hit eject, the recorder automatically updates the UTOC
before giving you the disc back. In both cases, the message MD TOC WRITE
appears in the display during the UTOC updating process.
The UTOC is vital for the recorder to be able to play a disc correctly. Until you hit eject,
the recorder stores all the current session’s recording and editing information in its
memory. If there’s a power failure or you accidently unplug the recorder before it’s had
a chance to write the UTOC there’s a danger that all that disc information will be lost.
To prevent this, plug the recorder back in as soon as possible and eject the disc. If you
leave the unit unplugged for more that a day, you’ll lose the UTOC information stored
in memory and with it, that session’s recordings/edits.
Copying restrictions
You may run into problems making digital copies of some sources, even when the
sampling rate is compatible. Some DVD discs disable the DVD player’s digital output to
prevent illegal digital copying (you can still record via the analogue outputs though).
Another restriction on digital copying comes from something called SCMS, which
stands for Serial Copy Management System. This stops you making multiple-
generation digital recordings and is aimed at preventing illegal digital copying of
copyright material. The number of generations that SCMS will let you make depends
on the source.
A recording made from any source
via analogue inputs can be digitally
copied once only.
Analogue
connection
Digital connection Digital connection
Satellite
Audio from digital satellite can
usually be copied digitally for two
generations. (Sometimes just one
generation is possible.)
Digital connection Digital connection Digital connection
Digital audio from CD, MD, DVD or DAT can be copied
digitally for one generation only.
Digital connection Digital connection

1 Before You Start
8
Symptom
The recorder shows the message
TOC FULL even though there are fewer
than 255 tracks on the disc (the maximum
possible).
The recorder shows the message DISC FULL
before you’ve reached the maximum
recording time of the disc.
The amount of recording time available
doesn’t increase after erasing some short
tracks.
The total recorded time, plus the recording
time remaining, appears to be less than the
length of the disc.
The recorder won’t allow you to combine
two tracks into one during editing.
The sound is interrupted during fast
forward or reverse.
MD System Limitation
Although when you listen to a disc it appears that each track sits end to end in an
unbroken sequence, the actual audio information may be scattered all over the disc
in different places. The more times you record and edit things on a disc, the more
scattered the information becomes. Usually, this doesn’t affect the user; the recorder
keeps track of everything using the UTOC. However, because the recorder needs to
know where every little gap is on the disc (and counts each one as a track, although
you don’t see it), the UTOC eventually fills up, and the recorder won’t let you record
anything else on that disc. Erasing a complete track, or the entire disc cures the
problem.
If a disc is scratched or damaged in some way, that part of the disc becomes
automatically unavailable for recording. In this case, the recorder shows the reduced
recording time available.
If you erase a track which is less than 12 seconds long, the recorder can’t add that
time to the available recording time.
Recording time on a disc is divided into two second blocks—the smallest ‘unit’ of a
minidisc. Although a piece of audio data may be shorter than this, it still takes up
two seconds on the disc, and the remainder is ‘lost’ (until the whole block is erased).
As the number of these partially used blocks builds up, you might notice that the
total disc length appears to shorten. (See also the note about damaged discs above.)
There are two situations where you can’t use the combine edit feature:
❖When one of the tracks was recorded using the digital input, and the other using
the analogue input.
❖When one track was recorded in long-play mono mode, and the other in normal
stereo mode.
As we mentioned above, the more re-recording and editing you do on a disc, the
more scattered the audio information on the disc becomes. During fast forward or
reverse this may show up as interrupted sound.
About MD System Limitations
The sophisticated playback, editing and recording features available to you with MD
are possible because of the way in which the sound data is stored on the disc together
with the system of TOCs and UTOCs described above. There are times however when
you might encounter odd side-effects of the way the system works. These are not
malfunctions, but limitations of the system. Below is a list of symptoms you may run
across depending on the way you record or edit discs.

2 Connecting Up
9
Set Up
Connecting to the Rest of the System
Important: Before making or changing any rear panel connections, make sure
that all the components are switched off and unplugged from the power supply.
The MJ–L77 connects directly to the XC–L77 CD receiver, so if you also have the CT–
L77 tape deck and are adding it to your existing system, you’ll need to disconnect the
tape deck from the CD receiver first. If you’re setting the whole system up for the first
time, be sure to also refer to chapter 2 of the XC–L77 manual for full installation and
connection details.
There are two audio connections to make:
1MD ribbon cable to the CD receiver
2Optical cable from the CD receiver to the MD recorder
Additionally, if you have the CT–L77 tape deck:
3Tape deck ribbon cable to the MD recorder
Having connected these up, you’re ready to connect the power cables—one from the
CD receiver and one from the MD recorder.
Note: Power must be connected to the CD receiver whenever you use the MD
recorder—the MJ–L77 will not work independently of the rest of the system.
CD receiver
Ribbon cable
Ribbon cable
Optical cable
MD recorder
CD receiver
power cable
MD recorder
power cable
Tape deck
Complete
system connections
To insert, hold the connector and push
firmly into the socket until you hear it
click home.
Ribbon cables
IMPORTANT: Never connect or
disconnect the system ribbon cables
while the power plug is connected to
the wall outlet. Doing so may damage
the unit.
To remove, hold the connector
securely on either side with thumb and
forefinger and pull out from the socket.

3 What’s What
10
Front Panel Controls and Display
^)
MINIDISC
6
78910
34
21
Front Panel
1 MD loading slot
2 Power light – lights when the unit is on.
36button – Press to play an MD, or pause one that’s already playing
(press again to restart playback). In record mode, also use to start or pause
recording.
40button – Press to eject the MD.
5 Play light – Lights when an MD is playing; blinks when paused.
Display
6 Character display
7 MD function – Highlights when in MD recorder mode.
8 MD record indicator – Lights during record or record-pause mode.
9 Synchro indicator – Lights in CD or tape synchro-recording mode.
10 Auto mark indicator – Lights when automatic track numbering is
switched on.
11 Digital indicator – Lights when MD recorder is in digital signal input
mode.
12 Mono LP indicator – Lights when recording in mono/long-play mode.
5
11 12
• Dolby noise reduction
manufactured under
license from Dolby
Laboratories Licensing
Corporation.
• “DOLBY”, and the
double-D symbol are
trademarks of Dolby
Laboratories Licensing
Corporation.

4 Switching On
11
In Use
1 Switch on.
You can use the STANDBY/ON button on either the remote control or the
CD receiver unit to do this.
The display lights and briefly indicates the current volume level before
showing the current function (e.g., CD).
Note: The complete system, including CD receiver and optional tape deck
consumes a small amount of electricity (about 1W) in standby mode.
2 Load an MD.
Gently push the MD into the slot in the direction indicated on the disc
cartridge. The recorder pulls the MD into the recorder automatically.
If you’ve just loaded a playback-only disc or an erase-protected recordable
disc (i.e., the erase-protect tab is open), then the disc should already be
playing. This feature is called Auto Play.
3 Press the MD button to start playback.
Alternatively, press ^on the front panel of the recorder.
This won’t be necessary if Auto Play has already started playback!
4 To pause playback, press the MD button.
To resume playback, press again.
You can also use the MD recorder’s front panel controls:
Press ^once to pause playback; press again to resume.
5 To fast-reverse or fast-forward, press and
hold $or ›.
You should hear snippets of sound to give you some idea of where you are in
the track. Release the button to resume normal playback.
Continues
Playing an MD
You should now have your MD recorder connected up to the rest of the system, and
plugged into the power outlet. This chapter takes you through the basics of using the
MD recorder—playing discs and making a recording from the CD receiver.
When following the steps below, use either a playback-only disc, or a recordable MD
that already has some tracks recorded on it.
AUX/CD-R SOUND DISPLAY SET MD TAPE TIMER/
CHARACTER
&
CANCEL
REC
$
! —
›
+ ⁄
VOL
STANDBY/ON
7
4¢
STANDBY/ON
MD
INSERT THIS END
MD
74mins
All MDs indicate which way
they should be loaded into
the player/recorder
If a track has been named, the
name appears in the display
while the track is playing
Display shows the CD player as
the current function (no disc
loaded)
MD recorder reads the table of
contents when you load a disc
Display showing an MD with 5
tracks and a total playing time
of 43:24

4 Switching On
12
6 To skip back or forward to another track,
press (but don't hold) $or ›
Pressing ›once skips to the start of the next track on the disc. Further
presses take you to subsequent tracks.
Pressing $once takes you to the beginning of the current track. Further
presses skip to the start of previous tracks.
You can use the track skip buttons while the disc is paused, too. The track
number changes while the disc remains paused.
7 To stop playback, press &
If the disc was paused, then the pause mode is cancelled.
8 To eject the disc, press )
This button is on the front panel only.
Changing the Display
You can choose to display various kinds of information during playback, recording
and stop modes. Switch between them by pressing the DISPLAY button.
When an MD is stopped
• If the display shows the disc name/total playing time:
DISC NAME - displays the name of the disc, if one has been programmed
DISC TOTAL - displays the total playing time of the disc
REC REMAIN - displays the amount of recording time available
CLOCK - displays the current time and date
CALENDAR - displays the current date
DIMMER - adjusts the display brightness (see page 43 of XC–L77 manual)
• If the display shows a track name/playing time of a track:
TRACK NAME - displays the name of the current track, if one has been programmed
TRACK TIME - displays the playing time of the current track
CLOCK - displays the current time and date
CALENDAR - displays the current date
DIMMER - adjusts the display brightness (see page 43 of XC–L77 manual)
When an MD is playing
TRACK NAME - displays the name of the current track, if one has been programmed
TRACK TIME ELAPSED - displays time into the current track
TRACK REMAIN - displays how long the current track still has to play
ALL REMAIN - displays how long the disc still has to play
CLOCK - displays the current time and date
CALENDAR - displays the current date
DIMMER - adjusts the display brightness (see page 43 of XC–L77 manual)
Disc name display
Disc total display
Record remain display
Clock display
Calendar display
Track name display
Track time elapsed/Track remain
displays
All remain display

4 Switching On
13
In Use
Introduction to Recording MDs
If you've already read the About Minidiscs section (pages 5–8), you'll already have a
good idea of what MD is capable of.
Analogue and digital recording
The MJ–L77 can record through either analog or digital inputs—analog via the
ribbon cable connections; digital via the optical cable. Generally, the recorder
automatically selects the digital input to record from if there is a signal present. If not,
then the analog input is used. However, you can also specify that the analog input
should be used at all times—even when recording from the CD receiver.
If you need to record from an external analogue component, such as a turntable, then
recording is via the auxilliary jacks on the CD receiver unit. If the external component
is digital, such as a DAT player, and it has an optical digital out, you can connect it
directly to the MJ–L77 by unplugging the optical cable from the CD receiver and
plugging it into the external component.
Recording levels
Whether you're recording through the digital or the analogue inputs, there's no need
to set the recording level. In the case of analogue, the level is adjusted automatically.
With digital, the data that makes up the sound is simply copied to the disc unaltered.
Also, when recording, the volume, tone and balance controls have no effect on the
recording. This means that you can record something with the volume turned right
down, if you want.
Track numbering
The MJ–L77 also takes care of numbering tracks for you. When recording a CD or MD
through the digital input, track numbers follow the material being recorded. When
recording from any component through the analogue inputs, or from a digital source
other than CD or MD, the recorder starts a new track whenever it detects more than 1.5
seconds of silence in the source material. If you want to change the track numbers
that are assigned automatically, there are various editing features at your disposal to
renumber tracks as you wish.
Once recording has started, you can't switch to another component until either the
recording has stopped, or you pause the recording. So, for example, you can't switch
over to the tuner while you're recording a CD.
When recording an MD
TRACK NAME - displays the name of the current track, if one has been programmed
RECORDING TIME ELAPSED - displays time into the current track
REC REMAIN - displays the amount of recording time available
CLOCK - displays the current time and date
CALENDER - displays the current date
DIMMER - adjusts the display brightness (see page 43 of XC–L77 manual)
Track name display
Recording time elapsed display
Record remain display

4 Switching On
14
Automatically Recording from a CD
This feature makes recording a CD as simple as possible by automatically starting and
stopping the CD and MD together. There are two modes: 1 track synchro records just a
single track, then stops; all-track synchro records the whole disc.
1 Load a recordable MD.
Make sure that the erase-protect tab is closed so that you can record.
If there’s already material recorded on the disc, the recorder automatically
records new material after what’s already there—there’s no need to search for
blank space to record on.
You can find out how much blank space you have left on the disc by
switching the display mode at this point. See page 12 for how to do this.
2 Press CD to switch to the CD player.
3 Load the CD you want to record.
Press &to make sure the disc is stopped.
4 If you want to record just one CD track,
select it using the $and ›buttons.
5 Press MD REC.
The recorder goes into record-pause mode, waiting for you to start the CD
player.
6 Press CD to start the CD playing.
Recording starts automatically with the CD.
Should you want to stop recording before the track/disc has finished playing,
simply press &any time during the recording.
Once the track or disc has finished, the recorder goes into record-pause mode.
At this point, you can either press &to finish the recording session, or
continue recording a different disc (or tracks) by repeating steps 3, 4 and 6.
Display showing that you’ve
loaded a blank disc
The CD display showing a disc
with 14 tracks and a total
playing time of 59:47
The SYNCHRO indicator lights
and the red MD record indicator
flashes
Once recording starts, the MD
record indicator remains lit
AUX/CD-R SOUND DISPLAY SET MD TAPE TIMER/
CHARACTER
&
CANCEL
REC
$
! —
›
+ ⁄
VOL
STANDBY/ON
CD
MD REC
4¢
MD

4 Switching On
15
In Use
Automatically Recording a Tape
Use this feature if you want to transfer material from tape to MD. Recording starts and
stops automatically with the tape, and you can set the tape to auto-reverse so that you
can copy both sides of the tape all in one go.
1 Load a recordable MD.
Make sure that the erase-protect tab is closed so that you can record.
If there’s already material recorded on the disc, the recorder automatically
records new material after what’s already there—there’s no need to search for
blank space to record on.
You can find out how much blank space you have left on the disc by
switching the display mode at this point. See page 12 for how to do this.
2 Press TAPE to switch to the tape deck.
3 Load the tape you want to record.
Press &to make sure the tape is stopped.
4 Set the reverse mode, play direction and
Dolby NR as required.
If you want to record the whole tape, set the reverse mode to p; if you just
want to record just one side, set it to “.
If the tape was recorded using Dolby NR, then Dolby NR should be switched
on for best results.
See pages 22 and 33 of the XC–L77 manual for detailed instructions.
5 Press MD REC.
The recorder goes into record-pause mode, waiting for you to start the tape.
6 Press TAPE to start the TAPE playing.
Recording starts automatically with the tape.
Should you want to stop recording before the tape has finished playing,
simply press &any time during the recording.
Once the tape (or side of the tape) has finished, the recorder goes into record-
pause mode. At this point, you can either press &to finish the recording
session, or continue recording a different tape by repeating steps 3, 4 and 6.
Recordable MD with 3 tracks
already recorded
Recording time available is
shown as 62:56
Display shows tape direction set
to ‘forward’, auto-reverse off and
Dolby NR on
The SYNCHRO indicator lights
and the red MD record indicator
flashes
Once recording starts, the MD
record indicator remains lit
AUX/CD-R SOUND DISPLAY SET MD TAPE TIMER/
CHARACTER
&
CANCEL
REC
$
! —
›
+ ⁄
VOL
STANDBY/ON
TAPE
MD REC
4¢
MD

4 Switching On
16
Using the Menu System
Access to many of the less commonly used functions of the XC–L77 is via a menu
system. Each component (CD player, tuner, tape deck, auxiliary, and this MD recorder)
has it's own set of menu options, but access to all of them is from the MENU button.
Pressing MENU displays the first menu option for the component you're currently
using. You can display the next option by pressing ›, or the previous one by
pressing $. The menus wrap around, so once you get to the end of the list, pressing
›again takes you back to the first item.
To select the menu option currently displayed, press the SET button. This often takes
you to a further sub-menu, which may simply consist of two settings (such as turning
something on or off), or may have more choices. Either way, choose between different
options with the $and ›buttons, and select one by pressing SET.
If you make a mistake while in the menu system, simply press &to cancel and exit.
The MD menu functions
• Playback features accessed via the menu button are:
PROGRAM - Specify the track order of a disc (page 17)
RANDOM - The recorder plays the tracks in a random order (page 19)
REPEAT - Set the current track or disc to repeat play (page 18)
• Recording features accessed via the menu button are:
AUTO MARK - Specify when a new track should be started (page 20)
INPUT SELECT - Select either analogue– or digital-input recording
(page 21)
RECORD MODE - Specify regular stereo, or long-play mono recording
(page 20)
• Editing features accessed via the menu button are:
ALL ERASE - Delete all tracks on a disc (page 30)
COMBINE - Join two tracks together into one new track (page 27)
DISC NAME - Give a disc a name that will show up when you load the disc
(page 25)
DIVIDE - Split a single track into two separate tracks (page 27)
MOVE - Give a track on the disc a new track number (page 28)
PROGRAM MOVE - Reorder tracks according to the program play order
(page 28)
TRACK ERASE - Delete a track from the disc (page 30)
TRACK NAME - Give a track a name that will show up when the track is
played (page 26)
UNDO - Undo the last edit operation (page 31)
AUX/CD-R SOUND DISPLAY SET MD TAPE TIMER/
CHARACTER
&
CANCEL
REC
$
! —
›
+ ⁄
VOL
STANDBY/ON
MENU SET
4¢

5 More Playback Features
17
In Use
Programming the Track Order
1 Press MENU and select PROGRAM.
This menu option is only available when the disc is stopped.
Remember: switch between menu options using the $and ›
buttons; select the option by pressing SET.
2 Select a track to add to the playlist using
the $and ›buttons
For example, to add track 3, press ›three times. Or, to add the last but one
track, press $twice.
3 Press SET to add the track to the playlist.
4 Repeat steps 2 and 3 to continue adding
tracks to the playlist.
If you make a mistake, press CANCEL to delete the last (most recent) track
programmed. (Delete multiple tracks by pressing CANCEL repeatedly.)
5 When you're happy with the playlist, press
MENU.
The playlist can be up to 24 tracks long.
6 Press MD button to start playback.
Checking the playlist order
You can only check the playlist order when the disc is stopped. Once stopped, you can
step through the playlist using the $and ›buttons. Each track number on the
playlist is displayed together with the track length.
If you then press CANCEL, the total playing time of the playlist is displayed.
Deleting the playlist
If you want to delete the playlist without ejecting the disc, simply press CANCEL twice.
This mode lets you program a sequence (a playlist) of up to 24 tracks to play. The
order can be anything you choose. Tracks can appear more than once in the playlist,
or can be left out entirely. The playlist applies only to the MD in the player at the time.
Once you eject the disc, (or switch the power off), the playlist is lost. If you start
recording, the playlist is also lost.
AUX/CD-R SOUND DISPLAY SET MD TAPE TIMER/
CHARACTER
&
CANCEL
REC
$
! —
›
+ ⁄
VOL
STANDBY/ON
MENU
MD
SET
4¢
Display shows the number of
tracks in the playlist and the
total running time
Track 3 programmed as the first
item in the playlist
This display appears briefly after
pressing SET

5 More Playback Features
18
You can set the MD player to repeat just a single track, or the whole disc.
1 Press MENU and select REPEAT MODE.
This menu option is available when the disc is stopped, paused or playing.
Remember: switch between menu options using the $and ›
buttons;selectthe option bypressing SET.
2 Select a repeat mode.
Three options are available:
Remember: switch between menu options using the $and ›
buttons;selectthe option bypressing SET.
3 Start playback.
In one track repeat mode, any track you choose will repeat. If you jump to
another track (using track skip), then the new track will start repeating.
In all track repeat mode, whenever the end of the disc is reached, the player
will jump back to the first track and continue playback. You’re still free to
skip tracks and use manual search.
Note: The repeat mode you set stays active until you:
❖select another repeat mode, or switch repeat mode off using the menu.
❖eject the disc.
❖switch to standby mode.
Playing Things Again
AUX/CD-R SOUND DISPLAY SET MD TAPE TIMER/
CHARACTER
&
CANCEL
REC
$
! —
›
+ ⁄
VOL
STANDBY/ON
MENU
MD
SET
4¢
After setting a repeat mode, the
display shows RPT for repeat all,
or R1 for repeat track
The repeat mode is indicated in
the display while the disc is
playing
Tip
You can use either of the repeat
modes together with the program
play mode.
Setting the repeat mode to
REPEAT ALL plays the tracks in the
playlist over and over. The display
indicates the mode:
In repeat track mode, just the
current track in the playlist
repeats. The display indicates the
mode:
$REPEAT TRK? ›
REPEAT OFF - REPEAT ALL?

5 More Playback Features
19
In Use
1 Press MENU and select RANDOM PLAY.
This menu option is available when the disc is stopped, paused or playing.
Remember: switch between menu options using the $and ›
buttons; select the option by pressing SET.
2 Playback begins automatically.
Pressing &during random play stops playback, and random play mode is
cancelled.
AUX/CD-R SOUND DISPLAY SET MD TAPE TIMER/
CHARACTER
&
CANCEL
REC
$
! —
›
+ ⁄
VOL
STANDBY/ON
MENU SET
4¢
Playing Tracks at Random
To have the MD recorder play the tracks on a disc in a different order each time you
play the disc, use the random play function. Each track will play just once, but the
order will be random. When all tracks have been played, the disc stops.
The display indicates that the
recorder is in random play mode
Tip
You can use either of the repeat
modes together with the random
play mode.
Setting the repeat mode to
REPEAT ALL endlessly plays all the
tracks on the disc at random. The
display indicates the mode:
In REPEAT TRACK mode, just the
current randomly selected track
repeats. The display indicates the
mode:

6 More Recording Features
20
<ARB7195>
Recording Options
Although the MJ–L77 can make recording largely automatic, you can also manually
control a number of settings if you prefer. For any kind of recording, including the
synchro-recording modes covered on pages 14 and 15, you can:
❖switch on or off the auto numbering feature
❖switch the recording mode to stereo or long-play mono
When recording from an external component, or the internal CD player, you can also
specify whether the MJ–L77 should record from the analogue or digital input.
If you're recording from CD or MD via the digital input, track numbers are always
automatically copied along with the audio. When recording other digital or analogue
sources, Auto Mark (track numbering) works by detecting spaces (silence) in the source
material. Although this usually works fine and is often convenient, there may be times
when you'd rather have complete control over where the track numbers go as you record.
Once recording is underway (with Auto Mark on or off), you can start a new track
number anytime by pressing the MD REC button.
Tip
Even if the track
numbers that end
up on a recording
are not quite what
you had in mind,
you can change
them later using
the divide and
combine editing
features—see
page 27 for more
on this.
1 Press MENU and select AUTO MARK.
This menu option is only available when the disc is stopped.
Remember: switch between menu options using the $and ›
buttons; select the option by pressing SET.
2 Switch to ON or OFF using the $and
›buttons.
3 Press SET to exit the menu.
The flag symbol in the display lights when Auto Mark is on.
Note: If you record from the tuner, Auto Mark automatically switches off.
Numbering Tracks
AUX/CD-R SOUND DISPLAY SET MD TAPE TIMER/
CHARACTER
&
CANCEL
REC
$
! —
›
+ ⁄
VOL
STANDBY/ON
MENU SET
4¢
By default, auto mark is on (the
flag indicator is showing in the
display)
Display after auto mark has
been switched off (auto mark
indicator disappears)
Recording Extra-Long Material
There may be times when you'd like to be able to record continuously for longer than
the usual 74 or 80 minutes that MD provides for. The MJ–L77 has a long-play mode
that doubles the available recording time on a disc at the cost of stereo recording.
However, if you're recording a speech or an interview, for example, this is unlikely to
be a great loss. You can freely mix long-play mono recordings and normal stereo
recordings on the same disc—the recorder automatically detects the mode on playback.