Community Newsletter: Q&A: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs
- 4/7/05 4:05 PM
Try to Avoid MP3!
by Edward III - 4/8/05 7:54 AM In reply to: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
When you're converting tapes, albums, or (gulp) 8 tracks to a digital format, always use a lossless format such as WAV or FLAC, and *NOT* a lossy format like MP3, MP4, or WMA.
Lossy formats remove some sound information to make the file size smaller. Lossless formats can take 10 times the space of lossy ones, so if you don't have the room, buy an external hard drive. Why go through all the trouble of hooking your stereo up to your PC and the time recording when you're going to end up with a subpar copy? Of course once you have a lossless file (like WAV), you can convert it to lossy (like MP3) for portability.
FLAC files are another option - FLAC stands for Free Lossless Audio Codec. FLAC files are still much bigger than MP3s, but they are much, much smaller than WAV files.
For file format conversion, I highly recommend DBPowerAMP. It's free, and it has very easy-to-install plugins for all sort of formats (when it encounters a format you don't have a plugin for, it takes you right to a webpage where you download the plugin - no google-ing). For track recording and splitting I use Audacity. It takes a little while to figure out, but it's very stable and FREE!
Once you have converted an album or tape to a lossless format (WAV), burn the lossless format files to CD or DVD (as data, not as music). Archiving your files this way protects you from losing them in a hard drive crash, and if you need the files later to convert to a different format, or to apply a new noise filter you installed, you don't have to pull out your stereo and hook everything up again. If you convert 10 tapes or albums you're going to spend a lot of time doing so - make a backup!
I have a notebook
by pluis_sdb - 4/8/05 8:30 AM In reply to: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Lee:
I have a notebook. It doesn't have a line in, only mic.
What can I do?
Luis
audio tapes to cd usng a Macintosh
by llilie - 4/8/05 8:33 AM In reply to: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Any sggestions for doing this with a Mac (system 10.3)?
Audio Tapes to CD using a Mac
by gilpam - 4/8/05 11:47 AM In reply to: audio tapes to cd usng a Macintosh by llilieI, too, would like information on how to set up my Mac to record audio tapes and LPs to CD
Before I get lost on the Mac forum..
by what_now3 - 4/8/05 6:40 PM In reply to: audio tapes to cd usng a Macintosh by llilienever to be able to find my way back, I'll ask, have LPs and Tapes to CD's been posted on the MAC forum. I hope so because I want to convert my songs to a portable version in the order I want.
Someone on this site said he could do his LPs but the software couldn't recognize the "medium" for the tapes. Bummer. I guess half a loaf is better than none.
I really do not like to pose questions I haven't first tried to find the answer but I fear once I leave this site I'll never get back to post any findings. So good luck and sorry for the hanging question.
(I just hate playing "Round-robin" or rat in the maze.)
audio tapes to cd using a Macintosh
by AZANIA - 4/10/05 1:06 AM In reply to: audio tapes to cd usng a Macintosh by llilieUse roxio's toast 6 titanium which includes the software cd spin doctor 2, and is compatible for system 10.3.
Plusdeck2
by Jerrysr - 4/8/05 8:40 AM In reply to: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
http://www.plusdeck.com/Englishsite/product_01.html
If you want to spend about $150.00 check this out. I bought it and works fine. Fits right in a bay on your computer and plugs into your sound card.
One probelm...
by enigma-2 - 4/8/05 10:05 AM In reply to: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
The bigest problem with this is, most new laptops do not have a 'Line In' jack.
Re-one problem
by mapetrson - 4/10/05 3:07 AM In reply to: One probelm... by enigma-2There are USB and Firewire devices that can record just like a soundcard on a computer. The plus is that most of them come with extensive software for recording. Just make sure it has the connectors you need for what you are going to record. Mic connectors are most of the time a mono signal so one for just Mic recording would not be a good investement. They also come with RCA jacks as well as Digital SPDIF inputs and many other. You need to also be aware of system requirements.
audiotapes to CD
by dhjacobs - 4/8/05 10:12 AM In reply to: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Cassettes, shmassettes. I've been looking for a way to convert my hours and hours and hours of early '60s live performance recordings (all done with the performer's knowledge and releases signed) from reel-to-reel analog to digital format so I could burn 'em onto CDs. All were recorded on what was at the time very high quality equipment, using either professional mics of my own, or pulling sound direct from the mix board. (In other words, the tapes are good quality recordings.)
Thanks to everyone who replied. You've given me much to read and study. And some good suggestions on software.
Hardware? Yup, I have the reel-to-reel decks, and finding a 1/4-inch mono plug to stereo mini plug cable is simply a matter of shopping.
Reel to reel video
by vegwriter - 11/25/07 8:43 PM In reply to: audiotapes to CD by dhjacobsThat reminds me...I have a bunch of videos I recorded in the early 1980s on reel to reel video. I've been wondering how to convert that to DVDs. And no, I don't own equipment to play it on. I made the videos as a student, and I'm sure the school (which I now live hundreds of miles away from) long ago got rid of their reel to reel equipment. I'm using a mac book pro, OS 10.4.10
Judy
Sound Card Information
by George B. Lockwood - 4/8/05 10:17 AM In reply to: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I think the answer to the question should have informed the person that they need a high-end sound card in his PC to hook the RCA cables from his tape deck or tuner/amplifer to. They are expensive, but needed to change the analog sound to digital.
Copying audio tapes to CDs
by Southpa38 - 4/8/05 10:34 AM In reply to: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Thank you Mapetrson so much for your time to respond to this request for help. This is exactly what I needed to know. I had no problem following you easy steps. keep up the good work.:)
Copy tape to CD
by duby325 - 4/8/05 11:18 AM In reply to: 4/8/05 Copying audio tapes to CDs by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
If your tape player has only left & right channel RCA plugs and the sound cards has only 1 line-in plug, how do you set this up?
RE: Copy tape to CD
by bassboss - 4/8/05 11:24 PM In reply to: Copy tape to CD by duby325I use the headphone jack form my stereo. I bought a 1/4" male (stereo) to 1/8" male (stereo) cord and plug the 1/4" into the headphone jack on the stereo, and the 1/8" into my sound card. It's a lot easier than trying to use the RCA jacks on the back of the stereo which is on the entertainment center, backed up against a wall. The 1/8" plug remains connected to the sound card at the back of my computer and I just unplug the cord from the stereo when done.
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