Recording music to my computer

[Morania]

Got any sites with good advice about recording my albums to hard drives?
Real advice is welcome too.

[FastGame]

Are you talking about vinyl albums ?

[cash_site]

For CDs, you can try builtin recorder in Media Player and Winamp...

[Morania]

Are you talking about vinyl albums ?

That's right. Remember those things? I have hundreds of them crammed into end tables and shelves around here.

[tarun]

Connecting a phonograph to a computer - http://reviews.cnet.com/5208-7596-0....ssageID=417329

Also found look at this - http://cma.zdnet.com/texis/forums/se...fi=&f=1&o=d&m= in the CNET Forums

Hope i undestood correctly & that this helps

[FastGame]

Also http://www.digital-music-guide.com/c...-lp-to-cd.html

[egghead]

Use Audacity, It can help you ge tthe job done

This is a list of features in Audacity, the free audio editor. For more information on how to use these features, go to the help pages.
Recording

Audacity can record live audio through a microphone or mixer, or digitize recordings from cassette tapes, vinyl records, or minidiscs. With some sound cards, it can also capture streaming audio.

* Record from microphone, line input, or other sources.
* Dub over existing tracks to create multi-track recordings.
* Record up to 16 channels at once (requires multi-channel hardware).
* Level meters can monitor volume levels before, during, and after recording.

Import and Export

Import sound files, edit them, and combine them with other files or new recordings. Export your recordings in several common file formats.

* Import and export WAV, AIFF, AU, and Ogg Vorbis files.
* Import MPEG audio (including MP2 and MP3 files) with libmad.
* Export MP3s with the optional LAME encoder library.
* Create WAV or AIFF files suitable for burning to CD.
* Import and export all file formats supported by libsndfile.
* Open raw (headerless) audio files using the “Import Raw” command.
* Note: Audacity does not currently support WMA, AAC, or most other proprietary or restricted file formats.

Editing

* Easy editing with Cut, Copy, Paste, and Delete.
* Use unlimited Undo (and Redo) to go back any number of steps.
* Very fast editing of large files.
* Edit and mix an unlimited number of tracks.
* Use the Drawing tool to alter individual sample points.
* Fade the volume up or down smoothly with the Envelope tool.

Effects

* Change the pitch without altering the tempo, or vice-versa.
* Remove static, hiss, hum, or other constant background noises.
* Alter frequencies with Equalization, FFT Filter, and Bass Boost effects.
* Adjust volumes with Compressor, Amplify, and Normalize effects.
* Other built-in effects include:
o Echo
o Phaser
o Wahwah
o Reverse

Sound Quality

* Record and edit 16-bit, 24-bit, and 32-bit (floating point) samples.
* Record at up to 96 KHz.
* Sample rates and formats are converted using high-quality resampling and dithering.
* Mix tracks with different sample rates or formats, and Audacity will convert them automatically in realtime.

Plug-Ins

* Add new effects with LADSPA plugins.
* Audacity includes some sample plugins by Steve Harris.
* Load VST plugins for Windows and Mac, with the optional VST Enabler.
* Write new effects with the built-in Nyquist programming language.

Analysis

* Spectrogram mode for visualizing frequencies.
* “Plot Spectrum” command for detailed frequency analysis.

Free and Cross-Platform

* Licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL).
* Runs on Mac OS X, Windows, and GNU/Linux.

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

egghead

[cash_site]

thx for the info egg, i have audacity and didnt know it could be used like that

[Fenalaar]

Just as a note here. You cannot connect a normal turntable (*) directly into your soundcard. LPs are recorded using an equalisation curve known as a RIAA compensation curve, that you need a compensation cirquit for. (Basically the bass needs to be boosted by 20dB at 20Hz and treble needs to be dampened by 20dB at 20kHz, with an additional highpass filter below 20Hz to remove rumble.) You also need to amplify the output of the pickup by between 40-60dB. A moving magnet pickup has an output of 3-4mV, while a moving coil can go as low as 0,17mV output. Compare this to a standard Line level signal at .7V (or a CD at 2V)...

All this is done in the phono input of your amplifier/preamp. But you can also do this with a standalone phono preamplifier. Phono preamps will vary in price and quality, from a lowly NAD PP-1 at $40-$50 or so to an Aesthetix IO at $7000... (Thats seven grand, all right. I am not shitting you...) If you have a stereo with a turntable already, get the signal from the tape outputs.

(Forget about doing this in the digital domain, as you will loose an enormous amount of resolution and dynamics.)

Also - consider the quality of your sound card - get a good one if you can... M-Audio has a couple of very nice firewire and USB gadgets that'll do the job nicely... M-Audio External interfaces

(*) There's a couple of turntables with a built-in phono preamp. Pro-Ject makes one like that.

Kind regards

Johan-Kr

[cash_site]

Yes good point Fenalaar, Phono Turntables dont output sound at Line Level Voltages, you need a preamp or run the TTable thru your Hifi and use RCA->3.5mm cable to your soundcard linelevel input... I have also had slight success using the microphone input with 20db boost control I wouldnt try that on a decent card though, too much risk in destroying the circuitry and also its mono... doesnt matter for old mono lps though...lol

NY Times link

[Fenalaar]

Oh, by the way - a good pickup with a modern, sharp cut needle (fine-line or micro-ridge, for instance) and good cleaning habits are a buch better way of reducing pops and static from LPs.

All "restoration" software throw a bit of the baby out with the bathwater to varying degrees. You invariably loose some signal quality when trying to filter out unwanted noise, but you'll have to decide for yourself if its important to you.


Another point to keep in mind, is that if you get rid of the LPs - flog them on e-pay or whatever, be sure to keep backups. CD-Rs are fragile, and if it's gone, and you have no backup, it'll stay gone. This is important for keeping it on your hard drive. All hard drives will fail (sooner or later - it might be a week or 20 years - you never know...)


Kind regards

Johan-Kr