Connecting Record Player to Computer

LonesomeDove

Could someone explain to me the best way to do the above so that I can record my lps?
I have a laptop and a player with turntable and amp, and already have recording/conversion software.

googler

Connect the 'Tape Out' on the amp to the 'Line In' on the soundcard If necessary, set 'Record' selector on the amp to 'Phono' or 'LP'.

Hit Record on your recording software, play LP. Post-process as appropriate.

Maybe check Audio settings to make sure levels for Line In are OK as part of the pre-flight checks.

rrf494g

Or - for possibly better transcription -

I have found that the key factor in transcribing vinyl albums to hard-disc or cd is the electrical circuit that does the analogue to digital conversion.

Obviously you need a turntable that produces the best possible "play" of the album, but that is likely to be a "given" in your system. I found that (even good) soundcards in computers did not match the quality of a Hi-Fi CD recorder deck (mine's from panasonic). I record from album to CD, all on the Hi-Fi kit. I then take the (RW) CD and read it into a computer as a .wav file. I then process with software to put in track boundaries and I also (lightly) remove pops and scratches (some purists hate this). I then save to a new CD, that I keep.

It's up to you how much work you put in, to get the best result, and the number of vinyl discs you need to transcribe - but I have rescued a fair number of rare modern jazz recordngs this way.

Of course, I should add that you can only do this transcription, if you own the copyright of the material. Panasonic obviously expect their Hi-Fi CD recorders to only be used for amateur choirs etc. It must be a big market in Japan.

regards

£$&*"($£&(

Laptops rarely have line ins and the quality of inbuilt laptop soundcards is usually quite poor. So you sound get a USB audio interface for recording purposes.

Mr_Oink

rrf494g wrote: »

Or - for possibly better transcription -

I have found that the key factor in transcribing vinyl albums to hard-disc or cd is the electrical circuit that does the analogue to digital conversion.

Whilst it's a factor it is of equal importance to use a quartz locked turntable with solid speed regulation and low wow/flutter in my personal opinion. Belt drive hi-fi or domestic type offerings just don't cut it like a quartz.

rrf494g wrote: »

I found that (even good) soundcards in computers did not match the quality of a Hi-Fi CD recorder deck (mine's from panasonic).

I would have to say this is not correct. I would stick my neck out and say that nearly all commercial music is now recorded on PC based systems of one kind or another, all making use of multi-channel soundcards of one kind or another. If it's good enough for a commercial recording studio charging serious money, it's going to be fine for a selection of old vinyl records.

Of course if you want stunning results you can't use the rubbish you find built onto the motherboard or the cheap soundblaster type cards. I'd even say the 'Live' type SB cards are pants too. In the 'consumer' world a more than satisfactory card for this kind of work is:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/M-AUDIO-DELTA-AUDIOPHILE-PCI/dp/B00006I5H5
{not win 7}

I have used it with great results, but currently use a delta 44 from the same company - as it deals with other needs I have.

rrf494g wrote: »

I record from album to CD, all on the Hi-Fi kit. I then take the (RW) CD and read it into a computer as a .wav

I would have to say this is bad and wasteful advice because if the record jumps on a play through you end up with a coaster. The use of a stand alone CD Recorder often produces as many coasters as it does finished, tidy discs with a decent TOC, good cueing, no clipping and decent levels. You can't 'fix' anything once you've committed it to a disc - that is why software packages are the preference.

Ultimately we have to remember transcribing vinyl is a slow process with the quality is dependent on the original disc as much as anything else.

googler

Mr_Oink wrote: »

Whilst it's a factor it is of equal importance to use a quartz locked turntable with solid speed regulation and low wow/flutter in my personal opinion. Belt drive hi-fi or domestic type offerings just don't cut it like a quartz.

.....

If it's good enough for a commercial recording studio charging serious money, it's going to be fine for a selection of old vinyl records.

Point 1 is absolute waffle. Take a look at the leading HiFi turntables in the land - Linn, Roksan, Project, etc and the high-end stuff above those - all belt-driven. Or are these what you term 'domestic-type' offerings?

Point 2 - who said the OP's vinyl was 'old'? For all you know, he may have a mint collection of 180gm audiophile pressings, or Mobile Fidelity Original Masters that have been sealed since they were new.....

Mr_Oink

googler wrote: »

Point 1 is absolute waffle. Take a look at the leading HiFi turntables in the land - Linn, Roksan, Project, etc and the high-end stuff above those - all belt-driven. Or are these what you term 'domestic-type' offerings?

Whilst they are fine and stupidly expensive turntables for those with more money than sense, they mostly lack the quartz lock feature to ensure the speed is as stable as possible. Often they are somewhat low in torque as well. Having been the owner of a large amount of turntables over the last 40 years - including some expensive gay offerings like the Pink Triangle - I can put my hand on my heart and say for lifting vinyl the industry standard Technics SL1200/1210 series has outperformed all of them in my transcription work. Whilst a belt drive may reduce some coupling noise from a motor - I've never found this to be an issue having worked in a commercial studio transcribing vinyl. I grant you the far eastern clones of the 1200 series will be very poor. Personally I would select very low wow/flutter, high torque, quartz locked direct drive every time - but that is a personal choice based on years of experience in a commercial studio working for paying clients.

googler wrote: »

Point 2 - who said the OP's vinyl was 'old'? For all you know, he may have a mint collection of 180gm audiophile pressings, or Mobile Fidelity Original Masters that have been sealed since they were new.....

Indeed - he *may* and the advice I've given will stand him in good stead for getting the best out of them.

googler

However, should the OP return, I'd ask - what end result do you want to achieve?

Do you want to 'archive' the LPs so that you can play them from a non-contact medium to preserve the LPs?
Do you merely want the LPs stored on the computer?
Do you want to make CDs of the LPs?
Or do you want to encode the LPs as mp3 files or similar for portable use?

I'd suggest the best way for archiving or for committing to CD is to use the Alesis Masterlink. This allows you to archive them onto CD in 'regular' CD form (44.1kHz, 16-bit) or in higher resolutions up to 96kHz 24-bit. It's a hard-disk recorder with CD drive, so recordings are stored on the hard drive for assembly and edit before committing to CD.

No computer involved, merely connect the 'Tape Out' from the amp to the 'Line In' on the Alesis. Record, edit, write to CD. I suggested it for a different solution in a previous thread.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2475699


"The Masterlink will integrate easily with a HiFi in a living room. No need to move the PC to the living room, or the cassette deck to the study, home office, etc.

Inserting track splits, fades, etc is MUCH easier than with Audacity (I've tried it), and so is level adjustment, EQ etc."

googler

Mr_Oink wrote: »

Whilst they are fine and stupidly expensive turntables for those with more money than sense, they mostly lack the quartz lock feature to ensure the speed is as stable as possible. Often they are somewhat low in torque as well. Having been the owner of a large amount of turntables over the last 40 years - including some expensive gay offerings like the Pink Triangle - I can put my hand on my heart and say for lifting vinyl the industry standard Technics SL1200/1210 series has outperformed all of them in my transcription work. Whilst a belt drive may reduce some coupling noise from a motor - I've never found this to be an issue having worked in a commercial studio transcribing vinyl. I grant you the far eastern clones of the 1200 series will be very poor. Personally I would select very low wow/flutter, high torque, quartz locked direct drive every time - but that is a personal choice based on years of experience in a commercial studio working for paying clients.

Wow. I think there's sizeable sections of the HiFi Press that would take issue with the assertion that the reproduction quality of a turntable is merely determined by the speed stability.

Tell me - what pickup arm and cartridge would you typically fit to one of these SL1200s for optimum results?

richardvc

Wow - somehow I think you guys are taking this all too seriously !!

OP, I connected my record player directly to the PC (2 phono leads to 1 plug into 'line in').

This worked fine and the conversion software was easy to use. I ended up converting about 50 albums and numerous single tracks and then the records were either sold or taken down the charity shop. Simples !

darich

richardvc wrote: »

Wow - somehow I think you guys are taking this all too seriously !!

OP, I connected my record player directly to the PC (2 phono leads to 1 plug into 'line in').

This worked fine and the conversion software was easy to use. I ended up converting about 50 albums and numerous single tracks and then the records were either sold or taken down the charity shop. Simples !

Agreed - Mr Oink in particular......you can hear noise from a turntable motor?????? above the music????..wow...you must be superman.

Inidentally, if the computer doesn't have a line in socket, I've used microphone socket in the past with good results