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Topic: WTB: Los Angeles area vinyl LP to CD conversion |
John McClung
From:
Olympia WA, USA
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Posted 25 Oct 2005 12:12 pm |
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Can anyone convert a handful of fave vinyl records to audo files (AAD for iPod preferred, or AIFF on a CD) at a reasonable cost? Clicking/popping/skip removal desireable.
I'm sure I could eventually figure this out, but just don't have time for more research projects.
Would prefer someone in the Los Angeles region for easy dropoff/pickup of the records.
Thanks.
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E9 lessons
Mullen D-12/Carter SD-10/Webb amp/Profex II/Lexicon MPX-110
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 27 Oct 2005 6:14 pm
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I convert LPs to CDs at $25 each. I know it's expensive, but it's a labor-intensive process.
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 Bobby Lee
-b0b- quasar@b0b.com
System Administrator
My Blog |
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 27 Oct 2005 6:56 pm
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| b0b - I know it's a pain to break up tracks, but if one wanted to just put a whole album on a CD is there are relatively easy way? I know Windowws plus has some software, but just when I was going to get started and test it my turntable died! Arrgghh... |
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 28 Oct 2005 2:25 am
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Just about anything you do, as b0b noted, is labor intensive. If you cut corners you wind up with a "bad" CD.
Going directly to CD is the wrong approach as it will wind up as one "file" on the CD, and going directly to CD (if it can even be done) and there is a problem, the CD blank is wasted ("Coaster").
The only way to do it, is do it properly. That requires "recording" to the hard drive, either one song at a time or one whole side of an album at one time and either manually or with a program separating the songs (and the automatic separation does not always work). You must then use an aduio editor to "clean" up the beginning and ending of each song.
Getting it "recorded" on the PC's hard drive is the easy part. It takes more time to "clean" and edit the song files and prepare them for the CD burning.
One other note, if you use a turntable, almost all turntables do not have a built in "RIAA preamp" and are very low level. You need either a small "RIAA" preamp or a stereo system that has a "phono" input (which has the RIAA equalization built in) and then the "recording" output to go to the PC. The "RIAA" preamp is required because vinyl recordings are compressed using "RIAA" compression and you must have an "RIAA" preamp to recover the full fidelity. |
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John McClung
From:
Olympia WA, USA
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Posted 28 Oct 2005 7:36 am
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Blech, this sounds more daunting than I realized, Jack! Well, when I retire maybe I'll have time to do all this properly.
b0b, sorry, the cost per album is probably reasonable considering the time it must take, but I'll have to save allowance for a while.
Thanks for the reality check, guys.
I'm on a Mac, and I know there are recommended devices and software for my platform, so I'll research when I have a little more free time. |
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 28 Oct 2005 8:42 am
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An RIAA preamp is fifteen bucks at Radio Shack. And basic recording of a side of an LP is pretty easy. When you get into cleaning up pops, noise and such you're into audiophile territory, and that's another level. I think john and I were talking more about just getting LP's transferred to CD for convenience - it's OK if they still sound like the LP.
I'd be happy with two tracks, one for each side of the LP. I just wondered what other software is out there. I have both Mac and PC, so either is fine.
I'm not looking for an audiophile approach - just basic "move it to CD" stuff. I know recording it to the HD is the first step, but beyond that it doesn't need to be brain surgery. What is the "wrong approach" and a "bad CD" for an audiophile is exactly what I need. I DO have fast forward and rewind buttons. |
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Jerry Hayes
From:
Virginia Beach, Va.
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Posted 28 Oct 2005 11:35 am
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Hey John, missed seeing you when I was in LA dude! Had a good time there though! As far as the vinyl to CD thing, I bought a Sony unit at Circuit City which just goes into your stereo chain and works just like a tape deck. I've been trasferring a bunch of my old LP's to CD and having a ball. The model number is RCD-W500C. No computer required with this thing. Just plug it into an auxiliary in/out on your stereo system and operate it just like you would a cassette deck. You can record from tapes, records, radio, or any other source you want that can be played on your system. I'm having fun transferring a bunch of my old band tapes to CD which is cool! I wish I'd had this thing before as some of my old cassettes aren't audible anymore. The cost for this unit is around $250 or so.......Have a good 'un, JH in Va.
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Don't matter who's in Austin (or anywhere else) Ralph Mooney is still the king!!!
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Billy Woo
From:
Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Posted 28 Oct 2005 12:41 pm
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Now that's a reasonable alternative.
Bronco Billy
Zumsteel U-12 |
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 28 Oct 2005 1:57 pm
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The problem with running a turntable direct into a computer is that computer inputs don't implement the RIAA rfrequency response curve of turntable cartridges. The Tascam CD recorder that I use has RIAA cartridge inputs.
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Bobby Lee
-b0b- quasar@b0b.com
System Administrator
My Blog |
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Thom Ferman
From:
Las Vegas, NV, USA
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Posted 29 Oct 2005 9:24 am
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Although still labor intensive, I've had pretty good luck using my VHS-HiFi recorder that has a timer and shuttle knob as an audio recorder/player. I plug the VCR to the tape out of my receiver which has a built in RIAA eq on the phono input. Hit record on the VCR and play the record complete. Once on VHS tape, I connect the audio output of the VCR to the line input of my computer which has audio record software (I use MusicMatch for this and record .WAV files, but there's far more sophisticated audio record software out there) and playback the VHS one cut at a time, naming the WAV files as I go. The shuttle knob and timer on the VCR greatly facilitate cueing and timing the tracks. A CD can then be burned from the resulting set of files (MusicMatch also does this, but there are other alternatives). It's a two-step process, but using the relatively high quality analog audio capabilities of VHS-HiFi, you avoid an additional analog to digital to analog conversion. I found this a convenient (albeit labor intensive) way to go with stuff I already had around the house.
Thom
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Jerry Hayes
From:
Virginia Beach, Va.
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Posted 29 Oct 2005 10:22 am
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| Another good feature of the Sony unit I mentioned is that is has a 5 disc cartridge which you can program to play tunes in any order for 5 different CD's to be recorded on another CD. If you want something to play on breaks at a gig or just don't like hearing the same artist for a whole recording, this is the way to go. Also, if you want to mix sources from tapes, records, live, etc. onto one CD you can do that to......remember, no computer required! You can even take this thing to the gig and hook it up to the RCA outs on your PA system and record your band.....JH in Va. |
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John Bresler R.I.P.
From:
Thornton, Colorado
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Posted 29 Oct 2005 5:14 pm
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John:
Do a search and check out a software package called "Rip Vinyl". It's about $7.00 for the downloadable package. You can record a whole record to your pc and then burn it to CD. It also will separate the tracks as it's recording so you can select which tracks you want to burn to CD. Great tool and it's easy to use.
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John McClung
From:
Olympia WA, USA
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Posted 29 Oct 2005 9:30 pm
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Man, this forum is like having dozens of research librarians at your disposal!
I'll look into the most promising/easiest methods suggested here, maybe take it on myself.
But I've even had a couple of offers from forumers offering to do some of it at no cost, thanks, Robert and Skip, I may take you up on a very small number of LP's/songs, that's very generous of you both, and I'll be in touch.
Jerry, that Sony gizmo sounds fab, I'll check that out. Yeah, your vacation got cut short, didn't it? I had you down for being in town till about the 23rd or so. Sorry we couldn't get together and talk extended E9 and the good ol' days from the corner of Paramount and South in N. Long Beach!
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Jim Peters
From:
St. Louis, Missouri, USA, R.I.P.
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Posted 30 Oct 2005 6:20 am
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| John, if you can get the vinyl recorded to your computer, the rest is easy. Get a free program called Audacity. Open up the fils that you recorded from your phono. Audacity will enable you to EASILY chop the songs up any way you want, and it has an RIAA setting under effects/EQ that will do exactly what you want. Simple, easy,free! JimP |
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