Audio conversion cable length

[TroyEade]

Hi,

I would like to convert some audio tapes (of a band that I was in so no copyright issues here) to CD. However the hifi is about 12 foot away from the PC. With an audio lead this far away from the PC will this be problematic getting a clean signal, e.g. attenuation, etc..?

Cheers,

Troy

 

[sieistganzfett]

its not just a cable.. do you have a quality sound card with software that will record what ever into the pc without adding static to it?? i use a device from m-audio, and use live lit (software they include which will allow the recording without screwing up the signal by adding static, etc) i never did it from a tape deck to the device, but from a guitar or mic there has to be a pre-amp of some kind, such as a mixer (which is what i use). for the cable, you probably already have cables that are 1/4" jacks stereo? you can use, pluging it into probably a 1/8" to 1/4"adapter to fit the output (prefered) or headphone out will work, or you maybe need an adapter to go from 1/4" to rca which the hifi is using?

12ft away from the hifi to the computer wont kill it. its the recording equipment on the pc, using even my soundblaster card + its windows driver, with something like the windows sound recorder just addes static and distortion and the volume is not good enough either. thats why i had to get a device for it, it has a special driver for it and software to record with quality, a cheap one (less than around or about that) and an expensive one (hundreds of dollars) are about the same to my ear, the main difference is features. once you record into wavs, you can burn them to cd easily.

 

[corkyg]

The 12 feet isn't a problem when you use good patch cables and go from LINE OUT on the stereo to LINE IN on your sound card. Then you need a decent software package that converts analog to digital audio. I have long use EMC, now version 9 - I find it better than Nero for audio conversion.

To do this I have set up a small lab using my laptop and two tape decks, plus a Creative Audigy 2NX sound module.

Lab

The outputs from the tape decks vary - RCA's on the cassette deck to phone jacks on the reel deck. Those have a mini-stereo jack at the other end which connect to LINE IN of the Audigy 2NX. That then connects to the laptop's LINE IN port.

I have converted hundreds of cassettes and reel-to-reel tapes in my library going back to the 1960s, and they are all now on CDRs.

 

[8 bit barbarian]

I love the semantic difference of computer vs. audio oriented individuals - it is all good!

For the op 12 ft isn't too far to run audio cables. You don't want to lay them down parallel to your power cables. And definitely use the Line ins and outs.

A good sound card {with good drivers} is important. Another term that is important is gain staging {worth a little idle googling}. Making sure your levels from the source into the next component are maximized but not overdriven. Watch the meters on your software recorder - that is where you want to have peaks around -3db {certainly nothing over 0db!} and not low like -25db. In the controlled situation of tape dubbing there is no reason not to transfer with the proper levels. Saying "I'll fix it in post" will only add noise and extra work.

Oh and do your capture @ 16bit 44.1k stereo if audio cd is your final destination.

Practice and get it sounding good then you can sit back and transfer with similar settings for most of your tapes.

My tape xfer rig is a Sony DAT I use just for SBM A>D conversion and then SPDIF > M-Audio 410 PCI card > Sound Forge 8.

 

[TroyEade]

Thanks everyone for your replies. At least my first concern isn't a problem (cable length).

I was planning on using the "line in" on my new MB (still waiting delivery) which is a ASUS P5W DH. Judging by your responses, is it better to use a soundcard, and if so, what one would you recommend?

Also, I see a couple of SW packages recommended, what's the consensus on the best affordable SW? I need something that will enable me to minimise the hiss from the tape, as well as cut the tracks, i.e. no one wants a CD of 50 minutes for one track.

One last thing, some of the stuff I have is demo's and I might be able to get some of these released either onto vinyl or CD. However as the original stuff is on normal tape casettes I know that they will not be audiophile quality. Therefore cost is an issue.

Oh yes, I'll check my Arcam Alpha later for a line out,

Cheers,

Troy

 

[8 bit barbarian]

I read good things about Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net/about/features

It is free, has meters and you can cut your single capture up into tracks for burning.

You should at least give it a try with your MB line in and hear how it sounds.