Audio recording

You cannot run a turntable directly to the PC, unless it has a built in "RIAA" preamplifier.  If you have a stereo system with a turntable input, connect the turntable to the stereo and then connect a low level ("Line out" or "recording out") output from the stereo to the PC.

An alternate would be to purchase a separate RIAA preamp.  I think Radio Shack has an RIAA preamp and then you can connect the output of the preamp to the PC.

 

 

Thanks for the input Fireberd, I definitely will try that. Have an old Sony Compact Disc Deck Receiver Model HCD D250 which has phono input in back but...darn thing has no line out. Tried a Philmore Solid State Stereo Pre-Amp with RCA jacks for Input/Output. Used it between turntable and PC soundcard - no luck, high hum which most likely a mismatch (non-RIAA?). Will try your suggestion and post the results. Again thanks for the help.

Message Edited by CharlieCnote on 10-18-2004 08:50 AM

I know that opinion is divided on this (quality of signal) but since your old receiver does not have a line-out, you can use the headphone jack instead (NEVER the speaker-out terminals!!!). Just make sure that all tone controls are set to neutral and any sound enhancement features are turned off, and that the receiver is in "stereo" mode. Set the receiver volume control to no more than about 30% level to start and adjust from there. I am not familiar with the circuitry of your old Sony receiver so can be be 100% sure that the headphone output does not have special equalisation applied just for headphone listening....if you still have the owners manual it may shed some light on that.

To all who have responded to my audio recording dilema. Got response back from the Technics people back east. The email states in part "your turntable requires a pre-amp in order for the volume to come in at the correct level... two options 1) route turntable to a DJ mixer and control volume input into you PC directly from the mixer. 2) Buy a phono pre-amp" http://1200s.com/Shop/index.php/cPath/2_248.

Pyle Stereo Phono Pre-Amp
[PP-999]
Pyle Stereo Phono Pre-Amp
Click to enlarge
$24.99
Pyle Stereo Phono Pre-Amp
[PP-999]
Phono Pre-Amp - Transform phono level output to line level input. Connects to turntable. If you want to begin recording directly to your PC from a turntable, or if your audio system does not have a PHONO Input for your turntable, plug the turntable into this pre-amp, and you can connect it to any LINE Level input, including your PC's sound card! 12V DC Adaptor included.
This product was added to our catalog on Thursday 19 August, 2004.

Have taken the 2nd option hopefully this will resolve the issue. Thank you to all for the inputs.:-)

Additionally, the hum you described earlier may be a result of needing to ground.  There should be a ground wire from your turntable or at least a terminal for it.  If the hum persists in your latest set-up, connect the ground wire to a metal part of your computer case or something similar and you should kill the ground loop humming.

N

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@Nez wrote:

Additionally, the hum you described earlier may be a result of needing to ground. There should be a ground wire from your turntable or at least a terminal for it. If the hum persists in your latest set-up, connect the ground wire to a metal part of your computer case or something similar and you should kill the ground loop humming.

N

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Thanks for the input Nez, I will definitely do that. Still awaiting the delivery of the preamp I ordered. Will post the results when I get and install the preamp. Again, thank you.

If you are running your LP's to Digital....make audio tapes first....the Master Tapes will give you a better read-out using the tape deck...Counter.....You can also use the Meter's.....if you have alot of LP's to turn Digital.....this will give better Volume Leveling than the standard used in the software.....which will "dull" the sound effects of some Live Concerts....echo's or mic-changes get lost in Volume Leveling.....do your own Volume Leveling with a Tape Deck and its Meter's....

Now you have a Master Audio Tape to Run into your Software Program.....

I have sat and recorded for days to get a good Master Audio Tape for conversion to MP-3...that goes with my DVD-movies.....

Even Digital to Analog and then back to Digital.....use a Tape Deck.

I don't quite follow. In direct LP to hard-drive transfer, the recording level can be adjusted using the Windows master volume control panel, which measures the signal level at the line-in point of the soundcard. The level meters of a tape deck may have no relationship to this, so are rather pointless, in my opinion.

As far as "volume levelling", by which I assume you mean "normalisation" of individual tracks or complete LPs, this is a strictly personal decision. Even if used, the process is simply a digital/mathematical process and the only errors are those due to mathematical "rounding" which are neglegible. On the other hand, transferring to cassette tape first, introduces all kinds of artifacts and noise, including tape hiss. Maybe I missed something in your post.

I think your more concerned with the funtionality of what you have in software..

I have found that to make great audio--you create a Master Audio Tape first..

Because the funtionality of the conversion is excellent..the analog to digital conversion--via your LINE IN is just better than anything in the Stereo Rack Systems..

But....my main fear when going the software route....is that the effects on the original will be lost....that Volume Leveling is very bad in the music scores that contain very special effects.....echo's----harmonizeing----microphone tricks----maybe even your Surround Sound De-Coder may not fully work with your new Sound Track.....

So....my advice is to get right to a Master Audio Tape.....work with your tape deck to make the duplicate that will then be converted to digtial at the PC-Level.

DIM.2350..Intel(R)Pentium(R)4cpu 1.80GHz
512MB-total memory((256x2))
Hard-Drive=120GB((MAXTOR))--7200RPM
SOUND CARD..SoundMax Integrated Digital Audio(removed)....ADDED>CREATIVE..Blaster[Audigy]2zs
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WINDOWS..XP-Home Edition
SAMSUNG CD-R/RW SW-240B(removed)...ADDED>TOSHIBA..SD-R5112
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...... ROXIO Sound Editor and the APEX AD-660((DVD-player))for MP-3 Files--utilizeing Sound Leveling for DVD-files..
.. ... SONY Stereo Cassette Deck TC-WE305
..... CREATIVE---->Media Source
..... DELL......DJ......15GB
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ROXIO--EZ CD&DVD...CREATOR 6-The Digital Media Suite
DELL MOVE Studio...w/Break-Out BOX...IEEE1394 TEXAS Instrruments
SONY SonicStage Simple Burner Ver. 1.0((Atrac3plus))WALKman...
MicroSoft Work Suite 2003--Picture IT 7.0

XP-Command-line ref. A-Z

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/proddocs/ntcmds.asp?frame=true