Converting Cassettes to MP3 on a computer

[JiF]LtWaterboy · Post by **[JiF]LtWaterboy** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 7:10 pm

All,

Trying to get my parents out of the mideval days....

Anyone ever try & convert their old music cassette tapes into MP3 files, etc?

If so, what software did you use? Any free ones would you recommend?

I don't want to buy the cassette deck unit (approx $109-$129) option to do it. Want to just do the
male-to-male cable from a cassette player to the sound card and have the software (I think it makes it a .WAV file) needed instead.

LT

[JiF]Thos · Post by **[JiF]Thos** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 7:26 pm

Never used it, but this is an option Magic Audio Recorder

[JiF][AARP]Grimp · Post by **[JiF][AARP]Grimp** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 10:11 pm

That looks kinda cool.
Also most sound cards come with some audio recording thingy. You can probably even use the built in windows sound recorder to capture it. Sound recorder can do up to something like 160kbps, 48 kHz, stereo. After that it maybe just a matter of converting to mp3. I don't think Windows sound recorder does mp3 format directly.

So connect your cassette headphone jack to your line in jack on your sound card. Open sound recorder, adjust to the quality and format option of your choice. Hit record on windows and play on the cassette deck. Kinda primitive, but should work.

[JiF]LtWaterboy · Post by **[JiF]LtWaterboy** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 2:50 am

Thanks guys!!

I'll check that one out too.

Yeah, G, that was the process I found. need to go to radio shack or best buy and get a male-to-male dubbing cable (3.5mm) to run from the cassette recorder to the computer.

Another software one I was inspecting is called Audacity. It is a free download that is used with this process.

Keep coming on ideas if you have anymore!!

LT

[JiF]Lonewolf · Post by **[JiF]Lonewolf** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 2:39 pm

I have an old stereo with a cassette deck that I converted mine with like that and it was ok in a way. The only prob I had was it picked up every little bit of tape hiss there was.

Now if you have a bunch of them to do this would be the way to go.
PC Cassette Deck

I still have around 200 tapes to convert and I'm going to get one of those to do them with.

[JiF]rIot · Post by **[JiF]rIot** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 3:01 pm

I think I used a type of software like Thos recommended. All I did was put the cassette in the boombox, plugged a double male audio cord into the headphine jack and plugged the other end into the blue audio plug on the motherboard (or soundcard). After that I pressed record on the software and play on the boombox and it all tranfered into an mp3 on my computer. Worked out good, sound quality was pretty good considering it wasa cassette...

[JiF]LtWaterboy · Post by **[JiF]LtWaterboy** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 7:05 pm

[JiF]Lonewolf wrote:I have an old stereo with a cassette deck that I converted mine with like that and it was ok in a way. The only prob I had was it picked up every little bit of tape hiss there was.

Now if you have a bunch of them to do this would be the way to go.
PC Cassette Deck

I still have around 200 tapes to convert and I'm going to get one of those to do them with.

Yeah, that was the more "expensive" method I mentioned above. I have about 20 tapes or less to copy, plus I am off of work
and will be laid up soon from my next surgery, so time is not an issue right now.

And yes, that's why I was asking about the different, cheap softwares to do this. Some have some built in noise reduction into them.

Remember - when you do the direct plugin, the software records as a wave of all the sound that it is picking up. usually have to mix/record to clean up after (with the software or other forms of the software).

LT

[JiF]LtWaterboy · Post by **[JiF]LtWaterboy** » Fri Mar 30, 2007 2:54 am

Well, as I've told Kelly - so far, so good.

I've copied directly using the Audacity software 5 cassettes for the mom-ster.

Sound quality is pretty darn good with very little to no tape "hiss".

The fun part will be the editing. Cutting out the starting & ending pieces, separating the wav file into each song separately and then converting to mp3 from wav.

fyi. I copied each side of each tape as one long wav file each. now you have to chop it down, based on this process. at least it gives you the wave "picture" to see where it flatlines between each song to chop there!!

LT

[JiF]bigjohnson · Post by **[JiF]bigjohnson** » Fri Mar 30, 2007 3:05 am

I got an eight track player up at my parents if some of you geriatrics want to convert your favorite tunes to mp3

[JiF][AARP]Jimbo · Post by **[JiF][AARP]Jimbo** » Fri Mar 30, 2007 11:15 am

Thanks BJ, but I have already done that with my 8 tracks, now I am just looking for a record player to get the 78s copied.

[JiF]LtWaterboy · Post by **[JiF]LtWaterboy** » Fri Mar 30, 2007 4:49 pm

[JiF]Jimbo wrote:Thanks BJ, but I have already done that with my 8 tracks, now I am just looking for a record player to get the 78s copied.

Yeah I asked the 'rents that question too - their turntable doesnt work.

LT