Best Cassette to digital option?

[Zooberwerx]

Not that this helps but my brother had a rather elaborate & effective method he used ~17 years ago. Times have changed and the process (...or at least some of the components) is probably obsolete. Still makes for interesting read:

http://www.unterzuber.com/dubbing albums to cd.html

Riis

 

[rogerbmiller]

Can you explain how that works?

here is how I have used it:

-plug the usb into the computer used to record the digits conversion

-Plug the cassette source into the LR RCA inputs in the back.

-You’ll need some sort of recording software. I use audacity.

-Play the cassette source and record with your software.

Essentially the audio flows straight through the USB. The sound quality is very good in my experience and audacity allows you to use equalization, etc. You may need to download a plug-in so that you can create MP3s which is what I did if I recall.

 

[superheavyfunk]

This is probably outside of the normal questions for recording, but do any of you have a decent option for converting cassette tapes to digital files? I have a bunch of old band tapes and such that I want to get uploaded.

Seems like nobody's mentioned it yet, so I will: A regular tape player won't get you the results you're likely looking for. Cassettes have a total of 4 available tracks - this is done to acheive sterephonic sound, meaning 2 channels per side of tape (Left & Right). A typical home cassette player can only read two channels at a time, whereas a multitrack recording device like those old tascams read all four channels simultaneously.

In practice, this means that if you play your old demos and stuff on a regular player, you'll only hear two of the tracks you recorded, and some of them might even play backwards, depending on which track you used at the time.

So. Make sure you are using a 4 track recorder to pay back your tapes. Just use the stereo/mix out (it's usually a phono plug), and send that to the preamp of your choice. Open up your DAW, hit record, press play on the deck and walk away. Easy peasy.

 

[Ric5]

That's fine if you're digitizing 4-track tapes at the same speed. But the other side will bleed through on regular tapes. IMO, get a standard deck with RCA outs and a cheap stereo interface if that is the case.

actually it works great for normal cassettes ... there are 4 volume controls ... I have digitized many cassettes just fine.

 

[seamonkey]

In practice, this means that if you play your old demos and stuff on a regular player, you'll only hear two of the tracks you recorded, and some of them might even play backwards, depending on which track you used at the time.

If you have a 4-track tape and only a stereo player.
You can pull the backward tracks into a daw and reverse them.
If the speed is off you can pitch shift for that too.

 

[Basslice]

Unless I missed something, I do not think the OP is trying to remix a 4-track, just a regular (2-track, 2-side) cassette tape.

 

[deff]

Unless I missed something, I do not think the OP is trying to remix a 4-track, just a regular (2-track, 2-side) cassette tape.

That would be correct, but the suggestions have been interesting

 

[Staccato]

If you don't have a cassette deck, VCR, and DVD player available and within reach, you must be out of dry, storage space.

 

[seamonkey]

That would be correct, but the suggestions have been interesting

If you have two track/stereo tapes and find a 4-track tape player, you can record all four tracks at once into the daw. One it's in the DAW you can reverse 2 of the tracks, and save them off as one side, save the forward tracks as another side. And pitch shift if you need to as I recall 4-track tapes were double speed.

 

[Killing Floor]

Can I send you my box of cassettes? I'll give you a couple bucks each to convert them. Deal?

 

[aetheldrea]

When I needed a tape deck, I bought one from Goodwill and gave it back when I was done with it

 

[silvertone]

I went a bit overboard - and got myself a a Sound Devices, MixPre3 ii - decidedly not unhappy with the cash outlay. It ain't cheap. But dang it's great sounding and easy to use - enables simple transfer in real time of analog cassettes or any signal from a receiver or even streaming media out of a pc or lapt top headphone mini jack - pluse it's an insanely high quality three channel recorder that can be used as a field recorder, multi-track recorder audio for video and a lot more.
Has redundant back up as it records simultaneously to SD Card & a USB thumb drive.
Pre-amps are killer. I haven't invested in Hi quality audio software (yet) but have no trouble using Audacity (free) for cuts, edits, merges, normalization eq and more....
Also available - MP6 and MP10 - more channels and capabilities but a lot more $$.
YMMV....

 

[silvertone]

Actually I have the MixPre3ii - it's nore advanced then the link I shared.

 

[superheavyfunk]

as I recall 4-track tapes were double speed.

Not all were. That was a feature available on higher end consumer level 4 track recorders to improve fidelity by using more tape to capture the recordings.

 

[dr doofie]

I have a DAW, no deck, or adaptors. I assume this would be the most simple way to do this, but alas, no deck. I probably ought to just find a decent used deck on clist or marketplace and buy the adaptors. I simply thought there might just be a quick fix all in one that would work. I see you're in Salem. Not far from you and spend a lot of time there.

My car has a cassette deck...
I dunno, use a good usb mic in a quiet car onto almost any DAW

I listen to music through one of those cassette-to 3.5 mm endless loop things, so there are dinosaurs still roaming...

 

[dr doofie]

Seems like nobody's mentioned it yet, so I will: A regular tape player won't get you the results you're likely looking for. Cassettes have a total of 4 available tracks - this is done to acheive sterephonic sound, meaning 2 channels per side of tape (Left & Right). A typical home cassette player can only read two channels at a time, whereas a multitrack recording device like those old tascams read all four channels simultaneously.

In practice, this means that if you play your old demos and stuff on a regular player, you'll only hear two of the tracks you recorded, and some of them might even play backwards, depending on which track you used at the time.

So. Make sure you are using a 4 track recorder to pay back your tapes. Just use the stereo/mix out (it's usually a phono plug), and send that to the preamp of your choice. Open up your DAW, hit record, press play on the deck and walk away. Easy peasy.

I so didn’t even remember that those tascams do that, great recall... without a master all you have are tracks duh...

 

[superheavyfunk]

Unless I missed something, I do not think the OP is trying to remix a 4-track, just a regular (2-track, 2-side) cassette tape.

Guess I just assumed that "band tapes" meant 4-track tapes because that's what all of mine are.

 

[higain617]

Boombox, held over your head in the rain, while someone records a video of you on their iPhone.

Why did you feel the need to Say Anything?

 

[fishdreams]

I found a good clean cassette deck on ebay. $50 for a decent Onkyo from the 80ties or early 90ties. That is what I would do.

We brought the hardcopy version of our latest release out on cassette, btw. They are coming back, cheap to have made and fun to do, and patrons are more likely to shelve out a few bucks for a cassette than for a cd.

 

[gumtown]

Buy, beg, borrow, or steal a decent old school tape deck player, one which has Dolby B/C options,
as it would be a bonus if the tape was recorded with Dolby enabled.
Also a head cleaner kit (iso and cotton bud), as old tapes dirty the playback head quite often (they gather mould often).
Then playback stereo line out into an average quality USB 2 channel audio device, recorded as .wav format into a software (Audacity will do the job).
Rewind the tape, play/record side 1 to the end,
eject tape and insert reverse side,
play/record side 2 to the end.
Save recorded file.
repeat for next tape.