A $30 Walkman that writes to SD cards? I don't even have to try it to know it's going to be pretty poor quality. It really depends on how picky you are.
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Best Cassette to digital option?
- Thread starter deff
- Start date
A $30 Walkman that writes to SD cards? I don't even have to try it to know it's going to be pretty poor quality. It really depends on how picky you are.
i mean it is 2021 afterall, perhaps someone has invented some extremely sensitive magnetic device that can read an entire cassette tape and convert it to digital audio but... i don't think that exists.
Yes it is 2021, but the recordings were made with old technology. That technology requires sequential playback of the recording since there are no time stamps on the music—- it’s not a digital file. Playback at high speed, then slowing the final product might be an option wot the right equipment.
oh hey! i have a lot of musical friends in Gloucester...
yeah you do need a tape deck to digitize cassette tapes... i don't have one anymore either... probably cheaper to get a used deck and the rca to quarter inch adapter needed to hook it up to your audio interface than it would be to have someone else do it for you. if you do get a used deck, be sure to clean and demagnitize the heads, rollers, and capstan before you put a tape in it...
How good are the original recordings? What's your budget to get this done?
Anyway, get a good quality home stereo cassette deck. The best ones were made by Nakamichi, but decks from Yamaha, Onkyo, Pioneer, Kenwood, ect should be fine. You can still buy cassette recorders new, that might be your best choice if you can afford it, you can buy a Invalid Link Removed for well under $200 US. A used machine may have issues, typically caused by deterioration of all the little rubber belts and rollers that are used for the cassettes' transport mechanism.
Line out from the cassette deck to the inputs on the audio interface of your choice. Then, software on a computer for editing and cleanup, with Audacity being the default choice for freeware. The Audacity manual has a instructions and procedures on how to "rip" analog sources to digital.
By the way, some audio clean up can be done by software, but don't expect miracles.
Anyway, get a good quality home stereo cassette deck. The best ones were made by Nakamichi, but decks from Yamaha, Onkyo, Pioneer, Kenwood, ect should be fine. You can still buy cassette recorders new, that might be your best choice if you can afford it, you can buy a Invalid Link Removed for well under $200 US. A used machine may have issues, typically caused by deterioration of all the little rubber belts and rollers that are used for the cassettes' transport mechanism.
Line out from the cassette deck to the inputs on the audio interface of your choice. Then, software on a computer for editing and cleanup, with Audacity being the default choice for freeware. The Audacity manual has a instructions and procedures on how to "rip" analog sources to digital.
By the way, some audio clean up can be done by software, but don't expect miracles.
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For extra fidelity, makes sure you do this in the vicinity of a Chrysler Cordoba coupe.
I can burn them onto CDs for you if that would help, I'm about a half hour from you. Send me a message if you want.
Yep as folks have already said it's going to be real time transfer and then editing.
Lots of work for sure, but the first thing you need is a way to play the tape. Check out yard sales
and make sure you clean the heads and demagnetize first.
You may need adapters to get it into your daw from the RCA connectors, and get it as hot as you can going in to
help reduce noise.
There is not an automated process, it's all manual intervention. You can however reduce the hiss and noise with plugins, but again more manual work.
You'll have to decide if it's worth the effort or not.
Good luck,
Dirk
Lots of work for sure, but the first thing you need is a way to play the tape. Check out yard sales
and make sure you clean the heads and demagnetize first.
You may need adapters to get it into your daw from the RCA connectors, and get it as hot as you can going in to
help reduce noise.
There is not an automated process, it's all manual intervention. You can however reduce the hiss and noise with plugins, but again more manual work.
You'll have to decide if it's worth the effort or not.
Good luck,
Dirk
Here is a recording made of my dad and his group on a cassette deck.
This is a transfer from cassette to digital then to Youtube. I had the original deck so there's that.
I ran the deck into my DAW via an M Audio interface. Thought it would be cool to share so I made a video out of found stuff and photos of my dad and group.
My dad on piano, banter and champagne
The sound quality is what it is, after all, it's a cassette
Enjoy
This is a transfer from cassette to digital then to Youtube. I had the original deck so there's that.
I ran the deck into my DAW via an M Audio interface. Thought it would be cool to share so I made a video out of found stuff and photos of my dad and group.
My dad on piano, banter and champagne
The sound quality is what it is, after all, it's a cassette
Enjoy
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What they said. Seriously, the toughest item is having a decent running cassette deck. I've tossed many of mine (Tascam 122Bs, Nakamichi MR1s and BR1s) but retain one Tascam 112mkII. The belts and rollers need to be in good shape particularly the pinch roller. Clean and demagnetize the heads. Make sure the head cleaner, denatured alcohol, dries completely before loading a tape. The tape might already be disintegrating. If so, it'll bind to the tape guides and heads while the cassette deck will struggle to pull it through. If it is not sticky, it still may shed substantially. Clean the heads and guides after a short play and look at the q-tip to see how much oxide is coming off. You may have very few plays left before the tape is toast.I t is helpful to know what noise reduction and maybe EQ curves were used on each tape.
A decent two channel interface helps. Record in at minimum 24-bit; sample rate not so critical but the same as most other material, 44.1kHz. I keep the original transferred and unprocessed 24-bit files in archive. I also clean up the audio, Izotope RX Advanced and shoot for a level of -14dB LUFS in a 16-bit file.
A decent two channel interface helps. Record in at minimum 24-bit; sample rate not so critical but the same as most other material, 44.1kHz. I keep the original transferred and unprocessed 24-bit files in archive. I also clean up the audio, Izotope RX Advanced and shoot for a level of -14dB LUFS in a 16-bit file.
Ric5
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a 4 track cassette player can be set to only play 2 tracks ... i have done in it dozens of times ...
The track alignment for a stereo cassette is not identical to a 4 track cassette. Tracks 1 + 2 & 3 + 4 are each a pair in the stereo scheme, with a slightly larger gap between tracks 2 & 3 than in the 4 track design. So when you play a stereo tape in a 4 track, you are mis-aligned on those tracks, and will loose high frequency response.
Yes I have done it, but it's not optimal compared to a properly setup stereo machine.
4 years ago I got a NOS Marantz PMD 430, which has DBX and 3 heads, for $200. It replaced my Yamaha K2000 which had finally died.
Sadly, the last time I saw one of those Marantz decks up for sale, it was $700 (the original 1997 retail price, IIRC).
If anyone is looking to buy a deck today, get either a TASCAM or high-end TEAC. Parts are still available. In fact, you can get a NEW TASCAM deck with a warranty!
Yes I have done it, but it's not optimal compared to a properly setup stereo machine.
4 years ago I got a NOS Marantz PMD 430, which has DBX and 3 heads, for $200. It replaced my Yamaha K2000 which had finally died.
Sadly, the last time I saw one of those Marantz decks up for sale, it was $700 (the original 1997 retail price, IIRC).
If anyone is looking to buy a deck today, get either a TASCAM or high-end TEAC. Parts are still available. In fact, you can get a NEW TASCAM deck with a warranty!
