View Full Version : Who digitizes their vinyl....
And what do you use.... asked this elsewhere. Any of you doing this .? Is it blasfamy? Does it sound good?
And what do you use.... asked this elsewhere. Any of you doing this .? Is it blasfamy? Does it sound good?
I do with some albums. I just use a preamp of some sort and a focusrite audio interface. You can use a standalone preamp or the tape monitor out on a receiver. They sound pretty much the same being played back through the same amplification.
I use audacity for software. You can use it to take the pops and noise out of rough albums too. There are a bunch of filters for doing it.
I haven't found a turntable that has a good usb out on it yet.
Was thinking about it, but decided it was too much like hard work :) If I have vinyl I want in digital format I try to buy it or record it from a stream using Replay Music 7. Did copy one lp using a audio cd recorder, then ripped to flac using Exact Audio Copy.
Most of the ones I have done it too are 78s, or they were my Grandpa's. They don't have much life left in them.
I'd like to digitize all of my 45s but that would be an undertaking. I'm not even sure how many I have anymore. Even if I used a stacker and did 8 at a time it would probably take years.
Digitising vinyl records is one of the many things that life's too short for. It was enough of a PITA taping the things for my nephew! I've bought CDs of the most knackered recordings instead, and can access most of the others via Spotify.
I've thought about just keeping it hooked up all the time and just recording them all when I play them. I never go to the trouble of breaking up the tracks.
Gordon Steadman
09-03-2017, 16:32
I did all my vinyl. First to CDs and then onto the Mac with lossless. I hear very kittle if any difference between the CDs and the Mac.
I used my main TT into an external DAC and also use Audacity. Once done, everything goes through Click Repair and De-noise - brilliant progs at about 40 australian dollars from memory. I do separate all the tracks. There are too many records that have fillers and most have favourite tracks. Sod artistic integrity.
I've still kept the records, or most of them, though, as in spite of how good the digital files sound, there is definitely something missing. Not something you could prove but an engagement with the music seems slightly reduced somehow.
The problem is that the Mac is just so convenient. I am not one of those who think that the whole ritual involved with vinyl makes it sound better. Pain the the bum really.
Cycleallday
09-03-2017, 17:13
And what do you use.... asked this elsewhere. Any of you doing this .? Is it blasfamy? Does it sound good?
I digitise old vinyl which I do not want to re - buy in digital format.
I use a Rega phono (Mini A2D) which has a digital usb output as well as RCA.
For software I use Vinyl Studio which is cheap and very easy to use. It can also identify track ends and add meta data to the digitised tracks. If you want to go further it can remove pops and clicks but I never bother. Well pleased with result which equate to cd quality and are fine for my purposes.
Too much hassle. I just buy it again on CD if it is a fiver or less.
Dubster68
09-03-2017, 20:46
I had all good intensions but after around 10 albums I gave up. To mind numbing for me:mental:
I started digitising LPs a long while back to copy stuff that wasn't readily available on CD and at a time when online wasn't an option - quality wise or for availability.
Initially used a Behringer Firewire device, then a little Terratec USB thingy - both did an OK job really but recently acquired a Focusrite Saffire for very little money and this does a much better job than both and is more versatile. I use Audacity for the authoring bit and am more than happy messing about separating tracks etc but quite honestly can't be bothered unless needs must. Only do it now for stuff I definitely can't get on CD (such as an obscure Bella Bartok recording and one or two other things I've found)
Stratmangler
09-03-2017, 22:21
The mastering is different for each format, so you don't necessarily have the same thing, even if you do have the LP and the CD versions.
The mastering is different for each format, so you don't necessarily have the same thing, even if you do have the LP and the CD versions.
That's very true. Some are pretty close. Other ones are terrible on one or the other. Usually the CD, but not always.
Stratmangler
10-03-2017, 00:36
That's very true. Some are pretty close. Other ones are terrible on one or the other. Usually the CD, but not always.
Exactly!
Any fans of Red Hot Chili Peppers who have not heard the vinyl release of Stadium Arcadium have not heard this album in all its glory.
You can almost guarantee that the band will have delivered a finished master (ie the way the band intended it to be heard) to the record company, and if that's where things stopped everything would be fine and dandy.
Unfortunately, the record company will then send the master to various mastering engineers, with instructions as to how things should be mastered.
With vinyl it's often sent to an established old hand, with instructions to do a decent cut. Old hand does the job properly.
With CD the instructions could be to make it as loud as possible, to compete with other stuff being released by other record companies. Engineer does as he's/she's asked, as they'd like to get paid for the job, and to get repeat work from the client (ie the record company).
A lot comes down to the abuses that can be administered to a recording - vinyl doesn't do widely dynamic and really loud very well, but what it does do well it does extremely well.
CD can do wide dynamic, and really loud, but unfortunately the wide dynamic bit gets ignored, and really loud becomes the goal. In practise the wide dynamics are a bit of a non goer, as pretty well all recordings use compression in some form to lower the dynamics in the first place in order to make the recordings sound more natural. And it's been standard practise for more years than I've been around.
Yep. The MFSL CDs compared to the regular ones from the record shop usually show how bad they compressed it. I've heard a few of those that weren't great as well. I have some LPs that were cut terribly too.
Audio Al
10-03-2017, 05:09
:scratch: Why on earth would you want to do that :scratch:
Rothchild
10-03-2017, 07:01
:scratch: Why on earth would you want to do that :scratch:
Straightforwardly:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_war
In depth:
http://www.soundonsound.com/sound-advice/dynamic-range-loudness-war
Stratmangler
10-03-2017, 07:40
:scratch: Why on earth would you want to do that :scratch:
Do what?
Audio Al
10-03-2017, 09:25
Do what?
digitizes their vinyl..:scratch:
Stratmangler
10-03-2017, 09:38
digitizes their vinyl..:scratch:
Because the mastering's often better than the CD counterpart.
If you've recorded from the LP it then makes sense to stick it on yer server if you do streaming, and to burn CDs if you don't. Saves on wear and tear on the vinyl rig/software.
Audio Al
10-03-2017, 09:42
Because the mastering's often better than the CD counterpart.
If you've recorded from the LP it then makes sense to stick it on yer server if you do streaming, and to burn CDs if you don't. Saves on wear and tear on the vinyl rig/software.
OK
I will stick with my much loved and regularly fondled vinyl :D
Stratmangler
10-03-2017, 09:56
Try playing it in yer truck while yer driving around :eyebrows:
Audio Al
10-03-2017, 10:12
Try playing it in yer truck while yer driving around :eyebrows:
No Can do , I am a good boy and a responsible driver " and all that " I only fondle when I am at home :lol:
:scratch: Why on earth would you want to do that :scratch:
My portable table weighs 75 pounds.
WESTLOWER
10-03-2017, 14:20
Not me! tried it years ago...not worth it
Try playing it in yer truck while yer driving around :eyebrows:
I had a 45 player in my first truck. It was a 55 Chevy. It mounted underneath the dash, and was a factory option. It worked alright but it was rough on the records.
Thanks for all the info chaps.interesting divergence of opinion. Just in case i fancy a hobby later.
Gordon Steadman
10-03-2017, 16:08
digitizes their vinyl..:scratch:
Apart from anything else Al, there are times when you just can't risk using records. Like now for instance here. I have been breaking up a concrete slab and no matter how careful, dust is inevitable. Most of the hi-fi and the LPs are locked away in a sealed room and it's just the Mac (bad enough but I can hoover it out) as source. There is no way I can go without my favourite music for the couple of months of building work coming up so it makes sense to have everything digitised.
Sounds very good actually. If I had to, I could listen to it quite happily on a permanent basis. It's only when compared directly that the difference becomes obvious.
I won't be getting rid of the LPs though.
Devialet digitises phono inputs then converts back to analogue. Works really well, not least because the system uses a database with the correct settings for just about any cartridge. The USB socket is 2-way so you can take the phono input straight to a computer. Really rather clever, if not "old school".
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sherwood
12-03-2017, 21:09
I had a 45 player in my first truck. It was a 55 Chevy. It mounted underneath the dash, and was a factory option. It worked alright but it was rough on the records.
Did you have the hands free option?
:wowzer:
Did you have the hands free option?
:wowzer:
Nope. Some of the later models had changers like a jukebox. Mine didn't.
Devialet digitises phono inputs then converts back to analogue. Works really well, not least because the system uses a database with the correct settings for just about any cartridge. The USB socket is 2-way so you can take the phono input straight to a computer. Really rather clever, if not "old school".
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Those are cool, but I could pay someone to do it for what those things cost. There's a lot of gear inside those boxes. I've never seen them before.
Those are cool, but I could pay someone to do it for what those things cost. There's a lot of gear inside those boxes. I've never seen them before.
I bought the Devialet for reasons other than its ability to do A/D recording, namely:
- Depending on the streaming card due later this year, it will replace between 6 and 8 audio boxes.
- A fairly cost-neutral system change
- It sounds better
- The whole family can use it. Sits hidden in a cupboard. Turns on from the power button on the wifi remote and operated from an app, old audio system requited turning on and off at least 4 units. Consequently, it gets used a lot more.
Best decision I ever made, plus I can digitise my vinyl which I could not do before.
I bought the Devialet for reasons other than its ability to do A/D recording, namely:
- Depending on the streaming card due later this year, it will replace between 6 and 8 audio boxes.
- A fairly cost-neutral system change
- It sounds better
- The whole family can use it. Sits hidden in a cupboard. Turns on from the power button on the wifi remote and operated from an app, old audio system requited turning on and off at least 4 units. Consequently, it gets used a lot more.
Best decision I ever made, plus I can digitise my vinyl which I could not do before.
I looks like a top notch system, and it doesn't take up your whole living room. I see the benefits of it. I'm just cheap.
Starterman
13-03-2017, 13:30
I digitise my vinyl where it's impossible or expensive to buy a CD version, or where the mastering is preferable. There are many benefits:
Crackle removal by software improves many LPs
No chance of acoustic feedback colouring the sound at high playback levels (probably worse with unsuspended decks)
Instant track access, to miss out the duffers (duffer-free albums are remarkably rare!)
Can be played in the car or on the move
I don't have to have the record player (and all its paraphernalia) in my living room
With only one source I don't need a preamp
I'm sure there's more....
I did try it in the 90's but it was such a faff and the software available at the time was not that good but I did try
Had a preamp to connect the turntable to line in on my sound card and software the cleaned (or attempted to clean) all the pops and clicks and software that split the wav file into individual tracks.
None of it did that great a job so in the end I gave up
Things are much better now but the DL options are so vast now it's just not worth the hassle.
Paul
Landloper
14-03-2017, 10:48
I sometimes transfer vinyl to CD or computer, Grant.
Rega RP3/Elys 24 & Rega TTP >
Rega Fono >
Pioneer PDR 609 CD Recorder
I get good results with the copies made on the Pioneer, though it is a time consuming process and you have to be on hand if you want track marks in the appropriate places. I have also digitized vinyl onto a Mac using 'Audacity' software and an analogue to USB adapter [I think it cost under £10.00], or by passing vinyl signal through the CDR and then into the Mac via optical. The latter path is more flexible as you have a range of editiing and filter options with Audacity that you don't have with the CD Recorder. With well-recorded LPs in good condition I usually record straight to CDR, while with LPs in middling condition I use the computer software so as to be able to minimize the effects of damage.
Anyone recomend modern software that will automatically detect the silence between tracks and split the file into individual tracks.
And anything modern that does an quick or automatic job of cleaning clicks etc as well.
Thanks
Paul
Landloper
14-03-2017, 13:26
Hello, Paul:
Audacity has a facility called 'Analyse' and you can select 'silence finder'. You also have the option to set the parameters of what constitutes a silence. It will insert track breaks, but in practice I found this process not entirely reliable. The more scratched the LP[ the more the silence detector struggles to correctly identify the real break between tracks and if you listen to classical, as I do, there are often silences within the piece that might be misidentified as track breaks. Users can also select whole pieces of audio for click removal rather than having to identify each click and then remove it. Again this is not without limitations.
I have only ever used Audacity - it was offered free - so perhaps other software sold by Sony, Adobe, &c may provide a better solution.
Think Audacity is well enough rated by what i can see. I tried it once but it was with 78s. Also not sure i did it right. Not great at these things for some reason...probably my idiocy.
Setting the levels is the most important part. Almost any interface comes with a software mixer now. Audacity is fine for that purpose. There are expensive programs, but they are geared towards full fledged studio use. It's overkill in my opinion. Most of the plugins for the high end programs work with Audacity too. It
Anyone recomend modern software that will automatically detect the silence between tracks and split the file into individual tracks.
And anything modern that does an quick or automatic job of cleaning clicks etc as well.
Thanks
Paul
Hi Paul - I've been using VinylStudio with a NAD phono stage to rip select LPs at 16/48kHz and I have been very pleased with the results - I've reviewed VinylStudio and some of the kit I've used on my blog https://digitalprakel.wordpress.com too many bits to give individual links. DGP
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